The king responded,<n id="1" /> &#8220;What is it you are seeking?&#8221; Then I quickly prayed to the God of heaven

<p class="bodytext">I was very angry when I heard their outcry and these complaints.<n id="1" />

<p class="bodytext">Please remember me for good, O my God, for all that I have done for this people.p>

I was very upset, and I threw all of Tobiah&#8217;s household possessions out of the storeroom.

I also provided for<n id="1" /> the wood offering at the appointed times and also for the first fruits.p> <p class="bodytext">Please remember me for good, O my God.p>

and a letter for Asaph the keeper of the king&#8217;s nature preserve,<n id="1" /> so that he will give me timber for beams for the gates of the fortress adjacent to the temple and for the city wall<n id="2" /> and for the house to which I go.&#8221; So the king granted me these requests,<n id="3" /> for the good hand of my God was on me.

<p class="bodytext">They said to me, &#8220;The remnant that remains from the exile there in the province are experiencing considerable<n id="1" /> adversity and reproach. The wall of Jerusalem lies breached, and its gates have been burned down!&#8221;<n id="2" />p>

So the king said to me, &#8220;Why do you appear to be depressed when you aren&#8217;t sick? What can this be other than sadness of heart?&#8221; This made me very fearful.p>

Sanballat and Geshem sent word to me saying, &#8220;Come on! Let&#8217;s set up a time to meet together at Kephirim<n id="1" /> in the plain of Ono.&#8221; Now they intended to do me harm.p>

<p class="bodytext">Please remember me for this, O my God, and do not wipe out the kindness that I have done for the temple of my God and for its services!p>

Then the king, with his consort<n id="1" /> sitting beside him, replied, &#8220;How long would your trip take, and when would you return?&#8221; Since the king was amenable to dispatching me,<n id="2" /> I gave him a time.

I said to the king, &#8220;If the king is so inclined, let him give me letters for the governors of Trans-Euphrates<n id="1" /> that will enable me to travel safely until I reach Judah,

Then I related to them how the good hand of my God was on me and what<n id="1" /> the king had said to me. Then they replied, &#8220;Let&#8217;s begin rebuilding right away!&#8221;<n id="2" /> So they readied themselves<n id="3" /> for this good project.

Then I directed the Levites to purify themselves and come and guard the gates in order to keep the Sabbath day holy.p> <p class="bodytext">For this please remember me, O my God, and have pity on me in keeping with your great love.p>

Every day one ox, six select sheep, and some birds were prepared for me, and every ten days all kinds of wine in abundance. Despite all this I did not require the food allotted to the governor, for the work was demanding on this people.p>