On Completion of the Jerusalem Wall

“You also gave Your good Spirit to teach them, and did not withhold Your manna from their mouth, and gave them water for their thirst.” (Nehemiah 9:20)

Some background: Nehemiah was serving in Babylon as king Artaxerxes’ cup bearer. He had heard how the walls were broken in Jerusalem and the king allowed him to return to Jerusalem to repair them. After the wall was built Ezra, the prophet read the Law and about the Feast of Booths. The people confessed their sins with fasting, read the Law and worshipped recounting all the miracles God had performed for them from calling Abraham out of Ur of the Chaldees to their wandering in the desert. (Nehemiah1- 9:19)

Our Scripture of study is part of their worship. The Spirit of God had been given to Moses. But when the burden of the people was too much for him, God instructed him to appoint seventy leaders to help him with the people. “And I will come down and talk with you there. And I will take of the spirit on you, and will put it on them, and they shall bear the burden of the people with you so that you do not bear it yourself alone.” (Numbers 11:17) The Spirit of God caused them to prophesy. “And Jehovah came down in a cloud and spoke to him and took of the spirit on him and gave it to the seventy elders. And it happened when the Spirit rested upon them, they prophesied. But they never did so again.” (Numbers 11:25) Two of the seventy had stayed at the camp and were not with the others when they received the Spirit of God. But they received also and were prophesying in the camp. “And a young man ran and told Moses, and said, Eldad and Medad are prophesying in the camp. And Joshua the son of Nun, the servant of Moses, one of his young men, answered and said, My lord Moses, make them cease. And Moses said to him, Are you jealous for my sake? Would God that all Jehovah's people were prophets, that Jehovah would put His Spirit upon them!” (Numbers 11:27-29)

The gift of prophecy is one of the spiritual gifts of the Holy Spirit. “But he who prophesies speaks to men for building up, and exhortation, and comfort.’ (1Corinthians 14:3) When the disciples were gathered in the upper room and the Holy Spirit came upon them, they received the gift of prophecy. They ran outside and preached the Gospel to those celebrating the feast of Pentecost who had come from various nations speaking in the different languages so that all could understand what they were saying. (Acts 2: 1-47) Paul said he wished everyone prophesied or in other words preached the Word of God so that the church would be built up. “The one speaking in a tongue builds himself up, but he prophesying builds up a church. I wish all of you to speak in languages, but rather that you may prophesy; for greater is he prophesying than he speaking in tongues, unless he interprets so that the church may receive building up.”

(1Corinthians 14:4-5) Paul encourages the church to seek to prophesy. (1 Corinthians 14:39) So we can see by these Scriptures that the gift of prophecy has little to do with predicting the future, but with declaring the Truth of the Gospel. By this definition, preachers, teachers, pastors and evangelists have the gift of prophecy and are able to share the Gospel.

In the desert when the seventy received the Spirit of God they prophesied. But there was no Gospel of salvation at the time. What did they prophesy? In the Old Testament when they prophesied, the prophets related the Word of God, what God told them to say. Sometimes they were instructions, rebuke or predictions. Others when they prophesied, were inspired to speak or sing God’s Goodness.

In our Scripture of study, the worshippers were extoling God for His Goodness in their time in the wilderness. Their worship continues to the point where they make a covenant with the Lord. Can we do something similar to this today? I think that we do. When we worship the Lord and bring to remembrance all the miracles the Lord has worked in our behalf, including salvation, the miracle of a new life, new nature, etc... the Spirit of the Lord indwelling will anoint us in such a way that we will make promises to the Lord. That’s what a covenant is. It’s a promise to the Lord. We may say something to the effect that we will never sin in a certain manner or we will promise to do a certain thing. That is in effect making a covenant with the Lord. The Lord will be faithful to complete His part of the covenant, but sometimes we forget that we promised the Lord and do not fulfill our part of the covenant. This is serious. “When you vow a vow to God, do not wait to pay it. For He has no pleasure in fools. Pay that which you have vowed. it is better that you should not vow, than that you should vow and not pay.” (Ecclesiastes 5:4-5) Matthew wrote about what Jesus said about making promises to the Lord. “Again, you have heard that it has been said to the ancients, "You shall not swear falsely, but you shall perform your oaths to the Lord." But I say to you, Do not swear at all! Not by Heaven, because it is God's throne; not by the earth, for it is the footstool of His feet; not by Jerusalem, because it is the city of the great King; nor shall you swear by your head, because you cannot make one hair white or black. But let your word be, Yes, yes; No, no. For whatever is more than these comes from evil.” (Matthew 5:33-37) It’s better not to promise because we are forgetful and because we are human and will not be able to keep our promise. The Israelites were not able to keep any of their covenants with the Lord.

In short, the Spirit of the Lord on the Hebrews that Moses chose to help him with the people came upon them and they prophesied. Prophecy is a gift of the Holy Spirit and is the gift that enables one to share Gospel Truths. The people who were in Jerusalem were joyful for the completion of the wall and establishing the Law with the priests that they made a covenant with the Lord. But they were eventually unable to keep it. And if we make a promise to the Lord, it may be a desire in our heart to fulfill it, but we may very likely not fulfill it, so it’s best not to make any promises.