Nehemiah 13:25

Nehemiah 13:25 in other versions

• King James Version (KJV)And I contended with them, and cursed them, and smote certain of them, and plucked off their hair, and made them swear by God, saying, Ye shall not give your daughters unto their sons, nor take their daughters unto your sons, or for yourselves.
• New International Version (NIV)I rebuked them and called curses down on them. I beat some of the men and pulled out their hair. I made them take an oath in God’s name and said: “You are not to give your daughters in marriage to their sons, nor are you to take their daughters in marriage for your sons or for yourselves.
• English Standard Version (ESV)And I confronted them and cursed them and beat some of them and pulled out their hair. And I made them take an oath in the name of God, saying, "You shall not give your daughters to their sons, or take their daughters for your sons or for yourselves.
• New King James Version (NKJV)So I contended with them and cursed them, struck some of them and pulled out their hair, and made them swear by God, saying, “You shall not give your daughters as wives to their sons, nor take their daughters for your sons or yourselves.

Context of Nehemiah 13:25

23In those days I also saw Jews who had married women from Ashdod, Ammon, and Moab. 24As for their children, half spoke in the language of Ashdod, and none of them knew how to speak [Hebrew] the language of Judah, but only the language of his own people. So I contended with them and cursed them and struck some of them and pulled out their hair, and made them swear by God, saying, “You shall not give your daughters [in marriage] to their sons, nor take [any of] their daughters for your sons or for yourselves. 26Did not Solomon king of Israel sin [greatly against God] regarding these things? Yet among the many nations there was no king like him. He was loved by his God, and God made him king over all Israel; nevertheless the foreign women caused even him to sin [by turning to other gods and so, judged by God, he lost his kingdom]. 27Do we then hear about you that you have done all this great evil, acting unfaithfully against our God by marrying foreign (pagan) women?”

Nehemiah 13:25 word by word

וָאָרִ֤יב עִמָּם֙ וָאֲקַֽלְלֵ֔ם וָאַכֶּ֥ה מֵהֶ֛ם אֲנָשִׁ֖ים וָֽאֶמְרְטֵ֑ם וָאַשְׁבִּיעֵ֣ם בֵּֽאלֹהִ֗ים אִם־תִּתְּנ֤וּ בְנֹֽתֵיכֶם֙ לִבְנֵיהֶ֔ם וְאִם־תִּשְׂאוּ֙ מִבְּנֹ֣תֵיהֶ֔ם לִבְנֵיכֶ֖ם וְלָכֶֽם׃Read the interlinear

Words taken from the KJV.

• And I contendedרִיבrîyb rûb · to contendH7378
• with them, and cursedקָלַלqâlal · to lightenH7043
• them, and smoteנָכָהnâkâh · to smiteH5221
• certainאֱנוֹשׁ'ĕnôsh · humanH582
• of them, and plucked off their hairמָרַטmâraţ · to smoothH4803
• and made them swearשָׁבַעshâba‛ · to swearH7650
• by Godאֱלֹהִים'ĕlôhîym · GodH430
• Ye shall not giveנָתַןnâthan · to give: give(marriage)H5414
• your daughtersבַּתbath · daughterH1323
• unto their sonsבֵּןbên · son: childH1121
• nor takeנָשָׂאnâώâ' nâsâh · to lift: marryH5375

Cross-references for Nehemiah 13:25

• Nehemiah 13:11Then I reprimanded the officials and said, “Why is the house of God neglected?” So I gathered the Levites and singers together and restored them at their posts.
• Proverbs 28:4Those who set aside the law [of God and man] praise the wicked, But those who keep the law [of God and man] struggle with them.
• Nehemiah 5:13I also shook out the front of my garment and said, “So may God shake out every man from his house and from his possessions who does not keep this promise; like this may he be shaken out and emptied.” And all the assembly said, “Amen!” And they praised the Lord. Then the people acted in accordance with this promise.
• Deuteronomy 27:14The Levites shall answer with a loud voice to all the men of Israel:
• Psalms 15:4In his eyes an evil person is despised, But he honors those who fear the Lord [and obediently worship Him with awe-inspired reverence and submissive wonder]. He keeps his word even to his own disadvantage and does not change it [for his own benefit];
• Luke 11:45One of the lawyers [an expert in the Mosaic Law] answered Him, “Teacher, by saying this, You insult us too!”
• Deuteronomy 25:2then it shall be that if the guilty man deserves to be beaten, the judge shall make him lie down and be beaten in his presence with a [certain] number of stripes in proportion to his offense.
• Ezra 7:26Whoever does not observe and practice the law of your God and the law of the king, let judgment be executed upon him strictly and promptly, whether it be for death or banishment or confiscation of property or imprisonment.”
• Isaiah 50:6I turned My back to those who strike Me, And My cheeks to those who pluck out the beard; I did not hide My face from insults and spitting.
• Nehemiah 10:29are joining with their fellow Israelites, their nobles, and are taking on themselves a curse and an oath to walk in God’s Law, which was given through Moses the servant of God, and to keep and to observe all the commandments of God our Lord, and His ordinances and statutes:
• Deuteronomy 6:13You shall fear [only] the Lord your God; and you shall serve Him [with awe-filled reverence and profound respect] and swear [oaths] by His name [alone].
• 2 Chronicles 15:12They entered into a covenant (solemn agreement) to seek the Lord God of their fathers with all their heart and soul;
• Ezra 10:5Then Ezra stood and made the leaders of the priests, the Levites, and all Israel, take an oath that they would act in accordance with this proposal; so they took the oath.
• Exodus 34:16and you might take some of his daughters for your sons, and his daughters would play the prostitute with their gods and cause your sons also to play the prostitute (commit apostasy) with their gods [that is, abandon the true God for man-made idols].
• Deuteronomy 7:3You shall not intermarry with them; you shall not give your daughter to his son, nor shall you take his daughter for your son;

Commentaries on Nehemiah 13:25

• Adam Clarke Bible Commentary · v. 25I contended with them - Proved the fact against these iniquitous fathers, in a legal assembly. And cursed them - Denounced the judgments of God and the sentence of the law upon them. Smote certain of them - Had them punished by whipping. And plucked off their hair - Had them shaven, as a mark of the greatest ignominy. And made them swear by God, saying, Ye shall not give - Caused them to bind themselves by an oath, that they would make no intermarriages…Read the comment
• Matthew Henry Concise Commentary · v. 23-31Verses 23-31 If either parent be ungodly, corrupt nature will incline the children to take after that one; which is a strong reason why Christians should not be unequally yoked. In the education of children, great care should be taken about the government of their tongues; that they learn not the language of Ashdod, no impious or impure talk, no corrupt communication. Nehemiah showed the evil of these marriages. Some, more obstinate than the rest, he…Read the comment
• Tyndale Open Study Notes · v. 25Nehemiah cursed them because the parents avoided Hebrew and did not teach their children the language of the Hebrew Bible. A curse asked God to remove his blessing from people. I beat some of these men and pulled out their hair: Some men did not accept Nehemiah’s rebuke at first, so he made them swear in the name of God not to marry pagans.Read the comment
• Jamieson–Fausset–Brown Commentary · v. 2525. cursed them--that is, pronounced on them an anathema which entailed excommunication. smote ... and plucked off their hair--To cut off the hair of offenders seems to be a punishment rather disgraceful than severe; yet it is supposed that pain was added to disgrace, and that they tore off the hair with violence as if they were plucking a bird alive.Read the comment

Topics related to Nehemiah 13:25

• Divorce
• Zeal, Religious

In the dictionaries

• God
• god, false god, goddess, idol, idolater, idolatrous, idolatry
• Contend
• Hittites
• Outlandish
• Testify
• Understand
• Genealogy
• Hair
• Peel; Pill

Commentaries on Nehemiah 13

• Adam Clarke Bible Commentary
• Barnes’ Notes on the Bible
• Matthew Henry Concise Commentary
• Tyndale Open Study Notes
• Jamieson–Fausset–Brown Commentary
• Rashi on Tanakh
• Keil & Delitzsch Commentary
• John Wesley’s Notes
• Darby Translation Notes
• Geneva Bible Translation Notes
• Kingcomments
• Matthew Henry’s Complete Commentary
• Matthew Henry’s Modern English Commentary
• Scofield Reference Notes, 1917 Edition
• Seventh-day Adventist Bible Commentary
• EGW Writings