Today’s reading again includes more of the genealogical records. We must know that these records were important, why else would God have included them in His book?

Following today’s reading there are three days of commentary concerning the historical interlude. We would encourage you to read these comments. They will help in understanding that God was definitely not “silent” during those 400 or so years!

The book of Daniel speaks volumes concerning those “silent” years. For example, we read in Daniel 8 about a ram and a goat. We know which countries are represented by these two animals because the Bible explains the representation. The horns on the ram and the goat represent the Medes, Persians, and Greeks. During the 400 year period, the Greeks took power from the Medes and Persians as illustrated by the ram and the goat in Daniel 8. The Greeks were the dominant power in the world until Alexander the Great died and his kingdom was split into four parts among his four generals. Daniel speaks of the Egyptian influence as power was transferred from the Greeks to the Romans.

Daniel’s prophecies have been fulfilled in exacting detail, having been documented by Biblical and secular history. So were there 400 years of silence? We don’t think so! Not if you read the book of Daniel. It’s rather “noisy”.

And finally….on October 18 we begin the New Testament.

Since there will be three days of commentary for October 15-17 and not Scripture readings, we will take this opportunity to post writings concerning the birth of Jesus as we prepare for the beginning of the New Testament. We will explain why we choose to honor the birth of Jesus during the actual time of year of His birth which happened during the Feast of Tabernacles and not the traditional December 25 date.

The Scripture verses for this day are filled with the official records of Israel, listing many important and seemingly unimportant genealogical names. Among the seemingly unimportant names as recorded in an obscure, seldom-read section of the Bible is the name Jabez.

1 Chr 4:10
Jabez cried out to the God of Israel, "Oh, that you would bless me and enlarge my territory! Let your hand be with me, and keep me from harm so that I will be free from pain." And God granted his request.

In December of 2000 we received a book The Prayer of Jabez from some dear friends. As we read through this book again in preparation for writing this blog entry, we were astounded when we reviewed our lives since we first prayed that prayer of Jabez many years ago. We’d like to share a couple of things with you.

The author, Bruce Wilkinson uses the New King James version in his book.
1 Chr 4:10
And Jabez called on the God of Israel saying, "Oh, that You would bless me indeed, and enlarge my territory, that Your hand would be with me, and that You would keep me from evil, that I may not cause pain!" So God granted him what he requested.
(NKJ)
This version includes the word indeed…not just bless me, but bless me abundantly!

This prayer has four parts.

1. Bless me. God has told us that He wants to bless us. (Eph 3:20).
2. Enlarge my territory. God wants to enlarge our lives (our territories) so that we can make a greater impact for Him. Why not ask Him for ways to make that happen? According to Mr. Wilkinson, “As your opportunities expand, your abilities and resources supernaturally increase, too.”
3. Keep Your hand with me. Asking that God’s hand be with us is the same as asking for His power and presence to be with us. If we ask for the blessings and the territory, we certainly need His power and presence to be with us. 2 Chr 16:9a For the eyes of the LORD range throughout the earth to strengthen those whose hearts are fully committed to him. “God is not scanning the horizon for spiritual giants or seminary standouts. He eagerly seeks those who are sincerely loyal to him,” says Bruce Wilkinson.
4. Keep me from evil. Praying that God would keep us from evil is asking that God keep us from even the temptation to sin.

God granted Jabez his requests. What might happen if we all prayed this prayer and really meant it? Do you think your life would change? Our lives certainly did!

When Nehemiah left Jerusalem things were going very well. Ezra had read the law, the Levites interpreted it, and the people wept, confessed their sins, and gave thanksgiving to God for all His many blessings. They even made a binding agreement, a written covenant that they would obey God’s commands.

Neh 10:29
all these now join their brothers the nobles, and bind themselves with a curse and an oath to follow the Law of God given through Moses the servant of God and to obey carefully all the commands, regulations and decrees of the LORD our Lord.

Notice they even bound themselves with a curse!

Then Nehemiah went back to Susa (travel time distance of about eight months each way). The unthinkable happened in Jerusalem while he was gone. The temple was desecrated, temple support was neglected, the Sabbath was violated, and the men of Judah had married foreign wives.

Of special significance is the violation of the Sabbath. The men were desecrating the Sabbath by participating in merchandising in Jerusalem on the Sabbath, thereby doing what Nehemiah called a “wicked thing”. They were selfishly marketing their products in violation of the rules of that day. This is reminiscent of the Hebrew people when Moses left the camp and the people created a golden calf to worship. When God’s authority figure (Nehemiah) leaves people automatically return to evil ways.

One of the first things recorded by Nehemiah upon his return to Jerusalem is the following:
Neh 13:7
and came back to Jerusalem. Here I learned about the evil thing Eliashib had done in providing Tobiah a room in the courts of the house of God.

Tobiah was one of the leading opponents to the rebuilding of Jerusalem under Nehemiah. He was definitely not one of the good guys! Imagine how Nehemiah must have felt when he saw his enemy given credibility and sanction in the House of God.

The ever faithful Nehemiah again instituted religious reform. It is at this time that he begins the dedication of the wall. Can you even begin to imagine that great celebration with the choral processions, musical instruments, and choirs as they traveled the distance around Jerusalem? Read that passage again in Nehemiah 12 and try to picture it in your mind!

Neh 12:43b
The sound of rejoicing in Jerusalem could be heard far away.

The people offered sacrifices, brought their tithes, and read from the Book of Moses.

So what does all this have to do with us today? What connections can we make today concerning the desecration of the Sabbath?

In Nehemiah’s day, his enemy Tobiah was given what seems to be a permanent place in the house of God. Do we allow room for ungodly practices in our churches? Do our commonly accepted rituals and celebrations have pagan origins?

Great importance concerning the celebration of the Feast of Tabernacles is recorded in Nehemiah 8. More details later on the blog for the significance of the Feast of Tabernacles for Christians today.

Neh 8:5-6
Ezra opened the book. All the people could see him because he was standing above them; and as he opened it, the people all stood up. Ezra praised the LORD, the great God; and all the people lifted their hands and responded, "Amen! Amen!" Then they bowed down and worshiped the LORD with their faces to the ground.

What might happen if when God’s word is read, the people would raise their hands in praise, say “Amen”, and bow down in worship to God?

The Levites interpreted the law and made it clear so the people could understand. The people celebrated with great joy, because they understood the words that were read to them. Do we rejoice when we understand the words in Scripture?

Nehemiah prays a great confessional prayer in which he reminds the people and thanks God for all He has done for them and for continually forgiving them. We could certainly take lessons from Nehemiah!

Today’s reading is full of genealogical records. The same or very similar record is listed in Ezra. This tells us that these records were very important. One of the most important reasons for keeping accurate records was to identify the Levites and those who would serve as priests in the temple.

For those without the genealogical record to prove they should be included in the priesthood, they relied on the Urim and Thummim. These were gems or stones carried by the high priest or placed in the breastplate and were used to ascertain the will of God in regard to important matters.

Praise God that we don't have to depend on gems or stones to ascertain the will of God, we have "gems of wisdom" in His Word! Have you dug below the surface and mined some "gems" recently? Why not share them with someone?

The story of the taunting of the Samaritans toward Nehemiah is a great lesson for us today for standing firm in the faith, even in the midst of ridicule and insult.

When we read about Nehemiah’s plan in chapter 4, we couldn’t help but think about missionaries and front line workers and their supporters. The rebuilders of the wall needed support personnel with swords, spears, and bows. Missionaries and front line workers need others as support in the way of financial support, prayer support, and encouragement.

Neh 4:19
Then I said to the nobles, the officials and the rest of the people, "The work is extensive and spread out, and we are widely separated from each other along the wall.

Do you know of a missionary or a front line worker who could benefit from a word of encouragement from you…or extra financial support…or most especially prayer intercession for them? Something to seriously think about!

Nehemiah was in mourning because the walls of Jerusalem had been broken down. At the time that he heard about the walls he was in the area of Susa (southwest Iran today). Nehemiah held an important position with the king and surely was respected and trusted by the king. Again King Artaxerxes shows his moral character by noticing the sadness displayed by Nehemiah and offering to let him go to Jerusalem. And again the leaders of Trans-Euphrates get a letter telling them to give safe passage to yet another Jewish refugee and to provide supplies.

When Nehemiah told the leaders about the ruins of the walls of Jerusalem, he inspired them to rebuild the wall.

Scripture next details the division of labor on the rebuilding of the gates. Why such detail? Could it be a reminder that each of us has a part in the Lord's work? Do we sometimes think that our part is insignificant? God doesn't think so.