Nehemiah 1-6 • Trusting God with Lies, Danger, and a Really Hard Job

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How do you respond to intimidation, distraction, lies, slander, and treason used to stop you from doing a really hard job God’s way? Do you recognize any of these weapons of discouragement in what you have heard, read, or seen lately? We have enemies today who use every one of these weapons to stop us from doing the work God has given us. If they cannot totally stop us, they try to keep us from doing it well. But God’s people can be wise in how we respond to fake news and intimidation and all those other fear tactics. In the last blog, we looked at why following God’s way rather than your own way is the best way to live life. This is post #9 in the Ezra to Malachi blog series. In this post, we will learn from Nehemiah chapters 1-6 how to trust God while dealing with lies, dangers, and a really hard job to do.

Listen to this post as a similar podcast from our Identity: Sticking to Your Faith in a Pull-Apart World Bible Study covering the last 7 written books of the Old Testament.

Lies Stopped Progress in Jerusalem

Fake news

Fake news is not new to our twenty-first century reality. It has been going on for years. You can find several examples in the Bible. In fact, fake news is sprinkled throughout the books of Ezra and Nehemiah. It always has the purpose of discouraging God’s people from doing the work He gave them to do.

The book of Ezra records a letter written to King Artaxerxes from those who had political power over the provinces of Judah and its neighbors in the Persian Empire. The letter says this,

“The king should know that if this city is built and its walls are restored, no more taxes, tribute or duty will be paid, and eventually the royal revenues will suffer … you will be left with nothing in Trans-Euphrates.” (Ezra 4:13, 16)

Trans-Euphrates was the name of the province that included Judah. Well, Artaxerxes wrote back and said stop the building. So the fake news creators …

went immediately to the Jews in Jerusalem and compelled them by force to stop. (Ezra 4:23)

Twisting the king’s words

Their fake news to the king was actually a twist on the king’s own words. A short while before this letter was written, Artaxerxes sent Ezra to Jerusalem with authority to teach the people and support the worship of God at the temple with all the workers and resources needed to do so. The king sent a letter to the local governors telling them to provide the resources Ezra needed from their own official coffers. Artaxerxes added one other thing:

You are also to know that you have no authority to impose taxes, tribute or duty on any of the priests, Levites, musicians, gatekeepers, temple servants or other workers at this house of God. (Ezra 7:24)

Ezra’s teaching and support uplifted the worship at the temple. The people became encouraged enough to start rebuilding Jerusalem’s walls. The political leaders of the region did not like that! So, they decided to spread lies back to the king. They twisted the king’s own words and said that all of Judah would refuse to pay taxes. The Jewish people may not have liked paying the king’s taxes, but they never declared they would stop doing so. This was truly fake news!

Artaxerxes read the letter with its lies and made the Jews in Jerusalem stop doing their work of rebuilding the city. He believed the fake news that his tax income would disappear. Thankfully, a man named Nehemiah heard about it. His response is a beautiful illustration once again of the two aspects of trusting God—in this case with lies, danger, and a really hard job to do.

Nehemiah Responded to God’s Call

Hearing the discouraging news

At the beginning of Nehemiah chapter 1, we read that those who had visited Judah and Jerusalem came back with not-so-good news. The city of Jerusalem was in shambles. The people had been back in their land for almost 100 years and had rebuilt the temple. Yay! But they had not been able to fix up the area around it though they had tried to do so. Nehemiah was torn up inside about this. God’s name was associated with Jerusalem. He had placed His presence in the temple there. Having God’s name associated with a city that was disgraceful was not good. So, Nehemiah mourned the condition of Jerusalem and prayed about what to do for four months.

Praying for the right time to act

After that time of prayer, God placed into Nehemiah’s heart the desire to go and repair the walls and gates of Jerusalem. First, he had to approach his boss the king of Persia about this. So, Nehemiah prayed for a specific response from God. His request is recorded at the end of chapter 1,

Lord, let your ear be attentive to the prayer of this your servant and to the prayer of your servants who delight in revering your name. Give your servant success today by granting him favor in the presence of this man.” I was cupbearer to the king. (Nehemiah 1:11)

Nehemiah identified himself as God’s servant and one of those who delight in revering God’s name. Identity. He is God’s. Then, he asked for God to be with him as he did his part—to speak to King Artaxerxes whom he served as a trusted cupbearer. This was a very high position in the king’s court. And Nehemiah asked for God to do His part in directing the heart and mind of the king. Those are the two aspects of trusting God.

Learning to live dependently on our God is not a matter of doing whatever you honorably can while trusting the rest to God. No. When God places something in your heart to do, especially when it involves someone else and situations over which you have no control, you must trust God to lead you in what you choose to do. You want to do your part His way, not your own way or the world’s way.

Trusting God while doing your part

Nehemiah boldly approached the king, letting the king know of his sadness. When he was asked by the king what he wanted to do, Nehemiah sent up a quick prayer before he answered the king with these words …

If it pleases the king and if your servant has found favor in his sight, let him send me to the city in Judah where my ancestors are buried so that I can rebuild it. (Nehemiah 2:5)

He appealed to the king’s favor and asked for the king to actually send him to the city of Jerusalem. Then, Nehemiah asked for letters to all the authorities for safe travel, for materials needed to rebuild the walls, and for a residence for himself in Jerusalem. That was Nehemiah’s part to make the official requests.

Trusting God to do His part

Nehemiah trusted God to do His part and recognized how God worked alongside what he was doing.

And because the gracious hand of my God was on me, the king granted my requests. (Nehemiah 2:8)

God took care of His part by directing the king’s heart and mind to be favorable to Nehemiah’s requests. God worked through the authorities to provide the resources and give him authority to do the work in Jerusalem. Those are the two aspects of trusting God.

As a trusted friend and advisor to the king, and God’s gracious hand being on him, Nehemiah was sent by the king as Governor of Judah with an army to back him up. He arrived in Jerusalem and told the people what he had come to do.

Then I said to them, “You see the trouble we are in: Jerusalem lies in ruins, and its gates have been burned with fire. Come, let us rebuild the wall of Jerusalem, and we will no longer be in disgrace.” I also told them about the gracious hand of my God on me and what the king had said to me. They replied, “Let us start rebuilding.” So they began this good work. (Nehemiah 2:17-18)

Can you imagine how excited Nehemiah must have been to see the reality of what he had been praying for months? The people responded favorably to this outsider sent by the king who would be their leader in a really hard job they would do.

Opposition Tested Nehemiah’s Trust

The opposition

As we learned in Esther’s story, completely trusting God and doing things God’s way does not always stop the opposition. Opposition tested Nehemiah’s trust as three local governors in the area around Israel balked at his arrival. Nehemiah knew without a doubt that God had given him the vision to rebuild and that God’s gracious hand was upon him with every step. But God did not make it easy for them to do what He called them to do.

Nehemiah’s enemies were political power brokers in the Trans-Jordan region who were afraid of losing their power. They had the king’s letter to them telling them to completely cooperate with Nehemiah. Yet the resentful politicians planned to do everything they could to stop the rebuilding of Jerusalem.

Nehemiah’s trust

Those enemies were named Sanballat, Tobiah, and Geshem. This is what happened when they heard about Nehemiah’s plan:

But when Sanballat the Horonite, Tobiah the Ammonite official and Geshem the Arab heard about it, they mocked and ridiculed us. “What is this you are doing?” they asked. “Are you rebelling against the king?” I answered them by saying, “The God of heaven will give us success. We his servants will start rebuilding, but as for you, you have no share in Jerusalem or any claim or historic right to it.” (Nehemiah 2:19-20)

I love Nehemiah’s response to their ridicule and false accusations. It was not fear. It was not backing down. It was not flattery to overlook their true nature. He was declaring truth when he said they had no historic right to Jerusalem. He was confident that he had the backing and trust of King Artaxerxes. He was confident in the God of heaven who would give them success. And he was confident in his identity—”we His servants”. God’s servants.

The enemies did not back down, though. They used lies, danger, and disloyalty as weapons to bully Nehemiah and the people of Jerusalem into submission and defeat, even death.

Responding to Fear Tactics Meant to Discourage

What is surprising, but should not be, is the number of different fear tactics they tried to stop the work of God through Nehemiah and the Jews.

Fear is a normal human emotion designed by God to alert us to danger so we will take action against it. Fear is actually a gift from God. Did you know that? It is what we do with our fear that gets us into trouble, especially when we let it overwhelm us. You can learn more about overcoming from our Fear to Faith blog series.

The proper response to fear is to take action against it. Nehemiah illustrates this for us as he dealt with every fear weapon of his enemies.

Here are some of the weapons they used against Nehemiah’s leadership.

Weapon #1: Intimidation

The enemies tried to use intimidation by threatening physical attack on the wall builders.

But when [they] heard that the repairs to Jerusalem’s walls had gone ahead and that the gaps were being closed, they were very angry. They all plotted together to come and fight against Jerusalem and stir up trouble against it. But we prayed to our God and posted a guard day and night to meet this threat. (Nehemiah 4:7-9).

The enemies threatened physical attack. That did not discourage Nehemiah from doing what God had placed in his heart to do. He prayed and led the people in prayer for God to do His part in giving them protection. But they also did their part. The Jews prayed and then took precautions by posting guards day and night and carrying weapons with them while they worked (Nehemiah 4:16-18). Those are great examples of how to deal with fear. Trust God for His part, and do your part God’s way. It Is okay to take common sense precautions. That is using wisdom from God.

Weapon #2: Distraction

The enemies tried to distract Nehemiah from the work at hand and trap him in order to kill him. They sent this message:

“Come, let us meet together in one of the villages on the plain of Ono.” But they were scheming to harm me; so I sent messengers to them with this reply: “I am carrying on a great project and cannot go down. Why should the work stop while I leave it and go down to you?” Four times they sent me the same message, and each time I gave them the same answer. (Nehemiah 6:2-4).

They thought that Nehemiah would have been defenseless once out of Jerusalem and away from his army. But God gave Nehemiah wisdom to recognize the trap. What grabbed my attention is that they sent the same message four times! Nehemiah just sent the same answer. Good for him.

Weapon #3: Lies

Intimidation and distraction were not effective. So they spread rumors about Nehemiah that they were supposedly passing along to the king.

“It is reported among the nations … that you and the Jews are plotting to revolt, and therefore you are building the wall. Moreover, according to these reports you are about to become their king and have even appointed prophets to make this proclamation about you in Jerusalem: ‘There is a king in Judah!’ Now this report will get back to the king; so come, let us meet together.”

I sent him this reply: “Nothing like what you are saying is happening; you are just making it up out of your head.” They were all trying to frighten us, thinking, “Their hands will get too weak for the work, and it will not be completed.” But I prayed, “Now strengthen my hands.” (Nehemiah 6:5-9)

Nehemiah called the news a lie and probably informed his boss, the king, that it was fake news. He recognized their fear tactics and turned to the one who could strengthen him for the work—God.

Weapon #4: Slander

Since the other stuff was not working, the enemies tried to use an insider to get Nehemiah in trouble with the Jews. They wanted to ruin his reputation with the Jews. That might make them stop working for him. Nehemiah reported it this way,

One day I went to the house of Shemaiah who was shut in at his home. He said, “Let us meet in the house of God, inside the temple, and let us close the temple doors, because men are coming to kill you—by night they are coming to kill you.” But I said, “Should a man like me run away? Or should someone like me go into the temple to save his life? I will not go!” I realized that God had not sent him, but that he had prophesied against me because Tobiah and Sanballat had hired him … to intimidate me so that I would commit a sin by doing this, and then they would give me a bad name to discredit me. (Nehemiah 6:10-13)

This time, the enemies tried to get Nehemiah to do wrong to save his life by shutting himself inside the temple even though he was not a priest and should not be inside the temple. Shemaiah was claiming to be a prophet with this “word” to spare his life. But Nehemiah trusted God and obeyed God first. He recognized that Shemaiah was a false prophet hired by the enemies to intimidate Nehemiah and ruin his reputation. Sadly, a woman prophet was also used by the enemy side to deliver fake news to Nehemiah. Dear women, beware whose side you are on when you give information.

Weapon #5: Treason

Some of the Jewish nobles of the land were in cahoots with the bad guys through intermarrying with Nehemiah’s political opponents. That is like lobbyists today who ally themselves with politicians to gain power for their causes. Those nobles also felt Nehemiah threatened their power. Disloyalty and treason are painful for any leader, especially a godly one who is serving God wholeheartedly. Remember the enemy Tobiah? This is how treason happened through Tobiah …

Also, in those days the nobles of Judah were writing letters to Tobiah, and replies from Tobiah kept coming to them. … Moreover, they kept reporting to me his good deeds and then telling him what I said. And Tobiah sent letters to intimidate me. (Nehemiah 6:17-19)

How sad it must have been for Nehemiah to not only have enemies outside of the Jewish population but also within his own community. That happens today as well, doesn’t it?

Trusting God as You Respond His Way

Seeking the proper response

So, how do you respond to the weapons of intimidation, distraction, lies, slander, and treason used to stop you from doing a really hard job God’s way? Do you recognize any of these weapons of discouragement in what you have heard, read, or seen lately?

We have enemies today who use every weapon of discouragement to stop us from doing the work God has given us. If they cannot totally stop us, they try to keep us from doing it well. But God’s people can be wise in how we respond to fake news and intimidation and all those other fear tactics.

Nehemiah needed discernment to recognize the error of those weapons and to avoid an improper response. We need that, too.
Nehemiah needed God’s strength to combat the weapons. He prayed, “Lord, strengthen my hands” (Nehemiah 6:9). We need to pray that, too.
Nehemiah trusted in God while at the same time taking safety precautions (Nehemiah 4:16-23). There is nothing wrong with acting wisely for prevention and protection from danger while trusting God for protection as well. We can do that in the wake of any news or threats causing us fear.

Dear reader, have you allowed fake news and intimidation to stop or distract you from doing the work God gave you to do or from doing it well? Ask God for discernment, strength, and protection while you take wise precautions that will enable you to keep on working. Those are the two aspects of trusting God.

In the next blog, we will learn from Nehemiah chapters 7-13 that rebellious hearts spurn God’s grace.

Let Jesus satisfy your heart with complete trust in Him so that you will follow His way of living life instead of the world’s way or your own way.

All of the above information is covered in the Identity: Sticking to Your Faith in a Pull-Apart World Bible Study covering the last 7 written books of the Old Testament.

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