The Yale expositor., 1911-11-23
PRAYER OF
NEHEMIAH
Sunday School Lesson for Nov. &c, 1911
Specially Arranged for This Paper
LESSON TEXT-Nehemiah /.
NIIgNAnDU

| GOLDEN TEXT-"The enectual, fer
vent prayer OF n righteous man availeth
much."-Jas. SIG.
| TIME-Thrteen years after the Return
of the Exiles under Ezra (our last les
| SOM. Nehemiah's prayer, Il. &. 445 No
vember, December. He went to Jeru-
salem the next spring, B. G. 4i4.
| PLACE-Shushan, or Susa, one OF the
three capitals OF the Persian Empire at
| tho time of this lesson. 1t is now called
Sus, in southwest Persia. The ancient
city has been excavated and various in
scriptions and remains of buildings have
been brought to light.
| RULERS-ArtaxerXes, called Longima-
nus Cor long-handed), began to reign r.
G. 465; reigned till Dec IL 423 Athens
came under Pericles (44D. Military trib-
unes I'm Rome (44D
JEWISH MISREPRESENTATION who
became governor of Judea. Ezra the
scribe had returned to Babylon. Malachi,
the last prophet Of the Old Testament,
must have been living at this time.
Ezra's home was In Babylon, Nehe-
miah's in Shushan, $50 miles further
east. with fewer persons of his own
nationality, and farther away from
news of what was going on in Jerusa-
lem. 1t is this separation of homes
that explains why there was so little
working together of these two men,
till both had been at Jerusalem.
| Nehemiah was walking one day out
side the walls of Shushan, so Jose
plus tells us, when some strangers,
making for the city, travel-worn as if
by long journey, were overheard by
him discoursing in his own language,
the Hebrew. Nothing touches the
heart in a strange land more than
ones mother tongue. He went up to
them, therefore, and, introducing him.
self, found they were from Judah, and
one was his own brother, Hanani.
Naturally Nehemiah asked them
about the state Of things in Judea.
He learned that Ezra's reforms in re-
lation to marriages with the heather,
made the surrounding nations very
bitter. The leaders on both sides
were many OF them allied by mar
riage, and for the Jews to repudiate
| their foreign wives, as if claiming to
be so much better than their neigh
bors, must have Infatuated them. 1t
struck the divorced women as a cruel
and insulting outrage. Driven back
to their paternal homes with their
burning wrongs, these poor women
must have aroused the utmost indig.
nation among their people. Thus the
reformer had stirred up hornets
nest.
Nehemiah was true patriot. He
was deeply religious man, man of
prayer and conservation, God-fearing,
true to his convictions. He showed
remarkable wisdom and shrewdness.
If any fault is recorded of Nehe-
miah, it is one which he himself re-
veals, fault that for a long time pre-.
vented Alexander Whyte from loving
him-"and, worst of all, l thought
him a man who was always we'll
pleased with himself"
Max Muller, in his autobiography,
says that the story of man, which
leaves out his faults, is like a picture
deficient in shadows, and fails to
bring out the bright points Of his
| character. I'VE want to know his
faults-that is probably the most in
teresting part of him." certainly often
very helpful.
Charles Reade calls him: Faithful
courtier, yet true patriot; child of
luxury, yet patient of hardship; in
ventive builder, impromptu general,
astute politician, high-spirited gentle
man, inspired orator, resolute reform
err; born leader of men yet humble be-
fore God"
The first thing, the absolutely nee.
essary thing, for Nehemiah was to
find divine help, wisdom, guidance, for
himself, and the source of power over
the kings mind. For this he prayed
10 the only being WHO could answer
his prayer, and he kept Gil praying for
four months, while the double answer
was being prepared-in himself that
he, by deep thought, and new light
and divine wisdom, might be fitted to
receive the answer, and in the king
that he might be inclined to do his
part toward the answer.
That for which Nehemiah prayed
was like the first petitions in the
Lords prayer, Thy kingdom come"
For his prayer was not for merely q
few people and the city that were in
danger. but for the kingdom of God
on earth. The condition Of things at
Jerusalem was dishonor to Jehovah
and to his religion.
His prayer had been so far answered
that he knew what he had to do, and
that the time had come for doing it.
His prayer now at the end of four
months, was for guidance and help
and success in this crisis.
The answer came through and in
the man who prayed. So Jesus babe
his disciples to pray for more labor
ers to gather in the spiritual harvest. |
The answer came through their own |
work in that harvest field. Il came |
also in their being better laborers,
wiser, more earnest, more self-deny |
ing, more skilful. In all sincere pray. |
er one must be willing to do his part |
toward the answer
The answer was coming during all |
this time of delay. The answers are |
often long preparing. AS one prays