Nehemia 2:1-8

Nehemiah Is Permitted to Go to Jerusalem

2:1 Then in the month of Nisan, in the twentieth year of King Artaxerxes, when wine was brought to me, ¹  I took the wine and gave it to the king. Previously ²  I had not been depressed ³  in the king’s presence. ⁴  2:2 So the king said to me, “Why do you appear to be depressed when you aren’t sick? What can this be other than sadness of heart?” This made me very fearful.

2:3 I replied to the king, “O king, live forever! Why would I not appear dejected when the city with the graves of my ancestors ⁵  lies desolate and its gates destroyed ⁶  by fire?” 2:4 The king responded, ⁷  “What is it you are seeking?” Then I quickly prayed to the God of heaven 2:5 and said to the king, “If the king is so inclined ⁸  and if your servant has found favor in your sight, dispatch me to Judah, to the city with the graves of my ancestors, so that I can rebuild it.” 2:6 Then the king, with his consort ⁹  sitting beside him, replied, “How long would your trip take, and when would you return?” Since the king was amenable to dispatching me, ¹⁰  I gave him a time. 2:7 I said to the king, “If the king is so inclined, let him give me letters for the governors of Trans-Euphrates ¹¹  that will enable me to travel safely until I reach Judah, 2:8 and a letter for Asaph the keeper of the king’s nature preserve, ¹²  so that he will give me timber for beams for the gates of the fortress adjacent to the temple and for the city wall ¹³  and for the house to which I go.” So the king granted me these requests, ¹⁴  for the good hand of my God was on me.

Daniel 9:25

9:25 So know and understand:

From the issuing of the command ¹⁵  to restore and rebuild

Jerusalem ¹⁶  until an anointed one, a prince arrives, ¹⁷ 

there will be a period of seven weeks ¹⁸  and sixty-two weeks.

It will again be built, ¹⁹  with plaza and moat,

but in distressful times.

Hagai 1:1

Introduction

1:1 On the first day of the sixth month ²⁰  of King Darius’ ²¹  second year, the Lord spoke this message through the prophet Haggai ²²  to Zerubbabel son of Shealtiel, governor of Judah, and to the high priest Joshua son of Jehozadak: ²³ 

Hagai 1:15

1:15 This took place on the twenty-fourth day of the sixth month of King Darius’ second year. ²⁴ 

Zakharia 1:1

Introduction

1:1 In the eighth month of Darius’ ²⁵  second year, ²⁶  the word of the Lord came to the prophet Zechariah, ²⁷  son of Berechiah son of Iddo, as follows:

[2:1]  ¹ tc The translation reads with the LXX וְיַיִן לְפָנַי (vÿyayin lÿfanay, “and wine before me”) rather than יַיִן לְפָנָיו (yayin lÿfanayv, “wine before him”) of the MT. The initial vav (ו) on original וְיַיִן probably dropped out due to haplograpy or orthographic confusion with the two yods (י) which follow. The final vav on לְפָנָיו in the MT was probably added due to dittography with the vav on the immediately following word.

[2:1]  ² tc The translation reads לְפָנֵים (lÿfanim, “formerly”) rather than לְפָנָיו (lÿfanayv, “to his face”) of the MT. The MT seems to suggest that Nehemiah was not sad before the king, which is contrary to what follows.

[2:1]  ³ tn Or “showed him a sullen face.” See HALOT 1251 s.v. רַע, רָע 9.

[2:1]  ⁴ tn This expression is either to be inferred from the context, or perhaps one should read לְפָנָיו (lÿfanayv, “before him”; cf. the MT) in addition to לְפָנִים (lÿfanim, “formerly”). See preceding note on the word “previously.”

[2:3]  ⁵ tn Heb “fathers” (also in v. 5).

[2:3]  ⁶ tn Heb “devoured” or “eaten” (so also in Neh 2:13).

[2:4]  ⁷ tn Heb “said to me.”

[2:5]  ⁸ tn Heb “If upon the king it is good.” So also in v. 7.

[2:6]  ⁹ tn Or “queen,” so most English versions (cf. HALOT 1415 s.v. שֵׁגַל); TEV “empress.”

[2:6]  ¹⁰ tn Heb “It was good before the king and he sent me.”

[2:7]  ¹¹ tn Heb “across the river,” here and often elsewhere in the Book of Nehemiah.

[2:8]  ¹² tn Or “forest.” So HALOT 963 s.v. פַּרְדֵּס 2.

[2:8]  ¹³ tc One medieval Hebrew MS, the Syriac Peshitta, Vulgate, and the Arabic read here the plural וּלְחוֹמוֹת (ulÿkhomot, “walls”) against the singular וּלְחוֹמַת (ulÿkhomat) in the MT. The plural holem vav (וֹ) might have dropped out due to dittography or the plural form might have been written defectively.

[2:8]  ¹⁴ tn The Hebrew text does not include the expression “these requests,” but it is implied.

[9:25]  ¹⁵ tn Or “decree” (NASB, NIV); or “word” (NAB, NRSV).

[9:25]  ¹⁶ map For location see Map5 B1; Map6 F3; Map7 E2; Map8 F2; Map10 B3; JP1 F4; JP2 F4; JP3 F4; JP4 F4.

[9:25]  ¹⁷ tn The word “arrives” is added in the translation for clarification.

[9:25]  ¹⁸ tn Heb “sevens” (also later in this line and in v. 26).

[9:25]  sn The accents in the MT indicate disjunction at this point, which would make it difficult, if not impossible, to identify the “anointed one/prince” of this verse as messianic. The reference in v. 26 to the sixty-two weeks as a unit favors the MT accentuation, not the traditional translation. If one follows the MT accentuation, one may translate “From the going forth of the message to restore and rebuild Jerusalem until an anointed one, a prince arrives, there will be a period of seven weeks. During a period of sixty-two weeks it will again be built, with plaza and moat, but in distressful times.” The present translation follows a traditional reading of the passage that deviates from the MT accentuation.

[9:25]  ¹⁹ tn Heb “it will return and be built.” The expression is a verbal hendiadys.

[1:1]  ²⁰ sn The first day of the sixth month was Elul 1 according to the Jewish calendar; August 29, 520 b.c. according to the modern (Julian) calendar.

[1:1]  ²¹ sn King Darius is the Persian king Darius Hystaspes who ruled from 522-486 b.c.

[1:1]  ²² tn Heb “the word of the Lord came by the hand of Haggai the prophet” (בְּיַד־חַגַּי, bÿyad-khaggay). This suggests that the prophet is only an instrument of the Lord; the Lord is to be viewed as the true author (see 1:3; 2:1; Mal 1:1).

[1:1]  ²³ tn The typical translation “Joshua (the) son of Jehozadak, the high priest” (cf. ASV, NASB, NIV, NRSV) can be understood to mean that Jehozadak was high priest. However, Zech 3:1, 8 clearly indicates that Joshua was high priest (see also Ezra 5:1-2; cf. NAB). The same potential misunderstanding occurs in Hag 1:12, 14 and 2:2, where the same solution has been employed in the translation.

[1:15]  ²⁴ sn The twenty-fourth day of the sixth month of King Darius’ second year was September 21, 520 b.c., twenty-three days after the original command by Haggai to rebuild (1:1). The text does not state the reason for the delay, but it may have resulted from the pressing need to bring in the late summer harvest.

[1:1]  ²⁵ sn Darius is Darius Hystaspes, king of Persia from 522-486 b.c.

[1:1]  ²⁶ sn The eighth month of Darius’ second year was late October – late November, 520 b.c., by the modern (Julian) calendar. This is two months later than the date of Haggai’s first message to the same community (cf. Hag 1:1).

[1:1]  ²⁷ sn Both Ezra (5:1; 6:14) and Nehemiah (12:16) speak of Zechariah as a son of Iddo only. A probable explanation is that Zechariah’s actual father Berechiah had died and the prophet was raised by his grandfather Iddo. The “Zechariah son of Barachiah” of whom Jesus spoke (Matt 23:35; Luke 11:51) was probably the martyred prophet by that name who may have been a grandson of the priest Jehoiada (2 Chr 24:20-22).