Bible Strands
Nehemiah 4:11
And our enemies said, “Before they know or see a thing, we will come into their midst, kill them, and put an end to the work.”
Berean Standard Bible
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Study note
Setting — The enemies address each other during the wall reconstruction, specifically when Judah’s laborers are exhausted and overwhelmed by rubble. Their speech targets the builders, aiming to exploit their fatigue before they can organize a defense.
The words — יֵדְעוּ (ye.de.'U) means they will know, and יִרְא֔וּ (yir.'U) means they will see. These verbs frame the enemy’s plan to strike before the builders can perceive or react to the threat.
The thread — The tactic of striking before detection appears in Judges 20:29, 2 Samuel 17:2, and Psalms 56:6, where ambush and concealed hostility are used to overwhelm targets. Nehemiah 4:11 applies this pattern to a physical siege against a rebuilding community.
Why it lands — The text demands recognition of coordinated opposition that targets vulnerability rather than strength. It requires a reader to identify the moment of perceived weakness and prepare a structural or spiritual response before the strike lands.
Drafted by a language model from the text, its original words and its cross-references, then checked against them. It can still be wrong: open the verse in the app to report it.
The Hebrew words
King James Version
And our adversaries said, They shall not know, neither see, till we come in the midst among them, and slay them, and cause the work to cease.
Cross-references
- Judges 20:29 So Israel set up an ambush around Gibeah.
- 2 Samuel 17:2 I will attack him while he is weak and weary; I will throw him into a panic, and all the people with him will flee; I will strike down only the king
- Psalms 56:6 They conspire, they lurk, they watch my steps while they wait to take my life.
- Isaiah 47:11 But disaster will come upon you; you will not know how to charm it away. A calamity will befall you that you will be unable to ward off. Devastation will happen to you suddenly and unexpectedly.
- Acts 23:12 When daylight came, the Jews formed a conspiracy and bound themselves with an oath not to eat or drink until they had killed Paul.
- Acts 23:21 Do not let them persuade you, because more than forty men are waiting to ambush him. They have bound themselves with an oath not to eat or drink until they have killed him; they are ready now, awaiting your consent.”
- 1 Thessalonians 5:2 For you are fully aware that the Day of the Lord will come like a thief in the night.