Nehemiah 2:19

But when Sanballat the Horonite, and Tobiah the servant, the Ammonite, and Geshem the Arabian,.... This third man might be both an Arabian by birth, and governor of some part of Arabia near Judea:

But when Sanballat the Horonite, and Tobiah the servant, the Ammonite, and Geshem the Arabian, heard it, they laughed us to scorn, and despised us, and said, What is this thing that ye do? will ye rebel against the king?

Geshem the Arabian; either the king’ s lieutenant in Arabia, as Tobiah was among the Ammonites, and Sanballat among the Moabites; or rather, an Arabian by his birth. And it seems probable that both he, and Sanballat, and Tobiah were chief men or governors among the Samaritans, or in their army. See . Will ye rebel against the king? do you design to fortify the city against the king.

Nehemiah 2:19 But when Sanballat the Horonite, and Tobiah the servant, the Ammonite, and Geshem the Arabian, heard [it], they laughed us to scorn, and despised us, and said, What [is] this thing that ye do? will ye rebel against the king?Ver. 19. But when Sanballat the Horonite, &c.] At first these men were sad, but now mad with malice. Wicked men grow worse and worse, in peius proficiunt, but they shall proceed no further: for their madness shall appear to all men. And Geshem the Arabian] Lieutenant of Arabia for the king of Persia. He also joins himself to the two former to hinder the work in hand. Such opposition met Luther with, when he began to reform. The pope excommunicated him; the emperor proscribed him; Henry, king of England, and Lewis, king of Hungary, wrote against him; but the work went on, nevertheless, because it was of God. They laughed us to scorn and despised us] As a company of fools, that could never effect what we attempted. So Erasmus and Sir Thomas More thought to have mocked the Lutherans out of their religion, Notum est Erasmi dicterium, Qualem a se decimum Capito fore sperat? &c. This the Scripture calleth cruel mocking, Hebrews 11:36; and ranks it with bloody persecution. Indeed, the favourablest persecution, saith one, of any good cause is the lash of lewd tongues; whether by bitter taunts or scurrilous invectives; which it is as impossible to avoid as necessary to condemn, &c. Bravely condemn, saith another worthy, all contumelies and contempts for thy conscience; taking them as crowns and confirmations of thy conformity to Christ. And said, What is this thing that ye do?] Scoffingly they said it; like as Pilate said to our Saviour, What is truth? Oh how easy is it to wag a wicked tongue! Nihil tam volucre quam maledictum, nihil facilius emittitur (Cicero). One while they charge this people with folly; another while with treachery. If to accuse a man only were sufficient to make him guilty, none should be innocent. Will ye rebel against the king?] This was ever, saith Lipsius, Unicum crimen eorum, qui crimine vacabant, the only and ordinary charge laid upon the most innocent. Elias is a troubler, Jeremiah a traitor, Paul a pest, Luther a trumpet of rebellion, all the orthodox antimagistratical. To colour the massacre of Paris, and to accuse it to the world, there was coin stamped in the forepart, whereof (together with the king’ s picture) was this inscription: Virtus in Rebelles, Valour against the rebels; and on the other side, Pietas excitavit iustitiam, Piety hath excited justice.

(19) Geshem the Arabian.—This name completes the triumvirate of the leaders of the opposition to the mission of Nehemiah. They were not independent chieftains: Tobiah was Sanballat’s servant and counsellor, while Geshem was probably the leader of an Arabian company mostly in his service. The account of their contemptuous opposition is given in a few touches, as is the contempt with which it was met They charged Nehemiah with rebellion, as afterwards, in chapter 6:6.

Verse 19. Geshem the Arabian] Some chief of the Arabs contiguous to Samaria, who had joined with Sanballat and Tobiah to distress the Jews, and hinder their work. Will ye rebel against the king?] This they said in order to raise jealousies in the king's mind, and induce him to recall his ordinance.

19, 20. The Derision of the Enemy19. Sanballat … Tobiah] See Nehemiah 2:10. Geshem the Arabian] A third prominent adversary of Nehemiah is here introduced. His name occurs again in Nehemiah 6:1-2. In Nehemiah 6:6, the name is written as ‘Gashmu,’ a dialectical variety agreeing, as it is said, with North-Arabian usage. Geshem is clearly the chief of some Arabian tribe. But whether he represented Arabians on the Southern border of Judah or the Arabian community established by Sargon king of Assyria in the depopulated neighbourhood of Samaria (715) is a disputed point. If the former, then the movement, which he now took part in, must be regarded as a coalition of all the neighbouring peoples against the restoration of Jerusalem’s greatness. If the latter, then the movement is to be chiefly connected with the hostility of the Samaritans. the Arabian] See on Nehemiah 4:7. laughed us to scorn] A strong word, familiar to us from its occurrence in the Psalter (Psalms 2:4, Psalms 22:7, Psalms 59:8, Psalms 80:6). We are not told whether this scorn was expressed by letter or in a personal interview. despised us] See the two words occurring together in 2 Kings 19:21; Ezekiel 36:4. The ground of the contempt here expressed is not quite obvious. Some suppose that the enemy scoffed in ignorance of the king’s decree in favour of Nehemiah’s action, and that, regarding the Jews as embarking upon a course of open rebellion, they derided an undertaking which they thought could have but one conclusion. On the other hand, it is hardly likely that Nehemiah would have kept in the background the royal authority for his undertaking. We know he had been to the ‘governors’ of the province (Nehemiah 2:9). It is more probable that in order to alienate the Persian officials and to frighten the more timid spirits among the Jews, they pretended to interpret Nehemiah’s action as the first step towards a real rebellion. The insignificance of the Jewish community in size and strength—its inability to take any political step of real importance—presented an easy target for ridicule, which was calculated to arouse the suspicions of Persian officials at the same time that it promoted disaffection amongst the waverers in Jerusalem. will ye rebel] Or ‘are ye rebelling?’ Vulg. Numquid contra regem vos rebellatis? LXX. ἀποστατεῖτε.

Geshem the Arabian - The discovery that Sargon populated Samaria in part with an Arab colony explains why Arabs should have opposed the fortification of Jerusalem.

SCORN OF THE , Nehemiah 2:19-20. 19. Sanballat… Tobiah — See on Nehemiah 2:10. Geshem the Arabian — Written Gashum in Nehemiah 6:6.