Or, Ins and Outs of God's Promises
Scripture: Nehemiah 11:1-36
Date: July 13, 2025
Speaker: Sean Higgins
The phrase “ins and outs” means not just knowing the details, but knowing the details that might not be obvious. It started with reference to a knowing the ways in and out of a building or terrain. We use it to describe understanding that’s better than simplistic or superficial.
I want to apply the “ins and outs” in two ways to Nehemiah 11. First, there are people who live in Jerusalem and those who live out of the city (verses 1-24). Not only that, there are other cities named (verses 25-36) that are in Judah but they are the ones out of the city’s walls. That’s the easy ins and outs.
But second, understanding these lists of people and places, gets us to the ins and outs of God’s promises, and in particular related to “the holy city.”
The description, “the holy city,” is used twice in Nehemiah 11, verses 1 and 18. These are the only uses of it in the Ezra-Nehemiah record. One door of understanding opens up for us to see the confession and consecration of the people. They are separating themselves, they are a people who have committed themselves to holy ways, and some of them are moving into the city, so, the holy city.
But a second door opens into a wider context. There are only 11 uses of this phrase in the Bible altogether, and just three other uses in the OT. Isaiah prophesied about 250 years before Nehemiah’s day about “the holy city” that would awake and put on strength (Isaiah 52:1). Then Daniel prophesied, from Babylon about 90 years before Nehemiah, about how at the end of seventy weeks “the holy city” would have iniquity atoned for and everlasting righteousnesses brought in (Daniel 9:24).
By calling Jerusalem “the holy city” Nehemiah self-consciously refers to these prophetic promises, to God’s covenants, as the people return and resettling in their places. That said, the holy city is not quite what the prophets prophesied that it will be.
Let’s look at what’s in and out of the chapter and then come back to the ins and outs related to God’s promises.
Remember that after the wall was finished, Nehemiah recorded that “the city was wide and large, but the people within it were few, and no houses had been rebuilt” (Nehemiah 7:4). The rest of chapter 7 was a list of returned exiles, those who would be eligible to resettle in the city, both to bring it back to life and offer defense. Chapters 8-10 were about the reading of the Law and the people’s response to it, and with understanding comes more willingness, and that willingness applied even down to their home address.
Now the leaders of the people lived in Jerusalem. And the rest of the people cast lots to bring one out of ten to live in Jerusalem the holy city, while nine out of ten remained in other towns. And the people blessed all the men who willingly offered to live in Jerusalem. (Nehemiah 11:1-2)
As people returned from exile they returned to their family lands; “everyone lived on his property in their towns” (verse 3), “in his inheritance” (verse 20). This was right. This was also necessary, since they needed to grow their own food which required land/“fields” (verse 28). But Jerusalem was the capital, the place of the temple, and the special place designated by God Himself for His name to be known.
To cast lots was a religious, not superstitious, means of determining God’s will. After Pentecost believers have God’s Spirit dwelling in us, along with a completed copy of His written will, so we don’t depend on divine lottery to know God’s will.
Verse 2 seems to describe the blessings and thanks expressed to those who willingly offered to move, or at least their willingness to accept divine delegation. Their lives would be significantly changed, and in some sense there was more work to do and greater danger in the city.
Verse 3 gives a running start as to the kind of people we’ll meet as chosen by the Lord of lots to take up a lot inside the city. Israel has one of its specific uses, here a reference to the laity. Otherwise, thus begins the moving directory.
The non-temple-worker groups are first, and specifically, from two tribes: Judah and Benjamin. When it comes to the ins and outs, these are the two tribes who had stuck with David. There is significance in the expectations, not just as the Lord promised a Lion from the tribe of Judah, but also Benjamin, the son of Israel’s old age.
verses 4-6
There’s only two actual men named who move in: Athaiah (from the sons of Perez, a son of Judah, Genesis 38:29) and Maaseiah (from another son of Judah, Shela, 1 Chronicles 4:21, not Perez).
Valiant men, “exceptional” (NET) or at least “able” (NASB) men who could help defend the city. We might call them Choice Men.
The connection to Perez is particularly significant because he was an ancestor of King David (as shown in Ruth 4:18-22 and Matthew 1:3), reinforcing the royal and messianic lineage being maintained in the restored Jerusalem. This anticipates “the offspring after” David, who will take the throne of His kingdom forever (2 Samuel 7:12).
verses 7-9
Of these are men of valor, similar to the valiant. They’re the kind of guys who make a city a destination. From this group also came a couple leaders, Joel the overseer and then Hassenuah the second over the city.
verses 10-14
These did the work of the house of God. Among these were mighty men of valor, an even stronger term than valor/valiant.
If the priests did the ins work of the temple, these do the outs, they were over the outside work of the house of God (verse 16). This may refer not just to property and building maintenance, but to collecting the temple taxes (10:32), gathering supplies for sacrifices, and even helping with security.
verses 15-18
Mattaniah, the leader of the praise, who gave thanks. Note: we never meet a “director of complaints” in the Bible.
Verse 18 has the second reference to the holy city in the chapter.
Here are some gatekeepers and Solomon’s servants.
verses 19-21, 22-24
More descriptions related to the king, who gave a command, and then Pethahaiah who was at the king’s side in all matters concerning the people. This was not King David, it was the Persian king. Which reminds us that 1) Israel was still not completely free, and 2) they were not yet ruled by the Davidic King, as expected from the Davidic Covenant in 2 Samuel 7.
The most interesting part about this list of villages and towns is that we know that not all of these towns were back under Jewish control. There were some Jewish occupants, but the land was not occupied yet! Jews didn’t regain some of these places for almost 300 more years (164 BC per Williamson). For just one example, Geshem the Arab lived in Ono (Nehemiah 6:1-2, and 11:35) was likely considered neutral territory at best.
verses 25-36
The valley of craftsmen (verse 35) was know as an industrial district.
Why would Nehemiah include places that aren’t all back under Israel’s rule? To appreciate how far they’ve been brought back by the Lord while anticipating what the Lord still has for them.
Rebuild in chapters 1-6. Revival in chapters 8-10. Repopulation and organization in chapters 11-13. It’s “the holy city.”
But it’s also not completely the holy city yet, not as prophesied, because the Messiah/King isn’t there.
Remember in Nehemiah 9, the people are confessing their sin. They start with praise, including praise for God’s calling of Abram and giving him the land of Canaan. “And you have kept your promise, for you are righteous” (verse 8). The very return of Judah from Babylon is recognized as God’s righteousness.
But that doesn’t mean that all the ins and outs of God’s promises were fulfilled. Even theses lists in Nehemiah 11 are a conscious remembrance of God’s covenants to make a people in a land with a King. Nehemiah expected all these cities to come under the King’s domain, and lists them as if they would be. The holy city was promised to them, and many willingly moved in because they anticipated more.
The next time “the holy city” is seen is when the devil took Jesus “to the holy city” to the top of the temple to test Him (Matthew 4:5). Then when Jesus died, some of the bodies of the saints were raised and “went into the holy city” (Matthew 27:52-53).
And we are headed to a share in “the holy city” (Revelation 22:19, see also Revelation 21:2, 10). Like Nehemiah we wait for the return of the King, when He establishes His kingdom on earth and rules from His throne in Jerusalem for the blessing of the nations.
God has chosen for you to live in your current zip code, not by the casting of lots, but by other movements of His providence. You are where He wants. And so, more than living willingly, live valiantly. Get good at all the ins and outs of doing good for your people, in Jesus’ name.
Now may our Lord Jesus Christ himself, and God our Father, who loved us and gave us eternal comfort and good hope through grace, comfort your hearts and establish them in every good work and word. (2 Thessalonians 2:16–17 ESV)