Welcome back to another episode of NachDaily with Nechemiah chapter 2. The main theme in this chapter is how Nechemiah was granted permission by the King to rebuild the walls of Yerushalayim and how he urged its residents to do so.

[May this segment be a merit for the aliyas neshamos of Raizel bas Moshe, Avraham Aharon ben Yisroel Yitzchok, and Refael ben Yehoshua Falek.]

The previous chapter ended with saying that Nechemiah was the royal cupbearer. He thus had greater access to the Persian King Artachshasht. The event in this chapter took place several months after Nechemiah heard about the dismal state of the Jews in Eretz Yisrael.

Nechemiah brought a cup of wine to the King, who noticed his distraught face. “Why do you have such a sour face?” asked the King. “It must be that you are plotting against me!” Nechemiah became frightened for his life and quickly shouted, “Long live the King!”

Nechemiah took this opportunity to tell the King what was in his mind. This was at risk to his life because the royal cupbearer couldn’t just tell the King what was on his mind. “How can I be happy,” Nechemiah asked the King, “when my ancestors’ land lies in rubble and ruins?”

The Ramad Walli points out that although Nechemiah seemed to be speaking to the mortal King, he was really talking and praying to the Melech Malchai HaMelachim – Hashem!

When asked what he wanted, Nechemiah asked the King to send him to Yehudah (Eretz Yisrael) to allow him to rebuild it. With the Queen seated at his side, the King asked how long his trip would be. The King was agreeable, and allowed him to go.

The Malbim points out that the “Queen” was none other than the famous Queen Esther who urged her son Darius to let Nechemiah go to rebuild Yerushalayim. This is really incredible because we see how

the Purim story comes full circle. It was at this very moment that the Jews were given permission to rebuild the fallen walls of Yerushalayim through Queen Esther.

Nechemiah saw that this was an “eis ratzon, an auspicious time,” and daringly asked the King for official royal letters instructing the local governors throughout his journey to Eretz Yisrael to allow him to pass through unhindered until he reached Yehudah. He also requested a letter to Asaph, the keeper of the King’s forest, instructing him to supply wood for the construction.

With Hashem’s kindness the King granted Nechemiah his request and sent him with an escort of the royal cavalry.

Upon his arrival to “the land beyond the river,” Nechemiah gave the letters to the governors.

When two people named Sanvalat HaCharoni and Toviya eved H’emoni heard that Nechemiah had appeared before the King without permission they were extremely annoyed. They were angry that Nechemiah had asked for the walls of Yerushalayim to be rebuilt.

Of course, we know when it comes to any “davar sh’bikidusha, holy undertaking,” there is always going to be a counterforce trying to stop us from attaining our goals.

The rest of the chapter focuses on what Nechemiah did when he reached Yerushalayim.

After 3 days, Nechemiah devised a plan to get the attention of the Jews and impress upon them the necessity to rebuild the walls of Yerushalayim. He didn’t tell anyone what Hashem had put in his heart to do. He arose in the middle of the night with just a few men, went out of the gates of Yerushalayim, and destroyed what was left of all of the outer city walls, which were already in great disrepair, before returning home. hNone of the officers knew what he did, nor did he tell anyone.

The next morning, Nechemiah got up in front of the people and said “Look at the terrible condition of the walls! We must rebuild them!

They have been neglected and set on fire and we need to end this disgrace!” Nechemiah told them about the King’s letters and the people felt encouraged.

Rav Shwab explains that Nechemiah further destroyed the city walls because he wanted to prioritize their rebuilding. If they would be in such bad disrepair they would need to be rebuilt. He went at night because he feared that if the locals would discover his true intent in coming to Yerushalayim they would destroy the walls beyond repair. While Nechemiah did some damage, he did it in a way so that they weren’t beyond repair.

When some of the non-Jewish local leaders saw that Nechemiah wanted to rebuild the city walls, they became angered. They accused him of wanting to rebel against the King.

“Hashem will make us successful, Nechemiah sharply replied, “we are going to start rebuilding whether you like it or not, and you will have no rights or recognition in Yerushalayim.”

Stay tuned to the next episode of NachDaily. Thank you for listening, and have a wonderful day!