Nehemiah's Appeal and Commission
Nehemiah 2:1-10
Neh.2.1 - Details
Translation
Original Text
Morphology
- ויהי: VERB,qal,wayyiqtol,3,m,sg
- בחדש: PREP+NOUN,m,sg,cstr
- ניסן: NOUN,prop,m,sg
- שנת: NOUN,f,sg,cs
- עשרים: NUM,card,pl
- לארתחשסתא: PREP+NOUN,prop,m,sg
- המלך: NOUN,m,sg,def
- יין: NOUN,m,sg,abs
- לפניו: PREP+PRON,3,m,sg
- ואשא: VERB,qal,impf,1,?,sg
- את: PRT,acc
- היין: NOUN,m,sg,def
- ואתנה: VERB,qal,impf,1,sg
- למלך: PREP+NOUN,m,sg,abs
- ולא: CONJ
- הייתי: VERB,qal,perf,1,sg
- רע: ADJ,m,sg,abs
- לפניו: PREP+PRON,3,m,sg
Parallels
- Genesis 40:11 (thematic): Both passages involve the royal cupbearer and the act of presenting wine before a king; Genesis narrates Joseph’s role with Pharaoh’s cupbearer, paralleling Nehemiah’s function as the king’s wine‑bearer.
- Esther 1:10-12 (thematic): Depicts a royal feast where wine affects the king’s mood and leads to consequential actions—paralleling Nehemiah’s setting (a moment at the king’s wine) as the occasion for Nehemiah’s interaction with Artaxerxes.
- Ezra 7:7-8 (structural): Both verses anchor events to the regnal years of Artaxerxes and to Persian‑period dealings concerning Jerusalem and Judeans, providing chronological and political context comparable to Nehemiah 2:1.
- Daniel 1:19-21 (thematic): Shows Jewish officials gaining favor and standing before a foreign monarch in a Mesopotamian/Persian context; thematically parallels Nehemiah’s position and favorable presence before the king.
Alternative generated candidates
- And it came to pass in the month Nisan, in the twentieth year of King Artaxerxes, that wine was before the king; and I took up the wine and gave it to the king. Now I had not been sad in his presence.
- It came to pass in the month Nisan, in the twentieth year of King Artaxerxes: wine was before the king, and I took up the wine and gave it to the king; I had not been sad in his presence.
Neh.2.2 - Details
Translation
Original Text
Morphology
- ויאמר: VERB,qal,perf,3,m,sg
- לי: PREP+PRON,1,sg
- המלך: NOUN,m,sg,def
- מדוע: ADV
- פניך: NOUN,f,pl,abs+PRON,2,m,sg
- רעים: NOUN,m,pl,abs
- ואתה: CONJ+PRON,2,m,sg
- אינך: PART_NEG,2,m,sg
- חולה: ADJ,m,sg
- אין: PART,neg
- זה: PRON,dem,m,sg
- כי: CONJ
- אם: CONJ
- רע: ADJ,m,sg,abs
- לב: NOUN,m,sg,abs
- ואירא: VERB,qal,wayyiqtol,1,m,sg
- הרבה: VERB,qal,perf,3,m,sg
- מאד: ADV
Parallels
- Proverbs 15:13 (verbal): Explicit proverb linking sorrow of heart to a troubled/countenance—echoes the king’s observation that Nehemiah’s face showed inner distress.
- 1 Samuel 16:7 (thematic): Contrasts outward appearance and inner motive: the text highlights that people judge the face while the important issue is the heart—parallels the king’s question about Nehemiah’s visible sorrow and its inner cause.
- Esther 5:1-3 (structural): Courtier approaches the king after a period of distress/constraint and gains favor before making a request—narrative parallel in procedure and tension when petitioning the monarch.
- Jeremiah 9:1 (thematic): A lament over the fate of Jerusalem that expresses deep personal grief; thematically parallels Nehemiah’s sorrowful concern for the ruined city causing his troubled countenance.
Alternative generated candidates
- Then the king said to me, "Why does your face look sad, when you are not sick? This can be nothing but sorrow of heart." And I was very much afraid.
- Then the king said to me, "Why is your face sad, since you are not sick? This is nothing but sorrow of heart." I was very much afraid.
Neh.2.3 - Details
Translation
Original Text
Morphology
- ואמר: VERB,qal,wayyiqtol,3,m,sg
- למלך: PREP+NOUN,m,sg,abs
- המלך: NOUN,m,sg,def
- לעולם: PREP+NOUN,m,sg,abs
- יחיה: VERB,qal,impf,3,m,sg
- מדוע: ADV
- לא: PART_NEG
- ירעו: VERB,qal,impf,3,m,pl
- פני: NOUN,m,sg,cons
- אשר: PRON,rel
- העיר: NOUN,f,sg,def
- בית: NOUN,m,sg,abs
- קברות: NOUN,m,pl,abs
- אבתי: NOUN,m,sg,construct
- חרבה: ADJ,f,sg,abs
- ושעריה: CONJ+NOUN,m,pl,abs
- אכלו: VERB,qal,perf,3,m,sg
- באש: PREP+NOUN,f,sg,abs
Parallels
- Nehemiah 1:3 (structural): Immediate narrative parallel — Hanani's report that Jerusalem lies in ruins prompts Nehemiah's sorrow and question in 2:3.
- Isaiah 64:10-11 (verbal): Speaks of Zion/Jerusalem as a wilderness and the holy house burned with fire — language closely echoing Nehemiah's mention of the ruined city and gates consumed by fire.
- Lamentations 1:1 (thematic): Depicts Jerusalem as desolate and the people as mourning — parallels Nehemiah's personal lament over the ruined city and ancestral burial-places.
- Psalm 137:1-4 (thematic): Expresses deep sorrow and remembrance for Zion in exile ('we wept when we remembered Zion') — thematically akin to Nehemiah's grief at Jerusalem's destruction.
- Ezekiel 24:25-27 (allusion): God commands Ezekiel to perform signs of mourning for the siege and fall of the city; parallels Nehemiah's visible grief and appeal regarding Jerusalem's ruined state.
Alternative generated candidates
- I said to the king, "May the king live forever! Why should my face not be sad when the city, the burial place of my fathers, lies desolate and its gates have been consumed by fire?"
- I said to the king, "May the king live forever! Why should not my face be sad, while the city, the burial place of my fathers, lies waste and its gates are consumed by fire?"
Neh.2.4 - Details
Translation
Original Text
Morphology
- ויאמר: VERB,qal,perf,3,m,sg
- לי: PREP+PRON,1,sg
- המלך: NOUN,m,sg,def
- על: PREP
- מה: PRON,int
- זה: PRON,dem,m,sg
- אתה: PRON,2,m,sg
- מבקש: VERB,qal,ptc,ms,sg
- ואתפלל: CONJ+VERB,hithpael,impf,1,_,sg
- אל: NEG
- אלהי: NOUN,m,sg,cons
- השמים: NOUN,m,pl,def
Parallels
- Esther 5:2-3 (verbal): The king directly asks the petitioner for her request ('What is your petition?'), and Esther approaches the king after intercessory fasting/prayer—paralleling Nehemiah's being asked by the king and his silent prayer before replying.
- Esther 4:16 (thematic): Esther instructs a fast and seeks the people's prayers before risking an audience with the king, echoing the theme of seeking divine help/prayer before petitioning royal authority as in Nehemiah 2:4.
- Nehemiah 1:5 (verbal): Earlier in the book Nehemiah addresses 'the LORD God of heaven' in prayer (same divine title and petitionary posture), showing a consistent formula of invoking the God of heaven when making requests for Jerusalem.
- Daniel 9:3-19 (thematic): Daniel's penitential prayer on behalf of Jerusalem while serving at the royal court mirrors Nehemiah's use of prayer in the context of Persian service and petition concerning Jerusalem—both combine courtly risk with appeal to God for the city.
- Acts 4:29-30 (thematic): The early Christians pray for boldness to speak before hostile authorities; thematically this parallels Nehemiah's reliance on prayer when about to make a risky request to a powerful ruler.
Alternative generated candidates
- Then the king said to me, "What is it you request?" So I prayed to the God of heaven.
- Then the king said to me, "What is your request?" And I prayed to the God of heaven.
Neh.2.5 - Details
Translation
Original Text
Morphology
- ואמר: VERB,qal,wayyiqtol,3,m,sg
- למלך: PREP+NOUN,m,sg,abs
- אם: CONJ
- על: PREP
- המלך: NOUN,m,sg,def
- טוב: ADJ,m,pl,abs
- ואם: CONJ
- ייטב: VERB,qal,impf,3,m,sg
- עבדך: NOUN,m,sg,abs,2,ms
- לפניך: PREP+PRON,2,m,sg
- אשר: PRON,rel
- תשלחני: VERB,qal,imprf,2,m,sg,+1cs
- אל: NEG
- יהודה: NOUN,m,sg,prop
- אל: NEG
- עיר: NOUN,f,sg,abs
- קברות: NOUN,f,pl,const
- אבתי: NOUN,m,sg,construct
- ואבננה: VERB,qal,impf,1,m,sg
Parallels
- Ezra 7:27-28 (structural): Both narratives depict a Jewish leader receiving royal approval and provision from an Achaemenid king to return to Judah and carry out religious/administrative restoration.
- Ezra 1:1-4 (cf. 2 Chronicles 36:22-23) (thematic): The Persian king authorizes and enables the restoration of Judean religious life and the return of exiles — a parallel instance of imperial permission for rebuilding in Jerusalem.
- Isaiah 44:28 (allusion): God’s naming of Cyrus as the one who will ‘say to Jerusalem, “You shall be built”’ resonates with the theme of a foreign monarch granting authority to rebuild Judah’s city and sanctuaries.
- Haggai 1:1; 2:1-9 (thematic): Prophetic calls and encouragements to resume rebuilding the temple/walls reflect the same concern for restoring Jerusalem’s structures and worship that motivates Nehemiah’s request to the king.
- Psalm 137:5-6 (thematic): Expresses the exiles’ deep longing for Jerusalem and attachment to ancestral graves, paralleling Nehemiah’s personal motive to be sent to the city of his fathers’ tombs.
Alternative generated candidates
- I said to the king, "If it pleases the king, and if your servant has found favor in your sight, send me to Judah, to the city of my fathers' tombs, that I may rebuild it."
- I said to the king, "If it pleases the king, and if your servant has found favor in your sight, send me to Judah, to the city of the sepulchers of my fathers, that I may rebuild it."
Neh.2.6 - Details
Translation
Original Text
Morphology
- ויאמר: VERB,qal,perf,3,m,sg
- לי: PREP+PRON,1,sg
- המלך: NOUN,m,sg,def
- והשגל: CONJ+NOUN,m,sg,def
- יושבת: VERB,qal,ptc,.,f,sg
- אצלו: PREP+PRON,3,m,sg
- עד: PREP
- מתי: ADV,int
- יהיה: VERB,qal,impf,3,m,sg
- מהלכך: NOUN,m,sg,abs+PRON,2,m,sg
- ומתי: VERB,qal,impf,1,m,sg
- תשוב: VERB,qal,imperfect,3,f,sg
- וייטב: VERB,qal,imperfect,3,m,sg
- לפני: PREP
- המלך: NOUN,m,sg,def
- וישלחני: VERB,qal,perf,3,m,sg
- ואתנה: VERB,qal,impf,1,sg
- לו: PRON,3,m,sg
- זמן: NOUN,m,sg,abs
Parallels
- Esther 5:1-3 (thematic): A queen (Esther) approaches the king and gains his favorable attention; both passages portray a royal spouse present and the monarch’s goodwill enabling a petition or mission.
- Ezra 7:11-28 (structural): Artaxerxes issues a formal commission and grant to Ezra and sends him to Judah with the king’s authorization—parallel to Nehemiah’s receiving the king’s permission and timing for his journey.
- Daniel 2:46-48 (verbal): Nebuchadnezzar’s favorable response to Daniel and his subsequent promotion and assignment echo the motif of a king’s pleasure leading to official favor and appointment.
- Genesis 41:39-41 (thematic): Pharaoh places Joseph in a position of authority and dispatches him to carry out a task for the welfare of the land—similar theme of a ruler granting authority and sending an agent on a mission.
Alternative generated candidates
- And the king said to me, "How long will your journey be, and when will you return?" The king granted me leave and gave me a time.
- And the king said to me, "How long will your journey be, and when will you return?" The king took pleasure in sending me; he granted me leave and set a time.
Neh.2.7 - Details
Translation
Original Text
Morphology
- ואומר: VERB,qal,impf,1,m,sg
- למלך: PREP+NOUN,m,sg,abs
- אם: CONJ
- על: PREP
- המלך: NOUN,m,sg,def
- טוב: ADJ,m,pl,abs
- אגרות: NOUN,f,pl,abs
- יתנו: VERB,qal,impf,3,pl
- לי: PREP+PRON,1,sg
- על: PREP
- פחוות: NOUN,f,pl,abs
- עבר: NOUN,m,sg,abs
- הנהר: NOUN,m,sg,def
- אשר: PRON,rel
- יעבירוני: VERB,hifil,impf,3,m,sg
- עד: PREP
- אשר: PRON,rel
- אבוא: VERB,qal,impf,1,NA,sg
- אל: NEG
- יהודה: NOUN,m,sg,prop
Parallels
- Ezra 7:11-13 (verbal): Artaxerxes' formal letter of safe-conduct and authorization for Ezra to travel and receive support—parallels Nehemiah’s request for letters/passports and royal endorsement to go to Judah.
- Ezra 1:1-4; 2 Chronicles 36:22-23 (thematic): Cyrus’ decree permitting exiles to return and rebuild the temple. The underlying theme of imperial permission and sanctioned return to Judah parallels Nehemiah’s seeking royal authorization.
- Ezra 5:6-17; 6:1-12 (structural): Correspondence between local Persian officials and the royal court about the Jerusalem rebuilding project (complaints, searches for prior decrees, and royal rulings). Shows the same bureaucratic/legal process of securing or contesting building rights that Nehemiah addresses by requesting letters.
- 1 Kings 5:6-12 (cf. 2 Chronicles 2:3-9) (thematic): Solomon’s arrangement with Hiram for cedar and permission to work in Lebanon: a request for timber and safe/transit arrangements parallels Nehemiah’s petition for letters to procure timber and passage across territories.
Alternative generated candidates
- Then I said to the king, "If it pleases the king, let letters be given me for the governors beyond the river, that they may permit me to pass until I come to Judah;"
- And I said to the king, "If it pleases the king, let letters be given me to the governors beyond the River, that they may permit me to pass through until I come to Judah."
Neh.2.8 - Details
Translation
Original Text
Morphology
- ואגרת: NOUN,f,sg,abs
- אל: NEG
- אסף: VERB,qal,perf,3,m,sg
- שמר: VERB,qal,perf,3,m,sg
- הפרדס: NOUN,m,sg,def
- אשר: PRON,rel
- למלך: PREP+NOUN,m,sg,abs
- אשר: PRON,rel
- יתן: VERB,qal,imperf,3,m,sg
- לי: PREP+PRON,1,sg
- עצים: NOUN,m,pl,abs
- לקרות: VERB,qal,inf
- את: PRT,acc
- שערי: NOUN,m,pl,cstr
- הבירה: NOUN,f,sg,def
- אשר: PRON,rel
- לבית: PREP+NOUN,m,sg,cns
- ולחומת: CONJ+PREP+NOUN,f,sg,cstr
- העיר: NOUN,f,sg,def
- ולבית: CONJ+PREP+NOUN,m,sg,abs
- אשר: PRON,rel
- אבוא: VERB,qal,impf,1,NA,sg
- אליו: PREP+PRON,3,m,sg
- ויתן: VERB,qal,perf,3,m,sg
- לי: PREP+PRON,1,sg
- המלך: NOUN,m,sg,def
- כיד: PREP+NOUN,f,sg,abs
- אלהי: NOUN,m,sg,cons
- הטובה: ADJ,f,sg,def
- עלי: PREP+PRON,1,sg
Parallels
- Ezra 7:6 (verbal): Uses the same expression of royal favor as divine favor — "the good hand of his God was upon him," paralleling Nehemiah's claim that the king granted his request according to the good hand of God.
- Ezra 6:6-10 (verbal): Royal provision of timber and resources for rebuilding the temple; like Nehemiah's letter to Asaph the keeper of the king's forest, Darius/other Persian orders allocate royal timber for sacred building work.
- 1 Kings 5:6-12 (thematic): Foreign sovereign supplies cedar and other materials for Israelite construction (Hiram to Solomon), paralleling the motif of a ruler providing timber and materials for major building projects.
- Ezra 1:1-4 (thematic): Cyrus' decree authorizing exiles to return and rebuild the house of the LORD and granting support — parallels Nehemiah's securing of royal authorization and material support for rebuilding Jerusalem's gates and walls.
Alternative generated candidates
- and a letter to Asaph, keeper of the king's forest, that he should give me timber to make beams for the gates of the citadel which is by the palace, and for the wall of the city, and for the house that I shall enter into." The king granted me what I asked, because the good hand of my God was upon me.
- I gave a letter to Asaph, keeper of the king’s forest, that he should give me timber to make beams for the gates of the citadel that belong to the palace, for the wall of the city, and for the house that I would enter into. And the king gave me what I asked, for the good hand of my God was upon me.
Neh.2.9 - Details
Translation
Original Text
Morphology
- ואבוא: VERB,qal,imprf,1,_,sg
- אל: NEG
- פחוות: NOUN,f,pl,abs
- עבר: NOUN,m,sg,abs
- הנהר: NOUN,m,sg,def
- ואתנה: VERB,qal,impf,1,sg
- להם: PREP+PRON,3,m,pl
- את: PRT,acc
- אגרות: NOUN,f,pl,abs
- המלך: NOUN,m,sg,def
- וישלח: VERB,qal,impf,3,m,sg
- עמי: NOUN,m,sg,abs+1s
- המלך: NOUN,m,sg,def
- שרי: NOUN,m,pl,cs
- חיל: NOUN,m,sg,abs
- ופרשים: CONJ+NOUN,m,pl,abs
Parallels
- Ezra 7:11-12, 21-23 (verbal): Artaxerxes' letter granting Ezra authority, provisions, and protection for the temple service — like Nehemiah, who carries the king's letters commissioning and supporting the work and receiving royal protection.
- Ezra 4:8-16 (structural): Officials abroad write to King Artaxerxes about the Jews and obtain a royal response; parallels the administrative use of letters and royal intervention in affairs of Judah and Jerusalem.
- 2 Chronicles 36:22-23 / Ezra 1:1-4 (thematic): Cyrus' decree authorizing the return and reconstruction of the temple — thematically similar to Persian royal authorization (letters/decrees) that enable Jewish restoration efforts in Nehemiah.
- Esther 8:8-11 (verbal): A kingly writ sealed with the royal ring that issues protection and authority across provinces; parallels the binding, empire-wide force and protective intent of the king's letters Nehemiah carries.
Alternative generated candidates
- So I came to the governors beyond the river and gave them the king's letters. And the king sent with me officers of the royal guard and horsemen.
- So I came to the governors beyond the River and gave them the king's letters; and the king sent with me officers of the army and horsemen.
Neh.2.10 - Details
Translation
Original Text
Morphology
- וישמע: VERB,qal,imperfect,3,m,sg
- סנבלט: NOUN,m,sg,abs
- החרני: ADJ,m,sg,def
- וטוביה: NOUN,m,sg,abs
- העבד: NOUN,m,sg,def
- העמני: ADJ,m,sg,def
- וירע: VERB,qal,wayyiqtol,3,m,sg
- להם: PREP+PRON,3,m,pl
- רעה: NOUN,f,sg,abs
- גדלה: VERB,qal,perf,3,f,sg
- אשר: PRON,rel
- בא: VERB,qal,perf,3,m,sg
- אדם: NOUN,m,sg,abs
- לבקש: PREP+VERB,qal,infc
- טובה: ADJ,f,sg,abs
- לבני: PREP
- ישראל: NOUN,m,sg,abs
Parallels
- Nehemiah 2:19 (verbal): Same opponents (Sanballat and Tobiah) react openly to Nehemiah’s plans; repeats the displeasure and opposition motif in the immediate context.
- Nehemiah 4:1-3 (thematic): Sanballat and others mock and despise the builders, showing the continuing hostile response to efforts to restore Israel’s welfare.
- Nehemiah 6:1-14 (structural): A later episode in which Sanballat, Tobiah and allies conspire against Nehemiah—letters, false assurances, and attempts to intimidate—developing the opposition first signaled in 2:10.
- Ezra 4:1-5 (thematic): Local adversaries offer to join the rebuilding only to be rebuffed and then oppose the work—an earlier example of hostile neighbors resisting Israelite restoration.
- Ezra 4:7-23 (thematic): Correspondence to the Persian court by opponents to halt Jerusalem’s rebuilding, paralleling the organized resistance and political maneuvering seen in Neh 2:10 onward.
Alternative generated candidates
- When Sanballat the Horonite and Tobiah the Ammonite heard it, they were displeased and greatly annoyed that a man had come to seek the welfare of the children of Israel.
- When Sanballat the Horonite and Tobiah the Ammonite servant heard of it, it displeased them greatly that a man had come to seek the welfare of the children of Israel.
And it came to pass in the month Nisan, in the twentieth year of Artaxerxes the king, that wine was before the king; I took up the wine and set it before the king, and I had not been sad in his presence.
Then the king said to me, "Why is your face sad, seeing you are not sick? This is nothing but sorrow of heart." And I became very much afraid.
I said to the king, "May the king live forever. Why should my face not be sad when the city, the burial place of my fathers, lies desolate and its gates are consumed by fire?" And the king said to me, "What is it you ask?" Then I prayed to the God of heaven.
I answered the king, "If it please the king, and if your servant has found favor in your sight, send me to Judah, to the city of my fathers' burial place, that I may rebuild it."
The king said to me, "How long will your journey be, and when will you return?" It pleased the king to send me; so I set a time.
Then I said to the king, "If it please the king, let letters be given me for the governors beyond the river, that they may grant me passage until I come to Judah." And I also gave a letter to Asaph, keeper of the king's forest, that he should give me timber to make beams for the gates of the citadel that is by the palace, for the wall of the city, and for the house to which I would go. And the king granted me what I asked, for the good hand of my God was upon me. So I came to the governors beyond the river and gave them the king's letters; and the king sent with me officers of the army and horsemen.
When Sanballat the Horonite and Tobiah the Ammonite heard of it, it displeased them greatly that a man had come to seek the welfare of the people of Israel.