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More Nehemiah commentaries
Nehemiah 1:1-11
Nehemiah prays for his people
Nehemiah 2:1-8
Nehemiah was fearful of what others may think
Nehemiah 2:9-20
Nehemiah determines to rebuild the wall
Nehemiah 3:1-14
Delegation of the work load
Nehemiah 3:15-32
Helping everyone to feel a part of the objective
Nehemiah 4:1-6
Ridicule and Criticism comes to Nehemiah
Nehemiah 4:7-14
Nehemiah reminds the people of their calling
Nehemiah 4:15-23
Nehemiah sets up a communication system
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Nehemiah was fearful of what others may think
Nehemiah 2:1–8
» View this passage in NIV (Bible Gateway)
Charles Sawyer, former U.S. Secretary of Commerce, tells about the planeload of people flying across the Atlantic. A voice comes on the intercom: “We are now flying at 35,000 feet. If you will notice, out the right window, the two engines on that side are on fire, and the en … More
As Nehemiah was going about his usual duties the king noticed that he was sad and asked, “Why is thy countenance sad, seeing thou art not sick.” (vv. 1-2) At first Nehemiah was frightened because it was dangerous to show sorrow before the king who could execute anyone who displeased him. However, he refused to allow fear to stop him from sharing what God had placed on his heart (v. 3). Nehemiah was careful in replying for he knew that his request was a bold one. A few years earlier the king had stopped the rebuilding of Jerusalem and Nehemiah was asking the order be reversed.
First Nehemiah prayed and then he appealed to the king’s sense of respect for the dead (v. 4). He asked the king to send him to the city in Judah where his ancestors were buried so that he might rebuild the city (v. 5). The king asked him how long it would take and then gave him permission to go (v. 6). He also asked for a convoy to go with him. Knowing he would face opposition from his enemies, he requested letters of permission from the king to allow him to pass through the various provinces (v. 7). He also asked the king to write a letter to Asaph, the man in charge of the king’s forest (v. 8). Nehemiah knew that he would need timber for rebuilding the gates of the city.
The Bible does not record his immediate answer but we know that he ended up staying 12 years (5:14). Nehemiah states that the king granted what he asked for because the good hand of God was upon him.
Application
Sometimes, when I have needs, I may hesitate to ask the right people to help me because I am afraid to approach them. They may be more interested and approachable than I think. God’s answer to my prayer may come as a result of my asking others to pray.
Nehemiah 2:1-8 (English Standard Version)
In the month of Nisan, in the twentieth year of King Artaxerxes, when wine was before him, I took up the wine and gave it to the king. Now I had not been sad in his presence. And the king said to me, "Why is your face sad, seeing you are not sick? This is nothing but sadness of the heart." Then I was very much afraid. I said to the king, "Let the king live forever! Why should not my face be sad, when the city, the place of my fathers' graves, lies in ruins, and its gates have been destroyed by fire?" Then the king said to me, "What are you requesting?" So I prayed to the God of heaven. And I said to the king, "If it pleases the king, and if your servant has found favor in your sight, that you send me to Judah, to the city of my fathers' graves, that I may rebuild it." And the king said to me (the queen sitting beside him), "How long will you be gone, and when will you return?" So it pleased the king to send me when I had given him a time. And I said to the king, "If it pleases the king, let letters be given me to the governors of the province Beyond the River, that they may let me pass through until I come to Judah, and a letter to Asaph, the keeper of the king's forest, that he may give me timber to make beams for the gates of the fortress of the temple, and for the wall of the city, and for the house that I shall occupy." And the king granted me what I asked, for the good hand of my God was upon me.
View this passage in NIV (Bible Gateway) »
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