The Worshipers Confess Their Sins
Nehemiah 9, verse 1. Now on the twenty-fourth day of this month, the sons of Israel were assembled with fasting, in sackcloth, and with dust on their heads. Nehemiah 9, verse 2. Then those of Israelite lineage separated themselves from all foreigners; and they stood and confessed their sins and the iniquities of their fathers. Nehemiah 9, verse 3. And they stood in their place and read from the Book of the Law of the Lord their God, and they were confessing to the Lord and worshiping the Lord their God. Nehemiah 9, verse 4. Then Jeshua, Bani, Kadmiel, Shebaniah, Bunni, Sherebiah, Bani, and Chenani stood on the stairs of the Levites and cried out with a loud voice to the Lord their God. Nehemiah 9, verse 5. And the Levites, Jeshua, Kadmiel, Bani, Hashabniah, Sherebiah, Hodijah, Shebaniah, and Pethahiah, said, “Stand up and bless the Lord your God forever and ever! Blessed be Your glorious name, which is exalted above all blessing and praise!”
Confession of the Sins of Israel
Nehemiah 9, verse 6. And Ezra said, “You are the only Lord. You have made heaven, the heaven of heavens, with all their host, the earth and everything on it, the seas and all that is in them. You give life to all, and the host of heaven worships You. Nehemiah 9, verse 7. You are the Lord God who chose Abram and brought him out of the land of the Chaldeans, and gave him the name Abraham. Nehemiah 9, verse 8. You found his heart faithful before You and made a covenant with him to give the land of the Canaanites, the Hittites, the Amorites, the Perizzites, the Jebusites, and the Girgashites—to give it to his descendants. You fulfilled Your words, for You are righteous. Nehemiah 9, verse 9. “You saw the affliction of our fathers in Egypt and heard their cry by the Red Sea. Nehemiah 9, verse 10. And in Egypt You showed signs against Pharaoh, against all his servants, and against all the people of his land. For You knew that they acted proudly against them. So You made a name for Yourself as it is this day. Nehemiah 9, verse 11. And You divided the sea before them, so that they went through the midst of the sea on dry land; and their persecutors You threw into the deep, as a stone into the mighty waters. Nehemiah 9, verse 12. Moreover You led them by day with a cloudy pillar, and by night with a pillar of fire, to give them light on the road which they should travel. Nehemiah 9, verse 13. “You came down also on Mount Sinai and spoke with them from heaven. You gave to them just ordinances and true laws, good commandments and precepts. Nehemiah 9, verse 14. You made known to them Your holy Sabbath and commanded them statutes and commandments and the Law by the hand of your servant Moses. Nehemiah 9, verse 15. You gave them bread from heaven for their hunger and brought them water out of a rock for their thirst. You told them to go in to possess the land which You had sworn to give to them. Nehemiah 9, verse 16. But they and our fathers acted proudly, hardened their necks, and did not heed Your commandments. Nehemiah 9, verse 17. They refused to obey, and they were not mindful of Your wonders that You did among them. But they hardened their necks, and they appointed a leader to return to their bondage in Egypt. But You are God, gracious and compassionate, long-suffering, abundant in kindness, and did not forsake them. Nehemiah 9, verse 18. “Even when they made a molded calf for themselves and said, ‘These are the gods that brought us up out of Egypt,’ and worked great provocations, Nehemiah 9, verse 19. yet in Your manifold mercies You did not forsake them in the wilderness. The pillar of the cloud did not depart from them by day to lead them on the road; nor the pillar of fire by night to show them light and the way they should go. Nehemiah 9, verse 20. You gave Your good Spirit to instruct them, and did not withhold Your manna from their mouth, and gave them water for their thirst. Nehemiah 9, verse 21. Forty years You sustained them in the wilderness; they lacked nothing; their clothes did not wear out and their feet did not swell. Nehemiah 9, verse 22. “Moreover You gave to them kingdoms and You divided nations to them. So they took possession of the land of Sihon, the land of the king of Heshbon, and the land of Og king of Bashan. Nehemiah 9, verse 23. You also multiplied their children as the stars of heaven and brought them into the land which You had told their fathers to go in and possess. Nehemiah 9, verse 24. 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 wished. Nehemiah 9, verse 25. And they took strong cities and possessed houses full of all goods, cisterns already dug, vineyards, olive groves, and fruit trees in abundance. So they ate and were filled, and grew fat, and delighted themselves in Your great goodness. Nehemiah 9, verse 26. “Nevertheless, they were disobedient and rebelled against You, cast Your law behind their backs, and killed Your prophets, who testified against them to turn them to You, and they worked great provocations. Nehemiah 9, verse 27. Therefore You delivered them into the hand of their enemies, who oppressed them; and in the time of their trouble, when they cried to You, You heard from Your heaven; and according to Your abundant mercies, You gave them deliverers who saved them from the hand of their enemies. Nehemiah 9, verse 28. “But after they had rest, they again did evil before You. Therefore You left them in the hands of their enemies so that they had dominion over them. Yet again they cried out to You, You heard from heaven; and You delivered them according to the multitude of Your mercies, Nehemiah 9, verse 29. and testified against them, that You might bring them back to Your Law. Yet they did not heed Your commandments, but sinned against Your judgments, ‘which if a man does, he shall live by them.’ But they stubbornly turned their backs, stiffened their necks, and would not hear. Nehemiah 9, verse 30. Yet for many years You had patience with them and testified against them by Your Spirit in Your prophets. Yet they would not listen; therefore You gave them into the hand of the peoples of the lands. Nehemiah 9, verse 31. Nevertheless in Your great mercy, You did not utterly consume them nor forsake them; for You are mighty and gracious and merciful. Nehemiah 9, verse 32. “Now therefore, our God, the great, the mighty, the powerful and awesome God, who keep Your covenant and Your mercy: do not let all the trouble seem small before You that has come upon us, our kings and our princes, our priests and our prophets, our fathers and all Your people, from the days of the kings of Assyria until this day. Nehemiah 9, verse 33. However, You are just in all that has befallen us; for You have dealt faithfully, but we have done wickedly. Nehemiah 9, verse 34. Neither our kings nor our princes, our priests nor our fathers, have kept Your Law, nor heeded Your commandments and Your testimonies with which You testified against them. Nehemiah 9, verse 35. For they have not served You in their kingdom, or in the many good things that You gave them, or in the large and rich land which You set before them; nor did they turn from their wicked works. Nehemiah 9, verse 36. “Behold! We are slaves today! And the land which You gave to our fathers to eat its fruit and its bounty, here we are, servants in it! Nehemiah 9, verse 37. And it yields much increase to the kings You have set over us because of our sins; also they have dominion over our bodies and our cattle at their pleasure; and we are in great distress. Nehemiah 9, verse 38. And because of all this, we make a sure covenant and write it; and all our rulers, our Levites, and our priests seal it.”