Bible Strands
Nehemiah 4:2
before his associates and the army of Samaria, saying, “What are these feeble Jews doing? Can they restore the wall by themselves? Will they offer sacrifices? Will they complete it in a day? Can they bring these burnt stones back to life from the mounds of rubble?”
Berean Standard Bible
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Study note
Setting — Sanballat addresses his associates and the army of Samaria while the Jewish exiles are actively rebuilding the wall of Jerusalem.
The words — The Hebrew מָה (mah) literally means “what?” and frames Sanballat’s rhetorical challenge, while הַיְּהוּדִים (ha-yehudim) identifies the builders as “the Jews.”
The thread — The motif of the weak overcoming the strong echoes in 1 Corinthians 1:27, where God selects the weak things of the world to shame the wise. The pattern of foreign officials organizing against Jewish restoration appears in Ezra 4:9, which lists the judges and officials who coordinated their opposition. Taunts that mock a chosen figure’s ability to act appear in 1 Samuel 17:43, where Goliath questions David’s authority before battle.
Why it lands — The text records a direct challenge to the builders’ capacity and legitimacy, forcing the reader to confront how opposition frames spiritual work as impossible. It asks the reader to recognize that mockery targets the perceived weakness of the task, not the actual outcome of obedience.
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 he spake before his brethren and the army of Samaria, and said, What do these feeble Jews? will they fortify themselves? will they sacrifice? will they make an end in a day? will they revive the stones out of the heaps of the rubbish which are burned?
Cross-references
- 1 Corinthians 1:27 But God chose the foolish things of the world to shame the wise; God chose the weak things of the world to shame the strong.
- Ezra 4:9 From Rehum the commander, Shimshai the scribe, and the rest of their associates—the judges and officials over Tripolis, Persia, Erech and Babylon, the Elamites of Susa,
- 1 Samuel 17:43 “Am I a dog,” he said to David, “that you come at me with sticks?” And the Philistine cursed David by his gods.
- Nehemiah 4:10 Meanwhile, the people of Judah said: “The strength of the laborer fails, and there is so much rubble that we will never be able to rebuild the wall.”
- Ezekiel 37:3 Then He asked me, “Son of man, can these bones come to life?” “O Lord GOD,” I replied, “only You know.”
- Zechariah 12:8 On that day the LORD will defend the people of Jerusalem, so that the weakest among them will be like David, and the house of David will be like God, like the angel of the LORD going before them.
- 1 Samuel 14:11 So the two of them showed themselves to the outpost of the Philistines, who exclaimed, “Look, the Hebrews are coming out of the holes in which they were hiding!”
- Nehemiah 12:27 At the dedication of the wall of Jerusalem, the Levites were sought out from all their homes and brought to Jerusalem to celebrate the joyous dedication with thanksgiving and singing, accompanied by cymbals, harps, and lyres.
- Nehemiah 12:43 On that day they offered great sacrifices, rejoicing because God had given them great joy. The women and children also rejoiced, so that the joy of Jerusalem was heard from afar.
- Habakkuk 3:2 O LORD, I have heard the report of You; I stand in awe, O LORD, of Your deeds. Revive them in these years; make them known in these years. In Your wrath, remember mercy!