Nehemiah 9
New English Translation
The People Acknowledge Their Sin before God
9 On the twenty-fourth day of this same month the Israelites assembled; they were fasting and wearing sackcloth, their heads covered with dust. 2 Those truly of Israelite descent[a] separated from all the foreigners,[b] standing and confessing their sins and the iniquities of their ancestors.[c] 3 For one-fourth of the day they stood in their place and read from the book of the law of the Lord their God, and for another fourth they were confessing their sins[d] and worshiping the Lord their God. 4 Then the Levites—Jeshua, Binnui,[e] Kadmiel, Shebaniah, Bunni, Sherebiah, Bani, and Kenani—stood on the steps and called out loudly[f] to the Lord their God. 5 The Levites—Jeshua, Kadmiel, Bani, Hashabneiah, Sherebiah, Hodiah, Shebaniah, and Pethahiah—said, “Stand up and bless the Lord your God!”
“May you be blessed, O Lord our God, from age to age.[g] May your glorious name[h] be blessed; may it be lifted up above all blessing and praise. 6 You alone are the Lord. You made the heavens, even the highest heavens,[i] along with all their multitude of stars,[j] the earth and all that is on it, the seas and all that is in them. You impart life to them all, and the multitudes of heaven worship you.
7 “You are the Lord God who chose Abram and brought him forth from Ur of the Chaldeans. You changed his name to Abraham. 8 When you perceived that his heart was faithful toward you, you established a[k] covenant with him to give his descendants[l] the land of the Canaanites, the Hittites, the Amorites, the Perizzites, the Jebusites, and the Girgashites. You have fulfilled your promise,[m] for you are righteous.
9 “You saw the affliction of our ancestors in Egypt, and you heard their cry at the Red Sea.[n] 10 You performed awesome signs[o] against Pharaoh, against his servants, and against all the people of his land, for you knew that the Egyptians[p] had acted presumptuously[q] against them. You made for yourself a name that is celebrated to this day. 11 You split the sea before them, and they crossed through[r] the sea on dry ground. But you threw their pursuers[s] into the depths, like a stone into surging[t] waters. 12 You guided them with a pillar of cloud by day and with a pillar of fire by night to illumine for them the path they were to travel.
13 “You came down on Mount Sinai and spoke with them from heaven. You provided them with just judgments, true laws, and good statutes and commandments. 14 You made known to them your holy Sabbath; you issued commandments, statutes, and laws to them through[u] Moses your servant. 15 You provided bread from heaven for them in their time of hunger, and you brought forth water from the rock for them in their time of thirst. You told them to enter in order to possess the land that you had sworn[v] to give them.
16 “But they—our ancestors[w]—behaved presumptuously; they rebelled[x] and did not obey your commandments. 17 They refused to obey and did not recall your miracles that you had performed among them. Instead, they rebelled and appointed a leader to return to their bondage in Egypt.[y] But you are a God of forgiveness, merciful and compassionate, slow to get angry and unfailing in your loyal love.[z] You did not abandon them, 18 even when they made a cast image of a calf for themselves and said, ‘This is your God who brought you up from Egypt,’ or when they committed atrocious[aa] blasphemies.
19 “Due to your great compassion you did not abandon them in the wilderness. The pillar of cloud did not stop guiding them in the path by day,[ab] nor did the pillar of fire stop illuminating for them by night the path on which they should travel. 20 You imparted your good Spirit to instruct them. You did not withhold your manna from their mouths; you provided water for their thirst. 21 For forty years you sustained them. Even in the wilderness they never lacked anything. Their clothes did not wear out and their feet did not swell.
22 “You gave them kingdoms and peoples, and you allocated them to every corner of the land.[ac] They inherited the land of King Sihon of Heshbon[ad] and the land of King Og of Bashan. 23 You multiplied their descendants like the stars of the sky. You brought them to the land you had told their ancestors to enter in order to possess. 24 Their descendants[ae] entered and possessed the land. You subdued before them the Canaanites who were the inhabitants of the land. You delivered them into their hand, together with their kings and the peoples of the land, to deal with as they pleased. 25 They captured fortified cities and fertile land. They took possession of houses full of all sorts of good things—wells previously dug, vineyards, olive trees, and fruit trees in abundance. They ate until they were full[af] and grew fat. They enjoyed to the full your great goodness.
26 “Nonetheless they grew disobedient and rebelled against you; they disregarded your law.[ag] They killed your prophets who had solemnly admonished them in order to cause them to return to you. They committed atrocious blasphemies. 27 Therefore you delivered them into the hand of their adversaries, who oppressed them. But in the time of their distress they called to you, and you heard from heaven. In your abundant compassion you provided them with deliverers to rescue them from[ah] their adversaries.
28 “Then, when they were at rest again, they went back to doing evil before you. Then you abandoned them to[ai] their enemies, and they gained dominion over them. When they again cried out to you, in your compassion you heard from heaven and rescued them time and again. 29 And you solemnly admonished them in order to return them to your law, but they behaved presumptuously and did not obey your commandments. They sinned against your ordinances—those by which an individual, if he obeys them,[aj] will live. They boldly turned from you;[ak] they rebelled[al] and did not obey. 30 You prolonged your kindness[am] with them for many years, and you solemnly admonished them by your Spirit through your prophets. Still they paid no attention,[an] so you delivered them into the hands of the neighboring peoples.[ao] 31 However, due to your abundant mercy you did not do away with them altogether; you did not abandon them. For you are a merciful and compassionate God.
32 “So now, our God—the great, powerful, and awesome God, who keeps covenant fidelity[ap]—do not regard as inconsequential[aq] all the hardship that has befallen us—our kings, our leaders, our priests, our prophets, our ancestors, and all your people—from the days of the kings of Assyria until this very day. 33 You are righteous with regard to all that has happened to us, for you have acted faithfully.[ar] It is we who have been in the wrong! 34 Our kings, our leaders, our priests, and our ancestors have not kept your law. They have not paid attention to your commandments or your testimonies by which you have solemnly admonished them. 35 Even when they were in their kingdom and benefiting from your incredible[as] goodness that you had lavished[at] on them in the spacious and fertile land you had set[au] before them, they did not serve you, nor did they turn from their evil practices.
36 “So today we are slaves! In the very land you gave to our ancestors to eat its fruit and to enjoy[av] its good things—we are slaves. 37 Its abundant produce goes to the kings you have placed over us due to our sins. They rule over our bodies and our livestock as they see fit,[aw] and we are in great distress!
The People Pledge to be Faithful
38 (10:1)[ax] “Because of all this we are entering into[ay] a binding covenant in written form;[az] our leaders, our Levites, and our priests have affixed their names[ba] on the sealed document.”
Footnotes
- Nehemiah 9:2 tn Heb “the seed of Israel.”
- Nehemiah 9:2 tn Heb “sons of a foreigner.”
- Nehemiah 9:2 tn Heb “fathers” (also in vv. 9, 16, 23, 32, 34, 36).
- Nehemiah 9:3 tn Heb “confessing.” The words “their sins” are not present in the Hebrew text of v. 3, but are clearly implied here because they are explicitly stated in v. 2.
- Nehemiah 9:4 tc Heb “Bani.” The translation reads “Binnui” (so also NAB) rather than the MT reading “Bani.” Otherwise there are two individuals with the same name in this verse. The name “Binnui” appears, for example, in Neh 10:10.
- Nehemiah 9:4 tn Heb “in a great voice.”
- Nehemiah 9:5 tc The MT reads here only “from age to age,” without the preceding words “May you be blessed, O Lord our God” which are included in the present translation. But apparently something has dropped out of the text. This phrase occurs elsewhere in the OT as a description of the Lord (see Pss 41:13; 106:48), and it seems best to understand it here in that light. The LXX adds “And Ezra said” at the beginning of v. 6 as a transition: “And Ezra said, ‘You alone are the Lord.” Without this addition (which is not included by most modern English translations) the speakers of vv. 9:5b-10:1 continue to be the Levites of v. 5a.
- Nehemiah 9:5 tn Heb “the name of your glory.”
- Nehemiah 9:6 tn Heb “the heavens of the heavens.”
- Nehemiah 9:6 tn Heb “all their host.”
- Nehemiah 9:8 tn Heb “the” (so NAB).
- Nehemiah 9:8 tn Heb “seed.”
- Nehemiah 9:8 tn Heb “your words.”
- Nehemiah 9:9 tn Heb “the Sea of Reeds.” Traditionally this is identified as the Red Sea, and the modern designation has been used in the translation for clarity.
- Nehemiah 9:10 tn Heb “signs and wonders.” This phrase is a hendiadys. The second noun functions adjectivally, while the first noun retains its full nominal sense: “awesome signs” or “miraculous signs.”
- Nehemiah 9:10 tn Heb “they”; the referent (the Egyptians) has been specified in the translation for clarity.
- Nehemiah 9:10 tn Or “arrogantly” (so NASB); NRSV “insolently.”
- Nehemiah 9:11 tn Heb “in the midst of.”
- Nehemiah 9:11 tn Heb “those who pursued them.”
- Nehemiah 9:11 tn Heb “mighty.”
- Nehemiah 9:14 tn Heb “by the hand of.”
- Nehemiah 9:15 tn Heb “had lifted your hand.”
- Nehemiah 9:16 tn Heb “and our fathers.” The ו (vav) is explicative.
- Nehemiah 9:16 tn Heb “they stiffened their neck” (so also in the following verse).
- Nehemiah 9:17 tc The present translation follows a few medieval Hebrew mss and the LXX in reading בְּמִצְרָיִם (bemitsrayim, “in Egypt”; so also NAB, NASB, NRSV, TEV, NLT) rather than the MT reading בְּמִרְיָם (bemiryam, “in their rebellion”).
- Nehemiah 9:17 tc The translation follows the Qere reading חֶסֶד (khesed, “loyal love”) rather than the Kethib reading וְחֶסֶד (vekhesed, “and loyal love”) of the MT.
- Nehemiah 9:18 tn Heb “great.”
- Nehemiah 9:19 tn Heb “did not turn from them by day to guide them in the path.”
- Nehemiah 9:22 tn The words “of the land” are not in the Hebrew text, but are supplied in the translation for clarity.
- Nehemiah 9:22 tc Most Hebrew mss read “the land of Sihon and the land of the king of Heshbon.” The present translation (along with NAB, NASB, NIV, NCV, NRSV, CEV, NLT) follows the reading of one Hebrew ms, the LXX, and the Vulgate.
- Nehemiah 9:24 tn Heb “the sons.”
- Nehemiah 9:25 tn Heb “they ate and were sated.” This expression is a hendiadys. The first verb retains its full verbal sense, while the second functions adverbially: “they ate and were filled” = “they ate until they were full.”
- Nehemiah 9:26 tn Heb “they cast your law behind their backs.”
- Nehemiah 9:27 tn Heb “from the hand of” (so NASB, NIV); NAB “from the power of.”
- Nehemiah 9:28 tn Heb “in the hand of” (so KJV, ASV); NAB “to the power of.”
- Nehemiah 9:29 tn Heb “if a man keep.” See note on the word “obey” in Neh 1:5.
- Nehemiah 9:29 tn Heb “they gave a stubborn shoulder.”
- Nehemiah 9:29 tn Heb “they stiffened their neck.”
- Nehemiah 9:30 tn The Hebrew expression here is elliptical. The words “your kindness” are not included in the Hebrew text, but have been supplied in the translation for clarity.
- Nehemiah 9:30 tn Heb “did not give ear to.”
- Nehemiah 9:30 tn Heb “the peoples of the lands.”
- Nehemiah 9:32 tn Heb “the covenant and loyal love.” The expression is a hendiadys. The second noun retains its full nominal sense, while the first functions adjectivally: “the covenant and loyalty” = covenant fidelity.
- Nehemiah 9:32 tn Heb “do not let it seem small in your sight.”
- Nehemiah 9:33 tn Heb “you have done truth.”
- Nehemiah 9:35 tn Heb “great.”
- Nehemiah 9:35 tn Heb “given them.”
- Nehemiah 9:35 tn Heb “given.”
- Nehemiah 9:36 tn The expression “to enjoy” is not included in the Hebrew text, but has been supplied in the translation for clarity.
- Nehemiah 9:37 tn Heb “according to their desire.”
- Nehemiah 9:38 sn Beginning with 9:38, the verse numbers through 10:39 in the English Bible differ from the verse numbers in the Hebrew text (BHS), with 9:38 ET = 10:1 HT, 10:1 ET = 10:2 HT, 10:2 ET = 10:3 HT, etc., through 10:39 ET = 10:40 HT. Beginning with 11:1 the verse numbers in the ET and HT are again the same.
- Nehemiah 9:38 tn Heb “we are cutting.”
- Nehemiah 9:38 tn Heb “and writing.”
- Nehemiah 9:38 tn Heb “our leaders, our Levites, and our priests on the sealed document.” The Hebrew text is elliptical here; the words “have affixed their names” are supplied in the translation for clarity and for stylistic reasons. Cf. v. 2.
Nehemiah 9
New International Version
The Israelites Confess Their Sins
9 On the twenty-fourth day of the same month, the Israelites gathered together, fasting and wearing sackcloth and putting dust on their heads.(A) 2 Those of Israelite descent had separated themselves from all foreigners.(B) They stood in their places and confessed their sins and the sins of their ancestors.(C) 3 They stood where they were and read from the Book of the Law of the Lord their God for a quarter of the day, and spent another quarter in confession and in worshiping the Lord their God. 4 Standing on the stairs of the Levites(D) were Jeshua, Bani, Kadmiel, Shebaniah, Bunni, Sherebiah, Bani and Kenani. They cried out with loud voices to the Lord their God. 5 And the Levites—Jeshua, Kadmiel, Bani, Hashabneiah, Sherebiah, Hodiah, Shebaniah and Pethahiah—said: “Stand up and praise the Lord your God,(E) who is from everlasting to everlasting.[a]”
“Blessed be your glorious name,(F) and may it be exalted above all blessing and praise. 6 You alone are the Lord.(G) You made the heavens,(H) even the highest heavens, and all their starry host,(I) the earth(J) and all that is on it, the seas(K) and all that is in them.(L) You give life to everything, and the multitudes of heaven(M) worship you.
7 “You are the Lord God, who chose Abram(N) and brought him out of Ur of the Chaldeans(O) and named him Abraham.(P) 8 You found his heart faithful to you, and you made a covenant with him to give to his descendants the land of the Canaanites, Hittites, Amorites, Perizzites, Jebusites and Girgashites.(Q) You have kept your promise(R) because you are righteous.(S)
9 “You saw the suffering of our ancestors in Egypt;(T) you heard their cry at the Red Sea.[b](U) 10 You sent signs(V) and wonders(W) against Pharaoh, against all his officials and all the people of his land, for you knew how arrogantly the Egyptians treated them. You made a name(X) for yourself,(Y) which remains to this day. 11 You divided the sea before them,(Z) so that they passed through it on dry ground, but you hurled their pursuers into the depths,(AA) like a stone into mighty waters.(AB) 12 By day(AC) you led(AD) them with a pillar of cloud,(AE) and by night with a pillar of fire to give them light on the way they were to take.
13 “You came down on Mount Sinai;(AF) you spoke(AG) to them from heaven.(AH) You gave them regulations and laws that are just(AI) and right, and decrees and commands that are good.(AJ) 14 You made known to them your holy Sabbath(AK) and gave them commands, decrees and laws through your servant Moses. 15 In their hunger you gave them bread from heaven(AL) and in their thirst you brought them water from the rock;(AM) you told them to go in and take possession of the land you had sworn with uplifted hand(AN) to give them.(AO)
16 “But they, our ancestors, became arrogant and stiff-necked,(AP) and they did not obey your commands.(AQ) 17 They refused to listen and failed to remember(AR) the miracles(AS) you performed among them. They became stiff-necked(AT) and in their rebellion appointed a leader in order to return to their slavery.(AU) But you are a forgiving God,(AV) gracious and compassionate,(AW) slow to anger(AX) and abounding in love.(AY) Therefore you did not desert them,(AZ) 18 even when they cast for themselves an image of a calf(BA) and said, ‘This is your god, who brought you up out of Egypt,’ or when they committed awful blasphemies.(BB)
19 “Because of your great compassion you did not abandon(BC) them in the wilderness. By day the pillar of cloud(BD) did not fail to guide them on their path, nor the pillar of fire by night to shine on the way they were to take. 20 You gave your good Spirit(BE) to instruct(BF) them. You did not withhold your manna(BG) from their mouths, and you gave them water(BH) for their thirst. 21 For forty years(BI) you sustained them in the wilderness; they lacked nothing,(BJ) their clothes did not wear out nor did their feet become swollen.(BK)
22 “You gave them kingdoms and nations, allotting to them even the remotest frontiers. They took over the country of Sihon[c](BL) king of Heshbon and the country of Og king of Bashan.(BM) 23 You made their children as numerous as the stars in the sky,(BN) and you brought them into the land that you told their parents to enter and possess. 24 Their children went in and took possession of the land.(BO) You subdued(BP) before them the Canaanites, who lived in the land; you gave the Canaanites into their hands, along with their kings and the peoples of the land, to deal with them as they pleased. 25 They captured fortified cities and fertile land;(BQ) they took possession of houses filled with all kinds of good things,(BR) wells already dug, vineyards, olive groves and fruit trees in abundance. They ate to the full and were well-nourished;(BS) they reveled in your great goodness.(BT)
26 “But they were disobedient and rebelled against you; they turned their backs on your law.(BU) They killed(BV) your prophets,(BW) who had warned them in order to turn them back to you; they committed awful blasphemies.(BX) 27 So you delivered them into the hands of their enemies,(BY) who oppressed them. But when they were oppressed they cried out to you. From heaven you heard them, and in your great compassion(BZ) you gave them deliverers,(CA) who rescued them from the hand of their enemies.
28 “But as soon as they were at rest, they again did what was evil in your sight.(CB) Then you abandoned them to the hand of their enemies so that they ruled over them. And when they cried out to you again, you heard from heaven, and in your compassion(CC) you delivered them(CD) time after time.
29 “You warned(CE) them in order to turn them back to your law, but they became arrogant(CF) and disobeyed your commands. They sinned against your ordinances, of which you said, ‘The person who obeys them will live by them.’(CG) Stubbornly they turned their backs(CH) on you, became stiff-necked(CI) and refused to listen.(CJ) 30 For many years you were patient with them. By your Spirit you warned them through your prophets.(CK) Yet they paid no attention, so you gave them into the hands of the neighboring peoples.(CL) 31 But in your great mercy you did not put an end(CM) to them or abandon them, for you are a gracious and merciful(CN) God.
32 “Now therefore, our God, the great God, mighty(CO) and awesome,(CP) who keeps his covenant of love,(CQ) do not let all this hardship seem trifling in your eyes—the hardship(CR) that has come on us, on our kings and leaders, on our priests and prophets, on our ancestors and all your people, from the days of the kings of Assyria until today. 33 In all that has happened to us, you have remained righteous;(CS) you have acted faithfully, while we acted wickedly.(CT) 34 Our kings,(CU) our leaders, our priests and our ancestors(CV) did not follow your law; they did not pay attention to your commands or the statutes you warned them to keep. 35 Even while they were in their kingdom, enjoying your great goodness(CW) to them in the spacious and fertile land you gave them, they did not serve you(CX) or turn from their evil ways.
36 “But see, we are slaves(CY) today, slaves in the land you gave our ancestors so they could eat its fruit and the other good things it produces. 37 Because of our sins, its abundant harvest goes to the kings you have placed over us. They rule over our bodies and our cattle as they please. We are in great distress.(CZ)
The Agreement of the People
38 “In view of all this, we are making a binding agreement,(DA) putting it in writing,(DB) and our leaders, our Levites and our priests are affixing their seals to it.”[d]
Footnotes
- Nehemiah 9:5 Or God for ever and ever
- Nehemiah 9:9 Or the Sea of Reeds
- Nehemiah 9:22 One Hebrew manuscript and Septuagint; most Hebrew manuscripts Sihon, that is, the country of the
- Nehemiah 9:38 In Hebrew texts this verse (9:38) is numbered 10:1.
Nehemiah 9
Easy-to-Read Version
The People of Israel Confess Their Sins
9 Then on the 24th day of that same month, the Israelites gathered together for a day of fasting. They wore sackcloth and put ashes on their heads to show they were sad and upset. 2 Those people who were true Israelites separated themselves from foreigners. The Israelites stood and confessed their sins and the sins of their ancestors. 3 They stood there for about three hours, and the people read the Book of the Law of the Lord their God. Then for three more hours they confessed their sins and bowed down to worship the Lord their God.
4 Then these Levites stood on the stairs: Jeshua, Bani, Kadmiel, Shebaniah, Bunni, Sherebiah, Bani, and Kenani. They called out to the Lord their God with loud voices. 5 Then these Levites spoke again: Jeshua, Bani, Kadmiel, Bani, Hashabneiah, Sherebiah, Hodiah, Shebaniah, and Pethahiah. They said, “Stand up and praise the Lord your God! God has always lived and will live forever.
“People should praise your glorious name.
May your name be lifted above all blessing and praise.
6 You are God.
Lord, only you are God.
You made the sky and the highest heavens
and everything in them.
You made the earth
and everything on it.
You made the seas
and everything in them.
You give life to everything.
All the heavenly angels bow down and worship you.
7 You are the Lord,
the God who chose Abram.
You led him from Ur in Babylonia.
You changed his name to Abraham.
8 You saw he was true and loyal to you,
and you made an agreement with him.
You promised to give him the land
of the Canaanites, Hittites, Amorites, Perizzites, Jebusites, and Girgashites.
But you promised to give that land to Abraham’s descendants.
And you kept your promise because you are good.
9 You saw our ancestors suffering in Egypt
and heard them call for help by the Red Sea.
10 You showed the miracles to Pharaoh.
You did amazing things to his officials and his people.
You knew that the Egyptians thought
they were better than our ancestors.
But you proved how great you are,
and they remember that even today.
11 You split the Red Sea in front of them,
and they walked through on dry land.
The Egyptian soldiers were chasing them,
but you threw that enemy into the sea.
And they sank like a rock into the sea.
12 With the tall cloud, you led them by day,
and at night you used the column of fire.
That is the way you lit their path
and showed them where to go.
13 Then you came down to Mount Sinai.
You spoke to them from heaven.
You gave them good laws.
You gave them true teachings.
You gave them laws and commands that were very good.
14 You told them about your special day of rest—the Sabbath.
Through your servant Moses,
you gave them commands, laws, and teachings.
15 They were hungry,
so you gave them food from heaven.
They were thirsty,
so you gave them water from a rock.
You told them,
‘Come, take this land.’
You used your power,
and took the land for them.
16 But our ancestors became proud and stubborn.
They refused to obey your commands.
17 They refused to listen.
They forgot the amazing things you did with them.
They became stubborn.
They decided to return to Egypt and become slaves again.
“But you are a forgiving God!
You are kind and full of mercy.
You are patient and full of love.
So you didn’t leave them!
18 You didn’t leave them even when they made golden calves and said,
‘These are the gods that led us out of Egypt.’
19 You are very kind,
so you didn’t leave them in the desert.
You didn’t take the tall cloud
away from them by day.
You continued to lead them.
You didn’t take the column of fire
away from them at night.
You continued to light their path
and to show them which way to go.
20 You gave them your good Spirit to make them wise.
You gave them manna for food.
You gave them water for their thirst.
21 You took care of them for 40 years.
They had all they needed in the desert.
Their clothes didn’t wear out,
and their feet didn’t swell and hurt.
22 You gave them kingdoms and nations,
and you gave them faraway places where few people live.
They got the land of King Sihon of Heshbon.
They got the land of King Og of Bashan.
23 You made their descendants
as many as the stars in the sky.
You brought them to the land
you promised to give their ancestors.
They went in and took that land.
24 Their children took the land.
They defeated the Canaanites living there.
You let them defeat those people.
You let them do whatever they wanted
to those nations, people, and kings.
25 They defeated powerful cities.
They took the fertile land.
They got houses filled with good things.
They got wells that were already dug.
They got vineyards, olive trees, and plenty of fruit trees.
They ate until they were full and fat.
They enjoyed all the wonderful things you gave them.
26 And then they turned against you.
They threw away your teachings.
They killed your prophets.
Those prophets warned the people.
They tried to bring them back to you.
But our ancestors said terrible things against you.
27 So you let their enemies have them.
The enemy caused them much trouble.
When trouble came, our ancestors called to you for help.
And in heaven, you heard them.
You are very kind,
so you sent people to save them.
And they rescued them from their enemies.
28 Then as soon as our ancestors were rested,
they started doing terrible things again!
So you let the enemy defeat them
and punish them.
They called to you for help,
and in heaven you heard them and helped them.
You are so kind.
That happened so many times.
29 You warned them.
You told them to come back,
but they were too proud.
They refused to listen to your commands.
If people obey your laws, they will live.
But our ancestors broke your laws.
They were stubborn.
They turned their backs on you.
They refused to listen.
30 “You were very patient with our ancestors.
You let them mistreat you for many years.
You warned them with your Spirit.
You sent the prophets to warn them.
But our ancestors didn’t listen.
So you gave them to people in other countries.
31 “But you are so kind!
You didn’t completely destroy them.
You didn’t leave them.
You are such a kind and merciful God!
32 Our God, you are the great God,
the awesome, powerful soldier!
You are kind and loyal.
You keep your agreement.
We have had many troubles,
and our troubles are important to you.
Bad things happened to all our people,
and to our kings and leaders,
and to our priests and prophets.
Those terrible things have happened
from the days of the king of Assyria until today!
33 But God, you were right about everything that happened to us.
You were right, and we were wrong.
34 Our kings, leaders, priests, and fathers did not obey your law.
They didn’t listen to your commands.
They ignored your warnings.
35 Our ancestors didn’t serve you even when they were living in their own kingdom.
They didn’t stop doing evil.
They enjoyed all the wonderful things you gave them.
They enjoyed the rich land and had plenty of room,
but they didn’t stop their evil ways.
36 And now, we are slaves.
We are slaves in this land,
the land you gave our ancestors
so they could enjoy its fruit
and all the good things that grow here.
37 The harvest is big in this land.
But we sinned, so that harvest goes to the kings you put over us.
They control us and our cattle.
They do anything they want.
We are in a lot of trouble.
38 “Because of all these things, we are making an agreement that cannot be changed. We are putting this agreement in writing. Our leaders, Levites, and priests are signing their names to this agreement and sealing it with a seal.”
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