Story of Nehemiah Chapter 6

Nehemiah started out as the king’s cupbearer, serving faithfully in the palace. Back in chapter 2, the king noticed Nehemiah was sad and asked him why. Nehemiah explained that his home city, Jerusalem, was in ruins, the walls were broken down and the gates were burned. The king had compassion and gave Nehemiah permission, resources, and authority to rebuild the walls. From there, Nehemiah became the leader of the rebuilding project.

By the time we get to chapter 6, the wall was almost complete. Only the gates needed to be set in place. That’s when the enemy tried their hardest to stop the work. Sanballat, Tobiah, Geshem, and the rest of their enemies began to plot against Nehemiah.

First, they sent a message inviting him to meet on the plain of Ono. But Nehemiah realized it was a trap, they intended to harm him. Four times they asked him to come down from the work, and four times he gave the same answer: “I am doing a great work, so that I cannot come down.”

When distraction didn’t work, they tried slander. Sanballat sent an open letter accusing Nehemiah of rebelling against the king and claiming he wanted to make himself king over Judah. The whole goal was to spread fear and discredit him in the eyes of the people. But Nehemiah didn’t waste time arguing. He simply prayed, “Now, O God, strengthen my hands.”

Then the enemy tried deception. A man named Shemaiah pretended to be a prophet and told Nehemiah, “They’re coming to kill you at night, let’s go hide inside the temple and shut the doors.” But Nehemiah discerned the lie. If he had gone into the temple, he would have broken God’s law and lost credibility as a leader. He refused and stayed on the wall.

Finally, in just 52 days, the wall was completed. When the enemies heard the news, they were astonished. They realized it could never have been done without the help of God.

Lesson for Us Today:

This chapter shows us how the enemy works. When you’re doing something great for God, expect distractions. Expect lies. Expect intimidation. Expect even false prophets trying to twist things in the name of religion. But like Nehemiah, stay focused. Keep building. Don’t come down from the wall.

Nehemiah prayed for strength, and God gave it. The same God is with us today. The Bible says in 2 Timothy 1:7, “God has not given us a spirit of fear, but of power, and of love, and of a sound mind.”

So remember this: God will never speak fear into your life. Fear is not from Him. He speaks faith. He speaks courage. He speaks life—just like David when he faced Goliath, saying, “You come against me with sword and spear, but I come against you in the name of the Lord.”

As children of God, we are not victims of fear. We are a royal priesthood, the head and not the tail. So when the enemy tries to distract you, when he tries to slander you, when he tries to intimidate you, just remember Nehemiah’s words: “I am doing a great work, and I cannot come down.”