Nehemiah 1:3 (WEB)

Passage

They said to me, “The remnant who are left of the captivity there in the province are in great affliction and reproach. The wall of Jerusalem is also broken down, and its gates are burned with fire.”

Nearby Context

Nehemiah 1:1 The words of Nehemiah the son of Hacaliah. Now in the month Chislev, in the twentieth year, as I was in Shushan the palace,

Nehemiah 1:2 Hanani, one of my brothers, came, he and certain men out of Judah; and I asked them about the Jews who had escaped, who were left of the captivity, and concerning Jerusalem.

Nehemiah 1:3 They said to me, “The remnant who are left of the captivity there in the province are in great affliction and reproach. The wall of Jerusalem is also broken down, and its gates are burned with fire.”

Nehemiah 1:4 When I heard these words, I sat down and wept, and mourned several days; and I fasted and prayed before the God of heaven,

Nehemiah 1:5 and said, “I beg you, Yahweh, the God of heaven, the great and awesome God, who keeps covenant and loving kindness with those who love him and keep his commandments:

Study Lenses

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

The nearby context moves from verse 2's "Hanani one of my brothers came he..." into verse 4's "When I heard these words I sat...", so "said" and "remnant" 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 "remnant" with trust shaped by these words, not by a vague optimism outside the passage.