Rebuilding the Broken

Daily Scripture Readings

Monday          II Kings 25:1-7

Tuesday         II Kings 25:8-21

Wednesday   II Kings 25:22-26

Thursday       II Kings 25:27-30

Friday             Jeremiah 29:1-14

Saturday        Nehemiah 1:4-11       

Opening Prayer

Lord Jesus, give us eyes to see the hurting and broken people around us.

In Jesus’ name,  AMEN

READING:

What do we need to know as we begin to read Nehemiah? Here’s the big picture in a few very basic bullet points:

• Israel transitioned from a tribal confederation led by prophets to a unified kingdom led by kings Saul, David, and Solomon. (1-2 Samuel, 1 Kings)

• Israel is divided into Northen and Southern kingdoms, marked mostly (though not exclusively) by disobedience, bad kings, and idolatry. (1-2 Kings)

• Israel was in exile from their homeland for seventy years. (Daniel, Jeremiah, etc)

• Some exiles allowed to return and rebuild Jerusalem, both spiritually and physically. (Ezra-Nehemiah)

• The exile begins at the end of 2 Kings when Babylon comes and conquers them.

• 20 Nebuzaradan the commander took them all and brought them to the king of Babylon at Riblah. 21 There at Riblah, in the land of Hamath, the king had them executed.

• So Judah went into captivity, away from her land.

The book of Nehemiah is part of the story about some of the Israelites’ return to Jerusalem to restore its physical structures and reestablish a faithful presence there.

One thing I observe as we look at these verses that provide setting is that Nehemiah and the other men he refers to have retained their love for God and longing for their people’s restoration. This is in the face of decades of estrangement from their land. To their great credit, they have maintained their identity and self-understanding as the people of God.

https://seedsoffaith.substack.com/p/seeds-for-08262024-nehemiah-11-2