Overview
The book records how Nehemiah, cupbearer to the Persian king, was sent as governor of Judah and rebuilt the walls of Jerusalem. It then describes Ezra's public reading of the Torah and the renewal of the covenant, the repopulation of the city, and the reforms of Nehemiah's second term.
Theme The rebuilding of the walls and the community's renewal of the covenant according to the Torah
Historical background
Nehemiah arrived in Jerusalem in the twentieth year of Artaxerxes I (445/444 BC) and completed the rebuilding of the wall in fifty-two days. Sanballat of Samaria and Tobiah the Ammonite opposed the work. Chapter 13 records how, after a return to Persia, Nehemiah corrected abuses concerning the Sabbath, the administration of the temple, and intermarriage.