Nehemiah 1:3

3 They replied to me, "The survivors in the province who have survived the captivity are in great trouble and disgrace. The wall of Jerusalem is broken down, and its gates have been burned in the 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 son of Hacaliah. It happened in the month of Kislev, in the twentieth year, that I myself was in the citadel in Susa,

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

3 They replied to me, "The survivors in the province who have survived the captivity are in great trouble and disgrace. The wall of Jerusalem is broken down, and its gates have been burned in the fire."

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

5 I said, "O Yahweh God of the heavens, the great and awesome one who keeps the covenant and loyal love for the ones who love him and for those who keep his commands.