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KING JAMES BIBLE · PCE

Nehemiah 2:2–4

TEXT EDITION
Pure Cambridge Edition selected
Wherefore the king said unto me, Why is thy countenance sad, seeing thou art not sick? this is nothing else but sorrow of heart. Then I was very sore afraid,
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?
Then the king said unto me, For what dost thou make request? So I prayed to the God of heaven.
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PASSAGE SELECTION

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3 selected · 7 available

Choose up to 10 verses in this chapter. The study tools update with the selected passage.

SCRIPTURE WITH SCRIPTURE

Cross References

12 Essential passages are open for comparison.

Reference depth

From verse 2

  1. Proverbs 15:13Rank 1 from verse 2
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    13A merry heart maketh a cheerful countenance: but by sorrow of the heart the spirit is broken.

  2. Genesis 40:7Rank 2 from verse 2
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    7And he asked Pharaoh’s officers that were with him in the ward of his lord’s house, saying, Wherefore look ye so sadly to day?

From verse 3

  1. Nehemiah 1:3Rank 1 from verse 3
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    3And they said unto me, The remnant that are left of the captivity there in the province are in great affliction and reproach: the wall of Jerusalem also is broken down, and the gates thereof are burned with fire.

  2. 1 Kings 1:31Rank 2 from verse 3
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    31Then Bath-sheba bowed with her face to the earth, and did reverence to the king, and said, Let my lord king David live for ever.

  3. Daniel 2:4Rank 3 from verse 3
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    4Then spake the Chaldeans to the king in Syriack, O king, live for ever: tell thy servants the dream, and we will shew the interpretation.

  4. Daniel 5:10Rank 4 from verse 3
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    10Now the queen, by reason of the words of the king and his lords, came into the banquet house: and the queen spake and said, O king, live for ever: let not thy thoughts trouble thee, nor let thy countenance be changed:

  5. Psalms 137:6Rank 5 from verse 3
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    6If I do not remember thee, let my tongue cleave to the roof of my mouth; if I prefer not Jerusalem above my chief joy.

From verse 4

  1. Philippians 4:6Rank 1 from verse 4
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    6Be careful for nothing; but in every thing by prayer and supplication with thanksgiving let your requests be made known unto God.

  2. Nehemiah 1:4Rank 2 from verse 4
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    4¶ 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,

  3. Proverbs 3:6Rank 3 from verse 4
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    6In all thy ways acknowledge him, and he shall direct thy paths.

  4. Nehemiah 1:11Rank 4 from verse 4
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    11O Lord, I beseech thee, let now thine ear be attentive to the prayer of thy servant, and to the prayer of thy servants, who desire to fear thy name: and prosper, I pray thee, thy servant this day, and grant him mercy in the sight of this man. For I was the king’s cupbearer.

  5. 1 Kings 3:5Rank 5 from verse 4
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    5¶ In Gibeon the Lord appeared to Solomon in a dream by night: and God said, Ask what I shall give thee.

WORDS IN THIS PASSAGE

Definitions

Open a word for its full definition and concordance.

DEFINED WORDS

Nehemiah 2:2

COMBINED MEANING

wherefore

↗

1. For that reason, or as a conclusion from what precedes; therefore or consequently. 2. For what reason or purpose; why.

Meaning drawn from: KJV context and cross-references

COMBINED MEANING

king

↗

A sovereign ruler; one exercising royal authority over a kingdom.

Meaning drawn from: KJV context and cross-references

COMBINED MEANING

countenance

↗

1. The face, or its appearance or expression. 2. Favour, regard, or presence expressed toward someone. 3. To favour or support.

Meaning drawn from: KJV context and cross-references · Webster 1828

COMBINED MEANING

sad

↗

Sorrowful; affected with grief; cast down with affliction. Downcast; gloomy; having the external appearance of sorrow.

Meaning drawn from: KJV context and cross-references · Webster 1828

COMBINED MEANING

seeing

↗

1. As a connective, because, since, or in view of a stated fact. 2. Perceiving with the eyes; observing. 3. Recognizing, discerning, understanding, or foreseeing.

Meaning drawn from: KJV context and cross-references

COMBINED MEANING

thou

↗

The singular second-person subject pronoun, meaning you when directly addressing one person, being, or individually treated addressee.

Meaning drawn from: KJV context and cross-references · Webster 1828

COMBINED MEANING

art

↗

1. The second-person singular present form of be: are, when one person is addressed. 2. Skill, craft, or skilled workmanship used to make or prepare something.

Meaning drawn from: KJV context and cross-references

COMBINED MEANING

but

↗

Sense 1: However; marking contrast or qualification. Sense 2: Except or unless; excluding all others or alternatives. Sense 3: Only; no more than what follows.

Meaning drawn from: KJV context and cross-references · Skeat 1893 · Webster 1828

COMBINED MEANING

sorrow

↗

Sense 1: Grief, sadness, anguish, pain, regret, distress, trouble, or heaviness. Sense 2: To grieve or cause such pain.

Meaning drawn from: KJV context and cross-references

COMBINED MEANING

heart

↗

Sense 1: The bodily organ. Sense 2: The inward person: the mind, will, affections, conscience, or moral character.

Meaning drawn from: KJV context and cross-references

COMBINED MEANING

very

↗

Sense 1: Truly, actually, exactly, or the same in identity. Sense 2: To a great or marked degree, used to intensify the quality named.

Meaning drawn from: KJV context and cross-references

COMBINED MEANING

sore

↗

Sense 1: Painful, grievous, severe, or causing distress. Sense 2: Greatly, exceedingly, or intensely. Sense 3: A wound, ulcer, or tender or diseased place.

Meaning drawn from: KJV context and cross-references

DEFINED WORDS

Nehemiah 2:3

COMBINED MEANING

king

↗

A sovereign ruler; one exercising royal authority over a kingdom.

Meaning drawn from: KJV context and cross-references

COMBINED MEANING

let

↗

Sense 1: To allow or permit; in older KJV use, also to hinder or restrain. Sense 2: To lower or send down.

Meaning drawn from: KJV context and cross-references

COMBINED MEANING

live

↗

Sense 1: As a verb, to have or continue in life; to remain alive, be restored to life, or not die. Sense 2: To dwell, abide, or continue in a place, state, relation, or manner of life. Sense 3: To subsist or be sustained by or upon what is named. Sense 4: As an adjective, alive rather than dead; or containing fire and not extinguished.

Meaning drawn from: Direct Scripture definition · KJV context and cross-references · Webster 1828

COMBINED MEANING

for

↗

1. In behalf of or in the place of. 2. With respect to, concerning, or toward. 3. Because of or on account of. 4. During or throughout. 5. In order to obtain or reach. 6. As a conjunction, because or seeing that.

Meaning drawn from: KJV context and cross-references

COMBINED MEANING

for ever

↗

1. Without end; for all time. 2. Continually or permanently throughout the duration in view.

Meaning drawn from: KJV context and cross-references

COMBINED MEANING

ever

↗

At any time; always or continually; throughout all time or for ever.

Meaning drawn from: KJV context and cross-references

COMBINED MEANING

should

↗

A verb expressing duty, propriety, expectation, intention, purpose, condition, appointed outcome, or a future event viewed from another time or statement.

Meaning drawn from: KJV context and cross-references · Webster 1828

COMBINED MEANING

countenance

↗

1. The face, or its appearance or expression. 2. Favour, regard, or presence expressed toward someone. 3. To favour or support.

Meaning drawn from: KJV context and cross-references · Webster 1828

COMBINED MEANING

sad

↗

Sorrowful; affected with grief; cast down with affliction. Downcast; gloomy; having the external appearance of sorrow.

Meaning drawn from: KJV context and cross-references · Webster 1828

COMBINED MEANING

place

↗

Sense 1: A physical location or room. Sense 2: A position or office. Sense 3: An occasion, circumstance, or passage. Sense 4: To set, fix, locate, or establish.

Meaning drawn from: KJV context and cross-references

COMBINED MEANING

waste

↗

Sense 1: Desolate, ruined, devastated, or uncultivated. Sense 2: Ruin, desolation, or needless loss. Sense 3: To consume, devour, destroy, ravage, or desolate.

Meaning drawn from: KJV context and cross-references

COMBINED MEANING

gates

↗

Movable barriers and the entrances they close in walls, cities, courts, houses, or enclosed places; by extension, the city, jurisdiction, public place, or access represented by those entrances.

Meaning drawn from: KJV context and cross-references

COMBINED MEANING

consumed

↗

Past-tense, participial, or adjectival form of consume. Sense 1: To destroy, use up, or bring to an end. Sense 2: To waste away or be exhausted.

Meaning drawn from: KJV context and cross-references

COMBINED MEANING

fire

↗

Burning flame and heat that gives light, consumes, purifies, or destroys.

Meaning drawn from: KJV context and cross-references

DEFINED WORDS

Nehemiah 2:4

COMBINED MEANING

king

↗

A sovereign ruler; one exercising royal authority over a kingdom.

Meaning drawn from: KJV context and cross-references

COMBINED MEANING

for

↗

1. In behalf of or in the place of. 2. With respect to, concerning, or toward. 3. Because of or on account of. 4. During or throughout. 5. In order to obtain or reach. 6. As a conjunction, because or seeing that.

Meaning drawn from: KJV context and cross-references

COMBINED MEANING

dost

↗

Sense 1: Do: perform, act, or carry out. Sense 2: Used as an auxiliary verb.

Meaning drawn from: KJV context and cross-references

COMBINED MEANING

thou

↗

The singular second-person subject pronoun, meaning you when directly addressing one person, being, or individually treated addressee.

Meaning drawn from: KJV context and cross-references · Webster 1828

COMBINED MEANING

make

↗

To form, create, produce, cause, appoint, perform, or render into a stated condition.

Meaning drawn from: KJV context and cross-references · Skeat 1893

COMBINED MEANING

request

↗

The expression of desire to some person for something to be granted or done; an asking; a petition.

Meaning drawn from: KJV context and cross-references

COMBINED MEANING

heaven

↗

Sense 1: The firmament or expanse above the earth, including the sky and the region of the sun, moon, stars, clouds, rain, and flying creatures. Sense 2: The realm above spoken of as God's throne and dwelling place, and as the place of angels, heavenly beings, and the righteous. Sense 3: By metonymy, God, heavenly authority or source, or those who dwell there.

Meaning drawn from: Direct Scripture definition · KJV context and cross-references · Webster 1828

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READ THE PASSAGE

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Suggested context · Nehemiah 2:1–8

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2:1AND it came to pass in the month Nisan, in the twentieth year of Artaxerxes the king, that wine was before him: and I took up the wine, and gave it unto the king. Now I had not been beforetime sad in his presence.

2:2Wherefore the king said unto me, Why is thy countenance sad, seeing thou art not sick? this is nothing else but sorrow of heart. Then I was very sore afraid,

Selected passage

2:3And 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?

Selected passage

2:4Then the king said unto me, For what dost thou make request? So I prayed to the God of heaven.

Selected passage

2:5And I said unto the king, If it please the king, and if thy servant have found favour in thy sight, that thou wouldest send me unto Judah, unto the city of my fathers’ sepulchres, that I may build it.

2:6And the king said unto me, (the queen also sitting by him,) For how long shall thy journey be? and when wilt thou return? So it pleased the king to send me; and I set him a time.

2:7Moreover I said unto the king, If it please the king, let letters be given me to the governors beyond the river, that they may convey me over till I come into Judah;

2:8And a letter unto Asaph the keeper of the king’s forest, that he may give me timber to make beams for the gates of the palace which appertained to the house, and for the wall of the city, and for the house that I shall enter into. And the king granted me, according to the good hand of my God upon me.

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