¹⁹ But when Sanballat the Horonite and Tobiah the Ammonite official^[a] and Geshem the Arab heard of it, they mocked and ridiculed us, saying, “What is this that you are doing? Are you rebelling against the king?”^{(A) 20} Then I replied to them, “The God of heaven is the one who will give us success, and we his servants are going to start building, but you have no share or claim or memorial in Jerusalem.”^(B)

⁴ Then the king said to me, “What do you request?” So I prayed to the God of heaven.^(A)