Category Archives: Nehemiah

Nehemiah 13:15-31

Some Scripture-Digging Tips

Notice patterns.

Take note of any repeated words or phrases in this chapter. Circle them and look at how they highlight a key theme of the passage.

Pair the passages.

Read this Scripture section alongside Proverbs 28:14 and 2 Corinthians 6:14. How do the details of one help support the truth of the other?

The Technicalities

It’s been eight years since the Jews re-established their Nehemiah 10 covenant with God – a vow in which they promised not to marry their children to the people of the land or buy goods sold on the Sabbath and to bring their firstfruits and the tithes of their land to the Levites (a tenth of which they put in the storehouse rooms).

Nehemiah 13:1-14

Some Scripture-Digging Tips

Get the background.

Nehemiah 13:1 tells the “what” of the Ammonite/Moabite separation. Read Deuteronomy 23:3-4 and Numbers 22 to understand the “why.”

Pair the passages.

Read this Scripture section alongside 2 Peter 2:12-17. How do the details of one help support the truth of the other?

The Technicalities

The first three verses of Nehemiah 13 set the stage for the remaining part of it, but we’re going talk about verses 4-14 first – the part before God’s people heeded the principles of separation outlined in verses 1-3 when Eliashib the priest had authority over the temple storerooms.

Nehemiah 12:27-47

Some Scripture-Digging Tips

Get the background.

Take a look at 1 Chronicles 23-26 and David’s precedent for worship to get further insight into Levitical worship.

Pair the passages.

Read this Scripture section alongside Ephesians 5:18-19. How do the details of one help support the truth of the other?

The Technicalities

After a quick historical recap, Nehemiah 12:27 returns to the “modern day” (the days when Eliashib was the High Priest) and the dedication of the wall of Jerusalem.

Nehemiah 12:1-26

Some Scripture-Digging Tips

Get the background.

Take a look at 1 Chronicles 23-26 and David’s precedent for worship to get further insight into Levitical worship.

Pair the passages.

Read this Scripture section alongside Ephesians 5:18-19. How do the details of one help support the truth of the other?

The Technicalities

If, in the last few chapters of Nehemiah, you have forgotten that the books of Ezra and Nehemiah are intimately intertwined, this first section of Nehemiah 12 is a reminder.

Nehemiah 11

Some Scripture-Digging Tips

Set the scene.

Try to picture life in the city in its current state (compare Nehemiah 11:1 with 2:3 and 7:4).

Pair the passages.

Read Nehemiah 11:2 alongside Luke 6:38. How do the details of one help support the truth of the other?

The Technicalities

The gates have been rebuilt. Steely opposition has sulked away. Feasts have been celebrated, temporary tabernacles constructed and dismantled again, covenants sealed, faith renewed.