WEBVTT - Nehemiah 13:1-14 - Nehemiah's Last Reforms (Part 1) 0:00:10.400 --> 0:00:13.160 Good morning, friends and faithful listeners. Welcome to the Bible 0:00:13.240 --> 0:00:17.319 Explain podcast on this absolutely lovely Monday morning. Thanks for 0:00:17.360 --> 0:00:19.439 starting out your week with me. As we read through 0:00:19.480 --> 0:00:23.759 Niamiah chapter thirteen today, and this is a kind of 0:00:23.800 --> 0:00:27.040 a sad and somewhat funny chapter at the same time, 0:00:27.480 --> 0:00:30.320 because we're going to see how things just like go 0:00:30.400 --> 0:00:34.920 off the deep end in Jerusalem when Niamiah leaves to 0:00:35.000 --> 0:00:36.880 go back home to be a cup bearer to the 0:00:36.960 --> 0:00:39.159 king once again, and then when he comes back, he's 0:00:39.200 --> 0:00:40.879 got a whole mess on his hands that he has 0:00:40.920 --> 0:00:43.120 to fix. So we're going to talk about that right 0:00:43.159 --> 0:00:47.559 after a quick message from a sponsor. So if you 0:00:47.560 --> 0:00:50.600 guys don't hear the sponsored ads, like say, you just 0:00:50.640 --> 0:00:52.440 hear like a two second pause and then I'm like 0:00:52.479 --> 0:00:55.920 speaking again, don't worry about it. It just means from 0:00:55.920 --> 0:01:00.720 my understanding that local advertisements have been full filled and 0:01:00.760 --> 0:01:03.760 I don't think there's anything to take their place, and 0:01:03.800 --> 0:01:07.240 so other people might be hearing sponsored ads whereas you don't, 0:01:07.640 --> 0:01:09.600 So don't worry about it too much. The sponsored ads 0:01:09.600 --> 0:01:13.080 are still playing somewhere, all right. Let's go ahead and 0:01:13.120 --> 0:01:17.240 read Neemiah thirteen one through fourteen together. I'll be reading 0:01:17.280 --> 0:01:21.759 this as always from the web. On that day they 0:01:21.760 --> 0:01:23.560 read in the Book of Moses in the hearing of 0:01:23.600 --> 0:01:25.840 the people, and it was found written in it that 0:01:25.880 --> 0:01:28.679 an Ammonite and a Moabite should not enter into the 0:01:28.680 --> 0:01:31.920 Assembly of God forever, because they didn't meet the children 0:01:31.920 --> 0:01:34.840 of Israel with bread and with water, but hired balam 0:01:34.840 --> 0:01:37.959 against them to curse them. However, Our God turned the 0:01:38.000 --> 0:01:41.000 curse into a blessing. It came to pass, when they 0:01:41.040 --> 0:01:43.520 had heard the law, that they separated all the mixed 0:01:43.600 --> 0:01:47.920 multitude from Israel. Now before this, Aliashib, the priest who 0:01:47.960 --> 0:01:50.200 was appointed over the rooms of the House of Our God, 0:01:50.520 --> 0:01:54.000 being allied to Tobiah, had prepared for him a great room, 0:01:54.280 --> 0:01:57.160 where before they laid the meal offerings, the frankincense, the 0:01:57.240 --> 0:01:59.920 vessels and the tithes of the grain, the new wine 0:02:00.000 --> 0:02:02.960 in the oil, which were given by commandment to the Levites, 0:02:03.040 --> 0:02:05.840 the singers and the gate keepers, and the wave offerings 0:02:05.840 --> 0:02:08.240 for the priests. But in all this I was not 0:02:08.280 --> 0:02:11.280 at Jerusalem, for in the thirty second year of Art Exerxes, 0:02:11.360 --> 0:02:14.000 king of Babylon, I went to the king, and after 0:02:14.080 --> 0:02:16.560 some days I asked leave of the king. And I 0:02:16.639 --> 0:02:19.840 came to Jerusalem and understood the evil that Eliashib had 0:02:19.880 --> 0:02:22.440 done for Tobiah in preparing him a room in the 0:02:22.440 --> 0:02:26.200 courts of God's House. It grieved me severely. Therefore I 0:02:26.240 --> 0:02:29.320 threw all Tobia's household stuff out of the room. Then 0:02:29.360 --> 0:02:32.280 I commanded, and they cleansed the rooms and brought into 0:02:32.320 --> 0:02:35.000 them the vessels of God's house with the meal offerings 0:02:35.040 --> 0:02:38.600 and the frankencense. Again I perceived that the portions of 0:02:38.639 --> 0:02:40.760 the Levites had not been given them, so that the 0:02:40.800 --> 0:02:43.480 Levites and the singers who did the work had each 0:02:43.520 --> 0:02:46.359 fled to his field. Then I contended with the rulers 0:02:46.400 --> 0:02:50.079 and said, why is God's house forsaken? I gathered them 0:02:50.080 --> 0:02:52.639 together and set them in their place. Then all of 0:02:52.720 --> 0:02:55.160 Judah brought the tithe of the grain, the new wine, 0:02:55.200 --> 0:02:58.320 and the oil in the treasuries. I made treasurers over 0:02:58.360 --> 0:03:02.120 the treasuries Schlimaha the priest, and Zadok the scribe, and 0:03:02.200 --> 0:03:05.160 of the Levites Padiah, and next to them was Hannon, 0:03:05.200 --> 0:03:07.480 the son of Zakor, the son of Matania. For they 0:03:07.520 --> 0:03:10.680 were accounted faithful, and their business was to distribute to 0:03:10.760 --> 0:03:14.600 their brothers. Remember me, my God concerning this, and don't 0:03:14.639 --> 0:03:16.480 wipe out my good deeds that I have done for 0:03:16.520 --> 0:03:21.440 the house of my God and for its observances. So 0:03:21.480 --> 0:03:23.280 it's important to note from this chapter that it's a 0:03:23.320 --> 0:03:26.320 little bit out of order. Niamiah had to go back 0:03:26.360 --> 0:03:29.520 home to Persia because don't forget, he was actually the 0:03:29.560 --> 0:03:32.040 cup bearer of the king, even though he was also 0:03:32.120 --> 0:03:35.600 the governor of Israel. He was required to come back 0:03:35.640 --> 0:03:38.440 home at some point. And so thirteen years had passed 0:03:38.720 --> 0:03:43.040 from the time that Niemiah first stepped into Jerusalem until 0:03:43.360 --> 0:03:46.680 now in Niemiah thirteen, So he had to go back 0:03:46.720 --> 0:03:49.360 home at some point verse six. But in all of 0:03:49.360 --> 0:03:51.600 this I was not at Jerusalem. For in the thirty 0:03:51.640 --> 0:03:54.080 second year of art Exerxes, king of Babylon, I went 0:03:54.080 --> 0:03:56.880 to the king, and after some days I asked leave 0:03:57.000 --> 0:04:00.400 of the king. So chronologically, that's the first thing that 0:04:00.480 --> 0:04:05.440 happens in this chapter. Niamiah returns to Persia stays there 0:04:05.480 --> 0:04:08.160 for some amount of time. We're not sure exactly what, 0:04:08.680 --> 0:04:11.960 but usually when scripture says something like some days have passed, 0:04:12.200 --> 0:04:15.840 that usually means at least one year. So Niamiyah was 0:04:15.880 --> 0:04:19.080 in Persia again for at least a year, probably more 0:04:19.120 --> 0:04:22.520 alike several years before he was able to return once 0:04:22.560 --> 0:04:26.240 again to serve his next term as the governor. And 0:04:26.279 --> 0:04:28.839 when he returns, there is a whole lot of issues 0:04:30.320 --> 0:04:34.039 in Jerusalem that he has to take care of. So 0:04:34.120 --> 0:04:38.599 here's what happens in verse four. Eliashib, the priest who 0:04:38.680 --> 0:04:41.120 was appointed over the rooms of the House of our God, 0:04:41.240 --> 0:04:44.920 being allied to Tobiah, had prepared for him a great 0:04:45.040 --> 0:04:48.120 room where before they laid the meal offerings, the frankincense, 0:04:48.160 --> 0:04:50.800 the vessels and the tithes of the grain, the new wine, 0:04:51.000 --> 0:04:53.600 the oil which were given by commandment to the Levites, 0:04:53.640 --> 0:04:56.280 the singers and the gatekeepers, and the wave offerings for 0:04:56.360 --> 0:05:00.000 the priests. So all of that to say, Niamiyah returned 0:05:00.000 --> 0:05:02.960 trents back to Jerusalem for his second term to find 0:05:03.160 --> 0:05:07.640 that the rooms connected to God's house have been turned 0:05:07.680 --> 0:05:12.440 into little apartments, one of them for Tobiah. And you 0:05:12.480 --> 0:05:15.160 guys might forget who Tobia was, but he was mentioned 0:05:15.160 --> 0:05:18.000 a lot at the beginning of Namiyah as a man 0:05:18.000 --> 0:05:20.680 who gave Namiyah and the other Israelites a lot of 0:05:20.680 --> 0:05:23.520 trouble because of the rebuilding of the wall. For example, 0:05:23.560 --> 0:05:26.159 if you go back to Niemiah four, verse seven and eight. 0:05:26.440 --> 0:05:31.280 Here's what this says. When Sanbalot Tobia, the Arabians, the Ammonites, 0:05:31.279 --> 0:05:33.919 and the Ashdadites heard that the repairing of the walls 0:05:33.920 --> 0:05:36.920 of Jerusalem went forward and that the breaches were being filled, 0:05:37.240 --> 0:05:40.240 they were very angry, and they all conspired together to 0:05:40.279 --> 0:05:45.160 come and fight against Jerusalem and to cause confusion among us. 0:05:45.520 --> 0:05:48.360 So that is who Tobia was. And apparently, going back 0:05:48.400 --> 0:05:53.120 to Niemiah thirteen, he was somehow related to Eliashib the priest, 0:05:53.240 --> 0:05:56.200 and most likely this was the same Eli a Sheb 0:05:56.560 --> 0:05:59.840 high priest that was mentioned in Nehemiah three, verse one. 0:06:00.880 --> 0:06:05.480 Whatever this relation was, it was probably something through marriage 0:06:05.560 --> 0:06:09.480 and Elias being the high priest and Tobia being the 0:06:09.520 --> 0:06:13.919 governor of the Ammonites, formed some sort of alliance with 0:06:14.000 --> 0:06:17.240 each other that Niemiyah didn't learn about until he came 0:06:17.360 --> 0:06:20.479 back into Jerusalem and found all of this out. And 0:06:20.560 --> 0:06:24.640 so here's what Eliashib did for Tobia. It says that 0:06:24.680 --> 0:06:28.000 he prepared a great room for him in Niemiah thirteen, 0:06:28.120 --> 0:06:31.440 verse five, where beforehand they had laid the meal offerings, 0:06:31.440 --> 0:06:34.000 the frank consense, the vessels, the tithes of the grain, 0:06:34.360 --> 0:06:37.000 the new wine, the oil, which were given by commandment 0:06:37.080 --> 0:06:40.480 to the Levites. So elia Sheeb the priest turned one 0:06:40.520 --> 0:06:43.919 of the store rooms in the temple into a beautiful 0:06:44.000 --> 0:06:49.120 apartment for Tobia. Even though these rooms connected to the 0:06:49.160 --> 0:06:52.279 temple were not supposed to be made into apartment rooms, 0:06:52.520 --> 0:06:57.760 they were specifically made for storage. That is what Deuteronomy 0:06:57.960 --> 0:07:01.880 fourteen twenty eight says, at the end of every three years, 0:07:01.880 --> 0:07:04.120 you shall bring all the tithe of your increase in 0:07:04.160 --> 0:07:06.839 the same year, and shall store it within your gates. 0:07:07.120 --> 0:07:09.440 So yes, these rooms were not supposed to be used 0:07:09.560 --> 0:07:12.520 for evil rulers who wanted to visit Jerusalem to come 0:07:12.520 --> 0:07:16.600 and live in. They're supposed to be used for the 0:07:16.760 --> 0:07:20.360 storage of all of the good things in God's house. 0:07:20.880 --> 0:07:23.280 That's what Neemiah says here, says, this room used to 0:07:23.320 --> 0:07:26.320 hold all the vessels and the frankincense, and the offerings 0:07:26.320 --> 0:07:30.200 and the tithes, and now it's Tobia's personal apartment. So 0:07:30.280 --> 0:07:32.960 here's what Neamiah does when he learns about all of this. 0:07:33.440 --> 0:07:35.680 He said, I came to Jerusalem in verse seven and 0:07:35.840 --> 0:07:39.080 understood the evil that elie Sheeb had done for Tobia 0:07:39.400 --> 0:07:42.320 in preparing him a room in the courts of God's house. 0:07:42.760 --> 0:07:46.840 It grieved me severely. Therefore I threw all Tobia's household 0:07:46.960 --> 0:07:51.320 stuff out of the room. So Niemiah finds out about 0:07:51.360 --> 0:07:53.960 all of this, and he goes into Tobia's room. Most 0:07:54.000 --> 0:07:56.680 likely he was not there, because don't forget, Tobia was 0:07:56.800 --> 0:07:59.920 the governor of the Ammonites. Tobia probably was an he 0:08:00.200 --> 0:08:03.440 in the city. So Niamiah goes into Tobia's apartment and 0:08:03.480 --> 0:08:05.920 he just starts taking things out and throwing it all 0:08:05.960 --> 0:08:09.240 over the place and getting rid of all of Tobia's 0:08:09.280 --> 0:08:12.360 household items. And here's what he commanded the priests and 0:08:12.440 --> 0:08:15.400 levites to do. He says, I commanded, and they cleansed 0:08:15.520 --> 0:08:18.560 the rooms. I brought into them the vessels of God's 0:08:18.560 --> 0:08:22.640 house with the meal offerings and the frankincense. Again, so 0:08:22.720 --> 0:08:25.320 Niamiah did the right thing here, and he did not 0:08:25.800 --> 0:08:31.080 hold back. These rooms connected to God's temple were never 0:08:31.160 --> 0:08:34.840 supposed to be used for anything like this, especially for 0:08:34.920 --> 0:08:38.880 somebody as evil as Tobia. And it doesn't matter if 0:08:38.920 --> 0:08:42.320 Tobia is related to Elia Sheeb, the high priest. In fact, 0:08:42.400 --> 0:08:46.600 Jesus himself said that if you love your father, your mother, 0:08:46.720 --> 0:08:50.200 your brother, your sister, your children more than you love me, 0:08:50.840 --> 0:08:54.000 then you are not worthy of me. That's what Jesus says. 0:08:54.559 --> 0:08:58.760 So just because Elia Sheep and Tobia were somehow related, 0:08:59.040 --> 0:09:03.439 that doesn't give Elia the right to compromise on what 0:09:03.480 --> 0:09:05.319 the temple was supposed to be. It was supposed to 0:09:05.360 --> 0:09:08.440 be holy to the Lord, and Tobia was not a 0:09:08.480 --> 0:09:13.040 holy man. He directly went against God on multiple occasions 0:09:13.320 --> 0:09:17.040 by trying to fight the people in Jerusalem, by trying 0:09:17.040 --> 0:09:20.680 to kill Namiyah as well. Tobio was a nasty guy 0:09:20.679 --> 0:09:24.160 and did not deserve a room in the Temple of God. 0:09:24.400 --> 0:09:28.240 So Niamiyah, after throwing everything out, commanded the priests and 0:09:28.280 --> 0:09:31.920 they cleansed the rooms. Notice there it says rooms, So 0:09:31.960 --> 0:09:35.040 they were probably doing this for more people than just Tobia. 0:09:35.720 --> 0:09:38.000 There's probably a bunch of rooms that Elia Sheep had 0:09:38.000 --> 0:09:40.720 made into apartments. And I have no clue why Elia 0:09:40.800 --> 0:09:44.839 Sheep did this other than potentially money. Maybe these rooms 0:09:44.840 --> 0:09:48.400 were being rented out. Even so, this was the wrong 0:09:48.600 --> 0:09:52.000 use of these rooms. They were meant to be storehouses 0:09:52.400 --> 0:09:55.440 for all of God's stuff, and Niamiah makes them into that. 0:09:55.840 --> 0:09:58.680 Once again, it says in verse nine that I brought 0:09:58.679 --> 0:10:01.600 into them these rooms the vessels of God's house with 0:10:01.720 --> 0:10:06.120 the meal offerings and the frankincense again, so now everything 0:10:06.160 --> 0:10:08.840 is sort of back to where it should be, and 0:10:08.880 --> 0:10:11.520 so now he has other things to do. So jumping 0:10:11.559 --> 0:10:13.319 back to verse one, it says on that day they 0:10:13.360 --> 0:10:15.160 read in the Book of Moses in the hearing of 0:10:15.160 --> 0:10:17.680 the people, and it was found written in it that 0:10:17.800 --> 0:10:20.480 an Ammonite and a Moabite should not enter into the 0:10:20.520 --> 0:10:24.240 assembly of God forever, because they didn't meet the children 0:10:24.320 --> 0:10:27.439 of Israel with bread and with water, but hired balam 0:10:27.480 --> 0:10:30.560 against them to curse them. However, our God turned the 0:10:30.600 --> 0:10:34.160 curse into a blessing. So what that is talking about 0:10:34.280 --> 0:10:38.200 is actually Deuteronomy twenty three three through six. So let's 0:10:38.280 --> 0:10:40.240 read that, and I'm actually going to read this from 0:10:40.280 --> 0:10:44.439 the NASB version, which the NASB is actually a literal 0:10:44.480 --> 0:10:48.160 translation of scripture. So here's what Deuteronomy twenty three three 0:10:48.280 --> 0:10:52.120 through six says. And this is God speaking. No Ammonite 0:10:52.200 --> 0:10:54.559 or Moabite may enter into the assembly of the Lord. 0:10:54.960 --> 0:10:58.560 None of their descendants, even to the tenth generation, may 0:10:58.600 --> 0:11:01.679 ever enter the assembly of the Lord, because they did 0:11:01.720 --> 0:11:03.680 not meet you with food and water on the way 0:11:03.720 --> 0:11:06.200 when you came out of Egypt, and because they hired 0:11:06.280 --> 0:11:10.440 against you Balem, the son of Beor from Pethor of Mesopotamia, 0:11:10.480 --> 0:11:14.040 to curse you. Nevertheless, the Lord your God was unwilling 0:11:14.120 --> 0:11:16.720 to listen to Balim. But the Lord your God turned 0:11:16.720 --> 0:11:19.240 the curse into a blessing for you. Because the Lord 0:11:19.320 --> 0:11:22.559 your God loves you. You shall never seek their peace 0:11:23.000 --> 0:11:27.640 or their prosperity all your days. So God directly commanded 0:11:27.679 --> 0:11:30.959 that the Moabites and Ammonites could not enter into the 0:11:31.000 --> 0:11:33.880 assembly of the Lord. And you might be like, well, Jen, 0:11:33.960 --> 0:11:36.840 that sounds kind of harsh that they're never allowed to 0:11:36.960 --> 0:11:39.480 enter the assembly of the Lord. Well, of course, there's 0:11:39.520 --> 0:11:42.520 always exceptions that can be made, because if you moved 0:11:42.559 --> 0:11:46.079 to Ruth chapter one one through four, here's what this says. 0:11:46.760 --> 0:11:48.840 In the days when the judges judged there was a 0:11:48.840 --> 0:11:52.000 famine in the land, a certain man of Bethlehem, Judah, 0:11:52.280 --> 0:11:54.280 went to live in the country of Moab with his 0:11:54.360 --> 0:11:56.800 wife and his two sons. The name of the man 0:11:57.000 --> 0:12:00.120 was Alimelech, and the name of his wife Naomi. The 0:12:00.200 --> 0:12:03.679 names of his two sons were Malone and Chilean Ephrathites 0:12:03.720 --> 0:12:06.760 of Bethlehem, Judah they came into the country of Moab 0:12:06.840 --> 0:12:10.920 and lived there. Alimelech Naomi's husband died and she was 0:12:11.000 --> 0:12:14.200 left with her two sons. They took for themselves wives 0:12:14.240 --> 0:12:16.760 of the women of Moab. The name of the one 0:12:16.840 --> 0:12:19.280 was Orpah and the name of the other was Ruth. 0:12:19.559 --> 0:12:23.599 They lived there about ten years. So Ruth, as is 0:12:23.640 --> 0:12:26.760 clearly stated, right, there was a Moabite woman. She was 0:12:26.800 --> 0:12:30.000 not born of Israel. And yet if you know Ruth's story, 0:12:30.320 --> 0:12:33.000 you know that she ended up becoming a woman of Israel, 0:12:33.600 --> 0:12:37.760 started worshiping Yahweh, and ended up becoming the I think 0:12:37.840 --> 0:12:41.120 she was the great grandmother of King David. So clearly 0:12:41.280 --> 0:12:45.440 exceptions to Deuteronomy twenty three are made, especially if they're 0:12:45.440 --> 0:12:49.560 made in Scripture itself. So what is Deuteronomy twenty three 0:12:49.600 --> 0:12:54.560 talking about. Is God saying that any Ammonite, any Moabite, 0:12:54.640 --> 0:12:59.080 can never become an Israelite, can never start worshiping Yahweh. Well, 0:12:59.120 --> 0:13:02.720 I would say no, because Ruth converted as a Moabite 0:13:02.720 --> 0:13:06.719 woman to an Israelite. So clearly Deuteronomy twenty three is 0:13:06.760 --> 0:13:10.920 talking about something else. Moabites and Ammonites, if they choose 0:13:10.960 --> 0:13:14.679 to remain Moabite and Ammonite. They have no place among 0:13:14.720 --> 0:13:16.800 the children of Israel. I would say, even in the 0:13:16.840 --> 0:13:18.920 day to day business, because here's what it says in 0:13:18.960 --> 0:13:21.960 Deuteronomy twenty three, verse three. No Ammonite or Mobite may 0:13:22.080 --> 0:13:25.240 enter the assembly of the Lord. None of their descendants, 0:13:25.600 --> 0:13:28.400 even to the tenth generation, may ever enter the assembly 0:13:28.520 --> 0:13:31.280 of the Lord. So the assembly of the Lord is 0:13:31.320 --> 0:13:35.359 probably talking about the nation of Israel itself, not necessarily 0:13:35.400 --> 0:13:39.320 the temple or the worship of Yahweh, but just the 0:13:39.440 --> 0:13:42.679 day to day dealings with the Israelites. They do not 0:13:42.880 --> 0:13:46.440 have a place among the Israelites if they choose to 0:13:46.480 --> 0:13:50.760 remain Ammonite or Moabite. In fact, we actually talked not 0:13:50.840 --> 0:13:54.480 too long ago about God's love for the foreigner. God 0:13:54.559 --> 0:13:56.360 cared about the foreigner, and there is a lot of 0:13:56.440 --> 0:13:59.679 laws in place about how to treat foreigners. In fact, 0:14:00.040 --> 0:14:02.400 there was one law that says you must love the 0:14:02.440 --> 0:14:06.040 foreigner and treat him as you would yourself, because you 0:14:06.120 --> 0:14:09.599 were once foreigners in Egypt. So if an Ammonite or 0:14:09.640 --> 0:14:13.760 a Moabite ended up wanting to become an Israelite and 0:14:13.800 --> 0:14:17.520 converting over to Judaism, as is the case with Ruth, 0:14:18.040 --> 0:14:20.080 once they convert. You are not supposed to think of 0:14:20.120 --> 0:14:23.720 them as a foreigner living in your land, but as 0:14:24.040 --> 0:14:27.080 part of you, as a brother and sister under Yahweh. 0:14:27.200 --> 0:14:30.160 But if an Ammonite or Moabite refused to worship Yahweh, 0:14:30.240 --> 0:14:33.320 then the Israelites should have no dealings with them. And 0:14:33.360 --> 0:14:36.920 that's what's happening in Neemia thirteen one through three. They 0:14:36.960 --> 0:14:40.080 read that law, they find out that the Ammonite and 0:14:40.080 --> 0:14:43.240 the Moabite should not enter into the assembly of God forever. 0:14:44.440 --> 0:14:48.200 And guess what. Tobia, who Elia Sheep had made an 0:14:48.240 --> 0:14:52.520 apartment for in God's house, was the governor of the Ammonites, 0:14:53.080 --> 0:14:56.560 and they were directly going against this law that God 0:14:56.640 --> 0:15:00.440 had made regarding the Ammonites and the Mobite, specific the 0:15:00.440 --> 0:15:05.640 ones that were under rebellion, like Tobia was Tobia had 0:15:05.680 --> 0:15:10.880 no place having an apartment inside of God's house. So 0:15:10.920 --> 0:15:12.560 it says in verse three that it came to pass 0:15:12.880 --> 0:15:15.440 when the Israelites had heard the law, that they separated 0:15:15.520 --> 0:15:19.640 all the mixed multitude from Israel. So that's probably talking 0:15:19.640 --> 0:15:22.840 about the Moabites and the Ammonites that were regularly doing 0:15:22.920 --> 0:15:27.240 business inside of Israel. Now, on Wednesday, we did talk 0:15:27.280 --> 0:15:30.800 about how the Israelites in the days of Jesus truly 0:15:30.840 --> 0:15:33.840 did believe that they were like the cream of the crop, 0:15:34.320 --> 0:15:37.200 that they were the only ones going to Heaven, and 0:15:37.320 --> 0:15:39.760 Jesus and John the Baptist kept saying, it is not 0:15:39.840 --> 0:15:43.680 about your heritage, it is about your heart. So it 0:15:43.680 --> 0:15:46.320 could be that in the days of Nehemiah, this is 0:15:46.320 --> 0:15:50.280 where some of this belief started coming from, because the Israelites, 0:15:50.680 --> 0:15:54.480 you can almost see them shifting into overcompensation for what 0:15:54.520 --> 0:15:57.520 their ancestors had done. And this is something that is 0:15:57.560 --> 0:16:01.160 found in the Tulmud. It says, because of ruth, a 0:16:01.200 --> 0:16:06.080 Moabitis and an Ammonitis can actually become saved and become 0:16:06.160 --> 0:16:09.960 part of the Assembly of God. But a man, a Moabite, 0:16:10.000 --> 0:16:13.560 and an Ammonite cannot ever enter the Assembly of God. 0:16:14.120 --> 0:16:16.040 You'll find that in the Tulmud, and that is not 0:16:16.160 --> 0:16:20.200 correct thinking. Once you become a Yahweh follower, you become 0:16:20.360 --> 0:16:24.080 a child of God and your ancestry no longer matters. 0:16:24.640 --> 0:16:27.560 But if the Ammonite and the Moabite specifically end up 0:16:27.600 --> 0:16:31.080 remaining in their idolatry and rebellion of God, then they 0:16:31.080 --> 0:16:33.840 really shouldn't have any dealings with the Israelites, because the 0:16:33.880 --> 0:16:37.120 Israelites were supposed to be a set apart nation. And 0:16:37.160 --> 0:16:39.640 what did the Moabites do? I mean, why does God 0:16:39.720 --> 0:16:42.960 specifically say that you cannot have any dealings with these people, 0:16:43.040 --> 0:16:47.320 specifically because they mistreated the Israelites, when the Israelites were 0:16:47.360 --> 0:16:50.600 coming out of Egypt and in need of food and water. 0:16:51.040 --> 0:16:55.560 And also because the Moabites hired Balam, the false prophet, 0:16:56.160 --> 0:16:59.800 to prophesy evil against Israel and to curse Israel. But 0:16:59.840 --> 0:17:03.560 God God ended up turning that curse of Baalam into 0:17:03.600 --> 0:17:07.159 a blessing for Israel. So God took care of his people, 0:17:07.440 --> 0:17:10.399 and he said, because of the evil that the Ammonites 0:17:10.400 --> 0:17:13.920 and the Moabites did to you, don't associate with them, 0:17:14.000 --> 0:17:17.040 have no part with them, don't seek their prosperity for 0:17:17.080 --> 0:17:19.879 the rest of your life. So, while all this is 0:17:19.920 --> 0:17:24.680 taking place, while Niemiah is basically cleansing to Baiah out 0:17:24.720 --> 0:17:26.720 of the temple and reading the law to the people 0:17:26.760 --> 0:17:31.000 how they shouldn't have any dealings with the unrepentant Ammonites 0:17:31.000 --> 0:17:34.639 and Moabites, here's what happens in verse ten. I perceived 0:17:34.720 --> 0:17:37.359 that the portions of the Levites had not been given 0:17:37.400 --> 0:17:39.800 to them, so that the Levites and the singers who 0:17:39.840 --> 0:17:43.760 did the work had each fled to his field. Then 0:17:43.800 --> 0:17:46.879 I contended with the rulers, and I said, why is 0:17:46.960 --> 0:17:51.120 God's house forsaken? And I gathered them together and set 0:17:51.160 --> 0:17:55.560 them in their place. So Niamiyah finds another issue happening 0:17:55.600 --> 0:17:59.879 in God's house, specifically that the Levites and the ten 0:18:00.000 --> 0:18:04.920 temple singers were being completely neglected and the tithe had 0:18:04.960 --> 0:18:07.800 not been given to them, even though in the previous 0:18:07.880 --> 0:18:13.359 chapter Niamiah twelve, we talked about how Niamiah put rules 0:18:13.400 --> 0:18:16.919 in place so that the Levites and the temple singers 0:18:16.920 --> 0:18:20.639 would consistently get the tithe from the people. If you 0:18:20.680 --> 0:18:23.000 guys know the Old Testament laws about the Levites and 0:18:23.040 --> 0:18:26.040 the temple singers, they didn't receive an inheritance from God, 0:18:26.440 --> 0:18:30.000 so they essentially lived off of the tithes of the people. 0:18:30.440 --> 0:18:33.000 Now that didn't mean that the Levites couldn't own anything, 0:18:33.240 --> 0:18:36.800 or that the Levites couldn't have other jobs, but because 0:18:36.880 --> 0:18:41.359 they didn't have like large swaths of land to produce 0:18:41.440 --> 0:18:45.960 crops and own livestock, they didn't get the same level 0:18:45.960 --> 0:18:49.639 of funds and income that another Israelite from a different 0:18:49.640 --> 0:18:52.879 tribe would get who did receive an inheritance of land. 0:18:53.560 --> 0:18:55.600 So the Levites were kind of at the mercy of 0:18:55.600 --> 0:19:00.240 the people and the temple tithe that came in. And 0:19:00.400 --> 0:19:03.840 Niamiah finds out that the Levites during however long he 0:19:03.960 --> 0:19:07.959 was gone, had not been receiving the temple tithe, and 0:19:07.960 --> 0:19:10.600 that all of them, the Levites and the singers, weren't 0:19:10.600 --> 0:19:12.399 doing their jobs in the temple. They had to go 0:19:12.520 --> 0:19:17.600 back home and start working personal jobs in order to survive. 0:19:18.119 --> 0:19:21.679 So Niamiyah fixes this very quickly because this was unjust. 0:19:21.880 --> 0:19:24.359 He says, I contended with the rulers, and I said, 0:19:24.480 --> 0:19:27.720 why is God's house forsaken? And I gathered them together 0:19:27.760 --> 0:19:30.240 and I set them in their place. So he put 0:19:30.240 --> 0:19:32.840 them in their place. And then it says in verse 0:19:32.840 --> 0:19:36.240 twelve that all of Judah brought the tithe of the grain, 0:19:36.480 --> 0:19:39.439 the new wine, and the oil to the treasuries. So 0:19:39.480 --> 0:19:42.800 the leaders did listen, and apparently the tribe of Judah 0:19:43.240 --> 0:19:47.399 stepped up and they start bringing the tithe into the treasuries. 0:19:47.880 --> 0:19:50.560 Because again it could be that the Levites went home, 0:19:50.680 --> 0:19:53.119 a lot of them because they were angry over what 0:19:53.240 --> 0:19:56.040 Elie she was doing. You know, turning the storehouses of 0:19:56.080 --> 0:20:02.560 God into apartments for Tobia and other Ammonites and whoever else. 0:20:03.080 --> 0:20:05.360 It could be that because the storerooms were changed, there 0:20:05.359 --> 0:20:09.240 weren't any places to put these tithes. And so now 0:20:09.280 --> 0:20:13.080 finally that everything is set back in order, the tithes 0:20:13.200 --> 0:20:16.720 are being brought to the storehouses once again. And it 0:20:16.760 --> 0:20:19.800 says in verse thirteen that I made treasurers over the 0:20:19.880 --> 0:20:23.760 treasuries Sellemiah the priest, and Zadok the scribe, and of 0:20:23.800 --> 0:20:27.600 the Levites Pedea. And next to them was Hanan, the 0:20:27.600 --> 0:20:30.840 son of Zakor, the son of Matania. For they were 0:20:30.840 --> 0:20:35.080 counted faithful, and their business was to distribute to their brothers. 0:20:35.640 --> 0:20:39.600 So Niamiyah puts another office in place, essentially the office 0:20:39.600 --> 0:20:42.879 of giving the tithes to the Levites. So these people 0:20:42.960 --> 0:20:45.639 were specifically in charge of this, and they were actually 0:20:45.720 --> 0:20:49.520 Levites themselves, so they would do a good job because 0:20:49.560 --> 0:20:52.159 they probably wanted to get paid, and they probably wanted 0:20:52.160 --> 0:20:55.240 their family members who were Levites to get paid. And 0:20:55.280 --> 0:20:58.199 it also says that they were counted faithful, meaning that 0:20:58.240 --> 0:21:01.080 they had done good work in the past, and Niamiah 0:21:01.160 --> 0:21:04.640 trusted these men. And so now in verse fourteen, Neamiah 0:21:04.640 --> 0:21:07.920 says a little prayer to conclude this portionary read. He says, 0:21:08.080 --> 0:21:10.800 remember me, my God, concerning this, and don't wipe out 0:21:10.840 --> 0:21:13.120 my good deeds that I have done for the house 0:21:13.119 --> 0:21:16.720 of my God and for its observances. So he basically 0:21:16.760 --> 0:21:21.640 asks God to remember him and bless him over all 0:21:21.680 --> 0:21:24.919 of the things that he is done for the Levites 0:21:25.040 --> 0:21:28.840 and for putting the House of God, the Temple of 0:21:28.840 --> 0:21:33.080 God back in order. He tells, God, please remember me 0:21:33.200 --> 0:21:35.400 for all of this, and don't wipe out these good 0:21:35.440 --> 0:21:39.719 deeds that I have done for your house. All right, 0:21:39.760 --> 0:21:43.160 faith listeners, Well, I hope you enjoyed that portion of Neamiyah, 0:21:43.200 --> 0:21:45.479 and thank you so much for coming to the end 0:21:45.480 --> 0:21:48.480 of the episode with me. Before I close out today's episode, 0:21:48.560 --> 0:21:52.959 please listen to this last message from a sponsor. So 0:21:53.000 --> 0:21:55.840 on Wednesday, we are actually going to finish up Namiah 0:21:55.920 --> 0:21:58.440 thirteen and talk about some of the other crazy things 0:21:58.440 --> 0:22:02.560 that goes on in Jerusalem during nea Mayah's absence, as 0:22:02.600 --> 0:22:07.600 well as finishing up season eleven of the podcast. And 0:22:07.640 --> 0:22:09.840 then next week we're actually going to be in season 0:22:09.920 --> 0:22:12.800 twelve of the podcast with the Book of Esther. I 0:22:12.840 --> 0:22:16.320 originally thought about making Esther part of season eleven, but 0:22:16.480 --> 0:22:20.520 Esther is actually a pretty long book that we can 0:22:20.560 --> 0:22:22.400 go in a lot of detail with, and I think 0:22:22.440 --> 0:22:25.040 season eleven could get a little bit too long if 0:22:25.040 --> 0:22:28.359 we ended up sticking Esther in with Ezra and Nehemiah, 0:22:28.720 --> 0:22:30.920 which is why I decided to move to season twelve 0:22:31.240 --> 0:22:34.520 next week. I will see you all on Wednesday for 0:22:34.760 --> 0:22:38.000 the last episode from Namayah, and I'll also see you 0:22:38.000 --> 0:22:40.639 guys tomorrow for an episode from James. We're going to 0:22:40.680 --> 0:22:43.480 be finishing up James very quickly, and I'm excited to 0:22:43.520 --> 0:22:46.600 do that with you all as well. Faithful listeners, have 0:22:46.680 --> 0:22:50.040 a fantastic and wonderful, wonderful rest of your day. I 0:22:50.080 --> 0:22:51.720