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Nehemiah Chapter One

 

Nehemiah 1 Outlines

Nehemiah Prays for His People

New King James Version (NKJV)

 

Nehemiah 1:1 The words of Nehemiah the son of Hachaliah. It came to pass in the month of Chislev in the twentieth year as I was in Shushan[a] the citadel

   YLT Words of Nehemiah son of Hachaliah. And it cometh to pass in the month of Chisleu the twentieth year and I have been in Shushan the palace

The words of Nehemiah the son of Hachaliah ....

Or his transactions and deeds; for דברי "dibre" signifies things done as well as words spoken; who Hachaliah his father was is not known; the Arabic version adds the high priest without any foundation; though some have thought that Nehemiah was a priest from a passage in"Therefore whereas we are now purposed to keep the purification of the temple upon the five and twentieth day of the month Chisleu we thought it necessary to certify you thereof that ye also might keep it as the feast of the tabernacles and of the fire which was given us when Neemias offered sacrifice after that he had builded the temple and the altar.' (2 Maccabees 1:18)and from signing and sealing the covenant at the head of priests Nehemiah 10:1 but he rather seems to be of the tribe of Judah see Nehemiah 2:3 and Nehemiah may be the same that went up with Zerubbabel and returned again and then became the king's cupbearer; though some are of another opinion; see Gill on Ezra 2:2

and it came to pass in the month Chisleu;

the ninth month as the Arabic version; of which see Ezra 10:9

in the twentieth year;

not of Nehemiah's age for if he went up with Zerubbabel he must be many years older; but in the twentieth year of the reign of Artaxerxes Nehemiah 1:1

as I was in Shushan the palace;

a city in Persia the royal seat of the kings of it; as Ecbatana was in the summer time this in the spring as Cyrus made it according to XenophonF2Cyropaedia l. 8. c. 44. ; but others sayF3Athenaeus l. 12. c. 1. it was their seat in winter and this was the season now when Nehemiah was with the king there; for Chisleu was a winter month answering to part of November and of December; of Shushan; see Gill on Daniel 8:2 to which may be added what a traveller of the last century saysF4Cartwright's Preacher's Travels p. 87 88. of it "we rested at Valdac once the great city Susa but now very ruinous; it was first built by Tythonus and his son Memnon but enlarged by Darius the son of Hystaspes; in the building whereof Memnon was so exceeding prodigal that as Cassiodorus writeth he joined the stones together with gold--such was the beauty and delectableness of it for situation that they called it "Susa" which in the Persian tongue signified a "lily" but now it is called Valdac because of the poverty of the place;'and it is generally supposed to have its name from the abundance of lilies about it; but Dr. HydeF5Hist. Relig. Vet. Pers. c. 35. p. 414. gives another signification of its name he says the Persians called it "Sus" which signifies "liquorice" but for what reasons he says not. There is a city now called Shustera and is thought by some travellers to be built at least very near where Shushan formerly stoodF6Tavernier tom. 1. l. 4. c. 1. .

 

Nehemiah 1:2 that Hanani one of my brethren came with men from Judah; and I asked them concerning the Jews who had escaped who had survived the captivity and concerning Jerusalem.

   YLT and come in doth Hanani one of my brethren he and men of Judah and I ask them concerning the Jews the escaped part that have been left of the captivity and concerning Jerusalem;

That Hanani one of my brethren ....

Either in natural relation Nehemiah 7:2 or being a Jew of the same nation and religion; so Jarchi interprets it one of my companions or acquaintance:

he and certain men of Judah;

who came from thence to Shushan on some account or another:

and I asked them concerning the Jews that had escaped which were left of the captivity;

who were returned from it to their own land; he inquired of their health and prosperity in what circumstances they were whether prosperous or adverse whether they flourished or were in distress:

and concerning Jerusalem;

whether it was rebuilt the houses and walls of it and in what condition it was.

 

Nehemiah 1:3 And they said to me “The survivors who are left from the captivity in the province are there in great distress and reproach. The wall of Jerusalem is also broken down and its gates are burned with fire.”

   YLT and they say to me `Those left who have been left of the captivity there in the province [are] in great evil and in reproach and the wall of Jerusalem is broken down and its gates have been burnt with fire.'

And they said unto me the remnant that are left of the captivity there in the province ....

In Judea now reduced to a province of the Persian empire:

are in great affliction and reproach;

harassed and distressed calumniated and vilified by their enemies the Samaritans:

the wall of Jerusalem also is broken down and the gates thereof are burnt with fire;

that is its wall and gates were in the same condition in which Nebuchadnezzar had left them for since his times as yet they had never been set up; for this is not to be understood of what was lately done by their adversaries which is not at all probable.

 

Nehemiah 1:4 So it was when I heard these words that I sat down and wept and mourned for many days; I was fasting and praying before the God of heaven.

   YLT And it cometh to pass at my hearing these words I have sat down and I weep and mourn [for] days and I am fasting and praying before the God of the heavens.

And it came to pass when I heard these words ....

This sad and melancholy account of things:

that I sat down and wept and mourned certain days;

sat down upon the ground in dust and ashes after the manner of mourners and wept bitterly and mourned in a most sorrowful manner see Job 2:8

and fasted and prayed before the God of heaven;

that made it and dwells in it.

 

Nehemiah 1:5 And I said: “I pray Lord God of heaven O great and awesome God You who keep Your covenant and mercy with those who love You[b] and observe Your[c] commandments

   YLT And I say `I beseech thee O Jehovah God of the heavens God the great and the fearful keeping the covenant and kindness for those loving Him and for those keeping His commands

And said I beseech thee O Lord God of heaven ....

He prayed not to the host of heaven the sun in it as the Persians but to the God of it in an humble supplicant manner:

the great and terrible God;

who is to be feared and had in reverence of all his creatures because of his greatness and glory being God over all blessed for ever and his name holy and reverend:

that keepeth covenant and mercy for them that love him and observe his commandments;

who keep them from a principle of love to him; to those he has made gracious promises in his covenant which he truly and faithfully performs; and the consideration of these perfections in God animates and encourages good men in prayer to him.

 

Nehemiah 1:6 please let Your ear be attentive and Your eyes open that You may hear the prayer of Your servant which I pray before You now day and night for the children of Israel Your servants and confess the sins of the children of Israel which we have sinned against You. Both my father’s house and I have sinned.

   YLT let Thine ear be I pray Thee attentive and Thine eyes open to hearken unto the prayer of Thy servant that I am praying before Thee to-day by day and by night concerning the sons of Israel Thy servants and confessing concerning the sins of the sons of Israel that we have sinned against Thee; yea I and the house of my father have sinned;

Let thine ear be now attentive ....

To his prayer as in Nehemiah 1:11

and thine eyes open;

to behold with pity and compassion the distressed case of Jerusalem and the Jews in it:

I pray before thee now day and night for the children of Israel thy servants;

this he had continued to do ever since he heard of their trouble and calamity:

and confess the sins of the children of Israel which we have sinned against thee: both I and my father's house have sinned;

he considered sin as the cause of all this evil that had befallen his people and confesses it with sorrow and humiliation and not their sins only but his own personal and family sins.

 

Nehemiah 1:7 We have acted very corruptly against You and have not kept the commandments the statutes nor the ordinances which You commanded Your servant Moses.

   YLT we have acted very corruptly against Thee and have not kept the commands and the statutes and the judgments that Thou didst command Moses Thy servant.

We have dealt very corruptly against thee ....

Corrupted his covenant laws and precepts as well as themselves ways and works; all which were against the Lord contrary to his nature mind and will:

and have not kept the commandments nor the statutes nor the judgments which thou commandedst thy servant Moses;

the laws moral ceremonial and judicial.

 

Nehemiah 1:8 Remember I pray the word that You commanded Your servant Moses saying ‘If you are unfaithful I will scatter you among the nations;[d]

   YLT Remember I pray Thee the word that Thou didst command Moses Thy servant saying Ye -- ye trespass -- I scatter you among peoples;

Remember I beseech thee the word that thou commandedst thy servant Moses ....

To publish and declare to the children of Israel Deuteronomy 28:64

saying if ye transgress;

the law of God:

I will scatter you abroad among the nations;

as now they had been among the Assyrians Chaldeans Medes and Persians.

 

Nehemiah 1:9 but if you return to Me and keep My commandments and do them though some of you were cast out to the farthest part of the heavens yet I will gather them from there and bring them to the place which I have chosen as a dwelling for My name.’[e]

   YLT and ye have turned back unto Me and kept My commands and done them -- if your outcast is in the end of the heavens thence I gather them and have brought them in unto the place that I have chosen to cause My name to tabernacle there.

But if ye return unto me and keep my commandments and do them ...

Return by repentance and as a proof of the genuineness of it yield obedience to the commands of God and continue therein:

though there were of you cast out unto the uttermost part of the heaven;

that is the uttermost parts of the earth the most distant regions; so called because at the extreme parts of the horizon according to our apprehension the heavens and earth touch each other; so that what is the uttermost part of the one is supposed to be of the other:

yet will I gather them from thence and will bring them unto the place that I have chosen to set my name there;

that is to Jerusalem where the temple was built and his name was called upon.

 

Nehemiah 1:10 Now these are Your servants and Your people whom You have redeemed by Your great power and by Your strong hand.

   YLT And they [are] Thy servants and Thy people whom Thou hast ransomed by Thy great power and by Thy strong hand.

Now these are thy servants and thy people ....

Meaning those that were in Jerusalem and Judah gathered out of several countries and returned to Jerusalem:

whom thou hast redeemed by thy great power and by thy strong hand;

touching and moving the heart of Cyrus to proclaim liberty to them.

 

Nehemiah 1:11 O Lord I pray please let Your ear be attentive to the prayer of Your servant and to the prayer of Your servants who desire to fear Your name; and let Your servant prosper this day I pray and grant him mercy in the sight of this man.” For I was the king’s cupbearer.

   YLT I beseech Thee O Lord let I pray Thee Thine ear be attentive unto the prayer of Thy servant and unto the prayer of Thy servants those delighting to fear Thy Name; and give prosperity I pray Thee to Thy servant to-day and give him for mercies before this man;' and I have been butler to the king.

O Lord I beseech thee let now thine ear be attentive to the prayer of thy servant ....

To the prayer of Nehemiah put up at this time:

and to the prayer of thy servants who desire to fear thy name;

the prayer of the Jews in Judea whose desire was to worship the Lord in his temple according to his will:

and prosper I pray thee thy servant this day; meaning himself who was to wait on the king of Persia that day and if he had opportunity intended to lay the case of the Jews before him and therefore entreats he might meet with success:

and grant him mercy in the sight of this man;

King Artaxerxes who was but a man and whose heart was in the hands of God and he could easily move him to pity and compassion towards his poor people the Jews:

for I was the king's cupbearer;

in the execution of which office he was often in the king's presence and hoped to have an opportunity of speaking to him in the behalf of the Jews; this with the Persians was reckoned a very honourable officeF7Herodot. Thalia sive l. 3. c. 34. Xenophon. Cyropaedia l. 5. c. 36. . A son of Prexaspes a very honourable man was made cupbearer to Cambyses; and so it was with the Greeks and RomansF8Vid. Athenaei Deipnosophist. l. 10. ; and the poets not only make Ganymedes to be Jupiter's cupbearerF9Homer. Iliad. 21. ver. 234. but even Vulcan himself is put into this officeF11Homer. Iliad. 1. prope finem. .

 

──John Gill’s Exposition of the Bible

 

New King James Version (NKJV)

Footnotes:

a.    Nehemiah 1:1 Or Susa

b.    Nehemiah 1:5 Literally Him

c.Nehemiah 1:5 Literally His

d.    Nehemiah 1:8 Leviticus 26:33

e.    Nehemiah 1:9 Deuteronomy 30:2–5