Ok, so I think I'm in the middle of my craziest semester yet in my Calvin College career. Although I am quite stressed out, I have to admit that I'm really excited to write this Biblical exegesis paper (I am currently researching right now) on Nehemiah 9 - does that make me a religion nerd? If so, I'm ok with that. :)
Within the last couple of years at Calvin, I have discovered some of the amazing truths within the Old Testament and have come to a greater understanding of how the OT and the NT are intricately related. When I was younger, I struggled with the idea of how it worked to have an Old Covenant and then a New Covenant - was the old one completely irrelevant because of the new one? If it was, would that mean that the OT wasn't necessary to know and learn? Either I wasn't taught this very well in high school or I didn't pay close enough attention in high school (it's probably a combination of the two). Because of this, I think I spent most of my time trying to learn about and understand the NT promises and Christian Doctrine (things that I thought related closest to my daily life and experiences), etc, and it hasn't been til the last few years that I have taken a new-found interest in and love for the Old Testament. I have learned so much but I have a long way to go! (but really, do we ever stop learning...???)
So Nehemiah...I never realized what a cool book this is (if you haven't read it yet, DO)! Israel's stubbornness in their sins is pretty phenomenal, but God's grace and forgiveness is even more so. Basically, throughout the OT, we see time and time again of Israel's turning away from God and God's persistence in drawing them back to him. In the book of Judges, Israel's sins get increasingly worse after each time God forgives them…in II Kings, we read that God finally let them be handed over to the Babylonian King Nebuchadnezzar into exile…and in Ezra-Nehemiah, we read that Israel comes out of exile back to their home, only to see their home destroyed. So then Nehemiah comes along and gets a call from God to rebuild the walls of Jerusalem. But, before the people can enter the city, they must repent of their sins...thus, Nehemiah 9.
Nehemiah 9 centers a lot on the gift of the Torah, God’s law, and the Israelites lack of obedience to it/God. In contrast to ch.1, when Nehemiah prays for forgiveness on behalf of the Israelites, ch.9 is the confession of all the people of Judah. The chapter ends with the implicit hope of resolution (v.38) – the hope that God will again (like he did in the past with their forefathers) hear their cries for help and restore them. I find it interesting and more than a coincidence that about twice as many verses within this chapter focus on God's grace and compassion rather than on Israel's sins - do I sense some foreshadowing???
These are just initial thoughts, but I am stoked to see where this goes….
(I can just hear you all saying: “cough Nerd! cough”...and again, I'm ok with that. :)
