The Bible In Paintings, #162: THE JEWS RETURN FROM BABYLON TO ISRAEL, Part 3

Bing Images ^ | c.2200 BC - c.95 AD | by the Father, Son & Holy Spirit

[Hebrews 11:6]

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NEHEMIAH

REBUILDS

JERUSALEM'S

WALL

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N E H E M I A H
2 – 1 3
New International Version, emphases added
Abrdgd: the complete text is in your Bible


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C L I C K :

To read Nehemiah 2-13 in full
To hear MAX McLEAN reading it
To hear a DRAMATIZATION of it
HIGHLY recommended by Maudeen!
To watch an ANIMATION of Nehemiah

5 3 7
5 2 0
B. C.

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CHAPTER 2

11 I went to Jerusalem, and after staying there three days 12 I set out during the night with a few others. I had not told anyone what my God had put in my heart to do for Jerusalem. There were no mounts with me except the one I was riding on.

13 By night I went out through the Valley Gate toward the Jackal Well and the Dung Gate, examining the walls of Jerusalem, which had been broken down, and its gates, which had been destroyed by fire. 14 Then I moved on toward the Fountain Gate and the King’s Pool, but there was not enough room for my mount to get through; 15 so I went up the valley by night, examining the wall. Finally, I turned back and reentered through the Valley Gate. 16 The officials did not know where I had gone or what I was doing, because as yet I had said nothing to the Jews or the priests or nobles or officials or any others who would be doing the work.

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by GUSTAVE DORÉ
"Nehemiah Views the Ruins of Jerusalem's Walls"

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17 Then I said to them, “You see the trouble we are in: Jerusalem lies in ruins, and its gates have been burned with fire. Come, let us rebuild the wall of Jerusalem, and we will no longer be in disgrace.” 18 I also told them about the gracious hand of my God on me and what the king had said to me.

They replied, “Let us start rebuilding.” So they began this good work.

19 But when Sanballat the Horonite, Tobiah the Ammonite official and Geshem the Arab heard about it, they mocked and ridiculed us. “What is this you are doing?” they asked. “Are you rebelling against the king?”

20 I answered them by saying, “The God of heaven will give us success. We his servants will start rebuilding, but as for you, you have no share in Jerusalem or any claim or historic right to it.”

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CHAPTER 3

1 …rebuilt the Sheep Gate.

3 The Fish Gate was rebuilt…

6 The Jeshanah Gate was repaired…

13 The Valley Gate was repaired…

14 The Dung Gate was repaired… [What a relief!]

15 The Fountain Gate was repaired…

28 Above the Horse Gate, the priests made repairs…

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CHAPTER 4

6 So we rebuilt the wall till all of it reached half its height, for the people worked with all their heart.

7 But when Sanballat, Tobiah, the Arabs, the Ammonites and the people of Ashdod heard that the repairs to Jerusalem’s walls had gone ahead and that the gaps were being closed, they were very angry. 8 They all plotted together to come and fight against Jerusalem and stir up trouble against it. 9 But we prayed to our God and posted a guard day and night to meet this threat.

11 Also our enemies said, “Before they know it or see us, we will be right there among them and will kill them and put an end to the work.”

12 Then the Jews who lived near them came and told us ten times over, “Wherever you turn, they will attack us.”

13 Therefore I stationed some of the people behind the lowest points of the wall at the exposed places, posting them by families, with their swords, spears and bows. 14 After I looked things over, I stood up and said to the nobles, the officials and the rest of the people, “Don’t be afraid of them. Remember the Lord, who is great and awesome, and fight for your families, your sons and your daughters, your wives and your homes.”

15 When our enemies heard that we were aware of their plot and that God had frustrated it, we all returned to the wall, each to our own work.

16 From that day on, half of my men did the work, while the other half were equipped with spears, shields, bows and armor. The officers posted themselves behind all the people of Judah 17 who were building the wall. Those who carried materials did their work with one hand and held a weapon in the other, 18 and each of the builders wore his sword at his side as he worked. But the man who sounded the trumpet stayed with me.

19 Then I said to the nobles, the officials and the rest of the people, “The work is extensive and spread out, and we are widely separated from each other along the wall. 20 Wherever you hear the sound of the trumpet, join us there. Our God will fight for us!”

21 So we continued the work with half the men holding spears, from the first light of dawn till the stars came out. 22 At that time I also said to the people, “Have every man and his helper stay inside Jerusalem at night, so they can serve us as guards by night and as workers by day.” 23 Neither I nor my brothers nor my men nor the guards with me took off our clothes; each had his weapon, even when he went for water.[j]

15 So the wall was completed in fifty-two days.

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CHAPTER 8

When the seventh month came and the Israelites had settled in their towns, 1 all the people came together as one in the square before the Water Gate. They told Ezra the teacher of the Law to bring out the Book of the Law of Moses, which the LORD had commanded for Israel.

2 So on the first day of the seventh month Ezra the priest brought the Law before the assembly, which was made up of men and women and all who were able to understand. 3 He read it aloud from daybreak till noon as he faced the square before the Water Gate in the presence of the men, women and others who could understand. And all the people listened attentively to the Book of the Law.

4 Ezra the teacher of the Law stood on a high wooden platform built for the occasion.

5 Ezra opened the book. All the people could see him because he was standing above them; and as he opened it, the people all stood up. 6 Ezra praised the LORD, the great God; and all the people lifted their hands and responded, “Amen! Amen!” Then they bowed down and worshiped the LORD with their faces to the ground.

7 The Levites instructed the people in the Law while the people were standing there. 8 They read from the Book of the Law of God, making it clear and giving the meaning so that the people understood what was being read.

12 Then all the people went away to eat and drink, to send portions of food and to celebrate with great joy, because they now understood the words that had been made known to them.

18 Day after day, from the first day to the last, Ezra read from the Book of the Law of God. They celebrated the festival for seven days, and on the eighth day, in accordance with the regulation, there was an assembly.

CHAPTER 9

1 On the twenty-fourth day of the same month, the Israelites gathered together, fasting and wearing sackcloth and putting dust on their heads. 2 Those of Israelite descent had separated themselves from all foreigners. They stood in their places and confessed their sins and the sins of their ancestors. 3 They stood where they were and read from the Book of the Law of the LORD their God for a quarter of the day, and spent another quarter in confession and in worshiping the LORD their God.

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by GUSTAV DORÉ
"Ezra Reads the Law to the People (Neh. 8:1-12)"

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by JULIUS SCHNORR VON CAROLSFELD
"Esdras Preaches the Law. "

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at Dura Europos, Syria
"Ezra Reads the Law"

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"Timeline for Zerubbabel - Ezra – Esther - Nehemiah"

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by JAN LUYKEN
"Ezra Publicly Reads the Laws of Moses"

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27 At the dedication of the wall of Jerusalem, the Levites were sought out from where they lived and were brought to Jerusalem to celebrate joyfully the dedication with songs of thanksgiving and with the music of cymbals, harps and lyres. 28 The musicians also were brought together from the region around Jerusalem. 30 When the priests and Levites had purified themselves ceremonially, they purified the people, the gates and the wall.

40 The two choirs that gave thanks then took their places in the house of God; so did I, together with half the officials, 41 as well as the priests. 43 And on that day they offered great sacrifices, rejoicing because God had given them great joy. The women and children also rejoiced. The sound of rejoicing in Jerusalem could be heard far away.

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by WILLIAM BRASSEY HOLE
"Rebuilding The Wall Of Jerusalem Under Nehemiah"

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by ADOLF HULT
"Nehemiah Rebuilding Jerusalem"

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→ a n d…. f i n a l l y ←

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֎ ֎ ֎ ֎ ֎ ֎ ֎ ֎ ֎
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Preview of
COMING
ATTRACTIONS

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SNEAK PEEK: Next time,
PROPHECIES
OF JESUS

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R E S O U R C E S

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Links to three masters who painted Biblical scenes prolifically:

REMBRANDT HARMENSZOON van RIJN

GUSTAV DORÉ
241 wood engravings for
La Grande Bible de Tours

JAMES TISSOT
180 watercolors depicting Bible scenes

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Links to two Bibles with comprehensive illustrations:

The Art Bible (1896)

The Maciejowski-Morgan Bible (c.1245)

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This series keeps moving from one Bible passage to another,
so here is a fascinating and enjoyable link to assist in following along:
BIBLE TIMELINE

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Here are links to the
PREVIOUS 161 POSTS IN THIS SERIES
with descriptive titles to assist you in finding those which interest you

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Finally, what God did to initiate The Bible In Paintings:
HOW GOD STARTED THIS SERIES
BY SHOWING ME JUST ONE PICTURE

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SPECIAL THANKS
to FReeper left that other site,
who allowed God to make her His conduit
for incomparable enthusiasm, encouragement,
education, advice and technical assistance!

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NOTES ON MY SELECTION CRITERIA

A r t Q u a l i t y

The Bible and its Author are my focus, not the art: this is The Bible in Paintings, not "Great Paintings" nor even "Good Paintings." So, works need not be masterpieces to qualify for inclusion here—they don't need to be housed at the Louvre nor auctioned by Sotheby's. They only need to illustrate successfully some aspect of the Biblical text or, frankly, just tickle my fancy, which I'm always asking the Holy Spirit to guide.

Often, artists misrepresent the Scripture, but unless the error is material, licentious or heretical I usually include the artwork, trusting that the Spirit is perfectly capable of defending Himself. So, with such forgiving filters, it means that you're seeing practically everything I'm finding.

T e x t S e q u e n c i n g

The Protestant Canon does not (for several reasons) follow a strictly chronological sequence. There are many examples where, for God's good purposes, stories are told out-of-order. Nevertheless, for the sake of simplicity, clarity, and my sanity, I have chosen to proceed linearly and methodically from Genesis onward, illustrating each Bible passage as we come to it. Where two passages cover the same incident I omit the second telling, excepting the four Gospels which I will treat synoptically. Now, onward!

P a c i n g

The pace here may seem appallingly snail-like to those eager to see their favorite events illustrated. My commission is to search for art on each Bible passage in sequence: if I find enough, then it becomes the next installment, even if undramatic (but where there is little or no art, that Bible passage goes untold here).

Then, there is the human element: this is not actually a daily series, because I can only research, compose, edit and post five or six of these installments weekly. And because I only get to do this series once, I'm taking my time, chiefly by posting everything; if I find lots of art, I don't cherry-pick some and discard the rest. Rather, I line up all of them and then sort them into manageable bunches, often resulting in multiple days' episodes of the same story. Obviously, I like being thorough. Were you in a big hurry?

The Bible is a thick book, as you know; but we'll get there eventually, Lord willing—this is His project, after all. And always remember:
love, joy, peace, patience kindness, goodness, faithfulness, gentleness & self-control is a fruit of the Spirit!

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Art is merely the Toy Department of Bible study,
so I'm just having fun here—I hope you are, too!
Thank you for your understanding.

Hebrews 11:6
Dan Lewis
DodgerDan
'55 '59 '63 '65 '81 '88 '20

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To be alerted to each new posting,
either reply here or FRmail me.

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[Hebrews 11:6]

At the Holy Spirit's prompting, I am surveying "Bible art" to give God glory, as many of these artists have done, and for my own amusement and learning; and I thought others might enjoy it and be blessed by it, too. My plan is to proceed methodically from left-to-right, Genesis to Revelation, as the Lord wills. Back soon with another.

The Bible encourages us to meditate on it (Ps. 1:1-3, 119:11-16, etc.); these artists have done so, and their works can assist us and enrich our own thoughts about biblical characters, incidents and concepts, and increase our faith in He who is behind it all. As you encounter and consider these images and the related Scriptures and the Spirit enlightens your understanding, please share it with us!

But it is not only oil-on-canvas that can so help us; I refer to the astonishing video series The Chosen, which strolls through the four Gospels at the most leisurely pace. The eight episodes of Season 1 are finished, and the second of a planned seven seasons is being filmed right now. I say "leisurely" because after an entire year's viewing Jesus still has only seven of the apostles (although He's preparing to call up Thomas from the minor leagues--but Thomas is skeptical, of course). Anticipating a canvas of fifty-plus hours instead of a movie's paltry two hours, The Chosen turns the characters (especially including Jesus!) into three-dimensional humans and brings the Gospels alive--you have never seen anything even remotely like it! Here is the Official Trailer.

Here is a link for free viewing of The Chosen: "Works with your phone, tablet, and you can cast to your Roku or Chromecast." Last fall I paid $34.98 for DVDs and ongoing internet access—best 35 bucks I've ever spent (I don't recall how much our marriage license cost, but then it was 43 years ago).

[Hebrews 11:6]

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P r e s e n t e d . . F o r . . Y o u r

CONSIDERATION

ENJOYMENT

& BLESSING

[left that other site]

Good Morning, Dan! :-)

[Hebrews 11:6]

Howdy doody

[OneVike]

Nehemia, and Ezra, are two of the least read books of the Scriptures by Christians.

So sad though, because they are rich in history of how the Jews were more devoted than ever after the return, then they ever were before their captivity.

[Hebrews 11:6]

Nehemia, and Ezra, are two of the least read books of the Scriptures by Christians.

Which is why I was eager to illustrate them. I must add that they were as difficult as any I've attempted; by contrast, I've moved on now to Esther, which is as easy as any.

more devoted than ever after the return, then they ever were before their captivity

If true, it demonstrates God's wisdom: captivity >>>yields>>> devotion. But seemingly their deeper devotion still tripped over Israel's classic Stumbling Block of Self-Salvation, as it does even today.

[etabeta]

Quite a feat to rebuild the wall in 52 days. Nehemiah, from what I have read, was a capable, generous administrator of the province. Great choice of illustrations!

[OneVike]

I've moved on now to Esther, which is as easy as any.

You could have done one post since both books were originally one. Yet I look forward to your presentation of Ezra.

But seemingly their deeper devotion still tripped over Israel's classic Stumbling Block of Self-Salvation, as it does even today.

Yes, but in their defense, even the Disciples who walked with Christ for 3 years stumbled with it. It's hardly fair to expect the Scholars at the time of the return from exile to understood it 400 years before Christ was even born.

Now by the time Christ showed up, They, had ample opportunity and time to study the Greek Translated Scriptures to figure it out. Especially since the religious leaders of Christ's time had better access and were much more educated than at any time of their history. They had the writings of the Prophets and the Torah, something very few of Nehamiah's time had. Besides the fact that during the return they were much more preoccupied, mentally and physically, rebuilding Jerusalem and the Temple.

[Hebrews 11:6]

Quite a feat to rebuild the wall in 52 days.

Astonishing (and memorable, obviously), especially considering the many, many obstacles.

Great choice of illustrations!

Quite the contrary: the paucity of art available made illustrating the 23 chapters of Ezra and Nehemiah desperately difficult. I didn't "choose": I latched onto each with a death-grip.

[Hebrews 11:6]

even the Disciples who walked with Christ for 3 years stumbled with it

What a dense lot they were: "Well, gollllllly, Christ's atonement even counted for the Gentiles! Whodathunkit?"

Now by the time Christ showed up

Job got it, 2200 years before. Even Isaiah was confused over self-salvation, arguing for it in one breath while extolling grace with the next. Satan always provides a full smorgasboard of preoccupations and excuses: take your pick and help yourself!

[OneVike]

You should read the commentary I have on Isaiah from a series titled, "Word Biblical Commentary". Their commentary on Isaiah, is a 2 part series. In it the author, (John W. Watts), points out how Isaiah 53:13-53:12, was considered by the Religious leaders at the time to have pointed to what happened to Zerubabbel. To save time of typing, I just took a pic of the page for you to read it.

Later in the commentary, he expounds upon his theory that Zerubbabel was murdered, and suggests from his investigation of Jewish writings that at the time the Religious scholars thought the murder is what Isaiah had prophesied since Isaiah also prophesied of Cyrus and the return. In their bubble of not seeing the valley between the Mountains they erred.

To this day, the Jews use this and various other misguided beliefs to explain away, not only Isaiah's prophecies related to Christ, but of things learned from the Dead Sea Scrolls. As I stated before, I can understand the blindness 400 years before Christ showed up, not for those who were present when Christ walked amongst them.

The image is high enough quality for you to zoom in and read it.

I have a couple different commentaries by various authors on Isaiah. My library is slowly growing. I love books. It's much more relaxing to sit back on the couch to some soundscape music and a book than sitting in front of a pc screen all day.

[Hebrews 11:6]

I gather you're explaining their incomprehension rather than excusing it. But there are so very many exceptions who prove the rule, whom we'll enjoy an eternity with. I'm partial to Simeon and Anna.

[OneVike]

You should look for this book. The illustrations are amazing. You could capture images and upload them for your posts.

Jeremiah

Ezekiel

God bless and have a good day

[OneVike]

Yes, there is no excuse, since as you pointed out, JOB knew. He actually mentioned seeing His savior eye to eye.

I have learned through my years that those who are the most studied by the very Scriptures that explain our salvation are the same ones who get blinded by the abundance of information they come across.

I have always used the rule that God is right, His Son is right, the Holy Spirit is right. Thus when I am confused I come down on the side that I am wrong, and need to step back to allow the Holy Spiri to explain that which I cannot understand.

[Hebrews 11:6]

blinded by the abundance of information

Even an ignorant child's FAITH is sufficient.

when I am confused I come down on the side that I am wrong, and need to step back to allow the Holy Spirit to explain

Wiser words have ne'er been uttered.

[Hebrews 11:6]

Thanks for the atlas referral, but I’ll pass on it as insufficiently meeting my needs.

[OneVike]

I understand.

[Impala64ssa]

Bkmk

[Hebrews 11:6]

CUL8R

[Forgiven_Sinner]

I have an issue with #41. I thought from scripture Nehemiah circumnavigated the city at night, looking at all the gates and walls.

Re-reading it, I think was was wrong.

13 By night I went out through the Valley Gate toward the Jackal Well and the Dung Gate, examining the walls of Jerusalem, which had been broken down, and its gates, which had been destroyed by fire.

14 Then I moved on toward the Fountain Gate and the King’s Pool, but there was not enough room for my mount to get through; 15 so I went up the valley by night, examining the wall.

Finally, I turned back and reentered through the Valley Gate.

So Nehemiah DID turn back. My only quibble is when. v. 15 says ‘he went up the valley’ ie, the Kidron valley. Uphill is to the north. I believe he didn’t turn back until the eastern wall turned and became the northern wall.

Thanks for teaching me and everyone else with your series!