in his responses to the king. But as the structure of the passage makes clear, we can observe an internal growth in confidence as Nehemiah becomes increasingly assured that God has answered his four-month period of prayer affirmatively. The first exchange reveals Nehemiah’s apprehension at Artaxerxes’s innocent inquiry as to his well-being: “I was very much afraid” (v. 2b). His fear stems from uncertainty now that the time had come, especially since his request would in fact require a change in imperial