Neh 3:29 | KingComments | STEP | Zadok Zadok is also busy in front of his house. Zadok means, among other things, ‘sincere’, ‘honest’. Has the wall of sincerity been knocked down around our house? Are we honest in our dealings with others? When we’re married, let’s apply this to our marriage. Do we remember our promise of faithfulness to each other on our wedding day? Have we remained faithful and honest? Does this also apply to the desire for our partner’s companionship that must be greater than that of anyone else in the world? Or do we covet the company of someone whose wife or husband we say: “He suits me better, is more sympathetic to me than my own”? The sacred wall of honesty then lies in ruins and must be rebuilt. Perhaps the husband should confess to his wife or the wife to her husband that dishonesty has come into his thoughts or perhaps even into practice. The debris must be cleared away before it can be rebuilt. Zadok is the son of Immer, which means ‘talkative’. There is no part of the body that damages so much as the tongue. The wall of honesty often becomes a mess because of the talkativeness. To be critical on each other, on the brothers and sisters, bring down the wall. How do we talk about each other and with each other? Maybe we should confess this, also to the children who have heard how we have talked about our brothers and sisters. Shemaiah and the East Gate We’ve arrived at Shemaiah. It is mentioned of him that he is “the keeper of the East Gate”. The East Gate, the ninth gate in this chapter, is a special gate. Through that gate the glory of the LORD left the temple and Jerusalem ( ). Because of the sins of Jerusalem, God’s glory could no longer dwell there. But He did not leave to stay away forever. The prophet Ezekiel sees in a vision the glory of the LORD returning in the new temple ( ). This great perspective is connected with the name of Shemaiah. His name means ‘Yahweh hears’. No matter how much God’s people are in decay, no matter how much God’s visible glory has had to retreat into heaven, there comes a moment when He returns. Faith cries out: “How long, LORD? It seems to have been for so long.” But God listens to the cries of His people. The Spirit and the bride say: “Come!” ( ). The Lord Jesus answers: “Yes, I am coming quickly” ( ).

‏ Nehemiah 3:29

Zadok – Shemaiah and the East Gate

Zadok

Zadok is also busy in front of his house. Zadok means, among other things, ‘sincere’, ‘honest’. Has the wall of sincerity been knocked down around our house? Are we honest in our dealings with others? When we’re married, let’s apply this to our marriage. Do we remember our promise of faithfulness to each other on our wedding day? Have we remained faithful and honest? Does this also apply to the desire for our partner’s companionship that must be greater than that of anyone else in the world? Or do we covet the company of someone whose wife or husband we say: “He suits me better, is more sympathetic to me than my own”? The sacred wall of honesty then lies in ruins and must be rebuilt.

Perhaps the husband should confess to his wife or the wife to her husband that dishonesty has come into his thoughts or perhaps even into practice. The debris must be cleared away before it can be rebuilt.

Zadok is the son of Immer, which means ‘talkative’. There is no part of the body that damages so much as the tongue. The wall of honesty often becomes a mess because of the talkativeness. To be critical on each other, on the brothers and sisters, bring down the wall. How do we talk about each other and with each other? Maybe we should confess this, also to the children who have heard how we have talked about our brothers and sisters.

Shemaiah and the East Gate

We’ve arrived at Shemaiah. It is mentioned of him that he is “the keeper of the East Gate”. The East Gate, the ninth gate in this chapter, is a special gate. Through that gate the glory of the LORD left the temple and Jerusalem (Eze 10:18-19 ; Eze 11:23). Because of the sins of Jerusalem, God’s glory could no longer dwell there. But He did not leave to stay away forever. The prophet Ezekiel sees in a vision the glory of the LORD returning in the new temple (Eze 43:4).

This great perspective is connected with the name of Shemaiah. His name means ‘Yahweh hears’. No matter how much God’s people are in decay, no matter how much God’s visible glory has had to retreat into heaven, there comes a moment when He returns. Faith cries out: “How long, LORD? It seems to have been for so long.” But God listens to the cries of His people. The Spirit and the bride say: “Come!” (Rev 22:17). The Lord Jesus answers: “Yes, I am coming quickly” (Rev 22:20).