| Clarke's Commentary on the Bible The army of Samaria - As he was governor, he had the command of the army, and he wished to excite the soldiers to second his views against Nehemiah and his men. What do these feeble Jews? - We may remark here, in general, that the enemies of God's work endeavor by all means to discredit and destroy it, and those who are employed in it. 1. They despise the workmen: What do these feeble Jews? 2. They endeavor to turn all into ridicule: Will they fortify themselves? 3. They have recourse to lying: If a fox go up, he shall even break down their stone wall. 4. They sometimes use fair but deceitful speeches; see Nehemiah 6:2, etc.
Gill's Exposition of the Entire BibleAnd he spake before his brethren,.... Tobiah the Ammonite, and Geshem the Arabian, and perhaps some other governors of the king of Persia in those parts: and before the army of Samaria: which, and the inhabitants of it, were implacable enemies of the Jews: and said, what do these feeble Jews? what do they pretend to do, or what can they do? will they fortify themselves? by building a wall about their city; can they think they shall ever be able to do this, or that it will be allowed? will they sacrifice? meaning not their daily sacrifice, as Jarchi, that they had done a long time, but for the dedication of their building, as Aben Ezra: will they make an end in a day? they seem to be in as great a hurry and haste as if they meant it; and indeed, unless they can do it very quickly, they never will: they will soon be stopped: will they revive the stones out of the heaps of the rubbish which are burnt? where will they find materials? do they imagine that they can make burnt stones firm and strong again, or harden the dust and rubbish into stones, or make that, which is as if dead, alive? to do this is the same as to revive a dead man, and they may as well think of doing the one as the other; burnt stones being reckoned as dead, as Eben Ezra observes.
Geneva Study BibleAnd he spake before his {a} brethren and the army of Samaria, and said, What do these {b} feeble Jews? will they fortify themselves? will they sacrifice? will they make an end in a day? will they revive the stones out of the heaps of the rubbish which are burned? (a) Of his companions who dwelt in Samaria. (b) Thus the wicked who do not consider that God's power is always ready to defend his, mock them as thought they were weak and feeble.
Wesley's Notes 4:2 In a day - Do they intend to begin, and finish the work, all in one day? For if they spend any long time about it, they cannot think that we will suffer them to do it. The stones - Will they pick up their broken stones out of the ruins, and patch them together. Burnt - Which stones were burnt, and broken, by the Chaldeans when they took the city.
King James Translators' Notesfortify...: Heb. leave to themselves
Matthew Henry's Concise Commentary4:1-6 Many a good work has been looked upon with contempt by proud and haughty scorners. Those who disagree in almost every thing, will unite in persecution. Nehemiah did not answer these fools according to their folly, but looked up to God by prayer. God's people have often been a despised people, but he hears all the slights that are put upon them, and it is their comfort that he does so. Nehemiah had reason to think that the hearts of those sinners were desperately hardened, else he would not have prayed that their sins might never be blotted out. Good work goes on well, when people have a mind to it. The reproaches of enemies should quicken us to our duty, not drive us from it. | 
