The Trowel and the Sword
Introduction: The Fallacy of the False Choice
We live in an age of specialists, and this has bled into the church in the most unfortunate ways. The modern church is full of Christians who have been presented with a false choice. On the one hand, you have the builders, the pietists, the workers. They believe the Christian life is about quietly building your own little life, your family, your church, and staying out of the fray. They hold the trowel, but they have hung the sword on a museum wall. On the other hand, you have the warriors. They are online, they are loud, they are always fighting, but they are often fighting with nothing at their back. They have a sword, or at least a keyboard that they think is a sword, but they have forgotten how to build anything of lasting value. They have forgotten the trowel.
This is a satanic strategy, this division of labor. It produces either pietistic irrelevance or fruitless, reactionary rage. It gives us either a ghetto or a battlefield with no fortress. But the Bible presents us with no such choice. The task of the Christian in this world, from the beginning until the Lord returns, is the task of Nehemiah's men. It is the task of the trowel and the sword. We are called to be builders on a battlefield. We are to build the glorious civilization of Christendom, stone by stone, family by family, church by church. And we are to do it with a sword girded to our side, ready at a moment's notice to defend the work from the Sanballats and Tobiahs of our age who despise the walls of Jerusalem and the glory of her God.
The world hates this. The world wants us to be either harmless builders they can ignore or angry warriors they can dismiss as cranks. The one thing they cannot abide is a church that is faithfully and fruitfully building, and at the same time is armed, watchful, and ready for a fight. That is what we see here in Nehemiah. This is not just a historical account; it is a permanent instruction manual for the Church Militant.
The Text
Now it happened that when our enemies heard that it was known to us, and that God had thwarted their counsel, then all of us returned to the wall, each one to his work. And it happened that from that day on, half of my young men carried on the work while half of them took hold of the spears, the shields, the bows, and the breastplates; and the commanders were behind the whole house of Judah. Those who were rebuilding the wall and those who carried burdens took their load with one hand doing the work and the other holding a weapon. As for the builders, each wore his sword girded at his side as he built, while the trumpeter stood near me. I said to the nobles, the officials and the rest of the people, “The work is great and extensive, and we are separated on the wall far from one another. At whatever place you hear the sound of the trumpet, there gather together to us. Our God will fight for us.” So we kept doing the work with half of them holding spears from dawn until the stars came out. At that time I also said to the people, “Let each man with his young man spend the night within Jerusalem so that they may be a guard for us by night and a worker by day.” So neither I, my brothers, my young men, nor the men of the guard who followed me, none of us removed our clothes, each took his weapon even to the water.
(Nehemiah 4:15-23 LSB)
God Thwarts, We Work (v. 15)
We begin with the pivot point:
"Now it happened that when our enemies heard that it was known to us, and that God had thwarted their counsel, then all of us returned to the wall, each one to his work." (Nehemiah 4:15)
Notice the sequence. The enemy plot is discovered. The credit for its failure is given directly to God. God thwarted their counsel. This is the foundation of all Christian action: the sovereignty of God. Our enemies are not sovereign. Circumstances are not sovereign. The political powers are not sovereign. God is. He sits in the heavens and laughs at the pathetic plotting of those who would oppose His kingdom.
But what is the result of this divine victory? Do they hold a week-long praise and worship conference? Do they take a victory lap? No. They get back to work. God's sovereign intervention is not a summons to passivity; it is the fuel for our activity. Because God has proven He is for them, they can now return to the wall with renewed confidence and vigor. This is a direct rebuke to any form of hyper-Calvinism that uses God's sovereignty as an excuse for laziness. For the saints, the knowledge that God is fighting for us does not make us put down our tools. It makes us pick them up and work all the harder, knowing that our labor in the Lord is not in vain.
Sanctified Multitasking (vv. 16-18)
From this point on, the nature of the work changes. It is now explicitly work-and-warfare.
"And it happened that from that day on, half of my young men carried on the work while half of them took hold of the spears, the shields, the bows, and the breastplates... Those who were rebuilding the wall and those who carried burdens took their load with one hand doing the work and the other holding a weapon. As for the builders, each wore his sword girded at his side as he built..." (Nehemiah 4:16-18)
This is a beautiful picture of the Church Militant, organized for productive conflict. There is a division of labor, but a unity of purpose. Some are on dedicated guard duty, the spearmen. These are your apologists, your pastors, your theologians who stand on the front lines of doctrinal and cultural battles. They are protecting the builders.
But the builders are not unarmed. The burden-bearers, a wonderful picture of the everyday Christian carrying the load of daily life, work with one hand and hold a weapon in the other. This means that as you go about your business, as you manage your household, as you homeschool your children, as you deal with customers, you are never off duty. One hand is on the trowel of your vocation, and the other is on the sword of the Spirit. You are ready to give a reason for the hope that is in you. You are ready to refute error. You are ready to protect your children from the lies of the age.
And the skilled builders, the ones laying the stones, have their swords girded at their sides. The sword is not in the way of the work, but it is immediately accessible. This is the Christian man who is an expert in his field, a competent professional, but he has the Word of God strapped to him. He knows his trade, and he knows his theology. He can build a business and he can dismantle a false worldview. He does not have to pause his building to go find his sword. It is right there. This is the goal of a classical Christian education. We are not just training builders. We are training builders with swords.
The Trumpet and the Battle Cry (vv. 19-20)
Nehemiah then gives the overarching strategic command.
"The work is great and extensive, and we are separated on the wall far from one another. At whatever place you hear the sound of the trumpet, there gather together to us. Our God will fight for us." (Nehemiah 4:19-20)
This is a frank acknowledgment of reality. The work of building Christendom is massive. We are spread thin. A pastor in Idaho is on a different part of the wall than a Christian school teacher in Texas or a mother in England. We can feel isolated in our work. This is why the trumpet is essential. The trumpet is the public proclamation of the truth, the call to rally when a specific part of the wall is under attack. When the world attacks the biblical definition of marriage, the trumpet sounds, and we rally to that point. When it attacks the person of Christ, the trumpet sounds, and we rally there. We must have our ears tuned to the sound of the trumpet and be ready to leave our personal project for a moment to join the corporate fight.
And what is the battle cry? It is not "We have the numbers!" or "Our arguments are superior!" The battle cry is a declaration of faith: "Our God will fight for us." This is the central confidence. We hold the sword, but God gives the victory. We build the wall, but God establishes the city. Our fighting is a function of our faith. We fight precisely because we know that God is fighting. This is what separates Christian warriors from mere brawlers. Our confidence is not in the arm of the flesh, but in the Lord of Hosts.
The Unceasing Watch (vv. 21-23)
The final verses describe the sheer, relentless dedication required for this task.
"So we kept doing the work with half of them holding spears from dawn until the stars came out... So neither I, my brothers, my young men, nor the men of the guard who followed me, none of us removed our clothes, each took his weapon even to the water." (Nehemiah 4:21, 23)
This is not a 9-to-5 job with weekends off. They worked from the first light of dawn until it was too dark to see. This is a picture of total commitment. The kingdom of God is not a hobby. Building the walls of Jerusalem is an all-consuming task.
Furthermore, Nehemiah commands them to stay within the city at night. This is a call to Christian community. In times of intense spiritual warfare, we are not to retreat to our isolated suburban homes, disconnected from the body. We are to draw together for mutual protection and encouragement. We are to be a guard for one another by night so we can be effective workers by day.
And Nehemiah leads by example. He and his personal guard did not even take off their clothes. They were always ready. The final detail is striking: "each took his weapon even to the water." Even in the moments of personal necessity and refreshment, the guard was not let down. There are no "safe spaces" in this war. There is no place where you can lay your sword down. When you are getting a drink of water, which is to say, when you are relaxing, on vacation, watching a movie, you must still have your sword. You must still be discerning, watchful, and ready. The enemy does not take breaks, and so, for a season, neither can we.
Conclusion: Take Up Your Tools
The lesson for us is profoundly practical. We are in a culture war, which is at its heart a spiritual war, a war of worship. The ruins of Christendom are all around us, and our God has called us to rebuild the wall. This requires the trowel. We must build strong marriages and raise faithful children. We must build robust churches that preach the whole counsel of God. We must build businesses, schools, and institutions that are explicitly Christian from the ground up. This is the hard, slow, stone-on-stone work of the trowel.
But the enemies of God mock this work. They conspire against it. And so you must carry the sword. You must know your Bible better than your opponents know their talking points. You must be ready to defend the unborn, to defend biblical sexuality, to defend the exclusivity of Christ. You must strap the sword of the Spirit to your side and never, ever take it off.
Do not accept the false choice between being a builder and being a warrior. God has called every Christian man to be both. Do not be discouraged that the work is great and you are far from your brothers. Listen for the trumpet. And above all, do not trust in your trowel or your sword. Trust in the God who thwarts the counsel of the nations. Trust in the God who fights for you. Now, get to work.