And had taken of them bread and wine, &c.— And had taken from each of them, for bread and wine, forty shekels of silver. Houbigant. It is evident, from the great and daily expences of Nehemiah mentioned in the following verses, that either he had large remittances from the Persian court, beside his own estate, to answer them; or that he did not continue at Jerusalem the whole twelve years together; or that, if he did, he did not keep up this expensive way of living all the time, but only during the great and present exigencies of the Jews; which ceased in a good measure after the walls were built, the act against usury was passed, and the people were discharged to their ordinary course of maintaining themselves and families.
Related Commentaries of Nehemiah 5:15
Nehemiah 5:15
15 But the former governors that had been before me were chargeable unto the people, and had taken of them bread and wine, beside forty shekels of silver; yea, even their servants bare rule over the people: but so did not I, because of the fear of God.