Nehemiah 4:16

16 From that day on, half of my servants worked on construction, and half held the spears, shields, bows, and ¹coats of mail. And the leaders stood behind the whole house of Judah,

Nehemiah 4:16 Meaning and Commentary

Nehemiah 4:16

And it came to pass from that time forth
That they were thus alarmed of danger from their enemies:

that the half of my servants wrought in the work;
of building the wall; his domestic servants, his guards, or mighty men, as Jarchi, men of war, the soldiers:

and the other half of them held both the spears, the shields, and the
bows;
some offensive, others defensive weapons; some to fight with at a distance, others near at hand:

and the habergeons;
coats of mail, which they took and clothed themselves with:

and the rulers were behind all the house of Judah;
the Jews that were working at the wall, to animate and encourage them, protect and defend them.

Nehemiah 4:16 In-Context

14 And I looked and arose and said to the nobles and to the officials and to the rest of the people, "Do not be afraid of them. Remember the Lord, who is great and awesome, and fight for your brothers, your sons, your daughters, your wives, and your homes."

15 When our enemies heard that it was known to us and that God had frustrated their plan, we all returned to the wall, each to his work.

16 From that day on, half of my servants worked on construction, and half held the spears, shields, bows, and coats of mail. And the leaders stood behind the whole house of Judah,

17 who were building on the wall. Those who carried burdens were loaded in such a way that each labored on the work with one hand and held his weapon with the other.

18 And each of the builders had his sword strapped at his side while he built. The man who sounded the trumpet was beside me.

Cross References

• 1. 2 Chronicles 26:14