Nehemiah 1:3 (DRB)

Passage

And they said to me: They that have remained, and are left of the captivity there in the province, are in great affliction, and reproach: and the wall of Jerusalem is broken down, and the gates thereof are burnt with fire.

Nearby Context

Nehemiah 1:1 The words of Nehemiah the son of Helchias. And it came to pass in the month of Casleu, in the twentieth year, as I was in the castle of Susa,

Nehemiah 1:2 That Hanani one of my brethren came, he and some men of Juda; and I asked them concerning the Jews, that remained and were left of the captivity, and concerning Jerusalem.

Nehemiah 1:3 And they said to me: They that have remained, and are left of the captivity there in the province, are in great affliction, and reproach: and the wall of Jerusalem is broken down, and the gates thereof are burnt with fire.

Nehemiah 1:4 And when I had heard these words, I sat down, and wept, and mourned for many days: and I fasted, and prayed before the face of the God of heaven.

Nehemiah 1:5 And I said: I beseech thee, O Lord God of heaven, strong, great, and terrible, who keepest covenant and mercy with those that love thee, and keep thy commandments:

Study Lenses

The verse centers on "said", "remained", "left", "captivity", "province", "great", "affliction", and "reproach". It is saying that the verse draws attention to "said" and "remained", so its meaning should be read from those terms before moving to application.

The nearby context moves from verse 2's "That Hanani one of my brethren came..." into verse 4's "And when I had heard these words...", so "said" and "remained" belong inside that flow. In Nehemiah context, the local focus is covenant, worship, and faithfulness.

A plain takeaway is to answer the verse's own emphasis on "said" and "remained" with trust shaped by these words, not by a vague optimism outside the passage.