who were rebuilding the wall. The laborers who carried materials worked with one hand and held a weapon with the other.
Parallel translations
- WEB Those who built the wall, and those who bore burdens loaded themselves; everyone with one of his hands did the work, and with the other held his weapon.
- KJV They which builded on the wall, and they that bare burdens, with those that laded, every one with one of his hands wrought in the work, and with the other hand held a weapon.
- NKJV Those who built on the wall, and those who carried burdens, loaded themselves so that with one hand they worked at construction, and with the other held a weapon.
- NASB Those who were rebuilding the wall and those who carried burdens carried with one hand doing the work, and the other keeping hold of a weapon.
- NLT who were building the wall. The laborers carried on their work with one hand supporting their load and one hand holding a weapon.
Scripture taken from the New King James Version®. Copyright © 1982 by Thomas Nelson. Used by permission. All rights reserved.
Scripture quotations taken from the (NASB®) New American Standard Bible®, Copyright © 1960, 1971, 1977, 1995, 2020 by The Lockman Foundation. Used by permission. All rights reserved. lockman.org
Scripture quotations are taken from the Holy Bible, New Living Translation, copyright © 1996, 2004, 2015 by Tyndale House Foundation. Used by permission of Tyndale House Publishers, Carol Stream, Illinois 60188. All rights reserved.
Quick answer
The workers labor with one hand and hold a weapon in the other. Every laborer is also a soldier.
Overview
Even those carrying burdens stay armed, ready to fight at a moment's notice. The vivid image of one hand working and one hand armed captures the dual demand of building and defending. It has long served as a picture of the Christian life, which combines diligent kingdom labor with constant spiritual watchfulness against the enemy.
Cross-references & the web
Cross-references · 9
- 2 Tim 2:3Join me in suffering, like a good soldier of Christ Jesus.
- 2 Tim 4:7I have fought the good fight, I have finished the race, I have kept the faith.
- 2 Cor 6:7in truthful speech and in the power of God; with the weapons of righteousness in the right hand and in the left;
- Phil 1:28without being frightened in any way by those who oppose you. This is a clear sign of their destruction but of your salvation, and it is from God.
- 1 Cor 16:13Be on the alert. Stand firm in the faith. Be men of courage. Be strong.
- Eph 6:11–20Put on the full armor of God, so that you can make your stand against the devil’s schemes.
- 1 Cor 16:9because a great door for effective work has opened to me, even though many oppose me.
- Dan 9:25Know and understand this: From the issuance of the decree to restore and rebuild Jerusalem, until the Messiah, the Prince, there will be seven weeks and sixty-two weeks. It will be rebuilt with streets and a trench, but in times of distress.
- 1 Cor 9:12If others have this right to your support, shouldn’t we have it all the more? But we did not exercise this right. Instead, we put up with anything rather than hinder the gospel of Christ.
Themes, concepts, people & topics
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Hebrew/Greek interlinear, word definitions, and cross-references for this verse.
Christ at the center
The rebuilt walls and renewed covenant community foreshadow the greater builder who gathers and secures a people for God, the one who declares 'I will build my church.'
How Nehemiah 4:17 points to him is part of the one story that runs through all Scripture — meet Jesus at the heart of the web, or follow a trail that traces him from Genesis to Revelation.
Original language
Each word below is tagged with its Strong’s number — tap one to see the underlying Hebrew word, its meaning, and every verse that uses it.