Nehemiah 10:28–39

Explore the Bible 
Dean, School of Christian Ministries, University of Mobile

Commit Your Way to the Lord

Nehemiah 10:28–39

When Ezra read the Torah to the people of post-exilic Jerusalem their immediate response was brokenness, bitter tears and religious fervor (Neh. 8). Those who had been entrusted by God with civil, noble and spiritual leadership led the people who understood the Law and repented of their sins to make a public confession (Neh. 9) followed by this public commitment. This culture had great respect for those in authority and decisions were made for the group rather than the individual. This joint commitment — under the authority of leaders, Levites and priests — was a first step in corporate repentance. To fail in fulfilling their commitment was to bring shame to the people of Judah.

As we consider the promises made in this week’s passage let us keep two items in mind: first, their promises had been revealed by God in the Torah nearly a millennium before and second, their commitment to God was sincere, for a time.

Commitment Made (28–29)

Who made the commitment to follow Yahweh and order their actions after His Torah? Everyone old enough to understand that they had broken God’s Law. Nobles and common folk, old and young, rich and poor had been called to repent. Those who did repent joined the group who promised allegiance to the Law. Note this: Not everyone who heard the Law of Moses repented.

Holiness Sought (30)

In Leviticus 11:44 Yahweh calls His people to holy living, separate from the Canaanites who were living in the Promised Land. Their call to holiness included abstinence from numerous sexual activities which the land’s inhabitants practiced in their fertility rites during worship of Baal and Asherah (Lev. 18:1–30). The Torah clearly forbade marriage of polytheistic Gentiles (Deut. 7:1–6), explaining that “they will turn your sons away from Me to worship other gods” (7:4). After hearing the public reading of the Law by Ezra (Neh. 8), the people were committing to honor the Torah and remain separate from the unbelieving people groups who surrounded Jerusalem.

Unless this verse is read in historical context some might claim that the Jews were practicing racism. The issue here, however, is not about race or ethnicity. Instead, it is a matter of faith. Jews who believed Yahweh to be God of heaven and earth had divorced their Jewish wives to marry unbelieving Gentile women. The “surrounding peoples” mentioned in this verse were remnants of polytheistic peoples who, though they had been exposed to the teaching of the one true God, rejected His authority and created gods in their own image, including Ammonites, Arabs and Philistines.

Worship Pledged (31–39)

We promise. “We promise to keep the Sabbath and observe the Sabbath year in our fields and in our debt cancellation. We promise to pay temple tax and annual offerings. We promise to bring wood for sacrifices when it is our turn. We promise to bring first fruits from our fields and trees, first fruits from our flocks and herds and a tenth of all our harvest and new livestock. We, the Levites, promise to gather a tenth of the tithe into the storerooms and we promise not to neglect caring for the temple. We promise to do what our God has already required us to do according to His Torah. We are the leaders of Jerusalem and we approve of this message.”

In their study materials for the Multiply Movement, Francis Chan and David Platt discuss how religious fervor following a challenging message differs from discipleship. Pastors and leaders get excited when decisions are made, when altars are full and when eyes are full of tears. But how long do the emotions linger? Read Nehemiah 13 to discover what happened in Jerusalem. Are you committed for the long haul? Time will tell.