Nehemiah 6:10-14

A further Attempt to Entrap Nehemiah. This section is very compressed; important links in the narrative are wanting, so that it is impossible to grasp the details of what happened. The general sense, however, is that Sanballat induced one Shemaiah to try and convince Nehemiah that his life was in danger owing to a plan to kill him at night, for which reason Shemaiah was to urge Nehemiah to seek asylum in the inner sanctuary. But no layman (let alone a man who was ceremonially unclean like Shemaiah) was permitted by the Law to enter here; only priests might do so. If, therefore, Nehemiah could be induced to enter with Shemaiah he would be guilty of a grave breach of the Law and thereby become discredited in the eyes of the people. But Nehemiah sees through the plan and avoids the danger.

Nehemiah 6:10. was shut up: i.e. he was ceremonially unclean (cf. Jeremiah 36:5 *).

Nehemiah 6:11. read mg. could go into the Temple and live; anyone, with the exception of a priest, who entered was, according to the Law, to be put to death (see Numbers 18:7).

Nehemiah 6:14. and also the prophetess Noadiah. : these words show that only part of the episode has been put down here. They also show that Sanballat had considerable support among the Jews living in Jerusalem.