Nehemiah 1:1-11
A Prayer for a Broken City
Read the passage
1These are the words of Nehemiah son of Hacaliah: In the month of Chislev, in the twentieth year, while I was in the citadel of Susa,
2Hanani, one of my brothers, arrived with men from Judah. So I questioned them about the remnant of the Jews who had survived the exile, and also about Jerusalem.
3And 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 have been burned with fire.”
4When I heard these words, I sat down and wept. I mourned for days, fasting and praying before the God of heaven.
5Then I said: “O LORD, God of heaven, the great and awesome God who keeps His covenant of loving devotion with those who love Him and keep His commandments,
6let Your eyes be open and Your ears attentive to hear the prayer that I, Your servant, now pray before You day and night for Your servants, the Israelites. I confess the sins that we Israelites have committed against You. Both I and my father’s house have sinned.
7We have behaved corruptly against You and have not kept the commandments, statutes, and ordinances that You gave Your servant Moses.
8Remember, I pray, the word that You commanded Your servant Moses when You said, ‘If you are unfaithful, I will scatter you among the nations,
9but if you return to Me and keep and practice My commandments, then even if your exiles have been banished to the farthest horizon, I will gather them from there and bring them to the place I have chosen as a dwelling for My Name.’
10They are Your servants and Your people. You redeemed them by Your great power and mighty hand.
11O Lord, may Your ear be attentive to my prayer and to the prayers of Your servants who delight to revere Your name. Give Your servant success this day, I pray, and grant him mercy in the sight of this man.” (At that time I was the cupbearer to the king.)
Berean Standard Bible
Read aloud
Nehemiah asks about Jerusalem and hears that the remnant is in trouble and disgrace. The wall is broken and the gates have been burned. He does not treat the news as somebody else's problem.
When I heard these words, I sat down and wept. I mourned for days, fasting and praying before the God of heaven.
His prayer begins with God's character: great, awesome, faithful to his covenant, and attentive to those who love him. Then Nehemiah confesses the sins of Israel, including his own household. He does not stand outside the people he is asking God to restore.
He remembers God's promise to gather a scattered people who return to him. The prayer moves from grief to the possibility of return, then ends with a request for favor before the king. He calls Israel the people God has redeemed by His great power. His hope rests on the LORD's commitment to them. The chapter ends by identifying Nehemiah's role: he is the king's cupbearer. The request for mercy concerns the ruler he serves.
Questions
1 What news did Nehemiah receive?
AnswerThe remnant in Judah is in trouble and disgrace, and Jerusalem's wall is broken down while its gates have been burned. The report describes both public vulnerability and communal shame.
2 How did Nehemiah respond?
AnswerNehemiah wept, mourned, fasted, and prayed before the God of heaven. His first response to the city's condition was grief brought honestly into God's presence.
3 What did Nehemiah confess?
AnswerHe confessed the sins of the Israelites, including his own family and himself. He remembered God's covenant and admitted that the people had not obeyed the commands given through Moses.
4 What did he ask God to grant?
AnswerHe asked God to remember His promise to gather the scattered people and to grant him success and mercy before the king. His prayer joins repentance with a request for action.
What This Means for Us
Nehemiah brings Jerusalem's trouble to the God who has redeemed His people and promised to gather them. He includes himself in the confession instead of describing everyone else's failures from a distance.
When troubling news reaches your family, pray for the people affected. If you have contributed to the harm, confess what you actually did or neglected. Then ask God to show you how to help. You do not have to solve the whole problem before bringing it to Him.
Prayer
God of heaven, make us attentive to what is broken. Give us honest confession, steady hope, and wisdom for the next faithful step. Amen.