While this was taking place: The fact that what follows is a first person account by Nehemiah is explicitly clear at this point. He introduces himself and his own activities with a temporal phrase, which Traduction œcuménique de la Bible renders as “During all this time” and Bible en français courant has “At the time of all these events.” It is very important for the translator to use the appropriate temporal and discourse markers to indicate clearly the shift in place and event that occurs here in Nehemiah’s account.

I was not in Jerusalem, for in the thirty-second year of Artaxerxes king of Babylon I went to the king: Nehemiah was not in Jerusalem at the time Eliashib let Tobiah use the storeroom that is reported about in the preceding verses. Nehemiah had gone to see the Persian king, Artaxerxes (see Ezra 4.7; Neh 2.1). King of Babylon was the title assumed by Cyrus after conquering Babylon in 539 B.C. (see Ezra 5.13). It had also been used by Nebuchadnezzar (Ezra 2.1), but here it is applied to Artaxerxes. The thirty-second year of Artaxerxes I was 433-432 B.C. Nehemiah began his term as governor in the twentieth year of the king (see Neh 1.1), so this was in his twelfth year as governor.

Why he went to see the king is not indicated. Good News Translation assumes that Nehemiah had gone “to report to” the king, but this is not explicitly stated by Nehemiah in his account. The translator should leave the purpose of Nehemiah’s visit to the king unstated, as most translations do.

After some time: How long he was gone from Jerusalem is not indicated either. Nouvelle Bible Segond translates “At the end of the year,” but the length of time is indicated only by the indefinite phrase after some time.

I asked leave of the king: This is an idiom for obtaining official permission to depart from the presence of the king (see 1 Sam 20.6, 28). Translators should use an expression that is appropriate for the formal court setting.

Quoted with permission from Noss, Philip A. and Thomas, Kenneth J. A Handbook on Nehemiah. (UBS Helps for Translators). New York: UBS, 2005. For this and other handbooks for translators see here .