Starting from the east corner of the north wall, nehemiah went counterclockwise. Live it well is a call to stewardship born from being a follower of jesus. Ten gates to spiritual growth nehemiah 3b faithlife sermons. In the book of nehemiah, after gods people rebuilt the wall around the city of god, they gathered at the water gate to hear ezra, the priest and scribe, read the law aloud. Nehemiah, one of israels great leaders, tells firsthand the powerful story of the rebuilding of ancient jerusalems walls after the exile.
This is the gate nehemiah used when he entered jerusalem for the first time to assess the damage. Finally, in the days of nehemiah, work on the walls and city gates was started, and nehemiah saw the success of his efforts when jerusalems walls were consecrated with music and singing neh. It represents the word of god, and its no coincidence that this is the site where ezra opened the book of the law of moses nehemiah 8. Chapter 3 of nehemiah contains the record of the rebuilding of the gates in the wall around jerusalem. Information and translations of book of nehemiah in the most comprehensive dictionary definitions resource on the web. The next two months will determine the direction of our church. Each is a symbol representing an aspect of our christian walk. Nehemiah appointed levitical singers and porters, whose work was usually that of caring for the temple and the gates of its courts, to help stand guard at the city gates while they stand by, let them shut the doors, and bar them, verse 3. Ezra read the law of god before the people in an assembly by the water gate 8. What wasis the importance of the gates of jerusalem. The spiritual meaning of the gates of jerusalem nehemiah 3.
They consecrated it as far as the tower of the hundred, as far as the tower of. The gates of jerusalem in nehemiahs day israel my glory. The gates of salvationnehemiah 3 university baptist church. As we compass the walls of jerusalem, each gate instructs. Now ultimately these gates are what you would see in the book of. This account is contained in the book of nehemiah, a book which. But the fish gate that stood toward the sea, and let in fishermen, as the men of tyre, nehemiah. All that we know about him from contemporary sources is found in this book. Book of nehemiah an old testament book telling how a jewish official at the court of artaxerxes i in 444 bc became a leader in rebuilding. And so we come to the gates and walls of jerusalem and listen to their paean of praise, lift up your heads, o ye gates. The valley gate is the modern gate of the city leading to the valley of gihon, and situated at or near the present jaffa gate. Let us briefly consider some practical applications of the gates i n nehemiah. Nehemiah, the son of hacaliah, is the jewish patriot whose life is recorded in the biblical work named after him.
This is a spiritual meaning, because of salvation and gods kingdom a man will enter through the offering and blood of the lamb the lord jesus. Book of nehemiah definition of book of nehemiah by the free. Jan 20, 2018 the book of nehemiah opens with the account of nehemiah receiving a report about jerusalems distress. The wall of jerusalem according to the book of nehemiah jstor. Nehemiah viewed the damage to the walls from the valley, which is what we often do on a spiritual level. The spirit of god describes the days of recovery in the book of nehemiah for our exhortation and. On the other hand, this book is considered by some as that of construction. Nehemiah is the central figure of the book of nehemiah, which describes his work in rebuilding jerusalem during the second temple period. Nehemiah 1 bible study the christians life and warfare. Let us briefly consider some practical applications of the gates i n nehemiah 3. Nehemiah, in the wisdom that god gave him, set each of them to work building whatever part of the wall was nearest to each of their own houses so that they were personally involved in the work. Nehemiah is the cupbearer to artaxerxes, king of persia.
The sheep gate represents the starting point for every believer. Jesus was the lamb of god that takes away the sins of the world. Jerusalems gates spiritual meaning the western wall bible. And he goes to the king after weeping over the city, and asks the king for a mandate to rebuild whats been left in ruins. Only the gates of jerusalem in the book of nehemiah are prophetic of the zrebuilding i. In the hebrew bible the book of nehemiah comfort of jah forms a unity with the preceding book of ezra compare with the notes on ezra. It was a gate of registry, the principle of judgment in the gate throne. The spiritual meaning of the gate miphkad means the place, where is presence of god and his forgiveness by the blood and offering of the lord jesus. The power in the watergate sermon by philip harrelson. The walls and gates continue as the chaldeans left them after their conquest of the city, the jews not being in a.
The walls and the gates of jerusalem were still destroyed. Everybody could play a part priests, leaders, craftsmen, jews from other cities. Bower takes us through the gates of jerusalem as is told in nehemiah chapter 3. Ten gates are mentioned in chapter 3, and their names are significant. Nehemiah 19 niv nehemiahs prayer the words of bible. Everything begins with the offering of the lamb of god. In nehemiah chapter 3, we find that the gate, situated between the water gate verse 26 and the east gate verse 29, is the horse gate verse 28. Then eliashib the high priest rose up with his brothers the priests, and they built the sheep gate. Nehemiah chapter 3 the gates of spiritual progression.
It is located near the pool of siloam where jesus later healed a blind man. The spiritual meaning of the gates of jerusalem nehemiah. The rest of the chapter describes how they went about building. The first gate is the sheep gate and, next to it, the tower of hananel which means gods mercy and the tower of the meah which means one hundred. The order of the gates in the book of nehemiah includes also exemplary dimensions. Nehemiah was one of the most underrated heroes in the bible, cupbearer to the powerful persian king artaxerxes i longimanus. Chapters available nehemiah thru the bible with dr. The location of this gate is well known at the southwestern corner of the city. It was called the sheep gate because it was the entrance for sheep entering into the temple compound from the sheep markets where lambs. Nehemiah meets the task in chapter three of the book of nehemiah, nehemiah and. Nehemiah chapter 3, in nehemiahrebuilding the walls of jerusalem. Nehemiah is governor of jerusalem from for 14 years, from 444 b. In the month of kislev in the twentieth year, while i was in the citadel of susa, 2 hanani, one of my brothers, came from judah with some other men, and i questioned them about the jewish remnant that had survived the exile, and also about jerusalem. The book of nehemiah can therefore have been composed up to around 400 bc.
The message of nehemiah the bible speaks today series. Pdf jerusalems gates and towers in the book of nehemiah. Nehemiah is the only book in the bible where it is called the old gate and it may have been one of the original gates made. Mar 22, 2008 the water gate was located at the beginning of hezekiahs tunnel and the spring of gihon. They said, the remnant that are left in the province in judea, which was now made a province under the persian kings. People would bring their lambs and sheep to the temple for the sacrifices through this gate. The book of nehemiah, in the hebrew bible, largely takes the form of a firstperson memoir concerning the rebuilding of the walls of jerusalem after the babylonian exile by nehemiah, a jew who is a high official at the persian court, and the dedication of the city and its people to gods laws.
Once nehemiah announced his plan to rebuild the wall, the work began. Nehemiahs task was enormous, especially under the adverse conditions he encountered. They built it, hung its doors with its bolts and bars, and repaired a thousand cubits of the wall as far as the refuse gate. I went on to the gate of the fountain that is, which led to the fountain, to wit, of siloah or gihon. Lastly, there is the famous nehemiah, son of hacaliah, and author of the book that carries his name nehemiah 1. In the month of kislev in the twentieth year, while i was in the citadel of susa, 2 hanani, one of my brothers, came from judah with some other men, and i questioned them about the jewish remnant that had survived the exile, and also about jerusalem 3 they said to me, those who survived the exile and are back in the province. The book of nehemiah has been chosen because the recurrence of the gates and towers names, on the one hand.
Although the books bear different names they follow each other without paragraph and the numeration of the masorah is listed at the end of nehemiah for both books. That is the gate to which they brought the sheep into jerusalem to be sacrificed in the temple. The book of nehemiah was written by, wait for it, nehemiah, between 445425 bc. Spiritual gates the hidden meaning of the 12 gates of jerusalem 1. The dictionary defines a gate as a movable structure controlling entrance or exit through an opening in a fence or wall or any means of entrance. When the wall was rebuilt, it probably encompassed the same area as before, except it may have excluded the kings gardens in the southeast.
These gates reflect the restoration of kingdom principles in the lives of gods people d. Along side ezra, it records the fulfilment of gods promise to restore israel to her land after the 70year exile in babylon. There was no place for the beast that was under me to pass. Nehemiah 3 the gates of jerusalem walk with the word. So nehemiah s first stay lasted from 445 to 433 bc and the second stay probably followed soon after.
He was governor of persian judea under artaxerxes i of persia 465424 bc. One nehemiah returned to jerusalem with zerubbabel in the early wave ezra 2. It had been years since the people of god heard the living word, and after reverently listening, they began to weep and repent. This leads us to a life of meaning and purpose as we experience god in the work he is doing.
Both nehemiah and ezra were present at the same time during the reading of the law nehemiah 8. This rebuilding, in the face of great odds, represented the peoples renewal of faith, their overcoming of national shame and the reforming of their conduct. The meaning of the ten gates of jerusalem sheep gate vs 1,32 the very first gate mentioned is the sheep gate. The gate was named fountain gate as it was the primary access to the fountain, the gihon spring, from which the city of jerusalem received its supply of fresh, clean water. This teaching is going to help you to improve your relationship with god information officeplease call only. Nehemiah cared deeply about the physical and spiritual wellbeing of his people, and god used nehemiah to protect and lead the jewish people in jerusalem. The valley gate is where nehemiah began his nocturnal investigation of the ruins of the city. We need to wash daily in the word to prepare us for the trials and tests we will encounter. It all centered on the ten gates of the city of jerusalem. Thus, restoring the gates was a necessary element in rebuilding the walls and securing the city. Building of the wall and gates begins from the sheep gate in nehemiah 3, because everything begins from the offering of the lamb the lord jesus. That is the proper name for the fourchambered gate discovered by eilat and benjamin mazar. The sheep gate is the 1st gate mentioned in nehemiah 3. There were 42 groups of people working on specific areas of the wall.
I went out by night by the gate of the valleythat is, the jaffa gate, near the tower of hippicus. Ten gates were restored in all, and we will consider the meaning of each. They were forever noted in nehemiah s book for the lack of help. It was called the sheep gate because this was the gate which the sheep and lambs used in the sacrifice were bought through. Focus on the gates generates the greatest excitement. And to the kings pool that which king hezekiah had made, of which see 2 chronicles 32. The fountain gate was the one most in ruins when nehemiah first examined the wall.
The names and locations of the ancient gates should not be difficult to figure out because the name and location of each gate is precisely identified by nehemiah as he describes the repair of the wall and gates. Introduction the spirit of god describes the days of recovery in the book of nehemiah for our exhortation and encouragement. The gates were the critical entry and exit points to the. Nehemiah s task was enormous, especially under the. At the end of the third day, accompanied with a few attendants, he made, under covert of night, a secret survey of the walls and gates nehemiah 2. Apr 06, 2019 the book of nehemiah is the last of the historical books of the bible, originally part of the book of ezra, but split off into its own volume by the church in 1448. Finally it was opened then sealed again by suleiman the magnificent, in 1541 and has remained. The valley was located in the west, quite a ways south of the old gate. Nothing is known of nehemiah except what is written in the book bearing his name. Since the 16th century it has generally been treated as a separate book within the bible. When you lift the lid and look a little deeper you find that god has hidden within those gates. Nehemiah comes and he sees the devastation, a terrible devastation.
Nehemiah meets the task in chapter three of the book of nehemiah, nehemiah and his helpers have undertaken to. Instead of shrugging it off, nehemiah weeps for his people and cries out to god for mercy. The work is described in reference to the gates of the wall. But theres a spiritual meaning to whats been left in ruins when he rebuilds the gates. The meaning of the gates of jerusalem the gate of the city is the entrance into a city.
There were 10 gates mentioned in the rebuilding of the walls. How wonderfully these gates portray the work of christ for and in the believer. Nehemiahthe man behind the wall biblical archaeology society. After this nehemiah undertook a second journey to jerusalem nehemiah. The most menial work in the kingdom of god is better than any earthly wage. However, there is yet another important feature of this time of return and revival. This group of nobles is a negative example of just how not to be.
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