Nehemiah

Composition

Nehemiah, or the book of Nehemiah, is a thirteen-chapter book of the Old Testament that follows 1 and 2 Chronicles and Ezra, and precedes the book of Esther. Biblical scholars often view 1 and 2 Chronicles, Ezra, and Nehemiah as parts of a single narrative because they contain a summarized history of the early Israelites up through the time when the Jews returned from the Babylonian exile to rebuild their holt temple.

Nehemiah and Ezra are most clearly linked, and in early versions of the Old Testate, were presented together as a single book, sometimes called the book of Esdras and Nehemias. In modern times, Nehemiah and Ezra are printed separately in most Bibles, but scholars acknowledge that they are very similar in their narrative flow, topics, and linguistic style. Many scholars believe the books were written by a single author. Traditional belief holds that the book of Nehemiah was written, at least in part, by the historical figure Nehemiah. This belief seems to be supported by the fact that much of the book is presented from Nehemiah’s first-person perspective. However, the connections to the book of Ezra creates a possibility that the scholar Ezra had a major role in the writing Nehemiah, or at least compiled much of it from the writings of Nehemiah. The books are also closely tied to 1 and 2 Chronicles, whose author is anonymous and referred to simply as “the chronicler.” The possibility exists that the chronicler was Ezra or Nehemiah. The question is still debated and researched by scholars into the twenty-first century.

Just as the authorship of the book cannot be proven, the date of its writing is also subject to debate. A hint in the first chapter of Nehemiah places the beginning of the writing twenty years into the reign of Persian king Artaxerxes, which would have been about 444 BC. However, the book may have been written over a significant amount of time, or written in sections or by multiple authors, making its exact date of creation uncertain. Beyond that, scholars may only state with certainty that the book was completed following the Babylonian exile and the first three waves of the Israelite return to Jerusalem.

Summary

The narrative of Nehemiah stems from the previous books, primarily that of Ezra. In Ezra, the Persian king Cyrus announces that the Israelites who had been forced to live in Babylon following the destruction of Jerusalem in 586 BCE were free to return to Jerusalem and rebuild the city and its temple. A member of the exiled Israelites, Zerubbabel, takes on this challenge and leads a large band of people out of Babylon. This faction rebuilds the temple, which is supposed to be a world-changing event during which God would appear to the Israelites—but this miraculous event does not occur. Many Israelites feel dismayed. At the same time, social tensions arise between the exiled Israelites who have returned and the Israelites who had never been sent into exile.

About sixty years later, a subsequent Persian king, Artaxerxes, releases another Israelite leader named Ezra from exile. Ezra and his followers return to Jerusalem hoping to teach the lessons of the Torah and restore the faith of Israelites who have strayed spiritually so they can rebuild their relationship with God. However, Ezra is scandalized to discover that many of the previously exiled Israelites had intermarried with other groups, and he pushes with limited success for them to divorce to save the racial and spiritual purity of the exiled Israelites.

The book of Nehemiah opens shortly after the narrative of Ezra closes. Early in the book, readers are introduced to Nehemiah, a member of the Israelites still in exile, who has risen through the Persian ranks and became the cupbearer to the Persian king Artaxerxes. Although the book gives few hints as to Nehemiah’s early life, scholars believe his high standing in the Persian nobility showed that he was a man of good character and considerable talents. Nehemiah also maintained a strong interest in the goings-on of Jerusalem and the Israelites who had previously returned there in the waves led by Zerubbabel and Ezra.

In chapters 1–7, Artaxerxes learns that Nehemiah is deeply troubled by the state of Jerusalem, particularly the city’s walls that had been ruined during the Babylonian invasion, leaving the people largely undefended against outside incursions. The king fully supports the effort to rebuild Jerusalem and rekindle the Jewish faith there, and dispatches Nehemiah along with a train of helpers and resources to attend to the rebuilding of the walls.

Despite this extensive support, Nehemiah struggles with the task. One of the main obstacles he faces is theological. Prophets of the day insisted that Jerusalem should not have any walls. Rather, it was God’s intention to have the city be open to believers from all corners of the world. At the same time, God’s power would defend the city from any hostilities, thus making walls not only unnecessary, but an affront to God’s plans and protective powers. Nehemiah does not take this criticism lightly, especially from people living outside of Jerusalem, and insists that these people are not part of Jerusalem or his grand plans for the city. Although Nehemiah proceeds with his task with honorable determination and courage, his isolationist stance stirs up ire. Tension builds between the people inside and outside of Jerusalem, as well as among religious scholars who debate God’s plans for an open city.

In Nehemiah 8–12, Nehemiah allies himself with Ezra, the religious teacher who had led the second wave of Israelites from exile. Together, the leaders plan a festival in Jerusalem meant to renew the Jewish faith and obedience to the Torah and God’s laws. During this event, the formerly exiled Israelites turn out to pray, offer thanks to God, and confess their sins and transgressions. They then hold a festive celebration that seems to restore their faith and strength and set Jerusalem on a course for greatness.

However, the closing chapter of the book shows that this great promise goes dramatically unfulfilled. Chapter 13 describes the aftermath of the seven-day celebration, as shown through the perspective of Nehemiah as he tours the city. Nehemiah is greatly dismayed to see that the people of the city, who had just pledged themselves to following their laws and honoring God’s demands, are falling far short in every measure. Nehemiah is shocked by the poor maintenance and staffing of the newly rebuilt temple, the flagrant violations of the rules of the Torah, and shopkeepers who erect stalls along the new walls of the city to conduct business on the Sabbath day. The book closes with Nehemiah fuming with rage and despair and begging God to see that he, Nehemiah, had done his best despite what appears to be a massive failure.

Themes

The themes of the book of Nehemiah, like the narrative itself, largely stem from the preceding book of Ezra. Seen as a whole, the books share a theme of repetition. In each book, members of the exiled Israelites, with Persian support, return to Jerusalem in attempts to restore the city and temple and to rekindle the faith of the people there. In Ezra, the returning leaders are Zerubbabel and Ezra. Zerubbabel oversees the rebuilding of the temple and Ezra seeks to teach the Torah. In Nehemiah, the leader is Nehemiah himself, who focuses mainly on the city walls, and then collaborates with Ezra for a spiritual celebration.

Following on the theme of repetition, each of these three cycles begins on a strong note of hope but then ends in significant disappointment, tension, or outright failure. The letdowns culminate in the end of Nehemiah, when the leader sees that the temple is neglected and the people are violating God’s laws, and laments the apparent total loss of the entire effort.

Scholars have noted that these repeated disappointments are not meant to dishearten the reader. Rather, an overarching theme of both Nehemiah and Ezra is that change may be difficult and confusing, and that prophesies are not always fulfilled by direct or obvious means. The Israelites, who seem in these books to be almost hopelessly strayed from their faith, have not truly failed. Instead, they have only chosen the wrong steps toward their ultimate goal. Fixing the temple, studying religious texts, or rebuilding a city wall prove to be relatively superficial acts in the eyes of God, who requires that people truly turn their hearts to him before he can carry out his great plans.

Bibliography

Fensham, F. Charles. The Books of Ezra and Nehemiah. William B. Eerdmans Publishing Co., 1982.

Hwang, Jerry. Exegetical Commentary on the Old Testament: A Discourse Analysis of the Hebrew Bible. Zondervan Academic, 2021.

“Introduction to the Book of Nehemiah.” The Church of Jesus Christ of Latter Day Saints, 2022, www.churchofjesuschrist.org/study/manual/old-testament-seminary-teacher-manual/introduction-to-the-book-of-nehemiah?lang=eng. Accessed 26 April 2022.

“Nehemiah.” Insight for the Living Ministries, 2022, insight.org/resources/bible/the-historical-books/nehemiah. Accessed 26 April 2022.

“The Jewish Temples: After the Babylonian Exile.” Jewish Virtual Library, 2022, www.jewishvirtuallibrary.org/after-the-babylonian-exile. Accessed 26 April 2022.