Nehemiah 9: 1 – 38
Encore
9 Now on the twenty-fourth day of this month the children of Israel were assembled with fasting, in sackcloth, and with dust on their heads. 2 Then those of Israelite lineage separated themselves from all foreigners; and they stood and confessed their sins and the iniquities of their fathers. 3 And they stood up in their place and read from the Book of the Law of the LORD their God for one-fourth of the day; and for another fourth they confessed and worshiped the LORD their God. 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. 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! 6 You alone are the 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, and You preserve them all. The host of heaven worships You. 7 “You are the LORD God, Who chose Abram, and brought him out of Ur of the Chaldeans, and gave him the name Abraham; 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 have performed Your words, for You are righteous. 9 “You saw the affliction of our fathers in Egypt and heard their cry by the Red Sea. 10 You showed signs and wonders 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. 11 And You divided the sea before them, so that they went through the midst of the sea on the dry land; And their persecutors You threw into the deep, as a stone into the mighty waters. 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. 13 “You came down also on Mount Sinai, and spoke with them from heaven, and gave them just ordinances and true laws, good statutes and commandments. 14 You made known to them Your holy Sabbath, and commanded them precepts, statutes and laws, by the hand of Moses Your servant. 15 You gave them bread from heaven for their hunger and brought them water out of the rock for their thirst and told them to go in to possess the land which You had sworn to give them. 16 “But they and our fathers acted proudly, hardened their necks, and did not heed Your commandments. 17 They refused to obey, and they were not mindful of Your wonders that You did among them. But they hardened their necks, and in their rebellion, they appointed a leader to return to their bondage. But You are God, ready to pardon, Gracious and merciful, Slow to anger, Abundant in kindness, and did not forsake them. 18 “Even when they made a molded calf for themselves, and said, ‘This is your god that brought you up out of Egypt,’ and worked great provocations, 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. 20 You also gave Your good Spirit to instruct them, and did not withhold Your manna from their mouth, and gave them water for their thirst. 21 Forty years You sustained them in the wilderness; They lacked nothing; Their clothes did not wear out and their feet did not swell. 22 “Moreover You gave them kingdoms and nations and divided them into districts. So they took possession of the land of Sihon, The land of the king of Heshbon, and the land of Og king of Bashan. 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. 24 So the people went in and possessed the land; 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. 25 And they took strong cities and a rich land, 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. 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 Yourself; And they worked great provocations. 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 heaven; And according to Your abundant mercies You gave them deliverers who saved them from the hand of their enemies. 28 “But after they had rest, they again did evil before You. Therefore, You left them in the hand of their enemies, so that they had dominion over them; Yet when they returned and cried out to You, You heard from heaven; And many times You delivered them according to Your mercies, 29 And testified against them, that You might bring them back to Your law. Yet they acted proudly, and did not heed Your commandments, but sinned against Your judgments, which if a man does, he shall live by them.’ And they shrugged their shoulders, stiffened their necks, and would not hear. 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. 31 Nevertheless in Your great mercy You did not utterly consume them nor forsake them; For You are God, gracious and merciful. 32 “Now therefore, our God, the great, the mighty, and awesome God, who keeps covenant and 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 on all Your people, from the days of the kings of Assyria until this day. 33 However You are just in all that has befallen us; For You have dealt faithfully, but we have done wickedly. 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. 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. 36 “Here we are, servants today! And the land that You gave to our fathers, to eat its fruit and its bounty, here we are, servants in it! 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. 38 “And because of all this, we make a sure covenant and write it; Our leaders, our Levites, and our priests seal it.”
An ‘encore’ was used by an enthusiastic audience to demand an extra or repeated performance. I have not heard this call in many years. At a concert or a stage performance instead of calling out ‘encore’ the audience picks up a continual applause until the performer comes back on stage to do one more song or to take another bow.
We are going to witness a few great things that happened because of teaching the Word of God to the Israelites. I will share these things as we go through the chapter. The bottom line was that a revival broke out which caused the people to not want to leave but to have a encore of more of God’s Word taught to them and to join in group worship and prayer to Yahweh God.
9 Now on the twenty-fourth day of this month the children of Israel were assembled with fasting, in sackcloth, and with dust on their heads.
The ‘eighth day’ feast was on the twenty second day of the moon period (Leviticus 23.39). Thus, the twenty third day, which would normally have been the day for packing up and returning home, had become a day when the people spontaneously came to their decision not to return to their homes, but to renew a solemn covenant with God. On the following day, the twenty fourth day, they gathered, probably within the precincts of the Temple, having engaged in fasting for the day, and wearing sackcloth, with earth on their heads. These were expressions of deep mourning for sin.
2 Then those of Israelite lineage separated themselves from all foreigners; and they stood and confessed their sins and the iniquities of their fathers.
It should be noted that this is a summary verse describing what is to follow. The idea here is not to describe a literal act of separation taken at that moment in any physical way (their very observance of the Feast would have involved such a separation), but of a separation which took place within them, a separation in their hearts. They were separating themselves in their hearts from all ‘foreigners’, that is from all who did not worship YHWH wholly and uniquely. They were making clear that they would have nothing to do with the worship of other gods. They were purging themselves from all that could displease YHWH or could give any suggestion of compromise in their stance towards God as the only God.
The thought may well be included that they went into the court of Israel in the Temple, where such ‘foreigners’ were not permitted, and did therefore make it impossible for ‘foreigners’ to mingle with them, but the main emphasis is on the attitude of their hearts. It was uncompromisingly exclusive of all taint of idolatry.
What follows is a description of the basis on which they were taking their stand (YHWH’s overall sovereignty and His promises to Abraham), together with their admission of their sins and of the iniquities of their fathers. They were acknowledging corporate responsibility for the situation that they were now in. In their own sinfulness and failure to observe the full Law they recognized that they shared in the blame for all that their fathers had done.
3 And they stood up in their place and read from the Book of the Law of the LORD their God for one-fourth of the day; and for another fourth they confessed and worshiped the LORD their God.
Once again, their attention turned towards God’s words given through Moses. It had been read to them on the first day of the moon period (8.2-8), brought to the attention of their leaders on the second day (8.13-15), and then brought to them continually from the fifteenth to twenty first days (8.18). Now they wanted to hear extracts from it again. They were hungry to know God’s will. The reading would presumably be given by the Levites, (in marked contrast with earlier where it was by Ezra), or possibly by the leaders of the people, and carried on for around three hours. It was then followed by a period of confessing their sins and worshipping YHWH their God for the subsequent three hours as the Spirit of God moved among them. This then led up to what follows in verses 4-39, a reminding of God of both His own promises, and an acknowledging of how Israel had constantly sinned.
What follows was presumably the culmination of the three hours of confession and worship and was a summing up in prayer by the chiefs of the Levites in terms of Israel’s history, as their thoughts led up to a renewal of the covenant with God (Joshua 24.2-15; Psalm 106). It commences with the idea of YHWH as Creator and Lord of all (verse 6); moves on to the thought that He chose Abraham, and renamed him, and made a covenant with him to give him the land (9.7-8); then details the wonderful provision that YHWH had continually made for His undeserving people, and the way that He had continually delivered them again and again in spite of their continual sins and rebellions, and concludes by pointing out their present situation as subservient to the kings of Persia. In consequence of this they now declare their intention to make a sure covenant with Him, a covenant which follows in chapter 11. They do not ask for any reward for doing this. They leave it to God to decide what He will do.
In verse 4 we presumably have a list of the princes of the Levites, who took their stand on the stairs of the Levites, and led the continual worship, and in verse 5 the names of those who actually led the final confession and intercession, some as chiefs and some on behalf of their chiefs. Some of these probably took up places among the crowds so that they could relay the central prayer onwards.
Please think about a few previous chapters in our study of Ezra. Not too many Levites were willing to leave Babylon because they had things a lot better than the prior job duties at the Temple. After being persuaded by some gifted men some of the Levites volunteered and went joined the returning caravan of Israelites. Their willingness to go back to Israel was highly rewarded by our Lord for these Levites were called upon by the people to continue to share the word of God, pray, and worship Yahweh. They were blessed in that they experienced personally the spontaneous overflowing of the Holy Spirit.
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.
These would appear to be the eight chiefs of the Levites, probably representing ‘houses. Jeshua, Bani (Binnui) and Kadmiel would appear to have been the three most prominent Levites as we find from 10.9, where Bani (Binnui) is distinguished by being described as ‘of the sons of Hanadad’ to distinguish him as the chief Levite. The point being made was that all were present, and all were as one.
‘They cried with a loud voice to YHWH their God.’ The verb suggests a cry of distress. They were as moved by what they had heard of the Law as anyone. The Holy Spirit was truly at work. This is not describing the prayer that follows, (conveyed by those mentioned in verse 5), but their own participation in the general worship
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!
These eight presumably represent the eight ‘houses’ with some being the same as the chiefs mentioned above, while others were representatives of the chiefs not mentioned here in verse 5. The otherwise unnecessary repetition of the list indicates clearly that the names are intended to be different from verse 4. Each was acting on behalf of his ‘house’. They were the spokesmen. Some of them would almost certainly have been sprinkled among the crowd to relay the prayer as it was spoken.
The Levites now made the call to prayer as had become customary. They called on the people to stand up and bless the everlasting Lord. And they then moved into spontaneous worship, spontaneous, but a worship based solidly on past tradition. We need not assume that the people were not already standing. It is a call to stand as those abut to pray and confess their sins and the sins of their fathers. Over a thousand years had passed since the covenant had been given, and yet they were even now not in full possession of the land. And the reason was because they and their fathers had sinned. That is why the prayer covers so much ground. There was a long history of sin to be repented of.
Standing was the usual attitude for prayer. They may already have been standing. Now they are to stand ready for prayer. This initial prayer is a summarizing prayer divided up into two parts, the first addressed to the people and the second to God Himself. Such a movement from address to worship is a regular feature of many kinds of worship as the worshipper realizes the wonder of what he is saying and turns to praise. It is again suggestive of spiritual revival. The speaker was probably Jeshua the Levite, acting on behalf of the group.
The people are called on to stand up and bless YHWH, Who Is described as ‘their God from everlasting to everlasting’. He Is seen as the One Who encompasses all things and all time, and as the One Who has been His people’s God throughout the ages and will continue to be so into the distant future. That very thought then fills their minds with praise and leads on into direct worship.
For, subsequently, having made the call to worship the Levites then address YHWH and bless His glorious Name ‘which is exalted above all blessing and praise’. He is thus seen as both eternally existent (He Is exalted), and as being beyond the ability of men to appreciate (He Is above all blessing and praise). In other words, He Is seen as so great that it is impossible to express a sufficiency of blessing and praise. His uniqueness and distinctiveness thus are being emphasized. He Is above and beyond all things.
The initial emphasis was now on YHWH as sole Creator and Lord over all things, Who thus had control of all affairs whether in Heaven or on earth. Behind their words was their distress that they were still subject to the Persians (verse 39). But they recognized that to Him, as the Universal Lord, the Persians and their gods were as nothing. Their future lay only in the hands of YHWH.
6 You alone are the 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, and You preserve them all. The host of heaven worships You.
He was first addressed as the unique and only Creator of Heaven and earth as the One Who has made the Heaven of Heavens, with all that it contains. All that is in those Heavens has been created by YHWH (thus making ‘the gods’ at best created things), and the angelic host owe their existence to His creative power. All the host of Heaven, without exception, whether angelic beings or heavenly bodies, worship Him. He is God over all.
He has made ‘the earth and all things that are on it’. As John would later put it, ‘All things were made by Him, and without Him was not anything made that was made’ (John 1.3). Thus they were reminding themselves that even the Persians themselves owed their empire to YHWH. And this description includes ‘the seas and all that is in them’. Note how there is a distinction between the earth and the seas. To the Israelites the seas were a strange element, almost distinct from the earth in which they lived. And yet they recognised that all is under Him. and He preserves them all. For this idea of both creating and sustaining (Colossians 1.16-17).
Not only had YHWH created all things, however, but He had also out of all the nation’s chosen their forefather Abram, adopted him as His own (changing his name to Abraham), and had given to him and to his seed the promise of the land of Canaan. And they acknowledged that He had performed what He had promised. He had given them possession of the land. As they will go on to say, it was not His fault that it had gone badly wrong.
7 “You are the LORD God, Who chose Abram, and brought him out of Ur of the Chaldeans, and gave him the name Abraham; 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 have performed Your words, for You are righteous.
The emphasis was now on the fact that it was YHWH Who, as the Creator and Ruler of all the world, and as the covenant-fulfilling Righteous One, had called and chosen Abram. He had brought him out of Ur of the Chaldees had sovereignly given him his new name Abraham as an indication that he was now God’s chosen one, (just as they bore the name of Israel His chosen one), and had found him faithful before Him (something that they now recognized should be true of them).
God had made a covenant with him to give to him and his seed the land of Canaan, something which He had performed because He was ‘righteous’ (conformed rightly to His covenant promises). And their tradition saw the land promised as having successfully been given to his seed (1 Kings 4.21), in spite of their previous rebellions. There is a clear implication in this that the returnees were expectant that God would similarly consider His sovereign choice and covenant about His chosen people, would show covenant love towards those who bore a new name given by God (Israel), and would perform His word before them, but this is not actually stated.
The Levites now reminded God that He had been faithful to His covenant throughout their history, declared their recognition of His constant goodness, and of His continuing loving care towards them, confessed their own failures and the failures of their fathers, which had occurred again and again, and reminded Him how He had continued faithful, clearly expressing the hope that He would continue to do so.
The confession was made in detail. It was not just a reiteration of their history. Every verse was spoken from the heart. They felt the great burden of guilt that was on them because of their nation’s behavior and attitude towards God. The words may well have been spoken with weeping. We are not to see them as just a liturgical formula. They were a deep-felt confession of sin every step of the way, and a continual acknowledgement of how good God had been towards them as His people.
The thoughts lying behind their words include:
. That men had continually ‘dealt proudly’, both the Egyptians (9.10) and their own fathers (9.16, 29), in being flagrantly disobedient to God;
. That God had given His people ‘possession of the land’ (9.23-24).
. That God had constantly supplied them with an abundance of good things both before and after entering the land (9.35 -37).
. That God had constantly watched over them and protected them (9.12, 19).
. That God had constantly sent His Spirit in His prophets with them to guide and inspire them (9. 30).
. That God had constantly instructed them in His Law (9.13-14).
. That the people had nevertheless constantly rebelled against Him (9.16) so that He had to endure great provocations (9.18).
. That God had constantly in turn delivered them (9.10-11).
. Each central main section ends with the thought that God had not forsaken them (9.17).
In the light of this they cried to God to now observe their present situation, indicating that while they acknowledged how as a people they had rebelled constantly against Him, refusing to keep His Law and observe His commandments, yet they His people were but servants in a land that should have been theirs, ruled over by others who partook of its fruits. They did not possess the land as He had promised Abram.
In their prayer the Levites first outline to God their recognition of His original great deliverance, and of all that He had done for His people during it.
They now reminded YHWH what, having established His sovereign power over all things, and having chosen Abraham and made a covenant with him to give him and his descendants the land, this had caused Him to do. It had caused Him to deliver the children of Abraham out of Egypt. They had been afflicted by a powerful foreign king and nation, but YHWH had miraculously delivered them, bringing them through the Red Sea, just as they now hoped that He would deliver them from the hand of another powerful king and nation, and would bring back other exiles who were scattered around the world.
9 “You saw the affliction of our fathers in Egypt and heard their cry by the Red Sea. 10 You showed signs and wonders 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. 11 And You divided the sea before them, so that they went through the midst of the sea on the dry land; And their persecutors You threw into the deep, as a stone into the mighty waters.
In poetic prose the Levites vividly describes the deliverance of ‘their fathers’ from their afflictions, both by signs and wonders wrought in Egypt affecting the whole land, and especially by His deliverance at the Red Sea when the host of Pharaoh perished in the waters. God had seen the afflictions of His people, had heard their cry, had noted the pride and arrogance of their tormentors, had worked signs and wonders against a foreign tyrant, and had thereby ‘got Himself a Name’, a recognition of Who and What He was. As can be seen the words are full of references to the Book of Exodus. This then was the God on whom they were now depending, and to Whom they were looking. It is quite apparent that they were hoping that God would act in a similar way again.
Having delivered them so wonderfully and powerfully God had made full provision for His people in the wilderness:
. He had made His presence with them known in the form of the pillars of cloud and fire, pillars which led them forward by day and night. For even the darkness was made light before them, so that they could travel by both day and night (verse 12; compare Exodus 13.20-21).
. He had guided them in their way of living by providing His commandments, statutes and laws (verses 13-14).
. He had supplied them with God-provided food and drink to satisfy their hunger and thirst (verse 15a).
. He had given them the encouragement of knowing that a promised land lay before them (verse 15b).
Please take notice the personal nature of His activity. ‘You led them -- You came down and spoke with them -- You made known to them -- You gave them bread from heaven -- and brought forth water -- You commanded them to possess the land.’ They should have been more than grateful, and more than fully satisfied. And the same pattern will be repeated in verses 19-24a, protection (verse 19), instruction (verse 20), sustenance (verse 21) and possession of the land (verses 22-24), and this after they had rebelled against Him (verse 18). Their rebellion did not cause Him to cease from providing fully for them. (This makes even more poignant the fact that at the end they will make clear that at that present time there was such a lack. They were in the land but they did not possess it (verses 36-37). They were living in relative poverty.
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.
The pillars of cloud and fire are constantly referred to in the tradition. They represented YHWH in His glorious hiddenness, as surrounded by cloud, and in His more open glory as revealed in fire, veiled by the night. The pillar of cloud had hidden them from the Egyptian army, delaying the Egyptians until Israel had crossed the Red Sea (Exodus 14.19-20). It also manifested the veiled glory of YHWH (Exodus 16.10). Fire was regularly the means through which God manifested Himself (Exodus 19.18). Cloud and fire were the indications of God’s presence, indicating that ‘You led them’ (Exodus 14.24) and they would be a regular occurrence in the future journeying (Numbers 14.14; Deuteronomy 1.33), a guarantee that YHWH was continually with them. Furthermore, the descent of the pillar of cloud regularly indicated His presence in the Tabernacle (Exodus 33.9). God was personally shepherding His people.
13 “You came down also on Mount Sinai, and spoke with them from heaven, and gave them just ordinances and true laws, good statutes and commandments.
They acknowledged to YHWH that in speaking to them from heaven He had given them ‘right ordinances and true laws, good statutes and commandments. They were right and true and good. They were not seen as a burden, which was what the Scribes would later make them, but as morally uplifting and coming from the truly righteous and good One. ‘Ordinances, laws, statutes and commandments’ were regular ways of describing God instruction (His Torah). But in no previous case are all these four words used together. The constant emphasis on the reception of God’s Instruction by the people was a reminder that as the people they had recently received this Instruction. But the inference was that they were to respond to it differently from their fathers.
14 You made known to them Your holy Sabbath, and commanded them precepts, statutes and laws, by the hand of Moses Your servant.
They reminded God that He had also made known to them His holy Sabbath. The emphasis on the Sabbath reflects the Exilic period. It was then that the Sabbath had become the unique outward expression of what it meant to be a Jew, as they lived among non-Jews. It was through the observance of the Sabbath that men around them knew that they were distinctive, and it was a symbol of both YHWH as sole Creator (Exodus 20.8-10) and YHWH as Redeemer and Deliverer of His people (Deuteronomy 5.14-15). It was initially instituted for all Israel at the first giving of the manna (Exodus 16.23-26.
15 You gave them bread from heaven for their hunger and brought them water out of the rock for their thirst and told them to go in to possess the land which You had sworn to give them.
They reminded Him of how He had led them, protected them, and guided them in how to ‘live’, and now He fed and watered them. There was no need that He had overlooked. They had received bread from heaven to satisfy their hunger, and water from the rock to satisfy their thirst. There is a constant emphasis throughout the passage on the material good things that God gave to His people. In the period of want that they were enduring after the return (1.3) it was no doubt an intentional reminder to God of what they were no longer receiving. They humbly and without their openly telling Him, wanted Him to notice the gap in His present provision for them.
We too have partaken of this bread and water, for Jesus likened Himself to the bread from heaven (John 6.33), and the water of life (John 4, 10-14) and Paul likened Him to the thirst-quenching rock (1 Corinthians 10.4). For we have entered His Sabbath rest (Hebrews 4).
And finally He had assured them of possession of the land which He had sworn to give them, something which was later accomplished (verses 23-24). And this was of prime importance, for land on which to dwell, and which could be farmed, and which they could call their own, was the dream of every man. He wanted to live ‘every man under his own vine and under his own fig tree’ (1 Kings 4.25). Again, there is the unspoken hint (although only openly expressed later - verses 36-37) that at this present time, while it was true that they now dwelt in the land, they had not received full possession of the land that He had sworn to give to their fathers.
16 “But they and our fathers acted proudly, hardened their necks, and did not heed Your commandments.
They acknowledged that those who had behaved in this way were ‘our fathers’. They were admitting their share in the guilt of their fathers. And they admitted that their fathers had been arrogant and stiff-necked, an idea which is emphasized by repeated. They had thought that they knew better than God and had behaved accordingly. They had been arrogant towards Him, had refused to bow to His requirements, and had not listened to His commandments. By this they were admitting that they had deserved all that they had received, and far worse.
17 They refused to obey, and they were not mindful of Your wonders that You did among them. But they hardened their necks, and in their rebellion, they appointed a leader to return to their bondage. But You are God, ready to pardon, Gracious and merciful, Slow to anger, Abundant in kindness, and did not forsake them.
This first example of their disobedience and hardened state refers to what happened after the twelve scouts, who had been sent into Canaan in order to survey the position, had reported back (Numbers 13-14). They had ignored all the wonders that God had performed on their behalf, and had panicked. And they had ‘hardened their neck (become stiff-necked and unyielding, a concept obtained from Exodus 32.9; 33.3; 34.9) and had determined to appoint a Captain and return to Egypt, to their previous bondage (Numbers 14.4). As a consequence they were disobeying His command to go in and possess the land. Thus they had not deserved the land.
But even such behavior had not resulted in God giving up on them. Why? Because He is a God Who is ready to pardon. He is a God Who is gracious and merciful. He is a God Who is slow to anger and abundant in covenant love. The consequence was that He did not forsake them.
We next have what is to some extent a reiteration of what was described in verses 12-17, but now seen in the light of His people having provoked Him, and with greater emphasis on the Wilderness period, and on entry into the land which was now seen as satisfactorily accomplished (in verses 12-17 they had stopped short of the land). The parallel sequence is, protection through the pillars of cloud and fire, instruction by His Spirit, provision of food, water and clothing, success over their enemies, and successful entry into and conquest of the land. And all this despite their having provoked God by making the molten calf. It was a reminder to God of how He had shown mercy in the face of great provocation.
18 “Even when they made a molded calf for themselves, and said, ‘This is your god that brought you up out of Egypt,’ and worked great provocations, 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.
They gratefully acknowledged to God how, in the widespread nature of His mercies, He had not forsaken them in the wilderness. He had continued with them in the pillars of cloud and fire. He had led them in the way, protected them, given them light in the darkness, and shown them the way in which they were to go.
20 You also gave Your good Spirit to instruct them, and did not withhold Your manna from their mouth, and gave them water for their thirst.
He had also given His good Spirit to instruct them. This probably in the first instance has reference to His giving of the Spirit to the seventy elders (Numbers 11.17, 25-26), making them ‘prophets’ (Numbers 11.29). The thought is that they would have illuminated God’s Instruction to the people. And He had not withheld His gift of manna, and He had given them water to satisfy their thirst in the hot wilderness.
21 Forty years You sustained them in the wilderness; They lacked nothing; Their clothes did not wear out and their feet did not swell.
Indeed they acknowledged that He had given them even more, for during a period of forty years He had ensured that they lacked nothing. Their clothes had not grown old (probably indicating that He had ensured regular provision for renewing their clothing) and their feet had not swollen in such a way as to hinder their progress. He had kept them clothed, fit and well.
22 “Moreover You gave them kingdoms and nations and divided them into districts. So they took possession of the land of Sihon, The land of the king of Heshbon, and the land of Og king of Bashan.
God’s protection through the pillars of cloud and fire, His instruction of His people, and His provision for their physical needs, was followed by ‘possession of the land’ in accordance with the promise given to Abraham. And it was fulfilled beyond what was expected. For they received control over kingdoms and peoples which were not of the land. The lands of Sihon and Og were east of the Jordan and outside the scope of the promises. But God gave them to them nevertheless. His graciousness and compassion were such that, despite their rebellions, He gave them abundantly over all that they could ask or think.
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.
And they gratefully acknowledged that He had not only given them extra lands but had also fulfilled His promise to Abraham in making his children as the stars of heaven for multitude (Genesis 15.5).
24 So the people went in and possessed the land; 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. 25 And they took strong cities and a rich land, 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.
And so in accordance with God’s covenant with Abraham and with his seed, the children had gone in and possessed the land. In verse 15 God had commanded it. Now it had come to fruition because in His mercy and compassion He had spared those who had rebelled against Him who had said ‘no’, in order that their children might inherit.
They reminded God that He had not only given them the land, He had done it in style. He it was Who had ensured that the inhabitants of the land, its kings and peoples, were given into their hands, so that they could do with them as they would, a process that took from the time of Joshua to the time of David. And indeed that is precisely what Solomon had done as he made the peoples of the land slaves for his building operations.
And therefore, they had not only inherited the land, but they had taken possession of fortified cities, of productive land, of houses full of good things, of cisterns already hewn out, and of vineyards, olive yards and fruit trees in abundance. The result was that they had eaten and been filled, and had become well-nourished, enjoying life as they had rejoiced in God’s great goodness.
They now described to God how they had behaved as a nation, the constantly repeated cycles of rebellion, deliverance into the hands of enemies, fervent pleas to God, followed by divine intervention.
Note the pattern of the initial cycles; rebellion, deliverance to enemies, the plea for help, the provision of saviors. The mention of the slaying of the prophets indicates that this is going beyond the Judges period, into the period of the kings, but it follows the pattern of Judges 2.11-19. We have in this regard the clear examples of the prophets slain in the days of Elijah (1 Kings 18.4, 13; 19.10); and of Zechariah the son of Jehoiada, who was slain in the court of the king’s house at the command of King Joash (2 Chronicles 24.20-21. These would be followed later by Uriah the son of Shemaiah in the days of Jehoiakim (Jeremiah 26.20-23); and Zechariah, the son of Berechiah, who was slain between the Temple and the altar (Matthew 23.35), with the latter (Zechariah 1.1) perishing after the return from Exile. All had not been well, even among the returnees.
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 Yourself; And they worked great provocations.
They acknowledged before God how their fathers had rebelled against Him continually. It was a rebellion against His Law (Instruction), something very important at a time when the returnees had just been listening to the reading and exposition of the Law.
They thus rejected the Law and the prophets. The Levites are describing the past in terms of their post-exilic view of the pre-eminence of the Law which had been emphasized by Ezra, but reminding us that the Law had been ever with them.
Here their rebellion is spelt out in detail. They were disobedient -- they rebelled against God -- they cast His Law behind their backs -- they slew His prophets who testified against them -- they wrought great provocations. This is always the pathway into the depths of sin. First disobedience, then rebellion, then rejection of His word, then persecution of His messengers, and finally gross sin.
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 heaven; And according to Your abundant mercies You gave them deliverers who saved them from the hand of their enemies.
Then they drew God’s attention to the fact that He had in His mercy constantly delivered His people. Because of their decline they were delivered into the hands of their enemies and suffered great distress (as the returnees had recently been doing - 1.3). But then in their time of trouble they cried to God, and He ‘heard from heaven’. And as a result of His widespread mercies He gave them saviors who saved them out of the hands of their enemies.
28 “But after they had rest, they again did evil before You. Therefore, You left them in the hand of their enemies, so that they had dominion over them; Yet when they returned and cried out to You, You heard from heaven; And many times You delivered them according to Your mercies,
They acknowledged before God how this had happened again and again. Note that these cycles occurred ‘many times. Because of God’s previous deliverance the people had ‘had rest’. But then they again did evil before God, and as a consequence He gave them over to the dominion of their enemies. Then they returned and cried to God. Then He heard from heaven and many times delivered them because He is a merciful God. The repetition of the cycles is intended to bring out how regularly this all happened. They were acknowledging before God that Israel’s was a history of repeated rebellion.
29 And testified against them, that You might bring them back to Your law. Yet they acted proudly, and did not heed Your commandments, but sinned against Your judgments, which if a man does, he shall live by them.’ And they shrugged their shoulders, stiffened their necks, and would not hear.
They called on God to remember how He had testified against them so that He could bring them again to His Law. Once again, we have the post-exilic stress on ‘the Law’ as barely stated. Yet their response had been to not listen to His Law. They had been arrogant. They had not listened to His commandments, they had sinned against His life-giving ordinances, and they had withdrawn from shouldering its requirements (like an ox withdraws its shoulder from the yoke - Hosea 4.16), becoming stiff-necked and refusing to hear, in the same way as in verses 16-17. Thus, they acknowledge before God, that things at the end were as at the beginning. They admitted that they were just as sinful today. Indeed within living memory they had slain one of His prophets, Zechariah the son of Berechiah (Matthew 23.35).
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.
And yet, they reminded Him, despite their rebellions He had borne with them for many years, sending His Spirit-endued prophets to testify against them, seeking to bring them to repentance. But they had not been willing to listen, and as a consequence He had ‘given them into the hands of the peoples of the lands’. They had been exiled from their own country and scattered among the peoples of many lands. This was heartfelt confession. They felt in their own hearts guilt for what had happened. They saw themselves as having sinned along with their fathers.
31 Nevertheless in Your great mercy You did not utterly consume them nor forsake them; For You are God, gracious and merciful.
And so with grateful hearts they acknowledged to God how great his manifold mercies have been. Even after the long period of continual failures and rebellions He had not made a full end of them. He had not forsaken them. They had been carried off into foreign countries, but they had survived, and survived as His people. And it was all since He was a gracious and merciful God.
The covenant that they were about to enter was not being entered into lightly. The need for it had been brought home by the reading of the Law in chapter 8. Their sense of unworthiness in entering into it has just been brought out in their confession and intercession. And yet the reminder of His continual mercies has convinced them that He will graciously accept what they are about to do. And they remind Him that they do it very conscious of the fact that they are still not fully delivered, they were still controlled by and paying tribute to foreign lords, and all due to their own fault. No doubt in their hearts they hoped that He would take note of the fact and at some stage complete their deliverance, making them once more a free, independent people, but they humbly leave that in His hands.
32 “Now therefore, our God, the great, the mighty, and awesome God, who keeps covenant and 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 on all Your people, from the days of the kings of Assyria until this day.
They opened their final plea by describing the greatness and majesty of their God. He was the great God, great beyond all. He was the mighty God, of overwhelming power. He was the God Who was terrible in His holiness and uniqueness. And yet He was also the God Who is always faithful to His covenant.
Up to this point all has been confession and acknowledgement of God’s goodness. They have entered deeply into the sins of their fathers, and they have acknowledged the past goodness of God. But now they make a request to God. They ask Him not to overlook what they have suffered, even though it has been deserved. This is the closest they get to asking YHWH to act on their behalf. They are sure that if He considers their problems He will act.
They ask Him not to overlook the greatness of their afflictions. Let it not seem little before Him. From the time when the first shadow of the Assyrian empire had loomed over their land, to the present time, they had suffered under the hands of mighty foreign overlords who had ruled over great empires. And in consequence all had suffered, including their kings. For this suffering had come upon all. None had been excepted. It had come on their kings and princes (their ruling authorities), it had come on their priests and prophets (their religious authorities), and it had come on all God’s people. All had suffered together. None had been exempted.
33 However You are just in all that has befallen us; For You have dealt faithfully, but we have done wickedly.
Yet they assured Him that they were not blaming Him for what had happened. They acknowledged that they had been receiving the just reward for their sins. God was ‘in the right’. In bringing this on them He had acted justly, for they had behaved wickedly. They had reaped what they had sown. Thus, their request was made humbly, acknowledging their own guilt. They were relying on His compassion and mercy, and on His covenant love and faithfulness, so often revealed in the past.
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.
They admitted to Him that from the highest to the lowest they had not kept His Law in their hearts, they had not listened to His commandments, they had not responded when He had borne witness against them. They had continued on impervious to their sin. The omission of ‘prophets’ in contrast with verse 32 may be in acknowledgement of the fact that the true prophets were God’s mouthpieces who did heed the word of God.
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.
They agreed that when they had had their independence they had not served Him in their kingdom that He had given them. They had not responded to the great goodness that He had shown toward them in giving them so much. They had not had the proper gratitude for the prosperous land that He had bestowed on them. They had refused to turn from their wicked works. Thus, they recognized that they had brought on themselves their subsequent subservience to great foreign kings. Their whole history testified against them.
36 “Here we are, servants today! And the land that You gave to our fathers, to eat its fruit and its bounty, here we are, servants in it!
And they called on God to recognise that because of their failures they were servants in what should have been their own land. They who should have been servants of YHWH, were servants of mere men. And as a result, their produce largely went into the storehouses of the Persian kings, whilst they worked as servants. God had intended that they be independent and enjoy the fruits of the land (verse 25). Instead they were servants and had to pay their produce to others. They were not enjoying the full benefits of the covenant.
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.
It was not that their God-given land was unfruitful. It was just that the fruitfulness was enjoyed by others, who had been set over them because of their sins. And those kings who had been set over them not only enjoyed the fruits of their land, but they also had personal authority over them as much as they desired. They could use them as they would (as Solomon had once used the Canaanites). And they had authority over even their cattle. All were subject to the pleasure of the king of Persia. And in consequence they were in great distress for the tribute was heavy, and their treatment by their neighbours hard. Their lot was not an easy one.
This was on the one hand an acknowledgement before God that they were deservedly suffering for their sins. But on the other it may be a plea to YHWH to consider their difficult position. They probably considered that what they were about to do was, as it were, a first step on the way back to God acting on their behalf.
38 “And because of all this, we make a sure covenant and write it; Our leaders, our Levites, and our priests seal it.”
And in consequence of their situation they now affirmed that they would enter into a sure and certain agreement with God, and write it down and set their seals on it. It was a wholehearted recommitment to God. Furthermore, all would be involved, they themselves, and their princes, their Levites, and their priests. The whole new nation was making a commitment to God.
The use of the word ‘sure agreement’ rather than covenant probably recognizes that this was their own agreement with God, rather than His official covenant. But the fact that it was ‘cut’ makes clear that it was from their point of view a covenant. It will be noted that there is no suggestion that God was directly involved in its making.
