Next to them, Rephaiah son of Hur, ruler of a half-district of Jerusalem, made repairs; next to him, Jedaiah son of Harumaph made repairs across from his house; and next to him, Hattush son of Hashabneiah made repairs. Malchijah son of Harim and Hasshub son of Pahath-moab repaired another section, as well as the Tower of the Ovens. And next to them, Shallum son of Hallohesh, ruler of the other half-district of Jerusalem, made repairs, with the help of his daughters.

The Valley Gate was repaired by Hanun and the residents of Zanoah. They rebuilt it, installed its doors, bolts, and bars, and repaired a thousand cubits of the wall as far as the Dung Gate.

The Dung Gate was repaired by Malchijah son of Rechab, ruler of the district of Beth-haccherem. He rebuilt it and installed its doors, bolts, and bars.

The Fountain Gate was repaired by Shallune son of Col-hozeh, ruler of the district of Mizpah. He rebuilt it, roofed it, and installed its doors, bolts, and bars. He also repaired the wall of the Pool of Shelahf near the king’s garden, as far as the stairs that descend from the City of David.

Beyond him, Nehemiah son of Azbuk, ruler of a half-district of Beth-zur, made repairs up to a point opposite the tombs of David, as far as the artificial pool and the House of the Mighty.

Next to him, the Levites made repairs under Rehum son of Bani, and next to him, Hashabiah, ruler of a half-district of Keilah, made repairs for his district. Next to him, their countrymen made repairs under Binnui son of Henadad, ruler of the other half-district of Keilah. And next to him, Ezer son of Jeshua, ruler of Mizpah, repaired another section opposite the ascent to the armory, near the angle in the wall.

Next to him, Baruch son of Zabbai diligently repaired another section, from the angle to the doorway of the house of Eliashib the high priest. Next to him, Meremoth son of Uriah, the son of Hakkoz, repaired another section, from the doorway of the house of Eliashib to the end of the house. And next to him, the priests from the surrounding area made repairs.

Beyond them, Benjamin and Hasshub made repairs in front of their house, and next to them, Azariah son of Maaseiah, the son of Ananiah, made repairs beside his house. After him, Binnui son of Henadad repaired another section, from the house of Azariah to the angle and the corner, and Palal son of Uzai made repairs opposite the angle and the tower that juts out from the upper palace of the king near the courtyard of the guard. Next to him, Pedaiah son of Parosh and the temple servants living on the hill of Ophel made repairs opposite the Water Gate toward the east and the tower that juts out. And next to them, the Tekoites repaired another section, from a point opposite the great tower that juts out to the wall of Ophel.

Above the Horse Gate, each of the priests made repairs in front of his own house. Next to them, Zadok son of Immer made repairs opposite his house, and next to him, Shemaiah son of Shecaniah, the guard of the East Gate, made repairs.

Next to him, Hananiah son of Shelemiah, as well as Hanun the sixth son of Zalaph, repaired another section. Next to them, Meshullam son of Berechiah made repairs opposite his own quarters. Next to him, Malchijah, one of the goldsmiths, made repairs as far as the house of the temple servants and the merchants, opposite the Inspection Gate, and as far as the upper room above the corner. And between the upper room above the corner and the Sheep Gate, the goldsmiths and merchants made repairs.

Verse of the day: Next to him, the Tekoites made repairs, but their nobles did not put their shoulders to the work under their supervisors 

Commentary: 

It's easy to pass over repetitive sections like this. It's a giant list of names that seem to hold little meaning. But deep within the details of Nehemiah are comments that we gloss over are hidden truths that I think are just fascinating.  

The first comment that I would like to draw attention to is one about the nobles from a specific area not coming to work (3:5). After reading the comments about the other rulers, you realize this is strange.. There are eight (3: 9, 3:12, 3:14, 3:15, 3:16, 3:!7, 3:18, 3:19) comments on rulers. Previously, we review Nehemiah's appeal to the people (2:16-18). There isn't an outright condemnation of the rulers of Tekoites, but an expectation seems implied.

Let's contrast this with the five times people simply repaired the portion in front of their homes ( 3:10, 3:23, 3:28, 3:29, 3:30 ). I found this so odd because who receives recognition if they repair a broken fence near their home? But it's a nice contrast. It's like a state on the least amount of pride you should show in helping to repair the temple. Everyone has an amount of work to own. Everyone is given credit for their contribution.  

There's also separate community contribution. They repaired a thousand cubits (0.2 miles) as a group.  

One son of a ruler brought his daughters to help rebuild the walls (3:12). Women aren’t often mentioned in passages like these. So naturally, I had to wonder why they are mentioned now? As a culture, we often like to relegate women to house work and mothering. But if Nehemiah thought it was inappropriate, the case why mention them? He could've also condemned them but there is no further mention of them. I think this is because women should also have pride and physically contribute when possible. They are no less princesses when doing so . They show great character. 

Nehemiah also mentions a ‘diligent’ worker (3:20) like how much better of a worker did you have to be to get the only adjective in the passage to describe your work. Clearly, there is a distinction in completing the work and completing the work well.  

And lastly, Nehemiah mentions goldsmiths (3:8, 3:31, 3:32) , perfumers, and merchants (3:8, 3:31, 3:32). These were not broke men destined to a hard life of toil with their hands They were affluent, but they also got their hands dirty. No one was above the another in the construction of the temple wall..  

Daily Practice: Take time today. this week record or write done a story for your children. But is in a safe location. Share if you. Tell them who they are and what they can do.  

Historical Note: 

The Valley gate is believed to be the lowest part of the wall. Nehemiah would use it to go explore before the work began. It has two towers.

The Dung Gate was next to the city refuse area.

The Fountain Gate was located near the city's water ways.

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References

J. F. Prewitt, “Valley Gate,” in The International Standard Bible Encyclopedia, Revised, ed. Geoffrey W. Bromiley (Wm. B. Eerdmans, 1979–1988) 965.

Allen C. Myers, “VALLEY,” in The Eerdmans Bible Dictionary (Grand Rapids, MI: Eerdmans, 1987), 1034–1035.

Chad Brand et al., eds., “Dung Gate,” in Holman Illustrated Bible Dictionary (Nashville, TN: Holman Bible Publishers, 2003), 445.