There are many spiritual lessons to be gained from a study of the gates presented in Nehemiah. Of all the city gates, only ten are mentioned. We know that there were at least two other gates: the gate of Ephraim and the Prison gate (Neh. 12:39). In presenting just ten, I believe that there is an intended spiritual application, just as we find with the seven churches of Revelation. Certainly, the choice of ten suggests responsibility before God — there were ten commandments written on the two tables of stone (Deut. 4:13), and there were ten virgins (Matt. 25). We also see a spiritual history pictured in these gates. Beginning with the Reformation and continuing on into the 19th century, there was a recovery of truth — nothing new — but the restoration of the truth as found in the Word of God. Most critically, these historical gates have rapidly fallen into decay and are once again in danger of being abandoned.
The Sheep Gate
The sheep gate was near to the temple. Live animals for the sacrifices would have been brought into the city through this gate. It is the first gate mentioned and also the last (Neh. 3:1,32). The wall began and ended with this gate. Likewise, everything in the life of faith rests upon that one, perfect sacrifice of the Lamb of God (John 1:29). “Not by works of righteousness which we have done, but according to His mercy He saved us” (Titus 3:4). Nothing that we do for God has any value in His sight, unless we have first placed our faith in the finished work of Christ (Heb. 11:6). There is nothing that we can do to improve our standing before God: we cannot do works to gain acceptance with God nor to make us worthy of His grace. We are saved through faith — faith in the work of the Lord Jesus Christ. “By grace are ye saved through faith; and that not of yourselves: it is the gift of God: not of works, lest any man should boast” (Eph. 2:8-9).
On the other hand, it is because of the cross that we are to walk in practical separation from this world — I have no place in a world that crucified my Saviour, and the world has no place in my life. “God forbid that I should glory, save in the cross of our Lord Jesus Christ, by whom the world is crucified unto me, and I unto the world” (Gal. 6:14).
The Fish Gate
Place names in Israel tended towards the practical. Whereas we may choose a name with hidden meanings, things in Israel were commonly named according to their associations (Gen. 26:19-22; 28:19; 32:2; Num. 11:3, etc.). The association of fish with the Fish Gate is therefore more than reasonable; this was probably the gate through which fish traders brought their fish into the city (Neh. 3:3).
Although the wall of Jerusalem clearly speaks of separation, it was not without gates. Likewise, as Christians, we are not called upon to live in isolation. The gates of the city provided entry, in this case for fish to be brought in to the city, and egress, so one could go fishing! In John’s Gospel we read, “I am the door: by me if any man enter in, he shall be saved, and shall go in and out, and find pasture” (John 10:9). In Judaism there was a strong wall of separation between the nations and Israel — the Gentiles were aliens from the commonwealth of Israel (Eph. 2:12-14). Now it is “if any man”; the way of salvation stands open to all through the Lord Jesus Christ. It is through Christ that we enter into salvation, and it is through Christ that we go out in service preaching the gospel. When the truth of salvation through faith alone was restored at the time of the reformation, gospel preachers went forth to spread the Good News. Though the recovery of truth at that time was very limited, it was a brilliant flash of light that pierced the darkness of that age.
When the Lord called Peter and Andrew, He told them that He would make them fishers of men, instead of fishermen (Mark 1:17). While we may not all have the gift of evangelism, we are not to be ashamed of the gospel of Christ (Rom. 1:16). We should always be ready to “give an answer to every man that asketh you a reason of the hope that is in you” (1 Peter 3:15). In this sense, we can all “do the work of an evangelist” (2 Tim. 4:5).
We should also notice, however, that the fish having been gathered were brought into the city. Likewise, those that are saved should be brought into the assembly where Christ is in the midst (Matt. 18:20). “There shall be one flock, one Shepherd” (John 10:16 JND).
The Old Gate
“The old gate repaired Jehoiada the son of Paseah, and Meshullam the son of Besodeiah; they laid the beams thereof, and set up the doors thereof, and the locks thereof, and the bars thereof” (Neh. 3:6). Too often the old is swept away to make way for that which is new. Like the Athenians we like to hear the latest thing (Acts 17:21). The Word of God is not like this; when early believers started to stray from the old paths, John, the aged Apostle, brought them back to “that which was from the beginning” (1 John 1:1). Jeremiah, similarly, exhorted the children of Israel to return to the old paths, but they would not. “Thus saith the Lord, Stand ye in the ways, and see, and ask for the old paths, where is the good way, and walk therein, and ye shall find rest for your souls. But they said, We will not walk therein” (Jer. 6:16). Paul warns Timothy that a time would come when Christendom would not consent to wholesome words; they would heap to themselves teachers having itching ears (2 Tim. 3:3).
It was no happenstance that the invention of the printing press and the publishing of the Scriptures coincided with the beginning of the Reformation. There is nothing that the Church of Rome feared more than for lay people to obtain copies of the Bible, especially in their own language. While it is certainly true that men have misused the Scriptures, applying fanciful interpretations to God’s word, nevertheless, we believe it to be “quick, and powerful, and sharper than any twoedged sword” (Heb. 4:12). Indeed, it was a formidable weapon in the hands of those men who were raised up of God to overthrow the dogmas of the Church of Rome and break her deadly embrace upon Christendom of the middle ages.
For a child in Israel, his or her inheritance was most important. The boundaries laid down by Joshua defined the extent of the land owned by each family. Land was not bought or sold as we know it — it could, in effect, be leased, but at the year of Jubilee (the fiftieth year) it reverted back to the original owner (Lev. 25:10). Land was inherited but the transfer of land between tribes through marriage was not permitted. The daughters of Zelophehad (Num. 36) valued their heritage but were not permitted to marry outside of their tribe, lest the lot of Manasseh was diminished. Property extents were marked, and, under the law, it was forbidden to remove those landmarks. “Thou shalt not remove thy neighbour’s landmark, which they of old time have set in thine inheritance, which thou shalt inherit in the land that the Lord thy God giveth thee to possess it” (Deut. 19:14). Too often, we slight the spiritual heritage that we have received, and the old landmarks are forsaken or moved. One can imagine a son or daughter who inherited land in Israel, walking their property lines, taking in the full extent of what they possessed. Like Joshua, it is only where our feet tread that we gain possession for ourselves. “Every place that the sole of your foot shall tread upon, that have I given unto you” (Josh. 1:3).
The Valley Gate
Geographically a valley is a low point; spiritually, it could speak of a low point in our lives. “Yea, though I walk through the valley of the shadow of death, I will fear no evil: for Thou art with me; Thy rod and Thy staff they comfort me” (Psa. 23:4). David could walk in the valley of the shadow of death but without fear of evil, for Jehovah his Shepherd was with him. Remarkably, he was comforted by His rod and staff — I say remarkably, because we do not usually think of God’s chastening hand as a comfort. Though we may stray or wander, or get ourselves into scrapes that bring us down into the valley, God is also a God of the valleys. He will neither leave us nor forsake us, and His loving hand will always guide, whether it be by rod or by staff. “Thus saith the Lord, Because the Syrians have said, The Lord is God of the hills, but He is not God of the valleys, therefore will I deliver all this great multitude into thine hand, and ye shall know that I am the Lord” (1 Kings 20:28).
Notice, that in connection with the valley gate, we have the only dimension given: “a thousand cubits on the wall” (Neh. 3:13). This was no small distance; something more than a quarter of a mile! The labor expended to move those huge blocks of stone would have been considerable. What God permits in our lives, however, is precisely measured according to the need: “There hath no temptation taken you but such as is common to man: but God is faithful, who will not suffer you to be tempted above that ye are able” (1 Cor. 10:13).
While the application of this gate to the individual may be a wonderful encouragement, there is perhaps another figure not to be overlooked. Does not this entire world lie in the valley of the shadow of death? The shadow of the cross casts itself across this scene; the world lies under the sentence of judgment (John 16:11). To the eye of faith we are passing through a wilderness, and we find ourselves strangers and pilgrims in a foreign land (Heb. 11:13; 1 Pet. 2:11). Friendship with this world is nothing short of spiritual adultery (James 4:4).
The heavenly character of the church, as preached by the Apostle Paul (Eph. 2:6), was recognized some 185 years ago. This practical truth, however, is fast being forgotten, and Christendom as a whole lies lifeless in the streets of this world (Acts 20:9). Ephesus, the first of the seven churches, was separate from the world. Smyrna, the second century church, was persecuted by the world. With Pergamos, in the days of Constantine, we see the church comfortable with the world, whereas with Thyatira, the Church of Rome, ruled the world. The world protected Sardis in the days of the Reformation. The church of Philadelphia is rejected by the world, while in Laodicea, the final state of Christendom, we see the church as one with the world!
The Dung Gate
The Dung gate, as the name suggests, would have been the portal for the expulsion of refuse from the city. In the days of Josiah, during a time of revival in Judah, much was found in the city of Jerusalem contrary to the Word of God — groves and altars and vessels made for Baal in the temple. All these were taken outside the city and destroyed, and Jerusalem was cleansed (2 Kings 23:4; 2 Chron. 34:3-5). Two things characterized the revival of that day: the restoration of the right and proper place of the Word of God in the lives of the people, and the cleansing from Judah of all that was contrary to the Word of God.
Christendom finds itself in a position similar to that of Josiah’s day; there is much characteristic of Judaism, paganism, and the philosophy of this world, to be found within its doctrine and practice. During the early days of the reformation, the churches of Europe were cleansed of their icons and images, and their altars and masses were done away with. Nevertheless, much remained of church tradition, and the true nature of the church of God was not recognized. In the words of the first president of the Dallas Theological College, “It was given to Martin Luther in the sixteenth century to reinstate the doctrine of salvation through faith alone, and, in the last century, it was given to J. N. Darby of England to reinstate the doctrine of the church.”
Martin Luther did not personally see the necessity of removing the idols from the churches; he feared that it would stir up the people. In this he perhaps perceived correctly. We are not called upon to be Iconoclasts, but rather, “let every one that nameth the name of Christ depart from iniquity” (2 Tim. 2:19). We are never instructed to reform Christendom, but rather, to separate from all that is contrary to the Word of God. In a great house where there are vessels to honor and some to dishonor, our path is a path of separation: “If a man therefore purge himself from these, he shall be a vessel unto honour, sanctified, and meet for the Master’s use, and prepared unto every good work. Flee also youthful lusts: but follow righteousness, faith, charity, peace, with them that call on the Lord out of a pure heart” (2 Tim. 2:21-22). Those that call on the Lord out of a pure heart are those who have separated themselves from that which is dishonoring to God; it is not a question of setting oneself above others with an immodest and false piety.
Of himself personally, Paul could speak concerning all that he had pursued as a Pharisee, “I count all things but loss for the excellency of the knowledge of Christ Jesus my Lord: for whom I have suffered the loss of all things, and do count them but dung, that I may win Christ” (Phil. 3:8).
The Fountain Gate
The fountain gate is close to the pool of Siloah (Siloam; John 9:77And said unto him, Go, wash in the pool of Siloam, (which is by interpretation, Sent.) He went his way therefore, and washed, and came seeing. (John 9:7)); apparently it was associated with a fountain or spring of water. Water, in the Holy Scriptures, is a picture of the Word of God, and flowing water speaks of the Holy Spirit: “He that believeth on Me, as the scripture hath said, out of his belly shall flow rivers of living water. (But this spake He of the Spirit, which they that believe on Him should receive)” (John 7:38-39). The Lord told the Samaritan woman at the well, “Whosoever drinketh of the water that I shall give him shall never thirst; but the water that I shall give him shall be in him a well of water springing up into everlasting life” (John 4:14).
Each believer in Christ is indwelt with the Holy Spirit. “Ye are not in the flesh, but in the Spirit, if so be that the Spirit of God dwell in you. Now if any man have not the Spirit of Christ, he is none of His” (Rom. 8:9). The activity of the Spirit of God in our lives should be real — it is the power of the new life that we possess in Christ. It should be like a spring of water bubbling up in our lives.
Just, however, as a natural spring can become clogged and cease to flow, so we can grieve the Spirit (Eph. 4:30). The fountain gate is the only gate of which we read “he built it, and covered it” (Neh. 3:15). In the Song of Songs we read, “A garden inclosed is my sister, my spouse; a spring shut up, a fountain sealed” (Song of Sol. 4:12). So we, too, should be a sealed fountain, keeping out that which will grieve the Spirit.
We can also quench the Spirit (1 Thess. 5:19); Paul had to exhort Timothy to “stir up the gift of God, which is in thee” (2 Tim. 1:6). The quenching of the Holy Spirit, however, especially refers to the suppressing of the activity of the Spirit in the assembly. One man ministry quenches the Spirit. Likewise, the willful and independent activity of individuals within the assembly can also have a chilling effect on the liberty of the Spirit (3 John 9-10). This liberty of the Holy Spirit to act within the assembly, to direct worship and ministry, as we see so prominently in the Book of Acts, was, if not foreign, then certainly not acted upon throughout much of the church’s history. It was not until the early part of the 19th century that men, such as J. N. Darby, were exercised by the true character of the Biblical church, and liberty was once again given for the Spirit to act within the assembly.
We should not, however, have our focus on spiritual manifestations as did the Corinthians, and as we see in Charismatic movements today. The Spirit of God does not glorify man, but rather, He exalts the Lord Jesus Christ and makes known His present glory: “He shall glorify Me: for He shall receive of Mine, and shall shew it unto you” (John 16:14).
The Water Gate
To repeat, water is often a picture of the Word of God. “Christ also loved the church, and gave Himself for it; that He might sanctify and cleanse it with the washing of water by the word” (Eph. 5:25-26). “Except a man be born of water and of the Spirit, he cannot enter into the kingdom of God” (John 3:5).
We receive the Holy Scriptures, in their entirety, as the divinely inspired Word of God (2 Tim. 3:15-16). “Prophecy came not in old time by the will of man: but holy men of God spake as they were moved by the Holy Ghost” (2 Peter 1:21). It is complete; we do not look for additional revelations from man or God (Col. 1:25 JND; Rev. 22:18-19). The Bible is the ultimate arbitrator. We must, however, rightly divide the Word of Truth (2 Tim. 2:15). If we bring our thoughts to the Word of God, we can make it mean whatever we desire it to mean.
We are epistles of Christ (2 Cor. 3:3); our walk, both individually and collectively, should reflect the truth of the Word of God as a testimony to this world. Until the early 1800s, the collective testimony to the true character of the church as the Body of Christ was entirely lost upon Christendom. Christ is the glorified Head in heaven, and we, being members together of His body through the Holy Spirit, are to be governed by the Spirit. That we should walk uprightly and godly is not disputed; but suggest that the collective conduct of the church should be equally governed by the Word of God, and then at once there are objections. It is either too difficult, or else the interpretation of those scriptures that address this subject is so liberal that it renders them devoid of any substance.
The Horse Gate
One of the most beautiful descriptions of a horse may be found in the book of Job: “Hast thou given strength to the horse? hast thou clothed his neck with the quivering mane? Dost thou make him to leap as a locust? His majestic snorting is terrible. He paweth in the valley, and rejoiceth in his strength; he goeth forth to meet the armed host. He laugheth at fear, and is not affrighted; neither turneth he back from before the sword. The quiver rattleth upon him, the glittering spear and the javelin. He swalloweth the ground with fierceness and rage, and cannot contain himself at the sound of the trumpet: at the noise of the trumpets he saith, Aha! and he smelleth the battle afar off, the thunder of the captains, and the shouting” (Job 39:19-25 JND).
The horse clearly betokens strength. As such, the kings of Israel were not to accumulate horses (Deut. 17:16). God foresaw that it would lead them back to Egypt and to a dependence upon their own strength and not upon Jehovah. King David could write: “Some trust in chariots, and some in horses: but we will remember the name of the Lord our God” (Psa. 20:7). In another Psalm we read: “An horse is a vain thing for safety: neither shall he deliver any by his great strength” (Psa. 33:17). Isaiah warned, “Woe to them that go down to Egypt for help; and stay on horses, and trust in chariots, because they are many; and in horsemen, because they are very strong; but they look not unto the Holy One of Israel, neither seek the Lord!” (Isa. 31:1). It was a serious mistake of the reformers to depend on national governments for the promotion and protection of the principles of the reformation. In Sardis, unlike Ephesus, we do not find the seven stars in the Lord’s right hand. The protection of the church had been placed in the hands of governments.
Although the world says that strength lies in numbers, the Lord must teach us that, “there is no restraint to the Lord to save by many or by few” (1 Sam. 14:6). In Gideon’s case, it was just 300 men (Judg. 7:7). The Lord had to tell Zerubbabel, “Not by might, nor by power, but by my spirit, saith the Lord of hosts” (Zech. 4:6). William Kelly wrote, “One of the truest signs of practical communion with the Lord is that at such a moment one is heartily content to be little.” Later in this book of Nehemiah we will read, “the joy of the Lord is your strength” (Neh. 8:10). When the Lord can take delight in our walk — a dependent walk of obedience to Him and His word — then we have strength; it’s neither numbers nor our own estimation of ourselves that count.
The East Gate
“Afterward he brought me to the gate, even the gate that looketh toward the east: and, behold, the glory of the God of Israel came from the way of the east: and His voice was like a noise of many waters: and the earth shined with His glory” (Ezek. 43:1-2). The prophet Ezekiel speaks in these verses of the glory of the Lord filling the millennial temple — returning from the east, even as it had departed in that direction (Ezek. 10:19; 11:23). This is a hope connected with Israel and this earth in the days following the Rapture. As Christians, however, we are waiting for that shout, “Come up hither” (Rev. 4:1).
The hope of the church should have always been for the return of the bridegroom for His heavenly bride. Paul could write to the assembly in Thessalonica, “Ye turned to God from idols to serve the living and true God; and to wait for His Son from heaven” (1 Thess. 1:9), and likewise to Titus on the Isle of Crete, “Awaiting the blessed hope and appearing of the glory of our great God and Saviour Jesus Christ” (Titus 2:13). We should live out our lives in the light of this daily expectation.
When the church lost her true hope, she became like the evil servant: “that evil servant shall say in his heart, My lord delayeth his coming; and shall begin to smite his fellowservants, and to eat and drink with the drunken” (Matt. 24:48). What an apt description of the dark ages! Sadly, this blessed hope was not recognized by the reformers, and the church, failing to recover her true, heavenly position, remained entangled with the politics of this world.
It was not until the early 1800s that the midnight cry was made, “Behold, the Bridegroom” (Matt. 25:6 JND). It is good to recognize that this verse doesn’t say, as it does in the King James, “Behold, the bridegroom cometh.” Our hope is the Lord Himself. It is not merely that we’ll be taken out of all that is disagreeable, but that we will be united with Him. Though the Lord has promised, “Surely I come quickly,” the bride simply answers: “Even so, come, Lord Jesus” (Rev. 22:20). That is to say, our attitudes should not be, “hurry up and get me out of here,” but rather, “come, Lord Jesus.” It is a hope rooted in love.
Gate Miphkad
Gate Miphkad may be translated, “the gate of the appointed place.” In chapter 12 of Deuteronomy we find a description of the land of Canaan in the days of Joshua. The nations that occupied it served their gods upon every high mountain, on the hills, and under every green tree (Deut. 12:2). The children of Israel were not to behave in this manner (Deut. 12:4). “But unto the place which the Lord your God shall choose out of all your tribes to put His name there, even unto His habitation shall ye seek, and thither thou shalt come” (Deut. 12:5).
The tabernacle was first pitched in Shiloh, but this was rejected by God in favor of Mount Zion — which is Jerusalem (Psa. 78:67-68). It was there, upon mount Moriah where Abraham had offered up Isaac, that God’s sanctuary was to be built (Gen. 22:2; 2 Chron. 3:1). “There shall be a place which the Lord your God shall choose to cause His name to dwell there; thither shall ye bring all that I command you; your burnt offerings, and your sacrifices, your tithes, and the heave offering of your hand, and all your choice vows which ye vow unto the Lord” (Deut. 12:11).
God’s dwelling place is now the assembly, “in whom ye also are builded together for an habitation of God through the Spirit” (Eph. 2:22). “Where two or three are gathered together unto My name, there am I in the midst of them” (Matt. 18:20). This is the appointed place. It is just as wrong in this day to do whatever is right in our own eyes as it was in Israel’s day (Deut. 12:8). Likewise, we have no more right to worship in the place of our choosing (Deut. 12:13-14) than in former days. It is the Lord’s day, the Lord’s table, and the Lord’s supper.
When the tabernacle was built, it was to be constructed after God’s pattern (Ex. 25:9). The prophet Ezekiel was to show the house of God, the temple, to Israel that they might measure the pattern and be ashamed of their iniquities — they had deviated far from God’s plan (Ezek. 43:10). Christendom has deviated far from God’s plan for His church and she has adopted many things from Judaism, paganism, and of her own contrivance.
Unless we recognize the place of God’s appointment, unless we see by faith the Lord in the midst, there will be no attractive power to preserve, and we’ll be governed by the vagaries of our own wills. We may be in the assembly because that’s where we grew up; we might find ourselves there because that’s where our friends are; we could even be there because we don’t like what we see elsewhere (as valid as that may be); but, we will either leave when circumstances change, or we’ll attempt to shape the assembly to satisfy our own desires, if we don’t see Christ in the midst.
In those ancient cities, it was at the gate that judgment was made: “Then went Boaz up to the gate, and sat him down there” (Ruth 4:1). The gate of the appointed place would, I believe, especially bring before us the administrative responsibility of the assembly. Judgment is made in the assembly because Christ is in the midst — that is where she derives her authority, and it is for this reason she must act. The assembly has a responsibility to guard and to judge that which comes into its midst.