Nehemiah 2:6
in Nehemiah 2Then the king, with the queen seated beside him, asked me, “How long will your journey take, and when will you return?” So it pleased the king to send me, and I set a time.
BSB
The same verse in ASV and KJV ▾
ASV
And the king said unto me (the queen also sitting by him), For how long shall thy journey be? and when wilt thou return? So it pleased the king to send me; and I set him a time.
KJV
And the king said unto me, (the queen also sitting by him,) For how long shall thy journey be? and when wilt thou return? So it pleased the king to send me; and I set him a time.
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This verse in Nehemiah 2
Commentary
4 notes on this verseThe queen also sitting by him - Who probably forwarded his suit. This was not Esther, as Dean Prideaux supposes, nor perhaps the same Artaxerxes who had taken her to be queen; nor does שגל shegal signify queen, but rather harlot or concubine, she who was chief favourite. The Septuagint translate it παλλακη, harlot; and properly too. See the introduction.
This site's exposition
found favour in thy sight
on Nehemiah 2:5-6
Nehemiah asks two things at once, that the king send him and that he be allowed to build, framing the whole request as a matter of the king's favor rather than a right. The king's answer comes in an unexpected form: a return date requested, a length of time set, so that what is granted is not open leave but a governorship with a term attached. The queen sits by him as the request is made, and Matthew Henry weighs whether her presence helped or hindered without settling it, since the text itself gives no verdict either way. The good hand of Nehemiah's God is already at work in this exchange, though the phrase itself is not spoken until two verses later.
The record, by era
The Puritans and the Awakening1 voice
The queen - Which is here noted, as an unusual thing; for commonly the kings of Persia dined alone, and perhaps because the queen expressed some kindness to him, and promoted his request. How long - This question shewed the king's affection to him, and that he was not willing to want his attendance longer than was necessary.
The Nineteenth Century1 voice
A commentator
Jamieson, Fausset & Brown1802–1910
Commentary Critical and Explanatory on the Whole Bible (1871)
on Nehemiah 2:6-9
I set him a time--Considering the great despatch made in raising the walls, it is probable that this leave of absence was limited at first to a year or six months, after which he returned to his duties in Shushan.
The words behind it
19 Hebrew wordsEvery Hebrew word of this verse in the order it stands, with what it means and the door to its own study. The last column counts the times a word stands in the whole Bible: the rarer the word, the more the places it appears belong together.
| Hebrew | Sound | Meaning | Word study | In the Bible |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| וַיֹּאמֶר֩ | vaiyomer | and he said | H559 → | 5305 times |
| לִ֨י | li | to me | ||
| הַמֶּ֜לֶךְ | hamelekh | the king | H4428 → | 2525 times |
| וְהַשֵּׁגַ֣ל׀ | vehashegal | and the queen-consort | H7694 → | |
| יוֹשֶׁ֣בֶת | yoshevet | [was] sitting | H3427 → | 1079 times |
| אֶצְל֗וֹ | ʾetzlo | beside him | H681 → | 61 times |
| עַד־ | ʾad- | until | H5704 → | 1261 times |
| מָתַ֛י | matai | when? | H4970 → | |
| יִהְיֶ֥ה | yihyeh | will it be | H1961 → | 3559 times |
| מַֽהֲלָכֲךָ֖ | mahalakhakha | journey your | H4109 → | |
| וּמָתַ֣י | umatai | and when? | H4970 → | |
| תָּשׁ֑וּב | tashuv | will you return | H7725 → | 1056 times |
| וַיִּיטַ֤ב | vaiyitav | and it was good | H3190 → | |
| לִפְנֵֽי־ | lifnei- | <to> before | H6440 → | 2123 times |
| הַמֶּ֙לֶךְ֙ | hamelekh | the king | H4428 → | 2525 times |
| וַיִּשְׁלָחֵ֔נִי | vaiyishlacheni | and he sent me | H7971 → | 845 times |
| וָֽאֶתְּנָ֥ה | vaetenah | and I gave ! | H5414 → | 2011 times |
| ל֖וֹ | lo | to him | ||
| זְמָֽן׃ | zeman | a time | H2165 → |
וַיֹּאמֶר֩and he said
vaiyomerH559 →5305 times
לִ֨יto me
li
הַמֶּ֜לֶךְthe king
hamelekhH4428 →2525 times
וְהַשֵּׁגַ֣ל׀and the queen-consort
vehashegalH7694 →
יוֹשֶׁ֣בֶת[was] sitting
yoshevetH3427 →1079 times
אֶצְל֗וֹbeside him
ʾetzloH681 →61 times
עַד־until
ʾad-H5704 →1261 times
מָתַ֛יwhen?
mataiH4970 →
יִהְיֶ֥הwill it be
yihyehH1961 →3559 times
מַֽהֲלָכֲךָ֖journey your
mahalakhakhaH4109 →
וּמָתַ֣יand when?
umataiH4970 →
תָּשׁ֑וּבwill you return
tashuvH7725 →1056 times
וַיִּיטַ֤בand it was good
vaiyitavH3190 →
לִפְנֵֽי־<to> before
lifnei-H6440 →2123 times
הַמֶּ֙לֶךְ֙the king
hamelekhH4428 →2525 times
וַיִּשְׁלָחֵ֔נִיand he sent me
vaiyishlacheniH7971 →845 times
וָֽאֶתְּנָ֥הand I gave !
vaetenahH5414 →2011 times
ל֖וֹto him
lo
זְמָֽן׃a time
zemanH2165 →
A shaded row is a word that stands 400 times or fewer in the Bible.
The walk
8 stopsEach card is a verse this one points to, and under it the verses that one points to in turn. Where several paths arrive at the same place, that place is listed first: the text keeps returning to it.
Through
Isaiah 65:24Even before they call, I will answer, and while they are still speaking, I will hear.
it leads to
- Daniel 10:12
“Do not be afraid, Daniel,” he said, “for from the first day that you purposed to understand and to humble yourself before your God, your words were heard, and I have come in response…
- 1 John 5:14–15
And this is the confidence that we have before Him: If we ask anything according to His will, He hears us.
- Mark 11:24
Therefore I tell you, whatever you ask for in prayer, believe that you have received it, and it will be yours.
- Isaiah 58:9
Then you will call, and the LORD will answer; you will cry out, and He will say, ‘Here I am.’ If you remove the yoke from your midst, the pointing of the finger and…
- Psalms 91:15
When he calls out to Me, I will answer him; I will be with him in trouble. I will deliver him and honor him.
- Daniel 10:12
Through
Isaiah 58:12Your people will rebuild the ancient ruins; you will restore the age-old foundations; you will be called Repairer of the Breach, Restorer of the Streets of Dwelling.
it leads to
- Isaiah 61:4
They will rebuild the ancient ruins; they will restore the places long devastated; they will renew the ruined cities, the desolations of many generations.
- Amos 9:14
I will restore My people Israel from captivity; they will rebuild and inhabit the ruined cities. They will plant vineyards and drink their wine; they will make gardens and eat their fruit.
- Ezekiel 36:33
This is what the Lord GOD says: On the day I cleanse you from all your iniquities, I will cause the cities to be resettled and the ruins to be rebuilt.
- Isaiah 61:4
Where this verse is studied
On this page
Studies2
On this verse
On this chapter
About Nehemiah
This page draws on Adam Clarke, Commentary on the Bible; Jamieson, Fausset & Brown, Commentary Critical and Explanatory on the Whole Bible; John Wesley, Explanatory Notes upon the Old Testament and Matthew Henry, Commentary on the Whole Bible.