Responding Prayerfully to a Crisis (Nehemiah 1)

J. I. Packer was a writer who influenced many. But who influenced him? No doubt, quite a few. One of them was Nehemiah. Packer, when explaining what he would like to say to Nehemiah when they meet in heaven, said this: ‘What I would like him to know is that during the half-century that I have been a Christian he has helped me enormously, more perhaps than any other Bible character apart from the Lord Jesus himself.’

An endorsement like that should lead us to ask what this biblical book is about? What ideas come to mind when we read it? No doubt, the greatness of God is revealed. The importance of prayer is also highlighted. Indeed, in this book, several prayers of Nehemiah are mentioned. Moreover we can see that the responsibility of believers is stated. To Nehemiah, the biblical question of Mordecai to Esther could have been asked, ‘And who knows whether you have not come to the kingdom for such a time as this?’ (Esth. 4:14).

It has been observed that those who ignore history merely repeat it. Events from the past show us what to do or what not to do in the present. Previous generations had their times of crises and came through those periods, and if we are wise we will pay attention to what they did. While this response can be made to events found in mere human records of the past, it also must be made to events described in the sacred historical accounts placed in his Word by the God of truth. One of those accounts is the contribution of Nehemiah, a Jewish official working for the Persian monarch in the fifth century BC.

There are lots of things we might want to know about Nehemiah. We are told that he was an important person in the government of the Persian Empire. The role of cupbearer meant much more than tasting the drinks that were offered to a ruler. Nehemiah was a counsellor of some kind, and no doubt he had made important contributions to government policy. But we are not told about them. Instead we are told about his reactions to the state of Jerusalem. From a mere human point of view, Jerusalem was not of much importance since it was no longer prominent in world affairs. Yet that city meant a lot to Nehemiah, although it is possible that he had not seen it when the book opens. It meant so much to him that he would yet spend many years there.

The situation he discovered

It was brought to the attention of Nehemiah that the city of Jerusalem was in a perilous state. This should not have been the case because about a century earlier the Jews had been released from their captivity in Babylon by the Persians. The God of heaven had promised this deliverance even before they went into it, and in his providence he had led the Persian emperor Cyrus to make a decree for their return, with much encouragement for them to rebuild their capital city. With great enthusiasm they had commenced work, but their zeal had diminished. New resolve came through the encouragement of the prophets Haggai and Zechariah, but further pressures and opposition caused them to desist from making progress.

It is interesting that Nehemiah’s response, as described in this chapter, was based on accurate information that he received from his brother Hanani when he paid a visit to Susa, the winter capital of the Persian rulers. His brother brought with him some men from Judah and Nehemiah proceeded to ask them how things were in God’s city and among the people there. The report that was given was not good. He was told that the surviving Jews there were ‘in great trouble and shame’. Moreover, they had no defence against attack from their enemies because the wall had collapsed and the city gates had been burned as well. This description may have affected Nehemiah since he was currently living in a city with gates and walls.

Accurate information is important. Without it, we cannot make a relevant assessment in order to make an appropriate response. As we read the introduction to this book, how should we apply it to ourselves? We should ask what the equivalent of the city of God is today and then we should make attempts to find out its condition. The equivalent today of Jerusalem is the visible church of Christ, the church that we can see. None of us can see the invisible church that comprises the total number of God’s people in heaven and earth. Yet sometimes we try and look for it when we discover how bad the situation of the visible church is. We escape into thinking about the invisible church and don’t really respond to the difficulties of the visible church.

The information we have about the visible church in our country is that it is in decline and on the verge of disappearance. Hardly anyone comes through its unmanned, burnt gates to find what it offers, and why should they when they see that those inside it are not trying to restore its walls? After all, the ruined walls of Jerusalem told observers all that they needed to know.

The reaction Nehemiah had

Nehemiah’s response was immediate. Whatever plans he had were laid aside, although he would have continued with his important role. Instead of them, he engaged in two activities – he started crying and he stopped eating. He commenced this twofold activity in front of his guests, and he kept at it after they had gone to their homes. We can describe his response as indicating his priorities and his knowledge of piety. He did not wait to ask the question, ‘What should I do?’ He instinctively knew because he already was a man who took everything to God. But now he had something new to take to him, the updated information about the state of the city of his fathers.

As we look at his response, he seems to be giving insight to his readers regarding effective prayer. Remember he is describing his reaction long after it had taken place. He is saying to his readers in effect that this is how it happened with me, and this is how they should react as well. We can see three things about his prayer – it was painful, paramount and preparatory.

The painfulness of it is seen in his weeping and mourning. An obvious feature of pain is that a person feels it. Nehemiah was distressed, and he was distressed because he loved God and his cause. He experienced something similar to Henry Martyn’s distress when he heard a Moslem insulting the name of Jesus and said about that insult that he could not live if the name of Jesus was not glorified.

The paramount nature of Nehemiah’s prayer is revealed in that he gave up his regular eating habits. This response requires inner strength because often in times of stress a person will increase his eating habits. His abstinence reveals that he realised that the situation in Jerusalem was much more important than the situation in his dining room.

The preparatory nature of his prolonged prayer session is seen in his words at the close of the recorded prayer in this chapter. His prayer was a preparation for speaking to the emperor about the state of things in Judea, one of his domains. There were many reasons why he would be concerned about this. The emperor would have to begin any conversation they might have. The emperor would need to be willing to grant the request that Nehemiah would make. Nehemiah would need to state his case clearly. He obviously did not think that a brief time of prayer beforehand would suffice.

How long did Nehemiah pray for? 1:1 says that he began to pray in the month Chislev and 2:1 says that the day he went into the emperor’s presence was in the month Nisan, which is the day he mentions at the close of chapter 1. Chislev occurred in our November and December and Nisan occurred in our March and April. So it looks as if prayed for about four months. Before he did anything else he prayed. Why, we should ask. Maybe he would have agreed with Moody Stuart’s comment, ‘Pray until you know that you have been heard!’

The prayer he offered (vv. 5-11)

It is obvious that one reason for the inclusion of his prayer in his book is because it is a model prayer for anyone to use when they have a large burden on their heart as they draw near to God. Since that is the case, we need to identify the various features of his prayer so that we can use them for ourselves.

The first feature to observe is the intensity of his prayer, an intensity which is revealed in the little word ‘O’ with which the prayer begins. It indicates that his heart is involved. While it would be improper to suggest that every prayer should contain this word, it would not be improper to say that every true prayer will have this sense of intensity for God to answer what is asked for.

The second feature of the prayer is reverence for the Lord (v. 5). Nehemiah knew about earthly power as displayed in the might of the Persian empire. He also knew that the Lord was an infinitely greater power who reigned from heaven. For Nehemiah, God could be relied upon because of his faithfulness to his own covenant promises, his faithfulness to his people.

The third feature of the prayer is entreaty (v. 6). Nehemiah engages in supplication, and his supplication is very direct. He calls on the Lord to listen to and look on him as he prays. This request is not a hint of irreverence but a statement of realism. The Lord has to do something or nothing beneficial will happen. He is encouraged in his entreaty by recalling the relationship he and the people of Israel have with the Lord – they are his servants, which is a way of saying that they are willing to do what he wishes.

The fourth feature of Nehemiah’s prayer is confession of sin (vv. 6-7). His confession is communal, historical and specific. It is communal because he belonged to the people of Israel, it is historical because he knows that his ancestors were guilty as well as himself, and it is specific because he knows that have not obeyed the instructions that the Lord had given them. We should note that he regarded his sins as corrupting, that they produced something that was obnoxious – there is nothing nice about one’s sins.

The fifth feature of his prayer is the mentioning of divine promises (vv. 8-9). He refers to promises that are relevant to the current situation that he and his people faced. He acknowledges that their circumstances are deserved and are in line with what the Lord had said he would do if they were disobedient. But he also recognised the incredible recovery that the Lord could bring about if they returned to him. So far that restoration had not happened, even although at least two returns to the city had occurred previously. So as he drew near to God he reminded the Lord of his great and precious promises. Of course, we should mention specific promises in his ear.

The sixth feature of his prayer is a description of divine redemption from Egypt which was the greatest divine action that Nehemiah was aware of.  They had been redeemed from, redeemed by, and redeemed to. Historically, they had been redeemed from slavery, they had been redeemed by divine power, and they had been redeemed for a life of dedication to their redeeming God by them as his servants. Needless to say, we have an infinitely greater act of redemption to consider – the cross. There we were redeemed from bondage to sin, redeemed by divine power from sin, and redeemed for service by Jesus.

The seventh feature of his prayer is his awareness that others would be making the same kind of prayer to the Lord. This awareness is evidence of the brotherly love that was in his heart, and we can see the beautiful way with which he described the people of God. They are described as those ‘who delight to fear your name’.

The eighth feature of the prayer of Nehemiah is that he realised that any success through his prayers will be an expression of divine mercy. That is the case with the first prayer that God answers when we are converted and brought into his kingdom. And it is also true of every subsequent prayer we make. It is mercy all the way, and Nehemiah recognised the need for it and the normalness of it.

Warren Wiersbe, in commenting on Nehemiah’s experience when he heard about the state of the Jews, wrote this application: ‘When God puts a burden on your heart, don’t try to escape it, for if you do, you may miss the blessing He has planned for you.’ Nehemiah responded to his divinely-given burden, and the rest of his book describes what took place.