< Nehemiah 9 >
1 Now on the twenty-fourth day of this month the children of Israel assembled with fasting, and in sackcloths, and with ashes on their head.
Now in the twenty and fourth day of this month the children of Israel were assembled with fasting, and with sack clothes, and earth upon them.
2 And the children of Israel separated themselves from every stranger, and stood and confessed their sins, and the iniquities of their fathers.
And the seed of Israel separated themselves from all strangers, and stood and confessed their sins, and the iniquities of their fathers.
3 And they stood in their place, and read in the book of the law of the Lord their god: and they confessed [their sins] to the Lord, and worshipped the Lord their God.
And they stood up in their place, and read in the book of the law of the LORD their God one fourth part of the day; and another fourth part they confessed, and worshipped the LORD their God.
4 [And] there stood upon the stairs, of the Levites, Jesus, and the sons of Cadmiel, Sechenia the son of Sarabia, sons of Choneni; and they cried with a loud voice to the Lord their God.
Then stood up upon the stairs, of the Levites, Jeshua, and Bani, Kadmiel, Shebaniah, Bunni, Sherebiah, Bani, and Chenani, and cried with a loud voice unto the LORD their God.
5 And the Levites, Jesus and Cadmiel, said, Rise up, bless the Lord our God forever and ever: and let them bless your glorious name, and exalt it with all blessing and praise.
Then the Levites, Jeshua, and Kadmiel, Bani, Hashabniah, Sherebiah, Hodijah, Shebaniah, and Pethahiah, said, Stand up and bless the LORD your God for ever and ever: and blessed be your glorious name, which is exalted above all blessing and praise.
6 And Esdras said, You are the only true Lord; you made the heaven, and the heaven of heavens, and all their array, the earth, and all things that are in it, the seas, and all things in them; and you quicken all things, and the hosts of heaven worship you.
You, even you, are LORD alone; you have made heaven, the heaven of heavens, with all their host, the earth, and all things that are therein, the seas, and all that is therein, and you preserve them all; and the host of heaven worships you.
7 You are the Lord God, you did choose Abram, and brought him out of the land of the Chaldeans, and gave him the name of Abraam:
You are the LORD the God, who did choose Abram, and brought him forth out of Ur of the Chaldees, and gave him the name of Abraham;
8 and you found his heart faithful before you, and did make a covenant with him to give to him and to his seed the land of the Chananites, and the Chettites, and Amorites, and Pherezites, and Jebusites, and Gergesites; and you have confirmed your words, for you [are] righteous.
And found his heart faithful before you, and made a covenant with him to give the land of the Canaanites, the Hittites, the Amorites, and the Perizzites, and the Jebusites, and the Girgashites, to give it, I say, to his seed, and have performed your words; for you are righteous:
9 And you saw the affliction of our fathers in Egypt, and you heard their cry at the Red Sea.
And did see the affliction of our fathers in Egypt, and heard their cry by the Red sea;
10 And you showed signs and wonders in Egypt, on Pharao and all his servants, and on all the people of his land: for you know that they behaved insolently against them: and you made yourself a name, as at this day.
And showed signs and wonders upon Pharaoh, and on all his servants, and on all the people of his land: for you knew that they dealt proudly against them. So did you get you a name, as it is this day.
11 And you did cleave the sea before them, and they passed through the midst of the sea on dry land; and you did cast into the deep them that were about to pursue them, as a stone in the mighty water.
And you did divide the sea before them, so that they went through the midst of the sea on the dry land; and their persecutors you threw into the deeps, as a stone into the mighty waters.
12 And you guided them by day by a pillar of cloud, and by night by a pillar of fire, to enlighten for them the way wherein they should walk.
Moreover you led them in the day by a cloudy pillar; and in the night by a pillar of fire, to give them light in the way wherein they should go.
13 Also you came down upon mount Sina, and you spoke to them out of heaven, and gave them right judgements, and laws of truth, ordinances, and good commandments.
You came down also upon mount Sinai, and spoke with them from heaven, and gave them right judgments, and true laws, good statutes and commandments:
14 And you did make known to them your holy sabbath; you did enjoin upon them commandments, and ordinances, and a law, by the hand of your servant Moses.
And made known unto them your holy sabbath, and commandedst them precepts, statutes, and laws, by the hand of Moses your servant:
15 And you gave them bread from heaven for their food, and you brought them forth water from a rock for their thirst; and you bade them go in to inherit the land over which you stretched out your hand to give [it] them.
And gave them bread from heaven for their hunger, and brought forth water for them out of the rock for their thirst, and promised them that they should go in to possess the land which you had sworn to give them.
16 But they and our fathers behaved proudly, and hardened their neck, and did not listen to your commandments,
But they and our fathers dealt proudly, and hardened their necks, and hearkened not to your commandments,
17 and refused to listen, and remembered not your wonders which you wrought with them; and they hardened their neck, and appointed a leader to return to their slavery in Egypt: but you, O God, [are] merciful and compassionate, longsuffering, and abundant in mercy, and you did not forsake them.
And refused to obey, neither were mindful of your wonders that you did among them; but hardened their necks, and in their rebellion appointed a captain to return to their bondage: but you are a God ready to pardon, gracious and merciful, slow to anger, and of great kindness, and forsook them not.
18 And still farther they even made to themselves a molten calf, and said, These [are] the gods that brought us up out of Egypt: and they wrought great provocations.
Yea, when they had made them a molten calf, and said, This is your God that brought you up out of Egypt, and had wrought great provocations;
19 Yet you in your great compassions did not forsake them in the wilderness: you did not turn away from them the pillar of the cloud by day, to guide them in the way, nor the pillar of fire by night, to enlighten for them the way wherein they should walk.
Yet you in your manifold mercies forsook them not in the wilderness: the pillar of the cloud departed not from them by day, to lead them in the way; neither the pillar of fire by night, to show them light, and the way wherein they should go.
20 And you gave your good Spirit to instruct them, and you did not withhold your manna from their mouth, and gave them water in their thirst.
You gave also your good spirit to instruct them, and withheld not your manna from their mouth, and gave them water for their thirst.
21 And you did sustain them forty years in the wilderness; you did not allow anything to fail them: their garments did not wax old, and their feet were not bruised.
Yea, forty years did you sustain them in the wilderness, so that they lacked nothing; their clothes waxed not old, and their feet swelled not.
22 Moreover, you gave them kingdoms, and did divide nations to them: and they inherited the land of Seon king of Esebon, and the land of Og king of Basan.
Moreover you gave them kingdoms and nations, and did divide them into corners: so they possessed the land of Sihon, and the land of the king of Heshbon, and the land of Og king of Bashan.
23 And you did multiply their children as the stars of heaven, and brought them into the land of which you spoke to their fathers;
Their children also multiplied you as the stars of heaven, and brought them into the land, concerning which you had promised to their fathers, that they should go in to possess it.
24 And they inherited it: and you did destroy from before them the dwellers in the land of the Chananites, and you gave into their hands them and their kings, and the nations of the land, to do to them as it pleased them.
So the children went in and possessed the land, and you subdued before them the inhabitants of the land, the Canaanites, and gave them into their hands, with their kings, and the people of the land, that they might do with them as they would.
25 And they took lofty cities, and inherited houses full of all good things, wells dug, vineyards, and olive yards, and every fruit tree in abundance: so they ate, and were filled, and grew fat, and rioted in your great goodness.
And they took strong cities, and a fat land, and possessed houses full of all goods, wells dug, vineyards, and olive yards, and fruit trees in abundance: so they did eat, and were filled, and became fat, and delighted themselves in your great goodness.
26 But they turned, and revolted from you, and cast your law behind their backs; and they killed your prophets, who testified against them to turn them back to you, and they wrought great provocations.
Nevertheless they were disobedient, and rebelled against you, and cast your law behind their backs, and slew your prophets which testified against them to turn them to you, and they wrought great provocations.
27 Then you gave them into the hand of them that afflicted them, and they did afflict them: and they cried to you in the time of their affliction, and you did hear them from your heaven, and in your great compassions gave them deliverers, and did save them from the hand of them that afflicted them.
Therefore you delivered them into the hand of their enemies, who vexed them: and in the time of their trouble, when they cried unto you, you heard them from heaven; and according to your manifold mercies you gave them saviours, who saved them out of the hand of their enemies.
28 But when they rested, they did evil again before you: so you left them in the hands of their enemies, and they ruled over them: and they cried again to you, and you heard [them] from heaven, and did deliver them in your great compassions.
But after they had rest, they did evil again before you: therefore left you them in the land of their enemies, so that they had the dominion over them: yet when they returned, and cried unto you, you heard them from heaven; and many times did you deliver them according to your mercies;
29 And you did testify against them, to bring them back to your law: but they listened not, but sinned against your commandments and your judgements, which if a man do, he shall live in them; and they turned their back, and hardened their neck, and heard not.
And testified against them, that you might bring them again unto your law: yet they dealt proudly, and hearkened not unto your commandments, but sinned against your judgments, (which if a man do, he shall live in them; ) and withdrew the shoulder, and hardened their neck, and would not hear.
30 Yet you did bear long with them many years, and did testify to them by your Spirit by the hand of your prophets: but they listened not; so you gave them into the hand of the nations of the land.
Yet many years did you forbear them, and testified against them by your spirit in your prophets: yet would they not give ear: therefore gave you them into the hand of the people of the lands.
31 But you in your many mercies did not appoint them to destruction, and did not forsake them; for you are strong, and merciful, and pitiful.
Nevertheless for your great mercies' sake you did not utterly consume them, nor forsake them; for you are a gracious and merciful God.
32 And now, O our God, the powerful, the great, the mighty, and the terrible, keeping your covenant and your mercy, let not all the trouble seem little in your sight which has come upon us, and our kings, and our princes, and our priests, and our prophets, and our fathers, and upon all your people, from the days of the kings of Assur even to this day.
Now therefore, our God, the great, the mighty, and the terrible God, who keep covenant and mercy, let not all the trouble seem little before you, that has come upon us, on our kings, on our princes, and on our priests, and on our prophets, and on our fathers, and on all your people, since the time of the kings of Assyria unto this day.
33 But you [are] righteous in all the things that come upon us; for you have wrought faithfully, but we have greatly sinned.
Nevertheless you are just in all that is brought upon us; for you have done right, but we have done wickedly:
34 And our kings, and our princes, and our priests, and our fathers, have not performed your law, and have not given heed to your commandments, and [have not kept] your testimonies which you did testify to them.
Neither have our kings, our princes, our priests, nor our fathers, kept your law, nor hearkened unto your commandments and your testimonies, wherewith you did testify against them.
35 And they did not serve you in your kingdom, and in your great goodness which you gave to them, and in the large and fat land which you did furnish before them, and they turned not from their evil devices.
For they have not served you in their kingdom, and in your great goodness that you gave them, and in the large and fat land which you gave before them, neither turned they from their wicked works.
36 Behold, we are servants this day, and [as for] the land which you gave to our fathers to eat the fruit of it and the good things of it, behold, we are servants upon it:
Behold, we are servants this day, and for the land that you gave unto our fathers to eat the fruit thereof and the good thereof, behold, we are servants in it:
37 and its produce [is] abundant for the kings whom you did appoint over us because of our sins; and they have dominion over our bodies, and over our cattle, as it pleases them, and we are in great affliction.
And it yields much increase unto the kings whom you have set over us because of our sins: also they have dominion over our bodies, and over our cattle, at their pleasure, and we are in great distress.
38 And in regard to all these circumstances we make a covenant, and write [it], and our princes, our Levites, [and] our priests, set their seal to [it].
And because of all this we make a sure covenant, and write it; and our princes, Levites, and priests, seal unto it.