All Hands to the Work Text: Nehemiah 3:6-12
Introduction: The Glory of Ordinary Work
We live in an age that despises the ordinary. Our culture is addicted to the spectacular, the sensational, and the revolutionary. We want to be movers and shakers, influencers and visionaries. We want to be on the platform, not in the pews. We want to be the general, not the foot soldier. And this mentality has crept into the church like a fog. We have a subtle disdain for the mundane, for the quiet, faithful, day in, day out work of building. We want the glory of the finished temple, but we don't want the dust and the sweat of the quarry.
Nehemiah chapter 3 is a bucket of cold water thrown on that kind of thinking. At first glance, it is one of those chapters we are tempted to skim. It is a long list of unpronounceable names and specific, localized tasks. It is a divine construction manifest. But in this very list, God consecrates the ordinary. He shows us that the great work of rebuilding His kingdom is not accomplished by a few spiritual superstars, but by the coordinated, faithful labor of a host of ordinary people, each working on the section right in front of them.
The walls of Jerusalem were a reproach. They were a visible sign of covenant failure, of God's judgment, and of the people's vulnerability. To rebuild the walls was to rebuild their identity as God's people. It was an act of public theology, a declaration that God was once again establishing His people in His place. But how did this great work get done? Not by a miracle, not by angels descending with celestial trowels, but by Joiada and Meshullam, by goldsmiths and perfumers, and by a man and his daughters. The book of Nehemiah is a testament to God's use of ordinary means, and this chapter is the great muster roll of those means.
As we work through this section of the list, we must see that this is not just about a literal wall in ancient Jerusalem. This is a picture of the church. The church is God's city, and we are called to build its walls through the faithful exercise of our various callings. This chapter teaches us that there is no sacred/secular divide in the kingdom of God. All honest work, done in faith, is kingdom work. It teaches us that everyone has a place on the wall. And it teaches us that the most effective work is often done right outside your own front door.
The Text
Joiada the son of Paseah and Meshullam the son of Besodeiah repaired the Old Gate; they laid its beams and made its doors stand with its bolts and its bars. Next to them Melatiah the Gibeonite and Jadon the Meronothite, the men of Gibeon and of Mizpah, also made repairs for the official seat of the governor of the province beyond the River. Next to him Uzziel the son of Harhaiah of the goldsmiths made repairs. And next to him Hananiah, one of the perfumers, made repairs, and they restored Jerusalem as far as the Broad Wall. Next to them Rephaiah the son of Hur, the official of half the district of Jerusalem, made repairs. Next to them Jedaiah the son of Harumaph made repairs opposite his house. And next to him Hattush the son of Hashabneiah made repairs. Malchijah the son of Harim and Hasshub the son of Pahath-moab repaired another section and the Tower of Furnaces. Next to him Shallum the son of Hallohesh, the official of half the district of Jerusalem, made repairs, he and his daughters.
(Nehemiah 3:6-12 LSB)
A Place for Everyone (vv. 6-7)
We begin with the repair of the Old Gate.
"Joiada the son of Paseah and Meshullam the son of Besodeiah repaired the Old Gate; they laid its beams and made its doors stand with its bolts and its bars. Next to them Melatiah the Gibeonite and Jadon the Meronothite, the men of Gibeon and of Mizpah, also made repairs for the official seat of the governor of the province beyond the River." (Nehemiah 3:6-7)
Notice the specificity. God's ledger is detailed. He knows who did what. Joiada and Meshullam didn't just "help out"; they repaired the Old Gate, a significant piece of infrastructure. They did the whole job: beams, doors, bolts, and bars. This was thorough, detailed work. This is how the kingdom is built, not with grand, vague gestures, but with specific, completed tasks.
Then we see something interesting in verse 7. Melatiah and Jadon were from Gibeon and Mizpah. These were towns outside of Jerusalem. Yet they came to work on the wall, and specifically on the section related to the governor's official seat. This tells us two things. First, the vision for rebuilding was not parochial. It was a regional effort. The health of the capital city was understood to be vital for the health of all the surrounding towns. This is a lesson for the church. We cannot be congregational isolationists. The health of Christ's church in our city is our concern, not just the health of our own local body.
Second, they worked on a civic structure, the seat of the Persian governor. This is a beautiful illustration of the principle that Christians are to be the best citizens. They were not building a "Christian" section of the wall. They were contributing to the civil order and peace of the city. They understood that rebuilding the covenant community involved being good neighbors and responsible subjects, even to a pagan authority. We are to seek the welfare of the city where God has placed us, for in its welfare we will find our welfare (Jer. 29:7).
Sanctified Vocations (v. 8)
Verse 8 gives us one of the most striking pictures in the whole chapter.
"Next to him Uzziel the son of Harhaiah of the goldsmiths made repairs. And next to him Hananiah, one of the perfumers, made repairs, and they restored Jerusalem as far as the Broad Wall." (Nehemiah 3:8)
Here we have men from the luxury trades, goldsmiths and perfumers, doing heavy, dirty, manual labor. A goldsmith's work is delicate, precise, and clean. A perfumer's work is aromatic and refined. Building a wall is none of those things. It is hauling stones, mixing mortar, and sweating under the sun. But here they are, Uzziel and Hananiah, with trowels in their hands instead of crucibles and vials.
This is a profound statement against the Gnostic divide between "spiritual" work and "secular" work. These men's regular jobs were not somehow less holy than the work of the priests. But when the need arose for the wall to be built, their vocational identity did not prevent them from picking up a new tool for the sake of the covenant community. Their skills as craftsmen were consecrated to God, and so was their sweat as laborers. This is the biblical doctrine of vocation. All of life is to be lived Coram Deo, before the face of God. Whether you are crafting a golden earring, mixing a perfume, writing code, changing a diaper, or laying stones in a wall, if it is done in faith for the glory of God, it is spiritual work.
These men remind us of Bezalel and Oholiab, the craftsmen filled with the Spirit of God to build the Tabernacle (Ex. 31). The same God who equipped men to work with gold and fine linen for His worship now calls men who work with gold and perfume to build a wall for His glory. God is the Lord of all work. He is not just interested in what you do on Sunday morning; He is intensely interested in what you do with your hands from Monday to Saturday.
Leaders and Homeowners (vv. 9-10)
The list continues, showing the breadth of participation.
"Next to them Rephaiah the son of Hur, the official of half the district of Jerusalem, made repairs. Next to them Jedaiah the son of Harumaph made repairs opposite his house." (Nehemiah 3:9-10)
Here we see leadership in action. Rephaiah was a ruler, an official of half the district. He did not simply delegate the work; he was on the wall himself. This is the essence of godly leadership. A godly leader does not say, "Go"; he says, "Let's go." He does not sit in an air-conditioned office sending out memos about wall-building. He gets his hands dirty with the people. Nehemiah himself was the prime example of this, and his spirit of servant leadership had clearly permeated the project.
Then we have Jedaiah, who made repairs "opposite his house." This is a recurring phrase in this chapter. Many people were assigned the section of the wall that was, quite literally, in their own backyard. This is brilliant strategic planning, but it is also profound theology. Reformation begins at home. The place to begin building the kingdom is right where you are. We are often tempted to look for some grand, distant project while the wall in front of our own house is crumbling. Are your own children catechized? Is your own marriage a picture of the gospel? Is your own household an embassy of the kingdom? Jedaiah's principle is that covenantal responsibility begins at the closest point and radiates outward. Take care of the wall in front of your own house first.
More Workers and More Daughters (vv. 11-12)
The section concludes with more names, another tower, and another surprise.
"Malchijah the son of Harim and Hasshub the son of Pahath-moab repaired another section and the Tower of Furnaces. Next to him Shallum the son of Hallohesh, the official of half the district of Jerusalem, made repairs, he and his daughters." (Nehemiah 3:11-12)
Malchijah and Hasshub repaired a section and the Tower of Furnaces. Again, specific people, specific tasks. The work is organized, distributed, and accountable. But the real bombshell is in verse 12. Here is another ruler, Shallum, like Rephaiah in verse 9. And he too is on the wall. But he is not alone. He made repairs, "he and his daughters."
This is the only mention of women doing the physical work on the wall, and it is glorious. In a patriarchal culture, this is a stunning statement. These women were not sitting on the sidelines. They were not relegated to some "women's auxiliary" role. They were on the wall, doing the hard work of rebuilding alongside their father. This does not obliterate the biblical distinctions between men and women. Men are the designated leaders, the heads of their households, as Shallum clearly was. But headship does not mean that men do all the work. It means they lead their households in the work.
Shallum's daughters are a rebuke to two errors. They are a rebuke to a chauvinism that would restrict women from any meaningful, strenuous, or public contribution to the work of the kingdom. And they are a rebuke to a feminism that sees contribution only in terms of usurping male headship. These women worked under the authority and alongside their father, and their work is recorded in Holy Scripture for all time. They demonstrate that the covenant community is a family affair. Everyone has a role. No one is disqualified by gender or vocation. When the city of God is in ruins, it is all hands to the work.
Conclusion: Your Place on the Wall
So what does this ancient list of names have to do with us? Everything. The church of Jesus Christ is that city whose walls we are called to build. And the principles of Nehemiah 3 are the principles for our work today.
God has given each of you a place on the wall. For many of you, that place is right in front of your own house. It is in the faithful, mundane, day-to-day work of raising your children in the fear and admonition of the Lord, loving your spouse, being a good employee, and being a faithful church member. Do not despise that work. That is your section of the wall, and God sees you there.
Some of you are goldsmiths and perfumers. You have particular skills and gifts. God calls you to use those gifts for the building of His kingdom, but He also calls you to be willing to pick up a trowel when a different need arises. Your identity is not in your vocation; your identity is in Christ, and your vocation is simply the tool He has given you to use for His glory.
We have rulers and officials, men and women, those from the city and those from the country. The point is that the work is corporate. It takes all of us. The work of building a Christian culture, of making the gospel public, of seeing Christ acknowledged as Lord over all things, is a massive project. It requires every one of us to find our place on the wall and to get to work, shoulder to shoulder with the person next to us.
The wall of Jerusalem was finished in fifty-two days because "the people had a mind to work" (Neh. 4:6). May God give us that same mind. May we look at the ruins of our own culture, not with despair, but with holy resolve. And may we, like Jedaiah, and Uzziel, and Shallum and his daughters, pick up our tools and begin to build, right where we are, for the glory of our God.