< Nehemiah 9 >
1 Now on the twenty-fourth day of this month the children of Israel came together, taking no food and putting haircloth and dust on their bodies.
And on the twenty and fourth day of this month were the children of Israel assembled with fasting, and in sackclothes, and with earth upon them.
2 And the seed of Israel made themselves separate from all the men of other nations, publicly requesting forgiveness for their sins and the wrongdoing of their fathers.
And the seed of Israel separated themselves from all children of the strangers: and they stood forward and made confession for their sins, and the iniquities of their fathers.
3 And for a fourth part of the day, upright in their places, they were reading from the book of the law of their God; and for a fourth part of the day they were requesting forgiveness and worshipping the Lord their God.
And they stood up in their standing-place, and read in the book of the law of the Lord their God the fourth part of the day; and another fourth part they made confession, and prostrated themselves before the Lord their God.
4 Then Jeshua, and Bani, Kadmiel, Shebaniah, Bunni, Sherebiah, Bani, and Chenani took their places on the steps of the Levites, crying in a loud voice to the Lord their God.
Then stood up upon the stairs of the Levites, Jeshua' and Bani, Kadmiel, Shebanyah, Bunni, Sherebyah, Bani, and Kenani, and they cried with a loud voice unto the Lord their God.
5 Then the Levites, Jeshua, and Kadmiel, Bani, Hashabneiah, Sherebiah, Hodiah, Shebaniah, and Pethahiah said, Get up and give praise to the Lord your God for ever and ever. Praise be to your great name which is lifted up high over all blessing and praise.
Then said the Levites, Jeshua', and Kadmiel, Bani, Chashabneyah, Sherebyah, Hodiyah, Shebanyah, and Pethachyah, Arise! bless ye the Lord your God from eternity to eternity. And let men bless thy glorious name, which is exalted above all blessing and praise.
6 You are the Lord, even you only; you have made heaven, the heaven of heavens with all their armies, the earth and all things in it, the seas and everything in them; and you keep them from destruction: and the armies of heaven are your worshippers.
Thou indeed art the Eternal One alone: It is thou that hast made the heavens with all their host, the earth, and all that is upon her, the seas, and all that is in them, and thou givest life to them all; and the host of the heavens bow down before thee.
7 You are the Lord, the God, who took Abram and made him yours, guiding him from Ur of the Chaldees, and gave him the name of Abraham;
Thou art indeed the Lord the [true] God, who didst choose Abram, and bring him forth out of Ur of the Chaldeans, and change his name to Abraham;
8 You saw that his heart was true to you, and made an agreement with him to give the land of the Canaanite, the Hittite, the Amorite and the Perizzite and the Jebusite and the Girgashite, even to give it to his seed, and you have done what you said; for righteousness is yours:
And thou didst find his heart faithful before thee: and thou madest with him the covenant to give the land of the Canaanites, the Hittites, the Emorites, and the Perizittes, and the Jebusites, and the Girgashite—to give it to his seed: and thou hast performed thy words; for thou art righteous.
9 And you saw the trouble of our fathers in Egypt, and their cry came to your ears by the Red Sea;
And thou didst see the affliction of our fathers in Egypt, and their cry didst thou hear by the Red Sea;
10 And you did signs and wonders on Pharaoh and all his servants and all the people of his land; for you saw how cruel they were to them. So you got yourself a name as it is today.
And thou didst display signs and wonders on Pharaoh, and on all his servants, and on all the people of his land: for thou knewest that they had dealt presumptuously against them; and thou didst [thus] make thyself a name, as it is this day.
11 By you the sea was parted before them, so that they went through the sea on dry land; and those who went after them went down into the deep, like a stone into great waters.
And the sea didst thou divide before them, so that they passed through the midst of the sea on dry land; and their pursuers didst thou throw into the deeps, like a stone in mighty waters.
12 And you went before them by day in a pillar of cloud, and in a pillar of fire by night, to give them light on the way they were to go.
And by a pillar of cloud didst thou lead them in the day, and by a pillar of fire in the night, to give light unto them on the way whereon they should go.
13 And you came down on Mount Sinai, and your voice came to them from heaven, giving them right decisions and true laws, good rules and orders:
Also on mount Sinai camest thou down, and spokest with them from heaven; and thou gavest them upright ordinances, and truthful laws, good statutes and commandments;
14 And you gave them word of your holy Sabbath, and gave them orders and rules and a law, by the hand of Moses your servant:
And thy holy sabbath madest thou known unto them, and commandments, statutes, and a law didst thou enjoin on them, by the hand of Moses thy servant.
15 And you gave them bread from heaven when they were in need, and made water come out of the rock for their drink, and gave them orders to go in and take for their heritage the land which your hand had been lifted up to give them.
And bread from heaven didst thou give them for their hunger, and water out of the rock broughtest thou forth for them for their thirst; and thou didst order them to go in to take possession of the land concerning which thou hadst lifted up thy hand to give it unto them.
16 But they and our fathers, in their pride, made their necks stiff, and gave no attention to your orders,
And they and our fathers acted presumptuously, and hardened their neck, and hearkened not to thy commandments.
17 And would not do them, and gave no thought to the wonders you had done among them; but made their necks stiff, and turning away from you, made a captain over themselves to take them back to their prison in Egypt: but you are a God of forgiveness, full of grace and pity, slow to wrath and great in mercy, and you did not give them up.
And they refused to obey, and remembered not thy marvelous deeds which thou hadst done with them; but they hardened their neck, and [spoke of] appointing a chief to return to their bondage, in their rebellion; but thou art a God ready to pardon, gracious and merciful, long-suffering, and abundant in kindness, and forsookest them not.
18 Even when they had made for themselves an ox of metal, and said, This is your God who took you up out of Egypt, and had done so much to make you angry;
Yea, although they had made for themselves a molten calf, and said, 'This is thy god that hath brought thee up out of Egypt,' and had practised great provocations:
19 Even then, in your great mercy, you did not give them up in the waste land: the pillar of cloud still went before them by day, guiding them on their way, and the pillar of fire by night, to give them light, and make clear the way they were to go.
Yet in thy abundant mercies didst thou not forsake them in the wilderness: the pillar of cloud departed not from them by day, to lead them on the way; nor the pillar of fire by night, to give them light on the way whereon they should go.
20 And you gave your good spirit to be their teacher, and did not keep back your manna from their mouths, and gave them water when they had need of it.
And thy good spirit thou gavest to make them intelligent, and thy manna thou withheldest not from their mouth, and water thou gavest them for their thirst.
21 Truly, for forty years you were their support in the waste land, and they were in need of nothing; their clothing did not get old or their feet become tired.
And forty years didst thou provide for them in the wilderness; they lacked nothing; their clothes did not wear out; and their feet swelled not.
22 And you gave them kingdoms and peoples, making distribution to them in every part of the land: so they took for their heritage the land of Sihon, even the land of the king of Heshbon, and the land of Og, king of Bashan.
Thou gavest them also kingdoms and nations, which thou didst divide into various corners: and they took possession of the land of Sichon, even the land of the king of Cheshbon, and the land of 'Og the king of Bashan.
23 And you made their children as great in number as the stars of heaven, and took them into the land, of which you had said to their fathers that they were to go in and take it for themselves.
And their children didst thou multiply like the stars of heaven, and then broughtest them into the land, concerning which thou hadst ordered their fathers to enter in to take possession of it.
24 So the children went in and took the land, and you overcame before them the people of the land, the Canaanites, and gave them up into their hands, with their kings and the people of the land, so that they might do with them whatever it was their pleasure to do.
And the children entered in and took possession of the land; and thou didst humble before them the inhabitants of the land, the Cana'anites, and gavest them up into their hands, with their kings, and the nations of the land, that they might do with them according to their pleasure.
25 And they took walled towns and a fat land, and became the owners of houses full of all good things, water-holes cut in the rock, vine-gardens and olive-gardens and a wealth of fruit-trees: so they had food enough and became fat, and had joy in the good you gave them.
And they captured fortified cities, and a fat soil; and they took possession of houses full of all good things, hewn-out wells, vineyards, and olive-yards, and fruit trees in abundance; and they ate, and were satisfied, and became fat, and delighted themselves in thy great goodness.
26 But they were hard-hearted, and went against your authority, turning their backs on your law, and putting to death your prophets, who gave witness against them with the purpose of turning them back again to you, and they did much to make you angry.
Then became they disobedient, and rebelled against thee, and cast thy law behind their back, and they slew thy prophets who had warned them to bring them back unto thee, and they practised great provocations.
27 And so you gave them up into the hands of their haters who were cruel to them: and in the time of their trouble, when they made their prayer to you, you gave ear to them from heaven; and in your great mercy gave them saviours, who made them free from the hands of their haters.
Thereupon thou gavest them up into the hand of their adversaries, who oppressed them: and in the time of their distress they used to cry unto thee, and thou ever heardest them from heaven; and according to thy abundant mercies thou wast wont to give them helpers, who helped them out of the hand of their adversaries.
28 But when they had rest, they did evil again before you: so you gave them into the hands of their haters, who had rule over them: but when they came back and made their prayer to you, you gave ear to them from heaven; again and again, in your mercy, you gave them salvation;
But when [once more] they had rest, they did again evil before thee: wherefore thou didst leave them in the hand of their enemies, so that they had dominion over them; and when they returned, and cried unto thee, thou wast wont to hear them from heaven, and thou didst ever deliver them according to thy mercies many times.
29 And gave witness against them so that you might make them come back again to your law: but their hearts were lifted up, and they gave no attention to your orders and went against your decisions (which, if a man keeps them, will be life to him), and turning their backs on you, made their necks stiff and did not give ear.
And thou gavest them warning to bring them back unto thy law: yet they acted presumptuously, and hearkened not unto thy commandments, and sinned against thy ordinances, which a man is to do that he may live through them: and they rendered their shoulder rebellious, and hardened their neck, and would not hear.
30 Year after year you put up with them, and gave witness against them by your spirit through your prophets: still they did not give ear: and so you gave them up into the hands of the peoples of the lands.
Yet thou gavest them indulgence many years, and didst warn them through thy spirit by means of thy prophets; but they gave no ear: therefore didst thou give them up into the hand of the nations of the lands.
31 Even then, in your great mercy, you did not put an end to them completely, or give them up; for you are a God of grace and mercy.
Yet in thy abundant mercies hast thou not made an entire end of them, and thou hast not forsaken them; for a gracious and merciful God art thou.
32 And now, our God, the great, the strong, the God who is to be feared, who keeps faith and mercy, let not all this trouble seem small to you, which has come on us, and on our kings and our rulers and on our priests and our prophets and our fathers and on all your people from the time of the kings of Assyria till this day.
And now, our God, the great, the mighty, and the terrible God, who keepest the covenant and kindness, let not be esteemed as little before thee all the hardship that hath befallen us, on our kings, on our princes, and on our priests, and on our prophets, and on our fathers, and on all thy people, from the days of the kings of Assyria until this day.
33 But still, you have been in the right in everything which has come on us; you have been true to us, but we have done evil:
Nevertheless thou art righteous in all that is come over us; for thou hast acted [according to] truth, but we have done wickedly.
34 And our kings, our rulers, our priests, and our fathers have not kept your law or given attention to your orders and your witness, with which you gave witness against them.
Also our kings, our priests, and our fathers have not executed thy law, and have not listened unto thy commandments and thy testimonies, wherewith thou didst warn them.
35 For they have not been your servants in their kingdom, and in all the good things you gave them, and in the great and fat land you gave them, and they have not been turned away from their evil-doing.
But they in their kingdom, and in thy abundant goodness which thou hadst given unto them, and in the ample and fat land which thou hadst given up before them, did indeed not serve thee, and they turned not away from their wicked deeds.
36 Now, today, we are servants, and as for the land which you gave to our fathers, so that the produce of it and the good might be theirs, see, we are servants in it:
Behold, we are this day servants: and as regardeth the land that thou gavest unto our fathers to eat its fruit and its good things, behold, we are servants in it;
37 And it gives much increase to the kings whom you have put over us because of our sins: and they have power over our bodies and over our cattle at their pleasure, and we are in great trouble.
And it yieldeth its products in abundance for the kings whom thou hast set over us because of our sins; also over our bodies have they dominion, and over our cattle [also] at their pleasure, and we are in great distress.
38 And because of all this we are making an agreement in good faith, and putting it in writing; and our rulers, our Levites, and our priests are putting their names to it.
And because of all this, we make a faithful covenant, and write it down; and on the sealed document are our princes, our Levites, and our priests.