Part II. RELIGIOUS REFORM
Ch. Nehemiah 7:73; Nehemiah 7:73; Nehemiah 8:12.
The Public Reading of the Law.
13 18.
The Celebration of the Feast of Tabernacles.
Ch. 9.
The National Confession, preliminary to the Covenant.
Ch. Nehemiah 10:1-29.
The Sealing of the Covenant.
30 39.
Certain Oblig... [ Continue Reading ]
Nehemiah 10:1-29. The List of -those that sealed": Nehemiah 10:30-39
Special Obligations of the Covenant
1. _those that sealed_ Literally -at the sealings," the plur. of the
word used in Nehemiah 9:38. As in Jeremiah 32:14, the singular and
plural are used apparently of the same documents.
Some co... [ Continue Reading ]
Priests: 9 13, Levites: 14 28, Chiefs of the people
The 21 names here given are those of the priestly houses. The list of
Nehemiah 12:1-3 agrees with it in 16 names. The number 21 is peculiar;
in chap. 12 the number is larger by one. In Ezra 2; Nehemiah 7, only
four priestly houses are recorded, vi... [ Continue Reading ]
_Obadiah_ It has been suggested that Iddo's name has accidentally
dropped out after Obadiah's. (Cf. Nehemiah 12:4; Nehemiah 12:16.) If
this were the case, the number of houses mentioned in this passage
would agree with that in chap. 12.... [ Continue Reading ]
_these_were _the priests_ The names of Seraiah, Jeremiah, Amariah are
found in both lists (_a_) Nehemiah 12:1-7 and (_b_) Nehemiah 12:12-22.
Shebaniah is found in (_b_) Nehemiah 12:14 but appears as Shechaniah
in (_a_) Nehemiah 12:3. Malluch is found in (_a_) Nehemiah 12:2, but
appears as Malluchi ... [ Continue Reading ]
The Levites
9. _both Jeshua_ R.V. NAMELY, JESHUA. The -copula" is used
definitively as in Nehemiah 9:16-22. But some of the best MSS. omit it
altogether.... [ Continue Reading ]
_Hodijah_ R.V. HODIAH and in Nehemiah 10:13.... [ Continue Reading ]
_Micha_ R.V. MICA.
There are 17 names of -Levites" or -Levitical houses": of these 17,
we find four, i.e. Jeshua, Binnui, Kadmiel and Sherebiah, mentioned in
Nehemiah 12:8 among -those that went up with Zerubbabel"; and seven
(i.e. Jeshua, Bani, Sherebiah, Hodiah, Kelita, Hanan and Pelaiah) in
Nehe... [ Continue Reading ]
_The chief of the people_ R.V. THE CHIEFS OF THE PEOPLE. A comparison
with Ezra 2; Nehemiah 7. puts it beyond doubt that here again we have
to do with the names of houses, not of individuals.
_Zatthu_ R.V. ZATTU.... [ Continue Reading ]
_Hizkijah_ R.V. HEZEKIAH.... [ Continue Reading ]
_Hodijah_ R.V. HODIAH.... [ Continue Reading ]
_Nebai_ R.V. NOBAI. Marg. -Another reading is _Nebai_".... [ Continue Reading ]
_Meshezabeel_ R.V. MESHEZABEL.... [ Continue Reading ]
_Hashub_ R.V. HASSHUB.... [ Continue Reading ]
_Pileha_ R.V. PILHA.... [ Continue Reading ]
_Ahijah_ R.V. AHIAH.
We have here 44 names: or, if Bunni (Nehemiah 10:15) be the accidental
repetition of Bani, and if -Ater, Hezekiah" stand for -Ater, of
Hezekiah" (Ezra 2:16; Ezra 7:21), no more than 42. This figure is
considerably in excess of the number of names under the same head in
Ezra 2;... [ Continue Reading ]
_And the rest of the people_ This may be understood in two different
ways: (_a_) according to some it denotes the mass of the laity, as
distinguished from their princes and elders, like -the people"
(Nehemiah 10:35), -the residue of Israel" (Nehemiah 11:20), and
-Israel" (1 Chronicles 9:2); (_b_) ac... [ Continue Reading ]
Prohibition of Intermarriage with the Heathen
_we_ Observe the first person plural here introduced and maintained to
Nehemiah 10:39 throughout the rest of the Covenant details.
_people_ R.V. PEOPLES.
This prohibition of intermarriage with the people of the land had
been strenuously upheld by Ezra... [ Continue Reading ]
Prohibition of Traffic on the Sabbath; and Observance of Sabbatic Year
_people_ R.V. PEOPLES. -The peoples of the land (_"ammey haârec̣_)
are the heathen dwellers in the land. The title -the people of the
land" ("am haârec̣) w as used in later days of the unlearned
multitude -which knoweth not the... [ Continue Reading ]
A poll-tax of ⅓ of a shekel imposed for the maintenance of the
service of the Temple
32. _we made ordinances for us_ The verse shows that Ezra and his
colleagues, although establishing the authority of the written law,
were ready to expand or modify it according to the requirements of the
time a si... [ Continue Reading ]
This verse gives in detail -the service of the house of God."
(Nehemiah 10:31).
_the shewbread_ See Exodus 25:23-30; Exodus 37:10-16; Leviticus
24:5-9. The shewbread consisted of 12 unleavened cakes of fine meal,
which were laid fresh every Sabbath in two rows of six upon the table
in the Holy Place... [ Continue Reading ]
_And we cast the lots_ R.V. AND WE CAST LOTS. The use of the article
in the Heb. does not here call attention to the use of any peculiarly
sacred -lots," but generally to the means employed for ascertaining
the Divine will. For decision by the casting of lots, cf. the choosing
of the goat on the day... [ Continue Reading ]
First-fruits and tithe
35. _the firstfruits of our ground_ Cf. Exodus 23:19; Exodus 34:26.
-The first of the firstfruits of the ground thou shalt bring into the
house of the Lord thy God;" so also in greater detail Deuteronomy
26:2-10. Cf. Proverbs 3:9; Ezekiel 44:30.
_of all trees_ R.V. OF ALL MAN... [ Continue Reading ]
_the firstborn of our sons_ The firstborn of the children of Israel
-from a month old" were redeemed -for the money of five shekels, after
the shekel of the sanctuary." Numbers 18:16; cf. Exodus 13:13; Exodus
34:20.
_of our cattle, as it is written in the law_ The firstlings of oxen,
sheep and goats... [ Continue Reading ]
_and_that _we should bring_ The change of construction (cf. the
infinitive -to bring" in Nehemiah 10:35) somewhat favours the
suggestion that this and the next two verses are a later insertion,
introduced for the purpose of recording in detail the Jewish practice
of paying firstfruits and tithes.
_... [ Continue Reading ]
_the priest the son of Aaron_ This is not the high-priest; but in
every -city of their tillage" one of priestly descent was to
superintend the paying in of the tithe which had been collected by the
Levites, so that the interests of the priesthood should not suffer.
_the tithe of the tithes_ This was... [ Continue Reading ]
_For_ Explaining the mention of -the chambers" as the receptacles of
all these offerings.
_the children of Israel_ i.e. the laity as distinguished from the
priests and the Levites.
_the offering_ R.V. HEAVE OFFERING. This -heave offering" includes
both -the firstfruits" of the children of Israel ... [ Continue Reading ]