Nehemiah's Second Visit: Reformation of Jerusalem
Nehemiah 13:1-31

Expulsion of Tobiah from the Temple

Nehemiah 13:1-9

• After the celebration, the people read from the Book of Moses again. (v. 1)
• In their reading, they discovered that no Ammonites or Moabites should be admitted into the assembly of God because of their previous dealings with the Israelites (see Deuteronomy 23:3-6) (v. 1-2)
• When the people heard the law, they excluded from Israel all who were of foreign descent. By expelling the foreigners, the people were finishing the job they started in Nehemiah 9:2. (v. 3)
• Prior to this discovery, Eliashib the priest had been in charge of the storerooms in the Temple. Eliashib was a friend of Tobiah. Rember Tobiah? He was one of the people who was attempting to discredit Nehemiah and hinder the rebuilding of the wall. (v. 4)
• Eliashib had provided Tobiah with a place to live in the Temple. This place was a storeroom which should have been full of tithes for the Levites and priests. (v. 5)
• Nehemiah was not in Jerusalem while this was happening - he had returned to the king. (v. 6)
• Nehemiah asked the king for another leave to go to Jerusalem and it was granted. (v. 7)
• Upon returning to Jerusalem, Nehemiah learned what the situation with Tobiah was and was unhappy. He evicted Tobiah from the Temple. Nehemiah's actions reminds us of Christ's expulsion of the money changers from the temple area (see Matthew 21:12-13). (v.7-8)
• Nehemiah gave orders to purify the rooms. (v. 9)

Restoration of Tithes for the Levites

Nehemiah 13:10-14

• Nehemiah also learned that the Levites had not been receiving their appointed portions and had returned to work in the fields. (v. 10)
• Nehemiah rebuked the officials and questioned why the Temple had been neglected. (v. 11)
• Judah resumed the practice of bringing in the tithe. (v. 12)
• Nehemiah put trustworthy men in charge of the Temple. (v. 13)
• Nehemiah prays that God remembers him and his faithfullness. (v. 14)

Elimination of Illegal Activity on the Sabbath

Nehemiah 13:15-22

• Nehemiah also noticed that people were working on the Sabbath, which was illegal. (v. 15)
• Nehemiah rebuked the nobles for allowing working on the Sabbath to happen. (v. 17-18)
• Nehemiah started a policy of closing the city gates for the duration of the Sabbath in order to keep foreign merchants from entering the city to sell their goods. (v. 19-22)
• Nehemiah closes this section with a prayer that God remembers him. (v. 22)

Dissolution of Interracial Marriages

Nehemiah 13:23:31

• Nehemiah also learned of men who had married people who were not Israelites. (v. 23)
• Nehemiah rebuked those guilty of foreign marriages. (v. 25)
• Nehemiah made the people take an oath to be loyal to God. (v. 25)
• Nehemiah reminds the people of the trouble that has been visited on Israel because of marriages to foreign wives. (v. 26-27)
• Nehemiah purified the priests and Levites. (v. 30)
• Nehemiah closes his book with a prayer asking God to remember him with favor. This is one of the overwhelming themes of the book. (v. 31)