Nehemiah 1:1–11 (November 20th, 2025)

Report from Jerusalem

1 The words of Nehemiah the son of Hacaliah.

Now it happened in the month of Chislev, in the twentieth year, as I was in Susa the citadel, 2 that Hanani, one of my brothers, came with certain men from Judah. And I asked them concerning the Jews who escaped, who had survived the exile, and concerning Jerusalem. 3 And they said to me, “The remnant there in the province who had survived the exile is in great trouble and shame. The wall of Jerusalem is broken down, and its gates are destroyed by fire.”

Nehemiah's Prayer

4 As soon as I heard these words I sat down and wept and mourned for days, and I continued fasting and praying before the God of heaven. 5 And I said, “O Lord God of heaven, the great and awesome God who keeps covenant and steadfast love with those who love him and keep his commandments, 6 let your ear be attentive and your eyes open, to hear the prayer of your servant that I now pray before you day and night for the people of Israel your servants, confessing the sins of the people of Israel, which we have sinned against you. Even I and my father's house have sinned. 7 We have acted very corruptly against you and have not kept the commandments, the statutes, and the rules that you commanded your servant Moses. 8 Remember the word that you commanded your servant Moses, saying, ‘If you are unfaithful, I will scatter you among the peoples, 9 but if you return to me and keep my commandments and do them, though your outcasts are in the uttermost parts of heaven, from there I will gather them and bring them to the place that I have chosen, to make my name dwell there.’ 10 They are your servants and your people, whom you have redeemed by your great power and by your strong hand. 11 O Lord, let your ear be attentive to the prayer of your servant, and to the prayer of your servants who delight to fear your name, and give success to your servant today, and grant him mercy in the sight of this man.”

Now I was cupbearer to the king.

Nehemiah 1_1-11Brian Lee

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Summary

The Book of Nehemiah begins not with action but with history. A Jewish man named Nehemiah served as the cupbearer to King Artaxerxes in the Persian citadel of Susa. The cupbearer to the king was a position of trust that only someone fully acclimated to Persian life could hold. Nehemiah was most likely born in exile, likely in Persia itself. He would be a second or third-generation Jew who had never seen Jerusalem yet remained profoundly tied to the covenant story of his people. His heart lived in Zion even while his body lived in Susa.

The date is precise:

“in the month of Chislev, in the twentieth year” (Nehemiah 1:1),

which corresponds to November/December 445 BC. This is nearly one hundred years after the first group of exiles returned under Zerubbabel (538 BC) and almost thirteen years after Ezra’s arrival with the king’s authorization for spiritual reform (458 BC). Nehemiah stands, therefore, as the third major leader in God’s great restoration project:

• Zerubbabel rebuilt the Temple.

• Ezra restored devotion to the Torah.

• Nehemiah would rebuild the walls and the community’s identity.

  
  

Historically, Ezra and Nehemiah were not separate books but one unified scroll because together they tell one story of return, rebuilding, repentance, and covenant renewal. Nehemiah 1 is not a new story but the continuation of Ezra’s work, the next chapter in God’s unfolding restoration.

When Nehemiah’s brother Hanani arrives with news from Jerusalem, Nehemiah asks with concern:

“How are the remnant? How is the city?” (v. 2).

The answer crushes him:

“The remnant there in the province who had survived the exile is in great trouble and shame. The wall of Jerusalem is broken down, and its gates are destroyed by fire” (v. 3).

Despite decades since the first return, the city remained defenseless, the people were discouraged, and the covenant community was vulnerable.

Nehemiah's response is recorded for us:

“I sat down and wept and mourned for days, and I continued fasting and praying before the God of heaven” (v. 4).

The story of rebuilding begins with tears, fasting, confession, and remembrance of God’s covenant promises.

Who is God?

God is transcendent and yet near.

He is “the God of heaven.” He is sovereign over empires, kings, timelines, and histories. Yet He is also the God who is near. He “keeps covenant and steadfast love with those who love him and keep his commandments” (v. 5). His greatness does not make Him distant, as some religions portray their gods.

His sovereignty does not mute His compassion. He is the God who hears the prayers of exiles, remembers the promises He made through Moses, and moves the hearts of pagan kings to secure the future of His people.

What is our Guilt?

Nehemiah refuses to sanitize Israel’s history or his own heart.

I now pray before you day and night for the people of Israel your servants, confessing the sins of the people of Israel, which we have sinned against you. Even I and my father's house have sinned. 7 We have acted very corruptly against you and have not kept the commandments, the statutes, and the rules that you commanded your servant Moses.

The ruins of Jerusalem are not the result of political miscalculation or military defeat. They are the visible consequences of spiritual disobedience. Like Israel, we minimize our drift—our neglect of God’s Word, our disordered loves, our divided loyalties. We grow accustomed to spiritual ruins: unattended worship, compromised priorities, thin obedience. Nehemiah’s confession ought to remind us that communal brokenness always has roots in personal and corporate sin. Before walls are rebuilt, hearts must be humbled.

How does Grace Shine?

Grace shines in Nehemiah’s prayer through his deep recollection of God’s promises. He quotes God’s own words through Moses. Even if Israel were scattered “to the farthest sky,” God Himself would gather them when they returned (vv. 8–9).

Grace, then, is God’s commitment to restore what His people have destroyed. It is God rebuilding what sin has ruined. Nehemiah appeals not to Israel’s worthiness but to God’s redemptive love.

“They are your servants whom you redeemed by your great power” (v. 10).

Ultimately, this grace culminates in Christ, who wept over Jerusalem, bore its shame, and through His cross and resurrection began the ultimate rebuilding of a new, redeemed humanity.

Prayer

Heavenly Father,

Teach us to weep over what you weep over. Give us a heart that remembers your promises more than our failures. You are the God who keeps covenant and steadfast love; rebuild in us what sin has damaged and renew our devotion to your Word. Strengthen us to act when you call us, and restore your people according to your mercy. In the name of Jesus Christ, we pray. Amen.