Nehemiah 9:4 - Meaning and Application

Here we have an account of how this day of fasting was carried out. The names of the ministers who served are given twice, in Nehemiah 9:4 and Nehemiah 9:5, though with slight differences. They either prayed one after another, following the rule the apostle gives, “You may all prophesy one by one” (1 Corinthians 14:31), or else, as some think, there were eight separate groups spread out at some distance from each other, and each group had a Levite, a man from the tribe set apart for temple service, to lead it.

The work itself was made up of prayer and praise. They cried to God with a loud voice (Nehemiah 9:4), asking him to forgive Israel’s sins and show them his favor. They did not cry out so God could hear them better, as the worshippers of Baal did, but so the people could hear and so their own hearts would be stirred to greater earnestness. Praise also had its place on a fast day, because in every act of worship we should aim to give God the honor due his name.

The summary of their prayer is recorded here. It may have been written out beforehand to guide the Levites, or remembered afterward as the main points of what was said. Surely more was spoken than is written here, because confessing sin and worshiping God took up a fourth of the day, and likely much more. In this solemn prayer, the first thing we hear is a humble and reverent praise of God as the perfect and glorious One, the source of all that exists (Nehemiah 9:5-6).

The people were called to show they agreed by standing up, and then the minister turned to God and said, “Blessed be your glorious name.” God is praised here as the only living and true God. “You alone are the Lord,” meaning he exists by himself and depends on no one else. There is no other God beside him. He is also praised as the Maker of all things: heaven, earth, the seas, and everything in them. The first truth of the faith is rightly the first truth in our praise.

He is also praised as the great Keeper of all creation. He preserves every creature he has made. His care reaches the highest beings, because they need him, and the lowest, because he does not overlook them. What God makes, he preserves. What he does, he does completely and effectively (Ecclesiastes 3:14). He is also praised as the one whom all creatures worship. The host of heaven, the holy angels, worship him (Nehemiah 9:6). Yet his name is lifted above all blessing and praise. He does not need our praise, and nothing we say adds to his glory. Even the best praise, including that of the angels, falls far short of what he deserves.

The prayer then gives a thankful account of God’s kindness to Israel. Many of these blessings are listed before God for good reason. We should use every chance to speak of the Lord’s loving kindness and to give thanks in every prayer. When confessing our sins, it helps to remember God’s mercies, because they make our sins look even worse and help us feel more ashamed and humble. And when we ask for mercy in trouble, it strengthens faith to look back on God’s help in the past, both in our own lives and in the lives of our fathers.

The prayer begins with God’s call of Abraham (Nehemiah 9:7). God’s favor to him was special, for he chose him. His grace was powerful, bringing Abraham out of Ur of the Chaldeans. By giving him the name Abraham, he honored him as his own and promised that he would become the father of many nations. Look at Abraham your father (Isaiah 51:2), and see free grace displayed in him.

Then the prayer remembers the covenant God made with Abraham to give the land of Canaan to him and his descendants, a picture of the better country to come (Nehemiah 9:8). This covenant was sure, because God found Abraham’s heart faithful before him, and found it so because he made it so. Faith is not something we produce by ourselves, but a gift from God. So God fulfilled his promise. He shows himself upright with the upright, and wherever he finds a faithful heart, he proves himself a faithful God.

Next comes the deliverance of Israel out of Egypt (Nehemiah 9:9-11). It was fitting to remember this while they were asking God to complete their deliverance from Babylon. God rescued them because he saw their suffering, heard their cry, and acted against the pride and cruelty of their oppressors. When the Egyptians acted proudly, God showed himself greater than they were (Exodus 18:11), and he made his name known. He said, “I will gain honor over Pharaoh.” Even now, God is still glorified for that great work. It was done by miracles, through signs and wonders. Their rescue became the ruin of their enemies, who were cast into the depths like a stone into deep water.

The prayer also remembers how God led them through the wilderness by the pillar of cloud and fire, which showed them where to go, when to move, and when and where to rest (Nehemiah 9:12). It guided every stage of their journey and was a visible sign that God was present with them to guide and protect them. This is mentioned again in Nehemiah 9:19, where it is noted that although their sins should have caused God to withdraw and leave them to wander and perish, he still showed great mercy and did not take away the pillar of cloud and fire. When God continues mercies that we have forfeited, we are doubly bound to give thanks.

The prayer then speaks of God’s rich provision in the wilderness, so they would not die of hunger. He gave them bread from heaven and water from the rock (Nehemiah 9:15), and he strengthened their hearts with the promise that they would enter and possess the land of Canaan. They had food and drink along the way, and they had the good land waiting at the end of their journey. What more could they ask for? This blessing is repeated in Nehemiah 9:20-21 as something God kept giving them despite their stubbornness. For forty years he supported them. Never was any people so long cared for, or so tenderly. Their clothes did not wear out, and though the journey was rough and tiring, their feet did not swell. They were carried, as it were, on eagle’s wings.

Last of all, the prayer remembers the giving of the law at Mount Sinai. This was the greatest favor shown to them and the highest honor they received. The Lawgiver was glorious (Nehemiah 9:13). God did not only send the law, he came down himself and spoke with them (Deuteronomy 4:33).

The law God gave was very good. No nation on earth had such fair laws, true commands, and good rules (Deuteronomy 4:8). The moral law and the civil law were true and right, built on what is naturally just and on the lasting difference between good and evil. Even the ceremonial laws were good, because they showed God’s kindness to his people and pointed ahead to gospel grace, that is, the free favor God gives through Christ.

Special notice is given to the fourth commandment, the Sabbath, as a great blessing. “You made known to them your holy Sabbath” was a sign of God’s special favor. It set them apart from the nations, who had turned from God and lost that early part of revealed religion. It also helped them keep fellowship with God. Along with the law and the Sabbath, he gave his good Spirit to teach them (Nehemiah 9:20). Beyond the law given at Mount Sinai, the five books of Moses, written as he was moved by the Holy Spirit, kept instructing them. The book of Deuteronomy, in particular, gave them fuller teaching from God through Moses. Bezaleel was filled with the Spirit of God (Exodus 31:3), Joshua was filled with the Spirit as well (Numbers 27:18), and Caleb had “another spirit.”

He also gave them possession of Canaan, that good land, along with kingdoms and nations (Nehemiah 9:22). He made them so numerous that they filled the land (Nehemiah 9:23), and so victorious that they became its masters (Nehemiah 9:24). The native peoples were given into their hands, so they could deal with them as they wished, even set their feet on the necks of their kings if they chose. In this way, they received a settled and happy home (Nehemiah 9:25). Their cities were strong and well defended. Their houses were fine and well supplied, full of rich goods. The whole country was like a rich garden, full of vineyards and olive trees. They found all this ready for them, and they enjoyed the gifts of God’s great goodness. They could not have wished for a happier life in Canaan, unless they themselves had spoiled it.

God also showed great readiness to forgive their sins and bring them help when their own rebellion had brought trouble on them. In the wilderness they found him ready to pardon (Nehemiah 9:17), a God who pardons, as the margin says. He had made known his name as the God who forgives wrongdoing, rebellion, and sin. He has power to forgive, he is willing to forgive, and he delights in forgiving. Though they abandoned him, he did not abandon them, though in justice he might have done so. He kept caring for them and showing them favor. Later, when they were settled in Canaan and had sold themselves into the hands of their enemies by their sins, he gave them rescuers when they humbled themselves and asked for help (Nehemiah 9:27). These were the judges, through whom God brought many great deliverances when they were close to ruin. He did this, not because they deserved it, but according to his mercies, his many mercies.

He also warned them plainly through his servants the prophets. When he rescued them from trouble, he still spoke against their sins (Nehemiah 9:28, 29), so they would not mistake his deliverance as approval of their wickedness. The purpose of the prophets’ warnings was to bring the people back to God’s law, to place their necks under its yoke and guide them by its rule. The goal of ministry is to bring people to God by bringing them to his law, not to draw them to ourselves by putting them under any law of our own. We see this again in Nehemiah 9:30: “You warned them by your Spirit through your prophets.” The prophets’ witness was really the witness of the Spirit in them, the Spirit of Christ speaking through them (1 Peter 1:10, 11). They spoke as the Holy Spirit moved them, and their words should be received that way. God had given them his Spirit to teach them (Nehemiah 9:20), but when they would not learn from that teaching, he used his Spirit to testify against them. If we will not let God’s word teach and govern us, it will one day accuse and judge us. God sends prophets in mercy to his people (2 Chronicles 36:15), so that he may not have to send judgments.

He also showed great patience and softened his punishments. “Many years you bore with them” (Nehemiah 9:30), because he was slow to punish and waited to see whether they would repent. Even when he did punish them, he did not completely destroy them or abandon them (Nehemiah 9:31). If he had abandoned them, they would have been wiped out. But he did not pour out all his wrath, because he meant to correct them, not ruin them. In this way, they multiply and highlight the many examples of God’s goodness to Israel. We should do the same. When we think rightly about God’s goodness, it should lead us to repentance and overcome our sin. The more thankful we are for God’s mercies, the more humbled we will be for our own sins.

Here follows a humble confession of sin, both their own sins and the sins of their fathers. These sins are woven together with reminders of God’s kindness, so that God’s goodness, even in the face of their rebellion, may shine more clearly, and their sins, even against such kindness, may appear more serious. Many parts of this confession are drawn from Ezekiel 20:5-26. God’s word helps us pray, and from what he says to us we learn what to say to him.

They begin with the sins of Israel in the wilderness: “They, even our fathers,” which is the better reading, “dealt proudly” and hardened their necks (Nehemiah 9:16). Though they had every reason to be humble, because of what they had been and how recently they had left slavery, they were proud. Pride lies at the root of stubbornness and disobedience. People think it beneath them to bow to God’s yoke, and they treat it as a matter of honor to set their own will against God’s.

There were two things they did not properly consider, and if they had, they would not have acted as they did. They heard God’s word, but did not listen to his commandments. They saw God’s works, but were not mindful of his wonders. If they had thought of them as miracles, they would have obeyed from faith and holy fear. If they had thought of them as mercies, they would have obeyed from gratitude and holy love. When people make no right use of either God’s ordinances or his providences, what should we expect from them?

Two great sins are named here, sins they committed in the wilderness, while planning to turn back. First, they wanted to return to Egyptian slavery, and for the sake of garlic and onions they preferred that over the glorious freedom of God’s people, even though that freedom came with some hardship. In their rebellion they appointed a captain to take them back to bondage, showing distrust in God’s power and contempt for his holy promise (Nehemiah 9:17).

They also confessed the idolatry of their fathers in Egypt, when they made a molten calf and were foolish enough to call it their god.

Then they grieved over the sins their fathers committed after God had given them the land of Canaan. Even though they themselves delighted in God’s great goodness, that did not keep them close to him. Instead, they were disobedient and committed great sins (Nehemiah 9:26). They abused God’s prophets and killed them because those prophets warned them and tried to turn them back to God (Nehemiah 9:26). So they returned the greatest kindness with the worst harm.

They also abused God’s kindness. After they had rest, they went back to doing evil (Nehemiah 9:28). Neither hardship nor rescue changed them. Fear did not hold them to their duty, and neither did love.

At last they came closer to their own time and mourned over the sins that had brought on the judgments they had long been suffering and were now only partly delivered from. “We have done wickedly” (Nehemiah 9:33), they said. “Our kings, our princes, our priests, and our fathers have all been guilty, and we are guilty with them” (Nehemiah 9:34).

They charged themselves and their fathers with two great sins that caused their trouble. First, they despised the good law God had given them. They sinned against God’s judgments, meaning the wise commands of God and the authority of God as ruler. They had been told that obeying would bring life, “if a man does them, he shall live in them” (Nehemiah 9:29). Yet they would not obey, and so they acted as if they did not want to live. They abandoned their own mercy. This short form of the covenant, “Do this and live,” comes from Ezekiel 20:13, and Paul quotes it in Galatians 3:12 to show that the law is not based on faith. Still, they gave a withdrawing shoulder. They pretended to take the burden of God’s law on themselves, but they pulled away. When it came time to act, they shrank back and would not listen. They had a stubborn heart. Even when God called them back through his prophets, they refused to hear (Nehemiah 9:30). He reached out his hands, but no one paid attention.

Second, they despised the good land God had given them (Nehemiah 9:35). “Our kings have not served you in their kingdom,” they said. “They did not use their power to support religion. Our people have not served you with the gifts of your great goodness, and in that large and fruitful land you gave them. You did not only give it to them by promise, you gave it to them by driving out the native peoples and giving them complete victories over them.” Those who would not serve God in their own land were made to serve their enemies in a foreign land, just as God had warned in Deuteronomy 28:47-48. It is sad when a good land has bad people in it, yet that is what happened in Sodom. Riches and plenty often make people proud and worldly.

Now they humbly described the judgments they had been under, both in the past and in the present. Their former troubles were remembered as added proof of their sin, because they had not learned from them. In the days of the judges, their enemies oppressed them (Nehemiah 9:27). When they sinned again, God again left them in the hands of their enemies, who could not have touched them unless God had given them over. But when God withdrew, those enemies gained and kept power over them.

They also laid their present misery before the Lord (Nehemiah 9:36-37). “We are servants this day,” they said. Freeborn Israelites had become slaves, and the land they once held by a far more honorable title than any earthly landholding, by direct gift from the God of heaven to his chosen people, now they held by the lowest kind of tenure, under the kings of Persia, to whom they were subject. What a sad change. But this is what sin does. They were forced into personal service. Their rulers had power over their bodies. They held their property only by permission, and the tax on the land was so heavy that it was like an extreme rent. In effect, the king took nearly all the income from the land, and they could barely support themselves and their families.

They honestly admitted that this was because of their sins. Poverty and slavery are the fruit of sin. Sin brings people into all kinds of trouble.

They then turned to God with their request. They asked that their trouble would not seem small in his eyes (Nehemiah 9:32). This is the only direct petition in the whole prayer. Their trouble was widespread. It had come on kings, princes, priests, prophets, fathers, and all the people. All had shared in the sin (Nehemiah 9:34), and now all shared in the judgment. And it had lasted a long time, from the days of the kings of Assyria, who carried the ten tribes away, until that very day. “Lord, do not treat this as a small matter, or as something unworthy of notice or help.” They did not tell God what to do. They only asked him to pay attention, remembering that when he saw his people’s suffering in Egypt was great, he came down to deliver them (Exodus 3:7-8). In this request, they saw God as one to be feared, because he is the great, mighty, and awesome God, and also as one to be trusted, because he is their covenant God, one who keeps his promise and shows mercy.

At the same time, they confessed that their suffering was still less than they deserved (Nehemiah 9:33). They admitted that God had been just in all their troubles and had done them no wrong. “We have done wickedly by breaking your laws, and therefore you have done right in bringing all these troubles on us.” When we are under God’s discipline, even if it is severe and long, we should justify God and blame ourselves. He will be shown to be right when he judges (Psalm 51:4).

After this long statement of their case, they came to a final resolution: they would return to God and to their duty, and they would bind themselves never to leave him again. “Because of all this,” they said, “we make a sure covenant with God.” In light of how often they had turned away from him, they would now bind themselves to him more firmly than ever. Since they had suffered so much for sin, they would resolve strongly against it, so they would not again withdraw their shoulder.

This covenant was made with serious thought. It grew out of careful reflection, so it was a reasonable act of worship. It was also made with great solemnity. It was written down so it would remain a lasting memorial, sealed, and kept on record, so it could stand as a witness against them if they acted falsely.

They agreed to this together, with one voice, so that they could strengthen one another’s hands. Their commitment was also firm and settled. It was a covenant they intended to keep, with no hidden plan to take it back later. They meant to live by it and die by it, and never turn away from it.

A certain number of the princes, priests, and Levites were chosen to represent the whole congregation and sign and seal the covenant in everyone’s name. In this way, God’s promise about the Jews was fulfilled when they returned from captivity, that they would join themselves to the Lord in a lasting covenant (Jeremiah 50:5), and that they would sign their names as belonging to him (Isaiah 44:5). A person with an honest heart will not be troubled by such firm promises. And those who know how deceptive their own hearts can be will not think such promises unnecessary.