Nehemiah 11

Jerusalem’s walls were rebuilt, but the city was thinly populated. This chapter tells how one family in ten was chosen by lot to move in, while others volunteered, and then lists who lived in Jerusalem and who stayed in the towns of Judah and Benjamin. It shows God’s people sharing the cost of keeping His city alive.

Nehemiah 11:1

The leaders already lived in Jerusalem. Now lots were cast so that one person in ten from the rest of the people would move into the city. Nine in ten stayed on their own land. Moving to a city that had only just been walled took real sacrifice.

BSA: holy (“set-apart, sacred”): Jerusalem was set apart for God, so living there meant sharing in His purposes, not just finding a house. lots (“allotted portions”): Casting lots was a way of leaving the decision to God and keeping the choice fair.

See also: Proverbs 16:33.

Nehemiah 11:2

Some people volunteered to move without being chosen by lot. The community blessed them. Their willingness was noticed and honored, and it eased the burden of those whom the lot had called.

BSA: volunteered (“willingly offered themselves”): These people gave themselves freely, not under pressure, and that was why they were praised.

Hebrew: הַמִּתְנַדְּבִים (hamitnaddevim, H5068) — “those who offered themselves willingly.” The word comes from the language of freewill offerings. Moving into Jerusalem was treated as a gift offered to God and to the people.

See also: 2 Corinthians 9:7.

Nehemiah 11:3-4

Here begin the lists of those living in Jerusalem. Most of Israel, the priests, the Levites, the temple servants and the descendants of Solomon’s servants stayed in the towns of Judah, each on his own property. People from Judah and Benjamin settled in the capital.

BSA: property (“inheritance, possession”): The land was a family inheritance from God, so leaving it for the city was costly.

Nehemiah 11:4-6

The first families come from Judah. They are named by long lines of ancestors, because family record mattered after the exile. The descendants of Perez in Jerusalem numbered 468, called men of valor, meaning capable people who could defend the city.

BSA: valor (“strength, might, or courage”): These were men of ability and courage, able to defend the thinly populated city.

See also: Genesis 38:29.

Nehemiah 11:7-9

The families of Benjamin follow, with 928 men under Sallu and his followers. Joel son of Zichri was in charge of them, and Judah son of Hassenuah was over the Second District of the city. Order and oversight were needed in a growing city.

BSA: officer (“overseer, governor”): Each group had someone responsible for it, so the city was run with order.

Nehemiah 11:10-14

Next come the priests, in three groups of families. Together they number 822 who did the work of the temple, 242 family leaders, and 128 mighty men. Seraiah is named as the chief official of God’s house. The priests were centered where God’s worship was.

BSA: associates (“brethren, fellow workers”): The priests are shown working as a team of brothers, not as lone individuals. overseer (“leader, governor, or person in charge”): Zabdiel is named as the one responsible for the group of 128.

Nehemiah 11:15-16

The Levites are listed next. Shemaiah is named, then Shabbethai and Jozabad, who supervised the outside work of God’s house. This was the practical side of service: the upkeep and business of the temple area, which also served God.

BSA: supervised (“had oversight of, were responsible for”): Their work was real responsibility, not a minor job.

Nehemiah 11:17

Mattaniah led the thanksgiving and prayer, and Bakbukiah was second to him. Abda is also named. The line of Asaph and Jeduthun points back to the singers appointed in David’s time. Worship in Jerusalem was led by people, and it was led in thankfulness.

BSA: thanksgiving (“to give thanks, praise”): Mattaniah led the praise that opened worship, so thankfulness came first.

See also: 1 Chronicles 25:1.

Nehemiah 11:18-19

There were 284 Levites in the holy city, and 172 gatekeepers who kept watch at the gates. Guarding the gates mattered in a city whose walls had just been rebuilt. Their ordinary, watchful work protected the city and its worship.

BSA: gatekeepers (“porters, doorkeepers”): They controlled who went in and out, so they kept the city’s life safe and orderly.

See also: Nehemiah 7:1.

Nehemiah 11:20

The rest of Israel, with the priests and Levites not living in Jerusalem, stayed in the villages of Judah, each on his own inheritance. Not everyone was called to the city. Serving God meant staying faithfully where one had been placed.

BSA: inheritance (“property, heritage”): Each family’s land was a gift from God to be kept and worked.

Nehemiah 11:21

The temple servants, who helped the Levites with the heavier temple tasks, lived on Ophel, the hill just south of the temple area. Ziha and Gishpa were over them. They lived close to the place where they worked.

BSA: temple servants (“Nethinim, helpers of the Levites”): The Nethinim were people given to assist in the temple’s work, supporting the Levites.

Nehemiah 11:22-23

Uzzi, a descendant of Asaph, was overseer of the Levites in Jerusalem. The singers were in charge of the service of God’s house. A royal command set out their daily duties, so that worship went on regularly and in order.

BSA: singers (“music-makers, worship leaders”): They were not just performers; they led the people in worship. command (“royal decree, ordinance”): The king’s order gave worship a steady daily pattern.

See also: Ezra 6:8-10.

Nehemiah 11:24

Pethahiah was the king’s agent in every matter concerning the people. Most likely he was the Persian king’s representative in Jerusalem, and he helped link the Jews with the ruling empire. It is a reminder that God’s people were still under foreign rule.

BSA: agent (“servant, advisor”): He was a trusted go-between for the king and the people.

Nehemiah 11:25-30

These verses name the towns of Judah where people lived, from Kiriath-arba in the hills to Beersheba in the far south and Lachish and Azekah in the west. They show that families returned to the old places of their forefathers. The settlement reached from Beersheba to the Valley of Hinnom.

BSA: villages (“small settlements, daughter-towns”): Each main town had smaller settlements around it, which shows how widely the people spread.

See also: Joshua 15:21-62.

Nehemiah 11:31-35

The people of Benjamin lived north of Jerusalem, in places such as Geba, Michmash, Bethel, Anathoth and Nob, and as far as Lod and Ono. Names so old show that the people were taking up their ancestral lands again.

BSA: Craftsmen (“skilled workers, artificers, or clever ones”): The valley was named for the skilled trades practiced there.

See also: Jeremiah 1:1.

Nehemiah 11:36

Some divisions of the Levites who had belonged to Judah settled in Benjamin. The Levites were scattered among the tribes, as the Law intended, so that teaching and worship reached the whole land.

BSA: divisions (“sections, courses”): The Levites were organized in groups, each with a place in serving God’s people.

See also: Joshua 21:1-3.