Bible Strands
Nehemiah 4:19
Then I said to the nobles, the officials, and the rest of the people: “The work is great and extensive, and we are spread out far from one another along the wall.
Berean Standard Bible
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Study note
Setting — Nehemiah addresses the nobles, officials, and the remainder of the people while the reconstruction crew stands armed with swords at their sides. He speaks this to coordinate labor and defense across a dispersed worksite.
The words — The Hebrew יֶתֶר (Ye.ter) literally means "rest" or "remainder," identifying the fragmented group being addressed. הַ/סְּגָנִים (ha./se.ga.Nim) translates to "officials" or "deputies," denoting the administrative leaders directing the project.
The thread — The text states that dispersed workers must rally to a trumpet signal, a pattern that appears in the assembly at Sinai (Exodus 19:17) and the coordinated watchmen of Isaiah 62:6. The mobilization call reappears in Numbers 10:2-9 and 1 Chronicles 15:28.
Why it lands — The verse states that large communal tasks require both strategic coordination and distributed responsibility across a scattered workforce. It asks readers to maintain readiness to respond to a signal when effort is fragmented and defense is necessary.
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 I said unto the nobles, and to the rulers, and to the rest of the people, The work is great and large, and we are separated upon the wall, one far from another.