Keeping Commitments - Nehemiah 11 to 14

It is very important for anyone to keep their commitments. Breaking a commitment is equal to being untruthful and there is a commandment directly related to this sin. My father would very proudly tell you that his word was his bond; I believed him because there was evidence of it in his daily life. We need to look for a moment at the word “word” and see what it really means. Christ said, “I am the “word” the ‘truth’ and ‘light.’ The trinity is ‘one’ and Christ is the ‘word’ therefore the ‘word’ of God is actually a part of the God head. We know that Christ was saying that the Bible was the word, therefore when we give our word; it is as if we have laid our hand on the bible and made our promise. It is imperative that we keep our word—to both, our fellow man and to God.

You will not have to stretch your imagination very far to realize that the Israelite people have been up and down in their relationship to God more often than some elevators travel up and down in a business building. They were down in sin and disobedience when they went further down into Egyptian bondage. They traveled up in the exodus—back down when they arrived at the Red Sea—their safe crossing of the sea put them on top—but their water ran low and they went down—God provided water and up they came—their food ran low and they were down complaining—the manna came and they were up—Moses stayed on Mt. Sinai too long and they built a golden calf to worship…that’s pretty low, causing Moses to lose his patience and he broke the tablets of stone. This should picture what I mean by their ups and downs.

This pattern of Jewish actions extended from the beginning of life in the Garden when Adam and Eve had everything perfect until the days of Noah and the Ark when the world was destroyed by water. To the best of my knowledge of the bible, there are no exceptions: Every time the Israelite nation/nations were on top of the mountain—prosperous and happy—they disobeyed God, and started down. When they could not endure any longer, they would call out to God—repent of their sins and beg for forgiveness. Then our loving God forgave them and immediately their land was blessed, they regained their position in the land of milk and honey, and soon were on top of their mountain again.

Look at the title of our study for today: KEEPING COMMITMENTS and you will see the connection. Throughout Jewish history there was always a remnant that remained obedient. There were always a few good men that held true to God’s law. Six of these faithful men have been the leaders that stand out in the books of Ezra and Nehemiah, which covers the return of the exiles to Jerusalem, and I will use them as the examples we should follow as we commit to be faithful in our worship and work.

Zerubbabel was the first of the four. Exiles in Babylon were there seventy years, before they were allowed to start returning to their homeland in 538 B.C. There were about 50,000 in the first group that returned under the committed leadership of Zerubbabel, and they were to start the rebuilding of the temple. Opposition arose and the work stopped. This group received encouragement and leadership from Haggai and Zechariah; then they returned to their work and completed the temple in 516.

Eighty years after Zerubbabel returned, Ezra returned to the land in 458 B.C leading the second group of exiles. He found the temple was completed in 516 B.C. with the people on top of their mountain. However, the second thing he found was that in just that short time of 58 years the lives of the people were in shambles. They were already disobeying the law that forbids intermarriage with foreigners. Never-the-less, Ezra kept his commitment, prayed for help and saved the spiritual future of the nation.

Nehemiah led the third group of exiles back to rebuild the wall around the temple. He completed the wall in 445 B.C. just thirteen years after Ezra’s return. We have covered his commitment to the rebuilding of the wall in the last few lessons. Nehemiah became the business leader while Ezra continued in his quest to furnish the religious leadership. Twelve years after the wall was completed Nehemiah returned to his home in Babylon and remained there only one year, returning in 432.

On his return Nehemiah took charge of the political and city management problems in Jerusalem. One of their problems was exactly the opposite of the problems in our large cities today. We have too many people in the cities—and they had too few people that wanted to live in Jerusalem. Many of the Jewish exiles that had been captured and carried away did not return. In fact the number of exiles that returned was few in number compared to the population of Jerusalem during Solomon’s reign as king. Many of them had established homes and businesses and could not afford to return. The new wall was built on the foundation where the old wall had stood and so the encompassed area was the same size as it was before being destroyed. Some of those who had returned already owned property in the country, outside the city wall, and they wanted to go home.

As a starter, Nehemiah required all city leaders to live inside the wall, and then he encouraged all that would to voluntarily move inside the wall. The city was still too sparsely populated so those living outside the wall cast lots and ten percent of these had to move inside. Nine out of ten families were allowed to live outside if they wished.

The first part of chapter twelve names the Priests and Levites that accompanied Zerubbabel back to Jerusalem. It was always important for the Israelites to keep an accurate count on their people. First they needed to know that the families were kept pure and free from marriage to heathen people; this prevented enemy nations from getting a foothold in the Jewish nation. But the most important reason for them to keep an accurate census was that they wanted to make sure they could trace the new messiah [yet to come] back to Abraham through King David.

The last part of the chapter, beginning with verse twenty-seven, gives a vivid description of the dedication of the new wall. Two huge bands and singers were organized to lead the march. One band went to the left with half of the people following in the parade. The second band went in the opposite direction with half of the people including Nehemiah, following them. Some have wondered where they got all the expensive musical instruments. They were among the captured wealth that was taken to Babylon at the time of the fall of Jerusalem. The king of Ceria released three groups to return, and in each case he allowed them to bring the things they would need, so most of the instruments had belonged to King Solomon when he built and supplied the temple.

The final reforms made by Nehemiah are recorded in the last chapter. You should remember back in our study to the time the great revival took place when the Law of Moses was read and explained. That is the incident being referred to here in the first verse. “All who were of foreign decent” refers to the Moabites and the Ammonites, two nations that had always been bitter enemies of Israel. It is recorded in Deuteronomy 23 that neither of these nations could ever be admitted into the temple. This had nothing to do with prejudice or discrimination because the same book states clearly that God loves all people; he allowed foreigners to make sacrifices for their sins. At the same time he is determined to protect his people against any nation who is set on the destruction of his people. I believe that the only hope we have for a better tomorrow in the Middle East will have to come form God as he continues to protect his people in that area, and around the world.

The reason is not known, but Nehemiah had to return to Babylon in 433 BC and was gone from Jerusalem one year, returning in 432. When he returned, he found that Tobiah had been assigned to the room where food, grain and even offerings and incense were stored. Remember—Tobiah—was one of his worst enemies and tried to prevent the reconstruction work. There were many other problems that had arisen during his one year’s absence, and he used his authority and strong will to see that the operations in the temple area were carried out according to the demands of the law.

Nehemiah believed in KEEPING HIS COMMITMENTS! His life story provides many principals of effective leadership that are just as valuable today. He accepted a responsibility that had a purpose in mind and never allowed anything or anyone to defeat his purpose. He was honest and straightforward with everyone and they knew where he stood. He stuck with the truth as verified by the law even when it made his job more difficult. He lived above approach and let his life speak for his humility and determination. In the beginning and at the end and daily as he worked he was in prayer to God to lead him and finally to bless him for his work.

It is lonely at the top! President Truman said “The buck stops here,” and what he meant was that there is no one else you can go to above me. It is my responsibility! As Superintendent of Schools for twenty-seven years, I have been there. More than one time I have wished that I could trade places with a teacher that had a serious problem. A place of leadership appears glamorous at times, but is often lonely and thankless and filled with pressures to compromise standards and values. Nehemiah learned and taught us that there is no success without risk of failure—there is no reward without hard work—no opportunity without some criticism…and no leadership without trust in God. Have you made one or more commitments?
If so, you have an opportunity and an obligation to do what you promised.