Nehemiah was the top leader of the people at this time and heard a great big lot of crying from the people and their wives because some people were charging great big prices for everything and all the people’s money was used up.

The people had to borrow money for food and gave up their lands and let their children be taken for servants just to have food to eat.

Nehemiah was angry when he heard this and he gathered a big crowd of the children of Israel to stand with him.

Then he said to the rulers doing this, This is not right

that you charge such high prices and charge extra on everything.

For many years we have used our money to buy back our brothers from other countries, but you are TAKING all their money for yourselves and making yourselves rich.

Aren’t you scared that God will be mad and spank you for this?

You need to hold God high in your hearts.

Give the people back their own lands to grow their food

and their vineyards and olive groves

and their houses

and part of the money you have taken

and the grain

and wine

and oil that you’ve taken.

The rulers said, We will give it back and not take from them any more. We will do what you say.

So Nehemiah called the priests and made the rulers promise in front of God that they would stop taking too much from the people.

Then Nehemiah stood up and shook out his robe from his lap and said, This is how God will shake you out, until you are clear empty, if you break this promise.

Then all the people were so happy that they cheered and said AMEN,

and sang songs of thank you to the Lord.

Also Nehemiah didn’t take any pay from the people at all for all his work he did for them for the 12 years that he was their leader.

He told the Lord, Remember me, my God and do good to me for the good that I have done for all this, your people.

When the enemy heard that Nehemiah was finishing the wall he sent letters to Nehemiah to try to scare Nehemiah and lure him away from the city. He said, You’re going to make yourself king and turn away from the real king.

So Nehemiah sent back letters to the enemy saying, That’s not true one bit. You are making it up in your own heart.

Then Nehemiah prayed to the Lord God and said,

Make my hands strong

to finish this wall.

Then the enemy sent letters to try to get Nehemiah

into the temple so they could kill him.

Nehemiah understood in his heart that the enemy had paid money

to bad men to kill him.

Nehemiah talked to God about it and said, My God, remember these men and the bad stuff they are doing.

Because the Lord God was with them, the enemy couldn’t stop Nehemiah and the children of Israel and they finished the wall in 52 days.

When the enemy saw this they became very small in their own eyes

because they saw that the work was done by God.