Nehemiah 7:4 — Meaning and Application

That I gave my brother Hanani, and Hananiah the ruler of the palace, charge over Jerusalem: for he {was} a faithful man, and feared God above many.

And I said unto them, Let not the gates of Jerusalem be opened until the sun be hot; and while they stand by, let them shut the doors, and bar {them}: and appoint watches of the inhabitants of Jerusalem, every one in his watch, and every one {to be} over against his house.

Now the city {was} large and great: but the people {were} few therein, and the houses {were} not builded. {large: Heb. broad in spaces}

And my God put into mine heart to gather together the nobles, and the rulers, and the people, that they might be reckoned by genealogy. And I found a register of the genealogy of them which came up at the first, and found written therein,

These {are} the children of the province, that went up out of the captivity, of those that had been carried away, whom Nebuchadnezzar the king of Babylon had carried away, and came again to Jerusalem and to Judah, every one unto his city;