Old City Wall in Jerusalem

Nehemiah Dedicates the Wall

And at the dedication of the wall of Jerusalem they sought the Levites out of all their places, to bring them to Jerusalem, to keep the dedication with gladness, both with thanksgivings, and with singing, with cymbals, psalteries, and with harps. And the sons of the singers gathered themselves together, both out of the plain country round about Jerusalem, and from the villages of Netophathi;

Also from the house of Gilgal, and out of the fields of Geba and Azmaveth: for the singers had builded them villages round about Jerusalem. And the priests and the Levites purified themselves, and purified the people, and the gates, and the wall. Then I brought up the princes of Judah upon the wall, and appointed two great companies of them that gave thanks, whereof one went on the right hand upon the wall toward the dung gate:

And after them went Hoshaiah, and half of the princes of Judah, And Azariah, Ezra, and Meshullam, Judah, and Benjamin, and Shemaiah, and Jeremiah, And certain of the priests' sons with trumpets; namely, Zechariah the son of Jonathan, the son of Shemaiah, the son of Mattaniah, the son of Michaiah, the son of Zaccur, the son of Asaph: And his brethren, Shemaiah, and Azarael, Milalai, Gilalai, Maai, Nethaneel, and Judah, Hanani, with the musical instruments of David the man of God, and Ezra the scribe before them.

And at the fountain gate, which was over against them, they went up by the stairs of the city of David, at the going up of the wall, above the house of David, even unto the water gate eastward. And the other company of them that gave thanks went over against them, and I after them, and the half of the people upon the wall, from beyond the tower of the furnaces even unto the broad wall;

And from above the gate of Ephraim, and above the old gate, and above the fish gate, and the tower of Hananeel, and the tower of Meah, even unto the sheep gate: and they stood still in the prison gate. So stood the two companies of them that gave thanks in the house of God, and I, and the half of the rulers with me: (Nehemiah 12:27-40 kjv)

The Book of NEHEMIAH The books of Ezra and Nehemiah were originally one volume, but Jerome (ca. Au. 342- 420) split them into 1 and 2 Ezra in the Vulgate (a Lat. translation of the Bible). Not long afterward, the second portion was named "Nehemiah" after its principal character. The name Nehemiah means "Jehovah comforts." Nehemiah was concerned that the Lord's name was not being esteemed as it should have been because His city, Jerusalem, was in ruins. The people who had returned had no way to defend themselves (Neh. 1:3). As a result, Nehemiah desired to undertake the formidable task of reestablishing civil authority in Jerusalem. He let nothing distract him (Neh. 6:3) from his goal of making Jerusalem a strategic center of refuge for the remnant of the Israelites that lived in the region.   Nehemiah was appointed governor of Judea by the Persian emperor and soon afterward came to Jerusalem (445 B.C.). In addition, he was given a military escort and government funding from Artaxerxes to aid him in repairing the city. With God's help, he planned and supervised the rebuilding of the wall around Jerusalem. Letters written on papyri (ancient paper) have been discovered in Egypt on the island of Elephantini in the Nile River which confirm that Sanballat, the man that led the opposition against Nehemiah, lived during Nehemiah's time. The description that is recorded in them of the overall political situation also coincides with the account here in Nehemiah. This book beautifully demonstrates the fact that the Lord will sometimes use men who do not acknowledge Him as the one true God to accomplish His purpose. Nehemiah served under a heathen king, but God touched the heart of Artaxerxes so that he was willing to supply Nehemiah with the means to rebuild Jerusalem. This is true of other biblical characters such as Ezra, Esther, and Daniel who served under heathen kings.  [Source for Introduction of chapter: Hebrew Greek Key Study Bible KJV edited by Spiros Zodhiates, Th.D. AMG Publishers, Chattanooga, TN 37422]