John Gills Exposition of the Bible Commentary - Nehemiah 2:17
Then said I unto them ,.... The priests and princes of the Jews: you see the distress that we are in ; lie open to our enemies, and exposed to their insults: how Jerusalem lieth waste, and the gates thereof are burnt with fire , Nehemiah 1:3 , come, and let us build up the wall of Jerusalem that we be no more a reproach ; to their neighbours about them, who scoffed at them as a defenceless people and frequently came in upon them, and spoiled and plundered them of their goods... read more
Matthew Henry's Complete Commentary - Nehemiah 2:9-20
We are here told, I. Now Nehemiah was dismissed by the court he was sent from. The king appointed captains of the army and horsemen to go with him (Neh. 2:9), both for his guard and to show that he was a man whom the king did delight to honour, that all the king's servants might respect him accordingly. Those whom the King of kings sends he thus protects, he thus dignifies with a host of angels to attend them. II. How he was received by the country he was sent to. 1. By the Jews and their... read more