Nehemiah 1:3

3 They said to me, "The remnant there in the ¹province who survived the captivity are in great distress and ²reproach, and ³the wall of Jerusalem is broken down and ⁴its gates are burned with fire."

Nehemiah 1:3 Meaning and Commentary

Nehemiah 1:3

And they said unto me, the remnant that are left of the
captivity there in the province
In Judea, now reduced to a province of the Persian empire:

are in great affliction and reproach;
harassed and distressed, calumniated and vilified, by their enemies the Samaritans:

the wall of Jerusalem also is broken down, and the gates thereof are
burnt with fire;
that is, its wall and gates were in the same condition in which Nebuchadnezzar had left them, for since his times as yet they had never been set up; for this is not to be understood of what was lately done by their adversaries, which is not at all probable.

Nehemiah 1:3 In-Context

1 The words of Nehemiah the son of Hacaliah. Now it happened in the month Chislev, in the twentieth year, while I was in Susa the capitol,

2 that Hanani, one of my brothers, and some men from Judah came; and I asked them concerning the Jews who had escaped and had survived the captivity, and about Jerusalem.

3 They said to me, "The remnant there in the province who survived the captivity are in great distress and reproach, and the wall of Jerusalem is broken down and its gates are burned with fire."

4 When I heard these words, I sat down and wept and mourned for days; and I was fasting and praying before the God of heaven.

5 I said, "I beseech You, O LORD God of heaven, the great and awesome God, who preserves the covenant and lovingkindness for those who love Him and keep His commandments,

Cross References

• 1. Nehemiah 7:6
• 2. Nehemiah 2:17
• 3. Nehemiah 2:17
• 4. Nehemiah 2:3