Nehemiah 5

Now the men and their wives raised a great outcry against their fellow Jews. Nehemiah 5:1

Guthrie comments: “…it is usually held that these events took place after the rebuilding of the wall. It is just possible that the economic pressures caused by the building program, in which most normal income would be suspended, brought the underlying abuses of vv. 1-5…” [1]

McConville feels that since the wives were involved and mentioned expressly only here in the books of Ezra and Nehemiah, they were possibly at the forefront of this protest. [2] It was a severe social crisis. The wives were closer to the crisis since they were the ones who had to stretch the dwindling supply of food for their large families. They might have been complaining to their husbands, “We can’t eat walls!” [3]

It is just like the devil when he loses one battle to try a different approach. Since he could not win from without, he switched to an attack from within. His attack was now against the precious unity of the congregation. His tool would focus on selfishness. “When God’s people fight one another they certainly are neither fighting the real enemy nor getting God’s work done.” [4]

“Some were saying, ‘We and our sons and daughters are numerous; in order for us to eat and stay alive, we must get grain’” (5:2). We have three classes of people mentioned in verses 2 through 5. The first class mentioned in this verse seems to be made up of laborers. Many of these probably lived a “hand to mouth” existence. They were landless folks, often with large families, and their situation was the most precarious. Just missing one day’s pay could send such a family into a financial tailspin. It was a day before credit cards so sometimes these families had to go hungry. “For many in Judah there was no safety margin built into the family budget…” [5]

“Others were saying, ‘We are mortgaging our fields, our vineyards and our homes to get grain during the famine’” (5:3). In this verse, we learn of a new factor that was causing stress. There was a famine taking place. We do not know the extent of this famine, but almost any kind of famine would cause some suffering. These Israelites were mortgaging their properties in order to get enough food to eat. We might ask why God sent a famine when the people had obediently built his wall around Jerusalem. These verses make clear that there was a lot of oppression dealt to the poor by Israel’s wealthy. God could not have been pleased.

These people were landowners but their homes, fields and vineyards were now mortgaged so that they could have enough food to eat. It seems that the problem here was that the wealthy Jews were loaning money and charging interest to their Israelite brothers. Such a thing was forbidden in Exodus 22:25 and Leviticus 25:36. McConville says: “With their land in pledge they had no resources available for economic recovery.” [6]

“Still others were saying, ‘We have had to borrow money to pay the king’s tax on our fields and vineyards’” (5:4). This last group had a different kind of problem. They could not pay the king’s tax. “The Persian king received a fortune in annual tribute, very little of which ever benefited the local provinces…” [7] There are references to this tax in Ezra 4:13 and Esther 10:1. People often had to borrow money at exorbitant rates to pay the tax. Again, the charge of interest between Israelites was strictly forbidden in scripture as we have said (cf. Exo. 22:25; Lev. 25:36-41; Deut. 23:19-20).

“Although we are of the same flesh and blood as our fellow Jews and though our children are as good as theirs, yet we have to subject our sons and daughters to slavery. Some of our daughters have already been enslaved, but we are powerless, because our fields and our vineyards belong to others” (5:5). The enslavement of children seems horrible to our societies today. Yet, we sometimes forget that there is presently a terrible plague of sex slavery among the young going on around us. In recognizing reality in ancient times the Bible permits the selling of children to pay a family debt (e.g. Exo. 21:2-11; Deut. 15:12-14; 2 Ki. 4:1). It was understood that the debt slave would be set free on the Year of Jubilee (Lev. 25:39-43) if not before. “The son or daughter had to work for the creditor until the debt was paid…In many cases the daughter was taken as wife by the creditor or for one of his sons.” [8]

Nehemiah was really angry about this whole situation. Poor people who sold off their children often had no means of buying them back. The rich in Israel grew richer and the poor grew poorer. “Thomas Merton said it best: ‘To consider persons and events and situations only in the light of their effect upon myself is to live on the doorstep of hell.’” [9] For such reasons God designed the Year of Jubilee that we have mentioned. It kept the economic system in balance so that the rich would not get richer and the poor would not get poorer. [10]

Nehemiah Responds To The Debt Crisis

When I heard their outcry and these charges, I was very angry. Nehemiah 5:6

We might say that Nehemiah finally “blew his cool” over this dreadful situation. He got really angry about it. There is such a thing as “righteous indignation” that is acceptable to God. It is OK so long as we are not angry for our own selfish reasons. The Bible does say that we can be angry and not sin (Eph. 4:26). “If you become angry because God’s program, God’s glory, and God’s name are being hurt then you can ‘be angry and sin not.’” [11]

“I pondered them in my mind and then accused the nobles and officials. I told them, ‘You are charging your own people interest!’ So I called together a large meeting to deal with them and said: ‘As far as possible, we have bought back our fellow Jews who were sold to the Gentiles. Now you are selling your own people, only for them to be sold back to us!’ They kept quiet, because they could find nothing to say” (5:7-8). Nehemiah always took time to think and pray about situations before acting upon them. He faced a big problem since he was charging the wealthy leaders with a grievous sin. They were breaking the law of God and charging interest to their own Jewish brethren. “The oppression of fellow Jews was as shameful as Jerusalem’s broken walls…” [12] “The lenders were behaving like pawnbrokers – and harsh ones at that – instead of like brothers.” [13]

Nehemiah’s strategy was to call a large assembly of the people. He reminded them that they in the past had bought back Jewish slaves from the Gentiles and now they were selling their own brothers as slaves. No doubt many of the leaders got red faces as they realized the inconsistency of their actions. “…Nehemiah had completely checkmated any public opposition by the rulers and nobles by his confronting them before a general assembly of the whole population…” [14]

“So I continued, ‘What you are doing is not right. Shouldn’t you walk in the fear of our God to avoid the reproach of our Gentile enemies? I and my brothers and my men are also lending the people money and grain. But let us stop charging interest!” (5:9-10). Certainly, the surrounding Gentiles would scoff at poverty-stricken Jews. The rich were making some of their own people laughingstocks to the enemies. If they were walking in the fear of God they would have freely given to those in need (Lev. 25:35). As Christians, we have the same instruction to lend to those in need (Lk. 6:35). We are even to do this for our enemies. Nehemiah himself had made loans to the needy but he certainly did not charge them interest. Still, he includes himself with the guilty in order not to seem like a judge to them. We note here that Nehemiah was probably a wealthy person. We will see that more clearly in verses 14 and following. Perhaps he came from a wealthy family or he may have become wealthy in personal service to the king.

“Give back to them immediately their fields, vineyards, olive groves and houses, and also the interest you are charging them – one percent of the money, grain, new wine and olive oil” (5:11). This was no doubt an embarrassing position for the wealthy lenders to be in. They were called out and charged before the whole assembly. Now Nehemiah commands them to give back what they had taken wrongfully. Commentators appear to be in agreement that the one percent mentioned here is per month, making a total of 12 percent per year in interest. [15] Interest during the Persian period ran much higher than this.

The Wealthy Lenders Agree

“We will give it back,” they said. “And we will not demand anything more from them. We will do as you say.” Then I summoned the priests and made the nobles and officials take an oath to do what they had promised. Nehemiah 5:12

Guzik comments: “Their teachable, correctable spirit was impressive; too few are willing to admit they are wrong and to do what is right – especially if money is involved. [16] It is likely that those who disagreed were too embarrassed to disagree openly, so the matter was quickly decided.

Nehemiah, with his good understanding of human nature, was not satisfied with just an agreement. He called in the priests and made the nobles and officials take an oath before the Lord that they would all do what they said. McGee with his long church experience says, “…I think one of the biggest mistakes I ever made in the ministry was to believe some Christians.” [17] An oath before the Most High made it certain that the leaders would act and that the poor of Israel could have their needed relief.

“I also shook out the folds of my robe and said, ‘In this way may God shake out of their house and possessions anyone who does not keep this promise. So may such a person be shaken out and emptied!’ At this the whole assembly said, ‘Amen,’ and praised the LORD. And the people did as they had promised” (5:13). The symbolic shaking out of one’s robe can be seen in other places in scripture (cf. Job 38:13; Acts 18:6). Personal items were often carried in a fold of the cloak and held in by a belt. [18] Nehemiah was saying symbolically that God would shake them out if they failed to keep their word. The people replied “Amen” or “so be it,” as they fully agreed with what was said.

Nehemiah’s Testimony

Moreover, from the twentieth year of King Artaxerxes, when I was appointed to be their governor in the land of Judah, until his thirty-second year – twelve years – neither I nor my brothers ate the food allotted to the governor. Nehemiah 5:14

This is the first evidence we have that Nehemiah was officially appointed as governor of Judea. We are also given the length of his first term, which would have run twelve years, from 445 to 433 BC. [19]

Nehemiah states that he did not receive the normal food allowance due to Persian governors. This allowance came through a tax upon the people and he was not willing to burden them further. He came as one who served like Jesus did later (Lk. 22:27). We see the same spirit in the apostle Paul, who would not receive the normally expected financial help from the Corinthian Church (1 Cor. 9:12). Anders says: “As a political official under authority of Persia, the governor was to levy taxes on the people in order to supply his own wage and satisfy his expenses. Many satraps became wealthy and powerful through this method…” [20]

All this might remind us of the American father George Washington. It is said that during the Revolutionary War he paid for three ships to be built and outfitted. After he became President he never sought reimbursement for his sacrifice. [21]

“But the earlier governors – those preceding me – placed a heavy burden on the people and took forty shekels of silver from them in addition to food and wine. Their assistants also lorded it over the people. But out of reverence for God I did not act like that” (5:15). Several commentators feel sure that Nehemiah did not have reference to Zerubbabel when he spoke of former governors. [22] Anders says: “The forty shekels, about one pound, probably was a daily allowance for the governor, including the purchase of food and wine for his expected hospitality needs” [23] We can understand that Nehemiah had to be quite wealthy to meet these daily needs out of his own pocket.

“Instead, I devoted myself to the work on this wall. All my men were assembled there for the work; we did not acquire any land” (5:16). McGee says: “Nehemiah did not go into the real estate business. He stayed out of land speculation. He gained no mortgages on land by lending money or grain. He did not take anything on the side.” [24] His assistants did not lord it over the people but they worked on the wall like everyone else. Dummelow says of him: “The whole conduct of Nehemiah was that of a warmhearted, generous man.” [25]

“Furthermore, a hundred and fifty Jews and officials ate at my table, as well as those who came to us from the surrounding nations” (5:17). Nehemiah’s table reminds us of King Solomon’s to a degree. In addition to the bread, Solomon’s table required “ten head of stall-fed cattle, twenty of pasture-fed cattle and a hundred sheep and goats, as well as deer, gazelles, roebucks and choice fowl ” (1 Ki. 4:22-23). We also might remember how wicked queen Jezebel fed four hundred and fifty prophets of Baal plus four hundred prophets of Asherah at her table (1 Ki. 18:19). All the luxury and provision of kings were usually at the people’s expense in the form of taxes. However, Nehemiah insisted on paying these great amounts out of his own pocket.

“Each day one ox, six choice sheep and some poultry were prepared for me, and every ten days an abundant supply of wine of all kinds. In spite of all this, I never demanded the food allotted to the governor, because the demands were heavy on these people” (5:18). Pett comments; “Seemingly he met the whole out of his own family estates. He was in complete contrast with the general run of rulers who used their offices in order to obtain whatever they could get.” [26] Nehemiah set a sterling example of real leadership for his people. Breneman says, “Leadership means going further than those one is leading.” [27]

“Remember me with favor, my God, for all I have done for these people” (5:19). Nehemiah probably never intended for everyone to see all this information since it was originally written as a private diary. [28] He certainly has not impressed us as a braggart so far in his writing. He has appeared as a humble servant of God who was intent on loving and ministering to the Lord’s people. He simply wanted God to remember his good work.

Footnotes

1. Guthrie, et. al., The New Bible Commentary, p. 406.

2. McConville, Ezra, Nehemiah, and Esther, p. 97.

3. Kidner, Ezra & Nehemiah, p. 95.

4. Guzik, Enduring Word Bible Commentary, Ezra, v. 5:1.

5. McConville, Ezra, Nehemiah, and Esther, p. 97.

6. Ibid., p. 98.

7. Wiersbe, The Wiersbe Bible Commentary, OT, p. 765.

8. Breneman, Ezra, Nehemiah & Esther, The New American Commentary, p. 201.

9. Quoted in Wiersbe, The Wiersbe Bible Commentary, OT, p. 765.

10. Ibid., p. 766.

11. McGee, History of Israel, Ezra Nehemiah, Esther, p. 119.

12. Anders, g. ed. Ezra, Nehemiah, Esther, Holman Old Testament Commentary, p. 183.

13. Kidner, Ezra & Nehemiah, p. 96.

14. Coffman, Commentary on Nehemiah, Coffman Commentaries on the Bible, v. 5:6.

15. Kidner, Ezra & Nehemiah, p. 97.

16. Guzik, Enduring Word Bible Commentary, Ezra, vs. 5:12-13.

17. McGee, History of Israel, Ezra Nehemiah, Esther, p. 121.

18. Pett, Commentary on Nehemiah, Peter Pett’s Commentary on the Bible, v. 5:13.

19. Kidner, Ezra & Nehemiah, p. 98.

20. Anders, g. ed. Ezra, Nehemiah, Esther, Holman Old Testament Commentary, p. 185.

21. Coffman, Commentary on Nehemiah, Coffman Commentaries on the Bible, v. 5:14.

22. Pfieffer & Harrison, eds., The Wycliffe Bible Commentary, p. 439.

23. Anders, g. ed. Ezra, Nehemiah, Esther, Holman Old Testament Commentary, p. 185.

24. McGee, History of Israel, Ezra Nehemiah, Esther, p. 123.

25. Dummelow, Commentary on Nehemiah, John Dummelow’s Commentary on the Bible, v. 5:16.

26. Pett, Commentary on Nehemiah, Peter Pett’s Commentary on the Bible, v. 5:18.

27. Breneman, Ezra, Nehemiah & Esther, The New American Commentary, p. 208.

28. Guzik, Enduring Word Bible Commentary, Ezra, v. 5:19.