Nehemiah 4:21

Neh 4:21 So we laboured in the work: and half of them held the spears from the rising of the morning till the stars appeared.

Ver. 21. So we laboured in the work] Their fear of the enemy did not weaken them, but waken them rather to a redoubled diligence.

From the rising of the sun till the stars appeared] Time was precious; and they redeemed and improved it. The common complaint is, We want time; but the truth is, Non parum habemus temporis, sed multum perdimus. We do not so much want as waste it. The good man is perdius et pernox, night and day at his business; and his thoughts are the same with those of Rabbi Simeon, Dies brevis est, et opus multum, et operarii pigri, et paterfamilias urger, The time is short, the task large, the workmen dither, the master of the house urgent.

John Trapp, A Commentary or Exposition upon All the Books of the Old and New Testament (1647–1656) — public domain. Text from a community e-Sword module.

Neh 4:21-22. Half of them held the spears — For the use of every man, if there should be occasion. From the rising of the morning till the stars appeared — Working very early and very late. Let every one with his servant lodge within Jerusalem — Not in the suburbs or adjoining villages, as probably many of them had done, returning thence to their work in the morning: but now he would have them all lodge in Jerusalem, for the greater security of the city; and in turns to watch by night, or work on the walls by day.

Joseph Benson's Commentary on the Old and New Testaments (1811–1818) — public domain. Text from a community e-Sword module.

(21) So we laboured.—This is a general recapitulation, with additional note of the length of the day’s work during this pressing season.

A Bible Commentary for English Readers, edited by Charles John Ellicott (1878–1897) — public domain. Text from a community e-Sword module.

21. So we laboured] R.V. So we wrought. The word in the original being the same as that rendered ‘wrought’ in Neh_4:16-17, it is best to adhere to the same English equivalent. ‘We:’ the pronoun is emphatic, i.e. I and my servants. The verse refers to Nehemiah and his men alone, as is shown by the mention of ‘half of them.’ It continues the narrative from Neh_4:18. Neh_4:19-20 are parenthetical.

half of them held the spears] That is to say, Nehemiah’s bodyguard was divided into two companies, who alternately worked at the wall and mounted guard, holding the weapons of their comrades in readiness.

till the stars appeared] literally ‘till the going forth of the stars.’ The word is familiar to us from such passages as Gen_19:23, ‘The sun was risen (lit. gone forth) upon the earth when Lot came unto Zoar’. Psa_19:6, ‘His (the sun’s) going forth is from the end of heaven.’ The stars come forth from their ‘chambers’ (Job_9:9).

The Cambridge Bible for Schools and Colleges (gen. ed. J. J. S. Perowne; Cambridge University Press, 1878–1918) — public domain. Text from a community e-Sword module.

So we laboured in the work,.... Of building the wall: and half of them held the spears; and other weapons before mentioned, Neh 4:16

from the rising of the morning till the stars appeared; that is, from morning to evening, the space of time the builders and labourers worked.

John Gill's Exposition of the Whole Bible (1746–1763) — public domain (CC PDM 1.0). Text via the HelloAO Bible API.

Working very early and very late.

Matthew Poole's English Annotations on the Holy Bible (1683–1685) — public domain. Text from a community e-Sword/MySword module.

21. Half of them held the spears — This confirms our view of Neh_4:16, that half stood on guard, with arms ready for the use of all, while the other half worked. They, doubtless, relieved each other by turns.

Daniel D. Whedon (gen. ed.), Commentary on the Old and New Testaments (1874–1909) — public domain. Text from a community e-Sword module.

So we laboured: and half of them held the spears. This is a summary of the main points previously related: "So we continued to work; and one-half of my personal followers continued to keep watch, and to hold the spears" (ver. 16). From the rising of the morning, etc. This is additional, and shows how early the work commenced each morning, and how late it continued.

The Pulpit Commentary (1880–1919), ed. H.D.M. Spence-Jones & Joseph S. Exell — public domain. Text from a community e-Sword module.

Half of them

Here "Half" means one part out of two equal parts. (See: Fractions)

from the rising of the dawn until the coming out of the stars

This refers to the whole day, while it is light outside. AT: "from the first light of day until the very beginning of the night"

the rising of the dawn

It is the point in time that the sun rises that is "dawn." Here the sun rising is spoken of as if the "dawn" rose. AT: "the rising of the sun" or "dawn" (See: Metonymy)

in the middle of Jerusalem

"within Jerusalem"

changed our clothes

"took off our clothes"

translationWords

works

spear

servant

Jerusalem

brother

water

unfoldingWord translationNotes — © Distant Shores Media and the Door43 World Missions Community, licensed CC BY-SA 4.0. Source: git.door43.org/Door43/en_tn.