Nehemiah 3:1

Then Eliashib. It is fitting to find Eliashib the high priest setting a right example on this occasion. Later on he became “allied” by marriage to Tobiah (Neh. 13:4) and was guilty of profaning the Temple (Neh. 13:5). According to the line of high priests given in Neh. 12:10, 11, it appears that Eliashib was the son of Joiakim, and the grandson of Jeshua, who had returned from Babylon with Zerubbabel (Ezra 2:2; 3:2).

The special purpose of this chapter seems to be the rendering of honor where honor was due — the placing on record of the names of the men who nobly came to the front on this important occasion, sacrificed ease to duty, and thereby exposed themselves to a threatened hostile attack (Neh. 4:18-20).

With his brethren. That is, the priests in general. That the priests undertook the building of a portion of the eastern wall, in addition to the work here mentioned, is apparent from v. 28.

The sheep gate. This gate seems to have been completely in ruins. It was at the eastern end of the north wall, which here marked the limits of the Temple compound (see The Walls of Jerusalem in Nehemiah’s Day). The sheep market was probably in its neighborhood and gave to the gate its name (see John 5:2).

They sanctified it. This appears to have been a preliminary dedication, distinct from that described in Neh. 12:27-43. Having completed the Sheep Gate and the wall extending westward as far as the Tower of Hananeel, the priests anticipated the general dedication by a special one of their own, thus acknowledging the sacred character of the work at the earliest possible moment.

The tower. The towers of Meah (Heb. Hamme’ah, literally, “the hundred”) and Hananeel, apparently belonged to the Temple fortress (see on Neh. 2:8). Since no building activity at the towers is mentioned, they seem to have been intact.