Jerusalem was in ruins and surrounded by powerful enemies. He who succeeded ezra in the government of judah and jerusalem was nehemiah, a very religious and most excellent man. The book of nehemiah covers the period from 445 bc for the next 12 years. It happened nearly twentyfive hundred years ago in a land across the world from where you and i live today. The layout and positioning of these gates can be seen in the picture below. So nehemiah asked the king to send him to jerusalem to build the walls of the city again.
Chronicles, ezra, nehemiah, and esther were originally part of the writings of hebrew scripture, but were placed in the historical books in the greek septuagint old testament. The prophet malachi was a contemporary of nehemiah. Day after day, from the first day to the last, ezra read from the book of the law of god. Golden gate on the east wall of the temple mount dates back to 1541 ad and is the oldest of the eight gates of jerusalem today. Book of nehemiah gates mentioned b y internet websites are.
This is part of the reason some scholars think that ezra wrote both books. There is scholarly debate regarding the authorship, but i believe ezra wrote the book that is called ezra and the same with nehemiah. Our feet were already standing at your gates, yerushalayim psalm 122. Nehemiah, together with ezra they were originally one book, is special because it is our only biblical source for this period of israelite history. If not for legendary efforts of ezra and nehemiah the fledgling jewish community in israel would not have survived as we know it. Nehemiah served in secular offices, using his position to bring back to the jews order, stability, and proper focus on god. Nehemiah is a book about leadership, vision and prayer. As one begins to study the gates of jerusalem it must be kept in mind the gates as we have them today were, for the most part, built or renovated by the ottomans in the 1500s ad. The book of nehemiah is important for us since it is the last of the inspired books to tell us of old testament jewish history. Nehemiah 810 is considered part of the socalled ezra source which includes ezra 710, while nehemiah 17 and 11 are from a separate source that scholars call the nehemiah memoir. Nehemiah, jewish leader who supervised the rebuilding of jerusalem in the mid5th century bc after his release from captivity by the persian king artaxerxes i. Though some of the books of the apocrypha continue the story of the old testament jews, they cannot be completely trusted even for history since they are not godinspired. To some extent they broadly resemble or vaguely resemble the pattern of the gates you have in the old city of jerusalem today, except that the city then was much, much smaller.
Pdf jerusalems gates and towers in the book of nehemiah. We may gain some help from that distinguished man who accomplished a great work. Book of nehemiah gates mentioned by internet websites are. The ways of god were left behind as the people in the city struggled to simply survive. We can learn from the life of nehemiah valuable lessons in restoring and maintaining a relationship. Nehemiah theme nehemiah outline and index nehemiah historical background. Nehemiah is the last historical book of the old testament. This bible study unfolds the hidden meaning in these jerusalem gates. Chronicles, ezra, nehemiah, and esther were originally part of the writings of hebrew scripture, but were placed in the historical books in. Historical background of nehemiah provides many dates and time chart of nehemiah and ezras time. I should like to call your attention to the prophet nehemiah. The gates of jerusalem in nehemiahs day reveal christ adapted from expository outlines of the old testament, warren wiersbe the following are the gates noted in nehemiah chapter three. Each is a symbol representing an aspect of our christian walk.
Nehemiah assembles the people and has ezra read to them the law book of moses. The jews faced complete destruction of their own possessions, traditions, the temple and their country. Nehemiahthe man behind the wall biblical archaeology. The golden gate is the oldest of the gates of jerusalem, with its exact timeline debated by scholars and archaeologists. Quick reference map map of jerusalem restored by nehemiah click to enlarge the contents of the two books may be analyzed as follows. Getting away from the people of god and the word of god causes us to drift back into old actions and habits. The nehemiah memoir is written in the first person and recounts details of nehemiah s life. The people were in trouble and were feeling a great sense of disgrace and reproach. Many jews had returned from the babylonian captivity. The book of nehemiah records the rebuilding of the city around 445.
They appear in our bible in reverse order of the chronological order in which they took place. God uses all manner of people in all manner of places doing all manner of work. Nehemiah was a person of prayer who risked his life of power, privilege and lux. As the city walls are built, destroyed, and moved and the gates are bricked.
Bible character study of nehemiah what christians want to know. Did you know that the gates of jerusalem in the book of nehemiah chapter 3 give a picture of spiritual progression today and gods plan for the ages. Each gate from the jerusalem wall mentioned by nehemiah is unique and has a specific message about our lord and savior jesus christ. As we look at the gates of jerusalem in the old city of jerusalem today, god is showing us a lesson in history. Arabs and philistinesand rebuilt the walls within 52 days, from the sheep gate in the. A story of nehemiah living history library by frieda clark hyman, moh i mystery. A young christian having experienced the sheep gate, then the fish gate, soon sees the need for experiencing the old gate.
It happened nearly twentyfive hundred years ago in a land across the world from where you and i. The spiritual meaning of the sheep gate is that the high priest built it, and that through that gate, lambs and sheep were brought to the temple for sacrifice. Nehemiah bible story summary what christians want to know. Though i have heard the story and read the book many times, it wasnt until i did a previous chapterbychapter look at the book of nehemiah that i really started to understand the character and the book about him. The book of nehemiah records the rebuilding of the city around 445 b. Most scholars believe nehemiah was a real historical figure and that the. The gates and walls of nehemiah tent stake ministries. The building of the wall and gates begins from the sheep gate in nehemiah 3, because everything begins from the offering of the lamb jesus christ.
N ehemiah is probably best known for rebuilding the walls of jerusalem in 52 days, but beyond that, what do you know about this important bible character. The other seven chapters of the book are occupied with some details of nehemiahs government of the people after the completion of the walls. They are listed in the order of their locations, beginning with the sheep gate near the northeastern reaches of the wall corresponding to the general proximity of the modern herods gate. The gates of jerusalem are named throughout the bible, such as the gate of. The steps that nehemiah took covers seven chapters of this book. The book of nehemiah in the bible tells the story of how nehemiah and the people built the walls of jerusalem again.
Nehemiah faced eight problems when rebuilding jerusalem. Nehemiah appoints officials and sets guards on the wall and gates. Nehemiah is the only book in the bible where it is called the old gate and it may have been one of the original gates made. The book of nehemiah begins then, where any true salvation or revival has to start with a realisation of your spiritual condition. The book is a first person account of the events from the perspective of nehemiah. The following are the gates noted in nehemiah chapter three. The book of nehemiah, likely written between 445 and 420 b. Ten gates to spiritual growth nehemiah 3b faithlife sermons. Nehemiah, ezra and the levites institute the feast of booths, in accordance with the law. He was one of the last of the prophets, was supposed to be contemporary with malachi, and perhaps his book was one of the last of the old testament books that was written. The spiritual meaning of the sheep gate is that the high priest built it, and that through that gate, lambs and. Its focus is on the names of those who set the gates and rebuilt the walls surrounding each gate. The book of nehemiah is the last of the historical books of the bible, originally part. In the hebrew bible, the books of ezra and nehemiah go together as one book.
At the end of his leave of absence from the king he came back to babylon, and after certain days he came again to jerusalem nehemiah 2. It is the closest of the gates of jerusalem to the temple mount, and as such would take on special significance throughout the history of jerusalem. Bible study book of nehemiah chapter 1 the fall of mankind. These messages are vivid and clear in our day just as they were in 445 bc and prior. Nehemiah is the central figure of the book of nehemiah, which describes his work in rebuilding. The book of esther described part of the jewish diaspora that stayed behind in persia and did not return to jerusalem during the restoration. Few people are familiar with the biblical figure nehemiah, and yet he was.
In the book of the bible bearing his name, nehemiah records his memoirs. Provide a historical background of the book of nehemiah with many dates and a timeline chart linking nehemiah and ezras activities. The book of ezra was originally combined with the book of nehemiah and served as a continuation of first and second chronicles. The babylonian exile 586516 bc marks an epochal point in the history of the. The men and women of the past have been through these same difficulties, and they have told us how to handle them. This summary of the book of nehemiah provides information about the title, authors, date of writing, chronology, theme, theology, outline, a brief overview, and the chapters of the book of nehemiah. In fact, the books of ezra, nehemiah, and esther all come out of the same general period of israels history. Nehemiahthe man behind the wall biblical archaeology society. These gates reflect the restoration of kingdom principles in the lives of gods people d. However, rabbi isaiah di trani, in his commentary to the book of nehemiah, writes as factual that nehemiah was a kohen. Although the book of esther appears after nehemiah in the canon, the events in esther occurred in the time period between ezra 6 and 7, between the first and second returns of the people to israel. I found it to be very interesting and intend to read it through again. Chronologically, the book of nehemiah should come at the end of the old testament. In addition, nehemiah himself is a wonderful example of leadership and of how to live ones faith in the face of difficulties.
It also serves as an example to us that we need to be constantly reminded of gods word. He also instituted extensive moral and liturgical reforms in rededicating the jews to yahweh. This great book of nehemiah is one of the most helpful pictures we have of how to recover from broken lives. The book of nehemiah is a great story of the rebuilding of jerusalem. Jerusalems sealed golden gate holds a variety of significance for different religions and people, and the story of how this easternmost gate to the city came to be sealed is one entrenched in history and religious prophecies. The gates of ancient cities were important as a means of providing access to the city while maintaining security. And it came to pass in the month chisleu, in the twentieth year, as. What wasis the importance of the gates of jerusalem. They celebrated the feast for seven days, and on the eighth day, in accordance with the regulation, there was an assembly. This was gods preordained plan to bring his people out of bondage and back into their land to worship in the temple once again.
Bible character study of nehemiah what christians want. In english bibles, they are usually split into two, with the book of nehemiah appearing as a separate book from ezra, but in the hebrew tradition, they are one book, entitled ezra, and nehemiah is simply the second part of ezra. Nehemiah is identified in one aggadah with zerubbabel, the latter name being considered an epithet of nehemiah and as indicating that he was born at babylon. The author does a wonderful job of expalining each of the gates as well as the symbolism found throughout the book.
He was a highranking official in the persian kings court. The gates of jerusalem have a story to tell prophecy in the news. The books of ezra and nehemiah are the only completely historical books in the third section of the hebrew bible, the ketuvim writings. Nehemiah assembles the people and has ezra read to them the lawbook of moses.
Nehemiah isnt a book of the bible that most people understand or appeciate. The book of nehemiah shows us the kind of significant impact one individual can have on a nation. Jack zavada is a writer who covers the bible, theology, and other christianity topics. During the time of the first temple 10th century bce to 586 bce the eastern gate was the main entrance into the temple area. If history is people, the history of the second commonwealth begins with one of history s greatest personalities. Nehemiah 1, asking of the jews, and of jerusalems condition was told, the remnant there in the province who survived the captivity are in great distress and reproach, and the wall of jerusalem is broken.
Nehemiah, ezra and the levites institute the feast of. Nehemiah was a man of character who loved and feared god. Sift through the archaeology and history of this ancient land in the free. The bible speaks of the gates of jerusalem many times in many different contexts. In chapter three of the book of nehemiah, nehemiah and his helpers have undertaken to repair and restore the walls of jerusalem after the return from seventy years under babylonian captivity. Ezra and nehemiah are one book in the hebrew bible, for they are part of the same story. Nehemiah 3 commentary, one of over 110 bible commentaries freely available, this commentary, by the leading authority in the church of christ, presents a verse level look at the bible. Book of nehemiah overview insight for living ministries. The books of ezra and nehemiah were originally combined into a single book. Thankfully we have the holy spirit indwelling us as believers today. The gates of jerusalem have a story to tell prophecy in. However, these gates, as will be seen, were in some cases built upon the foundations of earlier gates, perhaps dating back to the days of nehemiah and solomon. Jerusalem is an ancient city which holds endless history, stories, and incredible importance to many people.
Upon entering in through each gate, each one will have a testimony regarding that gate or dealing. To really understand this chapter beyond its historical context, we need to understand the role the city of jerusalem and its walls and gates play in the bible. Dec 18, 2012 the building of the wall and gates begins from the sheep gate in nehemiah 3, because everything begins from the offering of the lamb jesus christ. The book of esther described part of the jewish diaspora that stayed behind in.
Nehemiah 3 commentary james burton coffman commentaries. Nehemiah chapter 3 outlines the rebuilding of the gates and walls of jerusalem in the days of ezra. Nehemiah riding though rubble and telling the jews to rebuild jerusalem. He tells how, against tremendous odds, he accomplished an unimaginably difficult undertaking. The restoration of the 12 gates reveals the rebuilding of an original structure.