Nehemiah 2:4-8
Holman Christian Standard Bible
4 Then the king asked me, “What is your request?”
So I prayed to the God of heaven(A) 5 and answered the king, “If it pleases the king, and if your servant has found favor with you, send me to Judah and to the city where my ancestors are buried,[a](B) so that I may rebuild it.”(C)
6 The king, with the queen seated beside him, asked me, “How long will your journey take, and when will you return?” So I gave him a definite time,(D) and it pleased the king to send me.
7 I also said to the king: “If it pleases the king, let me have letters written to the governors of the region west of the Euphrates River,(E) so that they will grant me safe passage until I reach Judah.(F) 8 And let me have a letter written to Asaph, keeper of the king’s forest, so that he will give me timber to rebuild the gates of the temple’s fortress,(G) the city wall, and the home where I will live.”[b](H) The king granted my requests, for I was graciously strengthened by my God.[c](I)
Read full chapterFootnotes
- Nehemiah 2:5 Lit city, the house of the graves of my fathers,
- Nehemiah 2:8 Lit enter
- Nehemiah 2:8 Lit for the gracious hand of my God was on me
Nehemiah 2:4-8
International Standard Version
4 The king answered, “What do you want?”
So I prayed to the God of heaven 5 and I replied to the king, “If it seems good to you, and if your servant has found favor with you, would you send me to Judah, to the city where my ancestral sepulchers are located, so I can rebuild it?”
6 With his queen seated beside him, the king asked me, “How long will your journey take, and when will you return?” The king thought it was a good idea[a] to send me, so I presented him with a prepared plan.[b]
7 I also asked the king, “If it seems good to you, order that letters of authorization be given me for the Trans-Euphrates[c] governors, so they will allow me to pass through to Judah, 8 along with a letter to Asaph, the royal Commissioner of Forests, so that he will supply me with timber to craft beams for the gatehouses of the Temple, for the city walls, and for the house in which I will be living.”
The king granted this for me, according to the good hand of my God.
Read full chapterFootnotes
- Nehemiah 2:6 Lit. It was good to the king
- Nehemiah 2:6 Lit. a season
- Nehemiah 2:7 Lit. Beyond the River
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