1 The words of Nehemiah the son of Hachaliah. And it came to pass in the month Chisleu, in the twentieth year, as I was in Shushan the palace,

2 That Hanani, one of my brethren, came, he and certain men of Judah; and I asked them concerning the Jews that had escaped, which were left of the captivity, and concerning Jerusalem.

3 And they said unto me, The remnant that are left of the captivity there in the province are in great affliction and reproach: the wall of Jerusalem also is broken down, and the gates thereof are burned with fire.

4 And it came to pass, when I heard these words, that I sat down and wept, and mourned certain days, and fasted, and prayed before the God of heaven,

5 And said, I beseech thee, O Lord God of heaven, the great and terrible God, that keepeth covenant and mercy for them that love him and observe his commandments:

6 Let thine ear now be attentive, and thine eyes open, that thou mayest hear the prayer of thy servant, which I pray before thee now, day and night, for the children of Israel thy servants, and confess the sins of the children of Israel, which we have sinned against thee: both I and my father's house have sinned.

7 We have dealt very corruptly against thee, and have not kept the commandments, nor the statutes, nor the judgments, which thou commandedst thy servant Moses.

8 Remember, I beseech thee, the word that thou commandedst thy servant Moses, saying, If ye transgress, I will scatter you abroad among the nations:

9 But if ye turn unto me, and keep my commandments, and do them; though there were of you cast out unto the uttermost part of the heaven, yet will I gather them from thence, and will bring them unto the place that I have chosen to set my name there.

10 Now these are thy servants and thy people, whom thou hast redeemed by thy great power, and by thy strong hand.

11 O Lord, I beseech thee, let now thine ear be attentive to the prayer of thy servant, and to the prayer of thy servants, who desire to fear thy name: and prosper, I pray thee, thy servant this day, and grant him mercy in the sight of this man. For I was the king's cupbearer.

Commentary

Verse 1

EGW SDA Bible Commentary
Men of Opportunity and Principle
—Nehemiah and Ezra are men of opportunity. The Lord had a special work for them to do. They were to call upon the people to consider their ways, and to see where they had made their mistake; for the Lord had not suffered His people to become powerless and confused and to be taken into captivity without a cause. The Lord especially blessed these men for standing up for the right. Nehemiah was not set apart as a priest or a prophet, but the Lord used him to do a special work. He was chosen as a leader of the people. But his fidelity to God did not depend upon his position.The Lord will not allow His work to be hindered, even though the workmen may prove unworthy. God has men in reserve, prepared to meet the demand, that His work may be preserved from all contaminating influences. God will be honored and glorified. When the divine Spirit impresses the mind of the man appointed by God as fit for the work, he responds, saying, “Here am I; send me.”God demonstrated to the people for whom He had done so much that He would not serve with their sins. He wrought, not through those who refused to serve Him with singleness of purpose, who had corrupted their ways before Him, but through Nehemiah; for he was registered in the books of heaven as a man. God has said, “Them that honor me I will honor.” Nehemiah showed himself to be a man whom God could use to put down false principles and to restore heaven-born principles; and God honored him. The Lord will use in His work men who are as true as steel to principle, who will not be swayed by the sophistries of those who have lost their spiritual eyesight.Nehemiah was chosen by God because he was willing to cooperate with the Lord as a restorer. Falsehood and intrigue were used to pervert his integrity, but he would not be bribed. He refused to be corrupted by the devices of unprincipled men, who had been hired to do an evil work. He would not allow them to intimidate him into following a cowardly course. When he saw wrong principles being acted upon, he did not stand by as an onlooker, and by his silence give consent. He did not leave the people to conclude that he was standing on the wrong side. He took a firm, unyielding stand for the right. He would not lend one jot of influence to the perversion of the principles that God has established. Whatever the course others might pursue, he could say, “So did not I, because of the fear of God.”In his work, Nehemiah kept the honor and glory of God ever in view. The governors that had been before him had dealt unjustly with the people, “and had taken of them bread and wine, beside forty shekels of silver; yea, even their servants bear rule over the people.” “But so did not I,” Nehemiah declared, “because of the fear of God” (The Review and Herald, May 2, 1899).
John Wesley's Bible Commentary
The words - Or rather, the acts, as the word often signifies. Chisleu - Which is the ninth month, containing part of November, and part of December. Year - Of Artaxerxes. Shushan - The royal city of Persia.
McArther Bible Commentary
a Nehemiah returns to Jerusalem and successfully leads a fifty-two-day "rebuilding of the wall" project (cf. Neh 6:15).
Bible Cross References
Nehemiah 2:1 Nehemiah 5:14 Nehemiah 10:1 Esther 1:2 Daniel 8:2 Zechariah 7:1

Verse 2

McArther Bible Commentary
Hanani. Apparently a sibling of Nehemiah (cf. Neh 7:2), he had gone to Jerusalem in the second return under Ezra's leadership (c. 458 B.C.). Jews … Jerusalem. Nehemiah was deeply concerned about the people and the city, especially during the previous thirteen years, ever since the second return under Ezra (458 B.C.).
Bible Cross References
Genesis 14:10 Nehemiah 7:2

Verse 3

John Wesley's Bible Commentary
The province - In Judea, now a province under the Persian monarchs. The wall, &c. - The walls and gates continue as Nebuchadnezzar left them; the Jews not being in a condition to rebuild them, nor having commission from the kings of Persia to do so.
McArther Bible Commentary
wall of Jerusalem … gates. The opposition had successfully thwarted the Jews' attempts to reestablish Jerusalem as a distinctively Jewish city capable of withstanding its enemies' assaults, which could possibly lead to another destruction of the newly rebuilt temple (c. 516 B.C.; cf. Ezr 4:7-23).
Bible Cross References
2 Kings 25:10 Nehemiah 2:3 Nehemiah 2:13 Nehemiah 2:17 Nehemiah 7:6 Proverbs 25:28 Jeremiah 39:8 Jeremiah 52:14 Lamentations 2:9

Verse 4

John Wesley's Bible Commentary
The God of heaven - Who seeth in secret; secret; having no opportunity of doing it openly.
McArther Bible Commentary
sat down and wept, and mourned for many days. Although Nehemiah was neither a prophet nor a priest, he had a deep sense of Jerusalem's significance to God and was greatly distressed that affairs there had not advanced the cause and glory of God.
Bible Cross References
2 Samuel 12:16 Ezra 9:3 Ezra 10:1 Nehemiah 2:4 Psalm 136:26 Psalm 137:1 Daniel 10:2 Jonah 1:9

Verse 5

EGW SDA Bible Commentary
A Prayer to Be Studied
—[Nehemiah 1:5, 6 quoted.] Not only did Nehemiah say that Israel had sinned. He acknowledged with penitence that he and his father's house had sinned. “We have dealt corruptly against Thee,” he says, placing himself among those who had dishonored God by not standing stiffly for the truth.... [Nehemiah 1:7-11 quoted.] ...Nehemiah humbled himself before God, giving Him the glory due unto His name. Thus also did Daniel in Babylon. Let us study the prayers of these men. They teach us that we are to humble ourselves, but that we are never to obliterate the line of demarcation between God's commandment-keeping people and those who have no respect for His law.We all need to draw near to God. He will draw near to those who approach Him in humility, filled with a holy awe for His sacred majesty, and standing before Him separate from the world (Manuscript 58, 1903).
McArther Bible Commentary
This prayer represents one of the Scripture's most moving confessions and intercessions before God (cf. Ezr 9:6-15; Dan 9:4-19).
Bible Cross References
Exodus 20:6 Deuteronomy 7:21 1 Kings 8:23 Nehemiah 4:14 Nehemiah 9:32 Psalm 47:2 Psalm 89:2 Psalm 89:3 Daniel 9:4

Verse 6

EGW SDA Bible Commentary
A Prayer to Be Studied
—[Nehemiah 1:5, 6 quoted.] Not only did Nehemiah say that Israel had sinned. He acknowledged with penitence that he and his father's house had sinned. “We have dealt corruptly against Thee,” he says, placing himself among those who had dishonored God by not standing stiffly for the truth.... [Nehemiah 1:7-11 quoted.] ...Nehemiah humbled himself before God, giving Him the glory due unto His name. Thus also did Daniel in Babylon. Let us study the prayers of these men. They teach us that we are to humble ourselves, but that we are never to obliterate the line of demarcation between God's commandment-keeping people and those who have no respect for His law.We all need to draw near to God. He will draw near to those who approach Him in humility, filled with a holy awe for His sacred majesty, and standing before Him separate from the world (Manuscript 58, 1903).
EGW SDA Bible Commentary
Nehemiah Trusted God's Faithfulness
—By faith taking fast hold of the divine promise, Nehemiah laid down at the footstool of heavenly mercy his petition that God would maintain the cause of His penitent people, restore their strength, and build up their waste places. God had been faithful to His threatenings when His people separated from Him; He had scattered them abroad among the nations, according to His Word. And Nehemiah found in this very fact an assurance that He would be equally faithful in fulfilling His promises (The Southern Watchman, March 1, 1904).
John Wesley's Bible Commentary
Which I pray, &c. - He refers to all the prayers, which he had for some time been putting up.
McArther Bible Commentary
we have sinned against You. Nehemiah may have believed that the sins of the returnees (cf. Ezra 9; 10) had prompted God to change His mind and withhold His favor from the Jews.
Bible Cross References
1 Kings 8:29 1 Kings 8:30 1 Kings 8:47 2 Chronicles 6:40 2 Chronicles 29:6 Ezra 10:1 Nehemiah 1:11 Psalm 102:17 Psalm 130:2 Daniel 9:17 Daniel 9:20

Verse 7

EGW SDA Bible Commentary
A Prayer to Be Studied
—[Nehemiah 1:5, 6 quoted.] Not only did Nehemiah say that Israel had sinned. He acknowledged with penitence that he and his father's house had sinned. “We have dealt corruptly against Thee,” he says, placing himself among those who had dishonored God by not standing stiffly for the truth.... [Nehemiah 1:7-11 quoted.] ...Nehemiah humbled himself before God, giving Him the glory due unto His name. Thus also did Daniel in Babylon. Let us study the prayers of these men. They teach us that we are to humble ourselves, but that we are never to obliterate the line of demarcation between God's commandment-keeping people and those who have no respect for His law.We all need to draw near to God. He will draw near to those who approach Him in humility, filled with a holy awe for His sacred majesty, and standing before Him separate from the world (Manuscript 58, 1903).
EGW SDA Bible Commentary
Nehemiah Trusted God's Faithfulness
—By faith taking fast hold of the divine promise, Nehemiah laid down at the footstool of heavenly mercy his petition that God would maintain the cause of His penitent people, restore their strength, and build up their waste places. God had been faithful to His threatenings when His people separated from Him; He had scattered them abroad among the nations, according to His Word. And Nehemiah found in this very fact an assurance that He would be equally faithful in fulfilling His promises (The Southern Watchman, March 1, 1904).
McArther Bible Commentary
commandments … statutes … ordinances. Those which are recorded in Exodus, Leviticus, Numbers, and Deuteronomy.
Bible Cross References
Deuteronomy 28:14 Psalm 106:6 Isaiah 1:4 Daniel 9:5

Verse 8

EGW SDA Bible Commentary
A Prayer to Be Studied
—[Nehemiah 1:5, 6 quoted.] Not only did Nehemiah say that Israel had sinned. He acknowledged with penitence that he and his father's house had sinned. “We have dealt corruptly against Thee,” he says, placing himself among those who had dishonored God by not standing stiffly for the truth.... [Nehemiah 1:7-11 quoted.] ...Nehemiah humbled himself before God, giving Him the glory due unto His name. Thus also did Daniel in Babylon. Let us study the prayers of these men. They teach us that we are to humble ourselves, but that we are never to obliterate the line of demarcation between God's commandment-keeping people and those who have no respect for His law.We all need to draw near to God. He will draw near to those who approach Him in humility, filled with a holy awe for His sacred majesty, and standing before Him separate from the world (Manuscript 58, 1903).
McArther Bible Commentary
Remember. Not a reminder to God as if He had forgotten, but a plea to activate His Word.
Bible Cross References
Leviticus 26:33 Deuteronomy 4:27 Deuteronomy 28:64 Ezekiel 22:15

Verse 9

EGW SDA Bible Commentary
A Prayer to Be Studied
—[Nehemiah 1:5, 6 quoted.] Not only did Nehemiah say that Israel had sinned. He acknowledged with penitence that he and his father's house had sinned. “We have dealt corruptly against Thee,” he says, placing himself among those who had dishonored God by not standing stiffly for the truth.... [Nehemiah 1:7-11 quoted.] ...Nehemiah humbled himself before God, giving Him the glory due unto His name. Thus also did Daniel in Babylon. Let us study the prayers of these men. They teach us that we are to humble ourselves, but that we are never to obliterate the line of demarcation between God's commandment-keeping people and those who have no respect for His law.We all need to draw near to God. He will draw near to those who approach Him in humility, filled with a holy awe for His sacred majesty, and standing before Him separate from the world (Manuscript 58, 1903).
Bible Cross References
Deuteronomy 12:5 Deuteronomy 30:2 Deuteronomy 30:3 Deuteronomy 30:4 1 Kings 8:48 Psalm 107:3 Isaiah 27:12 Jeremiah 6:22 Ezekiel 14:6

Verse 10

EGW SDA Bible Commentary
A Prayer to Be Studied
—[Nehemiah 1:5, 6 quoted.] Not only did Nehemiah say that Israel had sinned. He acknowledged with penitence that he and his father's house had sinned. “We have dealt corruptly against Thee,” he says, placing himself among those who had dishonored God by not standing stiffly for the truth.... [Nehemiah 1:7-11 quoted.] ...Nehemiah humbled himself before God, giving Him the glory due unto His name. Thus also did Daniel in Babylon. Let us study the prayers of these men. They teach us that we are to humble ourselves, but that we are never to obliterate the line of demarcation between God's commandment-keeping people and those who have no respect for His law.We all need to draw near to God. He will draw near to those who approach Him in humility, filled with a holy awe for His sacred majesty, and standing before Him separate from the world (Manuscript 58, 1903).
McArther Bible Commentary
redeemed by Your great power, and by Your strong hand. Nehemiah's allusion to the Exodus redemption recalled the faithful and strong hand of God which had brought Israel out of bondage once before; this also grounded his confidence in God's power as the basis of his appeal for a second deliverance that would be as successful as the first.
Bible Cross References
Exodus 6:6 Exodus 32:11 Deuteronomy 9:29 Psalm 136:12

Verse 11

EGW SDA Bible Commentary
A Prayer to Be Studied
—[Nehemiah 1:5, 6 quoted.] Not only did Nehemiah say that Israel had sinned. He acknowledged with penitence that he and his father's house had sinned. “We have dealt corruptly against Thee,” he says, placing himself among those who had dishonored God by not standing stiffly for the truth.... [Nehemiah 1:7-11 quoted.] ...Nehemiah humbled himself before God, giving Him the glory due unto His name. Thus also did Daniel in Babylon. Let us study the prayers of these men. They teach us that we are to humble ourselves, but that we are never to obliterate the line of demarcation between God's commandment-keeping people and those who have no respect for His law.We all need to draw near to God. He will draw near to those who approach Him in humility, filled with a holy awe for His sacred majesty, and standing before Him separate from the world (Manuscript 58, 1903).
John Wesley's Bible Commentary
To fear thy name - Those who truly desire to fear his name, shall be graciously accepted of God. This man - The king: who is but a man and therefore his heart is wholly at thy disposal. Favour with men is then comfortable, when we see it springing from the mercy of God. Cup - bearer - Whereby I had opportunity to speak to him, and some favour with him.
McArther Bible Commentary
who desire to fear Your name. Nehemiah alluded to the fact that Israel was the place which God had chosen for His name to dwell (Neh 1:9); the people desired to fear His name and, thus, were praying for God's intervention. in the sight of this man. The reference to King Artaxerxes anticipated the discussion in Neh 2:1 ff. the king's cupbearer. As an escort of the monarch at meals, the cupbearer had a unique advantage to petition the king. Not only did the king owe him his life, since the cupbearer tested all the king's beverages for possible poison, thus, putting his own life at risk, but he also became a close confidant. God sovereignly used this relationship between a Gentile and Jew to deliver His people, much as He did with Joseph, Daniel, Esther, and Mordecai.
Bible Cross References
Genesis 24:42 Genesis 40:1 Genesis 40:21 2 Chronicles 6:40 Nehemiah 1:6 Nehemiah 2:1 Psalm 61:5 Psalm 106:46 Psalm 130:2 Jeremiah 42:12