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Wednesday, August 20th, 2025
the Week of Proper 15 / Ordinary 20
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Read the Bible

New Living Translation

Nehemiah 4:3

Tobiah the Ammonite, who was standing beside him, remarked, "That stone wall would collapse if even a fox walked along the top of it!"

Bible Study Resources

Concordances:

- Nave's Topical Bible - Fox;   Sarcasm;   Stones;   Tobiah;   Thompson Chain Reference - Ammonites;   Animals;   Co-Operation;   Contempt;   Foxes;   Tobiah;   Unity-Strife;   Torrey's Topical Textbook - Ammonites, the;   Contempt;   Fox, the;   Samaria, Modern;  

Dictionaries:

- American Tract Society Bible Dictionary - Samaritans;   Tobiah;   Easton Bible Dictionary - Sanballat;   Fausset Bible Dictionary - Fox;   Nehemiah;   Tobiah;   Holman Bible Dictionary - Ammonites;   Nehemiah;   Stone;   Hastings' Dictionary of the Bible - Ammon, Ammonites;   Jackal;   Nehemiah;   Tobiah;   Morrish Bible Dictionary - Ammon, Ammonites, Children of Ammon;   Tobiah ;   People's Dictionary of the Bible - Vine;   Smith Bible Dictionary - Vine,;   Watson's Biblical & Theological Dictionary - Fox;   Tobiah;  

Encyclopedias:

- International Standard Bible Encyclopedia - Fox;   Kitto Biblical Cyclopedia - Ammonites;  

Parallel Translations

Christian Standard Bible®
Then Tobiah the Ammonite, who was beside him, said, “Indeed, even if a fox climbed up what they are building, he would break down their stone wall!”
Hebrew Names Version
Now Toviyah the `Ammonite was by him, and he said, Even that which they are building, if a fox go up, he shall break down their stone wall.
King James Version
Now Tobiah the Ammonite was by him, and he said, Even that which they build, if a fox go up, he shall even break down their stone wall.
English Standard Version
Tobiah the Ammonite was beside him, and he said, "Yes, what they are building—if a fox goes up on it he will break down their stone wall!"
New Century Version
Tobiah the Ammonite, who was next to Sanballat, said, "If a fox climbed up on the stone wall they are building, it would break it down."
New English Translation
Then Tobiah the Ammonite, who was close by, said, "If even a fox were to climb up on what they are building, it would break down their wall of stones!"
Amplified Bible
Now Tobiah the Ammonite was beside him, and he said, "Even what they are building—if a fox should get up on it, he would break down their stone wall."
New American Standard Bible
Now Tobiah the Ammonite was near him, and he said, "Even what they are building—if a fox were to jump on it, it would break their stone wall down!"
World English Bible
Now Tobiah the Ammonite was by him, and he said, Even that which they are building, if a fox go up, he shall break down their stone wall.
Geneva Bible (1587)
And Tobiah the Ammonite was beside him, and said, Although they buylde, yet if a foxe goe vp, he shall euen breake downe their stonie wall.
Legacy Standard Bible
Now Tobiah the Ammonite was near him and he said, "Even what they are building—if a fox should jump on it, he would break their stone wall down!"
Berean Standard Bible
Then Tobiah the Ammonite, who was beside him, said, "If even a fox were to climb up on what they are building, it would break down their wall of stones!"
Contemporary English Version
Tobiah from Ammon was standing beside Sanballat and said, "Look at the wall they are building! Why, even a fox could knock over this pile of stones."
Complete Jewish Bible
However, we prayed to our God and, because of them, organized a watch against them day and night.
Darby Translation
And Tobijah the Ammonite was by him, and he said, Even that which they build, if a fox went up, it would break down their stone wall.—
Easy-to-Read Version
Tobiah the Ammonite was with Sanballat. Tobiah said, "What do these Jews think they are building? If even a small fox climbed up on it, he would break down their wall of stones!"
George Lamsa Translation
Now Tobiah the Ammonite was standing by him, and he said, No matter how much they build, I know, if a fox climbs it, he shall break down their stone wall.
Good News Translation
Tobiah was standing there beside him, and he added, "What kind of wall could they ever build? Even a fox could knock it down!"
Lexham English Bible
Tobiah the Ammonite was beside him and said, "Their wall of stone that they are building would break down if a fox went on it!"
Literal Translation
And Tobiah the Ammonite was beside him, and he said, Even that which they build, if a fox goes up, he will even break down their stone wall.
Miles Coverdale Bible (1535)
And Tobias the Ammonite beside him saide: Let the builde on, yf a foxe go vp, he shall breake downe their stonye wall.
American Standard Version
Now Tobiah the Ammonite was by him, and he said, Even that which they are building, if a fox go up, he shall break down their stone wall.
Bible in Basic English
Now Tobiah the Ammonite was by him, and he said, Such is their building that if a fox goes up it, their stone wall will be broken down.
Bishop's Bible (1568)
And Tobiah the Ammonite was beside him, and sayde: Though they buyld, yet if a foxe go vp, he shall breake downe their stony wall.
JPS Old Testament (1917)
But we made our prayer unto our God, and set a watch against them day and night, because of them.
King James Version (1611)
Now Tobiah the Ammonite was by him, and he said, Euen that which they build, if a foxe goe vp, he shall euen breake downe their stone wall.
Brenton's Septuagint (LXX)
And Tobias the Ammanite came near to him, and said to them, Do they sacrifice or eat in their place? shall not a fox go up and pull down their wall of stones?
English Revised Version
Now Tobiah the Ammonite was by him, and he said, Even that which they build, if a fox go up, he shall break down their stone wall.
Wycliffe Bible (1395)
But also Tobie Amanytes, his neiybore, seide, Bilde thei; if a fox stieth, he schal `skippe ouer the stony wal `of hem.
Update Bible Version
Now Tobiah the Ammonite was by him, and he said, Even that which they are building, if a fox goes up, he shall break down their stone wall.
Webster's Bible Translation
Now Tobiah the Ammonite [was] by him, and he said, Even that which they build, if a fox should go up, he would even break down their stone wall.
New King James Version
Now Tobiah the Ammonite was beside him, and he said, "Whatever they build, if even a fox goes up on it, he will break down their stone wall."
New Life Bible
Tobiah the Ammonite was near him and said, "If a fox would jump on what they build, he would break their stone wall down!"
New Revised Standard
Tobiah the Ammonite was beside him, and he said, "That stone wall they are building—any fox going up on it would break it down!"
J.B. Rotherham Emphasized Bible
Now, Tobiah the Ammonite, was beside him, - so he said, Even that which they are building, if a fox should go up, he would break down their stone wall!
Douay-Rheims Bible
Tobias also the Ammonite who was by him said: Let them build: if a fox go up, he will leap over their stone wall.
Revised Standard Version
Tobi'ah the Ammonite was by him, and he said, "Yes, what they are building--if a fox goes up on it he will break down their stone wall!
Young's Literal Translation
And Tobiah the Ammonite [is] by him and saith, `Also, that which they are building -- if a fox doth go up, then it hath broken down their stone wall.'
THE MESSAGE
At his side, Tobiah the Ammonite jumped in and said, "That's right! What do they think they're building? Why, if a fox climbed that wall, it would fall to pieces under his weight."
New American Standard Bible (1995)
Now Tobiah the Ammonite was near him and he said, "Even what they are building—if a fox should jump on it, he would break their stone wall down!"

Contextual Overview

1 Sanballat was very angry when he learned that we were rebuilding the wall. He flew into a rage and mocked the Jews, 2 saying in front of his friends and the Samarian army officers, "What does this bunch of poor, feeble Jews think they're doing? Do they think they can build the wall in a single day by just offering a few sacrifices? Do they actually think they can make something of stones from a rubbish heap—and charred ones at that?" 3 Tobiah the Ammonite, who was standing beside him, remarked, "That stone wall would collapse if even a fox walked along the top of it!" 4 Then I prayed, "Hear us, our God, for we are being mocked. May their scoffing fall back on their own heads, and may they themselves become captives in a foreign land! 5 Do not ignore their guilt. Do not blot out their sins, for they have provoked you to anger here in front of the builders." 6 At last the wall was completed to half its height around the entire city, for the people had worked with enthusiasm.

Bible Verse Review
  from Treasury of Scripure Knowledge

Tobiah: Nehemiah 2:10, Nehemiah 2:19, Nehemiah 6:1, 1 Kings 20:10, 1 Kings 20:18, 2 Kings 18:23

Reciprocal: Deuteronomy 23:3 - Ammonite 2 Samuel 6:20 - glorious 2 Samuel 10:2 - show kindness 1 Chronicles 19:2 - the children Ezra 9:1 - Ammonites Nehemiah 13:1 - Moabite Ezekiel 13:15 - The wall Ezekiel 25:6 - rejoiced Micah 7:11 - the day

Cross-References

Genesis 4:1
Now Adam had sexual relations with his wife, Eve, and she became pregnant. When she gave birth to Cain, she said, "With the Lord 's help, I have produced a man!"
Genesis 4:11
Now you are cursed and banished from the ground, which has swallowed your brother's blood.
Numbers 18:12
"I also give you the harvest gifts brought by the people as offerings to the Lord —the best of the olive oil, new wine, and grain.
1 Kings 17:7
But after a while the brook dried up, for there was no rainfall anywhere in the land.
Nehemiah 13:6
I was not in Jerusalem at that time, for I had returned to King Artaxerxes of Babylon in the thirty-second year of his reign, though I later asked his permission to return.

Gill's Notes on the Bible

Now Tobiah the Ammonite was by him,.... Who was one of his brethren he spake before, Nehemiah 4:2,

and he said; in the like contemptuous and scoffing manner;

even that which they build, if a fox go up, he shall break down their stone wall; signifying not only that it was so low that a fox could easily get up to it, or leap over it; but that the materials were so bad, and the work so poorly done, that the weight of a fox would break it down; of which creatures many were thereabout, since Jerusalem was desolate, see Lamentations 5:18.


 
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