Enemies of Ezra and Nehemiah
“My God, think thou upon Tobiah and Sanballat according to these their works, and on the prophetess Noadiah, and the rest of the prophets, that would have put me in fear,” Nehemiah 6:14
Types of Enemies for Ezra and Nehemiah
(1) Sanballet: Who was Sanballat?
He was also called “the Horonite,” and was associated with Tobiah the Ammonite and Geshem the Arabian (Nehemiah 2:19; 4:7). But his home was evidently at Samaria, from whatever “Horon” he may have come. Sanballat was one of the chief opponents of Nehemiah when he was building the walls of Jerusalem and carrying out his reforms among the Jews: as the Jewish community was facing enemies from the Samaritans, the Ammonites, and the Arabs.
Nehemiah 2:10 When Sanballat the Horonite, and Tobiah the servant, the Ammonite, heard of it, it grieved them exceedingly that there was come a man to seek the welfare of the children of Israel.
When Nehemiah actually disclosed his intention of building the walls of Jerusalem they laughed him to scorn (Neh 2:19), and said, “Will ye rebel against the king?”
Nehemiah 2:19 But when Sanballat the Horonite, and Tobiah the servant, the Ammonite, and Geshem the Arabian, heard it, they laughed us to scorn, and despised us, and said, What is this thing that ye do? will ye rebel against the king?
Nehemiah resented their insinuation, and gave them to understand that they had no right in Jerusalem, nor any interest in its affairs. As soon as Sanballat and his associates heard that Nehemiah and the Jews were actually building the walls, they were angry (Neh 4:1-3);
Nehemiah 4:1 But it came to pass, that when Sanballat heard that we builded the wall, he was wroth, and took great indignation, and mocked the Jews.
2 And he spake before his brethren and the army of Samaria, and said, What do these feeble Jews? will they fortify themselves? will they sacrifice? will they make an end in a day? will they revive the stones out of the heaps of the rubbish which are burned?
3 Now Tobiah the Ammonite was by him, and he said, Even that which they build, if a fox goes up, he shall even break down their stone wall.
And Sanballat addressed the army of Samaria with a contemptuous reference to “these feeble Jews.” Tobiah appeased him by saying that a jackal climbing on the wall they were building would break it down.
Nehemiah and his builders, the Jews, vigorously hurried the work, while Sanballat and his associates organized their forces to fight against Jerusalem (Neh 4:8). Nehemiah prepared to meet the opposition and continued the work on the walls. Five different times Sanballat and his confederates challenged Nehemiah and the Jews to meet them in battle in the plain of Ono (Neh 6:1-7).
(2) Tobiah, Who was Tobiah?
Tobiah was an Ammonite who had infiltrated into the house of Judah and its Temple in Jerusalem
Tobiah in the Temple – Nehemiah 13:4-9
4 And before this, Eliashib the priest, having the oversight of the chamber of the house of our God, was allied unto Tobiah.
5 And he had prepared for him a great chamber, where previously they laid the meat offerings, the frankincense and the vessels and the tithes of the corn, the new wine and the oil, which were commanded to be given to the Levites and the singers and the gatekeepers, and the offerings of the priests.
6 But in all this time I was not at Jerusalem; for in the two and thirtieth year of Artaxerxes king of Babylon I came unto the king, and after certain days I obtained leave from the king.
7 And I came to Jerusalem and learned of the evil that Eliashib had done for Tobiah in preparing him a chamber in the courts of the house of God.
8 And it grieved me sore; therefore I cast forth all the household stuff of Tobiah out of the chamber.
9 Then I commanded, and they cleansed the chambers; and thither I brought back the vessels of the house of God, with the meat offering and the frankincense.
There are four things mentioned in particular that show the backsliding of the returning Jews: the presence Tobiah in the courts of the Temple; the failure to provide adequately for the Levites; the desecration of the Sabbath; and the return to mixed marriages.
When Nehemiah came back to Jerusalem he saw something that must have both grieved and angered him. He found that the priest Eliashib had entered into an agreement with one of the men who had been at the forefront of the opposition to the wall rebuilding.
Not only was Tobiah personally a proven enemy of the people of God, he was an Ammonite, a part of the ‘mixed multitude’ put out of the Temple years before. In chapter 6 Tobiah was exerting his influence from the outside, and maintaining contact with some of the nobles within by letter. But now he was right inside! It is not at all surprising that Nehemiah was upset!
(a) The Temple rooms that Tobiah was occupying were supposed to be used for the storage of tithes and offerings for the priests and for the service of God’s sanctuary. It was unthinkable that rooms set apart for a holy purpose should be used by a pagan opponent of the work of God.
(b) Eliashib had failed as the spiritual leader of the people and had neglected to maintain the purity of the house of God. He had not recognised the danger of having an alliance with such a man. Possibly Eliashib thought the regulations for ‘separation’ and ‘no mixing’ were far too strict and uncharitable, but we ignore God’s commands at his peril!
Nehemiah was not just grieved but determined to take radical measures to solve the problem: He threw Tobiah and all his possessions out of the Temple; He restored the Temple rooms to their proper function. No doubt some would see his action as being harsh but like the Lord Jesus when he cleansed the Temple Nehemiah had the wisdom not to confuse ‘love’ with ‘being nice’!
(3) Shemaiah, the son of Delaiah; who was Shemaiah?
Shemaiah was a self-prefessing prophet who prophecised against Nehemiah, he was probably one of the chief of the priests, 1 Chronicles 24:18; Ezra 2:60 (together with the forged record of the children of Tobiah?)
Jamieson-Fausset-Brown Bible Commentary; writing of Nehemiah:
10-14. Afterward I came unto the house of Shemaiah, &c.—This man was the son of a priest, who was an intimate and confidential friend of Nehemiah. The young man claimed to be endowed with the gift of prophecy.
Having been secretly bribed by Sanballat, he, in his pretended capacity of prophet, told Nehemiah that his enemies were that night to make an attempt upon his life. He advised him, at the same time, to consult his safety by concealing himself in the sanctuary, a crypt which, from its sanctity, was strong and secure.
But the noble-minded governor determined at all hazards to remain at his post, and not bring discredit on the cause of God and religion by his unworthy cowardice in leaving the temple and city unprotected.
This plot, together with a secret collusion between the enemy and the nobles of Judah who were favorably disposed towards the bad Samaritan in consequence of his Jewish connections (Ne 6:18), the undaunted courage and vigilance of Nehemiah were enabled, with the blessing of God, to defeat, and the erection of the walls thus built in troublous times (Da 9:25) was happily completed (Ne 6:15) in the brief space of fifty-two days.
So rapid execution, even supposing some parts of the old wall standing, cannot be sufficiently accounted for, except by the consideration that the builders labored with the ardor of religious zeal, as men employed in the work of God.
(4) Noadiah, a professed prophetess; but who was Noadiah?
Noadiah is mentioned only once in one of the prayers of Nehemiah. She was one that falsely pretended to possess the spirit of prophecy: to frighten Nehemiah with false prophecies.
The law of Moses enjoins the governors of the Jews to punish such as were proven to be false prophets; but because Nehemiah was prevented in a capacity to do so, as many rich and powerful Jews were protecting Noadish, he could only pray to God to remember and punish them.
Thus in his imprecation (cursing), Nehemiah said:
“Remember Tobiah and Sanballat, O my God, according to these things that they did, and also the prophetess Noadiah and the rest of the prophets who wanted to make me afraid” (Nehemiah 6:14).
It appears from this and many other passages that there were many among the Jews that pretended to be prophets but who had no divine commission, and often drew aside and deceived the people, who ought to have done as Nehemiah had intended.
Similarly, the Jewish community should have considered the spirit of these prophets, whether they spoke that which were agreeable to the divine laws. Further, they should have tried these prophets; and because they did not do so, they were, instead, led to hearken to them, for which they were severely rebuked and most probably punished.
But Nehemiah, having many powerful enemies surrounding him, was unable to accomplish his duty. Hence, no judgement or punishment were executed, but with only cursings from him; thus Nehemiah could only pray that God would remember to curse them.
Joel
A Prophecy of Esau and Jacob 