Nehemiah 5:1

1 Then there arose a great outcry from the common people and their wives against their brothers the [wealthier] Judeans.

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 Then there arose a great outcry from the common people and their wives against their brothers the [wealthier] Judeans.

2 Some of them said, "Counting our sons and daughters, there are a lot of us! Allow us to get grain for them, so that we can eat and stay alive."

3 There were also some who said, "We are mortgaging our fields, vineyards and homes in order to buy grain, because of the famine."

4 Yet others said, "We have borrowed money for the king's taxes against our fields and vineyards.

5 Now our flesh is no different from the flesh of our kinsmen, and our children are the same as their children; yet we are bringing our sons and daughters into bondage as slaves. Some of our daughters have gone into slavery already, and it's beyond our power to do anything about it, because other men have our fields and vineyards."