Nehemiah Repairing - Nehemiah 3:16

In the book of Nehemiah, Nehemiah went back to the city of Jerusalem and began to rebuild the wall. Among many people he employed was, “Malchiah the son of Rechab, the ruler of part of Bethhaccerem; he built it, and set up the doors thereof, the locks thereof, and the bars thereof. But the gate of the fountain repaired Shallun the son of Colhozeh, the ruler of part of Mizpah; he built it, and covered it, and set up the doors thereof, the locks thereof, and the bars thereof, and the wall of the pool of Siloah by the king's garden, and unto the stairs that go down from the city of David”, and in chapter three and verse sixteen of Nehemiah, Nehemiah said, “after him repaired Nehemiah” where we read,

After him repaired Nehemiah the son of Azbuk, the ruler of the half part of Bethzur, unto the place over against the sepulchers of David, and to the pool that was made, and unto the house of the mighty.

The verse reads, “After him repaired Nehemiah the son of Azbuk, the ruler of the half part of Bethzur, ...” Nehemiah began with the words, “after him repaired Nehemiah” or “following Shallun strengthened, hardened and made firm Nehemiah whose name means Jehovah comforts” “the son of Azbuk” which means “the male offspring and progeny belonging to Azbuk whose name means strong devastation”, “the ruler of the half part of Bethzur” or “the prince, leader, chief, chieftain and official pertaining to one half of the territory called Bethzur whose name means house of rock”. Nehemiah said he also was among the people who rebuilt the wall surrounding Jerusalem. 

The verse goes on to say, “... unto the place over against the sepulchers of David, and to the pool that was made, and unto the house of the mighty.” Nehemiah continued with the words, “unto the place” or “to the location” “over against the sepulchers” which means “across from the burying place, graves and tombs” “of David” or “belonging to David whose name means blessed and was the son of Jesse and the second king of Israel”, “and the pool that was made” which means “and the reservoir, fish-pool or pond that was fabricated and produced”, “and unto the house” or “and to the habitation, abode and dwelling place” “of the mighty” which means “belonging to the strong, powerful and brave”. Nehemiah shared how he worked upon the barrier wall in the location that was across from the tombs belonging to“David”, toward the fish-pool that was produced and toward the dwelling place of the strong and brave. 

When we meditate upon the words in this verse, we learn through Nehemiah how he was involved in the rebuilding of the barrier wall that surrounded Jerusalem. Not only did he inspire others to work, but he also rebuilt the section of the wall across from the graves of “David”, to the fish-pool and to the dwelling place of the powerful and brave. God wants everyone to be involved in His Kingdom, (See Matthew 6:33) and because He loves us, He sent His Son Jesus into the world to die on the cross and to be raised from the dead three days later so when we believe and trust in Him as our “Savior and Lord”, He will forgive our sins, grant us everlasting life and help us to inspire others to work while joining the work ourselves. 

Next time Nehemiah says, “after him repaired the Levites”, 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".