🏗️WEB · Nehemiah 3:21
What does Nehemiah 3:21 mean?
"After him, Meremoth the son of Uriah the son of Hakkoz repaired another portion, from the door of the house of Eliashib even to the end of the house of Eliashib."
— Nehemiah 3:21 (World English Bible)
Surrounding context
After him, their brothers, Bavvai the son of Henadad, the ruler of half the district of Keilah made repairs.
Next to him, Ezer the son of Jeshua, the ruler of Mizpah, repaired another portion, across from the ascent to the armory at the turning of the wall.
After him, Baruch the son of Zabbai earnestly repaired another portion, from the turning of the wall to the door of the house of Eliashib the high priest.
After him, Meremoth the son of Uriah the son of Hakkoz repaired another portion, from the door of the house of Eliashib even to the end of the house of Eliashib.
After him, the priests, the men of the Plain made repairs.
After them, Benjamin and Hasshub made repairs across from their house. After them, Azariah the son of Maaseiah the son of Ananiah made repairs beside his own house.
After him, Binnui the son of Henadad repaired another portion, from the house of Azariah to the turning of the wall, and to the corner.
Explanation
Nehemiah 3:21 is a small piece within a long, detailed roll call listing the people who repaired sections of Jerusalem's broken-down wall after the Jewish exiles returned from Babylonian captivity. The verse simply states that a man named Meremoth, identified by his family line (son of Uriah, grandson of Hakkoz), worked on a specific stretch of the wall—the portion running from the doorway of Eliashib's house to the far end of that same house. It's a plain, almost administrative note marking off exactly which segment this particular worker was responsible for.
To understand the context, Nehemiah was a Jewish official serving in the Persian court who returned to Jerusalem around 445 BC, deeply grieved that the city's walls lay in ruins decades after the exile. He organized the returned community to rebuild the wall as an act of restoring both physical security and national/religious identity. Chapter 3 is essentially a construction ledger, naming families, priests, guilds, and local officials, each assigned a portion of wall or gate to repair, often the section nearest their own homes or districts. Meremoth appears twice in this chapter (verses 4 and 21), meaning his family took on two separate segments of work—a sign of unusual dedication or resources. Interestingly, other biblical references (Ezra 8:33) identify a Meremoth the priest, son of Uriah, entrusted with weighing out temple treasures, suggesting this individual was a trusted, capable leader within the community.
Theologically, this verse—though it seems mundane—
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