Take Counsel with Yourself - Meditations on Nehemiah 5

"I was very angry when I heard their outcry and these words. I took counsel with myself, and I brought charges against the nobles and the officials. I said to them, 'You are exacting interest, each from his brother.' And I held a great assembly against them and said to them, 'We, as far as we are able, have bought back our Jewish brothers who have been sold to the nations, but you even sell your brothers that they may be sold to us!' They were silent and could not find a word to say." (Nehemiah 5:6-8)

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Nehemiah was angry when he heard about how some of the Jews were disregarding God's law and taking advantage of others. But he didn't immediately storm off and denounce their behavior. He first took some time to consider the matter and to consider his own attitude. Only then did he confront the guilty persons.
 

Nehemiah was angry, as he should have been. These people were exploiting others who were sacrificing their own comforts for the sake of Jerusalem. The broken-down walls were a reminder of God's judgment on Judah's past unfaithfulness. Now, even while they were trying to repair the damage done by forsaking God's law, they were disregarding the law. Nehemiah did right to be angry. But he didn't lose his temper and blow. He first "took counsel" with himself.

The text doesn't explain what he means by, "I took counsel with myself." All that we can do is speculate about what thoughts went through Nehemiah's head. I think it would be a good guess to say that he thought about what they were doing, what God had to say about what they were doing, and how he should respond. In other words, he got his facts straight and then determined how to proceed.
 

This is not our normal behavior. We act first and act questions later. Looking back, we see that our actions were motivated by pride, sinful anger, or ill will. Our first impulses are usually driven by passion rather than love of truth and righteousness. If we are to avoid these first impulses, we must learn to "take counsel" with ourselves before we act. We must get the facts straight, make sure our hearts are right, and then determine how to act.

How many times do you react to a situation without having all of the facts? Do you force yourself to stop in order to find out what God has to say about the situation? Do you take the time to take stock of what is going on in yourself before you respond? What is your usual way of responding to what you perceive to be violations of justice?