Nehemiah 9

1 On the twenty-fourth day of this same month, the Israelites met together, fasting and wearing sackcloth, with dust on their heads.

In the foure and twentieth day of this moneth the children of Israel were assembled with fasting, and with sackecloth, and earth vpon them.

2 Those of Israelite ancestry separated themselves from the foreigners, and stood to confess their sins and those of their forefathers.

(And they that were of the seede of Israel were separated from all the strangers) and they stoode and confessed their sinnes and the iniquities of their fathers.

3 They spent three hours standing there reading the Book of the Law of the Lord their God, and another three hours confessing their sins and worshiping the Lord their God.

And they stood vp in their place and read in the booke of the Lawe of the Lord their GOD foure times on the day, and they confessed and worshipped the Lord their God foure times.

4 The Levites stood on the stage and called out loudly to the Lord their God. (Their names were Jeshua, Bani, Kadmiel, Shebaniah, Bunni, Sherebiah, Bani, and Chenani.)

Then stoode vp vpon the staires of the Leuites Ieshua, and Bani, Kadmiel, Shebaniah, Bunni, Sherebiah, Bani, and Chenani, and cryed with a loud voyce vnto the Lord their God.

5 Then the Levites announced: “Stand up and praise the Lord your God who lives eternally: ‘May who you are and your glory be blessed, and may you be lifted up above all blessing and praise.’” (The names of the Levites were Jeshua, Kadmiel, Bani, Hashabneiah, Sherebiah, Hodiah, Shebaniah, and Pethahiah.)

And the Leuites said, euen Ieshua and Kadmiel, Bani, Hashabniah, Sherebiah, Hodiiah, Shebaniah and Pethahiah, Stande vp, and praise the Lord your God for euer, and euer, and let them praise thy glorious Name, O God, which excelleth aboue all thankesgiuing and praise.

6 They prayed, “Only you are the Lord. It was you who made the sky, the heavens with all their stars, the land and everything on it, the seas and everything in them. You give life to all of them, and all the heavenly beings worship you.

Thou art Lord alone: thou hast made heauen, and the heauen of all heauens, with all their hoste, the earth, and all things that are therein, the seas, and al that are in them, and thou preseruest them all, and the host of the heauen worshippeth thee.

7 You are the Lord, the God who chose Abram, who led him out of Ur of the Chaldeans and named him Abraham.

Thou art, O Lord, the God, that hast chosen Abram, and broughtest him out of Vr in Caldea, and madest his name Abraham,

8 You knew he would be faithful to you, and made an agreement with him to give him and his descendants the land of the Canaanites, Hittites, Amorites, Perizzites, Jebusites, and Girgashites. You kept your promise, because you do what is right.

And foundest his heart faithful before thee, and madest a couenant with him, to giue vnto his seede the lande of the Canaanites, Hittites, Amorites, and Perizzites, and Iebusites, and Girgashites, and hast performed thy wordes, because thou art iust.

9 You saw how much our forefathers were suffering in Egypt. You heard their cries for help at the Red Sea.

Thou hast also considered the affliction of our fathers in Egypt, and heard their cry by the red Sea,

10 You performed miraculous signs and wonders against Pharaoh, all his officials, and all his people of his land, for you recognized how arrogantly they treated our forefathers. You created a wonderful reputation for yourself that people still recognize to this day.

And shewed tokens and wonders vpon Pharaoh, and on all his seruants, and on all the people of his land: for thou knewest that they dealt proudely against them: therefore thou madest thee a Name, as appeareth this day.

11 You split the sea apart in front of them so that they could walk through it on dry ground. But you threw their pursuers into the depths of the sea, like stones thrown into raging waters.

For thou didest breake vp the Sea before them, and they went through the middes of the Sea on dry lande: and those that pursued them, hast thou cast into the bottomes as a stone, in the mightie waters:

12 You led them with a column of cloud during the day, and a column of fire at night, showing them the way which they should go.

And leddest them in the day with a pillar of a cloude, and in the night with a pillar of fire to giue them light in the way that they went.

13 You descended on Mount Sinai. You spoke to them from heaven. You gave them right ways to live, true laws, and good regulations and commandments.

Thou camest downe also vpon mount Sinai, and spakest vnto them from heauen, and gauest them right iudgements, and true lawes, ordinances and good commandements,

14 You explained your holy Sabbath to them. You gave them commandments and regulations and laws through your servant Moses.

And declaredst vnto them thine holy Sabbath, and commandedst them precepts, and ordinances, and lawes, by the hande of Moses thy seruant:

15 When they were hungry you gave them bread from heaven, and when they were thirsty you brought water out of the rock for them. You told them to go and take ownership of the land which you had sworn to give them.

And gauest them bread from heauen for their hunger, and broughtest forth water for them out of the rocke for their thirst: and promisedst them that they shoulde goe in, and take possession of the land: for the which thou haddest lift vp thine hand for to giue them.

16 But they and our forefathers acted arrogantly and became stubborn, and didn't pay attention to your commands.

But they and our fathers behaued them selues proudely, and hardened their neck, so that they hearkened not vnto thy commandements,

17 They refused to listen to you, and forgot about all the miracles you did for them. They became obstinate and decided to choose themselves a leader to take them back to slavery in Egypt. But you are a forgiving God, gracious and merciful, slow to get angry, and full of trustworthy love. You did not give up on them,

But refused to obey, and would not remember thy marueilous works that thou haddest done for them, but hardened their neckes, and had in their heads to returne to their bondage by their rebellion: but thou, O God of mercies, gratious and full of compassion, of long suffring and of great mercie, yet forsookest them not.

18 even when they made themselves a metal calf and said, ‘This is your god who led you out of Egypt,’ and committed terrible blasphemies.

Moreouer, when they made them a molten calfe (and said, This is thy God that brought thee vp out of the land of Egypt) and committed great blasphemies,

19 But you because you are so merciful didn't abandon them in the desert. The column of cloud didn't stop guiding them during the day, and the column of fire continued to light their way at night.

Yet thou for thy great mercies forsookest them not in the wildernesse: the pillar of the cloude departed not from them by day to leade them the way, neither the pillar of fire by night, to shew them light, and the way whereby they should goe.

20 You gave your good Spirit to teach them. You did not stop feeding them with your manna, and you gave them water when they were thirsty.

Thou gauest also thy good Spirite to instruct them, and withheldest not thy MAN from their mouth, and gauest them water for their thirst.

21 You took care of them for forty years in the desert. Their clothes didn't wear out, they didn't want for anything. Their feet didn't even swell up!

Thou didest also feede them fourtie yeres in ye wildernes: they lacked nothing: their clothes waxed not old, and their feete swelled not.

22 You gave them kingdoms and nations; you assigned their borders. They took control of the land of Sihon, king of Heshbon, and of Og, king of Bashan.

And thou gauest them kingdomes and people, and scatteredst them into corners: so they possessed the land of Sihon and the land of ye King of Heshbon, and the land of Og King of Bashan.

23 You made their descendants as countless as the stars of heaven, and led them to the land you had promised their fathers they would enter and possess.

And thou diddest multiplie their children, like the starres of the heauen, and broughtest them into the lande, whereof thou haddest spoken vnto their fathers, that they should goe, and possesse it.

24 Their descendants went in and took over the land. Right in front of them you conquered the Canaanites who lived there, handing over their kings and people so they could do with them whatever they wanted.

So the children went in, and possessed the lande, and thou subduedst before them the inhabitants of the lande, euen the Canaanites, and gauest them into their handes, with their Kings and the people of the lande, that they might do with them what they would.

25 They captured fortified cities and fertile land. They took over houses full of valuable things, water cisterns, vineyards, olive groves, and many fruit trees. They ate until they were full, and grew fat. They were so happy at how good you were to them.

And they tooke their strong cities and the fat lande, and possessed houses, full of all goods, cisternes digged out, vineyardes, and oliues, and trees for foode in abundance, and they did eate, and were filled, and became fat, and liued in pleasure through thy great goodnesse.

26 But they completely rebelled against you. They tossed your Law over their shoulders. They killed your prophets who warned them to try and bring them back to you, and they committed terrible blasphemies.

Yet they were disobedient, and rebelled against thee, and cast thy Lawe behinde their backes, and slewe thy Prophets (which protested among them to turne them vnto thee) and committed great blasphemies.

27 So you handed them over to their enemies who treated them badly. In their suffering they cried out to you for help. But you heard their cries from heaven, and because you're so merciful you sent them leaders to save them from their enemies.

Therefore thou deliueredst them into the hande of their enemies that vexed them: yet in the time of their affliction, when they cryed vnto thee, thou heardest them from the heauen, and through thy great mercies thou gauest them sauiours, who saued them out of the hande of their aduersaries.

28 However, as soon as they had peace, they went back to doing evil in your sight. So once more you handed them over to their enemies, who dominated them. They came back to you, and they cried out to you again. But you heard from heaven once more, and you saved them time and again because you are so merciful.

But when they had rest, they returned to doe euill before thee: therefore leftest thou them in the hande of their enemies, so that they had the dominion ouer them, yet when they conuerted and cryed vnto thee, thou heardest them from heauen, and deliueredst them according to thy great mercies many times,

29 You warned them to come back to your Law, but they were arrogant. They ignored your commands, and sinned against your rules, which, as you previously said, ‘If people obey they will live by them.’ They obstinately turned their backs on you and refused to listen.

And protestedst among them that thou mightest bring them againe vnto thy Lawe: but they behaued them selues proudely, and hearkened not vnto thy commandements, but sinned against thy iudgements (which a man should doe and liue in them) and pulled away the shoulder, and were stiffenecked, and woulde not heare.

30 You were patient with them for many years. You warned them by your Spirit through your prophets, but they didn't listen, so you handed them over to the other nations.

Yet thou diddest forbeare them many yeeres, and protestedst among them by thy Spirite, euen by the hande of thy Prophets, but they woulde not heare: therefore gauest thou them into the hande of the people of the lands.

31 But because of your wonderful mercy you did not finish with them, and you did not abandon them, for you are a gracious and merciful God.

Yet for thy great mercies thou hast not consumed them, neither forsaken them: for thou art a gracious and mercifull God.

32 So now, our God, the great and powerful and awesome God who keeps his agreement of trustworthy love, please don't see as unimportant all the hardships that have happened to us, and to our kings and leaders, our priests and prophets, our forefather and all your people, from the time of the Assyrian kings of Assyria up till now.

Nowe therefore our God, thou great God, mightie and terrible, that keepest couenant and mercie, let not all the affliction that hath come vnto vs, seeme a litle before thee, that is, to our Kings, to our princes, and to our Priests, and to our Prophets, and to our fathers, and to all thy people since the time of the Kings of Asshur vnto this day.

33 But you have done what is right regarding everything that has happened to us. You have always acted faithfully, while we have done so much evil.

Surely thou art iust in all that is come vpon vs: for thou hast dealt truely, but we haue done wickedly.

34 Our kings, our leaders, our priests, and our forefathers did not follow your Law, and they ignored your commands and regulations you ordered them to keep.

And our kings and our princes, our Priests and our fathers haue not done thy Lawe, nor regarded thy commandements nor thy protestations, wherewith thou hast protested among them.

35 But they, even during the time they had their own kingdom, with so many blessings you had given them in the wide and fertile land you had provided for them, even then they refused to serve you and would not turn from their evil ways.

And they haue not serued thee in their kingdome, and in thy great goodnesse that thou shewedst vnto them, and in the large and fat lande which thou diddest set before them, and haue not conuerted from their euill workes.

36 Look at us now, slaves in the land you gave our forefathers to enjoy its fruit and all its good things. Look at us slaves here!

Beholde, we are seruants this day, and the lande that thou gauest vnto our fathers, to eate the fruite thereof, and the goodnesse thereof, beholde, we are seruants therein.

37 The rich harvests of this land go to the kings you have placed over us because of our sins. They rule over our bodies and our cattle, doing whatever they want. We are suffering so much!”

And it yeeldeth much fruit vnto the kings whom thou hast set ouer vs, because of our sinnes: and they haue dominion ouer our bodyes and ouer our cattell at their pleasure, and we are in great affliction.

38 In response the people declared, “Considering all this, we are making a solemn agreement, putting it in writing. It is sealed by our leaders, Levites, and priests.”

Now because of all this we make a sure couenant, and write it, and our princes, our Leuites and our Priestes seale vnto it.