Now Tobiah the Ammonite was by him, and he said, Even that which they build, if a fox go up, he shall even break down their stone wall.
Now Tobiah the Ammonite was standing next to him, and he said, 'What they're building is so weak that even if a fox climbed up on it, the fox would knock down their stone wall.'
Tobiah is mocking the Jewish workers by saying their wall is so poorly built that even a small fox could knock it down.
📚 Historical Context
In the book of Nehemiah, the Jewish people had returned from exile in Babylon and were rebuilding the walls of Jerusalem to protect their city and restore their national identity. Sanballat and Tobiah, rival leaders from nearby regions, opposed the project out of fear it would strengthen Jewish independence, leading them to mock and threaten the workers. Tobiah specifically insulted the construction by claiming that even a small fox could topple the wall, highlighting the intense ridicule faced by the builders.
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