The psalmist and his fellow Israelites were being ridiculed. Because of the degraded way in which they were being looked upon by their enemies, it was most appropriate for them to plead that Jehovah show them favor. The contempt heaped upon them came not rarely but as a matter of course. It was abundant. The “arrogant ones” responsible for it were “at ease,” that is, they seemed secure.

The psalmist and his fellow Israelites were being ridiculed. Because of the degraded way in which they were being looked upon by their enemies, it was most appropriate for them to plead that Jehovah show them favor. The contempt heaped upon them came not rarely but as a matter of course. It was abundant. The “arrogant ones” responsible for it were “at ease,” that is, they seemed secure.

Such circumstances existed when the walls of Jerusalem were being rebuilt under the direction of Nehemiah. Regarding what the enemies were saying, the Bible reports: “As soon as Sanballat heard that we were rebuilding the wall, he became angry and highly offended, and he kept deriding the Jews. And he began to say before his brothers and the military force of Samaria, yes, he began to say: ‘What are the feeble Jews doing? Will they depend upon themselves? Will they sacrifice? Will they finish up in a day? Will they bring the stones to life out of the heaps of dusty rubbish when they are burned?’ Now Tobiah the Ammonite was alongside him, and he went on to say: ‘Even what they are building, if a fox went up against it, he would certainly break down their wall of stones.’”​—Neh. 4:1-3.

It is noteworthy that, despite intense enemy opposition and ridicule, the walls of Jerusalem were rebuilt. The main reason for this was that Nehemiah and his fellow workers looked to Jehovah for help. (Neh. 4:4, 5) If we likewise continue to look to Jehovah for his favor and blessing, we will never be disappointed. He will grant us our petitions.​—1 John 3:21, 22.