The Residue of Israel, the Priests and the Levites Nehemiah - 11:20

In the book of Nehemiah, Nehemiah said, “All the Levites in the holy city were two hundred fourscore and four. Moreover the porters, Akkub, Talmon, and their brethren that kept the gates,were an hundred seventy and two”, and in chapter eleven and verse twenty of Nehemiah, Nehemiah shared about, “the residue of Israel, the priests, and the Levites” where we read,

And the residue of Israel, of the priests, and the Levites,

were in all the cities of Judah, every one in his inheritance.

The verse reads, “And the residue of Israel, of the priests, and the Levites, ...” Nehemiah began with the words, “and the residue of Israel” which means “and the remainder and remnant belonging to Israel whose name means God prevails and is the name of the descendants and the nation of the descendants of Jacob”, “of the priests” or “belonging to the spiritual spokesmen and leaders”, “and the Levites” which means “and the descendants of Levi whose name means joined to and were set aside by God for His service”. Nehemiah shared how the remnant of the people of “Israel”, their spiritual spokesmen and the descendants belonging to “Levi” were according to the following.

The verse continues, “... were in all the cities of Judah, every one in his inheritance.” Nehemiah added the words, “were in all the cities” which means “existed within each, every, the whole and every one of the places of waking and towns” “of Judah” or “belonging to Judah whose name means praised and was the kingdom comprised of the tribes of Judah and Benjamin which occupied the southern part of Canaan after the nation split upon the death of Solomon”, “every one in his inheritance” which means “each, all and the whole of them within their possession, property and heritage”. Nehemiah shared how the remnant of the people of Israel lived within their possessions in every one of the villages, encampments and towns belonging to “Judah”.

When we consider Nehemiah's words in this verse, we learn how the remnant of the people of “Israel”, their spiritual leaders and the servants who were descendants belonging to Judah went back to their towns and villages and lived within their properties. God wanted some of the people of Israel to remain in Jerusalem, and the remainder of them were permitted to go back to their dwelling places. God has a plan for everyone, and He will work out His purposes in our lives when we yield to His Son Jesus who died on the cross for the sins of all mankind and was raised from the grave three days later. When we submit to Him, He will forgive our sins, grant us everlasting life and direct our steps by His Holy Spirit who will not only lead us, but also will empower us to live where He desires while doing what He wants us to do. 

Next time Nehemiah shares more about, “the Nethinims”, 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".