Nehemiah 2:8

Nehemiah 2:8 in other versions

• King James Version (KJV)And a letter unto Asaph the keeper of the king’s forest, that he may give me timber to make beams for the gates of the palace which appertained to the house, and for the wall of the city, and for the house that I shall enter into. And the king granted me, according to the good hand of my God upon me.
• English Standard Version (ESV)and a letter to Asaph, the keeper of the king's forest, that he may give me timber to make beams for the gates of the fortress of the temple, and for the wall of the city, and for the house that I shall occupy." And the king granted me what I asked, for the good hand of my God was upon me.
• New King James Version (NKJV)and a letter to Asaph the keeper of the king’s forest, that he must give me timber to make beams for the gates of the citadel which pertains to the temple, for the city wall, and for the house that I will occupy.” And the king granted them to me according to the good hand of my God upon me.
• New Living Translation (NLT)And please give me a letter addressed to Asaph, the manager of the king’s forest, instructing him to give me timber. I will need it to make beams for the gates of the Temple fortress, for the city walls, and for a house for myself.” And the king granted these requests, because the gracious hand of God was on me.

Context of Nehemiah 2:8

6Then the king, with the queen sitting beside him, asked me, “How long will your journey take, and when will you get back?” It pleased the king to send me; so I set a time. 7I also said to him, “If it pleases the king, may I have letters to the governors of Trans-Euphrates, so that they will provide me safe-conduct until I arrive in Judah? And may I have a letter to Asaph, keeper of the royal park, so he will give me timber to make beams for the gates of the citadel by the temple and for the city wall and for the residence I will occupy?” And because the gracious hand of my God was on me, the king granted my requests. 9So I went to the governors of Trans-Euphrates and gave them the king’s letters. The king had also sent army officers and cavalry with me. 10When Sanballat the Horonite and Tobiah the Ammonite official heard about this, they were very much disturbed that someone had come to promote the welfare of the Israelites.

Nehemiah 2:8 word by word

וְאִגֶּ֡רֶת אֶל־אָסָף֩ שֹׁמֵ֨ר הַפַּרְדֵּ֜ס אֲשֶׁ֣ר לַמֶּ֗לֶךְ אֲשֶׁ֣ר יִתֶּן־לִ֣י עֵצִ֡ים לְ֠קָרוֹת אֶת־שַׁעֲרֵ֨י הַבִּירָ֤ה אֲשֶׁר־לַבַּ֙יִת֙ וּלְחוֹמַ֣ת הָעִ֔יר וְלַבַּ֖יִת אֲשֶׁר־אָב֣וֹא אֵלָ֑יו וַיִּתֶּן־לִ֣י הַמֶּ֔לֶךְ כְּיַד־אֱלֹהַ֖י הַטּוֹבָ֥ה עָלָֽי׃Read the interlinear

Words taken from the KJV.

• And a letterאִגֶּ֫רֶת'iggereth · letterH107
• unto Asaphאָסָף'âsâph · AsaphH623
• the keeperשָׁמַרshâmar · to keep: guardH8104
• of the king’sמֶ֫לֶךְmelek · kingH4428
• forestפַּרְדֵּסpardês · parkH6508
• that he may giveנָתַןnâthan · to give: giveH5414
• me timberעֵץ‛êts · tree: woodH6086
• to make beamsקָרָהqârâh · to lay beamsH7136
• for the gatesשַׁ֫עַרsha‛ar · gateH8179
• of the palaceבִּירָהbîyrâh · palaceH1002
• to the houseבַּ֫יִתbayith · house: homeH1004
• and for the wallחוֹמָהchômâh · wallH2346
• of the cityעִיר‛îyr ‛âr ‛âyar · cityH5892
• that I shall enter intoבּוֹאbô' · to come (in): comeH935
• me, according to the goodטוֹבţôb · pleasantH2896
• handיָדyâd · hand: powerH3027
• of my Godאֱלֹהִים'ĕlôhîym · GodH430

Cross-references for Nehemiah 2:8

• Nehemiah 2:17Then I said to them, “You see the trouble we are in: Jerusalem lies in ruins, and its gates have been burned with fire. Come, let us rebuild the wall of Jerusalem, and we will no longer be in disgrace.”
• Nehemiah 3:1Eliashib the high priest and his fellow priests went to work and rebuilt the Sheep Gate. They dedicated it and set its doors in place, building as far as the Tower of the Hundred, which they dedicated, and as far as the Tower of Hananel.
• Nehemiah 3:7Next to them, repairs were made by men from Gibeon and Mizpah—Melatiah of Gibeon and Jadon of Meronoth—places under the authority of the governor of Trans-Euphrates.
• Nehemiah 7:2I put in charge of Jerusalem my brother Hanani, along with Hananiah the commander of the citadel, because he was a man of integrity and feared God more than most people do.
• Nehemiah 2:18I also told them about the gracious hand of my God on me and what the king had said to me. They replied, “Let us start rebuilding.” So they began this good work.
• Genesis 32:28Then the man said, “Your name will no longer be Jacob, but Israel, because you have struggled with God and with humans and have overcome.”
• Ezra 5:5But the eye of their God was watching over the elders of the Jews, and they were not stopped until a report could go to Darius and his written reply be received.
• Ezra 6:22For seven days they celebrated with joy the Festival of Unleavened Bread, because the Lord had filled them with joy by changing the attitude of the king of Assyria so that he assisted them in the work on the house of God, the God of Israel.
• Ezra 7:6this Ezra came up from Babylon. He was a teacher well versed in the Law of Moses, which the Lord, the God of Israel, had given. The king had granted him everything he asked, for the hand of the Lord his God was on him.
• Proverbs 21:1In the Lord’s hand the king’s heart is a stream of water that he channels toward all who please him.
• Isaiah 66:14When you see this, your heart will rejoice and you will flourish like grass; the hand of the Lord will be made known to his servants, but his fury will be shown to his foes.
• Daniel 1:9Now God had caused the official to show favor and compassion to Daniel,
• Acts 7:10and rescued him from all his troubles. He gave Joseph wisdom and enabled him to gain the goodwill of Pharaoh king of Egypt. So Pharaoh made him ruler over Egypt and all his palace.
• Acts 26:22But God has helped me to this very day; so I stand here and testify to small and great alike. I am saying nothing beyond what the prophets and Moses said would happen—
• 2 Corinthians 8:16Thanks be to God, who put into the heart of Titus the same concern I have for you.

Commentaries on Nehemiah 2:8

• Adam Clarke Bible Commentary · v. 8Asaph the keeper of the king's forest - הפרדס hapardes of the paradise of the king. This I believe is originally a Persian word; it frequently occurs in Arabic, ferdoos, and in Greek, , and in both signifies a pleasant garden, vineyard, pleasure garden, and what we call a paradise. Above the hall of audience, in the imperial palace at Dehli, the following Persian couplet is inscribed: - "If there be a paradise on the face of the earth, this is it, this is…Read the comment
• Barnes’ Notes on the Bible · v. 8The king‘s forest - Rather, park. The word used פרדס pardês compare ́ paradeisos found only here, in Ecclesiastes 2:5, and in Song of Song of Solomon 4:13 ), is of Persian, or at any rate of Aryan origin. The Persians signified by pariyadeza a walled enclosure, ornamented with trees, either planted or of natural growth, and containing numerous wild animals. The “paradise” here mentioned must have been in the neighborhood of Jerusalem, and may have…Read the comment
• Tyndale Open Study Notes · v. 8Temple fortress might mean the Tower of Hananel or the Tower of the Hundred. the gracious hand of my God was upon me: Nehemiah understood that God guided the king to grant these requests.Read the comment
• Jamieson–Fausset–Brown Commentary · v. 6-96-9. the queen also sitting by him--As the Persian monarchs did not admit their wives to be present at their state festivals, this must have been a private occasion. The queen referred to was probably Esther, whose presence would tend greatly to embolden Nehemiah in stating his request; and through her influence, powerfully exerted it may be supposed, also by her sympathy with the patriotic design, his petition was granted, to go as deputy governor of…Read the comment

Topics related to Nehemiah 2:8

• Asaph
• Country
• Letters
• Nehemiah
• Passports

In the dictionaries

• Asaph
• God
• Fenced cities
• Forest
• Gate
• Laugh
• Palace
• Reproach
• Scorn
• Appertain

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