The City was Large and Great - Nehemiah 7:4

In the book of Nehemiah, Nehemiah said, “Let not the gates of Jerusalem be opened until the sun be hot; and while they stand by, let them shut the doors, and bar them: and appoint watches of the inhabitants of Jerusalem, every one in his watch, and every one to be over against his house”, and in chapter seven and verse four of Nehemiah, Nehemiah said, “the city was large and great”, where we read,

Now the city was large and great: but the people were few therein, and the houses were not builded.

The verse reads, “Now the city was large and great:” Nehemiah began with the words, “now the city was large” or “the place of waking, guarded place or town existed as broad and roomy in every direction” “and great” which means “and exceedingly mighty, proud and abundant in number”. Nehemiah referred to the broad and exceedingly abundant size of the city of Jerusalem. 

The verse goes on to say, “but the people were few therein, and the houses were not builded.” Nehemiah continued with the words, “but the people” or “however, nonetheless, notwithstanding and moreover the human beings” “were few therein” which means “existed as small and tiny in number within the city”, “and the houses” or “and the habitations, abodes and dwelling places” “were not builded” which means “were in no way or manner established, or constructed”. Nehemiah shared how there was only a small amount of “people” who lived within the city of Jerusalem, and their dwelling places were not constructed yet. 

When we consider the words in this verse, we learn through Nehemiah how there were only a small amount of people who lived within big and mighty city, and the houses of the people were not constructed yet. Let's think about it, this was a big city with only a few people inside. Their homes were not built, and where were they sleeping? Nehemiah recognized the problem, and we shall see what he does about it in our next few verses. God knows the sizes of the places where we live, and he knows how many people live there. He loves every one of them, and when we yield our lives to His Son Jesus who died on the cross for the sins of all mankind and was raised from the dead three days later, He will forgive our sins, grant us everlasting life and help us know He is aware of all of us and is interested in the places we live. 

Next time Nehemiah says, “God put into my heart to gather together nobles, rulers and the people”, 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".