Chapter 6

Sanballat and his cronies hatch a plan, a trap really, when they learn that all breaches in the walls of Jerusalem have been repaired.  Some of the gates are still missing, but the walls are repaired.  So they invite Nehemiah to come to a place or their choosing for a meeting.  He has sense enough not to go.  He replies that he is too busy working on the walls.  They send invitations to him four times.  Then Sanballat sends a fifth invitation. 

In this last invitation, Sanballat says he's heard - it has been reported - that the Jews are repairing the walls so they can rebel against Persia, and accusing Nehemiah of wanting to be the King of Judah, and of having "prophets" proclaim a new king in Jerusalem.  Nehemiah denies all these claims, perceiving that the point of the "open letter" is to make those working afraid of reprisals from the governor, or worse from the king of Persia, to the end that they stop their work.  Nehemiah - who is afraid also I am sure - prays for God to strengthen his hand.  I pray the same, for the work God would have me do while I am still able.

A prophet named Shemiah, a friend of Nehemiah (or the son of a friend maybe?) is confined to his home and Nehemiah goes to see him.  This Shemiah "prophesies" that Sanballat has sent people to kill Nehemiah in the night, and that Nehemiah should hide himself in the temple (MSB says in the Holy Place), so that they cannot kill him.  Nehemiah recognizes this too as a plot - a false prophecy, bought with money by Sanballat.  The problem is that Nehemiah was not a priest, and if he did enter the Holy Place, he would be profaning the temple.  This would bring his dedication to God before himself into question, bring his bravery into question, and so on.  While he would still be alive, he would be so discredited as to lose his ability to lead the people of Jerusalem.  This was a very nasty and devious twist of tactics by Nehemiah's enemies.  But Nehemiah sees through it.  He prays that God would "remember" these who have hatched this plan, and those who assisted with it, some of whom were Jews living in Jerusalem.  I'm certain that God did remember them, and made a special place for them.

Then this verse:

15 So the wall was finished on the twenty-fifth day of the month Elul, in fifty-two days. [Neh 6:15 ESV]  Only 52 days have passed since this all started.  There must have been many working on it, and working hard!  The enemies all around recognize that this is an almost miraculous thing, and that God is surely helping with it, and so they "fall in their own esteem".  We learn that many in Jerusalem are bound by an oath to Tobiah, and that Tobiah receives regular reports of the work and goings on in Jerusalem from these men, and they receive letters - instructions no doubt - in return.