Nehemiah 3:20

‘After him Baruch the son of Zabbai earnestly (strivingly) repaired another portion, from the turning (of the wall) to the door of the house of Eliashib the high priest.’

It is an open question as to whether Baruch is the last of the list of ‘the Levites’ (Nehemiah 3:17) or is in fact introducing groups of priests responsible for the wall which was by the house of Eliashib the High Priest. Eliashib himself had take responsibility for the part of the northern wall near the Temple area (Nehemiah 3:1) and was not therefore available to work here. Compare how in Nehemiah 3:21 Meremoth is a priest, and how in Nehemiah 3:22 ‘the priests, the men of the Plain (countryside)’ operated. Note also that a priest named Baruch signed Nehemiah’s covenant (Nehemiah 10:6). In view of the close connection with the house/palace of the High Priest all this may suggest that it is most likely that Baruch was a priest. From this point on the line of the wall is defined mainly in terms of people’s houses. So Baruch and his helpers repaired the portion from the ‘turning’ or buttress, to the High Priest’s palace.

The word translated ‘earnestly’ usually indicates ‘burning with anger’. It may indicate ‘passionately, burning with zeal’, or it may suggest a particularly difficult part of the wall which required huge effort and resulted in some exasperation, something well remembered.

Baruch’s namesake was scribe to Jeremiah and greatly assisted him in his work (Jeremiah 32:12; Jeremiah 36:4 ff.; Jeremiah 36:10 ff.). Another Baruch is also mentioned in Nehemiah 11:5 as father of Maaseiah, and son of Colhozeh, a descendant of Perez, the son of Judah. Maaseiah willingly took up residence in a sparsely populated Jerusalem at Nehemiah’s request.