Devine Scripture

Nehemiah 4:3

What does Nehemiah 4:3 mean?

A plain-English look at Nehemiah 4:3 in WEB alongside six other public-domain English translations, with cross-references and chapter context.

What Nehemiah 4:3 means

Tobiah amplifies the mockery with a sneer: even a light-footed fox would topple their wall. He dismisses their engineering as flimsy and their labor as laughable. This remark tries to sap confidence, suggesting the project is doomed by incompetence. Yet such contempt often misreads the quiet strength of sustained, cooperative effort under good leadership. The wall may begin fragile, but it will not remain so. God can bless imperfect starts and make them stand. Tobiah’s insult ultimately boomerangs; the chapter ends with a vigilant, armed workforce, not a crumbling facade, showing that resolve and God’s help outlast scorn.

Parallel translations

WEB

World English Bible · 2000

Now Tobiah the Ammonite was by him, and he said, Even that which they are building, if a fox go up, he shall break down their stone wall.

KJV

King James Version · 1611

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.

ASV

American Standard Version · 1901

Now Tobiah the Ammonite was by him, and he said, Even that which they are building, if a fox go up, he shall break down their stone wall.

BBE

Bible in Basic English · 1949

Now Tobiah the Ammonite was by him, and he said, Such is their building that if a fox goes up it, their stone wall will be broken down.

YLT

Young's Literal Translation · 1862

And Tobiah the Ammonite <FI>is<Fi> by him and saith, `Also, that which they are building--if a fox doth go up, then it hath broken down their stone wall.'

DRA

Douay-Rheims (Challoner) · 1752

Tobias also the Ammonite who was by him said: Let them build: if a fox go up, he will leap over their stone wall.

DBY

Darby Bible · 1890

And Tobijah the Ammonite was by him, and he said, Even that which they build, if a fox went up, it would break down their stone wall. —

Context

After Sanballat’s barrage of questions in verse 2, Tobiah piles on a final jab, making the ridicule personal and public. The effect is to corner the Jews into humiliation before the region’s onlookers. The narrative deliberately lingers on the insults to show their weight—before immediately shifting in verses 4–5 to Nehemiah’s prayer, not a counter-taunt. This transition teaches the reader to watch for spiritual responses to verbal warfare. The next verse begins that pivot from mockery to supplication.

v.2And he spake before his brethren and the army of Samaria, and said, What are these feeble Jews doing? will they fortify themselves? will they sacrifice? will they make an end in a day? will they revive the stones out of the heaps of rubbish, seeing they are burned?

v.3This passage

v.4Hear, O our God; for we are despised: and turn back their reproach upon their own head, and give them up for a spoil in a land of captivity;

Cross references

Related passages from across Scripture, drawn from the Treasury of Scripture Knowledge.

  • 1 Kings 20:18

    And he said, Whether they are come out for peace, take them alive; or whether they are come out for war, take them alive.

  • Lamentations 5:18

    For the mountain of Zion, which is desolate: The foxes walk upon it.

  • Nehemiah 2:10

    And when Sanballat the Horonite, and Tobiah the servant, the Ammonite, heard of it, it grieved them exceedingly, for that there was come a man to seek the welfare of the children of Israel.

  • 1 Kings 20:10

    And Ben-hadad sent unto him, and said, The gods do so unto me, and more also, if the dust of Samaria shall suffice for handfuls for all the people that follow me.

  • Nehemiah 6:1

    Now it came to pass, when it was reported to Sanballat and Tobiah, and to Geshem the Arabian, and unto the rest of our enemies, that I had builded the wall, and that there was no breach left therein (though even unto that time I had not set up the doors in the gates),

  • 2 Kings 18:23

    Now therefore, I pray thee, give pledges to my master the king of Assyria, and I will give thee two thousand horses, if thou be able on thy part to set riders upon them.

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