Nehemiah 1:1–11
1 The words of Nehemiah the son of Hacaliah.
Now it happened in the month of Chislev, in the twentieth year, as I was in Susa the citadel, 2 that Hanani, one of my brothers, came with certain men from Judah. And I asked them concerning the Jews who escaped, who had survived the exile, and concerning Jerusalem. 3 And they said to me, “The remnant there in the province who had survived the exile is in great trouble and shame. The wall of Jerusalem is broken down, and its gates are destroyed by fire.”
4 As soon as I heard these words I sat down and wept and mourned for days, and I continued fasting and praying before the God of heaven. 5 And I said, “O Lord God of heaven, the great and awesome God who keeps covenant and steadfast love with those who love him and keep his commandments, 6 let your ear be attentive and your eyes open, to hear the prayer of your servant that I now pray before you day and night for the people of Israel your servants, confessing the sins of the people of Israel, which we have sinned against you. Even I and my father’s house have sinned. 7 We have acted very corruptly against you and have not kept the commandments, the statutes, and the rules that you commanded your servant Moses. 8 Remember the word that you commanded your servant Moses, saying, ‘If you are unfaithful, I will scatter you among the peoples, 9 but if you return to me and keep my commandments and do them, though your outcasts are in the uttermost parts of heaven, from there I will gather them and bring them to the place that I have chosen, to make my name dwell there.’ 10 They are your servants and your people, whom you have redeemed by your great power and by your strong hand. 11 O Lord, let your ear be attentive to the prayer of your servant, and to the prayer of your servants who delight to fear your name, and give success to your servant today, and grant him mercy in the sight of this man.”
Now I was cupbearer to the king.
Section Overview
In current editions of the Hebrew Bible, this first chapter of Nehemiah follows immediately from the end of Ezra with no break, since Ezra and Nehemiah were treated historically as one book. The introductory section of Ezra-Nehemiah (Ezra 1) began by narrating the initial return of Israelites under Zerubbabel and Jeshua by authority of the Persian king Cyrus (538 BC).
The second section (Ezra 2:1–Neh. 7:73a) began with the list of returnees who rebuilt the temple, completed in 516. More than half a century later, Ezra then led a second return to Jerusalem under the authority of Artaxerxes in the latter’s seventh year (458; Ezra 7–8). This was followed by the crisis of mixed marriages and the final list of those who pledged to put away their foreign wives (Ezra 9–10). This second section of Ezra-Nehemiah (Ezra 2:1–Neh. 7:73a) concludes in the book of Nehemiah. The major conflict facing a new figure named Nehemiah focuses on the reestablishment of Jerusalem’s wall (Neh. 1:1–7:4). The episode begins with Jerusalem’s wall and gates in disrepair and concludes with the city secured (1:3; 7:1–4). It may also be noted that Nehemiah, like Zerubbabel and Ezra, receives authority to act from a Persian king, although now in the “twentieth year” of that king’s reign (1:1; 2:1) and so thirteen years after Ezra’s return (445).
The title for the book (Neh. 1:1a) is followed by the commencement of narration. A report is brought to Nehemiah on the sorry state of Jerusalem’s defenses and the shame brought on the returnees as a result (vv. 1b–3). He responds immediately with the second major prayer in Ezra-Nehemiah (vv. 4–11; cf. Ezra 9:6–15), a prayer dense with allusions to Deuteronomy. The unit closes with a surprising notice of Nehemiah’s status (Neh. 1:11b).
Section Outline
II. The Community Rebuilds Temple, Torah, and Wall according to the Decree (Ezra 2:1–Neh. 7:73a) . . .
D. Third Movement: Nehemiah’s Ministry Commences (Neh. 1:1–7:4)
1. Nehemiah Offers a Prayerful Request (1:1–11)
a. Title: Nehemiah’s Words (1:1a)
b. Nehemiah Receives Word That Jerusalem Is in Disrepair (1:1b–3)
c. Nehemiah Fasts and Offers a Prayer (1:4–11a)
d. Notice: Nehemiah’s Vocation (1:11b)
Response
Nehemiah responds to the “great trouble and shame” of the remnant (1:3) with prayer that is persistent (v. 4), penitent (vv. 6–7), and purposeful (vv. 8–11). His confidence in approaching the Lord is grounded in God’s covenant faithfulness and steadfast love (v. 5). Although our particular life experiences of “trouble and shame” will vary, we also may approach the throne of grace for our own needs and on behalf of those who need to know the steadfast love of God (Heb. 4:16).
First, we see Nehemiah’s persistence in prayer. His weeping and mourning are not one-time events but last continually, “for days” (Neh. 1:4). Nehemiah knows that for the sake of the remnant he must act to rebuild the wall, but he realizes that his ongoing sorrow and need require ongoing supplication. Therefore he pleads continually, confronting the past and committing to God his future course before Artaxerxes. He asks the Lord to “be attentive” (v. 6) to his prayer not because he fears God’s inattention. Rather, he knows that he must not presume upon the grace of the “great and awesome God” (v. 5; cf. 9:32). Nehemiah also knows that in the past God’s “great power” and “strong hand” manifested itself in redemption from Egypt (1:10). We know that in these last days this redemptive power was revealed in the ministry, death, resurrection, and current reign of our Lord Jesus Christ (Luke 4:36; Acts 10:38; 1 Cor. 1:18, 24; 6:14; Eph. 1:19–21; Phil. 3:10; Heb. 1:3). We endure in prayer knowing that as God revealed his power to save in the past, he may once more reveal his strength in our present situation (Neh. 1:11).
However, there are occasions in which our distress is due to past unfaithfulness. On behalf of the remnant, Nehemiah confronts the past, confessing their corrupt acts in the broadest terms as a failure to keep “the commandments, the statutes, and the rules” of the covenant (v. 7; Ex. 34:1; Jer. 31:32). He does not simply confess the sins of others but implicates his own particular family in the collective transgressions that led to exile (Neh. 1:6). Key to Nehemiah’s logic is his belief that the confession of verses 6–7 is equivalent to returning to God and therefore may move the Lord to complete the good work once begun.
As Nehemiah prays, he does so purposefully, praying Scripture and especially asking God to “remember the word” (v. 8). In that covenantal word, the Lord promised to gather his repentant outcasts in a restored Jerusalem (v. 9; cf. Deut. 30:1–5). Because Nehemiah knows that God is powerful, he believes the Lord can act, and because he knows that God is faithful to his word, Nehemiah believes that he will act (Neh. 1:10–11).
In sum, the repentant people of God respond to the steadfast love of God, on the one hand, by loving him and obeying his commandments (vv. 5, 9). On the other hand, we also confess our sin, admitting we have not kept those commandments, which seemingly disqualifies us from the very homecoming for which we long. But rather than disqualifying us, genuine repentance actually provides evidence of his grace and mercy in our lives, fueling our desire to respond faithfully to his love (v. 9; cf. Deut. 30:6; 1 John 1:9). And that evidence means we are numbered among his gathered outcasts and welcomed into the home where he dwells.
1:1b–3 Nehemiah begins by stating the time and his location when approached by “certain men from Judah,” including his brother Hanani (7:2). This is likely his actual brother, or a near relative (as opposed to “brother” referring simply to a fellow Jew). Whether Hanani arrived in Susa with the group or simply introduced them to Nehemiah is uncertain. Susa, nearly always identified with “the citadel,” was an elevated region upon which sat the king’s palace (e.g., Est. 1:2, 5; 2:3). It was also the name of the city (Est. 3:15). Both city and citadel were located about 225 miles (362 km) east of Babylon; the citadel functioned as the winter residence of the Achaemenid (i.e., Persian) kings. Its winter use therefore makes sense of the group’s arrival in the month of Chislev (November/December), the ninth month (cf. Ezra 10:9). The notice of these events “in the twentieth year” likely refers to the twentieth year (445 BC) of Artaxerxes I (464–423; cf. Neh. 2:1), thirteen years since Ezra’s arrival. The text states neither Nehemiah’s particular purpose in Susa nor the purpose of this group of persons who travel from Judah to see him.
Nehemiah expresses several concerns to the group. First, he wonders about persons living in Judea (“the province”), but the language “who escaped, who had survived the exile” is somewhat ambiguous. It may refer to those who remained in the land and never went into exile or to those who returned to Jerusalem from Babylon, or perhaps both. The noun translated “escaped” is rendered “remnant” at Ezra 9:8, 13, 15 and is found elsewhere with the verb rendered “survived” only at Ezra 9:8, 15. There “remnant” is a technical term for the community that has returned from Babylon. Here Nehemiah likely broadens the reference to any Jewish survivor now in Judah. The nature of his concern for the city of Jerusalem is not further specified.
The inquiry about people and place receives a reply that drives Nehemiah’s response and the whole story that follows. “The remnant . . . who had survived the exile” is described as enduring “great trouble and shame” (Neh. 1:3)—but why? First, they cannot escape the ongoing vision of their destroyed city, provoking a constant reminder of past guilt, defeat, and death (cf. Ezra 9:7). Beyond this, their defenseless state due to failed walls and gates threads its way through the story and must be remedied (Neh. 1:3; 2:8, 13, 15, 17; 3:13, 15; 6:1; 7:1; 12:30, 31, 37). Finally, opponents would point out the impotence or unwillingness of their God to deliver them (cf. 2 Kings 18:28–35). While “shame” may arise for numerous reasons, in this context it refers to the taunts and insults suffered at the hands of their enemies due to their weakened state (Jer. 24:9). The following chapter confirms this, making it clear that “trouble” and “derision” (= “shame”) arise from the sorry condition of Jerusalem’s gates and wall (Neh. 2:17).
1:4 Nehemiah’s inclination to act finds initial expression in his anguished response. Like Ezra’s (Ezra 9:3–5), Nehemiah’s response is immediate, emotive, and God directed: “I sat down and wept and mourned.” The past tense translation should not be viewed as if they started and stopped at once. Rather, the two verbal forms that follow (“fasting and praying”) include all of these actions to summarize that Nehemiah’s ongoing activity lasts “for days.” In this way, the prayer that follows summarizes what Nehemiah prays over several months.
It may be noted that Jerusalem’s degraded defenses resulting from Nebuchadnezzar’s onslaught is not new news to Nehemiah. That trauma is long past and the results seared into the mind of the postexilic community (cf. Lamentations). Besides, the very presence of the group “from Judah” (Neh. 1:2) as well as the letters in Ezra (Ezra 5:6–17; 6:1–12; 7:7–26; cf. Jer. 29:1) evidence the effective communication between Jerusalem and Persia. So why does he respond so strongly? The text does not say. Perhaps Nehemiah mourns the lack of tangible progress in all reconstruction in the intervening period. Alternatively, perhaps the initial start is obstructed or reversed by the forceful opposition of Rehum (Ezra 4:11–16, 23). In this view, the event is indeed recent, which may explain Nehemiah’s passionate response.
1:5 Ezra’s prayer focused primarily on the specific problem of mixed marriages (Ezra 9:6–15). Overall, Nehemiah’s prayer is more generic, overflowing with biblical references, especially from Deuteronomy, centering upon Israel’s covenantal relationship with the “Lord God of heaven.” The prayer begins and ends by asking God to “be attentive” (Neh. 1:6, 11a). The central supplication to “remember” (vv. 8–10) provides a key synopsis of the covenantal blessings and curses.
As is fitting, Nehemiah first recalls God’s character (v. 5). With the title “great and awesome God” he invokes the Lord’s power and justice, especially his works in dealing with Israel’s enemies (Neh. 4:14; 9:32; Deut. 7:21; 10:17; Ps. 66:3; Dan. 9:4). Opponents may continually threaten Israel’s security due to Jerusalem’s lack of wall and gates, but Israel must not let past trauma deter their current comfort in the God who has done great and awesome things for them (2 Sam. 7:23). These past deliverances do not simply reveal God’s overwhelming power; they also provide the core of his self-identification as the God of utter fidelity and devotion to his people. And yet, as in a committed marriage, each partner must express reciprocal love in mutual obligation and responsibility. Nehemiah thus underscores that the favor of the covenant-keeping God of steadfast love rests upon those who “love him and keep his commandments” (Neh. 1:5; cf. Deut. 7:9; Josh. 22:5; 1 Kings 8:23; Dan. 9:4). A God faithful to his people seeks a people devoted to their God (Ex. 6:7; Jer. 7:23; 11:4; 24:7; 31:33).
1:6–7 Using human physical characteristics, Nehemiah first requests that God’s ears and eyes be especially attentive to hear his words and see his agony (1 Kings 8:28–29; 2 Chron. 6:40; 7:15; Ps. 130:2; Isa. 37:17). His prayer, offered “before you day and night,” exemplifies the kind of petitions he makes over four months (cf. Neh. 1:1; 2:1). Knowing his own covenantal failures and those of the postexilic community, his prayer rightly starts with confession (Ezra 10:1; Dan. 9:4, 20). Acknowledgment of sin is welcomed by the Lord and does not disqualify further identification of his people as “your servants” (Neh. 1:6, 10, 11). Like Ezra, by his use of “we” Nehemiah identifies with the sin of his community and further admits to the sin in his own family. Although not mentioning specific sins, the combination of “the commandments, the statutes, and the rules” references the comprehensive teaching of Moses as the expression of God’s will for his people. Obedience to Mosaic instruction reflects love for God and distinguishes the true Israel (Lev. 26:15; Deut. 5:31; 6:1; 7:11; 8:11; 11:1; 26:17; 30:16; 1 Kings 8:58; 2 Kings 17:34, 37; Neh. 9:13; 10:29). Unfortunately, God’s people have failed miserably in this regard, and Nehemiah’s language emphatically expresses that in their not heeding Moses’ instructions they have “acted very corruptly.” With these generic admissions it is easy to forget the danger that sin poses. In the presence of a holy God, failure to keep these commandments is synonymous with hating God, and judgment remains the outcome barring repentance and atonement (Ex. 20:5–6; Deut. 7:10; 9:18–19; Isa. 6:5).
1:8–10 These verses express the core of the prayer and the grace of the passage and may be summarized with Remember your word (vv. 8–9) and Remember your people (v. 10).
Broadly, verses 8–9 summarize the concluding portions of any covenant document, in which we find the curses for those who refuse obedience and the blessings for those who embrace and keep the covenant (e.g., Leviticus 26; Deuteronomy 27–28). More specifically, these verses use the language of Deuteronomy 30:1–5 to point to its particular promise: the Lord will restore his people from exile when they repent.
The verses begin by recalling the Lord’s warnings. Verse 8b emphasizes the pronoun—“if you are unfaithful”—and uses the strong verb “to be unfaithful” (Hb. maʻal) to describe the people’s sin. This verb (Ezra 10:2, 10; Neh. 1:8; 13:27) and its related noun (“faithlessness”; Ezra 9:2, 4; 10:6) most recently characterized the sorrowful events at the end of Ezra. They describe any treacherous act against the Lord, a condition which, if met, brings about the judgment, also described with another emphatic pronoun: “I will scatter you among the peoples” (cf. Lev. 26:33; Deut. 4:27–28; 28:64; Jer. 9:13–16; Ezek. 12:15; 20:18–26; 22:15). The Lord had fulfilled these threats in their recent experience.
However, judgment is never the end of the story for the remnant, and Nehemiah 1:9 turns quickly to hope. By God’s merciful correction, faithless treachery may be turned to confession and repentance: “If you return” (cf. Lev. 26:40–45; Deut. 4:29–31). It is then that the God who scatters shows himself also to be the God who gathers. Indeed, he will go to the “uttermost parts of heaven” to retrieve the repentant. This promise not only summarizes Deuteronomy 30:1–5 but is an overture of hope woven throughout the prophets (Isa. 43:5; Jer. 23:3; 29:14; 31:8, 10; 32:37; Ezek. 11:16–20; 34:11–16; 36:24; 37:21; Mic. 4:6–7; Zeph. 3:18–20; Zech. 10:8–10). In further links to Deuteronomy, the Lord has promised to bring them “to the place that I have chosen, to make my name dwell there,” namely, his temple home in Jerusalem (Neh. 1:9; cf. Deut. 12:5–6, 11; 14:23; 1 Kings 12:27). And herein resides the problem: Jerusalem’s current condition brings “great trouble and shame” (Neh. 1:3).
In sum: positively, the people of Israel are no longer characterized as “verse 8 people,” chastised, scattered, and languishing under covenant curses. Instead, they are “verse 9 people,” experiencing covenant blessings, now returning to God through confession, reaffirming their determination to keep the commandments, and, in this moment of favor (Ezra 9:8), gathered and restored by God. Negatively, they await the completed restoration and repopulation of Jerusalem.
Nehemiah then further defines those who experience God’s redeeming favor: they are both “your servants” and “your people” (Neh. 1:10). In other words, they are not simply servants but also Israel, offspring of the patriarchs and heirs to the covenant promises, a fact to which Moses returns on more than one occasion to plead for the Lord to turn away wrath and not destroy them in the face of their unfaithfulness (Ex. 32:13–14; Deut. 9:29). More specifically, Nehemiah echoes a prayer previously uttered by Solomon, who asks the attentive God to “hear in heaven” the confession of his servants, “if they turn again,” and to grant forgiveness and restoration after exile (1 Kings 8:27–36). In fact, it is “your servants” and “your people” who are those redeemed by “your great power” and “your strong hand.” The prevailing use of this language recalls the numerous events of salvation surrounding the exodus from Egypt. So Nehemiah pleads for God to exhibit once more the power that redeemed them.
1:11b In a surprising ending, “this man” (v. 11a) seems connected with the king for whom Nehemiah is cupbearer. In the ancient Near East, this influential post was held by one who was trusted to taste the king’s wine and granted royal access as a confidant. In the first part of this verse, Nehemiah pleads with God to “give success” and “grant . . . mercy” before Artaxerxes (cf. 2:8; Ezra 1:1; 5:5; 6:14; 7:27). Presently, we are uncertain what this entails but can make an educated guess. Artaxerxes had once stopped the wall construction (Ezra 4:21–23). Accepting the call to rebuild those very walls to alleviate “trouble and shame” (Neh. 1:3) will mean Nehemiah must request permission from Artaxerxes to do so, a dangerous request that may be viewed as sedition and threat (Ezra 4:16, 22; Neh. 6:6–7). This prepares us for what follows in the next chapter.