NEHEMIAH THE BUILDER
LESSON NO. 4 THE ADVERSARIES OF NEHEMIAH CHAPTER 4

“And I looked, and rose up, and said unto the nobles, and to the rulers, and to the rest of the people, Be not ye afraid of them: Remember the Lord, which is great and terrible, and fight for your brethren, your sons and your daughters, your wives and your houses.” – Nehemiah 4:14 (KJV)

This world is still a home to many people who believe in God and live for Him. They are kind and fair and do lead decent lives. They care deeply for others. But they are outnumbered. Everywhere and every day, we find more and more people becoming cruel, disrespectful and unjust. They are downright villainous and we call them opposition, enemies, oppressors, foes and adversaries of everything that is good and godly. We see it true even in the realm of angels—evil is present. The Bible says it all started from Satan’s rebellion against God. And because of that rebellion, we have now the presence of good battling against evil; righteousness against unrighteousness; and light versus darkness. Satan has made this world his domain and it seems that evil is winning as we see men love darkness more than God. But we praise God for not leaving us in this sinful world all alone to ourselves, fighting evil on our own. He knows that deep within us there is a conflict going on between good and evil, “I find then a law, that, when I would do good, evil is present with me” (Rom. 7:21). And it is only by the power of God’s sufficient grace that we are able to overcome and live daily for Christ and His Ekklesia (2 Cor. 12:9).

Nehemiah Chapter 4 tells us about his oppressors and enemies who ridiculed, reproached, threatened and attacked both his person and leadership. But he overcame them all through the strength of God. The great burden for his suffering nation and the passion to redeem it from shame, poverty and reproach made him to carry on and finish the difficult task of building the walls. He stepped out of faith and God brought him the victory in the end. Was it wrong for him to be burdened? No! Was it wrong for him to initiate the rebuilding of the walls? No! Was it wrong for him to build a testimony that God still works among His people and He is not yet done with them? Definitely not! Nehemiah’s enemies were not ordinary people but they were powerful, rich, influential and evil. They were morally corrupt and spiritually bankrupt. They were the very people who have forgotten all about God and His laws. They caused all the unjust exercise of authority and judgment in the land and brought so much distress and oppression to the lives of the poor remnants. They were despisers of godly men like Ezra and Nehemiah. Their fury and indignation against Nehemiah were all carried out with all might and power but without success. Such were the adversaries of Nehemiah.

1. Definition

The word adversary is derived from the Hebrew word, “tsar,” which means narrow, tight, or a

2. The Devil, the main adversary (1 Peter 5:8). He oppresses the believers and never gets tired of crushing them. We are in a constant battle and that is why we are given the armor of God (Eph. 6:10-12). He tempts, troubles and puts us in a place where he makes it difficult for us to serve the Lord and live for God.

3. The Demonic Adversaries of Nehemiah (4:11-12). They were all set to do all inconceivable evil things to stop Nehemiah and his noble work.

4. The Diabolical Schemes of the adversaries (4:1-4, 7-8). They tried:

4.1. Discouragement
4.2. Mockery
4.3. Fear
4.4. Conspiracy

5. The Demonstration of Nehemiah and his people’s preparedness and readiness (4:6, 9, 16-23). They were not caught off guard or flatfooted.

5.1. They were in constant prayer (v.9).
5.2. They were dedicated to work (v.6).
5.3. They were vigilant (vv.16-18).
5.4. They were confident in the Lord (v.20).
5.5. They were prepared for battle (vv.22-23).

CONCLUSION

God’s way of doing His thing and choosing His servants is always perfect. He raises righteous leaders and sends them to His own people not just to fulfill all His divine purposes and plans for them but He also leads them to victory. God raised Nehemiah to rebuild not just the walls of Jerusalem but also the broken lives and hopes of His suffering people. Nehemiah felt the burden and followed his heart. He led the nation of Israel back to God and to the path of truth, light, righteousness, faithfulness and obedience. He believed God was on his side and He will let him finish the walls and bring significant changes to the life of his nation. He believed God will forgive them of all their iniquities and once again send healing and blessings. He knew God will not fail him and the whole nation of Israel. God also raised Moses who asked, “Who is on the Lord’s side?” (Exodus 32:26); Joshua declared, “Choose ye this day whom ye will serve” (Josh. 24:15); and the Lord Jesus Christ Himself who exclaimed, “He that is not with me is against me” (Matt. 12:30). As Pastors, Chief Servants and Overseers of God’s people, we have this awesome responsibility and accountability to lead our people into all the truth and righteousness without fear and shame. Nehemiah did not make any room for