But I prayed, “Now strengthen my hands"

Nehemiah 6:1-19

Sanballat and Geshem sent me this message: “Come, let us meet together in one of the villages[a] on the plain of Ono.” But they were scheming to harm me; so I sent messengers to them with this reply: “I am carrying on a great project and cannot go down. Why should the work stop while I leave it and go down to you?” Four times they sent me the same message, and each time I gave them the same answer.

I sent him this reply: “Nothing like what you are saying is happening; you are just making it up out of your head.”

They were all trying to frighten us, thinking, “Their hands will get too weak for the work, and it will not be completed.” But I prayed, “Now strengthen my hands.”

But I said, “Should a man like me run away? Or should someone like me go into the temple to save his life? I will not go!” I realized that God had not sent him, but that he had prophesied against me because Tobiah and Sanballat had hired him. He had been hired to intimidate me so that I would commit a sin by doing this, and then they would give me a bad name to discredit me.

Remember Tobiah and Sanballat, my God, because of what they have done; remember also the prophet Noadiah and how she and the rest of the prophets have been trying to intimidate me. So the wall was completed on the twenty-fifth of Elul, in fifty-two days.

When all our enemies heard about this, all the surrounding nations were afraid and lost their self-confidence, because they realized that this work had been done with the help of our God.

Why?

There was further opposition to the rebuilding wall. Nehemiah prayed to the Lord to give him strength and with wisdom did not trust in the word of their enemies. Even sent a lian through a false prophet who said Nehemiah tried to revolt and planned to kill Nehemiah when he entered the Temple.

Nehemiah encouraged the Jews in Jerusalem and with his faith in the Lord, the wall was rebuilt in 52 days. 

Trust in the Lord like Nehemiah, even the enemies attack us with insulation or in some way isolate us. Pray to the Lord, and keep the way of the truth with love.

Nehemiah gives a good sample to be a stronger servant of the Lord.

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4,5,6章一個個出來，內部問題往往比仇敵更可怕。這裏是祭司及被參巴拉、多比亞買通的一群間諜，想要害尼西米，1.謠傳私心，尼西米想要做王，百姓聽到多半不會去求證。仇敵邀請他去和談，同樣撒旦不可能與基督教講和 2.傳一封沒有密封的信，指出尼西米想要造反。人一定是害怕。所以尼西米禱告求神堅定他的手，當時他真的是軟弱了。求神讓他持續建造城牆！3.買通猶大貴冑示瑪雅引誘尼西米進入聖殿，打算抹黑尼西米，( 怎麼可以進入聖殿)。

城牆已經完成，門還沒有裝上，52天內完成建造，仇敵害怕。第三章合一的情形並沒有持續，後面幾章一一出現。內部特別很核心的祭司及貴冑早已被滲透了。

教會的合一，同樣可能是礙於情面的合一，可能是一時的感動。不能出於一時的熱心，出於血氣的感動很快就會消失！

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How?

Pray to the Lord "Now strengthen my hands"