10. Sanballat the Horonite and Tobiah the Ammonite leader heard about this. They were upset that someone had come to help the Israelites.
11. I went to Jerusalem and stayed there three days.
12. Then at night I started out with a few men. I had not told anyone what God had caused me to do for Jerusalem. There were no animals with me except the one I was riding.
13. It was night. I went out through the Valley Gate. I rode toward the Dragon Well and the Trash Gate. I was inspecting the walls of Jerusalem. They had been broken down. And the gates had been destroyed by fire.
14. Then I rode on toward the Fountain Gate and the King’s Pool. But there was not enough room for the animal I was riding to get through.
15. So I went up the valley at night. I was inspecting the wall. Finally, I turned and went back in through the Valley Gate.
16. The officers did not know where I had gone or what I was doing. I had not yet said anything to the Jews, the priests, the important men or the officers. I had not said anything to any of the others who would do the work.
17. Then I said to them, “You can see the trouble we have here. Jerusalem is a pile of ruins. And its gates have been burned. Come, let’s rebuild the wall of Jerusalem. Then we won’t be full of shame any longer.”
18. I also told them how God had been kind to me. And I told them what the king had said to me.Then they answered, “Let’s start rebuilding.” So they began to work hard.