Nehemiah 4:1
WEB
But when Sanballat heard that we were building the wall, he was angry, and was very indignant, and mocked the Jews.
BSB
Now when Sanballat heard that we were rebuilding the wall, he was furious and filled with indignation. He ridiculed the Jews
KJV
But it came to pass, that when Sanballat heard that we builded the wall, he was wroth, and took great indignation, and mocked the Jews.
Matthew Henry
Hebrew interlinear
H1961
v — exist, be, become, come to pass
Derivation: a primitive root (compare 1933);
to exist, i.e. be or become, come to pass (always emphatic, and not a mere copula or auxiliary)
KJV: beacon, × altogether, be(-come), accomplished, committed, like), break, cause, come (to pass), do, faint, fall, follow, happen, × have, last, pertain, quit (one-) self, require, × use.
vb — fall out
הָיָה 3570 vb. fall out, come to pass, become, be
Qal
I.
1.
a. Fall out, happen
b. occur, take place, come about, come to pass
2. esp. & very oft., come about, come to pass
a.
(1). וַיְהִי and it came to pass that, most often (c. 292 t.)
(2). rarely also Pf. c. וְ conj. וְהָיָה
b. less oft. וְהָיָה Pf. consec. and it shall come to pass, or frequentat. came to pass (repeatedly, etc.)
II. Come into being, become
1.
a. abs., in lively narrative, arise, appear, come
b. sq. prep.
2. become
a. sq. pred. noun (to be viewed as implicit accus.)
b. sq. pred. adj.
c. become like
d. sq. pred. לְ pers.
e. sq. לְ pred.
f. oft. c. לְ pred. לְ pers.
g. with עַל and לְ
h. sts. c. לְ pers. only = became the property of, come into the possession of
III. Be (often with subbordinate idea of becoming)
1. exist, be in existence
2. abide, remain, continue
3. with word of locality, be in or at a place, be situated, stand, lie
4. as copula, joining subj. & pred.
5. periphrastic conjug.
Niph.
1. either be done, be brought about, or occur, come to pass
2. be done, finished, gone
H834
r — who, which, what, that, when, where, how, because, in order that
Derivation: a primitive relative pronoun (of every gender and number);
who, which, what, that; also (as an adverb and a conjunction) when, where, how, because, in order that, etc.
KJV: × after, × alike, as (soon as), because, × every, for, + forasmuch, + from whence, + how(-soever), × if, (so) that ((thing) which, wherein), × though, + until, + whatsoever, when, where (+ -as, -in, -of, -on, -soever, -with), which, whilst, + whither(-soever), who(-m, -soever, -se). As it is indeclinable, it is often accompanied by the personal pronoun expletively, used to show the connection.
part. of relation — who
אֲשֶׁר part. of relation A sign of relation, bringing the clause introduced by it into relation with an antecedent clause.
adv — in which
בַאֲשֶׁר
a. in (that) which
b. adv. in (the place) where
c. conj. in that, inasmuch as
d. on account of whom?
conj — according as
כַּאֲשֶׁר conj. according as, as, when
1. according to that which, according as, as
2. with a causal force, in so far as, since
3. with a temporal force, when
adv — who
מֵאֲשֶׁר
a. from (or than) that which
b. adv. from (the place) where
c. conj. from (the fact) that …, since
H8085
v — hear, tell
Derivation: a primitive root;
to hear intelligently (often with implication of attention, obedience, etc.; causatively, to tell, etc.)
KJV: × attentively, call (gather) together, × carefully, × certainly, consent, consider, be content, declare, × diligently, discern, give ear, (cause to, let, make to) hear(-ken, tell), × indeed, listen, make (a) noise, (be) obedient, obey, perceive, (make a) proclaim(-ation), publish, regard, report, shew (forth), (make a) sound, × surely, tell, understand, whosoever (heareth), witness.
vb — hear
שָׁמַע 1152 vb. hear
Qal 1052
1. subj. pers. hum.
2. י׳ (God) subj.
Niph. 42
1. be heard, of voice, sound
2. be heard of
3. be regarded, obeyed
4. = (favourable) hearing was granted to their voice.
Pi. he caused the people to hear
Hiph. 63
1. of man
2. י׳ subj.
H5571
n-pr-m — Sanballat
Derivation: of foreign origin;
Sanballat, a Persian satrap of Samaria
KJV: Sanballat.
n.pr.m — Sanballat
סַנְבַּלַּט n.pr.m. leader of Samaritan opponents of Nehemiah
H3588
conj — relative conjunction
Derivation: a primitive particle (the full form of the prepositional prefix) indicating causal relations of all kinds, antecedent or consequent;
(by implication) very widely used as a relative conjunction or adverb (as below); often largely modified by other particles annexed
KJV: and, (forasmuch, inasmuch, where-) as, assured(-ly), but, certainly, doubtless, else, even, except, for, how, (because, in, so, than) that, nevertheless, now, rightly, seeing, since, surely, then, therefore, (al-) though, till, truly, until, when, whether, while, whom, yea, yet.
conj — that
כִּי conj. that, for, when
1. that
2.
a. Of time, when, of the past
b. elsewhere כִּי has a force approximating to if, though it usu. represents a case as more likely to occur than אִם
c. when or if, with a concessive force, i.e. though
3. Because, since
relative conjunction
כִּי אם־
1. each part. retaining its independent force, and relating to a different clause:
a. that if
b. for if
2. (About 140 t.) the two particles being closely conjoined, and relating to the same clause—
a. limiting the prec. clause, except
b. the if being neglected, and treated as pleonastic, so that the clause is no longer a limitation of the preceding clause but a contradiction of it: but rather, but
c. after an oath, surely
forasmuch as
כִּי עַל כֵּן forasmuch as
H587
p — we
Derivation: apparently from 595;
we
KJV: ourselves, us, we.
pron — we
אֲנַ֫חְנוּ, אֲנָ֑חְנוּ pron. 1pl. comm. we
H1129
v — build
Derivation: a primitive root;
to build (literally and figuratively)
KJV: (begin to) build(-er), obtain children, make, repair, set (up), × surely.
vb — build
בָּנָה 373 vb. build
Qal build
Niph.
1.
a. be built
b. be rebuilt
2.
a. (fig.) of restored exiles, = established
b. established, made permanent
H853
prt — self, even, namely
Derivation: apparent contracted from 226 in the demonstrative sense of entity;
properly, self (but generally used to point out more definitely the object of a verb or preposition, even or namely)
KJV: [as such unrepresented in English].
mark of the accusative
אֵת the mark of the accusative, prefixed as a rule only to nouns that are definite
H2346
n-f — wall
Derivation: feminine active participle of an unused root apparently meaning to join;
a wall of protection
KJV: wall, walled.
n.f — wall
חוֹמָה 133 n.f. wall (as protection)
1. usu. term for wall of city
2. wall of a building
3. fig. of waters of Red Sea
H2734
v — glow, grow warm, blaze up
Derivation: a primitive root (compare 2787);
to glow or grow warm; figuratively (usually) to blaze up, of anger, zeal, jealousy
KJV: be angry, burn, be displeased, × earnestly, fret self, grieve, be (wax) hot, be incensed, kindle, × very, be wroth. See 8474.
vb — burn
חָרָה vb. burn, be kindled, of anger
Qal
1. of man
2. of God
Niph. be angry with
Hiph. burned with zeal (?) in repairing; and kindled his anger against me
Hithp. heat oneself in vexation.—The foll. forms are somewhat dub.: how canst thou hotly contend (in a race) with the horses?; because thou strivest eagerly (to excel) in cedar
H3707
v — trouble, grieve, rage, be indignant
Derivation: a primitive root;
to trouble; by implication, to grieve, rage, be indignant
KJV: be angry, be grieved, take indignation, provoke (to anger, unto wrath), have sorrow, vex, be wroth.
vb — be vexed
כָּעַס vb. be vexed, angry
Qal
1. be vexed, indignant
2. be angry
Piel. provoke to anger
Hiph.
1. vex
2. vex, provoke to anger
H7235
v — increase
Derivation: a primitive root;
to increase (in whatever respect)
KJV: (bring in) abundance (× -antly), archer (by mistake for 7232), be in authority, bring up, × continue, enlarge, excel, exceeding(-ly), be full of, (be, make) great(-er, -ly, × -ness), grow up, heap, increase, be long, (be, give, have, make, use) many (a time), (any, be, give, give the, have) more (in number), (ask, be, be so, gather, over, take, yield) much (greater, more), (make to) multiply, nourish, plenty(-eous), × process (of time), sore, store, thoroughly, very.
vb — be much
[רָבָה] 225 vb. be, or become, much, many, great
Qal 59
1. become many, numerous
2.
a. be great
b. grow great (Aramaism)
Pi. 4 make large, increase
Hiph. 162
1. make much or many
2. make great, obj. pers.
H3932
v — deride, speak unintelligibly
Derivation: a primitive root;
to deride; by implication (as if imitating a foreigner) to speak unintelligibly
KJV: have in derision, laugh (to scorn), mock (on), stammering.
vb — mock
[לָעַג] vb. mock, deride; also (Niph.) stammer, poet.
Qal mock, deride, have in derision
Niph. a people stammering of tongue (i.e. barbarians)
Hiph. mock, deride
H5921
prep — above, over, upon, against
Derivation: properly, the same as 5920 used as a preposition (in the singular or plural often with prefix, or as conjunction with a particle following);
above, over, upon, or against (yet always in this last relation with a downward aspect) in a great variety of applications
KJV: above, according to(-ly), after, (as) against, among, and, × as, at, because of, beside (the rest of), between, beyond the time, × both and, by (reason of), × had the charge of, concerning for, in (that), (forth, out) of, (from) (off), (up-) on, over, than, through(-out), to, touching, × with.
forasmuch as
כִּי עַל כֵּן forasmuch as
subst — above
עַל, עָ֑ל
I. subst. height
II. As prep. upon, and hence on the ground of, according to, on account of, on behalf of, concerning, beside, in addition to, together with, beyond, above, over, by, on to, towards, to, against
1. Upon, of the substratum upon which an object in any way rests, or on which an action is performed
a. —
(a). of clothing, etc., which any one wears
(b). With verbs of covering or protecting, even though the cover or veil be not over or above the thing covered, but around or before it
b. Of what rests heavily upon a person, or is a burden to him
c. Of a duty, payment, care, etc., imposed upon a person, or devolving on him
d. על is used idiom. to give pathos to the expression of an emotion, by emphasizing the person who is its subject, and who, as it were, feels it acting upon him
e. חָיָה עַל to live upon (as upon a foundation or support)
f. Of the ground or basis, on which a thing is done
2. It expresses excess
3. It denotes elevation or pre-eminence
4. It expresses addition
5. It expresses the idea of being extended, or suspended over anything, without however being in contact with it, above, over
6. From the sense of inclining or impending over, על comes to denote contiguity or proximity, Engl. by (or sts. on)
7. In connection with verbs of motion (actual or fig.)
8. By writers of the silver age, על is sts. used with the force of a dative
9. With other particles:
III. As conj.
a. עַל אֲשֶׁר because that
b. עַל כִּי similar in meaning, but less frequent
c. עַל alone:
(a). because
(b). notwithstanding that, although
IV. Compounds:
1. with כְּ (rare and late)
a. as concerning, as upon
b. the like of their deeds is the like of (that which) he will repay
2. מֵעַל from upon, from over, from by
H3064
n-m — Jehudite
Derivation: patronymically from 3063;
a Jehudite (i.e. Judaite or Jew), or descendant of Jehudah (i.e. Judah)
KJV: Jew.
adj.gent — Jehudijah
יְהוּדִי adj.gent. Jewish, as subst. a Jew
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Verses 1–6
Nehemiah 4:1–6
Here is, I. The spiteful scornful reflection which Sanballat and Tobiah cast upon the Jews for their attempt to build the wall about Jerusalem. The country rang of it presently; intelligence was brought of it to Samaria, that nest of enemies to the Jews and their prosperity; and here we are told how they received the tidings. 1. In heart. They were very angry at the undertaking, and had great indignation, Neh 4:1. It vexed them that Nehemiah came to seek the welfare of the children of Israel (Neh 2:10); but, when they heard of this great undertaking for their good, they were out of all patience. They had hitherto pleased themselves with the thought that while Jerusalem was unwalled they could swallow it up and make themselves masters of it when they pleased; but, if it be walled, it will not only be fenced against them, but by degrees become formidable to them. The strength and safety of the church are the grief and vexation of its enemies. 2. In word. They despised it, and made it the subject of their ridicule. In this they sufficiently displayed their malice; but good was brought out of it; for, looking upon it as a foolish undertaking that would sink under its own weight, they did not go about to obstruct it till it was too late. Let us see with what pride and malice they set themselves publicly to banter it. (1.) Sanballat speaks with scorn of the workmen: "These feeble Jews" (Neh 4:2), "what will they do for materials? Will they revive the stones out of the rubbish? And what mean they by being so hasty? Do they think to make the walling of a city but one day's work, and to keep the feast of dedication with sacrifice the next day? Poor silly people! See how ridiculous they make themselves!" (2.) Tobiah speaks with no less scorn of the work itself. He has his jest too, and must show his wit, Neh 4:3. Profane scoffers sharpen one another. "Sorry work," says he, "they are likely to make of it; they themselves will be ashamed of it: If a fox go up, not with his subtlety, but with his weight, he will break down their stone wall." Many a good work has been thus looked upon with contempt by the proud and haughty scorners.
II. Nehemiah's humble and devout address to God when he heard of these reflections. He had notice brought him of what they said. It is probable that they themselves sent him a message to this purport, to discourage him, hoping to jeer him out of his attempt; but he did not answer these fools according to their folly; he did not upbraid them with their weakness, but looked up to God by prayer.
1. He begs of God to take notice of the indignities that were done them (Neh 4:4), and in this we are to imitate him: Hear, O our God! for we are despised. Note, (1.) God's people have often been a despised people, and loaded with contempt. (2.) God does, and will, hear all the slights that are put upon his people, and it is their comfort that he does so and a good reason why they should be as though they were deaf, Psa 38:13, Psa 38:15. "Thou art our God to whom we appeal; our cause needs no more than a fair hearing."
2. He begs of God to avenge their cause and turn the reproach upon the enemies themselves (Neh 4:4, Neh 4:5); and this was spoken rather by a spirit of prophecy than by a spirit of prayer, and is not to be imitated by us who are taught of Christ to pray for those that despitefully use and persecute us. Christ himself prayed for those that reproached him: Father, forgive them. Nehemiah here prays, Cover not their iniquity. Note, (1.) Those that cast contempt on God's people do but prepare everlasting shame for themselves. (2.) It is a sin from which sinners are seldom recovered. Doubtless Nehemiah had reason to think the hearts of those sinners were desperately hardened, so that they would never repent of it, else he would not have prayed that it might never be blotted out. The reason he gives is not, They have abused us, but, They have provoked thee, and that before the builders, to whom, it is likely, they sent a spiteful message. Note, We should be angry at the malice of persecutors, not because it is abusive to us, but because it is offensive to God; and on that we may ground an expectation that God will appear against it, Psa 74:18, Psa 74:22.
III. The vigour of the builders, notwithstanding these reflections, Neh 4:6. They made such good speed that in a little time they had run up the wall to half its height, for the people had a mind to work; their hearts were upon it, and they would have it forwarded. Note, 1. Good work goes on well when people have a mind to it. 2. The reproaches of enemies should rather quicken us to our duty than drive us from it.
Cross-references: Neh 4:1 · Neh 2:10 · Neh 4:2 · Neh 4:3 · Neh 4:4 · Ps 38:13 · Ps 38:15 · Neh 4:5 · Ps 74:18 · Ps 74:22 · Neh 4:6