Nehemiah Is Permitted to Go to Jerusalem Then in the month of Nisan, in the twentieth year of King Artaxerxes, when wine was brought to me, I took the wine and gave it to the king. Previously I had not been depressed in the king’s presence.
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2So the king said to me,“Why do you appear to be depressed when you aren’t sick? What can this be other than sadness of heart?” This made me very fearful.
3I replied to the king,“O king, live forever! Why would I not appear dejected when the city with the graves of my ancestors lies desolate and its gates destroyed by fire?”
4The king responded,“What is it you are seeking?” Then I quickly prayed to the God of heaven
5and said to the king,“If the king is so inclined and if your servant has found favor in your sight, dispatch me to Judah, to the city with the graves of my ancestors, so that I can rebuild it.”
6Then the king, with his consort sitting beside him, replied,“How long would your trip take, and when would you return?” Since the king was pleased to send me, I gave him a time.
7I said to the king,“If the king is so inclined, let him give me letters for the governors of Trans-Euphrates that will enable me to travel safely until I reach Judah,
8and a letter for Asaph the keeper of the king’s nature preserve, so that he will give me timber for beams for the gates of the fortress adjacent to the temple and for the city wall and for the house to which I go.” So the king granted me these requests, for the good hand of my God was on me.
9Then I went to the governors of Trans-Euphrates, and I presented to them the letters from the king. The king had sent with me officers of the army and horsemen.
6During all this time I was not in Jerusalem, for in the thirty-second year of King Artaxerxes of Babylon, I had gone back to the king. After some time I had requested leave of the king,
1¶ A Prayer of Nehemiah These are the words of Nehemiah son of Hacaliah:It so happened that in the month of Kislev, in the twentieth year, I was in Susa the citadel.
2Hanani, who was one of my relatives, along with some of the men from Judah, came to me, and I asked them about the Jews who had escaped and had survived the exile, and about Jerusalem.
3They said to me,“The remnant that remains from the exile there in the province are experiencing considerable adversity and reproach. The wall of Jerusalem lies breached, and its gates have been burned down!”
4When I heard these things I sat down abruptly, crying and mourning for several days. I continued fasting and praying before the God of heaven.
1¶ The King Throws a Lavish Party The following events happened in the days of Ahasuerus.(I am referring to that Ahasuerus who used to rule over a hundred and twenty-seven provinces extending all the way from India to Ethiopia.)
2In those days, as King Ahasuerus sat on his royal throne in Susa the citadel,
3in the third year of his reign he provided a banquet for all his officials and his servants. The army of Persia and Media was present, as well as the nobles and the officials of the provinces.
4He displayed the riches of his royal glory and the splendor of his majestic greatness for a lengthy period of time– a hundred and eighty days, to be exact!
5When those days were completed, the king then provided a seven-day banquet for all the people who were present in Susa the citadel, for those of highest standing to the most lowly. It was held in the court located in the garden of the royal palace.
14From the day that I was appointed governor in the land of Judah, that is, from the twentieth year until the thirty-second year of King Artaxerxes– twelve years in all– neither I nor my relatives ate the food allotted to the governor.
15But the former governors who preceded me had burdened the people and had taken food and wine from them, in addition to forty shekels of silver. Their associates were also domineering over the people. But I did not behave in this way, due to my fear of God.
16I gave myself to the work on this wall, without even purchasing a field. All my associates were gathered there for the work.
17There were 150 Jews and officials who dined with me routinely, in addition to those who came to us from the nations all around us.
18Every day one ox, six select sheep, and some birds were prepared for me, and every ten days all kinds of wine in abundance. Despite all this I did not require the food allotted to the governor, for the work was demanding on this people.
10Queen Vashti is Removed from Her Royal Position On the seventh day, as King Ahasuerus was feeling the effects of the wine, he ordered Mehuman, Biztha, Harbona, Bigtha, Abagtha, Zethar, and Carcas, the seven eunuchs who attended him,
11Please, Lord, listen attentively to the prayer of your servant and to the prayer of your servants who take pleasure in showing respect to your name. Grant your servant success today and show compassion to me in the presence of this man.” Now I was cupbearer for the king.
15This took place on the twenty-fourth day of the sixth month of King Darius’ second year.
16Then Esther was taken to King Ahasuerus at his royal residence in the tenth month(that is, the month of Tebeth) in the seventh year of his reign.
1The Jews Prevail over Their Enemies In the twelfth month(that is, the month of Adar), on its thirteenth day, the edict of the king and his law were to be executed. It was on this day that the enemies of the Jews had supposed that they would gain power over them. But contrary to expectations, the Jews gained power over their enemies.
7In the seventh year of King Artaxerxes, Ezra brought up to Jerusalem some of the Israelites and some of the priests, the Levites, the attendants, the gatekeepers, and the temple servants.
8He entered Jerusalem in the fifth month of the seventh year of the king.
9On the first day of the first month he had determined to make the ascent from Babylon, and on the first day of the fifth month he arrived at Jerusalem, for the good hand of his God was on him.
21“I, King Artaxerxes, hereby issue orders to all the treasurers of Trans-Euphrates, that you precisely execute all that Ezra the priestly scribe of the law of the God of heaven may request of you–
22up to 100 talents of silver, 100 cors of wheat, 100 baths of wine, 100 baths of olive oil, and unlimited salt.
13The king then inquired of the wise men who were discerners of the times– for it was the royal custom to confer with all those who were proficient in laws and legalities.
14Those who were closest to him were Carshena, Shethar, Admatha, Tarshish, Meres, Marsena, and Memucan. These men were the seven officials of Persia and Media who saw the king on a regular basis and had the most prominent offices in the kingdom.
28He has also conferred his favor on me before the king, his advisers, and all the influential leaders of the king. I gained strength as the hand of the LORD my God was on me, and I gathered leaders from Israel to go up with me.
8There were no restrictions on the drinking, for the king had instructed all of his supervisors that they should do as everyone so desired.
15I continued up the valley during the night, inspecting the wall. Then I turned back and came to the Valley Gate, and so returned.
16The officials did not know where I had gone or what I had been doing, for up to this point I had not told any of the Jews or the priests or the nobles or the officials or the rest of the workers.
1The Turning Point: The King Honors Mordecai Throughout that night the king was unable to sleep, so he asked for the book containing the historical records to be brought. As the records were being read in the king’s presence,
6Official Complaints Are Lodged Against the Jews At the beginning of the reign of Ahasuerus they filed an accusation against the inhabitants of Judah and Jerusalem.
7And during the reign of Artaxerxes, Bishlam, Mithredath, Tabeel, and the rest of their colleagues wrote to King Artaxerxes of Persia. This letter was first written in Aramaic but then translated.[Aramaic:]
11Artaxerxes Gives Official Endorsement to Ezra’s Mission What follows is a copy of the letter that King Artaxerxes gave to Ezra the priestly scribe. Ezra was a scribe in matters pertaining to the commandments of the LORD and his statutes over Israel:
5So the king assigned them a daily ration from his royal delicacies and from the wine he himself drank. They were to be trained for the next three years. At the end of that time they were to enter the king’s service.
31On the twelfth day of the first month we began traveling from the Ahava Canal to go to Jerusalem. The hand of our God was on us, and he delivered us from our enemy and from bandits along the way.
11(This is a copy of the letter they sent to him:)“To King Artaxerxes, from your servants in Trans-Euphrates:
6Then Ezra got up from in front of the temple of God and went to the room of Jehohanan son of Eliashib. While he stayed there, he did not eat food or drink water, for he was in mourning over the infidelity of the exiles.
11Nehemiah Arrives in Jerusalem So I came to Jerusalem. When I had been there for three days,
18Then the king prepared a large banquet for all his officials and his servants– it was actually Esther’s banquet. He also set aside a holiday for the provinces, and he provided for offerings at the king’s expense.
9The king’s scribes were quickly summoned– in the third month(that is, the month of Sivan), on the twenty-third day. They wrote out everything that Mordecai instructed to the Jews and to the satraps and the governors and the officials of the provinces all the way from India to Ethiopia– a hundred and twenty-seven provinces in all– to each province in its own script and to each people in their own language, and to the Jews according to their own script and their own language.