Nehemiah 4:3-7

4:3 Then Tobiah the Ammonite, who was close by, said, “If even a fox were to climb up on what they are building, it would break down their wall of stones!”

4:4 Hear, O our God, for we are despised! Return their reproach on their own head! Reduce them to plunder in a land of exile! 4:5 Do not cover their iniquity, and do not wipe out their sin from before them. For they have bitterly offended ¹  the builders! ² 

4:6 So we rebuilt the wall, and the entire wall was joined together up to half its height. ³  The people were enthusiastic in their work. ⁴ 

4:7 (4:1) ⁵  When Sanballat, Tobiah, the Arabs, the Ammonites, and the people of Ashdod heard that the restoration of the walls of Jerusalem ⁶  had moved ahead and that the breaches had begun to be closed, they were very angry.

[4:5]  ¹ tn The Hiphil stem of כָּעַס (ka’as) may mean: (1) “to provoke to anger”; (2) “to bitterly offend”; or (3) “to grieve” (BDB 495 s.v. Hiph.; HALOT 491 s.v. כעס hif). The Hebrew lexicons suggest that “bitterly offend” is the most appropriate nuance here.

[4:5]  ² tn Heb “before the builders.” The preposition נֶגֶד (neged, “before”) here connotes “in the sight of” or “in the view of” (BDB 617 s.v. 1.a; HALOT 666 s.v. 1.a).

[4:6]  ³ tn Heb “up to its half.”

[4:6]  ⁴ tn Heb “the people had a heart to work.”

[4:7]  ⁵ sn Chapter 4 begins here in the Hebrew text (BHS). See the note at 4:1.

[4:7]  ⁶ map For location see Map5 B1; Map6 F3; Map7 E2; Map8 F2; Map10 B3; JP1 F4; JP2 F4; JP3 F4; JP4 F4.