Devotion
What’s wrong Nehemiah? Why do you look sad?
David Jacobs

If you have read the Old Testament closely, something may jump out at you when you read this passage. Do you notice something different? Notice the first sentence of the book: it is written from the first-person perspective. Parts of the book of Ezra are also written from the first-person perspective (Ezra 7:1-11). If you are anything like me, you are excited by this and also wondering why these books are written in a similar style.

The books of Ezra and Nehemiah were originally written as one book. Ezra is believed to be the author of these books as he was a noted scribe (Ezra 7:6-10) and it would explain why parts of the book of Ezra were written from the first-person perspective.

Now let's look at the verses I selected. Nehemiah is a Jewish servant working for King Artaxerxes. The king notices Nehemiah looking sad and inquires as to why. Nehemiah wonders inwardly whether he should say his true feelings, prays to God, and tells the king why: he is unhappy because Israel has been destroyed, the people exiled, and he is doing nothing about it. He asks the king to let him go and, perhaps to his surprise, the king grants his wish. "Ask and ye shall receive" (Matthew 7:7).

Prayer

There is so much beauty to be unlocked in the Bible. Reading these verses for the first time and noticing the perspective change encourage me to learn more. The verses themselves are inspiring and touching, with Nehemiah mustering the courage to ask a benevolent king to let him go on a mission to rebuild his homeland. Get excited about the Bible! It makes reading it so much more meaningful.