In the fourth, fifth, and sixth chapters of Nehemiah, we see how he dealt successfully with opposition.
Opposition is almost always caused by success and not failure. The first thing we should know, if we are trying to do something worthwhile and are being opposed, is that it is because we are achieving something. We should be encouraged by it. We see this in Nehemiah’s case in the very first verse of the chapter: “When Sanballat heard that we were rebuilding the wall, he became angry and was greatly incensed.” The reason Sanballat was angry was that the wall was actually being rebuilt and he was threatened by Nehemiah’s success. Nobody would have paid any attention if Nehemiah were failing.
Why do people oppose success? Why are they not happy to see someone else succeed? Howard F. Vos suggests several reasons.
Some people are threatened by another person’s success. As Vos says, “Some will oppose another person or a work because they stand to lose position or power or prestige politically, religiously, or socially.” Ours is a sinful world, and very few people are altruistic. They are out for themselves. Therefore, if one person moves forward, another sees it as diminishing his or her own prestige or position.
This was what was happening in the case of Nehemiah’s opponents: Sanballat the Horonite, Tobiah the Ammonite, and the unnamed Arabs, Ammonites, and people of Ashdod associated with them. We have already been introduced to the two leaders in Nehemiah 2, where we are told that ““It displeased them greatly that someone had come to seek the welfare of the people of Israel.” and that “they jeered at us and despised us.” Sanballat was called the Horonite because he came from the town of Beth Horon, about eight miles northwest of Jerusalem. He was now governor of the fortified city of Samaria to the north and no doubt wanted to have Jerusalem within his jurisdiction. Sanballat is mentioned in the Elephantine Papyri (discovered in Egypt, dating from 408-407 BC), where he is said to have been the governor of Samaria and to have had two sons. Tobia was the governor of Ammon, which lay across the Jordan River to the east of Jerusalem.
In the old days, several great trade routes went through Jerusalem on the way to Egypt, Persia, Arabia, or Asia Minor. Sanballat and Tobiah perceived correctly that if Jerusalem were rebuilt, much of this valuable trade would return to it and their provinces would be diminished proportionately.
Others are jealous. Sometimes opposition arises not because there is any real threat to a person but because of simple jealousy. Sometimes a worker will criticize a colleague because the colleague is doing a better job or is working harder than he or she is. A woman will criticize another woman merely because she is more attractive, shows greater intelligence, or is more successful at her work. Jealousy is a cause of disharmony among leaders in the Christian Church, though it is usually disguised as a doctrinal or ecclesiastical disagreement. One will attack another because “he is wrong in his eschatology” or because “he associated with liberals,” but the real cause is jealousy of the other man’s success.
This was a factor in the attacks of Sanballat and Tobiah on the Jews’ project. They despised the Jews and were jealous of any attempts to improve their earthly prospects. That is why Nehemiah wrote in chapter 2, “It displeased them greatly that someone had come to seek the welfare of the people of Israel.”
Vos gives a third reason for opposition; some oppose others or their projects because they have a different agenda than they do. Of all the reasons for opposition to a good work, this one is probably the most valid, though the reasons for preferring the objector’s own project are not necessarily good. I place most of the opposition to Christian projects from today’s secularists in this category. For example, when a liberal group sues a municipality to have a manger scene removed from the town square, where it has been for scores of Christmases, it is not because the manger is a threat to them or because of jealousy but because any display of religion is opposed to the secular agenda of this group. Such groups want to drive any visible signs of religion from life. In an increasingly secular culture such as we have in the United States today, we must expect opposition of this nature, and we must expect it to increase both in volume and intensity.
Maranatha!
(mar-uh-nath-uh – “Our Lord Comes”)
Pastor Steve can be reached at PastorSteve@MaranathaBibleChurch.org