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ehemiah built the city walls and erected the gates of
Jerusalem. He made the place secure, but there were still very few people
inhabiting the city (Nehemiah 7:4).
Nehemiah discovered a list of the Jews who had been in Jerusalem during
the days of Zerubbabel. Apparently, he intended to work on finding them
(or their children) to repopulate the Holy City. There was plenty of property.
There were rulers in place to keep the peace (Nehemiah 7:2). As I said, the walls and
gates were erected.
And, a schedule
to open and close the
city had been established (Nehemiah 7:3). But, without people to fill
it, Jerusalem wasn't yet what it was meant to
be.
Now, as you read the genealogy which Nehemiah found,
you will find that it is slightly
different than the one in Ezra 2. It is similar enough
to make us assume that they have a common source, but different enough to make
us pause and consider what the differences must mean. At the very least we
should conclude that we have 2 different lists which were compiled by 2
different census takers at 2 different points and places. One commentator
explains it by the claim that the list in Ezra 2 was compiled in Babylon when
the first journey to Jerusalem commenced, while the list in Nehemiah 7 was made
in Jerusalem some time later after the people had settled into the land. The
passage of time and the addition and subtraction of individuals along the way is perhaps a sufficient explanation to satisfy
the curiosity of a believing mind. Naturally, there is no explanation which
would be sufficient to satiate an unbelieving mind.
Anyway, Nehemiah
was led by God to call roll to promote
growth in Jerusalem (Nehemiah 7:5).
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