A Man of Prayer

Nehemiah’s book is punctuated by prayer.

Prioritizing the things of God, it was his recourse in all kinds of situations.¹Prayer was a major exercise of Nehemiah for the four months from chapter 1 verse 1, ‘the month Chisleu’, to chapter 2 verse 1, ‘the month Nisan’. He was burdened by the desperate circumstances of the people of God and the conditions of the place where He had placed His name, Jerusalem. His prayers would have developed during this period as he sought to understand the Lord’s purpose and recognize the role that he was intended to fulfil. This prayer of faith is the culmination as he anticipated an opportunity for a significant development that lay before him - ‘prosper, I pray thee, thy servant this day, and grant him mercy in the sight of this man. For I was the king’s cupbearer’, v. 11.

The spirit and the structure of Nehemiah’s prayer are instructive for saints today, as we endeavour to ‘[continue] steadfastly in prayer’, Rom. 12. 12 NKJV.

Reverence, v. 5

The opening expression demonstrates appropriate submission and respect - ‘I beseech thee, O Lord [Jehovah] God of heaven’. Nehemiah was aware that he bowed at the footstool of earth, and his request was ascending to the self-existent, self-dependent God, who cannot be contained by even the heaven of heavens.²He acknowledged the magnitude of God’s power, ‘the great and terrible God’; fearsome indeed to His enemies, but awe-inspiring to them that are His. Nehemiah was conscious of Israel’s failure but was assured of God’s faithfulness to His promises - ‘that keepeth covenant and mercy for them that love him and observe his commandments’. He recognized that love and obedience were key to drawing on God’s pity.

The pattern prayer Jesus taught His disciples shows that it is fitting to approach God with reverence. It begins, ‘Our Father, which art in heaven, Hallowed be thy name’, Matt. 6. 9. However, our Lord conferred on us the privilege of approaching in His name. Our Father delights to glorify His Son by answering prayers that are offered in this way, John 14. 13, 14. What power is at our disposal, through the indwelling Spirit, when our desires are aligned with His! God ‘is able to do exceeding abundantly above all that we ask or think, according to the power that worketh in us’, Eph. 3. 20. Pity is also plenteous for those who, acknowledging the greatness of God, approach Him in a becoming manner. Psalm 103 verse 11 reads, ‘as the heaven is high above the earth, so great is his mercy toward them that fear him’. The higher we recognize Him to be, the further we appreciate our Lord descended to reach us. Praise God that His immense holiness is matched by His great compassion! Since Jesus, the Son of God has ‘passed into the heavens’, by His high-priestly service, we are now encouraged to ‘come boldly unto the throne of grace’. There we can readily ‘obtain mercy, and find grace to help in time of need’, Heb. 4. 14, 16.

Reverence should move us to obedience. Whilst it is the Lord’s prerogative to bless, a spirit submissive to His will and corresponding behaviour is conducive to answered prayer, ‘whatsoever we ask, we receive of him, because we keep his commandments, and do those things that are pleasing in his sight’, 1 John 3. 22.

Repentance, vv. 6, 7

Nehemiah called on God to witness that he was in earnest by the continuity of his prayers that were offered ‘day and night’. The repetition of the word ‘now’ conveys his sense of urgency, ‘Let thine ear now be attentive, and thine eyes open, that thou mayest hear the prayer … which I pray before thee now’.

Israel were God’s servants, but they had not fulfilled their duty. Nehemiah confessed that they had departed from His standards, acknowledging whom they had offended, ‘we have sinned against thee’.³ Nehemiah was not personally responsible for leading the nation into sin, but he identified himself with their failure, ‘both I and my father’s house have sinned’.

He also recognized the severity of their position, ‘We have dealt very corruptly against thee’, and confessed the many ways they had broken the covenant, referring to ‘commandments … statutes’ and ‘judgments’ they had not kept. Commandments refer to explicit instructions that had been given; amongst others, such precepts are found in Exodus chapter 20. Statutes were practices they were responsible for observing - prescribed duties, including those that pertained to God’s dwelling place. Exodus chapter 21 commences, ‘Now these are the judgments’, establishing principles by which a correct course of action might be discerned. One such principle was raised by Paul, ‘it is written in the law of Moses, Thou shalt not muzzle the mouth of the ox that treadeth out the corn’, 1 Cor. 9. 9. He explained that it was not just about cattle but was written to teach that work should be rewarded.⁴

Whilst the behaviour of a former generation may bring consequences for those that follow, Ezekiel chapter 18 shows each to be answerable for their own sin and not another’s.⁵The kings of Judah and Israel were held to the divine standard, and a blot was recorded against those that continued in the sins of their fathers.⁶ We are not accountable for inherited conditions, but we are responsible for our own adherence to God’s word. In the New Testament, we find precepts, practices and principles that should govern personal and assembly life. Our desire should be to follow them, for Jesus said, ‘If ye love me, keep my commandments’, John 14. 15. If we discover that we have departed from them, it is proper to address these sincerely in the presence of God, repenting and returning to His ways.

Remembrance, vv. 8, 9

Since the nation had rebelled against God, the people’s sad circumstances, and those of the land, were to be expected, according to the word of the Lord. In Leviticus chapter 26, He had said, ‘if ye walk contrary unto me, and will not hearken unto me … I will bring the land into desolation … I will scatter you among the heathen’, vv. 21-33; see also Deut. 28. 64. Aware that the Lord had been faithful to His word, Nehemiah also knew that, in keeping with His unchanging character, the Lord was ready to fulfil its counterpart, ‘If they shall confess … then will I remember my covenant’, Lev. 26. 40, 42; I ‘will turn thy captivity’, Deut. 30. 3. He may have been familiar with these scriptures, but by personal, prayerful remembrance of them over these months, the path to restoration was apparent. So, having confessed Israel’s sin, Nehemiah remembered God’s word before Him, confident that His request was according to the will of God, cp. Exod. 32. 13.

It is important to give attention to scripture at all times, whether good or bad. Though we may have read them before, doing so again in different circumstances offers new perspective. The Lord will give fresh understanding and set out the course ahead. This is in keeping with Psalm 119 verse 105, ‘Thy word is a lamp unto my feet, and a light unto my path’. As we learn the will of God and seek to fulfil His desire, we too may ask Him to fulfil His word. Knowing that our petition is according to the word of God will give us confidence in His presence.

Request, vv. 10, 11

As Nehemiah began to frame his request, a common thread can be seen running through verse 10 that shows He sought the will of the Lord. Five times over, the words ‘thy’ and ‘thou’ occur - ‘these are thy servants and thy people, whom thou hast redeemed by thy great power, and by thy strong hand’.

God had not abandoned the people whom He had redeemed, and with whom He had entered into covenant relationship. His desire was to regather them and restore them to the land.

Nehemiah concluded with a specific request in view of an opportunity he anticipated. He hoped to be released from his responsibility as the king’s cupbearer to further the work of the Lord in Jerusalem. Standing before the king in Nehemiah chapter 2, he would use deferential language, ‘Let the king live for ever’, v. 3, but in prayer, he recognized that in God’s sight, the king was just a ‘man’. Addressing God as ‘Lord [adonay]’, he sought the Lord’s sovereign power to move the heart of the king. After all, ‘The king’s heart is in the hand of the Lord, as the rivers of water: he turneth it whithersoever he will’, Prov. 21. 1.

Bought with the precious blood of God’s own Son, we are His by redemptive right. Indwelt by the Spirit of God, our body is His temple, and we are enjoined to render to Him what is His, ‘ye are bought with a price: therefore glorify God in your body, and in your spirit’, 1 Cor. 6. 20.

Following the example of Nehemiah, may we endeavour to lay hold on the Lord desiring to understand His will, and seek opportunities to bring honour to His name, and for the furtherance of the Lord’s work. Depending on the Lord for blessing, we may share the experience of Jacob. Clinging to the Lord for blessing, his name was changed to Israel, ‘for as a prince hast thou power with God and with men, and hast prevailed’, Gen 32. 28.

Let us therefore be people with an exercise for prayer, making it our recourse in all situations of life, being ‘careful for nothing; but in every thing by prayer and supplication with thanksgiving let … [our] requests be made known unto God’, Phil. 4. 6.