The Wall Defended Against Enemies

4 But it so happened, ^(A)when Sanballat heard that we were rebuilding the wall, that he was furious and very indignant, and mocked the Jews. ² And he spoke before his brethren and the army of Samaria, and said, “What are these feeble Jews doing? Will they fortify themselves? Will they offer sacrifices? Will they complete it in a day? Will they revive the stones from the heaps of rubbish—stones that are burned?”

³ Now ^(B)Tobiah the Ammonite was beside him, and he said, “Whatever they build, if even a fox goes up on it, he will break down their stone wall.”

^4 (C)Hear, O our God, for we are despised; ^(D)turn their reproach on their own heads, and give them as plunder to a land of captivity! ^5 (E)Do not cover their iniquity, and do not let their sin be blotted out from before You; for they have provoked You to anger before the builders.

⁶ So we built the wall, and the entire wall was joined together up to half its height, for the people had a mind to work.

⁷ Now it happened, ^(F)when Sanballat, Tobiah, ^(G)the Arabs, the Ammonites, and the Ashdodites heard that the walls of Jerusalem were being restored and the ^[a]gaps were beginning to be closed, that they became very angry, ⁸ and all of them ^(H)conspired together to come and attack Jerusalem and create confusion. ⁹ Nevertheless ^(I)we made our prayer to our God, and because of them we set a watch against them day and night.

¹⁰ Then Judah said, “The strength of the laborers is failing, and there is so much rubbish that we are not able to build the wall.”

¹¹ And our adversaries said, “They will neither know nor see anything, till we come into their midst and kill them and cause the work to cease.”

¹² So it was, when the Jews who dwelt near them came, that they told us ten times, “From whatever place you turn, they will be upon us.”

¹³ Therefore I positioned men behind the lower parts of the wall, at the openings; and I set the people according to their families, with their swords, their spears, and their bows. ¹⁴ And I looked, and arose and said to the nobles, to the leaders, and to the rest of the people, ^(J)“Do not be afraid of them. Remember the Lord, ^(K)great and awesome, and ^(L)fight for your brethren, your sons, your daughters, your wives, and your houses.”

¹⁵ And it happened, when our enemies heard that it was known to us, and ^(M)that God had brought their plot to nothing, that all of us returned to the wall, everyone to his work. ¹⁶ So it was, from that time on, that half of my servants worked at construction, while the other half held the spears, the shields, the bows, and wore armor; and the leaders ^[b]were behind all the house of Judah. ¹⁷ Those who built on the wall, and those who carried burdens, loaded themselves so that with one hand they worked at construction, and with the other held a weapon. ¹⁸ Every one of the builders had his sword girded at his side as he built. And the one who sounded the trumpet was beside me.

¹⁹ Then I said to the nobles, the rulers, and the rest of the people, “The work is great and extensive, and we are separated far from one another on the wall. ²⁰ Wherever you hear the sound of the trumpet, rally to us there. ^(N)Our God will fight for us.”

²¹ So we labored in the work, and half of ^[c]the men held the spears from daybreak until the stars appeared. ²² At the same time I also said to the people, “Let each man and his servant stay at night in Jerusalem, that they may be our guard by night and a working party by day.” ²³ So neither I, my brethren, my servants, nor the men of the guard who followed me took off our clothes, except that everyone took them off for washing.

Nehemiah Deals with Oppression

5 And there was a great ^(O)outcry of the people and their wives against their ^(P)Jewish brethren. ² For there were those who said, “We, our sons, and our daughters are many; therefore let us get grain, that we may eat and live.”

³ There were also some who said, “We have mortgaged our lands and vineyards and houses, that we might buy grain because of the famine.”

⁴ There were also those who said, “We have borrowed money for the king’s tax on our lands and vineyards. ⁵ Yet now ^(Q)our flesh is as the flesh of our brethren, our children as their children; and indeed we ^(R)are forcing our sons and our daughters to be slaves, and some of our daughters have been brought into slavery. It is not in our power to redeem them, for other men have our lands and vineyards.”

⁶ And I became very angry when I heard their outcry and these words. ⁷ After serious thought, I rebuked the nobles and rulers, and said to them, ^(S)“Each of you is ^[d]exacting usury from his brother.” So I ^[e]called a great assembly against them. ⁸ And I said to them, “According to our ability we have ^(T)redeemed our Jewish brethren who were sold to the nations. Now indeed, will you even sell your brethren? Or should they be sold to us?”

Then they were silenced and found nothing to say. ⁹ Then I said, “What you are doing is not good. Should you not walk ^(U)in the fear of our God ^(V)because of the reproach of the nations, our enemies? ¹⁰ I also, with my brethren and my servants, am lending them money and grain. Please, let us stop this ^[f]usury! ¹¹ Restore now to them, even this day, their lands, their vineyards, their olive groves, and their houses, also a hundredth of the money and the grain, the new wine and the oil, that you have charged them.”

¹² So they said, “We will restore it, and will require nothing from them; we will do as you say.”

Then I called the priests, ^(W)and required an oath from them that they would do according to this promise. ¹³ Then ^(X)I shook out ^[g]the fold of my garment and said, “So may God shake out each man from his house, and from his property, who does not perform this promise. Even thus may he be shaken out and emptied.”

And all the assembly said, “Amen!” and praised the Lord. ^(Y)Then the people did according to this promise.

The Generosity of Nehemiah

¹⁴ Moreover, from the time that I was appointed to be their governor in the land of Judah, from the twentieth year ^(Z)until the thirty-second year of King Artaxerxes, twelve years, neither I nor my brothers ^(AA)ate the governor’s provisions. ¹⁵ But the former governors who were before me laid burdens on the people, and took from them bread and wine, besides forty shekels of silver. Yes, even their servants bore rule over the people, but ^(AB)I did not do so, because of the ^(AC)fear of God. ¹⁶ Indeed, I also continued the ^(AD)work on this wall, and ^[h]we did not buy any land. All my servants were gathered there for the work.

¹⁷ And ^(AE)at my table were one hundred and fifty Jews and rulers, besides those who came to us from the nations around us. ¹⁸ Now that ^(AF)which was prepared daily was one ox and six choice sheep. Also fowl were prepared for me, and once every ten days an abundance of all kinds of wine. Yet in spite of this ^(AG)I did not demand the governor’s provisions, because the bondage was heavy on this people.

^19 (AH)Remember me, my God, for good, according to all that I have done for this people.

Conspiracy Against Nehemiah

6 Now it happened ^(AI)when Sanballat, Tobiah, ^[i]Geshem the Arab, and the rest of our enemies heard that I had rebuilt the wall, and that there were no breaks left in it ^(AJ)(though at that time I had not hung the doors in the gates), ² that Sanballat and ^[j]Geshem ^(AK)sent to me, saying, “Come, let us meet together ^[k]among the villages in the plain of ^(AL)Ono.” But they ^(AM)thought to do me harm.

³ So I sent messengers to them, saying, “I am doing a great work, so that I cannot come down. Why should the work cease while I leave it and go down to you?”

⁴ But they sent me this message four times, and I answered them in the same manner.

⁵ Then Sanballat sent his servant to me as before, the fifth time, with an open letter in his hand. ⁶ In it was written:

⁸ Then I sent to him, saying, “No such things as you say are being done, but you invent them in your own heart.”

⁹ For they all were trying to make us afraid, saying, “Their hands will be weakened in the work, and it will not be done.”

Now therefore, O God, strengthen my hands.

¹⁰ Afterward I came to the house of Shemaiah the son of Delaiah, the son of Mehetabel, who was a secret informer; and he said, “Let us meet together in the house of God, within the ^[m]temple, and let us close the doors of the temple, for they are coming to kill you; indeed, at night they will come to kill you.”

¹¹ And I said, “Should such a man as I flee? And who is there such as I who would go into the temple to save his life? I will not go in!” ¹² Then I perceived that God had not sent him at all, but that ^(AO)he pronounced this prophecy against me because Tobiah and Sanballat had hired him. ¹³ For this reason he was hired, that I should be afraid and act that way and sin, so that they might have cause for an evil report, that they might reproach me.

^14 (AP)My God, remember Tobiah and Sanballat, according to these their works, and the ^(AQ)prophetess Noadiah and the rest of the prophets who would have made me afraid.

The Wall Completed

¹⁵ So the wall was finished on the twenty-fifth day of Elul, in fifty-two days. ¹⁶ And it happened, ^(AR)when all our enemies heard of it, and all the nations around us saw these things, that they were very disheartened in their own eyes; for ^(AS)they perceived that this work was done by our God.

¹⁷ Also in those days the nobles of Judah sent many letters to Tobiah, and the letters of Tobiah came to them. ¹⁸ For many in Judah were pledged to him, because he was the ^(AT)son-in-law of Shechaniah the son of Arah, and his son Jehohanan had married the daughter of ^(AU)Meshullam the son of Berechiah. ¹⁹ Also they reported his good deeds before me, and reported my ^[n]words to him. Tobiah sent letters to frighten me.

Jesus Warns and Comforts His Disciples

16 “These things I have spoken to you, that you ^(A)should not be made to stumble. ^2 (B)They will put you out of the synagogues; yes, the time is coming ^(C)that whoever kills you will think that he offers God service. ³ And ^(D)these things they will do ^[a]to you because they have not known the Father nor Me. ⁴ But these things I have told you, that when ^[b]the time comes, you may remember that I told you of them.

“And these things I did not say to you at the beginning, because I was with you.

The Work of the Holy Spirit

⁵ “But now I ^(E)go away to Him who sent Me, and none of you asks Me, ‘Where are You going?’ ⁶ But because I have said these things to you, ^(F)sorrow has filled your heart. ⁷ Nevertheless I tell you the truth. It is to your advantage that I go away; for if I do not go away, the Helper will not come to you; but ^(G)if I depart, I will send Him to you. ⁸ And when He has ^(H)come, He will convict the world of sin, and of righteousness, and of judgment: ^9 (I)of sin, because they do not believe in Me; ^10 (J)of righteousness, ^(K)because I go to My Father and you see Me no more; ^11 (L)of judgment, because ^(M)the ruler of this world is judged.

¹² “I still have many things to say to you, ^(N)but you cannot bear them now. ¹³ However, when He, ^(O)the Spirit of truth, has come, ^(P)He will guide you into all truth; for He will not speak on His own authority, but whatever He hears He will speak; and He will tell you things to come. ^14 (Q)He will glorify Me, for He will take of what is Mine and declare it to you. ^15 (R)All things that the Father has are Mine. Therefore I said that He ^[c]will take of Mine and declare it to you.

Sorrow Will Turn to Joy

¹⁶ “A ^(S)little while, and you will not see Me; and again a little while, and you will see Me, ^(T)because I go to the Father.”

¹⁷ Then some of His disciples said among themselves, “What is this that He says to us, ‘A little while, and you will not see Me; and again a little while, and you will see Me’; and, ‘because I go to the Father’?” ¹⁸ They said therefore, “What is this that He says, ‘A little while’? We do not ^[d]know what He is saying.”

¹⁹ Now Jesus knew that they desired to ask Him, and He said to them, “Are you inquiring among yourselves about what I said, ‘A little while, and you will not see Me; and again a little while, and you will see Me’? ²⁰ Most assuredly, I say to you that you will weep and ^(U)lament, but the world will rejoice; and you will be sorrowful, but your sorrow will be turned into ^(V)joy. ^21 (W)A woman, when she is in labor, has sorrow because her hour has come; but as soon as she has given birth to the child, she no longer remembers the anguish, for joy that a human being has been born into the world. ²² Therefore you now have sorrow; but I will see you again and ^(X)your heart will rejoice, and your joy no one will take from you.

²³ “And in that day you will ask Me nothing. ^(Y)Most assuredly, I say to you, whatever you ask the Father in My name He will give you. ²⁴ Until now you have asked nothing in My name. Ask, and you will receive, ^(Z)that your joy may be ^(AA)full.

Jesus Christ Has Overcome the World

²⁵ “These things I have spoken to you in figurative language; but the time is coming when I will no longer speak to you in figurative language, but I will tell you ^(AB)plainly about the Father. ²⁶ In that day you will ask in My name, and I do not say to you that I shall pray the Father for you; ^27 (AC)for the Father Himself loves you, because you have loved Me, and ^(AD)have believed that I came forth from God. ^28 (AE)I came forth from the Father and have come into the world. Again, I leave the world and go to the Father.”

²⁹ His disciples said to Him, “See, now You are speaking plainly, and using no figure of speech! ³⁰ Now we are sure that ^(AF)You know all things, and have no need that anyone should question You. By this ^(AG)we believe that You came forth from God.”

³¹ Jesus answered them, “Do you now believe? ^32 (AH)Indeed the hour is coming, yes, has now come, that you will be scattered, ^(AI)each to his ^[e]own, and will leave Me alone. And ^(AJ)yet I am not alone, because the Father is with Me. ³³ These things I have spoken to you, that ^(AK)in Me you may have peace. ^(AL)In the world you ^[f]will have tribulation; but be of good cheer, ^(AM)I have overcome the world.”

The Happiness of Those Whose Help Is the Lord