I rebuked them and called curses down on them. I beat some of the men and pulled out their hair. I made them take an oath in God’s name and said: “You are not to give your daughters in marriage to their sons, nor are you to take their daughters in marriage for your sons or for yourselves. Nehemiah 13:25

            No.  Nehemiah strongly enforced the rules of Israel after their exile out of Israel in a 70-year timeout.  God punished them for not following His rules and doing whatever pleased them.  God wanted His nation to be an example of power, purity and blessing through obedience.

            Israel failed over and over.  God forgave over and over.  Eventually, the hammer came down and the Israelites were defeated by the Babylonians and moved to Babylon.  Now, God gave them a second chance and they jeopardized that by returning to their old ways.

            Many of these rules were for Israel only, especially when it came to purification rites, offerings and sacrifices.  Genealogical lines needed to stay purely Jewish to work in the temple, for land ownership and to keep track of the coming Messiah.

            Nehemiah took his task seriously and worked to enforce those rules before the nation crumbled again.  It seemed extreme but another severe punishment by God was something he did not want his nation to return to.