Nehemiah 4:11

Nehemiah 4:11 in other versions

• King James Version (KJV)And our adversaries said, They shall not know, neither see, till we come in the midst among them, and slay them, and cause the work to cease.
• New International Version (NIV)Also our enemies said, “Before they know it or see us, we will be right there among them and will kill them and put an end to the work.”
• English Standard Version (ESV)And our enemies said, "They will not know or see till we come among them and kill them and stop the work."
• New King James Version (NKJV)And our adversaries said, “They will neither know nor see anything, till we come into their midst and kill them and cause the work to cease.”

Context of Nehemiah 4:11

9But we prayed to our God and set guards to protect us day and night. 10Then the people of Judah said, “The work crews are worn out, and there is too much rubble. We can’t continue to rebuild the wall.” Our enemies said, “Before they know what is happening or see a thing, we will be right in the middle of them. We’ll kill them and bring the work to an end.” 12Jews who were living near our enemies warned us ten times that our enemies would attack us from every direction. 13That is why I positioned people by their families behind the wall where it was lowest and most exposed. The people were armed with swords, spears, and bows.

Nehemiah 4:11 word by word

וַיֹּאמְר֣וּ צָרֵ֗ינוּ לֹ֤א יֵדְעוּ֙ וְלֹ֣א יִרְא֔וּ עַ֛ד אֲשֶׁר־נָב֥וֹא אֶל־תּוֹכָ֖ם וַהֲרַגְנ֑וּם וְהִשְׁבַּ֖תְנוּ אֶת־הַמְּלָאכָֽה׃Read the interlinear

Words taken from the KJV.

• And our adversariesצַרtsar tsâr · enemyH6862
• saidאָמַר'âmar · to sayH559
• They shall not knowיָדַעyâda‛ · to knowH3045
• neither seeרָאָהrâ'âh · to see: seeH7200
• till we comeבּוֹאbô' · to come (in): comeH935
• in the midstתָּ֫וֶךְtâvek · midstH8432
• them, and slayהָרַגhârag · to killH2026
• them, and cause the workמְלָאכָהmelâ'kâh · workH4399
• to ceaseשָׁבַתshâbath · to ceaseH7673

Cross-references for Nehemiah 4:11

• Judges 20:29Then Israel placed troops in ambush around Gibeah.
• 2 Samuel 17:2I’ll attack him while he’s tired and weak, and I’ll cause him to panic. All the people with him will flee, but I’ll kill only him.
• Psalms 56:6They attack, and then they hide. They watch my every step as they wait to take my life.
• Isaiah 47:11But evil will happen to you. You won’t know how to keep it away. Disaster will strike you. You won’t be able to stop it. Destruction will overtake you suddenly. You won’t expect it.
• Acts 23:12In the morning the Jews formed a conspiracy. They asked God to curse them if they ate or drank anything before they had killed Paul.
• 1 Thessalonians 5:2You know very well that the day of the Lord will come like a thief in the night.

Commentaries on Nehemiah 4:11

• Matthew Henry Concise Commentary · v. 7-15Verses 7-15 The hindering good work is what bad men aim at, and promise themselves success in; but good work is God's work, and it shall prosper. God has many ways of bringing to light, and so of bringing to nought, the devices and designs of his church's enemies. If our enemies cannot frighten us from duty, or deceive us into sin, they cannot hurt us. Nehemiah put himself and his cause under the Divine protection. It was the way of this good man, and…Read the comment
• Tyndale Open Study Notes · v. 11The constant psychological attacks from Israel's enemies were lowering morale.Read the comment
• Jamieson–Fausset–Brown Commentary · v. 7-237-21. But ... when Sanballat ... heard that the walls ... were made up, and ... the breaches ... stopped--The rapid progress of the fortifications, despite all their predictions to the contrary, goaded the Samaritans to frenzy. So they, dreading danger from the growing greatness of the Jews, formed a conspiracy to surprise them, demolish their works, and disperse or intimidate the builders. The plot being discovered, Nehemiah adopted the most energetic…Read the comment

In the dictionaries

• Armour
• Sanballat
• Ammon; Ammonites
• Esdras, the First Book of

Commentaries on Nehemiah 4

• Adam Clarke Bible Commentary
• Barnes’ Notes on the Bible
• Matthew Henry Concise Commentary
• Tyndale Open Study Notes
• Jamieson–Fausset–Brown Commentary
• Rashi on Tanakh
• Keil & Delitzsch Commentary
• John Wesley’s Notes
• Darby Translation Notes
• Geneva Bible Translation Notes
• Kingcomments
• Matthew Henry’s Complete Commentary
• Matthew Henry’s Modern English Commentary
• Seventh-day Adventist Bible Commentary
• EGW Writings