“Now it came to pass, when Sanballat, and Tobiah, and Geshem the Arabian, and the rest of our enemies, heard that I had builded the wall, and that there was no breach left therein; (though at that time I had not set up the doors upon the gates;)”
External opposition resumes when construction nears completion: "Now when Sanballat and Tobiah and the Arabs and the Ammonites and the Ashdodites heard that the repair of the walls of Jerusalem was progressing and that the breaches were beginning to be closed, they were very angry." The timing of renewed opposition—when the work is nearly complete—indicates that the opponents have watched the project progress despite their previous mockery and military threats, recognizing that the restoration will soon become irreversible. The reiteration of the same coalition of opponents suggests that the threat remains constant throughout the reconstruction period. The fact that opposition becomes more intense as completion approaches suggests a final desperate attempt to prevent the wall's finish.
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