Walking in the Word - Nehemiah 2 (Part 1)

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Aug. 22, 2008

Nehemiah 2 (Part 1)

Posted in Study: Nehemiah

Good morning, friends! I hope your days are full of blessings. Our weeks here are buzzing along, and suddenly they are picking up steam. So, here we are. It's Monday morning, and I fully intend to take a look at Nehemiah again with you. We're in chapter two now. May we all be blessed.

As always, let's pray before we begin. This is critical for me today, since I know I have the temptation to "color" study from my own perspective. I prefer to let the Word of God speak for itself and for the Spirit to counsel and teach.

Heavenly Father, we have the privilege of coming to You, and for that we are truly thankful! We come to You know we cannot possibly fathom the depths of Your Bible without Your teaching and guidance. So, we earnestly seek the still, small voice of the Holy Spirit as we read to glean wisdom from your field of Scripture, Father. Hear our cry for Your instruction and bless us by your grace and mercy, please.

How awesome it is to proceed knowing He can transform our interaction with Scripture when we ask! Thank you, Jesus, for making a way for this very intimate time as we study!

Chapter two is where our story begins to pick up some steam. In the first two verses we get a little information for context. The month is now Nisan. The reigning king is Artaxerxes; he's been king for twenty years. Nehemiah is cupbearer to the king, which we learned last chapter at the very end, and he is actively serving the king at this time. Nehemiah includes specific details such as "I had not been sad in his presence before" and the fact that the king notices. We also know Nehemiah "was very much afraid" (Neh. 2: 1-2) What does all of this mean to us as modern-day students of the Word?

Well, we can now see the news of Jerusalem's sorry state of affairs was delivered to Nehemiah in the month of Kislev. The story continues in the month Nisan. Most of us are unfamiliar with the calendar to which the Bible refers, so this might be glossed over in a casual read of the passage. Here we can see it is approximately four months later. We know Nehemiah's response was to weep and pray. Is it possible he was "fully invested" in the plight of Jerusalem and God's people four months later? Nehemiah "had not been sad in [the king's] presence before" but the king is aware of his sadness (Neh. 2: 2). One thing we culturally "miss" in our reading of Scripture is the consequence for a downcast face in the presence of a king. That was a costly countenance, even to the point of death.

So, who is this king who takes notice of Nehemiah's downcast countenance and responds in an unexpected way?

1 The first Artaxerxes,1 preëminent among the kings of Persia for gentleness and magnanimity, was surnamed Longimanus, because his right hand was longer than his left, and was the son of Xerxes (Plutarch, Life of Artaxerxes).

Fascinating. We have a king who was known for "gentleness and magnanimity" during his reign. Perhaps the events following Nehemiah's explanation for his sadness is the very reason for the king's reputation. Interesting information to file away. God has allowed a king, under very interesting circumstances, to come to power at just the right time to aid His people.

Nehemiah is exemplary to us. Look at his response when the king questions his "sadness of heart" in verse 2:
I was very much afraid, but I said to the king, "May the king live forever! Why should my face not look sad when the city where my fathers are buried lies in ruins, and its gates have been destroyed by fire?" (Neh. 2:3)

I happen to notice Nehemiah is humble, respectful, and grace-filled in his response to the king. This was probably a wise choice on his part, but let's not forget he has spent several months emotionally, physically, and spiritually fully invested on behalf of his people, God's people. I don't think we read too much into the passage by saying God has been leading Nehemiah the whole way.

It's especially easy to read this in the text in context of what happens next.

God chooses to lead King Artaxerxes to ask Nehemiah a key question, "What is it you want?" (Neh. 2:4) Wow! The king has options in his response. This is not the expected response, but it is the one that I believe God prompts the king to have. Any other king may have chosen the "off with his 'ead" response.

Don't miss the next most important thing Nehemiah does! We can learn much from the wisdom of Nehemiah in all things, I think. He doesn't drone on about the conditions and the unfairness of it all. He doesn't even list those who are at fault whom he would like the king to annihilate. He responds to the king's question with . . . prayer! "Then I prayed to the God of heaven," he writes (Neh. 2:4b). Ah, that I would pray before I speak more often.

After praying, Nehemiah presents his requests. Let's look at the short list.
"If it pleases the king . . . "

"send me to the city in Judah where my fathers are buried so I can rebuild it" (Neh. 2:5).
"may I have letters to the governors of the Trans-Euphrates, so they will provide me safe-conduct until I arrive in Judah?" (Neh. 2:7)
"may I have a letter to Asaph, keeper of the king's forest, so he will give me timber to make beams for the gates . . . and for the city wall and for the residence I will occupy?" (Neh. 2:8)

A few interesting things about this list of requests come to mind. Nehemiah wants to travel to the city where his fathers are buried. (Bonus points to the person who knows why this might have "spoken" to the king's heart of hearts!) Nehemiah asks for safe transport through the area that is now fairly unstable and unsafe to travel. He takes it one step further in asking for the wood he'll need to rebuild. The required timer for this job was not going to be a few trees.

Nehemiah 2:8b says "And because the gracious hand of my God was upon me, the king granted my requests." Notice that Nehemiah prayed before he asked (likely to hear God's direction on asking and the list of "asks" to make), and he is faithful to make the ask. God is gracious to work in the heart of Artaxerxes and in answering each and every request! How often do we pray first and then ask according to His will? Often the list of asks is more about me and less about Him. *sigh*

There is something more to note in verse 9. The king not only provides everything Nehemiah requested, but he goes above and beyond the short list. Take note that "the king had also sent army officers and calvary" with him!

In our home we talk about the difference between honor and respect. Respect is doing what is asked with a good and gracious heart. Honor is doing that . . . and more. Some may even call that "and then some!" Nehemiah receives honor from the king. Amazing.

This looks like a fantastic story! Don't worry, the plot thickens. Verse 10 indicates that there may be more characters for us to meet. Sanballat and Tobiah are introduced, and it doesn't look as if they intend to be Nehemiah's best friends.

More later.

Before I go I'd like to confess I wasn't sure anyone would notice if I took time off. Please forgive me. Apparently, this isn't about me. Let's see if I can manage to be faithful the way Nehemiah was in his task. Since I believe God called me to this, I'd like to remain faithful.

Blessings to you all! Enjoy your intimate times with the Savior!

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