Shemaiah.. professed friend, but. false prophet. See Nehemiah 6:12.
shut up. confined, as in prison. Hebrew. 'azar. See Jeremiah 33:1; Jeremiah 36:5.
the house of God. This must have been. temporary structure. Nehemiah would not be without some place wherein to worship. The Altar not yet erected. The Temple not yet built. See notes on Nehemiah 7:4, and p. 618; also App-58.
God. Hebrew. Elohim. (with Art.). the [true] God.
shut. close, so as to conceal.