# Connecting Statement:

This verse begins the prayer that Nehemiah begs Yahweh to listen to ([Nehemiah 1:5](./05.md)).

# may your eyes be open

"look at me." Here open eyes are a metaphor that represents paying attention to someone. Alternate translation: "pay attention to me" (See: [[rc://en/ta/man/jit/figs-metaphor]])

# may your ear be attentive

The ear here is a synecdoche for the whole person. Alternate translation: "listen and pay attention" (See: [[rc://en/ta/man/jit/figs-synecdoche]])

# so you may hear the prayer of your servant

"so that you may hear the prayer that I, your servant, am praying." The word "servant" refers to Nehemiah. This is how a person would address his superior in order to show humility and respect.

# day and night

By saying that he prays both during the day and during the night, Nehemiah emphasizes the frequency of his prayers. Alternate translation: "all the time" (See: [[rc://en/ta/man/jit/figs-merism]])

# Both I and my father's house

Here the word "house" represents family. Alternate translation: "Both I and my family" (See: [[rc://en/ta/man/jit/figs-metonymy]])