Amplified Bible
Nehemiah 2:3
3and I said to the king, “Let the king live forever. Why should my face not be sad when the city, the place of my fathers’ tombs, lies desolate and its gates have been consumed by fire?”
Nehemiah 2:3 in other versions
- King James Version (KJV)And said unto the king, Let the king live for ever: why should not my countenance be sad, when the city, the place of my fathers’ sepulchres, lieth waste, and the gates thereof are consumed with fire?
- New International Version (NIV)but I said to the king, “May the king live forever! Why should my face not look sad when the city where my ancestors are buried lies in ruins, and its gates have been destroyed by fire?”
- English Standard Version (ESV)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?"
- New King James Version (NKJV)and said to the king, “May the king live forever! Why should my face not be sad, when the city, the place of my fathers’ tombs, lies waste, and its gates are burned with fire?”
Context of Nehemiah 2:3
1In the month of Nisan, in the twentieth year of King Artaxerxes, when wine was placed before him, I took the wine and gave it to the king. Now I had not [previously] been sad in his presence. 2So the king said to me, “Why do you look sad when you are not sick? This is nothing but sadness of heart.” Then I was very frightened, and I said to the king, “Let the king live forever. Why should my face not be sad when the city, the place of my fathers’ tombs, lies desolate and its gates have been consumed by fire?” 4The king said to me, “What do you request?” So I prayed to the God of heaven. 5I said to the king, “If it pleases the king, and if your servant has found favor in your presence, [I ask] that you send me to Judah, to the city of my fathers’ tombs, so that I may rebuild it.”
Read all of Nehemiah 2Nehemiah 2:3 word by word
וָאֹמַ֣ר לַמֶּ֔לֶךְ הַמֶּ֖לֶךְ לְעוֹלָ֣ם יִחְיֶ֑ה מַדּ֜וּעַ לֹא־יֵרְע֣וּ פָנַ֗י אֲשֶׁ֨ר הָעִ֜יר בֵּית־קִבְר֤וֹת אֲבֹתַי֙ חֲרֵבָ֔ה וּשְׁעָרֶ֖יהָ אֻכְּל֥וּ בָאֵֽשׁ׃ סRead the interlinear
Words taken from the KJV.
- And saidאָמַר'âmar · to sayH559
- unto the kingמֶ֫לֶךְmelek · kingH4428
- liveחָיָהchâyâh · to liveH2421
- for everעוֹלָם‛ôlâm ‛ôlâm · forever: enduringH5769
- why should not my countenanceפָּנֶהpânîym · faceH6440
- be sadיָרַעyâra‛ · quiverH3415
- when the cityעִיר‛îyr ‛âr ‛âyar · cityH5892
- the placeבֵּיתbayith · betweenH1004
- of my fathers’אָב'âb · fatherH1
- sepulchresקֶ֫בֶרqeber qibrâh · graveH6913
- wasteחָרֵבchârêb · desolateH2720
- and the gatesשַׁ֫עַרsha‛ar · gateH8179
- thereof are consumedאָכַל'âkal · to eatH398
- with fireאֵשׁ'êsh · fireH784
Cross-references for Nehemiah 2:3
- 1 Kings 1:31Bathsheba bowed down with her face to the ground, and laid herself face down before the king and said, “May my lord King David live forever!”
- Daniel 2:4Then the Chaldeans said to the king in Aramaic, “O king, live forever! Tell the dream to your servants, and we will declare the interpretation.”
- Daniel 3:9They said to King Nebuchadnezzar, “O king, live forever!
- Daniel 5:10Now the queen [mother], overhearing the [excited] words of the king and his nobles, came into the banquet area. The queen [mother] spoke and said, “O king, live forever! Do not be alarmed at your thoughts or let your face be changed.
- Daniel 6:6Then these commissioners and satraps agreed to approach the king and said to him, “King Darius, live forever!
- Nehemiah 1:3They said to me, “The remnant there in the province who survived the captivity are in great distress and reproach; the wall of Jerusalem is broken down and its [fortified] gates have been burned (destroyed) by fire.”
- Psalms 102:14For Your servants find [melancholy] pleasure in the stones [of her ruins] And feel pity for her dust.
- Psalms 137:6Let my tongue cling to the roof of my mouth If I do not remember you, If I do not prefer Jerusalem Above my chief joy.
- Lamentations 2:9Her gates have sunk into the ground; He has destroyed and broken her bars. Her king and her princes are [exiled] among the nations; The law is no more. Also, her prophets no longer find Vision from the Lord.
- 2 Chronicles 21:20Jehoram was thirty-two years old when he became king, and he reigned in Jerusalem eight years; and he departed with no one’s regret (sorrow). They buried him in the City of David, but not in the tombs of the kings.
- 2 Chronicles 28:27And Ahaz slept with his fathers [in death], and they buried him in the city, in Jerusalem, but they did not bring him into the tombs of the kings of Israel. And his son Hezekiah reigned in his place.
- 2 Chronicles 32:33So Hezekiah slept with his fathers [in death] and they buried him in the upper section of the tombs of the descendants of David; and all Judah and the inhabitants of Jerusalem honored him at his death. And his son Manasseh became king in his place.
Commentaries on Nehemiah 2:3
- Adam Clarke Bible Commentary · v. 3Let the king live for ever - Far from wishing ill to my master, I wish him on the contrary to live and prosper for ever. Aelian, Hist. Var. lib. i. c. 32, uses the same form of speech in reference to Artaxerxes Mnemon, one of the Persian kings, , ' , "O King Artaxerxes, may you reign for ever," when speaking of the custom of presenting them annually with an offering of earth and water; as if they had said, May you reign for ever over these!Read the comment
- Barnes’ Notes on the Bible · v. 3The city of my fathers‘ sepulchres - We may conclude from this that Nehemiah was of the tribe of Judah, as Eusebius and Jerome say that he was.Read the comment
- Tyndale Open Study Notes · v. 3Nehemiah showed his loyalty by saying, May the king live forever! (compare Daniel 2:4), but he still admitted his sadness.Read the comment
- Jamieson–Fausset–Brown Commentary · v. 2-52-5. the king said unto me, Why is thy countenance sad?--It was deemed highly unbecoming to appear in the royal presence with any weeds or signs of sorrow (Es 4:2); and hence it was no wonder that the king was struck with the dejected air of his cupbearer, while that attendant, on his part, felt his agitation increased by his deep anxiety about the issue of the conversation so abruptly begun. But the piety and intense earnestness of the man immediately…Read the comment
Topics related to Nehemiah 2:3
In the dictionaries
Commentaries on Nehemiah 2
- Adam Clarke Bible Commentary
- Barnes’ Notes on the Bible
- Matthew Henry Concise Commentary
- Tyndale Open Study Notes
- Jamieson–Fausset–Brown Commentary
- Rashi on Tanakh
- Keil & Delitzsch Commentary
- John Wesley’s Notes
- Darby Translation Notes
- Geneva Bible Translation Notes
- Kingcomments
- Matthew Henry’s Complete Commentary
- Matthew Henry’s Modern English Commentary
- Scofield Reference Notes, 1917 Edition
- Seventh-day Adventist Bible Commentary
- EGW Writings
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