Nehemiah

Nehemiah is a masculine personal name of ancient Hebrew and Biblical origin which means ‘comforted by Yahweh’. There is a book in the Old Testament (or Hebrew Bible) named after this Jewish leader which can be found between the books of Ezra and Ruth. The book of Nehemiah takes place in the 5th century BC well after the Persians defeated the Babylonians and the Jews were allowed to return to Jerusalem from exile under Persian rule. Nehemiah – who happens to have a position of importance in the Persian king’s court – asked to return to Jerusalem to visit his people and to check things out. Apparently, even though the Jews had returned from exile for almost 100 years, they still hadn’t bothered with the rebuilding of Jerusalem’s walls. Not only that, but they had almost completely lost their connection with biblical Hebrew, their ancestral heritage and the Law of Moses. Nehemiah to the rescue! He basically coordinated the Jews around an efficient reconstruction of their walls (completed in a mere 52 days!). He then coordinated a massive re-education of the Law of Moses. For many of the former exiles, they were hearing this word of God for the first time. Many of the people wept once they realized they had abandoned their heritage. Nehemiah cleansed the people and saved the day, repeatedly praying to the Lord: “Remember me, O my God, for good.” If it hadn’t been for Nehemiah’s leadership, the Jews came dangerously close to losing their entire heritage. He ‘comforted’ them with the word of Yahweh. Nehemiah has mainly been considered a largely Jewish name, although in recent years the name has spread to a wider audience.