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Nehemiah 9:1-5
New English Translation
Nehemiah 9:1-5
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.
Read full chapterFootnotes
- 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 9:1-5
New International Version
Nehemiah 9:1-5
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.
Footnotes
- Nehemiah 9:5 Or God for ever and ever
New English Translation (NET)
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