History:
Nehemiah

For many Bible students, the extent of our acquaintance with the book of Nehemiah is a single image, that of a worker rebuilding the walls, a trowel in one hand and a sword in the other.  In this second part of the Ezra-Nehemiah duo, we see the continuation of the religious renewal that came with the return of the exiles from Babylon.  While it might seem so, this book is not simply an account of a 5th century building campaign.  No, there is significant spiritual truth to be gleaned from these pages as well.  As the walls went up, so did the barrier between the Holy and the Unholy.  As the gates were rebuilt, so were the rules for interchange between the two sides of the walls established.  That's good material for our consideration today.

Left: 14th century painting of the rebuilding of the walls.

 

The Bare Facts

Who: Ezra and Nehemiah were almost certainly one book originally with a single author.  Virtually no one argues that Ezra did not write Ezra-Nehemiah.  He is remembered as a scribe and spiritual leader.

Where:   As with Ezra, since the action and emphasis center on Jerusalem and since we know that Ezra arrived in Jerusalem around 458 B.C., there's no reason to look for any other site.

When:  The book was probably written in the last third of the fifth century B.C.: 433-400 B.C.

What:  Nehemiah focuses on the actions of its namesake in building up the walls of Jerusalem.  While Ezra worked to restore Israel's spiritual power, Nehemiah sought to make the nation secure on a more pragmatic level.  This book continues the discussion of the revival of faith in the Land of Promise after the Babylonian Exile.  Through God's Providence, Cyrus of Persia allowed the Jews to return to Israel, but that alone did not constitute a restoration. 

Also Known As: 2 Esdras (Catholic); Nechemiyah (Jewish)

Memorable Passages

Overviews and Outlines

An Introduction to the Books of Ezra-Nehemiah

An outlined introduction by David Malick.

An Argument to the Books of Ezra-Nehemiah

One of David Malick's rhetorical outlines.

The Book of Nehemiah

A brief but solid overview by Arend Remmers

Bible Basics

A very brief list of facts, but it includes a wav file pronouncing the book's title.

Easton Bible Dictionary: Nehemiah

The article from M.G. Easton's 1897 Bible Dictionary.

Catholic Encyclopedia: Nehemiah

The appropriate entry from the public domain edition of this venerable reference work.

Columbia Encyclopedia: Nehemiah

A brief article from the 2001 edition of this reference work.

Bible Explained

This is a commentary by an energetic fellow named Ted Wade.  He provides brief notes on each chapter and most verses for the entire Bible.

Luther Productions

A very brief overview including key verses.

The Blue Letter Bible

An excellent source for text, cross-references, concordance, language helps, commentaries, and more.

JPS Bible

The JPS 1917 Bible text and another Jewish version.  There are links that supposedly go to two Hebrew and one Aramaic text but they don't seem to work.

Jewish Encyclopedia

An article from the 1901-06 reference work.  Generally liberal in its critical presuppositions.

Bible Studies: Whole Book

Nehemiah: God's Businessman

A lengthy, verse-level commentary and set of notes by David Griffiths, a native of Wales who has ministered for many years in the United States through the Assemblies of God.

Love the Lord Bible Studies: Nehemiah

A 14-lesson study with questions from an Arkansas-based ministry.  They seem orthodox enough, although the statement of faith makes me wonder if they're not into prosperity gospel teachings.

Comments on the Book of Nehemiah

A lengthy commentary by L.M. Grant.

Talks for Growing Christians

A nifty study, which includes a brief sermon, question, and answers.  A project from Talks for Growing Christians.

Geneva Notes

In 1599, English Puritans, working in Geneva, published the first study Bible.  These are the notes from that edition.

Coffman's Commentary

A verse-by-verse commentary by Dr. James Burton Coffman, a leading Church of Christ scholar.

Matthew Henry's Commentary

The chapter-by-chapter 1712 commentary by the great English Puritan writer..

John Wesley Notes

Over his career, the founder of Methodism maintained notes on the entire Bible.

JFB Commentary

The comments of Robert Jamieson, A. R. Fausset and David Brown from Commentary Critical and Explanatory on the Whole Bible (1871).

Clarke's Commentary

The first chapter for this book from Adam Clarke's nineteenth-century commentary.

John Gill's Exposition of the Entire Bible

The commentary of the 17th century Baptist theologian and preacher.

Class Notes on Sacred History

An 1893 commentary by J.W. McGarvey.

Scofield Reference Notes

The notes from the 1917 edition of the great study Bible.  From a dispensationalist viewpoint.

Treasury of Scripture Knowledge

A combination brief commentary and thorough cross-reference.  Developed by R.A. Torrey.

David Guzik's Commentaries on the Bible

David Guzik, a former senior pastor at Clavary Chapel Simi Valley in California, provides a verse-by-verse commentary. Currently Guzik directs the Calvary Chapel Bible College in Siegen, Germany.

The Jerome Bible Commentary

A commentary by a Catholic doctor, Jerome Dominguez, M.D.  Is English isn't perfect, but you have to admire his energy.  Although Catholic in orientation, this source has some good material for study.

Old Testament Life and Literature

Gerald Larue's 1968 overview of the Old Testament is, oddly enough, hosted at an atheist website.  Larue's presuppositions are entirely liberal.

Bible Studies: Part of Book

Morning and Evening (3:8)

One of C.H. Spurgeon's devotions.

Morning and Evening (3:15)

One of C.H. Spurgeon's devotions.

A Meeting at the Water Gate (8:1-18)

A study by Hugo Bouter.

Lectionary Notes (8:1-3,5-6,8-10)

Brief notes by Ralph Klein.

Nehemiah 9-10: Structure and Significance

An article from Journal of Hebrew Scriptures by Tamara Cohn Eskenazi.

Morning and Evening (9:20)

One of C.H. Spurgeon's devotions.

Morning and Evening (9:38)

One of C.H. Spurgeon's devotions.

Sermons

Nehemiah: Rebuilding the Walls

The appropriate sermon from Ray C. Stedman's Adventuring through the Bible series.

C.H. Spurgeon

A listing of sermons, some of which are available online, by the great British Baptist.

Nehemiah

A 12-sermon series by Ray C. Stedman.

Sermon Outlines

Links to sermon outlines from SermonLinks.

 

Articles, Books, and Bibliographies

Exemplary Leadership: The Books of Ezra and Nehemiah

A brief article by Chuck Missler.

Geography and History in Herodotus and in Ezra-Nehemiah

An article from Journal of Biblical Literature by Thomas B. Dozeman.

Selected Bibliography of the Books of Ezra and Nehemiah

A brief list of sources compiled by David Malick.

Two-Age Bibliography

A list of recommended sources, mostly scholarly in nature, provided by a website devoted to the "Redemptive Historical" school of theology.

Oxford Bibliography

A brief list of sources from the Theology School at Oxford University.