Nehemiah 2
1 And it came to pass in the
month Nisan, in the
twentieth year of
Artaxerxes the
king, that
wine was
before him: and I took
up the
wine, and
gave it unto the
king. Now I had not been beforetime
sad in his
presence. 2 Wherefore the
king said unto me, Why is thy
countenance sad, seeing thou art not
sick? this is nothing else but
sorrow of
heart. Then I was
very sore afraid,
3 And
said unto the
king, Let the
king live for
ever: why should not my
countenance be
sad, when the
city, the
place of my
fathers' sepulchres, lieth
waste, and the
gates thereof are
consumed with
fire? 4 Then the
king said unto me, For what dost thou make
request? So I
prayed to the
God of
heaven. 5 And I
said unto the
king, If it
please the
king, and if thy
servant have found
favour in thy
sight, that thou wouldest
send me unto
Judah, unto the
city of my
fathers' sepulchres, that I may
build it.
6 And the
king said unto me, (the
queen also
sitting by him,) For how long shall thy
journey be? and when wilt thou
return? So it
pleased the
king to
send me; and I
set him a
time. 7 Moreover I
said unto the
king, If it
please the
king, let
letters be
given me to the
governors beyond the
river, that they may convey me
over till I
come into
Judah; 8 And a
letter unto
Asaph the
keeper of the
king's forest, that he may
give me
timber to make
beams for the
gates of the
palace which appertained to the
house, and for the
wall of the
city, and for the
house that I shall enter
into. And the
king granted me, according to the
good hand of my
God upon me.
9 Then I
came to the
governors beyond the
river, and
gave them the
king's letters. Now the
king had
sent captains of the
army and
horsemen with me.
10 When
Sanballat the
Horonite, and
Tobiah the
servant, the
Ammonite, heard of it, it
grieved them
exceedingly that there was
come a
man to
seek the
welfare of the
children of
Israel. 11 So I
came to
Jerusalem, and was there
three days. 12 And I
arose in the
night, I and
some few men with me; neither
told I any
man what my
God had
put in my
heart to
do at
Jerusalem: neither was there any
beast with me, save the
beast that I rode
upon.
13 And I went
out by
night by the
gate of the
valley, even
before the
dragon well, and to the
dung port, and
viewed the
walls of
Jerusalem, which were broken
down, and the
gates thereof were
consumed with
fire. 14 Then I went
on to the
gate of the
fountain, and to the
king's pool: but there was no
place for the
beast that was under me to
pass.
15 Then went I
up in the
night by the
brook, and
viewed the
wall, and turned
back, and
entered by the
gate of the
valley, and so
returned.
16 And the
rulers knew not whither I
went, or what I
did; neither had I as
yet told it to the
Jews, nor to the
priests, nor to the
nobles, nor to the
rulers, nor to the
rest that
did the
work. 17 Then
said I unto them, Ye
see the
distress that we are in, how
Jerusalem lieth
waste, and the
gates thereof are
burned with
fire: come, and let us build
up the
wall of
Jerusalem, that we be no more a
reproach. 18 Then I
told them of the
hand of my
God which was
good upon me; as also the
king's words that he had
spoken unto me. And they
said, Let us rise
up and
build. So they
strengthened their
hands for this
good work.
19 But when
Sanballat the
Horonite, and
Tobiah the
servant, the
Ammonite, and
Geshem the
Arabian, heard it, they laughed us to
scorn, and
despised us, and
said, What is this
thing that ye
do? will ye
rebel against the
king? 20 Then
answered I them, and
said unto them, The
God of
heaven, he will
prosper us; therefore we his
servants will
arise and
build: but ye have no
portion, nor
right, nor
memorial, in
Jerusalem.