Then brought all Judah the tithe of corn, and the new wine, and the oil, into the treasuries. When they saw a reformation made, and things were going in their proper channel, and a right use would be made of their tithes, these given to proper persons, who were now reinstated in their office. read more
The blessing of God on an active life founded upon his word. I. THE TRUE RELIGIOUS REFORMATION , both negative and positive. 1. Abuses must be vigorously attacked and cleansed away. The house of God has to be purified of strangers. The neglect of discipline a terrible evil. Unfaithful ministers the curse of the Church. The "mixed multitude" is no strength to Jerusalem, but weakness. The observance of the sabbath. To the Jew a typical commandment, which represented... read more
Suspended ministrations restored. Nehemiah, on his return, soon discovers another serious evil which his absence had occasioned; and, with his usual promptness, ability, and energy, corrects it. I. THE SERIOUS IRREGULARITY WHICH HAD ARISEN . The services of the temple, if not discontinued, had been deprived of much of their dignity and impressiveness by the withdrawal of the Levites, including the singers, from their duties. Their appointed daily allowances ( Nehemiah... read more
Practical Christian wisdom. Nehemiah must have been shocked indeed to find on his return to Jerusalem (verse 7) what a sad relapse had taken place during his absence from the city. Most painful of all must it have been to him to find that the service of Jehovah in his own house had been so scandalously neglected. He found not only that chambers of the temple were in the occupation of the enemy of the people of God (verse 7), but that, the Levites being scattered abroad, because their... read more
Nehemiah 13:12. Then brought all Judah the tithe, &c. Out of the respect which they had to Nehemiah, and because they saw these tithes would now be applied to their proper uses. The people (as Conradus Pellicanus here observes) readily obey, if the magistrates and the priests be not remiss in their duty. As soon as the people saw the Levites at their work, they could not, for shame, withhold their wages any longer, but honestly and cheerfully brought them in. “The better church-work is... read more
Nehemiah’s later reforms (13:4-31)After serving twelve years as governor of Jerusalem, Nehemiah returned to Persia for a period (see 5:14; 13:6). During his absence the religion of the Jews deteriorated, while the Jews’ old enemies, Sanballat and Tobiah, gained some influence in Jerusalem. The high priest Eliashib was especially blameworthy in this. He allowed a member of the high priestly family to marry the daughter of Sanballat (see v. 28), and gave permission to Tobiah to live in one of the... read more
D. The Reforms Instituted by Nehemiah ch. 13To understand when the events described in this chapter took place, it is necessary to read Nehemiah 13:1-7, not just Nehemiah 13:1. Nehemiah returned to Artaxerxes in 432 B.C. (Nehemiah 13:6). It was customary in the ancient Near East for kings to require their servants to return to them periodically to reaffirm their allegiance. "Some time" later Nehemiah returned to Jerusalem (Nehemiah 13:6). The text does not say how much later this was. The... read more
3. The revival of tithing 13:10-14Because the people had failed to bring their tithes to the temple, the Levites had to abandon their service in the temple to provide for their own physical needs. This failure may have resulted in rooms standing vacant for Tobiah to occupy as well. In response to Nehemiah’s reprimands, and Malachi’s preaching, the people began to tithe again (cf. Malachi 3:8-10)Thus far all of Nehemiah’s reforms, following his return to Jerusalem, involved temple service.... read more
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Matthew Henry's Complete Commentary - Nehemiah 13:10-14
Here is another grievance redressed by Nehemiah. I. The Levites had been wronged. This was the grievance: their portions had not been given them, Neh. 13:10. Perhaps Tobiah, when he took possession of the store-chambers, seized the stores too, and, by the connivance of Eliashib, converted them to his own use. The complaint is not that they were not collected from the people, but that they were not given to the Levites, and the Levites were so modest as not to sue for them; for the Levites and... read more