เนหะมีย์ 12:43 วิจารณ์

In this chapter are preserved upon record, I. The names of the chief of the priests and the Levites that came up with Zerubbabel (Neh 12:1-9). II. The succession of the high priests (Neh 12:10, Neh 12:11). III. The names of the next generation of the other chief priests (Neh 12:12-21). IV. The eminent Levites that were in Nehemiah's time (Neh 12:22-26). V. The solemnity of dedicating the wall of Jerusalem (v. 27-43). VI. The settling of the offices of the priests and Levites in the temple (Neh 12:44-47).

INTRODUCTION TO NEHEMIAH 12 This chapter gives an account of the chief of the priests and Levites in the days of Zerubbabel, Jeshua, Joiakim, Eliashib, and Nehemiah, Neh 12:1, of the dedication of the wall of Jerusalem, and of the joy expressed on that occasion, Neh 12:27, and of the appointment of some persons over the treasuries for the priests, Levites, singers, and porters, Neh 12:44.

For in the days of David and Asaph of old there were chief of the singers,.... Persons appointed over the rest to instruct them, and see that they did their work aright, as besides Asaph, Haman, and Jeduthun, and their sons, Ch1 25:2 and songs of praise and thanksgiving unto God; such were made by them, some under divine inspiration, which bear the names of David and Asaph, as may be observed in the book of Psalms.

And they sacrificed great victims on that day, etc. On that day of perpetual light (about which Zachariah said: And there shall be one day which is known to the Lord, not day nor night: that is, removed from the experience of passing times) the chosen sacrifice great victims to the Lord, namely those which the Psalmist, tasting in the hope of future things, said: You have broken my bonds, I will offer to you the sacrifice of praise (Psalm 115). He also rightly shows where he hoped to sacrifice this victim, when he immediately adds: I will pay my vows to the Lord in the courts of the house of the Lord, in the presence of all his people, in the midst of you, Jerusalem. For in the midst of Jerusalem we render our vows to God in the presence of all his people, when in the heavenly homeland with the entire assembly of saints gathered, we offer him those praises for which we now groan and which we daily long for with a desire for grace.

For God had made them rejoice with great joy, etc. These things truly pertain to the edification of that holy city which is in the future, in which God is the king who gladdens His citizens with His presence, indeed with great joy; hence, when the king was born in the flesh, the angel appearing to the shepherds said: Behold, I bring you good tidings of great joy, which will be to all people (Luke 2). This is in clear distinction from human joy, which is both small and transient; and therefore, the wise should consider it of little value. However, in that joy which God grants to His city, it is well mentioned that the wives of the citizens, together with their children, also rejoiced; because at the time of the resurrection, not only those who had either preached the word or steadfastly endured in the works of faith will receive the great reward of their great labors, but also the weaker ones, those who shared the same faith, will rejoice together with them in the same reception of eternal life. For the Lord blessed all those who feared Him, the small together with the great (Psalm 115). This dedication can also be understood in this life metaphorically, in some chosen ones, who, having purified the eye of the heart, are worthy to contemplate part of the joys which the whole Church will fully receive in the future, like Isaiah, Ezekiel, Daniel, and the other prophets; like the apostles (Matthew 17), who rejoiced to see the Lord glorified on the holy mountain; like Paul (2 Corinthians 12), who was worthy to be caught up into paradise and the third heaven; like John in the Apocalypse, who, the higher they ascended into the lofty heights of the heavenly city, the more clearly they took care to sing the praises of the Lord and always to offer Him the greatest sacrifices of good works.

Account of the priests and Levites that come up with Zerubbabel, Neh 12:1-7. Of the Levites, Neh 12:8-21. The Levites in the days of Eliashib, Neh 12:22-26. Of the dedication of the wall, and its ceremonies, vv. 27-43. Different officers appointed, Neh 12:44-47.

PRIESTS AND LEVITES WHO CAME UP WITH ZERUBBABEL. (Neh 12:1-9) these are the priests--according to Neh 12:7, "the chief of the priests," the heads of the twenty-four courses into which the priesthood was divided (1Ch. 24:1-20). Only four of the courses returned from the captivity (Neh 7:39-42; Ezr 2:36-39). But these were divided by Zerubbabel, or Jeshua, into the original number of twenty-four. Twenty-two only are enumerated here, and no more than twenty in Neh 12:12-21. The discrepancy is due to the extremely probable circumstance that two of the twenty-four courses had become extinct in Babylon; for none belonging to them are reported as having returned (Neh 12:2-5). Hattush and Maadiah may be omitted in the account of those persons' families (Neh 12:12), for these had no sons. Shealtiel--or Salathiel. Ezra--This was most likely a different person from the pious and patriotic leader. If he were the same person, he would now have reached a very patriarchal age--and this longevity would doubtless be due to his eminent piety and temperance, which are greatly conducive to the prolongation of life, but, above all, to the special blessing of God, who had preserved and strengthened him for the accomplishment of the important work he was called upon to undertake in that critical period of the Church's history.

the joy of Jerusalem was heard even afar off--The events of the day, viewed in connection with the now repaired and beautified state of the city, raised the popular feeling to the highest pitch of enthusiasm, and the fame of their rejoicings was spread far and near.

Lists of Priests and Levites. Dedication of the Wall of Jerusalem - Nehemiah 12:1-43 The list of the inhabitants of the province, Neh 11, is followed by lists of the priests and Levites (Neh 12:1-26). These different lists are, in point of fact, all connected with the genealogical register of the Israelite population of the whole province, taken by Nehemiah (Neh 7:5) for the purpose of enlarging the population of Jerusalem, though the lists of the orders of priests and Levites in the present chapter were made partly at an earlier, and partly at a subsequent period. It is because of this actual connection that they are inserted in the history of the building of the wall of Jerusalem, which terminates with the narrative of the solemn dedication of the completed wall in vv. 27-43. Lists of the orders of priests and Levites. - Neh 12:1-9 contain a list of the heads of the priests and Levites who returned from Babylon with Zerubbabel and Joshua. The high priests during five generations are next mentioned by name, Neh 12:10, Neh 12:11. Then follow the names of the heads of the priestly houses in the days of Joiakim the high priest; and finally, Neh 12:22-26, the names of the heads of the Levites at the same period, with titles and subscriptions.