Nehemiah's Model Prayer
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As soon as I heard these words I sat down and wept and mourned for days, and I
continued fasting and praying before the God of heaven. And I said, “O Lord God of heaven, the great
and awesome God who keeps covenant and steadfast love with those who love him and keep his
commandments, let your ear be attentive and your eyes open, to hear the prayer of your servant that I
now pray before you day and night for the people of Israel your servants, confessing the sins of the
people of Israel, which we have sinned against you. Even I and my father’s house have sinned. We have
acted very corruptly against you and have not kept the commandments, the statutes, and the rules that
you commanded your servant Moses. Remember the word that you commanded your servant Moses, saying, ‘If
you are unfaithful, I will scatter you among the peoples, but if you return to me and keep my
commandments and do them, though your dispersed be under the farthest skies, I will gather them from
there and bring them to the place that I have chosen, to make my name dwell there.’ They are your
servants and your people, whom you have redeemed by your great power and by your strong hand. O Lord,
let your ear be attentive to the prayer of your servant, and to the prayer of your servants who delight
to fear your name, and give success to your servant today, and grant him mercy in the sight of this
man.”
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--Nehemiah 1:4-11, ESV
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1) Nehemiah's first response was to turn to God in prayer. Prayer was not something that
Nehemiah engaged in after he had exhausted all other alternatives. He did not approach it as a last ditch
effort, with the attitude, What have I got to lose? Instead, his immediate, instinctive response to the news of
trouble back home was to fast and pray (Nehemiah 1:4).
2) Nehemiah recognized and affirmed God's sovereignty. He realized that the Lord had first and
primary claim over all nations and people, whether they were Israelites or Persians. He saw himself and his
people as being in the hands of God, dependent on His grace.
3) Nehemiah identified with his people. He used the pronoun "we" in his prayer. Rather
than blame others, he accepted corporate responsibility for his people's sin.
4) Nehemiah recognized the whole of God's promises and commandments. In praying to God, it is
easy to focus on what one wants from God, but ignore what God asks and expects from His people. Nehemiah knew
what the Scriptures said about the Lord's covenant with Israel, and he accepted the responsibilities of the
covenant, not just the privileges.
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