Nehemiah

Nehemiah (Neḥem-Yah) means “The Comfort of Yahweh”^[1] or “The Lord comforts.”^[2] Ancient Jewish authors praised Nehemiah (Sir. 49:13; 2 Macc. 1:18-36; Antiquities 159-183). Originally, the Hebrew scribes lumped Ezra and Nehemiah into one book—not two. Since these two books are so closely linked together, see “Introduction to Ezra” for the introduction to this book.

Authorship

Both Ezra and Nehemiah speak in the first person through these books. Ancient Jewish tradition held that Ezra wrote both Ezra and Nehemiah (originally one book titled “Ezra,” see Baba Bathra, 15a). Eugene Merrill synthesizes this by saying that “each made some original contribution which became part of the whole corpus as shaped by some anonymous author.”^[3]

However, since the events in Nehemiah occur later than Ezra (even though there is overlap in their ministries), then Nehemiah could’ve used Ezra’s writings to incorporate them into one whole book. Again, Merrill writes, “If either Ezra or Nehemiah must be judged author of the book that bears their names, Nehemiah is clearly the more suitable candidate… However, the matter is much too complicated for that either/ or option. There is no doubt that much of the material is original to both these individuals, but the final product can hardly be attributed to either.”^[4]

Setting

The book of Nehemiah picks up the account where Chronicles leaves off: the Persian king Cyrus allowed the Jewish people to return from Exile (cf. Ezra 1:1-4). Nehemiah explains how the fortifications and city of Jerusalem were rebuilt. Kidner is right when he states, “The story of Nehemiah is famous for its marriage of the wholly spiritual with the unashamedly hard-headed.”^[5]

Consulted Commentaries

Edwin Yamauchi, “Ezra-Nehemiah,” in The Expositor’s Bible Commentary: 1 & 2 Kings, 1 & 2 Chronicles, Ezra, Nehemiah, Esther, Job, ed. Frank E. Gaebelein, vol. 4 (Grand Rapids, MI: Zondervan Publishing House, 1988).

Derek Kidner, Ezra and Nehemiah: An Introduction and Commentary, vol. 12, Tyndale Old Testament Commentaries (Downers Grove, IL: InterVarsity Press, 1979).

Mervin Breneman, Ezra, Nehemiah, Esther, electronic ed., vol. 10, The New American Commentary (Nashville: Broadman & Holman Publishers, 1993).

^[1] Gleason Archer Jr., A Survey of Old Testament Introduction, 3rd. ed. (Chicago: Moody Press, 1994), 456.

^[2] Mervin Breneman, Ezra, Nehemiah, Esther, electronic ed., vol. 10, The New American Commentary (Nashville: Broadman & Holman Publishers, 1993), 167-168.

[3] Eugene Merrill, Mark F. Rooker, and Michael A. Grisanti, The World and the Word: An Introduction to the Old Testament (Nashville, TN: B&H Academic, 2011), 346.

[4] Eugene Merrill, Mark F. Rooker, and Michael A. Grisanti, The World and the Word: An Introduction to the Old Testament (Nashville, TN: B&H Academic, 2011), 349.

^[5] Derek Kidner, Ezra and Nehemiah: An Introduction and Commentary, vol. 12, Tyndale Old Testament Commentaries (Downers Grove, IL: InterVarsity Press, 1979), 24.