In the 20th year of the reign of Artaxerxes Nehemiah was serving the king with wine when the king noticed that Nehemiah was low in spirit and asked him what was the matter. Nehemiah said that he was sad because his homeland's capital city of Jerusalem was in ruins and the gates had been burnt down. He then plucked up courage and asked the king to send him to Jerusalem to rebuild it. He asked for covering letters to guarantee him safe passage and to give him the supplies necessary for the building work, and God answered Nehemiah's prayers and the king granted his requests. However Sanballat and Tobiah, regional officials, were opposed to all this.
But Nehemiah therefore went to Jerusalem with King Artaxerxes' blessing and after being there 3 days he set out on a secret mission of appraisal of the precise situation of the city, but he told nobody of his plans at this stage. When he had a complete understanding of the situation Nehemiah approached the priests, nobles and officials of Israel calling them to join him in rebuilding the walls and telling them how God was with him in giving him the backing of the king, and the Jews agreed with Nehemiah's plan. But when Sanballat, Tobiah and Geshem heard this news they mocked and ridiculed them suggesting that in fact they were conjuring up a rebellion. Nehemiah rejected their criticism saying that God would give them success in rebuilding the walls of Jerusalem.
Louvado seja Deus.
ReplyDeleteRoberto Tiburtino