Nehemiah was in a foreign country when he heard about the need to restore and defend Jerusalem. He got permission from the king of Persia to go back home to Jerusalem. (Nehemiah 2:5). This story establishes the Jew’s historical claim to Jerusalem and took place in 445 BC or over 2,000 years ago.
Like many today, a desire rose in Nehemiah’s heart to stand with Israel and to return home to restore and defend Jerusalem. Upon arrival, he went out secretly to examine the walls of the city which had been broken down, and to see the gates that had been burned. He then implored others to join him in restoring the walls of the city. (Neh. 2:17).
This is what I call The Nehemiah factor, and it is still at work today, as God’s people are inviting others to stand for Israel through prayer and support. They are getting the word out to pray for the Peace of Jerusalem and for God (Hashem) to protect and restore Israel according to His promises.
As is the case today, opposition arose in Nehemiah’s day to hinder the restoration of Jerusalem for the Jewish people from three governors in the region. Nehemiah had to fight on “three fronts” with these opposition leaders. These leaders included Sanballat the Horonite, along with Tobiah the Ammonite, and Geshem the Arab who came to mock and oppose these efforts. (Neh. 2:19/4:1). These opposition governors had one thing in common. They were acting as proxies of the king of Persia (Iran). They threatened to inform the king of Persia about the rebellion of the Jews. (Neh. 2:19). This axis of evil was angry with the Jews who were restoring Jerusalem and threatened to attack them. (Neh. 4:7,8).
Nehemiah set up a watch on the wall of Jerusalem to defend the city by placing the tribes by family to guard the openings. (Neh. 4:13). They would build, holding a weapon in one hand and a trowel in the other. Until the wall was finished, they would not have security and were open to destruction. Peace would come only when security was established. As Sanballat saw Nehemiah was close to securing Jerusalem, he called for a pause in the restoration of the wall and asked for a meeting in the valley of Ono. (Neh. 6:2).
The God Intension Factor.
From Nehemiah’s perspective, pausing the work could not be considered until security would be established. There could be no pause in the restoration of the wall of Jerusalem. This stall tactic by Sanballat was for the purpose of getting rid of Nehemiah. There were no real efforts to restore peace. Disruption of the work was to serve the terrorists interests’, which was not to normalize the relationship with Jerusalem. Nehemiah made his decision concerning the pause in building the wall based on what he saw as God’s purpose and priority. Normally, terrorists do not have the best interests of the people in mind. They are pursuing their own objectives to further their cause even if it means sacrificing the people. Nehemiah made his decision based on what God had sent him to do- to restore the walls and gates of Jerusalem, the Temple, and worship.
The Nehemiah Factor.
God gave Nehemiah a divine strategy that would ensure victory over the efforts of the enemy to hinder this work. Although the Jews were separated far from each other on the wall, Nehemiah gave them a new strategy. He told them,
“Whenever you hear the sound of the trumpet, rally to us there. Our God will fight for us.” (Neh. 4:19,20).
The Nehemiah Factor was based on the power of prayer agreement. Here are the key principles of this powerful strategy:
- They had to agree “to hear” from one another and hear the trumpet.
- They had to “make a covenant” to stand together and rally to wherever the enemy would attack them.
- They had to agree “to have faith” in God to protect them.
The Jews agreed to this plan, to this Covenential Agreement. Wherever they heard the trumpet, they knew that God would defend and fight for them.
The Nehemiah Factor and Covenant.
Nehemiah’s strategy points us to the power of the “Covenantal Agreement” when we corporately put our faith in God. The axis of evil opposition was defeated, and the wall was restored in spite of organized opposition. The organized opposition to Nehemiah’s work of restoring Jerusalem to the Jews is informative to the current opposition we see in Israel. Sanballat and those opposing this restoration sent five letters to Nehemiah, objecting to the work he was doing and calling for a pause to meet with Nehemiah. These letters would have been read publicly for all to hear in the town square which was their form of media.
Here are the ways the opposition tried to hinder the work of restoring Jerusalem and restoring the Jews back to their place in Israel.
- Sanballat sent a messenger five times making a declaration publicly accusing them of rebelling against the king and lying about their intentions. (v-6:2).
- He asked Nehemiah to pause the work and come meet in the in the valley of Ono.
(v-6:2). His intent was to harm Nehemiah and get him out of the way.
- A false prophecy of destruction was spoken to inject fear and confusion. (v-6:10-12).
- Nehemiah refused to pause the work on the walls of Jerusalem and finish the work of securing Jerusalem. He finished the work in only fifty-two days. (v-6:15).
- The work of restoring Jerusalem led to the restoration and dedication of the temple along with worship to God. (v-7:1; 8:1).
Note: Pausing the war in Gaza. The exchange of hostages may seem like a noble action to take. However, one must consider what are the advantages this provides to the terrorists. Advantages may include time to resupply, reestablish communications, and redeploy their warriors to fight. They will still be holding the majority of the hostages at the end of the day, even if they give up a small number of people. At some point, Israeli intelligence will find the hostages and free them all. Having the terrorists in Gaza regroup, resupply, and redeploy may make it harder to establish freedom and peace, for both the people of Gaza and Israel. This is where applying the “God intention factor” will help in asking the question, “How does granting what Hamas is asking for help or hurt the overall goals of establishing peace and security for both Israel and the Palestinians in Gaza?”
God (Hashem) is calling the Nehemiah’s of our day to arise and seek for the restoration of Jerusalem, the restoration of the land of Israel, and for the restoration God’s covenant purposes for the Jews. Opposition may call for a pause in this restoration to hinder the work. They may threaten to attack and falsely predict destruction upon Israel. Governors and rulers of other nations may unite against what God is doing, but Israel must stay the course and complete their work. The restoration of Israel’s land and promises presupposes honoring all the covenants God has made with them in the past. This honoring of the covenant with God includes what Hashem has said about the land belonging to the Jewish people. The truth may be that continuing to remove Hamas’s ability to fight is the best way to free all the hostages in Gaza.
In our day, we see God’s people around the world praying and standing with Israel. They are praying for the peace of Jerusalem and the restoration of the covenant land given to Israel, along with the end of the war and the return of the hostages. On May 14, 2023, over 290,000 people gathered in Washington, D.C. to pray for and show their support for Israel. Another 250,000 participated online. This rally last week with over 500,000 participating is the largest ever held at the Washington Mall for Israel.
The Nehemiah factor is still at work.
People all over the world are “hearing the sound of the trumpet” to rally and pray for Israel and express their support. God is answering these declarations of faith and is fighting for Israel. (Neh. 4:19).
“Whenever you hear the sound of the trumpet, rally to us there.
Our God will fight for us.” (Neh. 4:19,20).
