Nehemiah 11

“The leaders of the people took up residence in Jerusalem; while the rest of the people cast lots to bring one-tenth of them to live in Jerusalem the holy city, with the other nine-tenths in the other cities. The people blessed all those who volunteered to live in Jerusalem.” Nehemiah 11:1-2 (CJB)

A “tithe” is ten percent. When followers of Jesus give ten percent of their income to support the ongoing ministry of their local congregations, it is called a “tithe.” Of course, the tithe is the minimum requirement, and any faithful believer will offer over & above the minimum whenever the need arises, as the Lord leads.

Nehemiah proposed a “tithe of the people” to repopulate Jerusalem and continue rebuilding. Not only was this decision good for the city of Jerusalem, but it was also a brilliant political move because it evenly distributed Jerusalem’s population among all the returning exiled tribes.

Historically, most of Israel’s problems came while the kingdom was divided after Solomon’s reign. Ten tribes rejected Solomon’s Temple in Jerusalem because they rejected the Davidic kingship, which came from the tribe of Judah. The dispute grew to include the issue of where & how to worship. Nehemiah’s solution had Jerusalem populated by representatives of the entire remnant. Jerusalem was to be a cosmopolitan city yet focused on God.

We have a similar situation in the United States. Right on the border of Virginia and Maryland, a district was developed (the District of Columbia…the “DC” of Washington DC), which houses our federal government. The reason for the development of the District of Columbia is so that no state can boast of housing the nation’s capital. Our capital was designed as a city with no favoritism to any State. This is the idea for Jerusalem’s repopulation plan: God’s agenda would reign. With an evenly spread demographic, every tribe would be inclined to rush to Jerusalem’s aid because each family had relatives there.  

Beyond the practical and political reasons for this arrangement, there are more spiritual concerns. The people who repopulated Jerusalem were not chosen by election or whimsy. God chose each person. He made His will known through the “lots,” …a legitimate way of seeking the Lord’s will in Nehemiah’s day. Believers today don’t need to cast lots. We each have the gift of the Ruach HaKodesh (Holy Spirit), given in Acts 2 on the day of Shavuot (Pentecost).  

God chose people bent on holiness who would be confronted with opposition yet view opposition as an opportunity to stand faithfully. Perhaps those people would never have chosen to live in Jerusalem, but God knew what was best. Similarly, I never would have chosen to follow Jesus on my own, but He pursued me, and eventually, I believed the gospel. God has also chosen to give eternal life to those who believe in and follow Messiah Jesus. Therefore, when the Lord calls, I am eager to depart this body and be present with the Lord, taking up residence in the New Jerusalem!