Follow Day 7 A Time To Act: Digging Deeper
Digging Deeper Days
Finding the original intent of Scripture and making good application to our everyday lives as we become equipped to correctly handle the Word of Truth!
Yesterday’s Journey Study connects with today’s!
Check out A Time To Act!
The Questions
1) Why is Nehemiah in Susa and who is the remnant? (verses 1-3)
2) Why does the unbuilt wall cause Nehemiah to weep and what did he do with his grief? (verses 4 and following)
3) In 2:2 Nehemiah is clearly afraid. What does he do with his fear?
Nehemiah 1:1-2:5
The words of Nehemiah son of Hacaliah:
During the month of Chislev in the twentieth year, when I was in the fortress city of Susa, 2 Hanani, one of my brothers, arrived with men from Judah, and I questioned them about Jerusalem and the Jewish remnant that had survived the exile. 3 They said to me, “The remnant in the province, who survived the exile, are in great trouble and disgrace. Jerusalem’s wall has been broken down, and its gates have been burned.”
4 When I heard these words, I sat down and wept. I mourned for a number of days, fasting and praying before the God of the heavens. 5 I said,
Lord, the God of the heavens, the great and awe-inspiring God who keeps his gracious covenant with those who love him and keep his commands, 6 let your eyes be open and your ears be attentive to hear your servant’s prayer that I now pray to you day and night for your servants, the Israelites. I confess the sins we have committed against you. Both I and my father’s family have sinned. 7 We have acted corruptly toward you and have not kept the commands, statutes, and ordinances you gave your servant Moses. 8 Please remember what you commanded your servant Moses: “If you are unfaithful, I will scatter you among the peoples. 9 But if you return to me and carefully observe my commands, even though your exiles were banished to the farthest horizon, I will gather them from there and bring them to the place where I chose to have my name dwell.” 10 They are your servants and your people. You redeemed them by your great power and strong hand. 11 Please, Lord, let your ear be attentive to the prayer of your servant and to that of your servants who delight to revere your name. Give your servant success today, and grant him compassion in the presence of this man.
At the time, I was the king’s cupbearer.
2 During the month of Nisan in the twentieth year of King Artaxerxes, when wine was set before him, I took the wine and gave it to the king. I had never been sad in his presence, 2 so the king said to me, “Why do you look so sad, when you aren’t sick? This is nothing but sadness of heart.”
I was overwhelmed with fear 3 and replied to the king, “May the king live forever! Why should I not be sad when the city where my ancestors are buried lies in ruins and its gates have been destroyed by fire?”
4 Then the king asked me, “What is your request?”
So I prayed to the God of the heavens 5 and answered the king, “If it pleases the king, and if your servant has found favor with you, send me to Judah and to the city where my ancestors are buried, so that I may rebuild it.”
Original Intent
1) Why is Nehemiah in Susa and who is the remnant? (verses 1-3)
As the book of Nehemiah opens we find him in the city of Susa, one of the Persian Empire capitals. Jerusalem had been overtaken in 586 BC by the Babylonians, who were later overtaken by the Persian Empire, and many of the residents dispersed into the existing empire. With this takeover and captivity, the city of Jerusalem was destroyed. This destruction included Solomon’s Temple and the city walls. However, a remnant of Israel, God’s chosen people, was left behind in Jerusalem. This remnant was extremely poor and represented a significantly small fraction of the total Jewish population that had once lived in Jerusalem. God was working behind the scenes both in Jerusalem and in Susa as He stirred hearts to serve and follow Him as only He could. He was preparing to use Nehemiah in his perfect placement in Susa for His glory and for the benefit of the remnant.
2) Why does the unbuilt wall cause Nehemiah to weep and what did he do with his grief? (verses 4 and following)
Before Nehemiah asked permission from the king to personally return to Jerusalem, there had been two other waves of Israelites who had gone home and left Susa. These Jews had restored the Temple in their time there, but not the city wall. Nehemiah receives word of this destruction and is broken by the news. He knew the city wall was vitally important because without a fortified wall, the city was defenseless against any attack. The city would have also held no value in the ancient world without a wall. A wall also meant a gate for entry. These gates served as a meeting place and a city council type place to conduct business affairs. Without a wall and gates, the prominence of the city would have been obsolete. Nehemiah is broken for his homeland, even though he had actually never lived there. Nehemiah allows himself to feel his grief, but then he moves into action. Nehemiah 1:4 tells how he fasted and prayed, acknowledging the sin of his people and asking God for favor. His action doesn’t stop there, however, this was not simply an emotional response. Nehemiah asked the king for permission to return to Jerusalem with the plan to rebuild the walls. Nehemiah leads the charge to rebuild the city walls in 52 days; an absurd impossibility! What an incredible testimony of what God did through Nehemiah because he was willing to put his grief into action.
3) In 2:2 Nehemiah is clearly afraid. What does he do with his fear?
Nehemiah does not ignore his fear. Instead, he owns his fear. However, Nehemiah doesn’t get stuck in his fear. He chooses to turn to the “God of heaven” and pray. While earlier in chapter 1 Nehemiah shares his specific prayer with his audience in Nehemiah 2:5 we are not privy to what he said. His exact words are unimportant in the grand scheme of the situation. What is important however, is he took his fear to the God of the universe trusting him with what would come next in the conversation with the king. Nehemiah knew who was really in control and acknowledged that through his actions.
Everyday Application
1) Why is Nehemiah in Susa and who is the remnant? (verses 1-3)
Nehemiah had been born in exile and lived his entire life in the Persian Empire. Foreign lands were all he knew as home. He had risen to a position which placed him in direct contact with the king as the king’s cupbearer all while there was a small number of Israelites who had been allowed to stay in Jerusalem and continue living there. Nehemiah’s book opens with Nehemiah in a city in the Persian Empire hearing of what is taking place in Jerusalem with the remnant, or small number, still there. We see the stage being set for God to use Nehemiah right where he was even though he wasn’t in Jerusalem. As believers, we can be encouraged when we are surrendering our desire to control our life over to God. He will use us exactly where we are. Our circumstances, or even geographical location, may not always make sense to us, but God is able to use even these ordinary things for His glory when we allow Him to be our Lord over all.
2) Why does the unbuilt wall cause Nehemiah to weep and what did he do with his grief? (verses 4 and following)
Jerusalem is in ruins, no longer a place of prominence in the ancient world. While the Temple has been rebuilt much of the city wall remained in shambles. The city was no longer the place of prominence it had once been and if left unrepaired likely would have become a city to never be heard about again. Nehemiah is broken by the news of his home. He chooses to feel his grief and mourn but he does not stay there. Instead, he chooses to move forward, using his position, to lead the way for change. Nehemiah was a cupbearer, a servant for the king, but that allowed him to be in audience of the king. He sees the opportunity he has and after spending time in fasting and prayer asks God to “give him success”. Nehemiah allowed himself to be used by God even as a servant. We too can be used by God regardless of where we are, what we do, or the grief we may be walking in. God used 1 man to change Jerusalem for the better and God can use us exactly where we are. We don’t have to be pastors to make a Kingdom impact we simply have to be willing to be used and leave the rest up to God. Nehemiah led a charge to rebuild an entire city wall in 52 days… a feat which seems impossible! This willingness to step into action shows us that while we need to feel our grief and take time to mourn we cannot stay there. We too must choose to step into action and God can do what seems impossible through our lives as well. The question we must ask ourselves is are we willing?
3) In 2:2 Nehemiah is clearly afraid. What does he do with his fear?
When standing before the king being given the opportunity to speak, Nehemiah was afraid. I imagine if faced with the same situation, I too would be afraid. In Nehemiah’s days you didn’t speak boldly to the king. Nehemiah could have chosen to become stuck in his fear, but instead he chooses to turn to the God of heaven. In that split moment we see Nehemiah acknowledge his weakness and turn it over to the One who is ultimately in control. Sisters, I don’t know about you but for me this year has been filled with fear, disappointment, frustration, and so many other emotions. We have lost loved ones, been asked to stay home, watched people suffer physically, emotionally, financially, and spiritually and there are moments everything has felt completely overwhelming. At times, I have been tempted to give in to the fleshly emotions but these verses in Nehemiah remind me my God is bigger than my emotions. I can choose, just as Nehemiah did, to turn them over to God trusting that He knows what is best and is in control. When I do I find the same boldness Nehemiah found as he addressed the king. I urge you in those moments to make the same choice as Nehemiah and trust the God of the heavens. He is trustworthy!
The book of Nehemiah shows us the kind of significant impact one individual can have on a nation. Nehemiah served in secular offices, using his position to bring back to the Jews order, stability, and proper focus on God.
God uses all manner of people in all manner of places doing all manner of work. Do you feel you must be “in ministry” in order to serve God? Be encouraged; He is not limited by your vocation. In fact, God has placed you where you are for a purpose. Have this attitude about your work: “Whatever you do in word or deed, do all in the name of the Lord Jesus, giving thanks through Him to God the Father”
What do YOU think?! Share Here!
Missing the connection to our other Journey Study?
Catch up with A Time To Act!
Digging Deeper is for Everyone!
1) Take this passage (or any other passage).
2) Read it, and the verses around it,
several times
3) Write down your questions
as you think of them.
4) Ask specific culture related questions and be ready to dig around for your answers. Google them, use www.studylight.org, or look them up in a study Bible and read the footnotes (click on the little letters next to a word and it will show you
other related verses!). (www.esvbible.org)
5) Check your applications with other trusted Christians that you are in community with and embrace the fullness of God
in your everyday!
Digging Deeper Community
Share What You’ve Learned!
Pray Together!
Join us in the GT Facebook Community!
Our Current Study Theme!
This is Follow Week Two!
Don’t miss out on the discussion!
Sign up to receive every GT Journey Study!
Why Dig Deeper?
Finding the original meaning is a huge deal when we study Scripture and can make all the difference in our understanding as we apply God’s truths to our everyday lives.
In our modern-day relationships, we want people to understand our original intention as we communicate; how much more so between God and humanity?!
Here’s a little bit more on why we take Digging Deeper so seriously.
Study Tools
We love getting help while we study and www.studylight.org is one of many excellent resources, providing the original Hebrew (Old Testament) or Greek (New Testament) with an English translation.
Want to know more about a specific word in a verse? Click on “Strong’s Interlinear Bible” then click the word you’d like to study. Discover “origin”, “definition” and hear the original pronunciation – That Is Awesome!
Want more background? Click “Study Tools”, then pick a few commentaries to read their scholarly approach, keeping in mind that just because a commentary says it, doesn’t mean it’s true. (just like the internet :-))
Memorize It!
Download this week’s verse and make it your phone’s lockscreen!
Tap and hold on your mobile device to save.