God’s Word Translation
Nehemiah 9:16
16But they—our own ancestors—acted arrogantly. They became stubborn and wouldn’t obey your commands.
Nehemiah 9:16 in other versions
- King James Version (KJV)But they and our fathers dealt proudly, and hardened their necks, and hearkened not to thy commandments,
- New International Version (NIV)“But they, our ancestors, became arrogant and stiff-necked, and they did not obey your commands.
- English Standard Version (ESV)"But they and our fathers acted presumptuously and stiffened their neck and did not obey your commandments.
- New King James Version (NKJV)“But they and our fathers acted proudly, Hardened their necks, And did not heed Your commandments.
Context of Nehemiah 9:16
14You taught them about your holy day of rest. You gave them commandments, laws, and teachings through your servant Moses. 15You gave them bread from heaven to satisfy their hunger and made water flow from a rock to quench their thirst. You told them to take possession of the land that you swore you would give them. But they—our own ancestors—acted arrogantly. They became stubborn and wouldn’t obey your commands. 17They refused to listen. They forgot the miracles you performed for them. They became stubborn and appointed a leader to take them back to slavery ⌞in Egypt⌟. But you are a forgiving God, one who is compassionate, merciful, patient, and always ready to forgive. You never abandoned them, 18even when they made a metal statue of a calf for themselves and said, ‘This is your god who took you out of Egypt.’ They committed outrageous sins.
Read all of Nehemiah 9Nehemiah 9:16 word by word
וְהֵ֥ם וַאֲבֹתֵ֖ינוּ הֵזִ֑ידוּ וַיַּקְשׁוּ֙ אֶת־עָרְפָּ֔ם וְלֹ֥א שָׁמְע֖וּ אֶל־מִצְוֹתֶֽיךָ׃Read the interlinear
Words taken from the KJV.
Cross-references for Nehemiah 9:16
- Nehemiah 9:10You performed miraculous signs and did amazing things to Pharaoh and all his servants and all the people in his land because you knew how arrogantly they were treating our ancestors. You made a name for yourself, a name which remains to this day.
- Exodus 32:9The Lord added, “I’ve seen these people, and they are impossible to deal with.
- Deuteronomy 9:6So understand this: It’s not because you’ve been living right that the Lord your God is giving you this good land to possess. You are impossible to deal with!
- Deuteronomy 32:15Jeshurun got fat and disrespectful. (You got fat! You were stuffed! You were gorged!) They abandoned the God who made them and treated the rock of their salvation like a fool.
- Psalms 78:8Then they will not be like their ancestors, a stubborn and rebellious generation. Their hearts were not loyal. Their spirits were not faithful to God.
- Psalms 106:6We have sinned, and so did our ancestors. We have done wrong. We are guilty.
- Isaiah 63:10But they rebelled and offended his Holy Spirit. So he turned against them as their enemy; he fought against them.
- Jeremiah 2:31“Consider the Lord’s word, people of this generation. Haven’t I been a desert, a land of thick darkness, for Israel? Why do my people say that they are free to wander around and no longer come to me?
- Acts 7:51“How stubborn can you be? How can you be so heartless and disobedient? You’re just like your ancestors. They always opposed the Holy Spirit, and so do you!
- Deuteronomy 31:27I know how rebellious you are. You are impossible to deal with. While I am alive and still with you, you are rebelling against the Lord. How much more rebellious will you be after I die?
- 2 Kings 17:14But they refused to listen. They became as impossible to deal with as their ancestors who refused to trust the Lord their God.
- 2 Chronicles 30:8Don’t be impossible to deal with like your ancestors. Reach out for the Lord. Come to his holy place that he made holy forever. Serve the Lord your God, and he will turn his burning anger away from you.
- 2 Chronicles 36:13Zedekiah also rebelled against King Nebuchadnezzar. Nebuchadnezzar had made Zedekiah swear an oath of allegiance to him in God’s name. But Zedekiah became so stubborn and so impossible to deal with that he refused to turn back to the Lord God of Israel.
- Psalms 95:8“Do not be stubborn like ⌞my people were⌟ at Meribah, like the time at Massah in the desert.
- Proverbs 29:1A person who will not bend after many warnings will suddenly be broken beyond repair.
- Isaiah 48:4I know that you are stubborn. Like iron, you are hardheaded. Like bronze, nothing gets through your thick skull.
Commentaries on Nehemiah 9:16
- 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. 12-21This prayer reminded the people of God's miraculous guidance of Israel in the wilderness (Exodus 13:21–22), his personal appearance at Mount Sinai to reveal his covenant laws through Moses (see Exodus 19–20), and his faithfulness in providing bread and water (see Exodus 16:4; 17:1–6). Despite all of that, Israel's ancestors were proud and stubborn and refused to obey (see Exodus 32; Numbers 14:4). Yet in his grace, God remained faithful and compassionate…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 9:16
In the dictionaries
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
God’s Word Translation — © 1995 God’s Word to the Nations Bible Society
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