Nehemiah 13

This is the final chapter of the Book of Nehemiah. Following the dedication of the wall and the reorganization of temple service in chapter 12, it records in the first person how Nehemiah restored the order that had fallen into disarray during his absence.

Outline

• Verses 1–3 During a public reading from the book of Moses, the people hear the ordinance that no Ammonite or Moabite may enter the congregation of God, and they separate the mixed multitude from Israel.
• Verses 4–9 The priest Eliashib had given Tobiah a storeroom in the temple. Nehemiah, who had gone to the king in the thirty-second year of Artaxerxes, returns, throws out Tobiah's household goods, and has the chambers cleansed.
• Verses 10–14 The Levites and singers, not having received their portions, had gone back to their fields. Nehemiah rebukes the rulers and restores the Levites to their posts, and the tithes are brought into the storehouses. He appoints Shelemiah, Zadok, Pedaiah, and Hanan to oversee the distribution.
• Verses 15–22 On the Sabbath, people tread winepresses and bring in loads, and men of Tyre sell their wares. Nehemiah rebukes the nobles, orders the city gates shut, warns the merchants lodging outside the wall, and assigns Levites to guard the gates.
• Verses 23–27 Men of Judah have married women of Ashdod, Ammon, and Moab, and their children cannot speak the language of Judah. Nehemiah rebukes them, makes them swear an oath, and cites the sin of Solomon as a warning.
• Verses 28–29 When one of the sons of Joiada, son of the high priest Eliashib, becomes the son-in-law of Sanballat, Nehemiah drives him away.
• Verses 30–31 Nehemiah establishes the courses of the priests and Levites and provides for the offerings of wood and of firstfruits.

Key Verses

• Nehemiah 13:14 "Remember me, O my God, concerning this" — The prayer asking God to remember him, repeated in verses 14, 22, 29, and 31, is a distinctive feature of this chapter.
• Nehemiah 13:31 "Remember me, O my God, for good." — This verse concludes the entire Book of Nehemiah.

People and Places

• Nehemiah: The narrator of this chapter; the governor of Judah who led the rebuilding of the walls of Jerusalem.
• Eliashib: The priest in charge of the temple chambers; in verse 28 he is called the high priest.
• Tobiah: An Ammonite who opposed the rebuilding of the wall.
• Sanballat: A Horonite who, together with Tobiah, opposed the rebuilding.
• Artaxerxes: Although the text calls him "king of Babylon," he was king of Persia.
• Balaam: The man hired to curse Israel (Numbers 22–24).
• Tyre: A port city on the Mediterranean coast.
• Ashdod: A city of the Philistines.

Points for Reflection

• Verses 1–2 cite the ordinance in Deuteronomy 23:3–5. When this ordinance is read alongside the story of the Moabite woman Ruth, who became an ancestor of David, interpretations differ on how far it applies.
• The prohibition of marriage with foreigners is read by some as ethnic separation and by others, in light of the example of Solomon in verse 26, as a measure to preserve the faith. It is compared with Ezra 10.
• The Sabbath reforms bear on the question of the Sabbath and the Lord's Day. Sermons emphasizing Sunday observance read this passage in connection with the Lord's Day, while the Seventh-day Adventist Church regards it as support for keeping the Saturday Sabbath. Jesus' words in Mark 2:27–28 are also cited in this connection.
• In connection with verse 28, the Jewish historian Josephus reports that a member of the priestly family (Manasseh) who became Sanballat's son-in-law was associated with the temple on Mount Gerizim. However, Josephus places this event in the time of Alexander the Great, so opinions differ as to whether it is the same incident described in the text. The text itself says only that Nehemiah drove him away.