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Hammers & Swords · The Chosen People

• 0:00
  Speaker 1: Previously on the chosen people. Jerusalem, once called the city
• 0:06
  Speaker 1: of the great king, now lay bare like bones beneath
• 0:10
  Speaker 1: the evening sky.
• 0:12
  Speaker 2: You see, Lord, you see it all. This city bears
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  Speaker 2: your name. Restore her for your glory.
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  Speaker 1: Within days, the city came alive with a kind of
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  Speaker 1: holy fervor, Men who had once labored in vineyards turned
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  Speaker 1: their strength towards the carving of stones, while others who
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  Speaker 1: had once traded linens in the market now hoisted beams
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  Speaker 1: one upon another. They worked relentlessly, shoulder to shoulder, as
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  Speaker 1: rock cracked and wood splintered haphazardly. In time, they would
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  Speaker 1: refine their temporary crafts. They would sweat, their hands would callous,
• 0:56
  Speaker 1: and their limbs would grow weary. Their own blood would
• 1:00
  Speaker 1: seep into the very foundations of Israel's walls. But no
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  Speaker 1: effort was poured out in vain, for God's people were rising.
• 1:14
  Speaker 1: The clang of iron and scrape of stone echoed across
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  Speaker 1: the ruins of Jerusalem. Her walls were rising like a
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  Speaker 1: forest floor discovering new life after a fire. Every corner
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  Speaker 1: of the city buzzed with the sounds of rebuilding, timbers
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  Speaker 1: being hauled into place, mortar slapped onto fresh stone, carts
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  Speaker 1: creaking beneath the weight of rubble cleared away. Dust hung
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  Speaker 1: in the morning air, warmed by the sun and stirred
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  Speaker 1: by constant movement. The walls were growing higher by the day.
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  Speaker 1: Nehemiah moved through the city with quiet intensity. His cloak
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  Speaker 1: caught the wind behind him as he passed from gate
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  Speaker 1: to gate, inspecting each section of the work. He rarely
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  Speaker 1: said much, but he saw everything. A dislodged stone, a
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  Speaker 1: sagging beam, a discouraged worker. Nothing escaped his notice. Children
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  Speaker 1: dashed barefoot through alleyways with baskets of pebbles. Elders blessed
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  Speaker 1: the hands of younger men. Families toiled shoulder to shoulder.
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  Speaker 1: The city was alive with construction, but underneath it all
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  Speaker 1: was the blossoms of restoration. Yet, even as hope swelled
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  Speaker 1: within the walls, unrest grew outside them. To the north,
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  Speaker 1: settled atop the sloping hills, a ramshackle encampment had formed.
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  Speaker 1: Men encircled the fire, which sat under a dangling pot
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  Speaker 1: of stew, gently boiling over the edges. But none of
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  Speaker 1: the men cared to pay the mess any mind. Their
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  Speaker 1: eyes lingered on the work in the distance. A sharp
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  Speaker 1: laugh broke the silence of the uneasy group.
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  Speaker 3: Look at them.
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  Speaker 1: Pathetic.
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  Speaker 3: They think they can restore what's been dead for a century?
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  Speaker 1: Sanballat, the Horonite, stood at the edge of the ridge
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  Speaker 1: overlooking the city. His armor gleamed gallantly in the sun.
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  Speaker 1: but his voice brimmed with the bitterness of a defeated man.
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  Speaker 4: They've toiled, but to what end? If even the smallest
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  Speaker 4: of foxes should spring up and dart along that wall,
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  Speaker 4: it would crumble beneath them.
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  Speaker 1: He chuckled at his own joke. No one else did,
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  Speaker 1: not even the soldiers nearby. They didn't speak it aloud,
• 3:47
  Speaker 1: but they were troubled. The walls of Jerusalem were rising,
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  Speaker 1: and fast, and with it, the strength of the people within.
• 3:56
  Speaker 4: It's not the wall that concerns me. It's their unity.
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  Speaker 4: Unity makes people dangerous.
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  Speaker 1: Despite the others' silence, Gishom's words were nearly inaudible. He
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  Speaker 1: feared even the mere mention of Israel's strength and subsequent
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  Speaker 1: danger might turn his worries into a reality.
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  Speaker 4: This is rebellion, treason, and they must be stopped.
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  Speaker 1: He spat into the dirt, then turned to his messenger.
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  Speaker 1: He gritted his teeth as he forced his next words
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  Speaker 1: out angrily.
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  Speaker 3: Spread word through Samaria, Ammon and Ashdod. Rally the others.
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  Speaker 3: Let them know Jerusalem is defying Persia's peace.
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  Speaker 1: Back within the city, Nehemiah climbed a section of the
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  Speaker 1: rebuilt wall. His boots kicked dust from the ledge as
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  Speaker 1: he stepped over a pile of stones and looked out
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  Speaker 1: beyond the hills. He could feel the threat, like a
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  Speaker 1: distant drumbeat, still faint but approaching. The reports had reached
• 5:03
  Speaker 1: him the night before. Whispers of ambushes, talk of armies forming,
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  Speaker 1: and yet Jerusalem kept building. A voice called up to him.
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  Speaker 4: Word has spread, brother.
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  Speaker 1: Nehemiah turned to see his brother approaching, face strained, cloak
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  Speaker 1: dusty from travel. They say we rebuild to rebel.
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  Speaker 4: That this is no wall, but a declaration of war.
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  Speaker 4: Then let them see what we truly build.
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  Speaker 1: He closed his eyes, inhaled deep, and muttered under his breath.
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  Speaker 3: O God, you see their threats. You see our weaknesses.
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  Speaker 3: But you also see our purpose.
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  Speaker 4: Strengthen our hands!
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  Speaker 1: At dawn, Nehemiah gathered the leaders, a mix of elders, craftsmen, priests,
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  Speaker 1: and warriors, all summoned beneath the shade of the ruined
• 6:01
  Speaker 1: tower near the fish gate. He addressed them without raising
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  Speaker 1: his voice, but every word carried weight.
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  Speaker 4: They plan to strike, in secret. When our hands are busy,
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  Speaker 4: and our backs are turned.
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  Speaker 1: A murmur rippled through the crowd.
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  Speaker 4: But we do not retreat. We do not pause. We prepare.
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  Speaker 1: He stepped forward.
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  Speaker 3: From this day forward, every worker will carry both a
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  Speaker 3: tool and a weapon.
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  Speaker 1: The silence that followed was thick. Then one man stepped forward,
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  Speaker 1: a bricklayer with a sword at his hip.
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  Speaker 4: Then let our walls be built with calloused hands and
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  Speaker 4: ready hearts.
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  Speaker 1: The others nodded, some nervously, others with quiet fire in
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  Speaker 1: their eyes.
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  Speaker 3: Half we'll build, half we'll guard, and all shall stand together.
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  Speaker 3: If the trumpet sounds, gather at its call. The Lord
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  Speaker 3: will fight for us.
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  Speaker 1: That night, the transformation began. Forges burned brighter than before.
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  Speaker 1: not just for chisels and hinges, but for blades and
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  Speaker 1: spear tips. Shield straps were repaired with leftover leather. Old
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  Speaker 1: slings were restrung. Mothers wrapped cloth around the wrists of
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  Speaker 1: their sons as they took up positions near the gates.
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  Speaker 1: Children learned to grind wheat while keeping one eye on
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  Speaker 1: the horizon. The next morning, Jerusalem looked different. A boy
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  Speaker 1: held a hammer in one hand and a dagger in
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  Speaker 1: his belt. An old priest mixed mortar with one hand
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  Speaker 1: while a staff leaned against his shoulder. Men who had
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  Speaker 1: never fought trained under the gaze of watchmen perched along
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  Speaker 1: the city's edge. Nehemiah walked among them all. He offered nods,
• 8:00
  Speaker 1: short encouragements, silent prayers. Not a single threat had reached
• 8:05
  Speaker 1: them yet, but the tension hung heavy in the air
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  Speaker 1: as if something unseen pressed down upon the city's shoulders.
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  Speaker 1: Outside the city, the coalition formed. Sanballat stood with Gisham
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  Speaker 1: of Arabia and Tobiah of Ammon. Behind them, hired swords, mercenaries,
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  Speaker 1: and opportunists loitered restlessly.
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  Speaker 4: Their walls rise faster than expected. We can't let this continue.
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  Speaker 4: A strong Jerusalem is a threat to us.
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  Speaker 1: All, Sanballat nodded grimly.
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  Speaker 3: Then we hit them where they're weakest, at night, from
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  Speaker 3: every side while they sleep.
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  Speaker 1: He drew his sword as the metal blade grated against
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  Speaker 1: the buckle of his belt.
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  Speaker 3: We'll crush their spirits before their walls ever reach the sky!
• 8:57
  Speaker 1: But Nehemiah was no longer the timid cupbearer who once
• 9:01
  Speaker 1: wept at the news of Jerusalem's disgrace.
• 9:04
  Speaker 4: He moved through the.
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  Speaker 1: City by night, inspecting defenses, reinforcing watchposts, comforting the fearful.
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  Speaker 1: Near the water gate, he passed a young soldier with
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  Speaker 1: trembling hands.
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  Speaker 4: What is your name?
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  Speaker 2: Malchi, son of Joed.
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  Speaker 4: I haven't fought before, my lord.
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  Speaker 1: Nehemiah took the young man's spear and inspected it.
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  Speaker 3: Neither have many. But courage is not born on the battlefield.
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  Speaker 3: It's chosen in the dark, before the first blow falls.
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  Speaker 3: He handed the spear back, nodding once.
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  Speaker 4: Who denied, Markai? You do not stand alone.
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  Speaker 1: And indeed, they didn't. The night came, and with it,
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  Speaker 1: the whisper of feet in the hills. But the city
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  Speaker 1: did not sleep. Watchfires burned on every corner. tower. Eyes
• 10:01
  Speaker 1: scanned the dark, ears strained for movement.
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  Speaker 4: And then, nothing.
• 10:08
  Speaker 1: Sanbalat and his men had come close. While they had
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  Speaker 1: purposed with their hands to attack, their hearts were not
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  Speaker 1: so resolute. Menacing shadows cascaded along the walls under the
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  Speaker 1: light of torches. Swords glistened as flames danced about. Men
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  Speaker 1: of every background who labored by day now stood as
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  Speaker 1: an army of the night. Whether it was out of
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  Speaker 1: fear or reason, Sanballat and his men drew back at
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  Speaker 1: the sight of the Israelites. Inside the city, the trumpet
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  Speaker 1: never sounded. But nevertheless, the people of God were ready.
• 10:49
  Speaker 1: Always ready. Weeks passed. The wall grew higher, stronger. But
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  Speaker 1: so did the threats. Sanbalad changed his strategy. No longer
• 11:04
  Speaker 1: brute force, but fear. Doubt. Letters began to arrive. At
• 11:10
  Speaker 1: first they remained unnoticed. More babble meant to distract the
• 11:14
  Speaker 1: people from their honorable task, but over time, the volume
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  Speaker 1: could no longer be ignored. The worst came when a
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  Speaker 1: letter arrived unsealed, an invitation to spread rumors.
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  Speaker 4: It is reported among the nations that you and the
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  Speaker 4: Jews plan to rebel, that you are building the wall
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  Speaker 4: in order to make yourself king, Nehemiah.
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  Speaker 1: The people stirred, but Nehemiah's response remained the same.
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  Speaker 4: Lies. Nothing more.
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  Speaker 1: Nehemiah scratched at his chin and delicately closed his eyes.
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  Speaker 1: To fight the claims any further would err on the
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  Speaker 1: side of arrogant self-defense, the exact move that would fortify
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  Speaker 1: the false claims. But the poison had been sipped, and
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  Speaker 1: it now ran through the veins of Israel. Whispers began.
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  Speaker 1: Questions were raised. Hesitation in the work began to set in.
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  Speaker 1: As the sun beat down relentlessly overhead, Nehemiah climbed again
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  Speaker 1: to the top of the wall high above the city.
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  Speaker 1: He waited until many had gathered, until the murmurs faded.
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  Speaker 1: The people looked on with a curious intensity. They held
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  Speaker 1: their breath as he spoke. I am not a king.
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  Speaker 4: I am not a warrior. I am not a prophet.
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  Speaker 1: Nehemiah's humility spread across the concerned people like a blanket.
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  Speaker 1: Tense shoulders eased as Nehemiah swept his arm across the skyline.
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  Speaker 4: I am a servant of the God of Heaven. And
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  Speaker 4: this work, this wall, is his.
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  Speaker 1: His voice cut through the air like a blade. A
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  Speaker 1: few cheers rose up from the crowd.
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  Speaker 4: So let them mock me. Let them lie, let them
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  Speaker 4: plot in the shadows.
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  Speaker 1: As Nehemiah shone light on Sanballat's deception, the people grew
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  Speaker 1: nearer to one another in heart, soul, mind and strength.
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  Speaker 3: As for us, we will build.
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  Speaker 1: The workers roared in response. Nehemiah had done what he
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  Speaker 1: had set out to do. The people had once more
• 13:38
  Speaker 1: remembered the faithfulness of their God and joined together to endeavor.
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  Speaker 4: For his glory.
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  Speaker 1: But Nehemiah also knew that despite this battle having been won,
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  Speaker 1: the war was far from over. When one of the
• 13:54
  Speaker 1: enemy's schemes failed, another came. Paid spies, false prophets, threats
• 14:01
  Speaker 1: inside and out. But Nehemiah saw through them all. Nothing
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  Speaker 1: could deter him from pursuing the building of the wall
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  Speaker 1: and the people it protected, because he had seen that
• 14:14
  Speaker 1: which could not be extinguished, hope that was mending broken hearts,
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  Speaker 1: the spark of unity blazing into a wildfire of purpose,
• 14:25
  Speaker 1: a city rising from rubble. And though the sword still
• 14:30
  Speaker 1: hung by his side, It was the hammer in his
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  Speaker 1: hand that told the true story. Jerusalem was not just
• 14:38
  Speaker 1: defending herself from annihilation. She was rebuilding, becoming whole again.
• 14:45
  Speaker 1: Day by day, stone by stone, heart by heart. Steve Gatina,
• 15:00
  Speaker 1: Max Bard, Zach Schelleberger and Ben Gammon are the executive
• 15:04
  Speaker 1: producers of The Chosen People, narrated by Paul Coltofianu. Characters
• 15:09
  Speaker 1: are voiced by Jonathan Cotton, Aaron Salvato, Sarah Seltz, Mike Reagan,
• 15:14
  Speaker 1: Stephen Ringwald, Sylvia Zaradoc, Thomas Copeland Jr., Rosanna Pilcher and
• 15:20
  Speaker 1: Mitch Lashinsky. Music by Andrew Morgan Smith. Written by Aaron Salvato,
• 15:26
  Speaker 1: Brie Rosely and Chris Baig. You can hear more Prey.com
• 15:30
  Speaker 1: productions on the Prey.com app, available on the Apple App
• 15:33
  Speaker 1: Store and Google Play Store. If you enjoyed The Chosen People,
• 15:37
  Speaker 1: please rate and leave a review.