Tobiah the Ammonite is the second of three people who oppose Nehemiah’s efforts to rebuild the wall. He takes his lead from Sanballat. At one point we even see Tobiah at Sanballat’s side, agreeing with him and speaking against the wall as Nehemiah works to rebuild it.
Later, the pair hires Shemaiah to oppose Nehemiah and intimidate him by claiming there’s a death threat against him, attempting to distract him from his work.
Tobiah’s main part in the opposition to Nehemiah, however, is that he’s receiving intelligence information from the nobles in Judah about Nehemiah and what he is doing. And he is in communication with them, attempting to influence them.
Whereas Sanballat heads up the opposition, we see Tobiah working behind the scenes to gather information and influence the people to advance their agenda.
Like Sanballat, Tobiah is also allied with the Jews through the marriages of both him and his son. Tobiah even has a room improperly assigned to him in the temple courts.
When Nehemiah initiates his final reforms, the people read from the Law of Moses, which says no Ammonites or Moabites can ever enter the temple (Deuteronomy 23:3). As an Ammonite, this includes Tobiah. He’s out.
Have we ever let someone wrongly influence us? Have we ever worked behind the scenes to advance what is right or acted with subversive intent?
[Read Tobiah’s story in Nehemiah 2:10; 6:10–19; and 13:1–9.]
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Peter DeHaan writes about biblical Christianity to confront a status quo faith and live a life that matters. He seeks a fresh approach to following Jesus through the lens of Scripture, without the baggage of made-up traditions and meaningless practices.
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