Chapter Four

1–8. The impression produced on the enemies of the Jews by the beginning of the construction of the wall, and their plans. 9–23. The measures taken by Nehemiah to protect those working on the construction.

Nehemiah 4:1. And when Sanballat heard that we were building the wall, he was angry and greatly enraged, and he ridiculed the Jews. Nehemiah 4:2. And he said before his brothers and the army of Samaria, “What are these miserable Jews doing? Will they be permitted? Will they offer sacrifices? Will they finish in a day? Will they revive the stones from the heaps of dust, and those burned? The first 6 verses of Chapter IV in many editions of the Bible form the conclusion of Chapter III. The beginning of the construction of the wall provoked among the enemies of the Jews hostile feelings and a desire to hinder the construction. Sanballat, intending to weaken the energy of the Jews, mocked their undertaking in the circle of Samaritan nobility, presenting it as an impossible dream. The words of Sanballat: “Will they be permitted this” (hajaazbu lachem) are not clear, since the subject of the verb hajaazbu (to allow) is not indicated. According to the context of his words and correspondingly to the meaning of the verb asab in other places (Isa 10:14), in Sanballat’s words one must see mockery of the Jews’ faith in the help of God: “Will they (the Jews) commit themselves (in the work of construction) to God,” that is, will they hope that God will accomplish for them an impossible undertaking? Will they think to help themselves with sacrifices?

Nehemiah 4:3. And Tobiah the Ammonite, who was beside him, said, “Even what they build, if a fox goes up on it, he will break down their stone wall. Like Sanballat, Tobiah also pointed to the impossibility of the undertaking planned by the Jews.

Nehemiah 4:4. Hear, our God, for we are despised. Turn their reproach on their own head and give them up as a prey in a land of captivity. Nehemiah 4:5. And do not forgive their iniquity, and let not their sin be blotted out before you, for they have provoked the builders. The historical narrative is similarly interrupted by prayer in (Neh 5:19).

Nehemiah 4:6. So we built the wall, and all the wall was joined together to half its height. And the people had a mind to work. The mockery of the enemies, thus, had no effect, and the wall was soon raised “to half its height,” that is, to half the height of it.

Nehemiah 4:7. But when Sanballat and Tobiah and the Arabs and the Ammonites and the Ashdodites heard that the restoration of the walls of Jerusalem was advancing and that the breaches were beginning to be filled, they were very greatly enraged. Nehemiah 4:8. And they all conspired together to come and fight against Jerusalem and to cause confusion in it. The successful course of the construction impelled the enemies of the Jews to act by force, and they planned to suddenly (v. 11) attack the Jews engaged in construction, kill them, and destroy Jerusalem. In v. 7 the enemies of the Jews are named as Arabs, Ammonites, and Ashdodites. Robinson supposes that the writer means not entire tribes, but specifically those individual people from these tribes who were part of Sanballat’s detachment, since an armed attack on Jerusalem by entire tribes, given the good organization of the Persian monarchy, is difficult to admit. But there is hardly reason to deny the possibility of such an attack.

Nehemiah 4:12. When the Jews who lived near them came and told us ten times, “From all the places where you are turning back toward us, they will come up against us, “When the Jews living near them came,” that is, in places neighboring the Samaria region, etc. They came, obviously, those who did not themselves participate in the work, but were concerned for their relatives and friends who were at work. The end of the verse in the Hebrew text is unclear, and our Russian translation in this case gives its own interpretation (“from all the places where you are, they will come up against us”).

Nehemiah 4:13. Then I stationed the people in the low places behind the wall, at the open spots, and I set the people according to their families with their swords, their spears, and their bows. The exact meaning of the original is not clear, and Russian translators again give their interpretation, inserting the word “city” and translating the verb amad instead of twice only once. Supposing an error in the text and correcting it, Ryssel transmits the verse thus: “then I stationed the throwing engines at the place behind the wall at protected points and posted people” etc.

Nehemiah 4:15. And when our enemies heard that their plan was known to us, and that God had brought their counsel to nothing, we all returned to the wall, each to his work. The construction of the wall stopped for a time. But the enemies of the Jews, having seen that their plan of sudden attack was exposed, abandoned it, and the work of construction could continue. However, to prevent a sudden attack, Nehemiah nevertheless found it necessary to take a series of measures, which are discussed in v. 16.

Nehemiah 4:16. And from that day half of my servants worked on the construction, while the other half held spears, shields, bows, and armor. And the officials were stationed behind all the house of Judah. “From that day half of the young men (nearim) with me,” that is, half of his retinue, that body which was at his disposal for police duties (cf. Neh 5:10).

Nehemiah 4:21. So we continued the work, and half of them held spears from the rising of the dawn until the stars came out. “So we continued the work,” that is, Nehemiah and his retinue, bearing special labors.

Nehemiah 4:22. At the same time I said to the people, “Let every man with his servant lodge within Jerusalem, so that they may be a guard for us at night and may work during the day. As a further precautionary measure, Nehemiah gave an order that the people should not disperse at the end of the day’s work, but should remain overnight in Jerusalem, providing a guard. By this measure it was intended not only to protect the city, but also to give rest to the people bearing the greatest burden, namely, Nehemiah and his retinue.

Nehemiah 4:23. So neither I nor my brothers nor my servants nor the men of the guard who followed me took off our clothes; each had his weapon at his side and water. “Did not take off our clothes, each had his sword and water at his side.” The last proposition is omitted in the LXX and is transmitted differently in other translations. In the Syriac text the expression is transmitted in the sense that the defenders of Jerusalem did not take off their clothes for a period of a month. In the Lucianic recension: “and the men whom he sent for water, a man and a weapon for the water.” In the Vulgate: “only each was bathed for purification,” each took off his clothes only for washing. Exegetes also interpret the expression in question differently: “each had his weapon and water at his side, so as not to abandon his post” (Clericus); “each had his bow in his right hand” and each bared his body only for nighttime ablutions (maim—water).