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Gates of Nehemiah — The Old Gate
“The old gate repaired Jehoiada” (Nehemiah 3:6).
This gate would suggest the thought of watchfulness to walk in the old paths of truth as they have been set out for us in the Word of God. Earlier in their history Jeremiah had encouraged and warned the people with the exhortation: “Thus saith the Lord, Stand ye in the ways, and see, and ask for the old paths, where is the good way, and walk therein, and ye shall find rest for your souls.” The sad thing is, that they responded to His entreaty in a very negative way, as the verse concludes. “But they said, We will not walk therein” (Jeremiah 6:16).
Timothy was given a similar exhortation in the New Testament. “But continue thou in the things which thou hast learned and hast been assured of, knowing of whom thou hast learned them” (2 Timothy 3:14). Many were turning away from the foundational truth that Paul and others had been given and were seeking new things. Paul was really telling Timothy to hold fast to old paths and not look for a new revelation or a different slant or application of things. Growing up I often heard it said, “If it’s new it’s not true, and if it’s true it’s not new.” There is a lot of wisdom in this.
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