Nehemiah 7 explained: Guarding the City, Counting the People

Guards for the new wall (vv. 1-3)

With the wall done, Nehemiah appointed temple workers and put two trusted men in charge of the city. City gates normally opened at sunrise, but he kept them shut until full daylight and had residents take turns on guard, some at set posts and some near their own homes.

A big city, few people (vv. 4-5)

The rebuilt wall followed the old lines and enclosed a large area, but few people lived inside and many houses were not yet rebuilt. Nehemiah says God prompted him to register the people by family, and he found the record of the first group that had returned.

Families who came home (vv. 6-38)

This is a copy of the list of exiles who returned from Babylon about ninety years earlier, also found in Ezra 2, grouped by family and by hometown. A few numbers and names differ slightly from Ezra's version, most likely from copying mistakes or different source copies, though no one can be certain.

Priests and temple workers (vv. 39-60)

Next come the families who served at the temple: priests, Levites (temple assistants), singers, gatekeepers and two groups of temple servants. The origins of those last two groups are unclear, and some scholars think they descended from foreigners given temple duties long before.

Those without records (vv. 61-65)

Some families could not prove they were Israelites, and some priestly families could not prove their descent, so they were kept from serving as priests. The governor barred them from the holiest food until a priest could consult the Urim and Thummim, objects used to seek God's decision, whose exact form is unknown.

Totals, gifts and settling (vv. 66-73)

The total of 42,360 is more than the listed groups add up to, and scholars are unsure why. Leaders and people gave Persian gold coins, silver and priests' clothing for the work, and everyone settled in their towns, setting the scene for the gathering in the seventh month.

Key verse: Nehemiah 7:4

Something to think about

Why might a community rebuilding after disaster care so much about writing down exactly who belongs to it, and what can that kind of record give or take away?