Neh 13:11 Then contended I with the rulers, and said, Why is the house of God forsaken? And I gathered them together, and set them in their place.

It is rightly said that when the cat is away, the mice come out to play. Nehemiah was away from Jerusalem, having returned to his place of work in Babylon (verse 6). He saw the changes when he returned again to Jerusalem. He saw four evils that were committed.

The first evil Nehemiah saw was that Tobiah had moved into the temple compound. Eliashib, the high priest, had become related to Tobiah, and had converted a storeroom in the temple into a splendid apartment for him to stay (verse 4-5). Tobiah was an Ammonite and one of the enemies who troubled the Jews when they were rebuilding the wall (Nehemiah 2:10, 19). The apartment was supposed to be a chamber to store all the offerings that were to be given to the Levites. When Nehemiah saw it, he cast out all of Tobiah’s goods, and restored the chamber to its proper use (verse 7-9).

Do you have a chamber for Tobiah? “What? I won’t give a room to Tobiah.” Yet, when you have bitterness, anger, or strife in your heart, you have a room for Tobiah. If you have given a chamber in your heart to any Tobiah, you must cast him off immediately. You must cleanse the room and fill it with godliness and righteousness. Why create room for someone or something that goes against the work of God in your life? “Let all bitterness, and wrath, and anger, and clamour, and evil speaking, be put away from you, with all malice” (Ephesians 4:31).

The second evil Nehemiah saw was the neglect of the payments due to the Levites. The Jews were not paying their tithes and as a result, the Levites were forced to abandon the sacred service and work in the field to support themselves (verse 10). No wonder the store chamber was empty and was given to Tobiah to dwell. Nehemiah confronted the leaders and upbraided them: “Why is the house of God forsaken?” (verse 11). He restored the Levites their portion and the temple service resumed after the Jews began to bring in the wine, grain, and oil into the store houses (verse 12).

“Why is the house of God forsaken?” The lack of giving is a way of forsaking the house of God. Because of the lack of support, those who should give their time to the service of God could not do so and have to leave. When you stop giving, God’s work becomes forsaken. “Upon the first day of the week let every one of you lay by him in store, as God hath prospered him,” (1 Corinthians 16:2).

The third evil Nehemiah saw was the Sabbath profanation. The Jews were ignoring the Sabbath day and were continuing with the commerce. The Sabbath day was given as a rest day but more importantly, was a day given to focus on God. It was clear to Nehemiah that the people of Israel were putting making money their first priority before glorifying God. He went at once to the nobles and commanded them to stop this practice and shut the gates of Jerusalem on the Sabbath day (verse 19).

Are you forsaking the assembly to worship God to be engage in doing business? If you have, you are not putting your priority right. You are putting making money before God. You need to cleanse that chamber in your life and put God in it. “Not forsaking the assembling of ourselves together, as the manner of some is; but exhorting one another: and so much the more, as ye see the day approaching” (Hebrews 10:25).

The fourth evil that Nehemiah saw was the practice of intermarrying with the pagan nations surrounding them. The Israelites were marrying the heathen men and women and as a result, their children could not speak the Jews’ language (verse 23-24). 

Under no circumstance should a child of God go into matrimony with an unbeliever (2 Corinthians 6:14). Marry someone who can walk with you to heaven. “Favour is deceitful, and beauty is vain: but a woman that feareth the LORD, she shall be praised” (Proverbs 31:30).

In all four cases, Nehemiah acted decisively and boldly. Likewise, there are times when we need not be “nice”, but need only to take bold steps to right what has gone wrong in our lives. Note that in this final chapter Nehemiah kept saying “Remember me O God”. What can God remember you for? What should God remember you for? Why should God remember you?

Jimmy Lau

Psa 119:97  Oh how love I thy law! It is my meditation all the day.