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Nehemiah 1:4

King James Version (KJV)

“In our prayers we talk to God, in our Bible study God talks to us, and we had better let God do most of the talking.”
— D.L. Moody

Nehemiah 1:4

Verse 4 of 11

Scripture focus

And it came to pass, when I heard these words, that I sat down and wept, and mourned [certain] days, and fasted, and prayed before the God of heaven,

Nehemiah 1:4 — KJV

Commentary

Commentary on Nehemiah 1:4

Theological / Devotional

I sat down and wept. Nehemiah was deeply shocked when he learned about the plight of his countrymen and the humiliation they had experienced. Even if he had a partial knowledge of events in the province of Judea, the reality apparently exceeded his greatest fears and caused him to weep.

Fasted. During the Captivity fasting became a common practice among the Jews (see Zech. 7:3-7). Solemn fasts had been introduced on the anniversaries of the taking of Jerusalem, the burning of the Temple, and the murder of Gedaliah (Zech. 8:19). Fasting had also been given a prominent place in personal devotions. Daniel (Dan. 9:3; 10:3), Esther (Esther 4:16), Ezra (Ezra 10:6), and Nehemiah are all mentioned as having fasted (see on Ezra 10:6).

By SdaBc