 Okay, good morning to all of you today. You don't look as tired as you did the week before it last. That's good to know. Yeah, it's a good good morning to all of you who are online as well. We'll get started last week. We were looking at Ezra and This week we will get into Nehemiah as we talked Ezra and Nehemiah are more or less around the same time period and And These events are taking place after Arta Zeris the Persian king has come to the throne. So This is slightly later After the events of Zerubabel and the people who had come along with him. So this is like the second phase of Restoration which is taking place here in in Jerusalem So Nehemiah mainly talks about the rebuilding of the walls of Jerusalem and this is an event which takes place in 445 BC and It's Approximately about 14 years after Ezra has come back 14 years after that Nehemiah comes back and he takes care of the Restoration of the Jerusalem walls So of course this book is a narrative history. So that would be the genre of this book. It's narrative history Some people say that Nehemiah would have written down this book Because he in many places he uses the word I and he says, you know, I did this for the people So Lord you honor me and all of those things who uses uses the first person So they say that he must have been the writer on the other hand, some people say no, no Ezra was a Qualified scribe. He was meant to be a writer So maybe he just used the journal which Nehemiah would have maintained and he would have taken the details from Nehemiah's journal But the actual final writing probably would have been done by Ezra. So that's basically what some people say As for the key personalities Nehemiah and Ezra, of course are the main key personalities And then the main villains of the story would be Sanbalat and Tobaya Those are the two persons who create a lot of opposition and trouble for Nehemiah and Around this time you also have Malakai who is serving as a prophet So he also brings word from the Lord So all so he too is present during this time during this particular era Okay, so So just look let's look very briefly at the timeline We saw that After Cyrus allows people to come back Zerubabel the newly appointed governor Comes back with the first group of people which is about just 50,000 Jews They come back and seven months after the return back to Jerusalem They built the altar of the Lord That's the first thing that they do so that they can once again start making the daily sacrifices Because God is accepting them only because of those sacrifices They are impure They are sinful and the only reason that they are able to have a relationship with the living God is because of those daily Sacrifices so seven months after they come back. They build the altar Another seven months later, which is basically 14 months after there after their return home They finally lay down the foundation of the temple. That's basically where we stopped last class We looked at how some of the people are very happy that the foundation of the temple had been laid But some of the people who saw the foundation Thought about the glory of the previous temple and they thought oh how grand that was and how simple this foundation looks And so we had some people who were weeping at that time And then after the foundation is laid There's almost a 20 year gap because of all the opposition and the construction work cannot be done and It's only after 20 years that finally in 516 vc that the temple is finally constructed and completed So now after another 60 to 63 years Uh, we have the current happenings taking place So technically speaking from the time that zerubab el first comes back with the first set of Exiles up to the current time There's a period of 83 years that has gone by But up to now the walls of jerusalem have not been rebuilt the Walls are still in a broken down state And there are some people living inside the city most of the people are living somewhere outside, you know in the in the fields Where they are growing their crops, but the city as such is not really inhabited Most of the people are not living over there. It's in a very rejected condition. So why why didn't the people rebuild the walls That's basically what the uh, that's basically one of the first things people would do, right? If they want to take over a city and re-establish themselves over there One of the first things that they would do is to rebuild the walls make their city strong Move in inside and you know start establishing their homes and their trade and commerce and all of that But these people have not done any of that. Why have they waited for 83 years? And that's because of the very Strong opposition which they had been facing When they tried to build the temple There was such a lot of opposition in fact at the very first stage when the altar is being built When we when we read in ezra it says over there zirbabel was so afraid because of the opposition of the people But in spite of that he chooses to go ahead and build the altar of god So from day one they had a lot of pressure They had a lot of difficulty because they refused to make a partnership with the Local people and we also looked at why they refused to make a partnership. We looked at all of those details So from the time that they refused to partner with the locals They began to suffer a lot of persecution Details are not given over here about what they went through but they must have gone through very very difficult times because of that they would have thought Imagine when we built the temple and established ourselves as a nation once again That itself the people were so angry the locals were so angry about it What if we start rebuilding the walls then the opposition will be even greater They may in fact even come you know with a huge army and kill all of us So that is the reason why for 83 years they have not even rebuilt the walls They are very very scared of what will happen if they start the wall rebuilding process When the temple first came up that was like a Signal to the nations you know announcing see we have come back to our land. We are the people of Yahweh We are rebuilding this temple and this is our land So it is like a declaration which they made to the all the nations around them by establishing the temple But then if the walls are rebuilt, they're also saying now economically politically We are in a firm and solid position. Nobody can have any hold over us So the rebuilding of the walls would indicate the next level of independence And that would lead to a very strong reaction from the other local Nations, so which is why they delay in doing this and they are afraid to do it Another factor, which maybe we should think about is that When the temple is finally finished when the construction is finished in the book of Ezra We see that Zarubaba's name is not mentioned. He's mentioned in the beginning of the book of Ezra But then when the temple is refinished, he's not even mentioned So we don't really know what happened to him. Did they kill him? You know, did the persecution increase to a level where they killed him off? Or did the Persian king ask him to go back because you know, there was a lot of Violence happening. We don't really know So the opposition was so strong that the governor himself disappears at some point of time So we don't really know all of the details But actually there was a lot of serious trouble that these people went through And which is why we should admire them They could have stayed happily without any problems in Babylon in Babylon business was going well Their homes were established their fields were all prospering and there was crops growing Everything was fine But these people made a commitment and decided we want to come back to the land of the Lord the land which God gave us as our Promised land They had a desire to come back to rebuild the temple to live in the presence of God So we need to admire that about these people and after all the opposition started Some of them could have wanted to go back, but they did not go back They stayed it shows that they had a heart which actually cared about the things of God These were you know good people to be admired But because of the great fear which they felt they chose not to rebuild the walls of Jerusalem They chose to remain in that kind of You know half restored condition So looking briefly at the structure of the book of Nehemiah We can say that chapters one to seven Are the first section because that's basically where you have details about how the wall was reconstructed What is the opposition which takes place when the reconstruction of the wall started? All of that would be mentioned in chapters one to seven Our chapters eight to thirteen Is a second section which mainly talks about how the people were restored spiritually How they were once again brought back into God's fold and you know told about the wrong things that they are doing They were asked to reform their ways all of that takes place in chapters eight to thirteen So we have these two main divisions Um And um in in chapters eight To thirteen we especially see uh, okay in chapter eight. We see that it's the people Um, maybe you can actually have one person read out Uh, Ezra chapter eight verse one if someone could read out, please Are you sure uh, Nehemiah chapter eight verse one If you notice over here, it's not the leaders who say come on now We need to follow the Lord. Let's learn read out. What is there in the law of moses and all of you better follow it It's not the leaders who started the leaders don't take the initiative It's the people themselves who open their mouth and they ask and they say Could you please read out for us from the law of moses? Could you please instruct us instruct us once again? So it's the people who are taking an initiative from their side and they are saying we want to get back to God It's a commitment which they are initiating from their side Because I think by now they understood that if they are going to survive in this place It's going to be only by depending on the Lord and being faithful to him in their own strength They are not going to go far and so they make an initial commitment from their side to Reach out to God and draw near to him and repent of you know, whatever Unfaithfulness they have still been indulging in so they take an initiative from their side And later on in another important thing that we could notice in this section is regarding chapter 13 verse 24 Maybe if someone could read out Nehemiah 13 verse 24 Okay, so Nehemiah is very upset by this Uh, because the people the children who are now growing up do not even know the Hebrew language Uh, most of them are speaking the language of ashdod Which means if the law of moses is read out to the people they will not even understand a word of what is being said How on earth will they follow the Lord when they do not even know what is written in the scriptures? So it is a very serious thing And so Nehemiah is very upset. He says, you know, you people have married people of other nations And those women that you have married are not even followers of Yahweh They are continuing to worship their own gods Not only that they have only taught their children their language and their customs and their rituals So the children are going to grow up, you know as heathens They will not even know the true living god and so he is very angry and he says that you have not even taught them the language And maybe that is one reason why in uh chapter eight When the people say please read out to us the law of moses It says in Nehemiah eight verse eight if someone could read out Nehemiah eight eight Okay, so the people were weak in their Hebrew So the Levites take an extra effort to explain what is being read out so that they will understand exactly what god is saying And then they understand what is being said and many of them start weeping and crying and repenting of their sins Because they realize how far they have gone away from what the law of moses was teaching So they actually repent and they come back to god and they are restored to god We see all of that in chapter eight But then later on when chapter 13 we see that they have still not completely given up their old ways Because they are still married to those foreign women and those foreign women have still not made any kind of commitment to Yahweh At which point Nehemiah says you will have to take the decision now You cannot continue living like this, you know, so you will have to give up those wives You'll have to send them back to their home And if you know, if the children are not willing to turn to Yahweh then along with the children They would just have to go back to their homes and you would have to do without your family But you would have made a commitment to the lord. So there was a There was a Very strong demand that Nehemiah was raising and it's a demand that god makes of us even today You know when we are feeling very emotional It's all very nice to go to the lord and say lord, I repent of my sins and i'm recommitting myself to you But what about those foreign things foreign elements which are still sitting inside your life? So there was a great Commitment that took place in chapter eight They did get down on their knees They did weep and cry and they were genuinely sorry for all of their sins But they were still Foreign elements in their life, which they had not given up and those had to go at some point of time Only then can they say that they have truly come back to the lord and they have truly repented So Whenever you and I You know make this emotional commitment to the lord and we say lord I'm really touched by the sermon which I have heard or I'm really touched by what you did for me today So lord, I really want to come back to you and recommit myself. That's an excellent thing. It's an excellent attitude but Have you also dealt with those foreign elements those things which are foreign to the lord those things which the lord is against Which do not please him you need to get rid of those and that will be very very painful It's easier to get down on your knees and cry and say lord i'm coming back to you But that deliberate act of sacrifice where you have to take out those things which you have held in your heart So dear and part with them and get rid of them That takes real commitment and nehemiah says that is the level of commitment that the people need to do So we see that all these details in the second half of the book of nehemiah chapters 8 to 13 um Just to talk about nehemiah a little bit There in chapter 2 verse 3 we get to know that he was belonged to the tribe of judah Okay, so he was a judahite And an important thing that we need to understand about this man is that he was a very high ranking official He was not just somebody in the administrative setup of persia Is one of the top most officials in the entire persian kingdom The persian kingdom as we know was made up of people of many many nationalities All the people that they had conquered and brought us, you know Slaves to their land and all of that But among all of them this man rose to the top Nehemiah was one of the highest ranking officials because he was appointed as the cup bearer A king will only appoint someone as cup bearer if he trusts him 101 percent Because he is the man who will be like a guard for him who will watch out for conspiracies against him Make sure that there is no attack whatsoever on the king to the extent where he will actually sip the wine which is offered to the king to make sure that there's no poison in that wine So he is literally one of the highest ranking officials. He is not a priest He is not a prophet. He is not in full-time ministry This is a secular person But look at the heart of this secular official You know it in chapter one if you were to just very quickly look at some of the details mentioned over there It says that um, okay in the 20th year or uh, whatever, whatever So which verse number two in chapter one Hanani one of his brothers comes back Uh from Judah and so he questions them about how things are going on back home and that is when he gets to know that Even after all these years No repair work has been done The city of Jerusalem is still in a broken down conditions. The walls have not been rebuilt Nothing has been done. The temple of course is now functional and people are going over there and worshiping god But apart from that nothing much has been achieved when he hears about that He probably was under the impression that you know things by now would have been well established and things are going good So he never knew about this when he gets to know about this now He's completely shattered. It says um in verse four When I heard these things I sat down and wept Here is a man who has everything in life position rank money Wealth everything But he cares about the things of god. That is what touches his heart So he literally sits down and he cries And then not just that he goes one step further It says for some days. I moaned and fasted and prayed He's not an intercessor. I mean nobody appointed him as a priest or a prophet He does this intercession on his own without anyone asking him or ordering him to do it Because in his heart, he has that kind of a love for the people of god and for the things of god So without anyone prompting him without anyone ordering him to do so on his own initiative For some days, we don't know how many days he fasts and he prays And this is what he prays is in verse six. It says I confess the sins we israelites Including myself and my father's family have committed against you We have acted very wickedly toward you. We have not obeyed the commands decrease and loss You gave your servant moses. He is not just praying for himself He's praying on behalf of his people and he includes himself with them. Now. See this was a godly man Okay, he is a man who loves god and is trying to live according to god's Directors, but in spite of who he is he he says I you know, he says I confess the sins which we have committed he He is praying on behalf of his people and he's And he's praying as though Their sins are his sins It's like he's regarding them as his own family You know, what do we do generally when we pray for people whom we do not know We say lord, they are living in sin. Lord, you forgive them. You you know change their hearts Restore them. We care about them. We are praying for them But at the same time they are them and we are we I and my family are us But they are them and I care about them and so I am praying for them But look at the heart attitude over here This man He feels like as if they are all his brothers his own family members And in fact, you know, when it talks about hanani over here in verse number two In fact, hanani might just have been a brother in the sense that he's a jewish brother I mean might not have been a blood relationship at all. So here in verse six he versus six and seven He's uh speaking as if you know, all these people's sins are his own sins because they are part of his family And he's worried about what's going to happen to them. So he's crying out and saying lord, please We have sinned against you. So please lord, you have mercy upon us. You forgive us Okay, so with that kind of an attitude he is praying and He says in verse 11 let your year be attentive to the prayer of this your servant Okay, so He cared enough to ask about what is happening at home He wept when he got to know how bad the condition was He on his own initiative He began to fast and pray and intercede and then He goes one step even beyond that he decides I must personally do something prayer is not enough What can I actually do with my hands to help with this situation? Because that is the what he says in verse 11, you know chapter one us verse 11 He says give your servant success today by granting him favor in the presence of this man I was cup bearer to the king So he's already beginning to form a plan in his mind that he is going to approach the king and he is going to somehow Help Jerusalem. He wants to be a part of it So look at the complete commitment that this person had Now how many of us have that kind of a spirit when it comes to the things of God and the people of God? Okay, so all of us are at Different stages in this burden that we have for the church for God's kingdom for God's people But maybe we know we this is a man that we should imitate This was not a man in full-time ministry He had no full-time obligate a full-time ministry obligations Just because of the love in his heart, he chose to take a series of steps. So Now, of course, God is not asking everyone in secular jobs to give up their jobs and go and do ministry but Are we willing to use our positions our influence to do whatever we can For God's people for God's purposes. That is something that we would seriously need to consider Even as we look at, you know, Nehemiah Um So he talks about how he is the cup bearer to the king Uh, and the king over here is Arta Zeris Now Arta Zeris would be the son of Zeris. Who is Zeris? Zeris is the husband of Esther. Okay, so uh Zeris marries Esther And uh, the next generation is Arta Zeris. Obviously, uh, you know Arta Zeris is not Esther's son would most probably Arta Zeris would have been the son of Vashti the first wife of Zeris. So now Arta Zeris is the king His Hebrew name is Ahasuerus So in certain portions Of the Hebrew Bible, he would be mentioned as Ahasuerus and not as Arta Zeris But anyway, it's talking about the same person. So Nehemiah is the cup bearer of Arta Zeris He's in a very high position And he chooses to take to place his own life at risk and make a very bold request You know, you're a very high ranking official. You're one of the most trusted people of the king And what do you want to do? You want to go to the king and say, uh, uh, you know king I want to leave Not for one week, uh, not for one month Not even for one year. I want to leave for many many many years You know, it's like sick An atrocious request. I mean, if you were to go to your boss and make a request like that Uh, what would your boss say, you know kindly get lost, you know, your services are not needed anymore So he's actually taking a very very great risk In fact, in those days the kings could do whatever they wanted So if he wanted if he really got angry, he could even kill, you know, Nehemiah and say, you know You unfaithful man have been good to you. I've raised you up to a high position And here you are talking about going back to your land to do your own thing instead of serving me You know, he could have said all of those things Nehemiah was taking an actual risk And moreover, you're not even supposed to have a sad face in front of the king Which I think is very silly because people should have a right to at least express their emotions But in those days, uh, the king did not want, you know, when you're so powerful and you're so rich And you have conquered so many nations. You don't want to have any unhappy looking faces around you So whether people feel like it or not, they're supposed to come and smile in front of your presence. Okay, so, uh, Things were in that, you know, uh, things were at that level where the king was all powerful So Nehemiah goes into the presence of the king and he's unable to produce a smile Because his heart is completely broken inside. He has a heavy burden for his people And he's unable to smile and is unable to look cheerful And the king notices and the king says, uh, why does your face look so sad? And you can read the reaction of Nehemiah in verse two chapter two verse two He says I was very much afraid Because the king gets mad at you. He can get you killed so Nehemiah was unable to keep his pain inside It shows on his face and when the king realizes that he is sad He says I was very much afraid, you know So that was the situation that Nehemiah was in and in that situation. He chooses to place his request So we should not take what Nehemiah did lightly This man was putting his life on the line In fact, he was putting his job his everything on the line for god's purposes So we need to know respect what this person did for god And um, so it says in verse four the king said to me, what is it you want? And then it says, you know Nehemiah writes then I prayed to the god of heaven And I answered the king. He's so scared. He immediately prays a quick prayer Before even opening his mouth and placing his request He just quickly prays a prayer to god and says lord, please help me because he is actually in a life and death situation So he quickly prays a prayer to the god of heaven And then he answers the king and he says, you know, I mean, this is what his request is And then because the hand of god is upon his life The king says how long will your journey take and when will you get back? Now, I really would wish and I wish I could, you know, have a photograph of that moment When Nehemiah opens his mouth and tells exactly how long he wants to go and when he's going to come back Because it's going to be for a very very long time. Uh, but Uh, the god who is at work in the heart of this king The king actually agrees and he says, okay fine go ahead and then He says it please the king to send me so I set a time He sets a date when he's going to set out and go. Okay. So, um um if If if someone could read out Nehemiah chapter 13 versus six and seven at tazaris Yeah, yeah, that's that should be all right So we we're not sure exactly how long a leave he asked for initially But it actually ends up 12 long years at the end of 12 long years. He goes back to persia I don't know for maybe for one year or two years We don't really know for how long and then again after that he takes permission and returns back So basically he stops working as cup bearer of the king Um, because I'm sure the king would have appointed a new cup bearer But instead he's given a new position as governor over here in the land of israel So he's given a new designation. Uh, so For 12 years he stays over here as governor of um, of you know, jerusalem and then He goes back temporarily for about two years or something not sure it's not given here But again after that he takes permission and once again comes back So, uh, basically god gives him a new job So he put his life on the line He risked everything But god arranged for him to you know fulfill the purposes of god. So god took care of the details for him um, and um So with once atas. There is gives his permission um Nehemiah starts making preparations to come back and this is a very significant moment Once he gets the permission because when we look at um Daniel chapter nine versus 25 to 27 it talks about A prophecy of things which will happen in the future and it talks about something called the 70 weeks Now you might have heard sermons on this You might have read books about it where it talks about what exactly are the 70 weeks What are all the uh, you know different things which are described over there It's all very high five very difficult to understand. I certainly have no clue You know, if you need to know about these things you would have to ask someone who really understands these details But the basic thing is that uh This atas. There is permission which he gives is directly connected to these 70 weeks because in chapter two Verse eight once atas. There is agrees and says all right. You can go back Had that moment the 70 weeks begin The prophecy the prophecy which is given about the 70 weeks. It begins in that moment Nehemiah acts in faith He has a burden for the people of god. He takes a dangerous risk He goes to the king asks for permission and in that one act of faith something very You know momentous is unleashed because from then the countdown begins for those 70 weeks to be completed Because at the end of those 69 weeks the messiah will arrive So imagine look at the number of things which this nehemiah triggered off just by that simple act of faith That burden that that man had what an amazing thing I mean you and I may be very ordinary people stuck in very ordinary situations But if you have a heart Like nehemiahs and if you can just go into your room and pray, you know You don't even have to stand on the stage and you know call out to the whole world Just go into your room and start praying and allow god to place his desires and his plans in your heart And then you take a stand and say I will you know accomplish these things What amazing things god can accomplish because way that simple stick which this nehemiah took That moment onwards the 70 weeks, you know countdown began And as a result of that at the end of those 70 weeks the messiah himself came into the world So amazing. It's all so beautifully interlinked and it's all kind of you know Going back to this one man and this one act of faith, you know, which he performed So we see this amazing thing over here Another thing which I thought maybe we could just touch upon Is when nehemiah begins to set out to go back to jerusalem We see in nehemiah 2 9 if someone could read out nehemiah chapter 2 verse 9 Okay, so when nehemiah sets out to return to jerusalem He takes many soldiers many Officers not officers. He takes letters to the officers. Okay, so he takes all of the he basically the thing is he takes a Army contingent along with him when he is returning back On the other hand when ezra returns back, you know, which is like 14 years earlier when ezra comes back He does not have any army protecting him So the question which is raised is you know ezra when he was returning back He never asked for any army to you know come any soldiers to come along with them to protect them during the journey On the other hand when nehemiah comes he you know asks for people You know to be sent along with him to protect him So is ezra's faith greater than nehemiah's faith is what people you know Ask but then we need to recognize there are two different situations being discussed over here. So let's just you know briefly go back to ezra and If someone could read out ezra chapter 8 Versus 21 to 23 Ezra 8 21 to 23 Ezra is kind of Making a testimony And you know, he's witnessing to the king and to the people what Yahweh can do Okay, so he has said in verse Ezra chapter 8 verse 22 the gracious hand of our god is on everyone who looks to him But his great anger is against all who forsake him So he's already declared that very openly very grandly. He has said to the king You know if we serve the lord and follow him faithfully his hand is upon our lives Nothing can harm us nothing can touch us So after grandly declaring that if he says if you can kindly send some, you know Soldiers to protect us on the journey. It would look as if he is not trusting the hand of god He's trusting these Persian soldiers who are being sent along with them to protect them So ezra takes a stand and he decides let's demonstrate to this king And to all the peoples all the nations who are watching that god can protect us and take care of us So, okay, so it's an act of faith that he is taken over here and He and so they all fast and pray and say lord even as we go on the journey You know, there would be bands of robbers because that's their livelihood, right? This bands of robbers what we called it as decoits So these people that that's their main livelihood They they steal and rob from you know traveling groups because the groups when they're traveling they travel along with all their You know wealth and their cattle and their families. So it's easy to rob them So They all fast and pray and they request the lord to guard them and protect them So that they can safely reach jerusalem without any without any, you know risk or danger On the other hand when nehemiah is coming back He's coming back as an official Of the persian government. He's coming back as the new governor And so when he's coming back, he comes back along with official letters Which he is going to give to all the other surrounding governors in that region Telling them, you know what I have now been appointed over here in this region I have permission to rule in this particular area And so all of you others have to respect You know my official role and my official capacity. So in his official capacity He comes along with a troop of persian soldiers Who will back him up and prove to the surrounding governors that he indeed has been sent by the persian king himself Okay, so it's completely two different cases in ezra. Ezra was coming back as a as a priest Of god along with the people more like a civilian on the other hand when nehemiah is coming back He's coming back in his official capacity to take over the governorship of this particular region So, which is why when he comes he comes along with the military escort So which is why in nehemiah chapter two Verse seven he says may I have letters to the governors of trans euphrates so that they will provide me safe conduct And then in verse nine it says the king had also sent army officers and cavalry with me. Okay, so Another thing that I thought maybe we could briefly talk about Before that anybody wants to ask any questions because we have around nine minutes left Anyone wants to ask anything or say anything Otherwise we can you know just look at a few other details Nothing all right. We will go on One other thing which really impressed and touched my heart That would be in chapter five Where it talks about how The rich were exploiting the poor. Okay, they've all come back to this land They've gone through a lot of trials and struggles Now they are re re establishing themselves in the land And in spite of all that they've gone through that human nature, you know that greed It's still there in their hearts and so the people who have more wealth and more money and all that They are ill-treating the ones who are poor even though they're all no brothers even though or they all belong to one single nation and So we see in chapter five um Verse three It's it's uh versus two and three it says we and our sons and daughters. Okay, maybe someone can read out Chapter five versus two and three if someone could read out, please and also verse four, please okay, so um Lot of people are in great economic distress because The there's a tax imposed upon that entire region So even if you own a small piece of land You're going to be paying very high taxes to the persian government for that piece of land And then moreover there seems to be a famine in the land, which means there's scarcity So people who are not doing financially well, they are unable to grow enough crops They're not going to get any money because of the famine, you know They will not be able to grow enough crops to be able to make a profit So things are bad. There's a famine happening the taxation the persian taxes are high and so The people who are not in a very financially stable condition They are now giving their sons and daughters as slaves to the rich people the rich jews So that those people will lend them some money so they can know so they can live from day to day And as a result of that their sons and daughters are becoming slaves of the rich jews And when nehemiah gets to know about this he is so horrified. This is what he says He says in verse five if someone could read out Okay, sorry that this is still the people talking Nehemiah speaks in verses six and seven. So if you could read out six and seven, please Okay, initially the people had given some of their slaves and daughters to the gentiles to get money and Nehemiah and his people try to sell you know try to collect money and pay off those people to set free the Jewish sons and daughters so from their pockets they put money to liberate some of the Jewish sons and daughters who had been taken as slaves by the gentiles He says we spent money to liberate the sons and daughters from these gentile people And now you people are making them slaves and daughter, you know Your own brothers you're turning them into slaves. It's a very very shameful thing It's one thing of the gentiles are enslaving them But you yourselves are enslaving them and why is all this happening because you are charging interest on the money that you are collecting You know that you're that you're lending to the poorer brothers So lend to them, but don't charge interest. They will return it, you know, whenever they can But don't charge interest on it and he says In verse 10 he says I and my brothers and my men are also lending the people money and grain But let us stop charging interest. So even Nehemiah has been lending But he has not charged any interest. He says my people are not, you know, mother officials under me We're not charging any interest. Why are you people taking heavy interest from the others and enslaving them? And so he commands and he says give them back immediately their fields vineyards and their houses And he says do not charge the Interest rate which you have been taking and so we see Nehemiah acting to stop the exploitation and oppression which is going on And another thing that we see about him. Maybe we could know just close with that He talks about what he has been doing from his side It says in verse 14 That neither I nor my brothers ate the food allotted to the governor But the earlier governors those preceding me placed a heavy burden on the people And took 40 shekels of silver from them in addition to food and wine Their assistance also lauded it over the people But out of reverence for god, I did not act like that Basically a governor job is a really excellent job to have. Okay, because uh Once you are governor over a particular region You can charge a heavy amount of taxes just for your own benefit Of course, there are taxes which the people will pay to the persian government It'll directly go to the persian treasury But there's an extra tax which you can impose because you are the governor and they should pay to you It'll go into your pocket. So a governor job is an excellent job You can make a lot of money, which is why first of all in the beginning when these people come over here The governors in the region are very very angry and there's a lot of opposition Why because they're losing money and losing power so This person Nehemiah he says the previous governors They used to take 40 shekels of silver and they used to take crops and they used to take the grapevine. Why because So that they can claim it as their percentage The governor and his officials they get a cut. They get a percentage So they were collecting that but Nehemiah He realizes that already the people are struggling under the persian taxes Now you go and put additional taxes on their heads. How are they going to manage? So he says something so beautiful in verse 15. He says out of reverence for god I did not act like that So on the other hand, what does he do? He does something amazingly ridiculous almost. He says in verse 17 150 Jews and officials ate at my table as well as those who came to me from the surrounding nations So instead of taking from the people, he was in fact feeding a lot of people You know, all the people working for him All the people maybe who are working in his fields He was in fact giving them food. He was taking care of them And where was the money for that coming from from his own pocket? You see it's coming from his own pocket because as the cup bearer of the king He must have been real stinking rich really rich So he's now using all his funds all his wealth for this good deed Where he is in fact supporting people at his table every day And he says he repeats again in verse 10 he was 18 He says in spite of all this I never demanded the food allotted to the governor because the demands were heavy on these people And then he says remember me with favor my god for all I have done for these people So he's saying lord all that I have done with a sincere heart Remember what I have done and bless me for it. And I really think his reward must be extremely great I mean when we go to heaven and you know On on on that judgment day when we are all given our individual rewards I think the reward of Nehemiah will be great Because of what he did because of the reverence out of which he did not because he's going to get a reward But because out of the reverence out of for god, he didn't have you know acted in a certain way So these are all things that we can really learn from and if we absorb these learnings and these principles and apply them in our own lives It doesn't matter how we know little we are or how insignificant we are God will take notice And when the time comes, you know our reward will be great because we have acted to honor him We have acted to please him and that in fact would really please the lord. All right so these are just some of the wonderful things that we could see in this book of Nehemiah and Maybe we can just close with the word of prayer Lord, we just thank you so much for today's class Thank you lord for all the learnings that we could get out of this book We pray oh lord that you would help us to be like this man or lord Some of us in fact are in full-time ministry Some of us a lot are getting trained to be in full-time service And so oh lord if this man who was a secular official Had this kind of a heart and an attitude how much more we should lord have that kind of an attitude So help us a lot to learn from his life Help us a lot to be humble help us a lot to have a burden for your things and for your people and lord Help us to be willing to intercede and even not just pray but also act Use our position and power To do whatever we can for your people and for your kingdom Help us a lord To be People who will honor you and who will please you. Thank you lord in jesus name. Amen Thank you so much, and I hope you are blessed by today's class