The Holy City is repopulated
This next section resumes the story begun in Nehemiah 7:4,5. In those passages Nehemiah planned the repopulation of Jerusalem and began the census necessary for such resettlement. Now after the intervening account about the renewal of the covenant, we return to the topic of resettlement.
Now the leaders of the people settled in Jerusalem, and the rest of the people cast lots to bring one out of every ten to live in Jerusalem, the holy city, while the remaining nine were to stay in their own towns. 2 The people commended all the men who volunteered to live in Jerusalem.
Apparently the leaders had already settled in the capital city of Jerusalem. But the newly restored city was still very short of population. Because of Jerusalem’s status as the Holy City that God had chosen as the site of his temple, it was inappropriate that it be left in such a neglected state.
The choosing of names by lottery indicates that few people were eager to leave their farms in the surrounding territory to maintain and defend the newly fortified capital. Ten percent of the people were selected to move to Jerusalem; this was a sort of tithe to the Lord. Perhaps those “who volunteered to live in Jerusalem” were volunteers in addition to those chosen by lot. But this verse could also mean that those chosen by lot gladly accepted the decision and regarded the lot as a decision made by God, rather than an arbitrary imposition by Nehemiah.
The rest of this chapter is a collection of lists concerning the repopulation of Jerusalem. It emphasizes the concern of Nehemiah and Ezra that Jerusalem be repopulated by people with a clear Jewish lineage and that the temple be served by priests and Levites with the family heritage that had been prescribed by the Lord.