Word In Life Study Bible
THE TEN PERCENT SOLUTION
Neh.11:1-2
How do you revitalize dead or dying urban neighborhoods that have many abandoned homes and buildings, few if any businesses, and an infrastructure that lies in ruins? Nehemiah came up with a novel solution for that problem in Jerusalem: let the outlying suburbs donate one-tenth of their people to move into the city (Neh. 11:1–2). In effect, the districts surrounding Jerusalem tithed people for the purpose of community redevelopment.
Could a similar “ten percent solution” be applied to run-down neighborhoods today? It is intriguing to imagine what might happen if ten percent of all the believers in the suburbs surrounding any of today’s largest cities relocated into the most blighted sections of their cities; if they put their children in neighborhood schools; if they rebuilt abandoned or neglected houses; if they shopped at neighborhood stores and restaurants; if they established or worked at businesses in the community; if they participated in local political and civic affairs; if they built up churches in the inner city.
Nehemiah’s recruitment for the repopulation program involved casting lots to determine who would relocate (11:1; see Josh. 18:8–10). Those who were selected were “blessed” or ordained (Hebrew, barak, Neh. 11:2) to the task by their fellow citizens. This suggests a formal commissioning of these families to carry out the redevelopment of Jerusalem.
In a similar way, people who move back into the city today to help revitalize urban life need not come with a spirit of know-it-all condescension or quick-fix triumphalism, but rather with a sense of mission (see “Lingering Resentment Boils Over” at Neh. 4:7). Just as urban blight happens over many years, so urban renewal takes years to accomplish.
But it must start somewhere. Nehemiah began with ten percent of God’s people living nearby. Where will God’s people today begin?
Study notes from the Word In Life Study Bible, copyright 1993,1996, by Thomas Nelson, Inc. All rights reserved. Used by permission. The study notes from the Word In Life Study Bible appearing at this web site are for personal use only.
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