Nehemiah 6:16

When all our enemies heard about this, all the surrounding nations were afraid and disheartened, for they realized that this task had been accomplished by our God.

Berean Standard Bible

Follow its threads on the canvas →

Study note

Setting — Nehemiah narrates the reaction of surrounding peoples immediately after the wall's completion on the twenty-fifth of Elul. The account addresses the Judean community and external observers, marking the conclusion of a fifty-two-day construction effort.

The words — The Hebrew verb וַיִּרְא֫וּ (va/yir'u) translates literally as "and they were afraid," while כָּל־ (kol) functions as "all" to emphasize the universal scope of the reaction among the surrounding nations.

The thread — This pattern of surrounding powers hearing of divine action and responding with fear appears in Joshua 5:1, where Canaanite kings lose courage upon hearing of the Jordan crossing. The same motif of nations recognizing God's work extends to Psalms 126:2, which records foreign observers acknowledging the Lord's great deeds.

Why it lands — The text demands recognition that the wall's completion was not merely a human achievement but a divinely orchestrated event. Readers must acknowledge that opposition loses its power when its source is identified as God's direct intervention.

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 it came to pass, that when all our enemies heard thereof, and all the heathen that were about us saw these things, they were much cast down in their own eyes: for they perceived that this work was wrought of our God.

Cross-references

Joshua 5:1 Now when all the Amorite kings west of the Jordan and all the Canaanite kings along the coast heard how the LORD had dried up the waters of the Jordan before the Israelites until they had crossed over, their hearts melted and their spirits failed for fear of the Israelites.
Psalms 126:2 Then our mouths were filled with laughter, our tongues with shouts of joy. Then it was said among the nations, “The LORD has done great things for them.”
Nehemiah 4:7 When Sanballat and Tobiah, together with the Arabs, Ammonites, and Ashdodites, heard that the repair to the walls of Jerusalem was progressing and that the gaps were being closed, they were furious,
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 4:1 Now when Sanballat heard that we were rebuilding the wall, he was furious and filled with indignation. He ridiculed the Jews
Acts 5:38 So in the present case I advise you: Leave these men alone. Let them go! For if their purpose or endeavor is of human origin, it will fail.
Numbers 23:23 For there is no spell against Jacob and no divination against Israel. It will now be said of Jacob and Israel, ‘What great things God has done!’
Exodus 14:25 He caused their chariot wheels to wobble, so that they had difficulty driving. “Let us flee from the Israelites,” said the Egyptians, “for the LORD is fighting for them against Egypt!”
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—