AFV2020 - Nehemiah - 9

9:1  And on the twenty-fourth day of this month, the children of Israel were gathered with fasting and with sackcloth, and with earth upon them.

9:2  And the seed of Israel separated themselves from all strangers, and stood and confessed their sins and the iniquities of their fathers.

9:3  And they stood up in their place and read in the Book of the Law of the LORD their God a fourth part of the day. And another fourth part they confessed and worshiped the LORD their God.

9:4  And Jeshua, Bani, Kadmiel, Shebaniah, Bunni, Sherebiah, Bani and Chenani stood upon the stairs of the Levites and cried with a loud voice to the LORD their God.

9:5  And the Levites: Jeshua, and Kadmiel, Bani, Hashabniah, Sherebiah, Hodijah, Shebaniah, and Pethahiah, they said: "Stand up and bless the LORD your God forever and ever. And blessed be Your glorious name, which is exalted above all blessing and praise.

9:6  You, even You, are LORD alone. You have made heaven, the heaven of the heavens, with all their host, the earth and all things upon it, the seas and all in them, and You preserve them all. And the host of heaven worships You.

9:7  You are the LORD, the God Who chose Abram and brought him out of Ur of the Chaldees, and gave him the name of Abraham,

9:8  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 to his seed. And You have performed Your words, for You are righteous.

9:9  And You saw the affliction of our fathers in Egypt, and heard their cry by the Red Sea,

9:10  And performed signs and wonders upon Pharaoh and upon all his servants and upon all the people of his land, for You knew that they were acting arrogantly against them. So You made a name for Yourself, as it is this day.

9:11  And You divided the sea before them, so that they went through the midst of the sea upon the dry land. And their pursuers You hurled into the deep, like a stone into the mighty waters.

9:12  And You led them in the day by a pillar of cloud, and in the night by a pillar of fire to give them light in the way in which they should go.

9:13  And You came down on Mount Sinai, and spoke with them from heaven, and gave them just ordinances and laws of truth, good statutes and commandments.

9:14  And You made known to them Your holy Sabbath and provided them commandments, statutes, and a law, by the hand of Moses Your servant.

9:15  And You gave them bread from heaven for their hunger and brought forth water for them out of the rock for their thirst. And You told them that they should go in to possess the land which You had lifted up Your hand to give them.

9:16  But they and our fathers acted proudly and hardened their necks, and did not hearken to Your commandments.

9:17  And they refused to obey; neither were they mindful of Your wonders which You did among them. But they 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 did not forsake them.

9:18  Yea, when they had made them a molten calf, and said, 'This is your god who brought you up out of Egypt,' and had worked great provocations,

9:19  Yet You in Your great mercies did not forsake them in the wilderness. The pillar of the cloud did not depart from before them by day to lead them in the way, nor the pillar of fire by night to show them light and the way in which they should go.

9:20  You also gave Your good spirit to instruct them, and did not withhold Your manna from their mouth, and gave them water for their thirst.

9:21  Yea, forty years You sustained them in the wilderness. They lacked nothing; their clothes did not become old, and their feet did not swell.

9:22  And You gave them kingdoms and people, and divided them into districts. And they possessed the land of Sihon, and the land of the king of Heshbon, and the land of Og, king of Bashan.

9:23  And You multiplied their children like the stars of the heavens and brought them into the land concerning which You said to their fathers that they should go in to possess it.

9:24  And the children went in and possessed the land, and You subdued the people of the land before them, the Canaanites, and gave them into their hands, with their kings and the people of the land, so that they might do with them as they would.

9:25  And they took strong cities and a rich land, and possessed houses full of all goods, wells already dug, vineyards and olive groves, and fruit trees in abundance. And they ate and were filled, and became fat, and delighted themselves in Your great goodness.

9:26  But they were disobedient and rebelled against You, and cast Your law behind their backs. And they killed Your prophets who testified against them to turn them to You, and they worked great provocations.

9:27  Therefore You delivered them into the hand of their enemies, who troubled them. And in the time of their trouble, they cried to You, and You heard from heaven. And according to Your manifold mercies, You gave them deliverers, who saved them out of the hand of their enemies.

9:28  But after they had rest, they did evil again before You. Therefore, You left them in the hand of their enemies, so that they had rule over them. Yet when they returned and cried to You, You heard from heaven. And many times You delivered them according to Your mercies,

9:29  And testified against them that You might bring them back to Your law. Yet they acted arrogantly and did not hearken to Your commandments, but sinned against Your ordinances (which if a man do, he shall live in them), and presented a stubborn shoulder, and hardened their neck, and would not hear.

9:30  Yet for many years You had patience with them, and admonished them by Your spirit, through Your prophets, but they would not give ear. And You gave them into the hand of the people of the lands.

9:31  But in Your great mercies, You did not completely destroy them nor forsake them, for You are a gracious and merciful God.

9:32  Now therefore, our God, the great, the mighty, and the awesome God, Who keeps covenant and mercy, let not all the trouble seem little before You that has come upon us, on our kings, on our rulers, 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 to this day.

9:33  But You are just in all that is brought upon us, for You have dealt truthfully, but we have done wickedly.

9:34  And our kings, our rulers, our priests, and our fathers have not kept Your law, nor hearkened to Your commandments and Your warnings with which You testified against them.

9:35  They have not served You in their kingdom, and in Your great goodness which You gave them, and in the large and rich land which You gave before them, neither did they turn from their evil ways.

9:36  Behold, we are servants this day. And the land that You gave to our fathers to eat its fruit, and its goodness, behold, we are servants in it.

9:37  And it yields much increase to the kings whom You have set over us because of our sins. And they are ruling over our bodies and over our livestock at their pleasure, and we are in great distress.

9:38  And because of all this we are making a sure covenant and writing it, and our princes, Levites, and priests are sealing it."