460 A suoR'r VIEW OF SCRIPTURE, HISTORY. A.. He delivered the orders of the king to the governors of the provinces, and the gold and silver to,those who had the care of the building, and so promoted the work ; Verses 33-36. 17. Q. What reformation, did Ezra work among the peo- ple? A. When he was informed that many of the Jews had mingled themselves in marriages with the heathens, he together with the more religious part of the Jews, bumbled themselves before God for all their former iniquities in an excellent prayer, and brought them into a covenant and an oath to put away their strange wives ; Ezra ix. and x. Note. None of the Jews of either sex might marry with Gentiles of any nation, unless they were made proselytes ; and even then they suppose the Canaanites of the seven nations ; Deut. vii. and the males among the Moabites and Ammonites to be excluded for ever, as they interpret; Deut. xxiii. 3. 18. Q. Did the Jews rebuild the city of Jerusalem? A. Yes, for the Babylonian army had broke down the walls, and burned the gates of it ? Nehem. i. 3. 19. Q. Whom did God raise up tocarryon the re-building of thecity ? A. Nehemiah the Jew who was cup- bearer to Artax- erxes the king of Persia ; Nehem. i. 11. 20. Q. How was Nehemiah engaged herein ?- A. When he heard of the continuance of the desolations made by the ene- mies, he fasted and prayed to God, and then he obtained leave of Artaxerxes the king to go up to Jerusalem, and rebuild the city of the sepulchres of his fathers ; Nehem. ii. 1 -7. 21. Q. What further encouragement did Nehemiah receive from the king ? A. He received orders for the governors of the provinces to assist him, and to give him timber out of the king's forest ; Verses 7, 8. 22. Q. How did Nehemiah begin his work ? A. He rode round the city by night, and took a private survey of the ruins thereof, and appointed a particular part of the walls and the gates to be repaired by particular persons and their companies ; Nehem. ii. and M. 23. Q. What opposition did the Jews meet with in this part of their work ? A. Sanballat the Samaritan, and 'l'obiah the Ammonite, and their accomplices, at first laughed the Jews to scorn, and then conspired to fight against them while they were at work ; Nehem. iv. 1 -7. 24. Q. How did Nehemiah prevent the mischief they de- signed ? A. He encouraged theJews to trust in their God, and appointed every man that laboured in the work to have a weapon readyto defend himself ; Verses 13-23. 25. Q. What reformation did Nehemiah work among them A. ': He reproved those that took usury, and oppressed their bre- thren : and he set himself for an example, who, though he was governor twelve years, tonic uo salary, but maintained him-
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