Coming to the Governors - Nehemiah 2:9

In the book of Nehemiah, Nehemiah said to the king, “let letters be given me to the governors beyond the river, that they may convey me over till I come into Judah. And a letter unto Asaph the keeper of the king's forest, that he may give me timber to make beams for the gates of the palace which appertained to the house, and for the wall of the house that I shall enter into. And the king granted me, according to the good hand of my God upon me”, and in chapter two and verse nine of Nehemiah, Nehemiah said, “then I came to the governors beyond the river”, where we read,

Then I came to the governors beyond the river, and gave them the king's letters.

Now the king had sent captains of the army and horsemen with me.

The verse reads, “Then I came to the governors beyond the river, and gave them the king's letters.” Nehemiah began with the words, “then I came to the governors” or “at that time I, Nehemiah, came forth unto the captains and deputies” “beyond the river” which means “over and across the stream or Euphrates river”, “and gave them the king's letters” or “and granted, bestowed and delivered to them, the governors beyond the river's, missives and epistles”. Nehemiah shared how he began his journey and approached the deputies who ruled the region on the west side of the Euphrates River and delivered the king's missives to them. 

The verse goes on to say, “Now the king had sent captains of the army and horsemen with me.” Nehemiah continued with the words, “now the king” or “at the present time the royal ruler and leader” “had sent captains of the army” which means “assigned and dispatched rulers, officials and leaders belonging to the powerful and efficient militia” “and horsemen with me” or “and steeds or warhorses alongside and accompanying me, Nehemiah”. Nehemiah shared how the royal ruler Artaxerxes also dispatched officials and leaders within his powerful militia along with warhorses to accompany him. 

When we think through Ezra's words in this verse, we learn how he began his journey back to Jerusalem, and he was accompanied by the epistles of authority from the royal ruler, his powerful militia and warhorses. In other words, no one would stop his efforts. When God purposes to accomplish His will, no one or nothing can stop Him. He will use and equip people to perform His desire, and when we yield to His Son Jesus as our personal “Savior and Lord”, He will forgive our sins, grant us everlasting life and equip us by His Holy Spirit to perform whatever task He has in mind for us in His Kingdom and among people in the world. 

Next time Nehemiah shares about, “Sanballat and Tobiah” so read ahead, and we shall join together then.

Until tomorrow…there is more…

See more devotionals on the website "thewordfortodaywithray.com" or look for the daily devotional book “Equipped for Battle – From Generation to Generation”, the marriage book “So, You Want to Be Married”, “One Year in the Sermon on the Mount” and the new poetry book "Random Mushrooms Volumes I and II" and the new novel "Elizabeth County" in all major bookstore sites, http://www.amazon.com ; http://www.barnesandnobles.com ; download to e-books, and find it locally at www.mrzlc.com/bookstore. All references are from "Strongs Concordance".