Nehemiah:9-10

---

Seeker Overlay ON

* Now in the twenty and fourth day of this month the children of Israel were assembled with fasting , and with sackclothes , and earth upon them . * And the seed of Israel separated themselves from all strangers , and stood and confessed their sins , and the iniquities of their fathers . * And they stood up in their place , and read in the book of the law of the LORD their God one fourth part of the day ; and another fourth part they confessed , and worshipped the LORD their God . * Then stood up upon the stairs , of the Levites , Jeshua , and Bani , Kadmiel , Shebaniah , Bunni , Sherebiah , Bani , and Chenani , and cried with a loud voice unto the LORD their God . * Then the Levites , Jeshua , and Kadmiel , Bani , Hashabniah , Sherebiah , Hodijah , Shebaniah , and Pethahiah , said , Stand up and bless the LORD your God for ever and ever : and blessed be thy glorious name , which is exalted above all blessing and praise . * Thou , even thou , art LORD alone ; thou hast made heaven , the heaven of heavens , with all their host , the earth , and all things that are therein , the seas , and all that is therein , and thou preservest them all ; and the host of heaven worshippeth thee . * Thou art the LORD the God , who didst choose Abram , and broughtest him forth out of Ur of the Chaldees , and gavest him the name of Abraham ; * And foundest his heart faithful before thee , and madest 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 , I say , to his seed , and hast performed thy words ; for thou art righteous : * And didst see the affliction of our fathers in Egypt , and heardest their cry by the Red sea ; * And shewedst signs and wonders upon Pharaoh , and on all his servants , and on all the people of his land : for thou knewest that they dealt proudly against them . So didst thou get thee a name , as it is this day . * And thou didst divide the sea before them , so that they went through the midst of the sea on the dry land ; and their persecutors thou threwest into the deeps , as a stone into the mighty waters . * Moreover thou leddest them in the day by a cloudy pillar ; and in the night by a pillar of fire , to give them light in the way wherein they should go . * Thou camest down also upon mount Sinai , and spakest with them from heaven , and gavest them right judgments , and true laws , good statutes and commandments : * And madest known unto them thy holy sabbath , and commandedst them precepts , statutes , and laws , by the hand of Moses thy servant : * And gavest them bread from heaven for their hunger , and broughtest forth water for them out of the rock for their thirst , and promisedst them that they should go in to possess the land which thou hadst sworn to give them . * But they and our fathers dealt proudly , and hardened their necks , and hearkened not to thy commandments , * And refused to obey , neither were mindful of thy wonders that thou didst among them ; but hardened their necks , and in their rebellion appointed a captain to return to their bondage : but thou art a God ready to pardon , gracious and merciful , slow to anger , and of great kindness , and forsookest them not . * Yea , when they had made them a molten calf , and said , This is thy God that brought thee up out of Egypt , and had wrought great provocations ; * Yet thou in thy manifold mercies forsookest them not in the wilderness : the pillar of the cloud departed not from them by day , to lead them in the way ; neither the pillar of fire by night , to shew them light , and the way wherein they should go . * Thou gavest also thy good spirit to instruct them , and withheldest not thy manna from their mouth , and gavest them water for their thirst . * Yea , forty years didst thou sustain them in the wilderness , so that they lacked nothing ; their clothes waxed not old , and their feet swelled not . * Moreover thou gavest them kingdoms and nations , and didst divide them into corners : so they possessed the land of Sihon , and the land of the king of Heshbon , and the land of Og king of Bashan . * Their children also multipliedst thou as the stars of heaven , and broughtest them into the land , concerning which thou hadst promised to their fathers , that they should go in to possess it . * So the children went in and possessed the land , and thou subduedst before them the inhabitants of the land , the Canaanites , and gavest them into their hands , with their kings , and the people of the land , that they might do with them as they would . * And they took strong cities , and a fat land , and possessed houses full of all goods , wells digged , vineyards , and oliveyards , and fruit trees in abundance : so they did eat , and were filled , and became fat , and delighted themselves in thy great goodness . * Nevertheless they were disobedient , and rebelled against thee , and cast thy law behind their backs , and slew thy prophets which testified against them to turn them to thee , and they wrought great provocations . * Therefore thou deliveredst them into the hand of their enemies , who vexed them : and in the time of their trouble , when they cried unto thee , thou heardest them from heaven ; and according to thy manifold mercies thou gavest them saviours , who saved them out of the hand of their enemies . * But after they had rest , they did evil again before thee : therefore leftest thou them in the hand of their enemies , so that they had the dominion over them : yet when they returned , and cried unto thee , thou heardest them from heaven ; and many times didst thou deliver them according to thy mercies ; * And testifiedst against them , that thou mightest bring them again unto thy law : yet they dealt proudly , and hearkened not unto thy commandments , but sinned against thy judgments , (which if a man do , he shall live in them ;) and withdrew the shoulder , and hardened their neck , and would not hear . * Yet many years didst thou forbear them , and testifiedst against them by thy spirit in thy prophets : yet would they not give ear : therefore gavest thou them into the hand of the people of the lands . * Nevertheless for thy great mercies ' sake thou didst not utterly consume them , nor forsake them ; for thou art a gracious and merciful God . * Now therefore , our God , the great , the mighty , and the terrible God , who keepest covenant and mercy , let not all the trouble seem little before thee , that hath come upon us , on our kings , on our princes , and on our priests , and on our prophets , and on our fathers , and on all thy people , since the time of the kings of Assyria unto this day . * Howbeit thou art just in all that is brought upon us ; for thou hast done right , but we have done wickedly : * Neither have our kings , our princes , our priests , nor our fathers , kept thy law , nor hearkened unto thy commandments and thy testimonies , wherewith thou didst testify against them . * For they have not served thee in their kingdom , and in thy great goodness that thou gavest them , and in the large and fat land which thou gavest before them , neither turned they from their wicked works . * Behold , we are servants this day , and for the land that thou gavest unto our fathers to eat the fruit thereof and the good thereof , behold , we are servants in it : * And it yieldeth much increase unto the kings whom thou hast set over us because of our sins : also they have dominion over our bodies , and over our cattle , at their pleasure , and we are in great distress . * And because of all this we make a sure covenant , and write it ; and our princes , Levites , and priests , seal unto it . * Now those that sealed were , Nehemiah , the Tirshatha , the son of Hachaliah , and Zidkijah , * Seraiah , Azariah , Jeremiah , * Pashur , Amariah , Malchijah , * Hattush , Shebaniah , Malluch , * Harim , Meremoth , Obadiah , * Daniel , Ginnethon , Baruch , * Meshullam , Abijah , Mijamin , * Maaziah , Bilgai , Shemaiah : these were the priests . * And the Levites : both Jeshua the son of Azaniah , Binnui of the sons of Henadad , Kadmiel ; * And their brethren , Shebaniah , Hodijah , Kelita , Pelaiah , Hanan , * Micha , Rehob , Hashabiah , * Zaccur , Sherebiah , Shebaniah , * Hodijah , Bani , Beninu . * The chief of the people ; Parosh , Pahathmoab , Elam , Zatthu , Bani , * Bunni , Azgad , Bebai , * Adonijah , Bigvai , Adin , * Ater , Hizkijah , Azzur , * Hodijah , Hashum , Bezai , * Hariph , Anathoth , Nebai , * Magpiash , Meshullam , Hezir , * Meshezabeel , Zadok , Jaddua , * Pelatiah , Hanan , Anaiah , * Hoshea , Hananiah , Hashub , * Hallohesh , Pileha , Shobek , * Rehum , Hashabnah , Maaseiah , * And Ahijah , Hanan , Anan , * Malluch , Harim , Baanah . * And the rest of the people , the priests , the Levites , the porters , the singers , the Nethinims , and all they that had separated themselves from the people of the lands unto the law of God , their wives , their sons , and their daughters , every one having knowledge , and having understanding ; * They clave to their brethren , their nobles , and entered into a curse , and into an oath , to walk in God 's law , which was given by Moses the servant of God , and to observe and do all the commandments of the LORD our Lord , and his judgments and his statutes ; * And that we would not give our daughters unto the people of the land , nor take their daughters for our sons : * And if the people of the land bring ware or any victuals on the sabbath day to sell , that we would not buy it of them on the sabbath , or on the holy day : and that we would leave the seventh year , and the exaction of every debt . * Also we made ordinances for us , to charge ourselves yearly with the third part of a shekel for the service of the house of our God ; * For the shewbread , and for the continual meat offering , and for the continual burnt offering , of the sabbaths , of the new moons , for the set feasts , and for the holy things , and for the sin offerings to make an atonement for Israel , and for all the work of the house of our God . * And we cast the lots among the priests , the Levites , and the people , for the wood offering , to bring it into the house of our God , after the houses of our fathers , at times appointed year by year , to burn upon the altar of the LORD our God , as it is written in the law : * And to bring the firstfruits of our ground , and the firstfruits of all fruit of all trees , year by year , unto the house of the LORD : * Also the firstborn of our sons , and of our cattle , as it is written in the law , and the firstlings of our herds and of our flocks , to bring to the house of our God , unto the priests that minister in the house of our God : * And that we should bring the firstfruits of our dough , and our offerings , and the fruit of all manner of trees , of wine and of oil , unto the priests , to the chambers of the house of our God ; and the tithes of our ground unto the Levites , that the same Levites might have the tithes in all the cities of our tillage . * And the priest the son of Aaron shall be with the Levites , when the Levites take tithes : and the Levites shall bring up the tithe of the tithes unto the house of our God , to the chambers , into the treasure house . * For the children of Israel and the children of Levi shall bring the offering of the corn , of the new wine , and the oil , unto the chambers , where are the vessels of the sanctuary , and the priests that minister , and the porters , and the singers : and we will not forsake the house of our God . * And the rulers of the people dwelt at Jerusalem : the rest of the people also cast lots , to bring one of ten to dwell in Jerusalem the holy city , and nine parts to dwell in other cities .

---