Bible Strands
Nehemiah 4:3
Then Tobiah the Ammonite, who was beside him, said, “If even a fox were to climb up on what they are building, it would break down their wall of stones!”
Berean Standard Bible
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Study note
Setting — Tobiah the Ammonite, standing beside Sanballat, speaks to the Jewish builders and their opponents during the wall reconstruction. He voices a taunt about the project's structural vulnerability while the work is actively underway.
The words — The Hebrew גַּם (gam) means "also" or "even," intensifying the claim that the wall is fragile. The participle בּוֹנִים (bo.Nim) translates to "are building," anchoring the mockery to the ongoing labor rather than a finished structure.
The thread — The opposition's dismissal mirrors the mockery in Nehemiah 2:19 and follows the pattern of boastful threats seen in 1 Kings 20:10. This sequence shows how coordinated ridicule targets a community's work before divine or human intervention occurs.
Why it lands — The text records a direct assertion that the wall is easily destroyed by minimal force. It presents opposition as a factual claim that demands a response, which Nehemiah 4:4 answers with a prayer rather than immediate retaliation.
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
Now Tobiah the Ammonite was by him, and he said, Even that which they build, if a fox go up, he shall even break down their stone wall.
Cross-references
- Nehemiah 2:19 But when Sanballat the Horonite, Tobiah the Ammonite official, and Geshem the Arab heard about this, they mocked us and ridiculed us, saying, “What is this you are doing? Are you rebelling against the king?”
- 1 Kings 20:10 Then Ben-hadad sent another message to Ahab: “May the gods deal with me, and ever so severely, if enough dust remains of Samaria for each of my men to have a handful.”
- 1 Kings 20:18 “If they have marched out in peace,” he said, “take them alive. Even if they have marched out for war, take them alive.”
- 2 Kings 18:23 Now, therefore, make a bargain with my master, the king of Assyria. I will give you two thousand horses—if you can put riders on them!
- Nehemiah 2:10 But when Sanballat the Horonite and Tobiah the Ammonite official heard about this, they were deeply disturbed that someone had come to seek the well-being of the Israelites.
- Nehemiah 6:1 When Sanballat, Tobiah, Geshem the Arab, and the rest of our enemies heard that I had rebuilt the wall and not a gap was left—though to that time I had not yet installed the doors in the gates—
- Lamentations 5:18 because of Mount Zion, which lies desolate, patrolled by foxes.