And I said unto them, We after our ability have redeemed our brethren the Jews, which were sold unto the heathen; and will ye even sell your brethren? or shall they be sold unto us? Then held they their peace, and found nothing to answer.
And I said to them, 'We have used our resources to buy back our Jewish brothers who were sold as slaves to foreigners. Now you want to sell your own people as slaves? Should they have to be sold to us?' Then they were silent and couldn't think of anything to say in response.
Nehemiah confronted wealthy Jews who were enslaving their own people, pointing out the contradiction of rescuing Jews from foreign slavery while creating more slavery among themselves.
📚 Historical Context
During the time of Nehemiah, the Jewish people had returned from exile in Babylon and were struggling to rebuild Jerusalem amid economic hardships. Wealthy Jews were exploiting their poorer brethren by charging excessive interest on loans and even selling them into slavery to foreign nations, which violated God's laws and deepened social divisions. Nehemiah, as a godly leader, publicly confronted the nobles and officials about this injustice, challenging them to reconsider their actions and restore fairness among the community.
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