Who was Nehemiah in the Bible?

Son of Hachaliah and a captive in Persia: he was cupbearer to king Artaxerxes, and was permitted to return and rebuild Jerusalem. He is called the Tirshatha, or governor. Neh. 1:1; Neh. 8:9; Neh. 10:1; Neh. 12:26, 47. See NEHEMIAH, BOOK OF.

Nehemiah (his name meaning "comfort of Jehovah") writes the history of his connection with the remnant of the returned captivity. He followed Ezra by about thirteen years in going to Jerusalem, stirred through news he had received of the decayed condition of the city. God gave him favor with Artaxerxes, king of Persia, whose cupbearer he was. He obtained authority to rebuild the walls of Jerusalem.

"The words of Nehemiah (the Lord is comfort) the son of Hachaliah." It is therefore the personal narrative of his experience which is before us in the first six chapters of this book, in which he describes his soul exercise, and how the Lord made it possible for him to return to Jerusalem, and how the wall was rebuilt. Nehemiah was a young man, born in captivity holding a position of nearness to the great Persian king and living in the beautiful palace of Shushan. He lived in luxuries, and was an honored servant of the king. It was in the month of Chisleu, in the twentieth year (445 B.C.) when Hanani his brother (7:2) visited him with certain men out of Judah. The question he asked them at once shows the deep interest he had in God's people. "I asked them concerning the Jews that had escaped, which were left of the captivity, and concerning Jerusalem." Though he had never seen Jerusalem, the city of his fathers, he loved Jerusalem and felt like all pious captives, so beautifully expressed in one of the Psalms--"If I forget thee, O Jerusalem, let my right hand forget her cunning. If I do not remember thee, let my tongue cleave to the roof of my mouth, if I prefer not Jerusalem above my chief joy" (Ps. 137:5-6). Though he lived in prosperity his heart was with his people. It was bad news which they brought him. The remnant was in great affliction and reproach, the wall of Jerusalem in a broken-down condition, and the gates burned with fire.

The book of Nehemiah is the latest of the historical books of the Old Testament. It is the continuation of the history of the company of people which had returned under Zerubbabel and Ezra to the land. In Ezra we saw the remnant getting back and rebuilding the temple, the place of worship. In Nehemiah we have the record of the rebuilding of the walls of Jerusalem, and the restoration of the civil condition of the people, the partial and outward reestablishment of the Jews in the land. The book bears the name of Nehemiah, because he is the leading person in the recorded events, and likewise the inspired author of the main portion of this record. Two other persons by the name of Nehemiah are mentioned in the books of Ezra and Nehemiah. One was the son of Azbuk (Neh. 3:15) and the other belonged to the returning remnant under Zerubbabel (Ezra 2:2 and Neh. 7:7). From these, Nehemiah the son of Hachaliah must be distinguished. His genealogy is obscure. Besides being the son of Hachaliah, the only other mention of his family is found in chapter 7:2; there he speaks of his brother Hanani. Some class him as a priest for the reason that he heads the list of priests. But his name is given there as the princely leader of the people. As to his office, he carried two titles. He is called "Tirshatha" in chapter 8:9, which means ruler or governor. In chapter 12:26 his title is also governor; the word used is "pechah," the Turkish word "pasha."

Nehemiah is not a man of rank or authority; as we have just said, he was invested with his functions only because of the confidence with which he inspired the king, whom he serves as his chief cup-bearer. In virtue of this confidence (but under the governing hand of God who directs all things, even human sentiments,) the king gives Nehemiah his mission and grants him the title of Tirshatha, that is to say, of governor.

As we have seen in the book of Ezra, the character of the people was that of a remnant according to God. Then, after a period of discouragement, the revival occurred, and lastly their moral restoration by means of the Scriptures. Nehemiah presents a different picture to us. In every way, the condition of the people was very low, whether considered morally or outwardly; and so, faced with this misery, the opposition of the enemy is apparently insurmountable, and all the more so as his wiles are many and varied. Only the grace of God could remedy these things, but the instruments which He would use must be armed with patience, perseverance and energy. These are precisely the characteristics manifested by Nehemiah.

I would like to say something about Nehemiah, the man of prayer and the man of action, but first a little about his history. He was one of the Jewish nation who found himself a captive in the land of Babylon , but nevertheless one who had risen to a position of some importance in the court of King Artaxerxes. He was in fact the King's cupbearer.

Nehemiah (whom the Lord comforts). The administration of Nehemiah, "the Tirshatha" (Persian title, meaning governor) over Judea lasted about thirty-six years. The rebuilding of the city and generally the civil condition of the returned Jewish remnants are the main subjects of this the last historical book of the Old Testament, written about 420 B.C. The Temple and the ecclesiastical state of things are characteristic of Ezra. The one book is thus the counterpart of the other. Work and worship are marked features of Ezra, while work and conflict are as distinctly characteristic of Nehemiah.

The cup-bearer, in those days, was one who stood in nearest intimacy to the king, and, more, particularly, to the king of Persia. You are aware that they made themselves extremely little before the eyes of their servants. As to their people — their subjects — they did not allow them to see them except on comparatively rare occasions. This grew up more and more among them, and it was always, through the jealousy and fear of men, a very responsible position, because the way that many of the subjects retaliated upon the haughtiness and pride of these kings was by forsaking their masters and getting rid of them. The cup-bearer, therefore, was one that stood in one of the most delicate and responsible positions in the empire. He was one who had the life of the king more particularly under his command — if I may say so — and he who is in this position was, practically, in a place of most intimate relationship to the king — a sort of vizier or prime minister to the king, to a certain extent. Nehemiah had the king's confidence, as we can clearly see, and was not interfered with as to his conscience, but his heart was with the people of God.

An officer of great importance in Oriental courts: he presented the drinking cup to the king. Gen. 40:1-23. Nehemiah held the office at Shushan, and was highly esteemed by the king. Neh. 2:1.

In this prayer of Nehemiah he fully acknowledged and appreciated the fact that God had kept His word in bringing back the remnant of the Jews to Jerusalem; but he feared that the Jews were lapsing again into an unfaithful state, even after God had redeemed them by His great power. But Nehemiah intended to act: he would not only pray and leave it there, nor did he pray that God would send someone to Jerusalem to help the suffering remnant. Since he knew and felt the sorrow of their condition, he considered he was the man to go. He did solicit the approval and help of others, but simply asked God to give him favor "in the sight of this man" (v. 11). Though Artaxerxes was king, yet Nehemiah considered him simply a man in whose heart God could work as easily as in any man. "For," he says, "I was the king's cupbearer." This was an honored and trusted position, and the more trusted, the less likely would the king be to give him a long leave of absence.