The context of this passage is the rebuilding of the walls around Jerusalem in the days of the return following Judah’s seventy years captivity in Babylon.  The great work of Nehemiah as a wise and faithful governor is seen as he stood upon his guard against enemies of opposition to the work.
     The emphasis in these verses is upon balance.  How important is balance?  When a baby is learning to walk he needs balance.  When a child is learning to ride a bicycle he needs balance.  When a young man is learning to preach the gospel he needs balance.  Gospel preaching should be characterized by beautiful balance.  The principle of Joshua 1:7 applies to preaching as well as to life.  2 Timothy 2:15 will not permit extremism.  Foy E. Wallace, Jr., once said, “Truth is always found between extremes.”  Amen!
     The skill of Nehemiah and the returnees in rebuilding the walls around Jerusalem is seen in their striking a balance between the twin necessities of work and war.  He kept half of them busy in the work (Vs. 16).  He kept the other half in a state of watchfulness with the implements of war in hand (Vs. 16).  He kept every worker ready with a sword at his side (Vs. 18).
     If the “things written aforetime were written for our learning” (Rom. 15:4), what might we learn from this?  Two primary lessons suggest themselves just here.  First, there is the lesson of a division of labor in the church.  Not all of us can do the same things in the Lord’s work, nor should we.  In order to show the division of labor in the setting of spiritual gifts in the first century church Paul wrote, “For the body is not one member, but many.  If the foot shall say, Because I am not the hand, I am not of the body; is it therefore not of the body? (1 Cor. 12:14-15).  Thus, no Christian, however humble his endowments or talents, should decide that he is useless to the body of Christ.  Let us all do what we are qualified to do!
     Second, there is the lesson of the balance between work and war in spiritual matters.  As people who wear the name of Christ we must be workers and we must be fighters.  Our task is to work out our own salvation “with fear and trembling” (Phil. 2:12), and to “fight the good fight of faith” (1 Tim. 6:12).  Some of us are good in the work, but have neglected to be soldiers (Jude 3).  We might be impressed with the zeal of such, but their knowledge leaves us empty because a zeal without knowledge is useless (Rom. 10:2).  On the other hand, some of us are so busy fighting that we forget that there is a work to do.  We might be impressed with their knowledge, but their zeal leaves us cold!
     The picture in Nehemiah 4 is that of workers who are prepared to fight.  Christians should be no less than workers and fighters.  The word of God is the sword of the Spirit that we ought to have at our sides, both in our labors and in our conflicts (Eph. 6:17). – Dennis Gulledge