About a century after Zerubbabel and Joshua led the original returnees back to Judah, Nehemiah's brother, Ranani, returned from Jerusalem. Nehemiah inquired about the conditions of the Jews who had survived the captivity and concerning Jerusalem. Ranani reported that Jerusalem remained an unimpressive and unimportant center, with its walls still broken down, despite some Jews living there among many Gentiles. The city had not been rejuvenated or rebuilt to any notable extent. Approximately eighty years after the Temple's rebuilding, God raised up Nehemiah, who arrived in Jerusalem about thirteen years after Ezra. As contemporaries, they worked as a team under the commission of the second decree issued by Artaxerxes, focusing on God's Law. Nehemiah faced similar challenges as Ezra, particularly with intermarriage among the Jews and Gentiles, which was widespread. He admonished the people, recognizing that God desired His people to be separated religiously and culturally from the pagan ways of living. Nehemiah also sought to separate God's people from pagan business practices. He became very angry and rebuked the nobles and rulers for enslaving common people through mortgages, emphasizing that Israel was to be an example, different from other nations by following God's Law concerning interest and economic practices. Additionally, he contended with the nobles over fieldwork and trading on the Sabbath, enforcing separation by closing Jerusalem's gates on that day to prevent business with outsiders. Nehemiah dedicated significant effort to rebuilding Jerusalem's walls, which symbolized a wall of separation between Israel and the Gentiles. This wall was more than physical; it represented Israel's distinction from the surrounding pagan world. He declared to the pagans that they had no heritage, right, or memorial in Jerusalem, placing them outside this boundary of separation. Despite initial efforts, Nehemiah had to repeatedly address the issue of intermarriage. After convincing the people to stop intermarrying and to put away foreign wives, he later returned from the Persian court to find the same problem persisting. The people's commitment was fickle; they would not consistently obey God or sanctify themselves by separating from Gentile ways. They failed to reestablish God's government, never fully leaving the influence of Babylon behind.

In the history of God's people, a remarkable Feast of Tabernacles took place during the days of Nehemiah, after the captivity and scattering of Judah, when the Persian Empire permitted the Jews to return to their homeland. Nehemiah's primary task was rebuilding Jerusalem's wall during the reign of Artaxerxes I. Under his leadership, the wall was completed in an astonishing fifty-two days, just before the autumn holy day season began. When the seventh month arrived, all the people gathered as one in the open square. Ezra the Scribe read aloud from the Book of the Law on the Feast of Trumpets, and the people worshipped the great God with deep reverence. Other leaders explained the law, making its meaning clear for daily application. The reading convicted the people, leading to profound repentance. They learned how to keep the Feast of Tabernacles in temporary booths and immediately obeyed God's command by building them, experiencing very great gladness. This was the first time the Feast had been kept in booths since the days of Joshua. Following the Feast, on the twenty-fourth day of the seventh month, the children of Israel assembled with fasting, in sackcloth, and with dust on their heads, humbling themselves and repenting together. They separated themselves from foreigners, dissolving marriages with pagan mates, and confessed their sins and the iniquities of their fathers. Their long prayer of confession included an oath to recommit to the great God of heaven. Under a new formal covenant, they pledged to obey God's law, stop intermarrying with surrounding nations, keep the Sabbath holy, observe the seventh-year land rest, forgive debts, and carefully follow the laws of firstfruits and tithing, ensuring they would not neglect the house of God. Their sincere and heartfelt actions transformed the inspiration from the Feast into concrete, positive changes and spiritual growth.

Under the rule of the Persian Empire, which succeeded Babylon, the policy of enforced resettlement was reversed, allowing displaced peoples, including the Jews, to return to their homelands. A smaller number of Jews likely accompanied Nehemiah during his return to Jerusalem around 445 or 444 BC, though specific figures are not recorded. Upon his arrival, Nehemiah oversaw the rebuilding of the wall around Jerusalem, completing the task in an astonishing 52 days. He also sternly rebuked the people for their failure to tithe and for neglecting the Sabbath, reminding them that such disobedience had led to the fall of Jerusalem over a century before. His efforts were part of a broader return and restoration, yet the persistent sins of the people echoed the failures of their ancestors.