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68 lines
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<title>Blue Letter Bible: Text Commentaries</title>
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currentBook = 'Neh';
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currentChapter = 10;
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PriorBookURL = './Comm/david_guzik/sg/2Ch_1.html';
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PriorChapter = 'Nehemiah 9';
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Title = 'Study Guide for Nehemiah 10';
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<h2><a onclick="return mV('Neh',10,'1-');">Neh 10</a> - Israel's Covenant with God</h2>
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<p>A. Roster of those who signed the covenant.</p>
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<p class="c1">1. (<a onclick="return mV('Neh',10,'1-8');">1-8</a>) Nehemiah and the priests signed the covenant.</p>
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<p class="c2">Now those who placed <i>their </i>seal on <i>the document were: </i>Neh the governor, the son of Hacaliah, and Zedekiah, Seraiah, Azariah, Jeremiah, Pashhur, Amariah, Malchijah, Hattush, Shebaniah, Malluch, Harim, Meremoth, Obadiah, Daniel, Ginnethon, Baruch, Meshullam, Abijah, Mijamin, Maaziah, Bilgai, <i>and </i>Shemaiah. These <i>were </i>the priests.</p>
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<p class="c4">a. <b><span class="c3">Those who placed their seal on the document</span></b>: At the end of Nehemiah chapter <a onclick="return mV('Neh',9,'1-');">9</a>, the people had come to a place of decision, and now, collectively, the nation was going to do something about it by entering into a covenant.</p>
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<p class="c5">i. <a onclick="return mV('Neh', 8, 18);">Neh 8:38</a> gives the sense of this: <i>And because of all this, we make a sure covenant and write it; and our leaders and our Levites and our priests shall seal it.</i></p>
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<p class="c5">ii. In <a onclick="return mV('Neh', 8, 18);">Neh 8:38</a>, <i>make a covenant</i> is literally "<i>cut</i> a covenant"; covenants were not made in the ancient world, they were <i>cut</i> - because almost always an animal was sacrificed as part of the covenant. A covenant always cost something, and our point of decision will cost us something - the self-life, comfort, ease, some of the passing pleasures of this world. Count the cost to see if it's worth it!</p>
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<p class="c4">b. <b><span class="c3">Those who placed their seal on the document</span></b>: It was wonderful for the nation as a whole to feel that something had to be done about the sin problem among them. But it was meaningless unless individuals came forth to say "<i>we</i> will do something about this." Here are the leaders (84 in all) willing to put their name on the line for the covenant before God.</p>
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<p class="c4">c. <b><span class="c3">On the document</span></b>: These people in Nehemiah's day knew what covenants were all about, and how important they were to God. They remembered God made a covenant with Abraham, promising that both a nation and the Messiah would descend from him; God made a covenant with Moses and the nation of Israel when He gave them the law at Mount Sinai; God made a covenant with King David, promising the Messiah would come from his family. But the greatest covenant, the New Covenant instituted by the Messiah, was yet to come.</p>
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<p class="c1">2. (<a onclick="return mV('Neh',10,'9-13');">9-13</a>) The Levites who signed the covenant.</p>
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<p class="c2">The Levites: Jeshua the son of Azaniah, Binnui of the sons of Henadad, <i>and </i>Kadmiel. Their brethren: Shebaniah, Hodijah, Kelita, Pelaiah, Hanan, Micha, Rehob, Hashabiah, Zaccur, Sherebiah, Shebaniah, Hodijah, Bani, <i>and </i>Beninu.</p>
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<p class="c1">3. (<a onclick="return mV('Neh',10,'14-27');">14-27</a>) The civic leaders who signed the covenant.</p>
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<p class="c2">The leaders of the people: Parosh, Pahath-Moab, Elam, Zattu, Bani, Bunni, Azgad, Bebai, Adonijah, Bigvai, Adin, Ater, Hezekiah, Azzur, Hodijah, Hashum, Bezai, Hariph, Anathoth, Nebai, Magpiash, Meshullam, Hezir, Meshezabel, Zadok, Jaddua, Pelatiah, Hanan, Anaiah, Hoshea, Hananiah, Hasshub, Hallohesh, Pilha, Shobek, Rehum, Hashabnah, Maaseiah, Ahijah, Hanan, Anan, Malluch, Harim, <i>and </i>Baanah.</p>
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<p>B. The terms of the covenant.</p>
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<p class="c1">1. (<a onclick="return mV('Neh',10,'28-29');">28-29</a>) The making of the covenant with God.</p>
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<p class="c2">Now the rest of the people; the priests, the Levites, the gatekeepers, the singers, the Nethinim, and all those who had separated themselves from the peoples of the lands to the Law of God, their wives, their sons, and their daughters, everyone who had knowledge and understanding; these joined with their brethren, their nobles, and entered into a curse and an oath to walk in God's Law, which was given by Moses the servant of God, and to observe and do all the commandments of the <span class="c6">Lord</span> our Lord, and His ordinances and His statutes:</p>
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<p class="c4">a. <b><span class="c3">Now the rest of the people</span></b>: The 84 mentioned previously sealed the covenant, but <b><span class="c3">the rest of the people</span></b> - that is, <b><span class="c3">everyone who had knowledge and understanding</span></b> - also made the covenant with God.</p>
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<p class="c4">b. <b><span class="c3">Entered into a curse and an oath to walk in God's law</span></b>: In making the covenant, they agreed to accept a curse from God if they did not obey His law. They accepted the curse as a form of His correction, to bring them back to obedience.</p>
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<p class="c5">i. Many of us have done a similar thing. We probably didn't pray "God, curse me if I disobey You." But many of us have prayed, "Lord, whatever it takes I want to follow You. Whatever it takes I want to be Your man." That is essentially praying the same thing, and that is a good prayer.</p>
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<p class="c4">c. <b><span class="c3">Their wives, their sons, and their daughters, everyone who had knowledge and understanding</span></b>: They made this covenant publicly; though its most significant meaning was between the individual and God, it was also important that other people be witness to the covenant. A public covenant meant accountability.</p>
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<p class="c1">2. (<a onclick="return mV('Neh',10,30);">30</a>) Their first area of decision: we will be faithful to God when it comes to our romantic relationships.</p>
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<p class="c2">We would not give our daughters as wives to the peoples of the land, nor take their daughters for our sons;</p>
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<p class="c4">a. <b><span class="c3">We would not give our daughters as wives to the people of the land</span></b>: This promise was addressed to parents. This is because in that day, <i>parents</i> made the marriage decisions, not the people getting married.</p>
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<p class="c5">i. If this covenant were to be repeated today, it wouldn't be focused towards the parents, but towards the individuals who wanted to get married.</p>
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<p class="c4">b. <b><span class="c3">We would not give our daughters as wives to the peoples of the land</span></b>: This preserved the important principle that a follower of God should only marry another similarly committed follower of God. It is obvious by experience and observation that it is important to carefully and prayerfully choose your spouse.</p>
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<p class="c5">i. Many of us have remarkable stories of how we came together with our mate - some stories are romantic, and others are kind of strange. Once we are together, God wants to make that marriage something special before Him, and desires to draw the couple closer together as they draw closer to God, as the sides of a triangle come closer as they come higher up.</p>
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<p class="c5">ii. But if one is not now married, it is important for them to make the same kind of covenant. If one has given their life to serving Jesus Christ, there will be difficulty if they marry someone who has given their life to something else. If one is in that situation now, God can do great things, but one should never knowingly choose to be in that place from the beginning.</p>
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<p class="c5">iii. The whole idea of marriage is closely connected to the idea of <i>covenant</i>. <a onclick="return mV('Mal',2,14);">Mal 2:14</a> says, <i>Yet she is your companion, and your wife by covenant</i>. Marriage is a covenant, between the husband and wife, between them and all family and witness, but most importantly, between them and God.</p>
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<p class="c5">iv. When we understand marriage as a covenant, we have something to bond us together that is <i>stronger</i> than society's expectations, <i>more constant</i> than romantic love, and <i>more certain </i>than happy times - we have a covenant.</p>
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<p class="c1">3. (<a onclick="return mV('Neh',10,31);">31</a>) Second area of decision: we will be faithful to God when it comes to doing business.</p>
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<p class="c2"><i>If </i>the peoples of the land brought wares or any grain to sell on the Sabbath day, we would not buy it from them on the Sabbath, or on a holy day; and we would forego the seventh year's <i>produce </i>and the exacting of every debt.</p>
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<p class="c4">a. <b><span class="c3">If the peoples of the land brought wares or any grain to sell on the Sabbath day</span></b>: Under the Old Testament law, God said that no one could buy or sell anything on the Sabbath day. These citizens of Jerusalem had been breaking this law, and they now covenant with God to obey it.</p>
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<p class="c4">b. <b><span class="c3">We would not buy it from them on the Sabbath</span></b>: The motive for breaking this law was clear. They could make more money selling on seven days of the week instead of six days. This was a covenant to only make money in ways that were obedient and glorifying to God.</p>
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<p class="c5">i. This is a great challenge for the church today, when many are in careers where they have the opportunity to make money in ways that are plain wrong. We need to have the same heart they had here, and covenant before God to only make money in ways that are obedient and glorifying to Him.</p>
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<p class="c5">ii. Many of us - as was true in Nehemiah's day - slip into these practices subtly. We don't wake up in the morning saying we're going to cut corners, cheat others, and defraud the system. We do it because we think we <i>need</i> to - bills need to be paid, the kids need things, and so on. Then we do it because it <i>works</i>. But we don't really need to; if we trust God, He will take care of us. We should never trust our slick ways of doing business more than we trust God in heaven.</p>
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<p class="c1">4. (<a onclick="return mV('Neh',10,'32-39');">32-39</a>) The third area of decision: we will be faithful to God when it comes to supporting God's work.</p>
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<p class="c2">Also we made ordinances for ourselves, to exact from ourselves yearly one-third of a shekel for the service of the house of our God: for the showbread, for the regular grain offering, for the regular burnt offering of the Sabbaths, the New Moons, and the set feasts; for the holy things, for the sin offerings to make atonement for Israel, and all the work of the house of our God. We cast lots among the priests, the Levites, and the people, for <i>bringing </i>the wood offering into the house of our God, according to our fathers' houses, at the appointed times year by year, to burn on the altar of the <span class="c6">Lord</span> our God as <i>it is </i>written in the Law. And <i>we made ordinances </i>to bring the firstfruits of our ground and the firstfruits of all fruit of all trees, year by year, to the house of the <span class="c6">Lord</span>; to bring the firstborn of our sons and our cattle, as <i>it is </i>written in the Law, and the firstborn of our herds and our flocks, to the house of our God, to the priests who minister in the house of our God; to bring the firstfruits of our dough, our offerings, the fruit from all kinds of trees, <i>the </i>new wine and oil, to the priests, to the storerooms of the house of our God; and to bring the tithes of our land to the Levites, for the Levites should receive the tithes in all our farming communities. And the priest, the descendant of Aaron, shall be with the Levites when the Levites receive tithes; and the Levites shall bring up a tenth of the tithes to the house of our God, to the rooms of the storehouse. For the children of Israel and the children of Levi shall bring the offering of the grain, of the new wine and the oil, to the storerooms where the articles of the sanctuary <i>are, where </i>the priests who minister and the gatekeepers and the singers <i>are; </i>and we will not neglect the house of our God.</p>
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<p class="c4">a. <b><span class="c3">To exact from ourselves yearly one-third of a shekel for the service of the house of our God</span></b>: They laid down a yearly tax to support the workings of the temple. They required people to bring wood to the temple on a rotating basis. They committed themselves to obey the command to bring the firstborn and the firstfruits, and the tithe (ten percent of the produce of their land) unto the house of God.</p>
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<p class="c5">i. They simply did two things. First, they agreed to give as God had commanded (the firstborn, firstfruits, and the tithe). Second, they agreed to give as the special need required (the one-third of a shekel tax and the wood).</p>
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<p class="c5">ii. Firstborn and firstfruits were risky ways to give, because your land might not yield much more produce, and your cow or ewe might not give birth again - yet the first still belonged to God, and was given to the priests. God promised to bless this giving of the firstfruits and firstborn in faith: <i>Honor the <span class="c6">Lord</span> with your possessions, and with the firstfruits of all your increase; so your barns will be filled with plenty, and your vats will overflow with new wine.</i> (<a onclick="return mV('Pro',3,'9-10');">Pro 3:9-10</a>).</p>
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<p class="c4">b. <b><span class="c3">We will not neglect the house of our God</span></b>: If before they covenanted to make money only in ways that would glorify God, here they covenant to spend their money in ways that glorify God - and beginning it all with giving unto the Lord.</p>
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<p class="c4">c. <b><span class="c3">We will not neglect the house of our God</span></b>: Simply said, the Bible says we need to be givers. Not so much for the sake of those we give to, but because giving sets our heart right about material things. God Himself is the greatest giver.</p>
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<p class="c5">i. If you hold on to money so tightly that you will not be a giver, than you have revealed where your heart is when it comes to money.</p>
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<p class="c5">ii. The New Testament speaks with great clarity on the principle of giving; that giving should be regular, planned, proportional, and private (<a onclick="return mV('1Cr',16,'1-4');">1Cr 16:1-4</a>); that it must be generous, freely given, and cheerful (<a onclick="return mV('2Cr',9,'1-');">2Cr 9</a>).</p>
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<p class="c5">iii. If you are reluctant to be a giver as the Bible says you should, simply talk to those who are. Ask them if it has been a blessing or a curse in their life to give as God says to. God promises He will never owe us anything, and we cannot out-give God - though the return is often far better than dollars and cents.</p>
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