Nehemiah 4:7–23

Opposition Stopped

⁷Now when Sanballat, Tobiah, the Arabs, the Ammonites, and the Ashdodites heard that the restoration of the walls of Jerusalem was going forward and the gaps were being closed, they were very angry. ⁸So all of them plotted together to come fight against Jerusalem and to make trouble for it. ⁹So we prayed to our God and set up a guard against them day and night.

¹⁰But Judah said, “The strength of the carriers is failing, and there is too much dirt, and we are not able to build at the wall.” ¹¹Then our enemies said, “They will not know nor see until we come upon them and will kill them and stop the work.” ¹²When the Jews who lived beside them came, they said to us ten times, “From all of the places where they live, they will come up against us.” ¹³I stationed the people behind the deepest part of the wall in the open places according to their families, with their swords, spears, and bows. ¹⁴And I looked, got up, and said to the nobles, prefects, and the rest of the people, “Do not be afraid of them. Remember the Lord, who is great and awesome, and fight for your brothers, your sons, your daughters, your wives, and your houses.”

¹⁵It happened when our enemies heard that their plan was known to us, that God had frustrated it, and we all returned to the wall—each to his work. ¹⁶From that day, half of my servants were working on craftsmanship, half were holding spears, small shields, bows, and breastplates. The commanders were behind the whole house of Judah. ¹⁷The ones who were building the wall and the ones who carried the materials^c were carrying in one hand while doing the task, and with the other hand were grasping a weapon. ¹⁸Each of the builders had his sword tied to his side while building. And the man who sounded the trumpet was beside me. ¹⁹I said to the nobles, to the prefects, and to the rest of the people, “The work is great and widespread, and we are spread out over the wall far from each other. ²⁰Wherever you hear the sound of the trumpet, come together to us there. Our God will fight for us.”

²¹So we labored at the work, and half of them were holding the spears from dawn until the stars came out. ²²At the time I also said to the people, “Let each man and his servant spend the night inside Jerusalem, so that they will be a guard for us in the night and work in the day.” ²³So neither I nor my brothers nor my young men nor the men of the guard who were behind me took off our clothes. Each one kept his weapon even in the water.