Nehemiah 3:5

And next unto them the Tekoites repaired,.... The inhabitants of Tekoa, a city in the tribe of Judah; see Amos 1:1 but their nobles put not their necks to the work of their Lord; either of Nehemiah,

But the fish gate did the sons of Hassenaah build, who also laid the beams thereof, and set up the doors thereof, the locks thereof, and the bars thereof. No JFB commentary on these verses.

i.e. Did not submit to it, would not further it, either through pride, or sloth and carelessness, or covetousness, or secret compliance with the enemies of the Jews. To the work of their Lord; either, 1. Of Nehemiah, who was their lord and governor, and had given a general command for the carrying on of this work. Or, 2. Of God, whom they owned for their Lord, whose work this was, partly because it had proceeded thus far by God’ s singular providence and blessing; and partly because it was done for the defence of the city, and people, and temple of God. And therefore they are branded to all posterity for the neglect of so great and pious a work.

Nehemiah 3:5 And next unto them the Tekoites repaired; but their nobles put not their necks to the work of their Lord.Ver. 5. The Tekoites repaired] The common sort of them; for the nobles refused. The lesser fishes bite best; the poor are gospelized, Matthew 11:5, destined to the diadem, James 2:5. But their nobles put not their necks] So haughty they were and high minded, they thought it a business below their greatness; somewhat of that profane earl of Westmoreland’ s mind, who said that he had no need to pray to God, for he had tenants enough to pray for him. "Not many mighty, not many noble," saith the apostle, 1 Corinthians 1:26; well if any. The lion and eagle were not for sacrifice, as the lamb and dove were. Yet the old nobility of Israel were forward with their staves of honour, and are therefore famous, Numbers 21:18. To the work of the Lord] Though they knew him to be Lord of lords, who are all his vassals and underlings; and, by special relation, their Lord, so avouched by these his holy day servants; yet so stiffnecked were they, that they would not stoop to his service; but cried out, as the Popish clergy do, Domine, nos sumus exempti, we may not work, we will not contribute.

(5) The Tekoites.—This verse is remarkable, as introducing men of Tekoah, not mentioned among Zerubbabel’s Returned, who furnish the solitary instance of internal opposition to the building; and as terming the common work “the work of the Lord.” The ordinary people of the place, however, did double duty. (See Nehemiah 3:27.)

5. the Tekoites] Tekoa was a town about 10 miles due S. of Jerusalem on the edge of the ‘Wilderness.’ It is well known as the home of the prophet Amos (Amos 1:1; Amos 7:14), and as the dwelling-place of ‘the wise woman’ of 2 Samuel 14:2. The absence of the name of Tekoa from the list of towns in Ezra 2. is remarkable. Perhaps the Jews in Zerubbabel’s time could not extend so far south. Here the mention of the Tekoites implies that the town was now occupied by Jews, or that old dwellers in Tekoa still formed a distinct community (cf. Nehemiah 3:2) in Jerusalem. Their ardour in restoring the walls of Jerusalem receives further confirmation from Nehemiah 3:27. but their nobles] ‘Nobles’ (addirim = LXX. ἀ ?äùñὶ ?ì, Vulg. optimates), the same word is thus rendered in Nehemiah 10:29; 2 Chronicles 23:20; it differs from that used in Nehemiah 2:16, Nehemiah 4:14, Nehemiah 5:7, Nehemiah 6:17, Nehemiah 7:5, Nehemiah 13:17. put not their necks] The metaphor is taken from the ox ploughing with its neck in the yoke, cf. Jeremiah 27:12. the work of their Lord] R.V. of their lord. Marg. ‘Or lords or Lord’. There are here three alternative renderings. (1) A.V. ‘of their Lord.’ The somewhat unusual phrase ‘the work of their Lord’ (Adonai) instead of ‘the work of the Lord (Jehovah),’ or ‘the work of their God,’ has been defended on the ground that it carries out the metaphor of the clause. This is the traditional Jewish interpretation. But the word is not common in these books as a Divine name (see note on Nehemiah 1:11), and the use of the pronoun ‘their’ makes the interpretation improbable (Vulg. in opere Domini sui). The use of this title for God in plain narrative is most improbable. (2) R.V. marg. ‘their lords,’ namely, the leaders of the Jews; but this would not be at all a suitable word to describe the relation of the ‘nobles’ of a town to the ‘rulers’ of Jerusalem. (3) ‘their lord.’ This rendering of the R.V. seems the most natural, and is best understood to mean a reference to Nehemiah himself (cf. Ezra 10:3). He was ‘the lord’ of the Jews, appointed by the king, and ‘the nobles’ of the Jewish towns as well as of Jerusalem owed him service and assistance in his great work. The hostility of Sanballat, Tobiah, and Geshem to Nehemiah would make itself felt on the towns upon the borders of the neighbouring races. The nobles of ‘Tekoa,’ which lay on the outskirts of the wilderness, may very possibly have sympathised with the Arabian chiefs represented by Geshem, or have had intimate relations with the outlying peoples.

Tekoites - See 2 Samuel 14:2 note.

5. Tekoites — Men whose ancestral city and present homes were Tekoah, twelve miles south of Jerusalem. See on 2 Samuel 14:2. Their nobles — The high born and wealthy among them.