Nehemiah 5:1

Nehemiah Defends the Oppressed

1 About that time there was a great outcry from the people and their wives against their fellow Jews.

Nehemiah 5:1 Meaning and Commentary

Nehemiah 5:1

And there was a great cry of the people, and of their wives,
&c.] Those of the poorer sort:

against their brethren the Jews;
the rich that oppressed them; and this cry or complaint was made to Nehemiah for redress.

Nehemiah 5:1 In-Context

1 About that time there was a great outcry from the people and their wives against their fellow Jews.

2 Some were saying, “We and our sons and daughters are numerous. We must get grain in order to eat and stay alive.”

3 Others were saying, “We are mortgaging our fields, our vineyards, and our homes to get grain during the famine.”

4 Still others were saying, “We have borrowed money to pay the king’s tax on our fields and vineyards.

5 We and our children are just like our countrymen and their children, yet we are subjecting our sons and daughters to slavery. Some of our daughters are already enslaved, but we are powerless to redeem them because our fields and vineyards belong to others.”