by Michael G. Mickey
(12-1-07)

In Nehemiah 3, a detailed description is provided of Nehemiah and his fellow Israelites rebuilding an area of Jerusalem that had been torn down by the Babylonians.

In Nehemiah 4, we read of people mocking them for trying to make the needed repairs, discouraging their efforts and plotting against them at every turn - to the extent that half of those working with Nehemiah had to stand watch at all times lest their enemies come upon them and slay them in a surprise attack! But a funny thing happened on the way to Israel's enemies winning a victory against them.

In response to Nehemiah's prayers to God for Him to intervene so his work could be completed, God gave those in alliance with Nehemiah "a mind to work" - a determination to succeed in the face of adversity! (Nehemiah 4:6)

We find the prayers of Nehemiah being offered up in Nehemiah 4:4-5:

Hear, O our God; for we are despised: and turn their reproach upon their own head, and give them for a prey in the land of captivity:

And cover not their iniquity, and let not their sin be blotted out from before thee: for they have provoked thee to anger before the builders.

Those prayers offered up by Nehemiah? Not only were his cries to God in relation to fighting his battles for him answered by the Lord as referred to earlier, Nehemiah's faithfulness in staying the course against great odds in obedience to his calling may be bearing fruit even today by proving the accuracy of the Word of God as a historical document, lending further credence to its reliability in predicting future prophesied events as well!

Why do I say that? Because Nehemiah's wall-building has long been discredited as factual by many who stand in opposition to the literal truth contained in the Word of God. "Where is Nehemiah's work?" many have asked.

I don't know how many of you have noticed but lately it seems that every time somehow drops a shovel into dirt in the area of Jerusalem, it comes out with a piece of something attached to it that leads to further investigation - and, ultimately, confirmation of ancient biblical text! Yes, our Lord is revealing Himself through these things.

So Nehemiah faithfully built a wall with the blessing of the Lord. And now, guess what?

Fox News is reporting, in part, that "a wall mentioned in the Bible's Book of Nehemiah and long sought by archaeologists apparently has been found, an Israeli archaeologist says."

Eilat Mazar, head of the Institute of Archaeology at the Shalem Center, a Jerusalem-based research and educational institute, is quoted in the article as saying the latest findings "suggest that the structure was actually part of the same city wall the Bible says Nehemiah rebuilt."

Ephraim Stern, professor emeritus of archaeology at Hebrew University and chairman of the state of Israel archaeological council, is offering support for Mazar's claims after reviewing evidence of her find, stating,"I can sign on the date of the material she found."

In fairness to the Fox News article's complete content, there is a dissenting voice noted in it but what else is new, right? As for me, if Mazar was digging where Nehemiah's wall was supposed to have been located and found materials she and other renowned experts can place in Nehemiah's time period, I believe she has found exactly what she believes she has --- a wall that was built by Nehemiah.

Ironically, in what is demonstrative of how God works if this is accurate, Mazar wasn't digging to find Nehemiah's wall when she did. In what is probably the greatest aspect of the whole story, the article states that Mazar's find came at a time "when many scholars argued that the wall did not exist."

It also comes at a time when more and more people are oblivious to the signs around them pointing to the return of Jesus Christ potentially coming in the not-too-distant future.

Keep watch, Christians!