Holier Than Thou - Nehemiah

Who wrote the books of the Bible and when?

Book of Nehemiah, the account of the rebuilding of the city walls of Jerusalem, was written about the fifth century (445-432) B.C. by Nehemiah, a Jewish aide to King Artaxerxes of Persia, and later governor of Judea. It documents the rebuilding of the walls of Jerusalem under Nehemiah's leadership after returning from exile in Babylon, along with the difficulties and opposition encountered. Ezra and Nehemiah are one book in the Hebrew Bible and it is believed that Ezra may have assisted in writing the Book of Nehemiah.

The Book of Nehemiah includes the following events:

Nehemiah's return to Jersalem

Listing of the builders of the wall around Jerusalem

Opposition to the rebuilding of the wall

Oppression of the poor by Jewish nobles

List of the returning exiles

Reading of the Law by Ezra and Israel's confession of sins leading to written agreement to follow the Law of God

Choosing of the new Jerusalem residents and exclusion of foreigners from Jerusalem

So the wall was completed on the twenty-fifth of Elul, in fifty-two days. When all our enemies heard about this, all the surrounding nations were afraid and lost their self-confidence, because they realized that this work had been done with the help of our God. (Nehemiah 6:15-16)