And said unto the king, Let the king live for ever: why should not my countenance be sad, when the city, the place of my fathers’ sepulchres, lieth waste, and the gates thereof are consumed with fire?
And I said to the king, 'May the king live forever! How can I not look sad when the city where my ancestors are buried lies in ruins, and its gates have been burned down?'
Nehemiah is explaining to the Persian king why he looks sad - because his ancestral city of Jerusalem is destroyed and in ruins.
📚 Historical Context
This conversation took place around 445 BC when Nehemiah, a Jewish exile serving as cupbearer to Persian King Artaxerxes, was asked why he appeared sad. Jerusalem had been destroyed by the Babylonians about 140 years earlier, and though some Jews had returned from exile, the city walls remained broken down. Nehemiah's reference to his 'fathers' sepulchres' shows his deep connection to Jerusalem as his ancestral homeland.
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