biblical illustrator nehemiahs adversaries

8/14/2019 Biblical Illustrator Nehemiahs Adversaries

1/4

BISpring

2009

52

559 B.C. Later in hi reign, Cyruallowed a contingency of the Jew to return to their home-land to rebuild Jerualem andit temple. Zerubbabel led thefirt exile back about 538 B.C.,and the econd returnee camewith the priet Ezra about 458B.C. About 445 B.C., Nehemiah

received permiion from PeriaKing Artaxerxe to return torebuild Jerualem, whoe wallhad fallen in ruin.2

intrument of judgment on Hipeople. some of the Jew hadbeen deported to Babylon in 605B.C., and other were exiled in597 B.C., with the detruction of Jerualem coming in 586 B.C.,when another wave of Jew weredeported.1 Yet Jeremiah hadpropheied that the captivity

would lat only 70 year.The fulfillment of God prom-ie began when Cyru (the Great)aumed the Perian throne in

HE BOOKs OF Ezraand Nehemiah record a

egment of Judah hito-ry that i both devatating

and facinating. The peoplehad rebelled againt God and fol-lowed their ungodly king intoidolatry. God ent Hi prophetto warn them and plead with

them to repent and abandontheir evil way, but they refuedto liten. God ued Babylon, apowerful, pagan kingdom, a an

B y D a v i d L . J e n k i n


2/4

53

the king attention. After muchprodding, the king dicoveredthe reaon for Nehemiah ad-ne and granted him permiionto return to Jerualem to urvey

to the highet ervant poition,that of the king cupbearer.

After Nehemiah had learnedfrom hi brother, Hanani, andother Jew who had returned

from Judah that condition in Jerualem were deplorable, hebecame deeply depreed. Himelancholy tate did not ecape

The Courage of NehemiahNehemiah wa a brilliant trate-git who had a paion for hihomeland in Judah and for theholy city, Jerualem. Though he

wa a Jewih captive in Babylon,hi widom and intuitive killhad caught the attention of KingArtaxerxe, who promoted him

LESSON REFERENCE

BsFL: Nehemiah 4

Two or poibly three men withthe name of sanballat appear tohave ruled in samaria, begin-ning with the sanballat who challengedNehemiah in approximately 445 B.C.Evidence concerning the exitence of

the sanballat of Nehemiah day comefrom the Elephantine Papyri, a collec-tion of ancient Jewih manucriptwritten in Aramaic, dating to the fifthcentury B.C. dicovered in Egypt.Among the papyri wa a manucriptentitled Petition for Authorizationto Rebuild the Temple of Yaho. Thepetition refer to sanballat on,Delaiah and shemeliah, the on ofsanballat the governor of samaria.1Alo mentioned i Johanan, a high

priet who erved about 411 B.C., atthe time Nehemiah lit of priet wacompiled (Neh. 12:22-23).2

A coin and eal incription from

the mid-fourth century B.C. were di-covered in the wilderne outide ofJericho. Both were incribed with thename sanballat, governor of samaria.Thi sanballat wa likely the grand-on of the sanballat of Nehemiah

time. In hi Antiquities, Joephu alomentioned a sanballat. Thi sanballatwa poibly the great-grandon ofthe sanballat of Nehemiah time,and would have ruled samariaaround 332 B.C.3 i

1. Aramaic Letters in Ancient Near Eastern Texts Relating

to the Old Testament, ed. James B. Pritchard, 3rd ed. (Princeton:

Princeton University Press, 1969), 491-92.

2. Johanan in Holman Illustrated Bible Dictionary, gen. ed.

Chad Brand, Charles Draper, and Archie England (Nashville: Holman

Bible Publishers, 2003), 931.

3. NIV Archaeological Study Bible (Grand Rapids: Zondervan,

2005), 691.

David L. Jenkin i a retired patorliving in Gilmer, Texa.

SANBALLAT S FOOTPRINTS IN ARCHAEOLOGYLeft: Obverseand reverse of aSamaritan coin thatmentions Sanballat.Josephus also men-tioned a Sanballatwho lived about100 years later. Wedo not know whichSanballat this coinrepresents. Findingthis coin in Jordan

would suggestthat Sanballatskingdom was notlimited to a districton the west sideof the Jordan, butstretched to a con-siderable territoryon the east side ofthe Jordan as well.

Below: Overviewof the ruins of theSamaritan templeon Mount Gerizim.The temple was

destroyed in 128B.C. This temple

was built by thefamily of Sanballat,

who was mentionedin the Book ofNehemiah.


3/4

BISpring

2009

54

Tobiah, the Ammonitesanballat cloe ally inmutering oppoition to

Nehemiah Jerualem projectwa Tobiah the Ammoniteofficial (Neh. 2:19). Tobiahmean Yahweh i good, whichugget he could have been aYahwit Jew. Further, he namedhi on Jehohanan, which meanYahweh i graciou (6:18).Tobiah wa probably appointedby the Perian king to overeethe affair of the Ammonitewho lived eat of the Jordan

River. Jehohanan wa marriedto the daughter of Mehullam,on of Berechiah, leader of oneof the group repairing a ectionof Jerualem wall (ee 3:4; 6:18).Tobiah wa alo a relative of thepriet, Eliahib (13:4-7).7 Tobiahmay have been angered becaueNehemiah had clearly ignoredTobiah Iraelite root.

sanballat and Tobiah foundanother ally, Gehem, an influ-

ential Arab who, with hi

ducing a hybrid religion in whichYahweh wa worhiped alongideidol. No doubt thi wa a major

caue of Nehemiah refual toallow the samaritan to partici-pate in the Jerualem rebuildingproject.3

A papyru dating from the timeof Dariu 1 mention sanballatthe governor of samaria.4Although the scripture neverrefer to him by that title, themanner in which sanballatapproached Nehemiah impliedthey were equal in poition and

authority (6:2).5 sanballat wacalled a Horonite likely becaueof hi birthplace or where he waliving at the time. Beth-horon wathe name of two adjacent villag-e, upper Beth-horon and lowerBeth-horon, in the territory thatformerly belonged to the tribe ofEphraim (1 Chron. 7:24; 2 Chron.8:5). In Nehemiah day, thi arealocated about 10 mile northwetof Jerualem wa included in the

region of samaria.6

the condition of the city andit inhabitant. Artaxerxe alomade it poible for Nehemiah

to ecure material to rebuild thecity wall. Under Nehemiahadminitrative geniu, the workbegan. section by ection, thebroken wall were rebuilt and themaive gate repaired.

Sanballat, the HoroniteNehemiah ucce and therepone of the reident Jewinfuriated the urrounding non-

Jewih people. One of their lead-

er wa sanballat, referred to athe Horonite (Neh. 2:19), whowa from samaria. sanballat, aBabylonian name, mean sin hagiven life. sin wa the paganmoon god name. sanballatancetor could have decendedfrom the foreigner imported toreplace the Iraelite who weretaken a captive to Ayria inthe eighth century B.C. In timethee foreign people intermarried

with the northern Iraelite, pro-

ILLUSTRATOR PHOTO/DAVID ROGERS (149/24)


4/4

BISpring

2009

55

ing the great and awe-inpiringLord (4:14),9 the God of Irael.

The wall wa completedmiraculouly in 52 day (6:15).The defining tatement declar-ing victory over thee who wereenemie not only of the Iraelitebut of God wa that they wereintimidated and lot their con-fidence, for they realized thatthi tak had been accomplihed

by our God (6:16).i

1. Mervin Breneman, Ezra, Nehemiah, Esther, vol. 10

in The New American Commentary(Nashville: Broadman

& Holman Publishers, 1993), 65-66.

2. Breneman, 30, 46; H. G. M. Williamson,

Zerubbabel in The International Standard Bible

Encyclopedia, gen. ed. Geoffrey W. Bromiley, vol. 4

(Grand Rapids: Eerdmans, 1988), 1193.

3. Raymond Brown, The Message of Nehemiah:

Gods Servant in a Time of Change (Downers Grove:

Inter-Varsity Press, 1998), 60-62.

4. Aramaic Letters in Ancient Near Eastern Texts

Relating to the Old Testament, ed. James B. Pritchard,

3rd ed. (Princeton: Princeton University Press, 1969),

492.

5. H. G. M. Williamson, Ezra, Nehemiah, vol. 16 in

Word Biblical Commentary (Waco: Word Books, 1985),

182.6. C. F. Keil and F. Delitzsch, Nehemiah in I & II

Kings, I & II Chronicles, Ezra, Nehemiah, Esther, vol. 3

in Commentary on the Old Testament in Ten Volumes

(Grand Rapids: Eerdmans, 1976), 168; Beth-Horon

in Holman Illustrated Bible Dictionary, gen. ed. Chad

Brand, Charles Draper, and Archie England (Nashville:

Holman Bible Publishers, 2003), 193.

7. Edwin Yamauchi, Ezra, Nehemiah in The

Expositors Bible Commentary, vol. 4 (Grand Rapids:

Zondervan, 1988), 687.

8. Brown, 61; Yamauchi, 691.

9. All Scripture quotations are from the Holman

Christian Standard Bible (HCSB).

David L. Jenkin i a retired pa-

tor living in Gilmer, Texa.

military geniu that foiled theenemie plan (4:15-23). Then, indeperation, sanballat and hicohort tried four time to con-vince Nehemiah to meet private-ly with them. After Nehemiahfourth refual, sanballat informedhim of a rumor that he wa guiltyof plotting to become king of the

Jew (6:1-9). Then, in a final moveto dicredit Nehemiah, sanballat

and Tobiah hired shemaiah, aprophet, to give Nehemiah falecounel, warning him that hemut hide himelf in the templelet he be aainated. Nehemiahaw through their plot and refuedto comply with their uggetion(vv. 10-14).

sanballat and Tobiah werehrewd, manipulative men. Thehitory of the human race i pock-marked by individual of their

ilk, whoe thirt for power andcontrol i uch that they toopto the lowet level of deceit andchicanery in attempt to achievetheir goal. sanballat and Tobiahliterally pulled out all the topin their determination to thwartGod work in Jerualem throughNehemiah. They ran the gamutfrom fale, conciliatory getureto taunt and threat. They failedmierably becaue they did not

realize that they were oppo-

on, ruled over a federation ofArabian tribe in North Africa.Gehem may have feared thata trong Irael would inter-fere with hi lucrative myrrhand frankincene trade in thearea.8 Thee three men wereunited in their hatred toward

the Iraelite, although theymay have had different motive.sanballat, with hi samaritanconnection, would have hadpolitical concern. Tobiahfelt that hi religiou con-nection were being rebuffedby Nehemiah, and Gehem

wanted nothing to interferewith hi materialitic puruit.

The Enemies ShrewdManeuverssanballat effort aimed at

dicouraging the Jerualembuilding project began

with a deriive approach,mocking the Jew, call-ing them pathetic,inferring that theywere weak and feeble

(4:1-2). Tobiah cornedthe building effort by tating the

rebuilt wall were o flimy that afox walking on them would cauethem to collape (v. 3).

When thi approach didnot caue the work to falter,Nehemiah enemie formed acoalition of samaritan, Arab,Ammonite, and Ahdoditeand determined to wage waragaint the Iraelite (v. 7). Theyplanned for a urprie attack,but Nehemiah dependence on

the Lord provided the troke of

Left: Wall ofeast side of thetemple mountin Jerusalem.Clearly markedis the divisionbetween Herodianmasonry (left) andZerubbabel (right).

Below: Woodenmallet, dated to

about 1300 B.C.;Egyptian. Themasons mallethas changed little

since Egyptiantimes. The shape

would havebeen familiar toNehemiah and his

workers.

Right: Bronzestylus used bymasons and stonecarvers in mark-ing the surface of

their block; datedabout 14001200B.C.; from Rhodes,Greece.

ILLUSTRATOR PHOTO/BRITISH MUSEUM/ LONDON (31/28/79)

biblical illustrator nehemiahs adversaries

Documents