Going Out By Night By the Gate - Nehemiah 2:13

In the book of Nehemiah, Nehemiah said, “When Sanballat the Horonite, and Tobiah the servant, the Ammonite, heard of it, it grieved them exceedingly that there was come a man to seek the welfare of the children of Israel. So I came to Jerusalem, and was there three days. And I arose in the night, I and some few men with me; neither told I any man what my God had put in my heart to do at Jerusalem: neither was there any beast with me, save the beast that I rode upon”,and in chapter two and verse thirteen of Nehemiah, Nehemiah said, “I went out by night by the gate of the valley”, where we read,

And I went out by night by the gate of the valley, even before the dragon well, and to the dung port, and viewed the walls of Jerusalem, which were broken down, and the gates thereof were consumed with fire.

The verse reads, “And I went out by night by the gate of the valley, even before the dragon well, and to the dung port, ...”. Nehemiah began with the words, “and I went out by night” or “and I, Nehemiah, exited and departed within the nighttime” “by the gate of the valley” which means “through the means of the opening, entryway and port belonging to the steep or narrow gorge”, “even before the dragon well” or “also and indeed in advance and prior to the serpent, venomous snake or Jackal's spring”, “and to the dung port” which means “and toward the entrance gate known as the ash, refuse or rubbish gate”. Nehemiah shared how he departed within the nighttime through the entry port pertaining to the steep or narrow gorge which was located prior to the Jackal's spring and toward the rubbish gate. 

The verse goes on to say, “... and viewed the walls of Jerusalem, which were broken down, and the gates thereof were consumed with fire.” Nehemiah continued with the words, “and viewed the walls” or “and inspected, examined and observed the barriers walls” “of Jerusalem” which means “belonging to Jerusalem whose name means teaching of peace and is the chief city of Palestine and capital of the united kingdom and the nation of Judah after the split”, “which were broken down” or “that were burst, breached and thrown down into pieces”, “and the gates thereof” which means “and the entry ports of the city of Jerusalem” “were consumed with fire” or “existed as devoured and destroyed by the use of burning fiery fire”. Nehemiah said he inspected the barrier walls that were broken down and the entry ports which were devoured by burning fire which belonged to the city of “Jerusalem”.

When we consider Ezra's words in this verse, we discover how he departed at night into the city of Jerusalem through the entry port belonging to the narrow gorge and just in advance of the rubbish gate to observe and inspect the barrier walls of the city that were breached and torn into pieces. He also noticed the entry ports of the city which were destroyed by burning fire. Nehemiah's mission was shown to him in advance of his rebuilding effort. God gave Nehemiah the wisdom, insight and protection to see in advance the work that He designed for him to perform. God has a plan for our lives as well, and He first exposes the breach and sin within our own lives so we come to Him through His Son Jesus who died on the cross for the sins of all mankind and was resurrected from the dead. When we believe and trust in Him as our “Savior and Lord”, we will be forgiven of our sins, granted everlasting life and given the ability and insight to observe and perform all that He commissions us to do in His Kingdom. 

Next time Nehemiah says, “I went to the gate of the fountain” 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".