Nehemiah 13:23-26
In those days also I saw the Jews who had married women of Ashdod, Ammon, and Moab. And half of their children spoke the language of Ashdod, and they could not speak the language of Judah, but only the language of each people. And I confronted them and cursed them and beat some of them and pulled out their hair. And I made them take an oath in the name of God, saying, “You shall not give your daughters to their sons, or take their daughters for your sons or for yourselves. Did not Solomon king of Israel sin on account of such women? Among the many nations there was no king like him, and he was beloved by his God, and God made him king over all Israel. Nevertheless, foreign women made even him to sin.
Tag: Relationships Can Build or Tear Down our Walk with God
Nehemiah was sent to Jerusalem, by God, to rebuild the city. Yet, after the city is rebuilt, he actually started to rebuild the spiritual character of those who would occupy the city. In the above passage we see him notice that the foreign marriages that went on during the years of captivity, were causing, or could cause, the nation to fall right back into the sins that caused the captivity in the first place. Nehemiah lets the nation know that God is not pleased with such behavior and this type of behavior has led them astray before. He even uses the illustration of King Solomon. Solomon was revered as a great leader to the nation of Israel. Yet, even Solomon, in all his wisdom could not overcome the influence of the many foreign wives he had. They would, eventually, even lead him astray. Our relationships do impact our walk with God. If we want a strong walk with God, we have to make sure we have a walk that is with strong people of faith. The foreign influences threatened to deteriorate the character of the people. It would not matter if they put material walls around the city to keep the danger our, if, at the same time, they had broken down walls around their hearts when it came to relationships with people who did not believe in God. Foreign relationships with those who do no honor God will, eventually, destroy the heart and the city. Nehemiah was a leader who wanted the city strong, but their hearts, also.
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