And at the head of those that sealed were Nehemiah the Tirshatha, the son of Hachaliah, and Zedekiah.
The long confession of chapter 9 ends with a written and sealed agreement, and Nehemiah's name heads the list of those who signed. Two questions follow: what does a seal do, and can a signature make people obey?
The names are not a random roll call. They are the men who took responsibility for the whole community.
The last chapter closes with a covenant, and this one opens with the names of those who sealed it. They bound themselves to keep it by their signatures. And it seems they signed not only for themselves, but also on behalf of the people. Nehemiah, as the governor, was the first to put his name to this solemn document. Twenty-two priests followed him (vv. 1-8), then seventeen Levites (vv. 9-13), and after them forty-four chiefs of the people, probably heads of families.
The word attached to Nehemiah's name is not Hebrew. It is a foreign title of office.
Persian title given to Nehemiah. Neh. 8:9; Neh. 10:1. In Ezra 2:63, and Neh. 7:65, 70, the same title doubtless refers to Zerubbabel. In the margin it reads 'governor.' It is thought to be similar to the modern word Pasha.
One writer sees the nation's low state in the order of the names:
Here the chief men took the lead, as was fitting. Yet it was no small sign of their low condition that the Tirshatha signed first among those who sealed. Then came faithful priests, followed by fewer Levites, and a fair number of leading laymen.
A seal in Scripture carries several senses. The one at work here is the formal confirming of a decision already made.
Yet another use of the seal was to ratify a certain resolution or determination (Neh. 9:38 and Neh. 10:1). And when high-ranking persons used a seal, it certainly carried the thought of authority. No one who feared that person's power would dare to break the seal.
The sealing is the natural sequel to the prayer of chapter 9. Owning the wrong is only half of the movement.
All this is excellent in its time and season. The covenant of this chapter is the outcome, and fitting conclusion, of the confession of the previous chapter. As another has said, "Ceasing to do evil must lead on to learning to do well. If we have been doing wrong, it is very right to begin by confessing the wrong, before we set ourselves to do the right. But doing the right thing is the proper companion of confessing the wrong thing."
The document the signers sealed covered life in four widening circles.
1st. As to their personal walk, that it should be in obedience to the law of God given by Moses (29). 2nd. As to the nations around, they would maintain a holy separation (30). 3rd. As to Jehovah, they would give Him His due with devotion, by keeping the Sabbath, the holy days, and the law of the seventh year (31). 4th. As to the house of God, they take on themselves to maintain the service and not forsake the house (32-39).
The signers meant every word. Dennett names the instinct behind such promises:
They were doubtless sincere, and meant to be faithful to the obligations they were taking on. Almost anyone can understand this step. The flesh is legal by nature, and making a covenant seems an easy way to guard against failure. God's people have often used this method, only to discover their own complete helplessness. In many cases it has taught them to look to Another for the power they needed instead of to themselves.
Others put the same lesson as a warning drawn from what followed every earlier covenant:
With such sad examples before us we can see how useless men's covenants are, and that though the people of God may return to the authority of God's word and judge themselves by it, they will still not be able to walk according to that word in the future by any efforts of their own.
We do not stand where Israel stood. Yet the chapter still shows what honest confession restores.
Of course we cannot apply this chapter to ourselves in the same way, since our relations with God are those of grace. But here we can see fellowship with God renewed after our unfaithfulness has cast a shadow over it. And here we find a very important fact. When confession of faults has been real and thorough, we not only recover communion with God, but also communion with one another.
- Confession — Chapter 9 owns the wrong; chapter 10 sets out to do the right. Ceasing to do evil must lead on to learning to do well.
- Seal — To seal was to ratify a decision and stamp authority on it. Eighty-four names stood in for the whole people.
- Governor — "Tirshatha" is a Persian title for a governor. A foreign office at the head of the list showed how low the nation had sunk.
- Scope — The pledge widened in four steps: personal obedience, separation from the nations, God's rights, and the upkeep of His house.
- Limit — Sincere signatures cannot supply strength. At Sinai Israel traded grace for responsibility and forfeited everything, and the flesh is still legal by nature. The lesson is to look to Another for power, not to ourselves.
-- Seraiah, Azariah, Jeremiah,
Nehemiah 10:2 belongs to a list of signatures. The three priests named here sealed the written covenant made at the end of chapter 9. So why record their names, and what were they binding themselves to do?
The names are not decoration. The chapter records who signed and in what order.
The last chapter closes with a covenant. This one starts by naming those who sealed it — that is, those who bound themselves to keep it by their signatures. In signing their names, it would seem, they acted not only for themselves but also on behalf of the people. Nehemiah, as the governor, was the first to put his name to this solemn document. After him came twenty-two priests (vv. 1-8), then seventeen Levites (vv. 9-13), and then forty-four chiefs of the people, probably heads of families.
Seraiah and his fellow priests signed second, after the governor. To one writer, that order says something about the nation itself. ("Tirshatha" was the governor's title.)
Here the chief men took the lead, as was fitting for them. Yet it was no small sign of their low condition that the Tirshatha signed first among those who sealed. Then came faithful priests, followed by fewer Levites, and a fair number of leading laymen.
The document they sealed had definite terms. One commentator lists them in four parts.
1st. As to their personal walk, that it should be in obedience to the law of God given by Moses (29). 2nd. As to the nations around, they would maintain a holy separation (30). 3rd. As to Jehovah, they would devotedly render to Him His due by keeping the Sabbath, the holy days, and the law of the seventh year (31). 4th. As to the house of God, they charge themselves to maintain the service and not forsake the house (32-39).
The chapter lists eighty-four names, then shows the rest of the people joining in. That agreement crossed both rank and household.
Notice that the Rabbinic contempt for "wives and daughters" had not yet raised its empty and wicked head. They joined in no less than husbands and sons — "all who have knowledge and understanding." And it is beautiful to see how faithfulness to God humbles the high and lifts up the low: they "join with their brothers, their nobles." It is a happy thing when God's will, not man's, welds all ranks together before Him who is above all.
Commentators are agreed that the signing, though sincere, put the people back under the terms their ancestors had already broken. One writer explains why people naturally reach for a document like this — and what God teaches them through it.
These men were not ignorant of the past (Neh. 9:13-14), and they had confessed the former transgressions of their people. Yet they now make another covenant. The enthusiasm of the moment blinded them: they were what their fathers had been, and they were no more likely to keep these solemn promises than their ancestors had been. And yet they were truly sincere. They fully intended to be faithful to the obligations they were taking on. Few people will fail to understand this. The flesh is naturally legal, and making a covenant seems an easy way of guarding against failure. God's people have often used this method, only to discover their own complete powerlessness. And so, in many cases, they have learned to look to Another for the power they needed, instead of to themselves.
The signatures were genuine. What they could not supply was strength.
But it is one thing, as everyone knows, to vow, and another to perform. Sometimes a powerful influence grips us and cuts us off from everything except the one thing then set before our souls. At such a moment it is easy to bind ourselves to pursue that one object for ever. The influence passes away. The object we had before us still seems as desirable as ever, but we no longer feel the impulse to reach it. Along with this loss of power, the flesh reasserts itself. In the end the "covenant" that seemed so easy to keep when we made it becomes impossible. It adds another burden to a conscience that is already bad.
One writer names what was missing from the whole arrangement.
Sadly, without the risen Christ as the object of faith, there was no power of the Spirit to work effectively; and there was soon a falling away.
- Name. Seraiah, Azariah and Jeremiah were priests. They signed the written covenant for themselves and for the people they represented.
- Order. The governor signing ahead of the priests was a sign of how low the nation had sunk.
- Pledge. Their names backed four promises: obedience to the law, separation from the nations, Jehovah's days kept, and God's house supported.
- Reach. Beyond the eighty-four signers, whole households joined in. God's will humbled the high and lifted the low, welding all ranks together.
- Result. Sincere signatures could not supply strength. Without the risen Christ there was no power of the Spirit, and there was soon a falling away. Those who learn their own weakness look to Another for power.
Pashhur, Amariah, Malchijah,
In chapter 9 the people confessed their sins and put their agreement with God in writing. Pashhur, Amariah and Malchijah are three of the priests whose names appear on the signed document.
The list runs in a set order, group by group.
At the close of the last chapter the people make a covenant. At the start of this one we get the names of those who sealed it. They bound themselves to keep it by their signatures. They signed, it seems, not only for themselves but also on behalf of the people. Nehemiah, as the governor, was the first to put his name to this solemn document. Then came twenty-two priests (vv. 1-8), then seventeen Levites (vv. 9-13), and then forty-four chiefs of the people, probably heads of families.
"Sealed" is not a mysterious religious act. It was the ancient equivalent of putting your signature at the bottom of a page.
The last verse of the previous chapter mentions a covenant, sealed by the princes, the Levites and the priests. In this chapter we find the names of the heads of the different houses who sealed the covenant, which means they put their signature to it. Jewish tradition says these signers made up "the Great Synagogue." At first it had 120 members, but later only 70 belonged to it.
Pashhur and his fellow priests come after the governor, not before him. One writer reads the order itself as a sign of how low the nation had sunk.
Here the chief men took the lead as was fitting for them; yet it was no small sign of their low condition that the governor signed first among those who sealed. Then came faithful priests.
The eighty-four names were not acting alone. Everyone else came forward and stood with them. That willingness shows how real the confession was.
The leaders of the people set their seal to the covenant: eighty-four people in all, representing over forty thousand... Here we find the result of true humbling, true separation and true confession. There is no division, but one shared feeling. All of them — young and old, sons and daughters, women and children, priests, singers, Levites, temple servants — "joined with their brothers", accepting what their leaders, these eighty-four men, had done. There was no opposition from any side. Once confession is real and complete, with no one trying to justify or excuse himself, fellowship with one another is restored.
The names are the front page. The rest of the chapter holds what they swore to, and what would happen if they broke it.
The word "curse" means a saying that calls down harm, spoken in the form of an oath. There must have been some formula used when they signed the covenant, in which the signers declared that if they broke the covenant God would do something to them — that is the curse — and then by a direct oath swore to keep the covenant. The rest of this chapter gives the obligations of the covenant. They all come down to one word: "obedience." They covenanted to obey the law of the Lord and to do all the commandments.
The commentators do not doubt that these men meant it. They doubt that meaning it was ever enough.
They knew the past, and they had confessed the former sins of their people. Yet now they make another covenant. The excitement of the moment blinded them. They were just what their fathers had been, and they were no more likely to keep these solemn promises than their ancestors had been. They were no doubt sincere. They fully intended to be faithful to what they were taking on. Most people can understand what they did, for the flesh — our own nature — naturally turns to law, and making a covenant seems an easy way of guarding against failure. God's people have often tried this way out, only to discover how powerless they are. So in many cases they have been taught to look to Another for the power they needed, instead of to themselves.
Another writer names what was missing, and the outcome.
Here they were joined as Jews, entering into a curse and an oath to walk in His law. But without the risen Christ as the object of faith, there was no power of the Spirit to work effectively; and there was soon a falling away.
- Signed — "Sealed" means these men put their signature to a written document. Pashhur, Amariah and Malchijah are three of the twenty-two priests on that list.
- Represented — Eighty-four names stood in for more than forty thousand people. They signed for others, not only for themselves.
- Joined — The rest of the nation did not stay back. Sons, daughters, singers and temple servants came forward and accepted what their leaders had done.
- Promised — Their whole agreement comes down to one word: obedience. They swore to it under oath, with a curse attached.
- Failed — They were sincere, but a signature cannot supply strength. The falling away came quickly, and it taught God's people to look to Another for power.
Hattush, Shebaniah, Malluch,
This verse gives three names from a list of men who sealed a written agreement, made at the end of the previous chapter. Two questions follow: what did these men bind themselves to, and why did God keep their names?
The list is ordered by rank, and these men signed for others as well as themselves.
At the close of the last chapter a covenant is made. At the start of this one we get the names of those who sealed it — that is, of those who bound themselves to keep it by their signatures. It seems they signed not only for themselves but also on behalf of the people. Nehemiah, as the governor, was the first to put his name to this solemn document. Then came twenty-two priests (vv. 1-8), then seventeen Levites (vv. 9-13), and after them forty-four chiefs of the people, probably heads of families.
One writer sees the governor's name at the head of the list as a mark of how low the nation had sunk.
Here the chief men took the lead, as was right for them; yet it was no small sign of their low condition that the Tirshatha signed first among those who sealed.
The Bible Treasury — "Tirshatha" is the Persian title for Nehemiah as governor.
Signing was not all of it. The document carried a penalty the signers called down on themselves, and its content comes down to one word.
There must have been some formula connected with signing the covenant. In it the signers declared that if they broke the covenant God would do something to them (the curse). Then by a direct oath they swore to keep the covenant. The rest of this chapter gives the obligations of the covenant. They come down to one word: "obedience." They covenanted to obey the law of the Lord and to do all the commandments.
The nation had made this promise once before. One writer sees the repeat as a step backwards.
And what exactly did they promise to do? The very thing Israel had undertaken when standing before Sinai, where, under the sanction of the sprinkled blood, they solemnly said, "All that the Lord has spoken we will do, and we will be obedient." Up to that time, since their redemption from the land of Egypt, they had been under grace... Already they were God's people by redemption. Yet now they completely forgot the history of the three months since they crossed the Red Sea, and their continual sins. They declared themselves ready to abandon the ground of grace and to accept that of responsibility.
The oath bound every rank together. One writer sees what was lovely in that, and what was missing.
It is beautiful to see how faithfulness to God humbles the high and lifts up the low: "they joined with their brothers, their nobles." It is a happy thing when God's will, not man's, binds all ranks together before Him who is above all. Here it was as Jews, entering into a curse and an oath to walk in His law. Sadly, without the risen Christ as the object of faith, there was no power of the Spirit to work effectively; and soon there was a falling away.
One writer answers in a single word what came next, and draws a wider pattern from it.
And what was the next thing? FAILURE — failure in everything they had undertaken to do, and to which they had bound themselves under the penalty of a curse by a solemn covenant. (See Neh. 10.) So the lesson of Nehemiah's mission is the lesson of every age: whatever God entrusts to man under responsibility ends in failure. And there is more than this. Man brings in failure at the very moment of God's grace in blessing.
The same writer comments on another list of names in this history, and says why God preserved such a record.
The very fact that this record exists shows how precious to God was the response His grace had produced in the hearts of His people. They may have entered only weakly into His thoughts about His house. For this reason He has kept this list. It is evidence that He sees with joy the smallest fruits of His Spirit's work. It also shows that the very names of His people are known and proclaimed. This encourages all to walk in His ways, to stand with His interests, and to stay faithful in times of corruption.
- Named — Hattush, Shebaniah and Malluch are three of the twenty-two priests who signed, for themselves and for the people.
- Sworn — Their signature carried a curse and an oath. All of it came down to one word: obedience.
- Sinai — Their oath repeated what Israel said at Sinai. They swapped the ground of grace for the ground of responsibility.
- Shared — Faithfulness to God joined nobles and people as one; but without the risen Christ there was no power of the Spirit, and they soon fell away.
- Sealed anyway — The covenant failed, yet God kept the names. He sees with joy the smallest fruit of His Spirit's work, even in a day of failure.
Harim, Meremoth, Obadiah,
Harim, Meremoth and Obadiah appear in a long list of names. They are three of the priests who sealed the covenant made at the end of chapter 9, which raises two questions: why record these names at all, and what were these men binding themselves to?
To seal here means to sign a binding document. The signatures covered more than the signers.
At the close of the last chapter a covenant is made, and at the beginning of this one we are given the names of those who sealed it. They bound themselves to keep it by their signatures, and it would seem they signed not only for themselves but also on behalf of the people. Nehemiah, as the governor, was the first to put his name to this solemn document. Twenty-two priests followed him (vv. 1-8), then seventeen Levites (vv. 9-13), then forty-four chiefs of the people, probably heads of families.
The order of the names says something about the state of the nation.
Here the chief men took the lead, as was fitting. Yet it was no small sign of their low condition that the governor signed first among those who sealed.
One writer, commenting elsewhere on a similar list of names, adds why such records exist:
It may be in reference to this that it is said, "all of them were expressed by name." God notices their faithfulness, and caused it to be recorded.
The pledge had four parts. They run from private conduct to the upkeep of God's house.
1st. As to their personal walk, that it should be in obedience to the law of God given by Moses (29). 2nd. As to the nations around, they would maintain a holy separation (30). 3rd. As to the Lord, they would devotedly render to Him His due by keeping the Sabbath, the holy days, and the law of the seventh year (31). 4th. As to the house of God, they charge themselves to maintain its service and not forsake the house (32-39).
The commentators see the signing as a step backwards — a return to the terms Israel accepted at Mount Sinai.
They pledged the very thing that Israel had undertaken when standing before Sinai... Up to that time, since their redemption from the land of Egypt, they had been under grace... Already they were God's people by redemption. Now they completely forgot the history of the three months since they crossed the Red Sea, and forgot their continual sins. They declared themselves ready to abandon the ground of grace and to accept that of responsibility.
The chapter itself uses the word curse.
They had separated themselves to obey the law, and as it says, they "entered into a curse." Everyone who stands before God on the basis of law enters into a curse. Significantly enough, the last word in the Old Testament is the word "curse."
One writer explains why a written pledge appeals to us.
There are few who cannot understand this transaction. The flesh is naturally legal, and making a covenant seems an easy way of guarding against failure. God's people have often used this method, only to discover their own complete helplessness. So in many cases they have been taught to look to Another for the power they needed instead of to themselves... blessed are those who, by this or any other process, have come to the end of themselves.
Another writer names both the beauty of the scene and what it lacked.
It is beautiful to see how faithfulness to God humbles the high and lifts up the low. It is a happy thing when God's will, not man's, binds all ranks together before Him who is above all... Sadly, without the risen Christ as the object of faith, there was no power of the Spirit to work effectively, and there was soon a falling away.
One feature of the pledge stands out — what it leaves out.
It is significant to notice that a very prominent place is given to the house of God, with no mention of the city walls and gates — even though Nehemiah's own service was concerned with the walls and gates. The great test of faithfulness was the upkeep of the house, and the support of those who ministered in it. It also meant the necessary obedience to, and consistency with, the principles of divine order. The house was always the reminder and symbol of that order. Yet there was no Presence in the house as there had been of old, and it was only of value so far as its moral features were maintained.
- Names. Harim, Meremoth and Obadiah are among twenty-two priests who sealed the covenant. They signed for the people as well as themselves.
- Noticed. God notices faithfulness and has it recorded. These names are not forgotten.
- Order. A governor signing ahead of the priests marked how far the nation had sunk.
- Curse. The pledge took them back to the ground of law, and so under a curse. The flesh finds a vow easier than dependence.
- Test. The real test was the house of God, not the wall. And the power to keep such a pledge comes from Another, not from our own signatures.
Daniel, Ginnethon, Baruch,
Nehemiah 10:6 gives three more names from the list attached to the covenant written at the end of chapter 9. All three were priests, and each one sealed that document. The list looks like dry record-keeping. Three questions open it up: what did sealing commit a man to, why do priests fill so much of the list, and what came of the promise they signed?
The list is not a census. It is a set of signatures on a legal deed, and those who signed were acting for more than themselves.
At the close of the last chapter a covenant is made. This chapter opens with the names of those who sealed it — those who bound themselves to keep it by their signatures. They signed, it seems, not only for themselves but also on behalf of the people. Nehemiah, as the governor, was the first to put his name to this solemn document. Twenty-two priests followed (vv. 1-8), then seventeen Levites (vv. 9-13), then forty-four chiefs of the people, probably heads of families.
The order of signing matters. One writer reads it as a measure of the nation's condition.
Here the chief men took the lead, as was fitting for them. Yet it was no small sign of their low condition that the Tirshatha — the governor — signed first among those who sealed. Then came faithful priests, followed by fewer Levites, and a fair number of leading laymen.
So a civil ruler signed ahead of the priests. Yet the priests still came, and twenty-two of them sealed the deed.
One writer sets out the terms under four headings.
First, as to their personal walk, that it should be in obedience to the law of God given by Moses (29). Second, as to the nations around, they would maintain a holy separation (30). Third, as to Jehovah, they would give Him His due with devotion by keeping the Sabbath, the holy days, and the law of the seventh year (31). Fourth, as to the house of God, they bind themselves to keep up its service and not abandon it (32-39).
Chapter 9 was confession; chapter 10 is commitment. One writer sees the right order of things in that move.
All this is excellent in its time and season. The covenant of this chapter is the outcome, and fitting close, of the confession of the previous chapter. As another has said, "'Ceasing to do evil' must be followed by 'learning to do well.' If we have been doing wrong, it is very right to confess the wrong first, before we set ourselves to do the right. And all this moral beauty we see here, as we pass from the ninth chapter to the tenth."
Commentators differ over this covenant. One notes that the people were repeating an older decision, taken at Mount Sinai when they were already redeemed.
Up to that time, since their redemption from the land of Egypt, they had been under grace. God had carried them on eagles' wings and brought them to Himself. Grace had set them free. They were to stand still and see the salvation of God. Grace had sustained them, provided for them, borne with them, and guided them until that moment... Already they were God's people by redemption. Now they forgot the three months since they crossed the Red Sea, and their continual sins. They declared themselves ready to abandon the ground of grace and to accept that of responsibility... Before the tablets of the law even reached the camp, they had turned from Jehovah and made the golden calf. So, having received everything under grace, they forfeited everything under responsibility.
The same writer refuses to sneer at the men who signed.
And yet they were doubtless sincere, fully intending to be faithful to the obligations they were taking on. Almost anyone can understand what they did, for the flesh is naturally legal. Making a covenant seems an easy way of guarding against failure. God's people have often used this method, only to discover their own complete weakness. So in many cases they learned to look to Another for the power they needed, instead of to themselves.
Why record three names at all? One writer answers, commenting on another list of named servants.
God notices their faithfulness, and He had it written down.
- Sealed — the names in this verse are signatures on a sealed deed. Each man bound himself, and stood for the people too.
- Sequence — the governor signed first and the priests followed. One writer read that as a sign of how low the nation had sunk.
- Scope — the seal covered four things: obedience, separation from the nations around, God's claims in the Sabbath and holy days, and care for His house.
- Sincerity — confession in chapter 9 led to commitment in chapter 10, and the men meant it. But "the flesh is naturally legal." At Sinai the same step traded the ground of grace for the ground of responsibility.
- Safekeeping — the vows failed, but the names remain, because God notices faithfulness and has it written down.
Meshullam, Abijah, Mijamin,
Nehemiah 10 lists the men who sealed the covenant made at the end of chapter 9, and this verse holds three of their names, partway through the list of priests. Why did God keep a list of names, and what does signing under the law commit a man to?
These names are not a family tree. They are a signature list, and one writer sets out how it is ordered.
At the close of the last chapter a covenant is made. The beginning of this one gives the names of those who sealed it — that is, of those who bound themselves by their signatures to keep it. They seem to have signed not only for themselves, but also on behalf of the people. Nehemiah, as the governor, was the first to put his name to this solemn document. Twenty-two priests followed him (vv. 1-8), then seventeen Levites (vv. 9-13), and after them forty-four chiefs of the people, probably heads of families.
Meshullam, Abijah and Mijamin are three of those twenty-two priests.
Who signed first tells us something too. The governor's name heads the list, ahead of the priests.
Here the chief men took the lead, as was fitting. Yet it was no small sign of how low they had fallen that the Tirshatha signed first among those who sealed. Then came faithful priests, followed by fewer Levites, and a fair number of leading laymen.
"Tirshatha" was the governor's title, so the man who signed first is Nehemiah.
One of these names also marks a division of priestly duty. Abijah was a course, or rota, of priests, and that rota was still running centuries later.
Ezra restored the courses of the priests and Levites on the return from captivity (Ezra 6:18), and we find them still in operation in the New Testament. Zechariah, the father of John the Baptist, was of the course of Abijah. This doubtless refers to Abijah, the eighth name listed in 1 Chronicles 24:10.
These signatures were not a dead list. The order these men helped restore was still running when Zechariah took his turn of service.
A seal sounds like safety. But a covenant is only as sure as the two sides who signed it.
So the covenant was signed. It plainly reaffirmed that they held to the old covenant given at Sinai, which was indeed 'sure' in an absolute sense. They spoke of the covenant they wrote and signed as sure, and so it was on God's side — but not so sure on their side. They had separated themselves to obey the law, and as it says, they 'entered into a curse'. Everyone who stands before God on the basis of law enters into a curse. Significantly enough, the last word in the Old Testament is the word 'curse'.
Israel had taken this step once before. One writer shows what they gave up by it.
They took on the very thing Israel had undertaken when standing before Sinai. There, sealed by the sprinkled blood, they said, "All that the LORD has spoken we will do, and we will be obedient." (Exodus 24) Up to that time, since their redemption from the land of Egypt, they had been under grace. God had borne them on eagles' wings and brought them to Himself. Grace had set them free... They were already God's people by redemption. Yet now they forgot the whole history of the three months since they crossed the Red Sea, and their constant sins along with it. They showed themselves ready to leave the ground of grace and to take up the ground of responsibility.
Why do God's people keep making promises like this one? And what is a reader meant to take from it?
The flesh takes naturally to law, and making a covenant seems an easy way to guard against failure. God's people have often tried this method, only to discover how powerless they are. In many cases it has taught them to look to Another for the power they needed, instead of to themselves. It is easy to pass condemnation, whether on Nehemiah or others, but it is better to learn from their example, for it is a necessary stage in the history of souls. Blessed are those who have come to the end of themselves, whether by this process or another. They have stopped expecting anything from their own promises or efforts, and have learned that in their flesh dwells no good thing.
- Sealed. Meshullam, Abijah and Mijamin were three of the twenty-two priests who signed. They bound the people they stood for, not only themselves.
- Ordered. Nehemiah the governor signed ahead of the priests — itself a sign of how low the nation had sunk.
- Remembered. Abijah names a priestly course that Ezra restored after the captivity. It was still serving in New Testament days, when Zechariah, the father of John the Baptist, took his turn.
- Cursed. The covenant was sure on God's side, not on theirs; anyone standing before God on the basis of law enters into a curse.
- Taught. Coming to the end of your own promises is a necessary stage. The blessing is in looking to Another for power instead of to yourself.
Maaziah, Bilgai, Shemaiah these were the priests.
Maaziah, Bilgai, and Shemaiah close the list of priests who signed a written agreement with God. The verse is just names and ink, which raises the real question: what were these men binding themselves to, and did it hold?
The list is not a random collection of names. It records who took responsibility for the covenant made at the end of the previous chapter. It also records the order they signed in.
The last chapter closes with a covenant. This one opens with the names of those who sealed it. They bound themselves to keep it by their signatures. They seem to have signed not only for themselves but also for the people. Nehemiah, the governor, put his name to this solemn document first. Twenty-two priests followed (vv. 1-8). Then came seventeen Levites (vv. 9-13). After them came forty-four chiefs of the people, most likely heads of families.
Verse 8 closes that block of twenty-two priests.
The order of the names matters. The civil governor signed ahead of the priests.
Here the chief men took the lead, as was fitting. Yet it was no small sign of how low they had sunk that the Tirshatha signed first. Then came faithful priests, then fewer Levites, then a fair number of leading men who were not priests.
"Tirshatha" was the governor's title. Here it means Nehemiah.
These were not new men. One of the three men in this verse comes from a priestly family already on record. That family came back with Zerubbabel, in the first group to return from exile:
A priest who sealed the covenant (Neh. 10:8). His family went up with Zerubbabel (Neh. 12:6, 18).
The terms were specific, and they cost something. There were three main commitments.
There were three main articles in the covenant to which they bound themselves by a curse and an oath. First, they promised to keep the whole law given to their fathers at Sinai. That meant all the Lord's commandments, judgments, and statutes. Second, they declared they would make no more marriages with the surrounding nations. Last, they promised to keep the sabbath, the holy days, and the seventh year, with all that involved.
Signing "on behalf of the people" could have been an empty gesture. It was not — the rest of the nation stepped forward to own what their leaders had signed.
There is no doubt that the hearts of the people were stirred. This covenant-making was no mere formality. The nobles had signed for everyone. That the people agreed is clear, because all classes came forward gladly to confirm it. Even the wives and children — at least those who had knowledge and understanding — shared in the act.
Obeying together also closed the distance between ranks.
It is beautiful to see how faithfulness to God humbles the high and lifts up the low. Scripture says, "they joined with their brothers, their nobles." It is a happy thing when God's will, not man's, binds all ranks together before the One who is above all.
Sincerity was not the problem. The problem was what a covenant assumes about the people signing it.
They knew the past. They had confessed the former sins of their people. Yet now they make another covenant. The excitement of the moment blinded them to one thing: they were just like their fathers. Few will fail to understand this. Our nature loves rules, and making a covenant seems an easy way to guard against failure. God's people have often tried this method. They only discovered how helpless they were. In many cases that lesson taught them to look to Another for power, not to themselves.
One writer draws a blunt conclusion:
Israel under law proved that man is unfaithful. So the Lord Jesus warned people not to make vows at all (Matt. 5:33-37). In other words, we are not to trust ourselves. Our trust must be only in the Lord, whose word can never fail.
- Sealed. Verse 8 closes a list of twenty-two priests. They signed a written covenant for themselves and for the whole people.
- Ordered. The governor signed first, then priests, Levites, and leading men of the people. That the civil ruler headed the list showed how low the nation had fallen.
- Shared. The people did not leave it to their leaders. All ranks came forward to confirm it, including wives and children old enough to understand. Obeying together bound high and low.
- Binding. The terms were real: keep the whole law, make no marriages with the surrounding nations, and keep the sabbath, the holy days, and the seventh year.
- Broken. They meant every word. But our nature loves rules. The covenant taught them how helpless they were and sent them to look to Another for power.