d cast it from thee: for it is profitable for
thee that one of thy members should perish, and not that thy whole body
should be cast into hell.'

The first evil has been dealt with and cleared away, Tobiah and his
goods have been cast out of the temple. Nehemiah now passes on to the
next thing which had so greatly shocked him on his arrival in Jerusalem,
namely, the neglect on the part of the people with regard to the payment
of what was due from them for the temple service.

Again Nehemiah takes strong measures. He calls together the rulers, as
the leaders and representatives of the rest, and he gives them very
strongly his mind on the subject. No smooth words or gentle hints will
do. He tells us, 'I contended some time with them' (that is, I reproved
them and argued with them), 'and I said, Why is the house of our God
forsaken?'

Then, without waiting for a response to his appeal, he sends round to
all the Levites and singers, bidding them with all haste to come up to
the temple and to take up their work again. And the people, seeing he
was determined, and that there was no possibility of his allowing the
matter to drop, came also, bringing with them the corn, and the wine,
and the oil, with which once more to fill the empty chamber.

'Then brought all Judah the tithe of the corn and the new wine and the
oil unto the treasuries.'

And, in order to prevent such a thing ever happening again, Nehemiah
appointed treasurers to look after the temple stores. Eliashib the high
priest had been the store-keeper before, xiii. 4, but he had shown
himself unworthy of his office. Four men are accordingly chosen to
collect the stores, and afterwards to deal them out to the priests and
Levites. One is a priest, one a Levite, one a layman of rank, and the
fourth a scribe, ver. 13. Nehemiah tells us why he selected these four
men. 'They were counted faithful,' and as faithful men they could be
thoroughly depended upon.

Now, having set the temple in order, Nehemiah proceeds to fight the
battle with regard to the observance of the Sabbath.

Again he uses strong measures. He once more speaks strongly and hotly
to the nobles, for they had led the van in Sabbath desecration. They
liked the freshest fruit and the daintiest dishes for their Sabbath
feast, and they had, therefore, encouraged the market-people to go on
with their Sabbath trade. Then, as now, there were plenty of people who,
for their own self-pleasing, were ready to ar