Nehemiah – Page 2 – Be Still…

Nehemiah 12:1-26 – Worship

Read Nehemiah 12:1-26

Up to now, we have been seeing how Nehemiah is shaping up the returnees, so they don’t fall out of God’s good graces again. Here are more lists supporting the people in charge of renewing the people and keeping them properly focused.

Let’s focus on verse 24. It says, “These were the family leaders of the Levites: Hashabiah, Sherebiah, Jeshua, Binnui, Kadmiel, and other associates, who stood opposite them during the ceremonies of praise and thanksgiving, one section responding to the other, as commanded by David, the man of God.” It appears Nehemiah is prescribing a worship format, fashioned after King David’s command.

Nehemiah 11:1-36 – Who’s Who in Jerusalem?

Read Nehemiah 11:1-36

Don’t let the list of names bore you to death. There is always a message hidden in Scripture. What’s a bit puzzling for me is why Nehemiah felt led to include all these names. Can you imagine if your name had shown up in the pages of the Bible?

It shouldn’t surprise us that the people returning to Judah would want to live on their family’s land. Not everybody would have lived in Jerusalem proper before being exiled. The motivation of the people seems to be to take back what was already theirs, grateful for the opportunity to start a new life in their homeland.

Nehemiah 9:38-10:39 – Vow of Faithfulness

Read Nehemiah 9:38-10:39

Our next couple readings will be longer than usual, but they include a list of names. Again, I am impressed by the record keeping and how this was shared with us. I have flashbacks to when I would acknowledge a list of people for some accomplishment as a ministry leader. I always feared leaving someone off the list by accident!

Today’s reading calls out those leaders who had vowed their allegiance to God. These leaders were joined by the people who affirmed their participation in this vow of faithfulness. The people must have deemed it necessary to make this promise official with the oath and sealed document.

Nehemiah 9:4-37 – Prayer of Confession

Read Nehemiah 9:4-37

What a prayer! One of the elements we often forget in our prayer time is to give adoration to God. We do this when we tell him how great he is. The Levite leaders are showing us a fine example of this as their prayer begins! Brilliantly, they recount God’s hand at work in the lives of their ancestors.

At times, I felt like I was reading a sermon and not a prayer of confession. God knows history better than anyone, but it was a good reminder for the people to hear who were praying this prayer with the Levite leaders. They need to hear how their ancestors messed up, mistreated God, and how that all turned around. You never know who in the crowd may not have heard all of the stories passed down from generations or been exposed to God’s words before. We are wise when we can learn from the mistakes of others, namely our ancestors.

Nehemiah 9:1-3 – Confession

Read Nehemiah 9:1-3

Have you ever confessed your sins out loud to another human? Our sins certainly become a lot more “real” when we do that. It’s also a great way to give away the power our sins have over us, simply by speaking them out loud. And we have an accountability partner to keep us from falling into that sin’s trap!

James 5:16 says, “Confess your sins to each other and pray for each other so that you may be healed. The earnest prayer of a righteous person has great power and produces wonderful results.” Nehemiah’s contemporaries are ready to make their confession public. I bet you haven’t ever sprinkled dust on your head or worn a burlap garment because of lament over your sin.