But now I said to them, “You know very well what trouble we are in. Jerusalem lies in ruins, and its gates have been destroyed by fire. Let us rebuild the wall of Jerusalem and end this disgrace!” Then I told them about how the gracious hand of God had been on me, and about my conversation with the king. They replied at once, “Yes, let’s rebuild the wall!” So they began the good work. [Nehemiah 2:17-18 (NLT)]
When Nehemiah arrived in Jerusalem, over ninety years had passed since the first of the exiled Jews had returned to Judah. Although the temple had been rebuilt for seventy years, Jerusalem’s city walls and gates were still in ruins. Nevertheless, within fifty-two days of his arrival, the walls were reconstructed and new gates installed. That Nehemiah managed to accomplish in less than two months what hadn’t been done in ninety years is a case study in Management 101.
Like any good leader, Nehemiah started with a plan. Knowing he needed timber, he requested access to the king’s forest and, knowing he would face opposition, he asked for letters ensuring his safe passage to Jerusalem. Upon his arrival, Nehemiah took several days to evaluate both the wall and the city’s residents. Then because Nehemiah knew both who and what he was dealing with, he knew the right approach. Rather than pointing out the exiles’ failure as might a superior, he became one with the people by using the pronouns “we” and “us.”
The priests worked near the Temple at the Sheep Gate (where sacrificial sheep entered) and continued west to the towers that served to protect the northern approach to Jerusalem and the Temple. Just as the priests repaired the area nearest the Temple (an area in which they had a vested interest), the other residents repaired the parts of the wall closest to their homes. Not only was this more efficient but, by having a personal stake in their section of the wall, it was a great incentive. The people labored to protect their own homes and businesses! Even though he was in charge, Nehemiah worked alongside the people of Jerusalem.
Like any project, however, there were difficulties! As often happens when a big project is started, discouragement set in when only half finished. Reminding them of their goal, Nehemiah assured the people that God would help them succeed and work resumed. When their neighboring enemies ridiculed, harassed, and threatened to attack them, Nehemiah reassured the people of the Lord’s protection and eased their fears by setting up a plan of defense and devising a warning system in case of an attack.
The non-stop construction work also took a financial toll on the people. During a time of famine before Nehemiah’s arrival, the poorer Judeans borrowed money from their brethren to purchase food and pay their taxes. Although the Torah prohibited a Jew charging another Jew interest, interest had been charged. Now, working from sunrise to sunset on the walls and unable to work their fields or ply their trades, they were behind in their interest payments and faced losing their property or selling their children into slavery. Nehemiah put an end to the charging of interest and demanded that previous interest payments be repaid. Finally, because Nehemiah knew the heavy financial burden the people carried, he refused to profit from his position and declined the food allowance that was his to claim. Although his enemies tried to discourage, discredit, intimidate, and even assassinate him, Nehemiah never wavered in his task.
Today’s business executives could learn from Nehemiah. He had a vision, knew both who and what it would take to accomplish the task, and recognized the obstacles he’d face in building the wall. He inspired and motivated his workers, worked alongside them, was respectful and compassionate, and used them wisely. Moreover, the security, safety, and financial needs of his workforce was important to him.
Nehemiah was a man of wisdom, courage, integrity, and determination but all of that would have come to nothing had he not also been a man of God! His leadership skills would have been meaningless without his relationship with the Lord. From the first to the last chapter of Nehemiah’s story, we find him continually in prayer. Every moment he spent leading the people of Judah, Nehemiah was following God! While that’s not usually something taught in Management 101, perhaps it should!
When we rely upon organization, we get what organization can do; when we rely upon education, we get what education can do; when we rely upon eloquence, we get what eloquence can do. And so on. But when we rely upon prayer, we get what God can do.
[A.C. Dixon]
So on October 2 the wall was finished—just fifty-two days after we had begun. When our enemies and the surrounding nations heard about it, they were frightened and humiliated. They realized this work had been done with the help of our God. [Nehemiah 6:15-16 (NLT)]
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Even without knowing what a petard is, we probably know that when someone gets “hoisted by his own petard,” he’s been foiled by his own scheme. When Shakespeare’s audience heard this phrase spoken by Hamlet in 1600, they knew a petard was a bomb. In the bard’s day, hoisted had more than one meaning. Along with lifted, it meant removed or taken out. Taken literally, Hamlet’s phrase meant that his enemy would be blown up by his own bomb!
Our Colorado church had a large worship center with excellent acoustics so, when the local Jewish congregation wanted to present a concert of Jewish music by a well-known Jewish performer, we were happy to offer our venue to them. The Christians in attendance never expected the evening to end with Jews and Christians joining hands and dancing the hora around the church while singing “Hava Nagilah” (Let Us Rejoice). What the Jews hadn’t expected were the Bibles on the back of every chair. Before the concert began, many intently looked through them and, after the concert, they expressed their surprise at finding their Hebrew Scriptures in our Christian Bibles!
The Apostle Peter tells us that true prophecy isn’t a product of the prophet—prophets only speak God’s revelation. Directed by the Spirit, their words communicate the message the Lord wants sent. Sometimes, however, prophecy is difficult to understand and interpretations of Revelation go from one extreme to the other. Some, like that priest in Monday’s devotion, dismiss it as completely symbolic. To them, Revelation is an allegory about the conflict between good and evil with good winning in the end. On the other extreme, we find obscure theories, convoluted correlations, and implausible explanations of every symbol and metaphor along with sensationalism and unchecked speculation connecting Revelation to current events.
During the time of the judges, the Israelites were at war with the Philistines. Following their loss of 4,000 men, they questioned why God had allowed their defeat but never bothered asking Him. Instead, they decided that carrying the Ark of the Covenant into battle would guarantee a future victory. Perhaps they remembered the story of Israel entering the Promised Land—how the Jordan River stopped flowing when the feet of the priests carrying the Ark touched the water and the entire nation crossed the dry riverbed into Canaan. They may have recalled Jericho’s defeat when Israel’s priests carried the Ark around the walled city for seven days and the city’s seemingly invincible walls collapsed. Maybe they thought it was the Arks’ presence that caused those miracles; in any case, they brought the Ark to their camp in Ebenezer.
Devotions of the Heart 