Nehemiah 1:3
in Nehemiah 1And they told me, “The remnant who survived the exile are there in the province, in great trouble and disgrace. The wall of Jerusalem is broken down, and its gates are burned with fire.”
BSB
The same verse in ASV and KJV ▾
ASV
And they said unto me, The remnant that are left of the captivity there in the province are in great affliction and reproach: the wall of Jerusalem also is broken down, and the gates thereof are burned with fire.
KJV
And they said unto me, The remnant that are left of the captivity there in the province are in great affliction and reproach: the wall of Jerusalem also is broken down, and the gates thereof are burned with fire.
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This verse in Nehemiah 1
Commentary
6 notes on this verseA commentator
Albert Barnes1798–1870
Notes, Explanatory and Practical, on the Old and New Testaments (1832-1869)
The attempt to rebuild the wall in the time of the Pseudo-Smerdis Ezr 4:12-24 had been stopped. It still remained in ruins. The Assyrian sculptures show that it was the usual practice to burn the gates.
This site's exposition
are burned with fire
on Nehemiah 1:3-4
Hanani's answer is stark: "The wall of Jerusalem is broken down, and its gates are burned with fire," a report reaching Susa. Nehemiah "sat down and wept," mourning, fasting and praying "before the God of heaven" (1:4). The mourning falls in Chislev, and the request waits until Nisan.
The record, by era
The Medieval Church1 voice
And they said to me: Those who remained and were left, etc. The sense of the letter is clear, because those who had remained from captivity, although they seemed to live in peace with the king of Persia being their friend, whom he had also …
The Puritans and the Awakening2 voices
2 ), that he feared God above many, and therefore would not only speak truly, but, when he spoke of the desolations of Jerusalem, would speak tenderly. It is probable that his errand to court at this time was to solicit some favour, some relief or other, that they stood in need of. Now the account he gives is, 1.
quarantine:debris (2026-07-29) — leading-citation-number+unbalanced-parens
And they said unto me, the remnant that are left of the captivity there in the province,....
The Nineteenth Century1 voice
The wall of Jerusalem also is broken down - This must refer to the walls, which had been rebuilt after the people returned from their captivity: for it could not refer to the walls which were broken down and levelled with the dust by Nebuchadnezzar; for to hear of this could be no news to Nehemiah.
How the passage was read
What the Jewish commentators add
And they said to me They answered my first question first and my latter question last; first, concerning the Jews and afterwards, concerning the wall and the gates.
This section is reception history: how the passage was read and kept in the Jewish tradition. Where a reading parts from an essential of the Christian faith, the section says so at that point.
Texts and citation data: Sefaria; each excerpt follows its version’s licence. 2 further sources are cited on this chapter that carry no English text this site may quote or only restate the verse.
The words behind it
18 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 |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| וַיֹּאמְרוּ֮ | vaiyomeru | and they said | H559 → | 5305 times |
| לִי֒ | li | to me | ||
| הַֽנִּשְׁאָרִ֞ים | hanisharim | the survivors | H7604 → | 133 times |
| אֲשֶֽׁר־ | ʾasher- | who | H834 → | 5497 times |
| נִשְׁאֲר֤וּ | nisharu | they have survived | H7604 → | 133 times |
| מִן־ | min- | from | H4480 → | 1188 times |
| הַשְּׁבִי֙ | hashevi | the captivity | H7628 → | 49 times |
| שָׁ֣ם | sham | there | H8033 → | 834 times |
| בַּמְּדִינָ֔ה | bamedinah | in the province | H4082 → | 53 times |
| בְּרָעָ֥ה | beraah | [are] in trouble | H7451 → | 662 times |
| גְדֹלָ֖ה | gedolah | great | H1419 → | 526 times |
| וּבְחֶרְפָּ֑ה | uvecherpah | and in disgrace | H2781 → | 73 times |
| וְחוֹמַ֤ת | vechomat | and [the] wall of | H2346 → | 133 times |
| יְרוּשָׁלִַ֙ם֙ | yerushalim | Jerusalem | H3389 → | 643 times |
| מְפֹרָ֔צֶת | meforatzet | [has been] broken down | H6555 → | 49 times |
| וּשְׁעָרֶ֖יהָ | usheareiha | and gates its | H8179 → | 374 times |
| נִצְּת֥וּ | nitzetu | they have been burned | H3341 → | |
| בָאֵֽשׁ׃ | vaesh | with <the> fire | H784 → | 378 times |
וַיֹּאמְרוּ֮and they said
vaiyomeruH559 →5305 times
לִי֒to me
li
הַֽנִּשְׁאָרִ֞יםthe survivors
hanisharimH7604 →133 times
אֲשֶֽׁר־who
ʾasher-H834 →5497 times
נִשְׁאֲר֤וּthey have survived
nisharuH7604 →133 times
מִן־from
min-H4480 →1188 times
הַשְּׁבִי֙the captivity
hasheviH7628 →49 times
שָׁ֣םthere
shamH8033 →834 times
בַּמְּדִינָ֔הin the province
bamedinahH4082 →53 times
בְּרָעָ֥ה[are] in trouble
beraahH7451 →662 times
גְדֹלָ֖הgreat
gedolahH1419 →526 times
וּבְחֶרְפָּ֑הand in disgrace
uvecherpahH2781 →73 times
וְחוֹמַ֤תand [the] wall of
vechomatH2346 →133 times
יְרוּשָׁלִַ֙ם֙Jerusalem
yerushalimH3389 →643 times
מְפֹרָ֔צֶת[has been] broken down
meforatzetH6555 →49 times
וּשְׁעָרֶ֖יהָand gates its
usheareihaH8179 →374 times
נִצְּת֥וּthey have been burned
nitzetuH3341 →
בָאֵֽשׁ׃with <the> fire
vaeshH784 →378 times
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
Nehemiah 2:17Then I said to them, “You see the trouble we are in. Jerusalem lies in ruins, and its gates have been burned down. Come, let us rebuild the wall of Jerusalem, so that we…
it leads to
- Ezekiel 5:14
I will make you a ruin and a disgrace among the nations around you, in the sight of all who pass by.
- Isaiah 35:3–4
Strengthen the limp hands and steady the feeble knees!
- Psalms 79:4
We have become a reproach to our neighbors, a scorn and derision to those around us.
- Lamentations 3:51
My eyes bring grief to my soul because of all the daughters of my city.
- Lamentations 3:45–46
You have made us scum and refuse among the nations.
- Ezekiel 5:14
Through
Nehemiah 2:13So I went out at night through the Valley Gate toward the Well of the Serpent and the Dung Gate, and I inspected the walls of Jerusalem that had been broken down and the…
it leads to
- Nehemiah 2:3
and replied to the king, “May the king live forever! Why should I not be sad when the city where my fathers are buried lies in ruins, and its gates have been destroyed by…
- Nehemiah 2:17
Then I said to them, “You see the trouble we are in. Jerusalem lies in ruins, and its gates have been burned down. Come, let us rebuild the wall of Jerusalem, so that we…
- 2 Chronicles 26:9
Uzziah built towers in Jerusalem at the Corner Gate, the Valley Gate, and the angle in the wall, and he fortified them.
- Nehemiah 2:3
Where this verse is studied
About Nehemiah
Who and where
1 name in this verse with a page on the site.
This page draws on Adam Clarke, Commentary on the Bible; Albert Barnes, Notes, Explanatory and Practical, on the Old and New Testaments (1832-1869); Bede, Commentary on Ezra and Nehemiah; John Gill, Exposition of the Old Testament; John Gill, Exposition of the Old Testament (1748-1763) and Matthew Henry, Commentary on the Whole Bible.