King James Version
Nehemiah
Nehemiah in the King James Version (1769), public domain in the United States.
Background and History
The chapters above are the King James text. This essay is the setting of Nehemiah: who is said to have written it, when and where, what happens in it, and how the text has been copied.
At a Glance
| Author | Nehemiah, whose memoir is in the first person, with Ezra’s work completed by him in the Talmud. Critical scholars often assign the final book to the Chronicler or a later editor. |
|---|---|
| Date | 430–400 BC in one survey. Critical scholars date the combined Ezra and Nehemiah about 400–300 BC. |
| Place written | Not stated. Jerusalem, in the Persian province of Yehud. |
| Genre | First-person memoir and history of the rebuilding of Jerusalem’s walls. |
| Chapters | 13 |
| Verses | 406 in the King James Version |
| Key verse | Nehemiah 8:10Nehemiah 8:10 · King James VersionThen he said unto them, Go your way, eat the fat, and drink the sweet, and send portions unto them for whom nothing is prepared: for this day is holy unto our LORD: neither be ye sorry; for the joy of the LORD is your strength.Nehemiah 8:10 · King James VersionOpen the Source |
Who Wrote It
Nehemiah 1:1Nehemiah 1:1 · King James VersionThe words of Nehemiah the son of Hachaliah. And it came to pass in the month Chisleu, in the twentieth year, as I was in Shushan the palace,
Nehemiah 1:1 · King James VersionOpen the Source (1) opens with the words of Nehemiah the son of Hachaliah, and much of the book is his memoir. The Talmud says Nehemiah completed what Ezra wrote. (2) Critical scholars widely accept the memoir as authentic and debate the editing of the rest.
Who It Is Not
Ezra appears in Nehemiah 8 reading the law. He is not named as author of this part.
When and Where
Bible Gateway gives 430–400 BC. (5) Nehemiah 1:1Nehemiah 1:1 · King James VersionThe words of Nehemiah the son of Hachaliah. And it came to pass in the month Chisleu, in the twentieth year, as I was in Shushan the palace,
Nehemiah 1:1 · King James VersionOpen the Source and Nehemiah 13:6Nehemiah 13:6 · King James VersionBut in all this time was not I at Jerusalem: for in the two and thirtieth year of Artaxerxes king of Babylon came I unto the king, and after certain days obtained I leave of the king:
Nehemiah 13:6 · King James VersionOpen the Source (1) place the events in the twentieth and thirty-second years of Artaxerxes.
Audience and Setting
The returned community. The purpose is to show God’s hand in rebuilding the walls and renewing the covenant.
Rulers at the Time
Artaxerxes king of Persia, in Nehemiah 2:1Nehemiah 2:1 · King James VersionAnd it came to pass in the month Nisan, in the twentieth year of Artaxerxes the king, that wine was before him: and I took up the wine, and gave it unto the king. Now I had not been beforetime sad in his presence.
Nehemiah 2:1 · King James VersionOpen the Source. Sanballat and Tobiah oppose the work. Reign dates were not checked for this essay and are omitted.
| When | What |
|---|---|
| Nehemiah’s prayer and commission | Nehemiah 1–2 |
| Walls rebuilt | Nehemiah 3–7 |
| Covenant renewal | Nehemiah 8–10 |
| Reforms | Nehemiah 11–13 |
| Composition | 430–400 BC in one survey. (5) |
Places in This Book
| Ancient name | Modern-day location | References |
|---|---|---|
| Shushan | Susa, near Shush, Khuzestan Province, Iran. | Nehemiah 1:1Nehemiah 1:1 · King James VersionThe words of Nehemiah the son of Hachaliah. And it came to pass in the month Chisleu, in the twentieth year, as I was in Shushan the palace,Nehemiah 1:1 · King James VersionOpen the Source |
| Jerusalem | The Old City of Jerusalem. | Nehemiah 2:11Nehemiah 2:11 · King James VersionSo I came to Jerusalem, and was there three days.Nehemiah 2:11 · King James VersionOpen the Source |
What Is Happening
Nehemiah 1–7 tell of the walls rebuilt in the face of opposition. Nehemiah 8–10 are the reading of the law and covenant renewal. Nehemiah 11–13 are repopulation and reforms.
Key Themes
Prayer and action in Nehemiah 4:9Nehemiah 4:9 · King James VersionNevertheless we made our prayer unto our God, and set a watch against them day and night, because of them.
Nehemiah 4:9 · King James VersionOpen the Source. The joy of the Lord in Nehemiah 8:10Nehemiah 8:10 · King James VersionThen he said unto them, Go your way, eat the fat, and drink the sweet, and send portions unto them for whom nothing is prepared: for this day is holy unto our LORD: neither be ye sorry; for the joy of the LORD is your strength.
Nehemiah 8:10 · King James VersionOpen the Source.
Apologetics Questions
Elephantine papyri from Egypt mention Sanballat as governor of Samaria. This page did not check a museum page for them and names them only as known documents. The relative order of Ezra and Nehemiah is debated.
How the Book Points to Christ
The rebuilt city prepares for the coming of the King. Daniel 9:25Daniel 9:25 · King James VersionKnow therefore and understand, that from the going forth of the commandment to restore and to build Jerusalem unto the Messiah the Prince shall be seven weeks, and threescore and two weeks: the street shall be built again, and the wall, even in troublous times.
Daniel 9:25 · King James VersionOpen the Source dates a prophecy of the Messiah from a command to restore and build Jerusalem, which many have linked to Nehemiah 2. Jesus is God.
Text and Manuscripts
Nehemiah is represented at Qumran by small fragments, if at all. This page does not claim a specific scroll. (6)
Canon Reception
Received as part of Ezra in the ancient count. (4) (3)
Further Reading
References
- Book of Nehemiah, 1:1; 1:11; 13:6Nehemiah 1:1 · King James Version
The words of Nehemiah the son of Hachaliah. And it came to pass in the month Chisleu, in the twentieth year, as I was in Shushan the palace,
Nehemiah 1:1 · King James VersionOpen the Source. King James Version - Babylonian Talmud, Bava Batra 15a, 15a (The William Davidson English on Sefaria is copyrighted. This page paraphrases it and does not reprint it. The page continues the list of writers and the debate about it.)
- Against Apion, 1.8Josephus, Against Apion 1.8 · William Whiston
For we have not an innumerable multitude of books among us, disagreeing from, and contradicting one another: [as the Greeks have:] but only twenty two books: which contain the records of all the past times: which are justly believed to be divine. And of them five belong to Moses: which contain his laws, and the traditions of the origin of mankind, till his death.
Josephus, Against Apion 1.8 · William WhistonOpen the Source (Flavius Josephus, Against Apion 1.8, translated by William Whiston. Josephus counts twenty-two books: five of Moses, thirteen of the prophets from Moses to Artaxerxes, and four of hymns and precepts.) - Festal Letter 39, 39.4–5 (Athanasius of Alexandria, AD 367, Nicene and Post-Nicene Fathers, second series, vol. 4, on New Advent. The letter lists twenty-two Old Testament books and the twenty-seven books of the New Testament, and places Esther among books to be read rather than in the canon.)
- When Was Each Book of the Bible Written?, Nehemiah (Jacob Edson, Bible Gateway, 16 September 2024. The survey gives Nehemiah as 430–400 BC. It is one editor’s approximation, not a manuscript date.)
- Dead Sea Scrolls, introduction, Biblical manuscriptsDead Sea Scrolls, biblical manuscripts · Israel Antiquities Authority
Among the Scrolls are partial or complete copies of every book in the Hebrew Bible (except the book of Esther).
Dead Sea Scrolls, biblical manuscripts · Israel Antiquities AuthorityOpen the Source (Israel Antiquities Authority. Biblical manuscripts from the Qumran caves date from the third century BC into the first century AD, and every book of the Hebrew Bible except Esther is represented.)
The King James Version (1769) is in the public domain in the United States.