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Geshem

Man living at the time of Exile and Return

Geshem the Arab, along with Sanballat and Tobiah, opposed Nehemiah's efforts to rebuild the walls of Jerusalem and tried to intimidate and discourage him.

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Also known as Gashmu

Geshem the Arab is mentioned in the book of Nehemiah as one of the main opponents of Nehemiah's efforts to rebuild the walls of Jerusalem in the 5th century BC. Geshem, along with Sanballat the Horonite and Tobiah the Ammonite, mocked and ridiculed Nehemiah when they learned of his intention to rebuild the city walls (Neh.2.19). Later, when the wall was being built, Geshem and his allies conspired to harm Nehemiah and hinder the work. They invited Nehemiah to meet with them in the plain of Ono, but Nehemiah perceived that they intended to do him harm and declined their invitation (Neh.6.1-2). Geshem and his associates also spread rumors accusing Nehemiah of rebelling against the Persian king and aspiring to become king himself (Neh.6.6-7). Despite these attempts to intimidate and discourage him, Nehemiah remained focused on his mission and relied on God's protection and guidance. The opposition from Geshem and his allies highlights the political and social challenges faced by the Jewish community as they sought to reestablish themselves in Jerusalem after the Babylonian exile.

Bible dictionary

Geshem Easton Easton’s Bible Dictionary (1897)

Or Gashmu, firmness, probably chief of the Arabs south of Palestine, one of the enemies of the Jews after the return from Babylon (Neh. 2:19; 6:1, 2). He united with Sanballat and Tobiah in opposing the rebuilding of the wall of Jerusalem.

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Geshem Smith Smith’s Bible Dictionary (1863)

and Gash’mu (rain), an Arabian, mentioned in (Nehemiah 2:19) and Nehe 6:1,2,6 (B.C. 446.) We may conclude that he was an inhabitant of Arabia Petraea or of the Arabian desert, and probably the chief of a tribe.” Gashum said it” made him a type of those who create a common report.

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Geshem Hastings Hastings’ Dictionary of the Bible (1898)

GE'SHEM (ram), also called GASH'MU, an Arabian who, with Sanballat and Tobiah, opposed Nehemiah while the wall was building. Neh 2:19; Neh 6:1-2.

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Geshem Schaff Schaff’s Dictionary of the Bible

GE'SHEM (ram), also called GASH'MU, an Arabian who, with Sanballat and Tobiah, opposed Nehemiah while the wall was building. Neh 2:19; Neh 6:1-2.

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Easton (1897), Smith (1863), Hitchcock (1869), Hastings (1898) and Schaff are in the public domain. Parsed text: neuu-org/bible-dictionary-dataset (CC BY 4.0). Headwords and whitespace normalised for this site.

Where Geshem appears

4 verses in 1 book · English text: BSB (change it from the menu at the top) · Strong’s H1654

Nehemiah4

Names, family links and references: STEPBible TIPNR (Tyndale House Cambridge, CC BY 4.0). Short descriptions were drafted with AI assistance by STEPBible. Family links follow STEPBible’s scholarly decisions where genealogies are ambiguous.