Nehemiah 10

Chapter 10 of Nehemiah is part of the account of spiritual renewal that follows the rebuilding of the city wall. At the end of Nehemiah 9, after completing their prayer of repentance, the people resolve to "make a sure covenant, and write it" and to seal it. This chapter records those who set their seals to that covenant document and the specific commitments it contains.

Outline

• Verses 1–8 The governor Nehemiah the son of Hachaliah, Zidkijah, and the priests set their seals to the covenant.
• Verses 9–13 The Levites, beginning with Jeshua the son of Azaniah, set their seals.
• Verses 14–27 The chiefs of the people, including Parosh and Pahath-moab, set their seals.
• Verses 28–29 The rest of the people, together with the priests, Levites, porters, singers, and Nethinims (those who assisted in the temple service), along with their wives and children, bind themselves with a curse and an oath to keep the Law of Moses.
• Verses 30–31 They pledge not to intermarry with the people of the land, not to buy goods on the Sabbath or on holy days, and to let the land rest every seventh year and to forgo the collection of debts.
• Verses 32–34 They pledge to give a third of a shekel each year for the service of the temple and to bring wood for the altar according to assignments determined by lot.
• Verses 35–39 They pledge to bring the firstfruits, the firstborn, and the tithe, with the Levites bringing a tenth of that tithe to the temple storehouses. The chapter concludes, "we will not forsake the house of our God."

Key Verses

• Nehemiah 10:29 "to walk in God's law, which was given by Moses … and to observe" — This identifies the Law of Moses as the basis of the covenant.
• Nehemiah 10:39 "we will not forsake the house of our God" — The commitments as a whole converge in this resolve to sustain the service of the temple.

People and Places

• Nehemiah: The governor of Judah sent by the Persian king; his name heads the list.
• Hachaliah: Nehemiah's father.
• The Daniel, Baruch, Jeremiah, and others named in the list are generally regarded as individuals (or family names) distinct from the well-known figures who bear the same names. Many of the names in the list of the chiefs of the people overlap with the family names in the list of returnees in Ezra 2.
• The house of God: The Jerusalem temple, rebuilt after the return from exile.

Points for Reflection

• The Hebrew Bible counts Nehemiah 9:38 of English Bibles as 10:1, so in the Hebrew text this chapter has 40 verses, and its verse numbers are shifted by one.
• Exodus 30 requires a half shekel to be given for the sanctuary, whereas here the amount is a third of a shekel. Among the explanations offered, some interpreters regard this difference as an adjustment to the community's circumstances. The passage is also sometimes read alongside the account of the temple tax in Matthew 17:24.
• The tithe provisions in verses 37–38 are frequently cited, together with Malachi 3:8–10, in the tithing debate. Some see them as a basis for church giving today, while others regard them as Old Testament regulations tied to the temple system.
• In Nehemiah 13, neglect of the tithe, trading on the Sabbath, and intermarriage with foreigners again become problems, showing that the promises of this chapter were not kept.