Nehemiah Asks the King to Send Him to Judah to Rebuilt It |
Nehemiah 2:1-20 The Book of Nehemiah in [Smaller Chunks] |
And it [happened] in the month of Milan, in the 20th year, king Artaxerxes [ruled, when] wine was [in front of] him. And I [Nehemiah] took up the wine & gave it to the king. Now, I had not been sad [before] in his presence. [Therefore,] the king said to me, Why [do you look so] sad, [since] you aren’t sick? |
It can only be [heartfelt] sorrow. Then, I was [very] afraid & said to the king, Let the king live forever. Why shouldn’t I [look] sad, when the cities, the place of my [forefather’s tombs] lie [in] waste & [its] gates are [destroyed] with fire? |
The king said to me, What is your request? So, I prayed to the God of heaven. I said to the king, If it [pleases] the king & if your servant has found favor in your sight, [so that ]you send to Judah, to the city of my [forefather’s tombs, so] I may [rebuild] it. |
The king said to me, (the queen, also sitting by him,) How long will your journey [take?] When will you return? It pleased the king to send me & I [gave] him a [return date.] |
[Also,] I said to the king, If it [pleases] the king, may I [have] the governors, beyond the [Euphrates] River [escort me] over [until] I [arrive safely in] Judah? |
And [additionally,] a letter to Asaph, the keeper of the king’s forest, [to] give me [lumber] to make beams for the gates to the palace, which pertain to the [Lord’s] house, the wall of the city & for the house that I shall [stay at.] |
According to the good hand of my God upon me, the king granted [it to] me. Then, I came to the governors beyond the [Euphrates] River & gave them the king’s letters. Now, the king had sent captains of the army & horsemen with me. |
When Sanballat, the Horonite & the servant, Tobias, the Ammonite, heard of it, [they were] exceedingly grieved, that no man [had] come to come seek the welfare of the children [people] of Israel. |
So, I came to Jerusalem & was there 3 days. I [got up] at night, with a few men [without telling anyone] what my God had put in my heart to do [in] Jerusalem. I [only had the animal] I rode on & [no others.] |
At night, I [left] by the Valley Gate & even [in front of] the Dragon Well [a.k.a. The Serpent Well,] [all the way to] the [garbage gate & saw] the walls of Jerusalem, [that] were broken down & [their] gates were [destroyed by] fire. |
Then, I went to the Fountain Gate & to the King’s Pool, but there wasn’t a place for the [animal I was riding] to pass [through.] Then, I went up in the night by the brook & [looked at] the wall & turned back & [re-entered through] the Valley Gate & returned. |
The [officials didn’t know where] I went [or] what I did. Neither had I told the Jews, the priests, the nobles, the [officials,] or the rest [who still] did the work. Then, I said to them, You see the [trouble] we are in & how Jerusalem lies [in ruins] & the gates are burned with fire. |
Come, let’s [rebuild] the wall of Jerusalem, [so] we are no [longer a disgrace.] Then, I told them, [about] the [gracious] hand of my God, [that] was upon me [for] good. Also, [about what] the king had spoken to me. |
They said, Let’s rise up & [start rebuilding.] So, they strengthened their hands [to do] this good work. When Sanballat, the Horonite, the servant, Tobias, the Ammonite & Geshem, the Arabian, heard it & they laughed at us & despised us. |
[They] said, What [are you doing?] Will you rebel against the king? Then, I answered them, The God of heaven, He will [make] us prosper. Therefore, we, His servants, will [rise] up & [rebuild.] But you [don’t have any heritage rights] or memorial in Jerusalem. |
[Ezra 4:3 But Zerubbabel & Jeshua & the rest of the [leaders of the forefather’s families] of Israel, said to them, You have nothing to do with us to [rebuild] a house to our God. But we, ourselves, will [rebuild it] together & will build [for] the Lord God of Israel, [like] king Cyrus, the king of Persia, has commanded us.] |