Nehemiah 5:6-8 When I heard their outcry and these charges, I was very angry. I pondered them in my mind and then accused the nobles and officials… and said: “As far as possible, we have bought back our fellow Jews who were sold to the Gentiles. Now you are selling your own people, only for them to be sold back to us!” They kept quiet, because they could find nothing to say.
Another ministry threat Nehemiah faced came from within the community of God’s people. Prior to this point their opposition was from people who had been in the area around Jerusalem.
So the Israelites worked day and night to rebuild the gates and walls. In daylight they labored to rebuild the walls. At night, they were standing guard against those who opposed their efforts to restore the security of the city. Because of this, many fewer men were able to work at providing for their families.
As a result of the daily work of rebuilding, families had to resort to selling or borrowing against their possessions and land. To ensure food to survive many sold their property to other Jews. Some borrowed against their possessions and paid interest on the value they borrowed. Others more desperate for food, placed family members into bond-servitude to wealthier Jews. In turn, these wealthy Jews would sell the Jewish bond-servants to the surrounding Gentile peoples for a profit. Once sold, the daily food and water provisions were being provided by fewer people and supplies were dwindling.
You can see the problem, can’t you? In difficult or desperate times we are to help, not hurt, one another. Legal rights, not just legal wrongs, can be deadly. The depths of their situation called for gifts to one another, not loans or enslavement. Nehemiah took the high road and rightfully brought the outrage to the leaders of the community who were guilt of this injustice.
Never forget the poverty that we have experienced as unbelievers. There was a day when legal rights ruled your day. God has enriched us with the knowledge and faith in his Son, Jesus Christ. Fellow believers are to be treated with a higher standard, God’s Word. The fellowship of believers, the Church, is to be treated as family, not opportunities for economic gain.
