In 2005 Wikipedia's first sentence called it “major figure in the post-exile history of the jews as recorded in the bible”. Today it says “central figure of the book of nehemiah”.
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The opening as it read in 2025
Nehemiah For other uses, see Nehemiah (disambiguation) . Nehemiah rebuilding Jerusalem, illustration by Adolf Hult, 1919 Nehemiah ( / ˌ n iː ə ˈ m aɪ ə / ; Hebrew : נְחֶמְיָה Nəḥemyā , " Yah comforts") is the central figure of the Book of Nehemiah , which describes his work in rebuilding Jerusalem during the Second Temple period as the governor of Persian Judea under Artaxerxes I of Persia (465–424 BC). The historicity of Nehemiah, his mission, and the Nehemiah Memoir have recently become very controversial in academic scholarship, with maximalists viewing it as a historical account and minimalists doubting whether Nehemiah existed. He is considered a saint in the Eastern Orthodox Church , where he is commemorated on the Sunday of the Holy Forefathers . Eerdmans Commentary on the Bible . History of Ancient Israel . Since there are no extrabiblical testimonies for Nehemiah's person or work, one is initially dependent on the biblical data as a source…There is no clarity regarding the background, the concrete form, or the exact dating of Nehemiah's mission. More recently, the historicity, background, and intention of these texts have become highly controversial. The maximalist position evaluates the details of the conflicts, Nehemiah's mission, and the actions initiated by him to be, as far as possible, historical, which then is authentically witnessed by Nehemiah's first-person report (e.g., Rainer Kessler, Titus Reinmuth, Ralf Rothenbusch). The minimalist position, on the other hand, doubts even the historicity of the person of Nehemiah. It does not see the Nehemiah Memoir as an authentic document but as a fictional account of later writers with theological intentions, who stylized Nehemiah as the model political leader. The Nehemiah Memoir is thus understood, as far as possible, to be an archetypal depiction without historical value (e.g., Joachim Becker, Erhard S.
This is Wikipedia's own text, saved in our repository. Their copy of it is revision 1282109160.
The opening as it stood in 2010
Nehemiah or Nechemya ( ; , "Comforted of/is the LORD (YHWH) ," Standard Hebrew Nəḥemya , Tiberian Hebrew Nəḥemyāh ) is a major figure in the post-exile history of the Jews as recorded in the Bible , and is believed to be the primary author of the Book of Nehemiah . He was the son of Hachaliah , (Neh. 1:1) and probably of the Tribe of Judah . His ancestors resided in Jerusalem before his service in Persia .
Red text was written in or rewritten since the previous snapshot. Their copy is revision 366186225.
The opening as it stood in 2015 3 passages from the previous snapshot no longer appear
Modern depiction of Nehemiah rebuilding Jerusalem Nehemiah ( / ˌ n iː ə ˈ m aɪ ə / or / ˌ n iː h ə ˈ m aɪ ə / ; , "Jehovah comforts", Standard Hebrew Nəḥemya , Tiberian Hebrew Nəḥemyāh ) is the central figure of the Book of Nehemiah , which describes his work in rebuilding Jerusalem during the Second Temple period .He was governor of Persian Judea under Artaxerxes I of Persia (c. 5th century BC).
Red text was written in or rewritten since the previous snapshot. Their copy is revision 666686403.
The opening as it stood in 2020
Nehemiah rebuilding Jerusalem, illustration by Adolf Hult, 1919 Nehemiah is the central figure of the Book of Nehemiah , which describes his work in rebuilding Jerusalem during the Second Temple period .He was governor of Persian Judea under Artaxerxes I of Persia (465-424 BC).The name is pronounced / ˌ n iː ə ˈ m aɪ ə / or / ˌ n iː h ə ˈ m aɪ ə / in English.It is in Hebrew , Nəḥemyāh , " Yah comforts".Most scholars believe Nehemiah was a real historical figure and that the Nehemiah Memoir, a name given by scholars to certain portions of the book written in the first person, is historically reliable.Eerdmans Commentary on the Bible ."What did Nehemiah do for Judaism," in A Wandering Galilean: Essays in Honour of Seán Freyne ."The Contribution of the Samaria Papyri from Wadi Daliyeh to the Study of Economics in the Persian Period," in Samaritans: Past and Present: Current Studies .The essential historicity of the events described [in Ezra and Nehemiah] has rarely been questioned.
Red text was written in or rewritten since the previous snapshot. Their copy is revision 961766458.
The opening as it stood on October 6, 2023
Central figure of the biblical Book of Nehemiah For other uses, see Nehemiah (disambiguation) . Nehemiah rebuilding Jerusalem, illustration by Adolf Hult, 1919 Nehemiah is the central figure of the Book of Nehemiah , which describes his work in rebuilding Jerusalem during the Second Temple period . He was governor of Persian Judea under Artaxerxes I of Persia (465–424 BC). The name is pronounced / ˌ n iː ə ˈ m aɪ ə / or / ˌ n iː h ə ˈ m aɪ ə / in English. It is in Hebrew נְחֶמְיָה , Nəḥemyāh , " Yah comforts". Most scholars believe Nehemiah was a real historical figure and that the Nehemiah Memoir, a name given by scholars to certain portions of the book written in the first person, is historically reliable. Nehemiah is venerated as a saint in the Roman Catholic Church , where his feast day is July 13, the same as his contemporary, Ezra . Eerdmans Commentary on the Bible . "What did Nehemiah do for Judaism," in A Wandering Galilean: Essays in Honour of Seán Freyne . "The Contribution of the Samaria Papyri from Wadi Daliyeh to the Study of Economics in the Persian Period," in Samaritans: Past and Present: Current Studies . The essential historicity of the events described [in Ezra and Nehemiah] has rarely been questioned.
Red text was written in or rewritten since the previous snapshot. Their copy is revision 1167931661.
Today
In 2005 Wikipedia's first sentence called it “major figure in the post-exile history of the jews as recorded in the bible”. Today it says “central figure of the book of nehemiah”. Read the current article and compare.
2010
2015
2020
Oct '23
2025
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What Wikipedia says this is
Every article opens by defining its subject. This one was redefined since 2010, and today's defining sentence is their current revision.
Then
major figure in the post-exile history of the jews as recorded in the bible
Now
central figure of the book of nehemiah
Struck red text is no longer in the article; dotted amber text was rewritten. Every revision id links to Wikipedia's copy; the text shown is our own saved copy. Data: /data. Wikipedia text is CC BY-SA; quoted for the record; not affiliated with Wikipedia.
