Nehemiah 1:1-3:14
New American Standard Bible
Nehemiah’s Grief for the Exiles
1 The words of (A)Nehemiah the son of Hacaliah.
Now it happened in (B)the month Chislev, (C)in the twentieth year, while I was in (D)Susa the [a]capitol, 2 that (E)Hanani, one of my brothers, [b]and some men from Judah came; and I asked them about the Jews who had escaped [c]and had survived the captivity, and about Jerusalem. 3 And they said to me, “The remnant there in the (F)province who survived the captivity are in great distress and (G)disgrace, and (H)the wall of Jerusalem is broken down and (I)its gates have been burned with fire.”
4 Now when I heard these words, (J)I sat down and wept and mourned for days; and I was fasting and praying before (K)the God of heaven. 5 I said, “Please, Lord God of heaven, (L)the great and awesome God, (M)who keeps the covenant and faithfulness for those who love Him and keep His commandments: 6 (N)let Your ear now be attentive and Your eyes open, to hear the prayer of Your servant which I am praying before You now, day and night, on behalf of the sons of Israel Your servants, (O)confessing the sins of the sons of Israel which we have committed against You; (P)I and my father’s house have sinned. 7 (Q)We have acted very corruptly against You and have not kept the commandments, nor the statutes, nor the ordinances (R)which You commanded Your servant Moses. 8 Remember, please, the word which You commanded Your servant Moses, saying, ‘(S)If you are unfaithful, I will scatter you among the peoples; 9 (T)but if you return to Me and keep My commandments and do them, though those of you who have been scattered were in the most remote part of the heavens, I (U)will gather them from there and bring them (V)to the place where I have chosen to have My name dwell.’ 10 (W)They are Your servants and Your people whom You redeemed by Your great power and by Your strong hand. 11 Please, Lord, (X)may Your ear be attentive to the prayer of Your servant and the prayer of Your servants who delight to [d]revere Your name, and please make Your servant successful today and grant him mercy before this man.”
Now I was the (Y)cupbearer to the king.
Nehemiah’s Prayer Answered
2 And it came about in the month Nisan, (Z)in the twentieth year of King (AA)Artaxerxes, that wine was before him, and (AB)I picked up the wine and gave it to the king. Now I had not been sad in his presence. 2 So the king said to me, “Why is your face sad, though you are not ill? (AC)This is nothing but sadness of heart.” Then I was very much afraid. 3 And I said to the king, “(AD)May the king live forever. Why should my face not be sad (AE)when the city, the [e]site of my fathers’ tombs, is desolate and its gates have been consumed by fire?” 4 Then the king said to me, “[f]What would you request?” (AF)So I prayed to the God of heaven. 5 Then I said to the king, “If it pleases the king, and if your servant has found favor before you, I request that you send me to Judah, to the city of my fathers’ tombs, that I may rebuild it.” 6 Then the king said to me, with the queen sitting beside him, “How long will your journey be, and when will you return?” So it pleased the king to send me, and (AG)I gave him a definite time. 7 And I said to the king, “If it pleases the king, let letters be given me (AH)for the governors of the provinces beyond the River, so that they will allow me to pass through until I come to Judah, 8 and a letter to Asaph the keeper of the king’s (AI)forest, so that he will give me timber to make beams for the gates of (AJ)the citadel which is by the [g]temple, for the wall of the city, and for the house to which I will go.” And the king granted them to me because (AK)the good hand of my God was on me.
9 Then I came to (AL)the governors of the provinces beyond the Euphrates River and gave them the king’s letters. Now (AM)the king had sent with me officers of the army and horsemen. 10 And when (AN)Sanballat the Horonite and Tobiah the Ammonite [h]official heard about it, it was very displeasing to them that someone had come to seek the welfare of the sons of Israel.
Nehemiah Inspects Jerusalem’s Walls
11 So I (AO)came to Jerusalem and was there for three days. 12 And I got up in the night, I and a few men with me. I did not tell anyone what my God was putting into my [i]mind to do for Jerusalem, and there was no animal with me except the animal on which I was riding. 13 So I went out at night by (AP)the Valley Gate in the direction of the Dragon’s Spring and on to the Dung Gate, and I was inspecting the walls of Jerusalem (AQ)which were broken down and its (AR)gates which had been consumed by fire. 14 Then I passed on to (AS)the Fountain Gate and (AT)the King’s Pool, but there was no place for [j]my mount to pass. 15 So I was going up at night by the (AU)ravine and inspecting the wall. Then I entered the Valley Gate again and returned. 16 However, the officials did not know where I had gone or what I was doing; nor had I as yet told the Jews, the priests, the nobles, the officials, or the rest who were doing the work.
17 Then I said to them, “You see the bad situation we are in, that (AV)Jerusalem is desolate and its gates have been burned by fire. Come, let’s rebuild the wall of Jerusalem so that we will no longer be a disgrace.” 18 And I told them how the hand of my God had been favorable to me and also about the king’s words which he had spoken to me. Then they said, “Let’s arise and build.” (AW)So they put their hands to the good work. 19 But when Sanballat the Horonite and Tobiah the Ammonite [k]official, and (AX)Geshem the Arab heard about it, (AY)they mocked us and despised us, and said, “What is this thing that you are doing? (AZ)Are you rebelling against the king?” 20 So I answered them and said to them, “(BA)The God of heaven will make us successful; therefore we His servants will arise and build, (BB)but you have no part, right, or memorial in Jerusalem.”
Builders of the Walls
3 Then (BC)Eliashib the high priest arose with his brothers the priests and built (BD)the Sheep Gate; they consecrated it and (BE)installed its doors. They consecrated [l]the wall to (BF)the Tower of the Hundred and (BG)the Tower of Hananel. 2 And next to him (BH)the men of Jericho built, and next to [m]them Zaccur the son of Imri built.
3 Now the sons of Hassenaah built (BI)the Fish Gate; they laid its beams and installed its doors with its bolts and bars. 4 Next to them Meremoth the son of Uriah the son of Hakkoz made repairs. And next to [n]him Meshullam the son of Berechiah the son of Meshezabel made repairs. And next to [o]him Zadok the son of Baana also made repairs. 5 Moreover, next to [p]him the Tekoites made repairs, but their nobles did not [q]support the work of their masters.
6 Now Joiada the son of Paseah and Meshullam the son of Besodeiah repaired (BJ)the Ancient Gate; they laid its beams and installed its doors with its bolts and its bars. 7 Next to them Melatiah the Gibeonite and Jadon the Meronothite, the men of Gibeon and of Mizpah, [r]also made repairs for the official seat of the (BK)governor of the province beyond the Euphrates River. 8 Next to him Uzziel the son of Harhaiah of the (BL)goldsmiths made repairs. And next to him Hananiah, one of the perfumers, made repairs, and they restored Jerusalem as far as (BM)the Broad Wall. 9 And next to them Rephaiah the son of Hur, (BN)the official of half the district of Jerusalem, made repairs. 10 Next to them Jedaiah the son of Harumaph made repairs opposite his house. And next to him Hattush the son of Hashabneiah made repairs. 11 Malchijah the son of Harim and Hasshub the son of Pahath-moab repaired another section and (BO)the Tower of Furnaces. 12 Next to him Shallum the son of Hallohesh, (BP)the official of half the district of Jerusalem, made repairs, he and his daughters.
13 Hanun and the inhabitants of Zanoah repaired (BQ)the Valley Gate. They built it and installed its doors with its bolts and its bars, and a [s]thousand cubits of the wall to the Dung Gate.
14 And Malchijah the son of Rechab, the official of the district of (BR)Beth-haccherem repaired the (BS)Dung Gate. He built it and installed its doors with its bolts and its bars.
Footnotes
- Nehemiah 1:1 Or acropolis
- Nehemiah 1:2 Lit he and men
- Nehemiah 1:2 Lit who survived
- Nehemiah 1:11 Or fear
- Nehemiah 2:3 Lit house
- Nehemiah 2:4 Lit For what is this you
- Nehemiah 2:8 Lit house
- Nehemiah 2:10 Lit servant
- Nehemiah 2:12 Lit heart
- Nehemiah 2:14 Lit the animal under me
- Nehemiah 2:19 Lit servant
- Nehemiah 3:1 Lit it
- Nehemiah 3:2 Lit him
- Nehemiah 3:4 Lit them
- Nehemiah 3:4 Lit them
- Nehemiah 3:5 Lit them
- Nehemiah 3:5 Lit bring their neck to
- Nehemiah 3:7 Or which was under the jurisdiction of the governor of the province beyond the River, also made repairs
- Nehemiah 3:13 About 1,500 ft. or 457 m
Nehemiah 1:1-3:14
New Living Translation
1 These are the memoirs of Nehemiah son of Hacaliah.
Nehemiah’s Concern for Jerusalem
In late autumn, in the month of Kislev, in the twentieth year of King Artaxerxes’ reign,[a] I was at the fortress of Susa. 2 Hanani, one of my brothers, came to visit me with some other men who had just arrived from Judah. I asked them about the Jews who had returned there from captivity and about how things were going in Jerusalem.
3 They said to me, “Things are not going well for those who returned to the province of Judah. They are in great trouble and disgrace. The wall of Jerusalem has been torn down, and the gates have been destroyed by fire.”
4 When I heard this, I sat down and wept. In fact, for days I mourned, fasted, and prayed to the God of heaven. 5 Then I said,
“O Lord, God of heaven, the great and awesome God who keeps his covenant of unfailing love with those who love him and obey his commands, 6 listen to my prayer! Look down and see me praying night and day for your people Israel. I confess that we have sinned against you. Yes, even my own family and I have sinned! 7 We have sinned terribly by not obeying the commands, decrees, and regulations that you gave us through your servant Moses.
8 “Please remember what you told your servant Moses: ‘If you are unfaithful to me, I will scatter you among the nations. 9 But if you return to me and obey my commands and live by them, then even if you are exiled to the ends of the earth,[b] I will bring you back to the place I have chosen for my name to be honored.’
10 “The people you rescued by your great power and strong hand are your servants. 11 O Lord, please hear my prayer! Listen to the prayers of those of us who delight in honoring you. Please grant me success today by making the king favorable to me.[c] Put it into his heart to be kind to me.”
In those days I was the king’s cup-bearer.
Nehemiah Goes to Jerusalem
2 Early the following spring, in the month of Nisan,[d] during the twentieth year of King Artaxerxes’ reign, I was serving the king his wine. I had never before appeared sad in his presence. 2 So the king asked me, “Why are you looking so sad? You don’t look sick to me. You must be deeply troubled.”
Then I was terrified, 3 but I replied, “Long live the king! How can I not be sad? For the city where my ancestors are buried is in ruins, and the gates have been destroyed by fire.”
4 The king asked, “Well, how can I help you?”
With a prayer to the God of heaven, 5 I replied, “If it please the king, and if you are pleased with me, your servant, send me to Judah to rebuild the city where my ancestors are buried.”
6 The king, with the queen sitting beside him, asked, “How long will you be gone? When will you return?” After I told him how long I would be gone, the king agreed to my request.
7 I also said to the king, “If it please the king, let me have letters addressed to the governors of the province west of the Euphrates River,[e] instructing them to let me travel safely through their territories on my way to Judah. 8 And please give me a letter addressed to Asaph, the manager of the king’s forest, instructing him to give me timber. I will need it to make beams for the gates of the Temple fortress, for the city walls, and for a house for myself.” And the king granted these requests, because the gracious hand of God was on me.
9 When I came to the governors of the province west of the Euphrates River, I delivered the king’s letters to them. The king, I should add, had sent along army officers and horsemen[f] to protect me. 10 But when Sanballat the Horonite and Tobiah the Ammonite official heard of my arrival, they were very displeased that someone had come to help the people of Israel.
Nehemiah Inspects Jerusalem’s Wall
11 So I arrived in Jerusalem. Three days later, 12 I slipped out during the night, taking only a few others with me. I had not told anyone about the plans God had put in my heart for Jerusalem. We took no pack animals with us except the donkey I was riding. 13 After dark I went out through the Valley Gate, past the Jackal’s Well,[g] and over to the Dung Gate to inspect the broken walls and burned gates. 14 Then I went to the Fountain Gate and to the King’s Pool, but my donkey couldn’t get through the rubble. 15 So, though it was still dark, I went up the Kidron Valley[h] instead, inspecting the wall before I turned back and entered again at the Valley Gate.
16 The city officials did not know I had been out there or what I was doing, for I had not yet said anything to anyone about my plans. I had not yet spoken to the Jewish leaders—the priests, the nobles, the officials, or anyone else in the administration. 17 But now I said to them, “You know very well what trouble we are in. Jerusalem lies in ruins, and its gates have been destroyed by fire. Let us rebuild the wall of Jerusalem and end this disgrace!” 18 Then I told them about how the gracious hand of God had been on me, and about my conversation with the king.
They replied at once, “Yes, let’s rebuild the wall!” So they began the good work.
19 But when Sanballat, Tobiah, and Geshem the Arab heard of our plan, they scoffed contemptuously. “What are you doing? Are you rebelling against the king?” they asked.
20 I replied, “The God of heaven will help us succeed. We, his servants, will start rebuilding this wall. But you have no share, legal right, or historic claim in Jerusalem.”
Rebuilding the Wall of Jerusalem
3 Then Eliashib the high priest and the other priests started to rebuild at the Sheep Gate. They dedicated it and set up its doors, building the wall as far as the Tower of the Hundred, which they dedicated, and the Tower of Hananel. 2 People from the town of Jericho worked next to them, and beyond them was Zaccur son of Imri.
3 The Fish Gate was built by the sons of Hassenaah. They laid the beams, set up its doors, and installed its bolts and bars. 4 Meremoth son of Uriah and grandson of Hakkoz repaired the next section of wall. Beside him were Meshullam son of Berekiah and grandson of Meshezabel, and then Zadok son of Baana. 5 Next were the people from Tekoa, though their leaders refused to work with the construction supervisors.
6 The Old City Gate[i] was repaired by Joiada son of Paseah and Meshullam son of Besodeiah. They laid the beams, set up its doors, and installed its bolts and bars. 7 Next to them were Melatiah from Gibeon, Jadon from Meronoth, people from Gibeon, and people from Mizpah, the headquarters of the governor of the province west of the Euphrates River.[j] 8 Next was Uzziel son of Harhaiah, a goldsmith by trade, who also worked on the wall. Beyond him was Hananiah, a manufacturer of perfumes. They left out a section of Jerusalem as they built the Broad Wall.[k]
9 Rephaiah son of Hur, the leader of half the district of Jerusalem, was next to them on the wall. 10 Next Jedaiah son of Harumaph repaired the wall across from his own house, and next to him was Hattush son of Hashabneiah. 11 Then came Malkijah son of Harim and Hasshub son of Pahath-moab, who repaired another section of the wall and the Tower of the Ovens. 12 Shallum son of Hallohesh and his daughters repaired the next section. He was the leader of the other half of the district of Jerusalem.
13 The Valley Gate was repaired by the people from Zanoah, led by Hanun. They set up its doors and installed its bolts and bars. They also repaired the 1,500 feet[l] of wall to the Dung Gate.
14 The Dung Gate was repaired by Malkijah son of Recab, the leader of the Beth-hakkerem district. He rebuilt it, set up its doors, and installed its bolts and bars.
Footnotes
- 1:1 Hebrew In the month of Kislev of the twentieth year. A number of dates in the book of Nehemiah can be cross-checked with dates in surviving Persian records and related accurately to our modern calendar. This month of the ancient Hebrew lunar calendar occurred within the months of November and December 446 B.c. The twentieth year probably refers to the reign of King Artaxerxes I; compare 2:1; 5:14.
- 1:9 Hebrew of the heavens.
- 1:11 Hebrew today in the sight of this man.
- 2:1 Hebrew In the month of Nisan. This month of the ancient Hebrew lunar calendar occurred within the months of April and May 445 B.c.
- 2:7 Hebrew the province beyond the river; also in 2:9.
- 2:9 Or charioteers.
- 2:13 Or Serpent’s Well.
- 2:15 Hebrew the valley.
- 3:6 Or The Mishneh Gate, or The Jeshanah Gate.
- 3:7 Hebrew the province beyond the river.
- 3:8 Or They fortified Jerusalem up to the Broad Wall.
- 3:13 Hebrew 1,000 cubits [460 meters].
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Holy Bible, New Living Translation, copyright © 1996, 2004, 2015 by Tyndale House Foundation. Used by permission of Tyndale House Publishers, Inc., Carol Stream, Illinois 60188. All rights reserved.
