Nehemiah 1:11

Neh 1:11 O 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.

Ver. 11. O Lord, I beseech thee ] He ends as he began, see Nehemiah 1:5 , praying in the Holy Ghost, whose creature prayer is.

And to the prayer of thy servants ] Whose necessities prick them on to prayer in all places; and who pray for the peace of Jerusalem incessantly, Psalms 137:1-9 .

Who desire to fear thy name ] The whole life of a true Christian is nothing else but sanctum desiderium, saith Austin, a holy desire. "Willing to live honestly," Hebrews 13:18 , wishing well to an exact keeping of God’s commandments, Psalms 119:4-5 , affecting that perfection which yet we cannot effect.

Prosper, I pray thee ] Prosperity given in as an answer to prayer is very sweet; as the cipher, when it followeth the figure, adds to the number, though it be nothing in itself.

For I was the king’s cupbearer] And so might take mollissima fandi tempora, my fittest opportunity to help my people.