Nehemiah 10
OUTLINE:
I. \\#1:1-7:13\\ Restoring the Wall
A. \\#1:1-2:20\\ Catching A Burden
1. \\#1:1-4\\ Hearing the News
2. \\#1:5-11\\ Nehemiah’s Prayer
3. \\#2:1-8\\ Nehemiah’s Opportunity
4. \\#2:9-20\\ Nehemiah’s Mission Begun
B. \\#3:1-6:19\\ Building the Wall
1. \\#3:1-32\\ Record of the Builders
2. \\#4:1-6:14\\ Opposition to the Construction
a. \\#4:1-6\\ The First Attempt - Mockery
b. \\#4:7-23\\ The Second Attempt - War
c. \\#5:1-19\\ The Third Attempt - From within
d. \\#6:1-9\\ The Fourth Attempt - Ambush
e. \\#6:10-14\\ The Fifth Attempt - Fear
3. \\#6:15-19\\ Completion of the Construction
C. \\#7:1-13:31\\ Dedication of the Wall, Jerusalem, and the
People.
1. \\#7:1\\ Organization of Singers and Porters
2. \\#7:2\\ Organization of Leadership
3. \\#7:3-4\\ Organization for Safety
4. \\#7:5-73\\ Verifying Jerusalem’s Inhabitants
II. \\#8:1-13:31\\ Restoring the People
A. \\#8:1-10:39\\ The Renewal of the Covenant
1. \\#8:1-18\\ Interpretation of the Law
a. \\#8:1-12\\ Seventh Month, First Day of Teaching
b. \\#8:13-18\\ Seventh Month, Second Day of Teaching
2. \\#9:1-10:39\\ Reaffirmation of the Covenant
a. \\#9:1-38\\ A Psalm of Review
b. \\#10:1-27\\ Signees of the Covenant
c. \\#10:28-39\\ Israel Agrees to the Covenant
B. \\#11:1-13:31\\ The Obedience to the Covenant
1. \\#11:1-36\\ Resettlement of the People
2. \\#12:1-26\\ Register of the Priests and the Levites
3. \\#12:27-47\\ Dedication of the Jerusalem Wall
4. \\#13:1-31\\ Restoration of the People
\\#9:1-10:39\\ Reaffirmation of the Covenant
I. \\#9:1-38\\ A Psalm of Review
II. \\#10:1-27\\ Signees of the Covenant
A. The signees are referred to later in the chapter.
Neh 10:29 They clave to their brethren, their nobles….
B. Hence, these signatures belonged to the nobles of the land.
They were seeking to lead Israel in the paths of
righteousness.
III. \\#10:28-39\\ All of Israel Agrees to the Covenant
A. \\#28\\ "And the rest of the people"
1. But this was not the leaders only. The whole nation
sought after God, including "the priests, the Levites,
the porters, the singers, the Nethinims, and all they
that had separated themselves… their wives, their sons,
and their daughters"
2. "everyone having knowledge, and having understanding" -
Their decision was not hastily made but was made based on
knowledge and understanding.
3. \\#29\\ "and entered into a curse"
a. When Israel first entered the land, they pronounced a
curse upon themselves if they strayed from God’s law.
De 11:29 And it shall come to pass, when the
LORD thy God hath brought thee in unto the land
whither thou goest to possess it, that thou shalt
put the blessing upon mount Gerizim, and the
curse upon mount Ebal.
b. They did in similar fashion as they renewed the
covenant.
B. \\#30-39\\ Specific Points of the Law - Three points of the
Law are specifically mentioned by the writer here. These
were not the only things to which Israel agreed, but they
are some of their first troubles in keeping.
1. \\#30\\ "that we would not give our daughters (or sons)
unto the people of the land" - They had already battled
this problem and its effects (Ezra 9-10,
\\#Ezra 6:17-19\\) and would continue to do so
\\#Neh 6:17-18, Neh 13:4-8\\.
2. \\#31\\ "that we would not buy it of them on the Sabbath"
Now that the gates were up, the practice of honoring the
Sabbath inside the city could be more carefully enforced
and the Jews problem with obeying that law would be more
obvious.
3. \\#32-39\\ Tithing Points - This will be their third point
of trouble as revealed in Nehemiah 13.
a. \\#32-33\\ "to charge ourselves… for the service of
the house of God"
(1) This issue is singled out because it would be
another sore problem for Israel
\\#Neh 13:4-13\\.
(2) \\#32\\ The people wanted to insure the upkeep of
God’s temple, as was their duty under the law.
(a) "the third part of a shekel" - This is the
tithe they committed to give, but it is
different than what the law required.
Ex 30:13 This they shall give, every one that
passeth among them that are numbered, half a
shekel after the shekel of the sanctuary: (a
shekel is twenty gerahs:) an half shekel shall
be the offering of the LORD.
(b) Some feel that these Jews cut the offering
short while others think they added an
additional 1/3 to the commanded 1/2 shekel
(5/6 of a shekel).
(c) I tend to believe the later since up to now,
the people had exceled the Law and not
short changed it.
(3) \\#33\\ The money would be used to purchase the
offerings needed for the "continual" (daily),
"the sabbaths… new moons… set feasts… holy
things… sin offerings… all the work of the
house of our God."
b. \\#34\\ They divided and assigned the collection of
the needed wood to the Levites.
c. \\#35-37\\ They organized the tithe of the firstfruits
and the firstborns, both of man and animals.
d. \\#38-39\\ The firstfruits were brought into the
"treasure house" for storage as the Lord required
\\#Ez 23:19, 34:26\\, although this is the first
reference to the treasure house that I immediately
see.
4. \\#39\\ And this was the reason and the purpose for giving
such attention to the law…
Neh 10:39 …we will not forsake the house of
our God.
<Close Window>
