Nehemiah 2:11-20

Nehemiah states that he did a night-time inspection of the walls. The reason for the inspection being conducted at night was probably because of the threat from Sanballat the Horonite and Tobiah the Ammonite. Verse 19 states that they accused Nehemiah of rebelling against the king by rebuilding Jerusalem, which would most likely have been a capital offense. It is not unreasonable to assume that Sanballat and Tobiah would have gone to that extreme to protect their political position. This would also be the reason for having only a small group of men with him. It is also interesting to note that Nehemiah doesn't take credit for the plan that is taking shape. He refers to it as, "the plan God was putting into my mind to do." He gives God the glory for the plans to rebuild Jerusalem, rather than taking any credit for it.

There are walls surrounding the Old City of Jerusalem to this day. The walls were once the limits of Jerusalem, but this is no longer the case. Here is a picture of Jerusalem today. The walls that surrounded the city are still there and can be seen in the middle of the picture.

 
(click the picture to enlarge)

Nehemiah mentions that the walls and the city had been burned with fire. Large sections of the wall had evidently been torn down and there would have been a lot of rubble all over the place. To give an idea of what that may have looked like, here is a picture of the Western Wall (also known as the Wailing Wall) in Jerusalem. Black marks are still visible from where the Western Wall was hit by the Romans in 70 AD. Although the Western Wall is not part of the wall surrounding the Old City of Jerusalem, it gives some idea of what Nehemiah may have seen when he was inspecting the walls.

 
(click the picture to enlarge)

Nehemiah also details what parts of the wall he inspected. He says that he went through the Valley Gate in the direction of the Dragon's Well, to the Refuse Gate, the Fountain Gate and the King's Pool. He then states that there was no way he could continue the inspection further. The Expositor's Bible Commentary says that Jerusalem was always attacked from the most vulnerable direction, which was from the north, so most likely little remained in that direction. It also states that the name Dragon's Well apparently came from mythical water monsters. The Expositor's Bible Commentary also says that the Dung Gate was so named because it was located near the city's rubbish dump and the Fountain Gate and King's Pool were in reference to water that was diverted from the Siloam Tunnel to irrigate the royal gardens. The fact that he was unable to continue further around the city was probably because of the rubble around the city and the fact that Jerusalem is located on a hill.

Nehemiah states in verse 16 that he had not shared with very many the plans that were being laid for rebuilding Jerusalem. This would probably have been due to the fact it was still in the planning stages and out of concern for problems that could have been posed by Israel's enemies. There could also have been some that would have taken a look at the situation and said that it couldn't be rebuilt. This could have threatened the faith and obedience of those who were planning to rebuild the city. He encouraged those with him by recounting how God had been at work in giving him the king's approval for rebuilding the city and supplying the materials that would be needed.

Sanballat and Tobiah tried to oppose the work, mocking the idea of rebuilding the city and accusing the people of rebelling against the king. Nehemiah's faith was unshaken, though, as he expressed assurance that they would be successful. Sanballat and Tobiah, however, would be left out because of their opposition to Israel. To say that they have no right, portion or memorial in Jerusalem is to say that they are not part of God's chosen people. Such a statement has obvious eternal consequences, even though Scripture says that God is not wishing for any to perish but that all would come to repentance (2 Peter 3:9).