Nehemiah 2 Study notes

In chapter 1 we saw how Nehemiah had heard of the terrible state of God’s city and how that drove him to his knees in repentance and in seeking an opportunity to be part of the solution. That should have challenged our view of the work of God in the world (are we distressed at the state of the church? Are we prayerful for it, and desiring to be used by God in it?).

In this chapter we see God answering Nehemiah’s prayer, and we see his great wisdom as he begins the work. Doing God’s work will require great courage, but knowing we serve the King of Kings will mean we fear him, and not men (see 1 Peter 3:13-15). We also see in this chapter that prayerfulness and wise careful planning/leadership are not mutually exclusive. We must be pious people (constantly prayerful), but not pietistic (only praying and never doing anything else). God worked through Nehemiah’s godly common sense as much as his quiet times!

The date given in verse 1 is significant because it shows that Nehemiah has been fasting and praying for four months since he first heard the news about the state of Jerusalem. But though sometimes God takes longer than we might like before he answers our prayers, he does answer and opens the door for Nehemiah to speak to the king (which was what he has been praying for, remember 1:11).

As cupbearer to the King Nehemiah has privileged access to the King, but it was a requirement of the job that he must not look sad before the King. We do not know whether the Kings initial statement in verse 2 was a threat or a polite inquiry, but Nehemiah takes the opportunity presented to him.

A quick prayer

But supplication was made to God. Whether it was ‘ God, thankyou for this breakthrough, give me the words to say.’, or simply, ‘God I need your help?’, it was a prayer nonetheless.

We have considered the value of prayer many times but we seem to have often de-valued the value of short prayer that is uttered between important decisions; between question and answer. The prayer that invites God into the conversation because we know that we can really mess this up if we do it on our own.

Be specific in your requests to God

Nehemiah was a man with both a vision and a plan. He knew exactly how long this was going to take, and had already thought through the requirements of the task. ‘I;l need letters for safe passage and timber for the gates.’ But those who plan out what will be required and the steps to get us there are the ones who get used by God to accomplish them.

God answers Nehemiah’s prayers in a way which is overwhelming and possibly beyond Nehemiah’s wildest hopes. However Nehemiah’s careful thought about what was needed is shown by what he requested of the King – verse 7 and 8 shows that this was no whim. He had prayed and planned and thought hard about what was needed to rebuild the walls. Nehemiah is abundantly clear about why the King acted so positively. He knew it was not because he had caught him on a good day, no – “the gracious hand of God was upon me”. He can change the heart and minds of Kings, all the wealth of the world belongs to him.

Gods hand upon you

Gods hand upon you can:

·         empower you (1Kings 18:46);

·         inspire you (2Kings 3:15);

·         unite you (2Chron. 30:12);

·         strengthen you (Ezra 7:28)