Nehemiah 4:3 (LSB)

Passage

Now Tobiah the Ammonite was near him and he said, “Even what they are building—if a fox should jump on it, he would break their stone wall down!”

Nearby Context

Nehemiah 4:1 Now it happened that when Sanballat heard that we were rebuilding the wall, he became angry and very vexed and mocked the Jews.

Nehemiah 4:2 He spoke in the presence of his brothers and the wealthy men of Samaria and said, “What are these feeble Jews doing? Are they going to restore it for themselves? Can they offer sacrifices? Can they complete it in a day? Can they bring the stones to life from the dusty rubble, though they are burned?”

Nehemiah 4:3 Now Tobiah the Ammonite was near him and he said, “Even what they are building—if a fox should jump on it, he would break their stone wall down!”

Nehemiah 4:4 Hear, O our God, for we are despised! Return their reproach on their own heads and give them up for plunder in a land of captivity.

Nehemiah 4:5 Do not forgive their iniquity and let not their sin be blotted out before You, for they have vexed the builders.

Study Lenses

The verse centers on "tobiah", "ammonite", "near", "said", "even", "building", "should", and "jump". It is saying that the verse draws attention to "tobiah" and "ammonite", so its meaning should be read from those terms before moving to application.

The nearby context moves from verse 2's "He spoke in the presence of his..." into verse 4's "Hear O our God for we are...", so "tobiah" and "ammonite" 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 "tobiah" and "ammonite" with trust shaped by these words, not by a vague optimism outside the passage.