And it came to pass in the month of Nisan, in the twentieth year of king Artaxerxes, when wine was before him, that I took the wine and gave it to the king. Now I had never been sad in his presence before. 2 Therefore the king said to me, "Why is your face sad, since you are not sick? This is nothing but sorrow of heart." So I became dreadfully afraid, 3 and said to the king, "May the king live forever! Why should my face not be sad when the city, the place of my fathers' tomb, lies waste, and its gates are burnt with fire."
