*H And said before his brethren, and the multitude of the Samaritans: What are the silly Jews doing? Will the Gentiles let them alone? will they sacrifice and make an end in a day? are they able to raise stones out of the heaps of the rubbish, which are burnt?
Ver. 2. Multitude. Heb. and Sept. "army." C. — Silly. Lit. "feeble." H. — Sacrifice, at the dedication. T. — Day, in so short a time, as their present vigorous proceedings seem to promise, notwithstanding their feeble condition, and the paucity of their numbers. H. — But no: we shall have time enough to hinder them, (M.) if the nature of their materials do it not for us. H. — Raise. Heb. "revive;" a word used for reparations of walls, &c. C. Delrio, adag. 221. — Sept. "heal." God's providence did not permit the enemy to rage, till the work was greatly advanced; so infidels laugh at the attempts of poor priests to restore religion, which nevertheless flourishes. W.
*H Tobias also the Ammonite who was by him said: Let them build: if a fox go up, he will leap over their stone wall.
Ver. 3. Leap over. Heb. Sept. &c. "break down." C. — Bitter sarcasm, which excites the indignation of Nehemias! T.
*H Hear thou our God, for we are despised: turn their reproach upon their own head, and give them to be despised in a land of captivity.
Ver. 4. Captivity. Since they have not learnt to commiserate others. C.
*H Cover not their iniquity, and let not their sin be blotted out from before thy face, because they have mocked thy builders.
Ver. 5. Face. Punish the obstinate. T. — He does not wish that they may continue impenitent. C. — But, on that supposition, he approves of the divine justice, and foretells what will happen. E. — Revenge was equally criminal under the old law, as it is at present. But the servants of God express their approbation (C.) of his inscrutable counsels. The imperative in Heb. is often used for the future tense. H. — Mocked. Prot. "provoked thee...before the builders." Sept. omit most of this and the following verses; having only, "Do not hide thyself, with respect to wickedness." H.
*H So we built the wall, and joined it all together unto the half thereof: and the heart of the people was excited to work.
Ver. 6. Thereof, all round; as masons were stationed in different parts, (v. 19.) and not barely on one side of the city. C. — Tobias alludes to the present lowness of the walls, v. 3. H.
*H And they all assembled themselves together, to come, and to fight against Jerusalem, and to prepare ambushes.
Ver. 8. Together, to the number of 180,000, according to the Jews; who say that they were terrified at the excommunication pronounced by 300 priests against them, while 300 young men sounded trumpets; and they fled, leaving Nehemias at liberty to continue the work. It is a pity that we have no foundation for this in Scripture. C. See 1 Esd. iv. 3. H. — The Samaritans durst not openly attack the Jews, who were under the protection of the Persian monarch. But they endeavoured clandestinely to injure them, (T.) and to prepare ambushes. H.
*H And Juda said: The strength of the bearer of burdens is decayed, and the rubbish is very much, and we shall not be able to build the wall.
Ver. 10. Juda. Some of the Jews, (M.) who were dispirited at the greatness of the work and the threats of the enemy. — Burdens. Sept. "of the enemies." Arab. "the Jews were strengthened, there were many porters, but they could not finish the work." C. — Rubbish to be removed. T.
*H And it came to pass, that when the Jews that dwelt by them came and told us ten times, out of all the places from whence they came to us,
Ver. 12. Ten times, frequently. M. — Places, among the Cuthites. — Whence they. Prot. "ye return unto us, they will be upon you." Heb. the second person is put for the third, which occurs in the Sept. &c. though they refer it to the enemy. "They come up from all places against us." H. — De Dieu would translate, "return to us," cultivate the friendship of Sanaballat; or "return home," and leave off this work. The sense of the Vulg. is the most easy, and the best. C.
*H I set the people in the place behind the wall round about in order, with their swords, and spears, and bows.
Ver. 13. Place. Heb. adds, "below." — Round. Heb. "on the hills." H. — To remove the apparent contradiction, (C.) Prot. supply, "and on the higher places." Sept. "in lurking holes," σκεπεινοις. par
*H And I looked and rose up: and I said to the chief men and the magistrates, and to the rest of the common people: be not afraid of them. Remember the Lord who is great and terrible, and fight for your brethren, your sons, and your daughters, and your wives, and your houses.
Ver. 14. Remember. These are the most powerful arguments to encourage an army. H.
*H And it came to pass from that day forward, that half of their young men did the work, and half were ready for to fight, with spears, and shields, and bows, and coats of mail, and the rulers were behind them in all the house of Juda.
Ver. 16. Their. Heb. "my servants," (M.) half of whom only wrought, while the rest stood guard. If we adhere to the Vulg. we must suppose that Nehemias altered his first plan, and ordered almost all to be ready to fight or to labour, as occasion might require, v. 17. C. — In. "Over, (H.) or behind all the family of Juda," (Vatab.) encouraging the people by word, and sometimes by example. T. M.
*H Of them that built on the wall and that carried burdens, and that laded: with one of his hands he did the work, and with the other he held a sword.
Ver. 17. Sword. Heb. "dart." C. — The expression seems to be proverbial. So Ovid makes Canacea speak, "My right hand holds the pen, my left the sword;" (H.) while I write, I am on the point of killing myself. C.
*H For every one of the builders was girded with a sword about his reins. And they built, and sounded with a trumpet by me.
Ver. 18. By me, when the enemy appeared. M.
*H In what place soever you shall hear the sound of the trumpet, run all thither unto us: our God will fight for us.
Ver. 20. For us. Yet we must act with prudence and courage. H.
*H At that time also I said to the people: Let every one with his servant stay in the midst of Jerusalem, and let us take our turns in the night, and by day, to work.
Ver. 22. Midst. Before they had gone home. C. — Let us. Prot. "that in the night they may be a guard to us, and labour on the day." H.
*H Now I and my brethren, and my servants, and the watchmen that followed me, did not put off our clothes: only every man stripped himself when he was to be washed.
Ver. 23. Clothes, even to sleep. — Only. Sept. Compl. "man and his arms to the water." H. — They went armed to fetch water; (Malvenda) or they had their armour and water always at hand. Junius, &c. — Heb. "each kept his dart at the water." It may have various senses. C. — Prot. agree with the Vulg. "saving that every one put them off for washing" (H.) them, or themselves. T.