Nehemiah 9:34

Nehemiah 9:34 in other versions

• King James Version (KJV)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.
• New International Version (NIV)Our kings, our leaders, our priests and our ancestors did not follow your law; they did not pay attention to your commands or the statutes you warned them to keep.
• English Standard Version (ESV)Our kings, our princes, our priests, and our fathers have not kept your law or paid attention to your commandments and your warnings that you gave them.
• New King James Version (NKJV)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.

Context of Nehemiah 9:34

32So now, our God — the great, mighty, and awe-inspiring God who keeps his gracious covenant — do not view lightly all the hardships that have afflicted us, our kings and leaders, our priests and prophets, our ancestors and all your people, from the days of the Assyrian kings until today. 33You are righteous concerning all that has happened to us, because you have acted faithfully, while we have acted wickedly. Our kings, leaders, priests, and ancestors did not obey your law or listen to your commands and warnings you gave them. 35When they were in their kingdom, with your abundant goodness that you gave them, and in the spacious and fertile land you set before them, they would not serve you or turn from their wicked ways. 36Here we are today, slaves in the land you gave our ancestors so that they could enjoy its fruit and its goodness. Here we are — slaves in it!

Nehemiah 9:34 word by word

וְאֶת־מְלָכֵ֤ינוּ שָׂרֵ֙ינוּ֙ כֹּהֲנֵ֣ינוּ וַאֲבֹתֵ֔ינוּ לֹ֥א עָשׂ֖וּ תּוֹרָתֶ֑ךָ וְלֹ֤א הִקְשִׁ֙יבוּ֙ אֶל־מִצְוֹתֶ֔יךָ וּלְעֵ֣דְוֹתֶ֔יךָ אֲשֶׁ֥ר הַעִידֹ֖תָ בָּהֶֽם׃Read the interlinear

Words taken from the KJV.

• Neither have our kingsמֶ֫לֶךְmelek · kingH4428
• our princesשַׂרώar · rulerH8269
• our priestsכֹּהֵןkôhên · priestH3548
• nor our fathersאָב'âb · fatherH1
• keptעָשָׂה‛âώâh · to make: doH6213
• thy lawתּוֹרָהtôrâh tôrâh · instructionH8451
• nor hearkenedקָשַׁבqâshab · to listenH7181
• unto thy commandmentsמִצְוָהmitsvâh · commandmentH4687
• and thy testimoniesעֵדוּת‛êdûth · testimonyH5715
• wherewith thou didst testifyעוּד‛ûd · to testifyH5749

Cross-references for Nehemiah 9:34

• Jeremiah 29:19I will do this because they have not listened to my words” — this is the Lord’s declaration — “the words that I sent to them with my servants the prophets time and time again. And you too have not listened.” This is the Lord’s declaration.
• Nehemiah 9:30You were patient with them for many years, and your Spirit warned them through your prophets, but they would not listen. Therefore, you handed them over to the surrounding peoples.
• 2 Kings 17:15They rejected his statutes and his covenant he had made with their ancestors and the warnings he had given them. They followed worthless idols and became worthless themselves, following the surrounding nations the Lord had commanded them not to imitate.
• Deuteronomy 31:21And when many troubles and afflictions come to them, this song will testify against them, because their descendants will not have forgotten it. For I know what they are prone to do, even before I bring them into the land I swore to give them.”
• 2 Kings 17:13Still, the Lord warned Israel and Judah through every prophet and every seer, saying, “Turn from your evil ways and keep my commands and statutes according to the whole law I commanded your ancestors and sent to you through my servants the prophets.”

Commentaries on Nehemiah 9:34

• Adam Clarke Bible Commentary · v. 34Neither have our kings - In this verse he acknowledges that the kings, princes, priests, and fathers, had broken the law: but the prophets are left out; for they continued faithful to God, testifying by his Spirit against the crimes of all; and this even at the risk of their lives.Read the comment
• Matthew Henry Concise Commentary · v. 4-38Verses 4-38 The summary of their prayers we have here upon record. Much more, no doubt, was said. Whatever ability we have to do any thing in the way of duty, we are to serve and glorify God according to the utmost of it. When confessing our sins, it is good to notice the mercies of God, that we may be the more humbled and ashamed. The dealings of the Lord showed his goodness and long-suffering, and the hardness of their hearts. The testimony of the…Read the comment
• Tyndale Open Study Notes · v. 32-37The prayer now addresses the current situation, asking the great God—who has unfailing love—for ongoing love and mercy for his people in their difficult times (Nehemiah 9:32). The leaders acknowledged God's justice in punishing them for their sins (Nehemiah 9:33–35), and they expressed sorrow over their enslavement by the Persians (9:36–37).Read the comment
• Jamieson–Fausset–Brown Commentary · v. 6-386-38. Thou, even thou, art Lord alone, &c.--In this solemn and impressive prayer, in which they make public confession of their sins, and deprecate the judgments due to the transgressions of their fathers, they begin with a profound adoration of God, whose supreme majesty and omnipotence is acknowledged in the creation, preservation, and government of all. Then they proceed to enumerate His mercies and distinguished favors to them as a nation, from the…Read the comment

Topics related to Nehemiah 9:34

• Idolatry
• Prayer
• Repentance
• Rulers
• Sin
• Thankfulness

In the dictionaries

• Covenant
• Divide
• Gracious
• Mighty
• Neck
• Sure
• Intercession
• Israel, History of
• Leviticus
• Prayer

Commentaries on Nehemiah 9

• 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