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Nehemiah 9
Easy-to-Read Version
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.”
Nehemiah 9
New International Version
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.
Easy-to-Read Version (ERV)
Copyright © 2006 by Bible League International
New International Version (NIV) 
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