The Pulpit Commentary - Nehemiah 6:13
Therefore was he hired , etc. Their motive for bribing him was, that I might be induced by-fear to do as Shemaiah suggested, and so to commit sin; whereby they would have a just ground for spreading an evil report concerning me, and making my misconduct a constant reproach to me. Nehemiah's influence depended greatly on the weight of his moral character. One false step, and he would have been lost; his influence would have been gone; and the work on which his heart was set would have come... read more
The Pulpit Commentary - Nehemiah 6:12
And, lo, I perceived , etc. Rather, "And I considered; and lo! God had not sent him." I reflected on the whole matter, and came to the conclusion that, though he might be a prophet, he had not on this occasion exercised his prophetical office—he had not declared to me God's will (compare the case of the "old prophet," 1 Kings 13:11-18 ). And I was right, "for (in fact) he had pronounced this prophecy against me, because Tobiah and Sanballat had hired him ." "Tobiah and Sanballat"... read more