Bible Strands
Nehemiah 6:14
O my God, remember Tobiah and Sanballat for what they have done, and also Noadiah the prophetess and the other prophets who tried to intimidate me.
Berean Standard Bible
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Study note
Setting — Nehemiah addresses this prayer to God while opposing coordinated intimidation from Tobiah, Sanballat, Noadiah, and other prophets during the final stages of Jerusalem's wall reconstruction. He voices it immediately after his enemies attempt to provoke him into sin to damage his reputation, just before the wall's completion.
The words — The verse hinges on זָכְרָ֧ה (za.khe.Ra/h), translated literally as "remember," which serves as a formal request for God to record and act upon the deeds of Nehemiah's opponents. It also uses אֱלֹהַ֛י ('e.lo.Ha/i), "O my God," to direct this judicial appeal to a specific covenant relationship.
The thread — The petition to "remember" adversaries for their harm appears in Nehemiah 13:29 concerning defiled priests and in 2 Timothy 4:14 regarding Alexander the coppersmith. The principle of God repaying individuals according to their works aligns with the warning in 1 Kings 22:22 about deceptive prophetic influence.
Why it lands — The text requires the reader to identify active spiritual opposition and submit it to God's judgment rather than responding through personal retaliation. It demands a posture of reliance on divine retribution and the assurance that God will finish His work despite human resistance.
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
My God, think thou upon Tobiah and Sanballat according to these their works, and on the prophetess Noadiah, and the rest of the prophets, that would have put me in fear.
Cross-references
- Nehemiah 13:29 Remember them, O my God, because they have defiled the priesthood and the covenant of the priesthood and of the Levites.
- 2 Timothy 4:14 Alexander the coppersmith did great harm to me. The Lord will repay him according to his deeds.
- 1 Kings 22:22 And he replied, ‘I will go out and be a lying spirit in the mouths of all his prophets.’ ‘You will surely entice him and prevail,’ said the LORD. ‘Go and do it.’
- Nehemiah 4:4 Hear us, O God, for we are despised. Turn their scorn back upon their own heads, and let them be taken as plunder to a land of captivity.
- Nehemiah 5:19 Remember me favorably, O my God, for all that I have done for this people.
- Psalms 22:1 For the choirmaster. To the tune of “The Doe of the Dawn.” A Psalm of David. My God, my God, why have You forsaken me? Why are You so far from saving me, so far from my words of groaning?
- Psalms 36:11 Let not the foot of the proud come against me, nor the hand of the wicked drive me away.
- Psalms 63:1 A Psalm of David, when he was in the Wilderness of Judah. O God, You are my God. Earnestly I seek You; my soul thirsts for You. My body yearns for You in a dry and weary land without water.
- Psalms 140:5 The proud hide a snare for me; the cords of their net are spread along the path, and lures are set out for me. Selah
- Isaiah 9:14 So the LORD will cut off Israel’s head and tail, both palm branch and reed in a single day.