The story of Nehemiah (and Ezra that comes before) is one of restoration and renewal.

Because of their unfaithfulness to God despite his constant and gracious patience and calling of his people back to himself through the prophets, Israel is taken captive and into exile, out of their land, under the rule of foreign nations.

But the promise of God was that they would not be decimated as a people. He would bring them back to their land, restore their kingdom, once again be their God and they his people and that all nations would be blessed through them.

And so this is what’s taking place in the book of Ezra-Nehemiah.

The people of Israel are coming our of exile to be restored as a people, and there’s really 3 works of restoration that needs to happen as this takes place.

TEMPLE
The first is the rebuilding of the Temple of God. This holy place where God would dwell and meet with his people through the mediation of a priest, where the sacrificial system for worship and forgiveness of sin was to be carried out needed to be rebuilt after it’s destruction.

This was restored in the book of Ezra.

LAW & SACRIFICIAL SYSTEM 
The second thing that needed restoration was obedience to the law of God that was handed down to Moses, and the actual practice of worship at the temple.

Now the reason Israel was in exile in the first place was because time and again they failed to keep the law and instead of temple worship to Yahweh, they would worship foreign God’s and idols in various other high places.

And so the following of the law and temple worship was in need of restoration because this was their identity marker that they were the people of God. This is what it looked like to live in covenant relationship with God.

So this restoration happens in both the book of Ezra and Nehemiah as we’ve been looking at.

WALLS 
The third thing in need of restoration was the physical walls of Jerusalem that surrounded the city. And we have talked in previous weeks about how the disgrace of the physical city, temple and walls as it lay in ruins pointed to the disgrace of the people, and lead to other nations disgracing the name of their God too.

And this rebuilding the wall is what occupies the first half of the book of Nehemiah.

So as we look at this period in Israel’s history, it is a time where God is on the move. It’s a time where God’s gracious hand is upon his people and is doing a work of restoration.

The temple is restored, the walls are restored and the people are restored and renewed as they re-discover the law and temple worship practices handed down to them.

All of these are great things that are taking place in Israel, and all by the hand of God. And we’re left with this really positive picture at the dedication of the wall.

Nehemiah 12:43

And on that day they offered great sacrifices, rejoicing because God had given them great joy. The women and children also rejoiced. The sound of rejoicing in Jerusalem could be heard far away.

And as the rest of chapter twelve goes on, it talks about how the temple service, the provision for the Levites, the musicians etc. were all happening, the law is being followed, everything is working well.

But this isn’t the end, there’s still chapter 13…