Nehemiah 6:8 (ASV)

Passage

Then I sent unto him, saying, There are no such things done as thou sayest, but thou feignest them out of thine own heart.

Nearby Context

Nehemiah 6:6 wherein was written, It is reported among the nations, and Gashmu saith it, that thou and the Jews think to rebel; for which cause thou art building the wall: and thou wouldest be their king, according to these words.

Nehemiah 6:7 And thou hast also appointed prophets to preach of thee at Jerusalem, saying, There is a king in Judah: and now shall it be reported to the king according to these words. Come now therefore, and let us take counsel together.

Nehemiah 6:8 Then I sent unto him, saying, There are no such things done as thou sayest, but thou feignest them out of thine own heart.

Nehemiah 6:9 For they all would have made us afraid, saying, Their hands shall be weakened from the work, that it be not done. But now, [O God], strengthen thou my hands.

Nehemiah 6:10 And I went unto the house of Shemaiah the son of Delaiah the son of Mehetabel, who was shut up; and he said, Let us meet together in the house of God, within the temple, and let us shut the doors of the temple: for they will come to slay thee; yea, in the night will they come to slay thee.

Study Lenses

The verse centers on "sent", "saying", "such", "things", "done", "thou", and "sayest". It is saying that the verse draws attention to "sent" and "saying", so its meaning should be read from those terms before moving to application.

The nearby context moves from verse 7's "And thou hast also appointed prophets to..." into verse 9's "For they all would have made us...", so "sent" and "saying" belong inside that flow. In Nehemiah context, the local focus is covenant, worship, and faithfulness.

A plain takeaway is to answer the verse's own emphasis on "sent" and "saying" with trust shaped by these words, not by a vague optimism outside the passage.