NEHEMIAH 9:5-15
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.
The central theme is found in Nehemiah 9:16-18 (NIV):
16 “But they, our ancestors, became arrogant and stiff-necked, and they did not obey your commands. 17 They refused to listen and failed to remember the miracles you performed among them. They became stiff-necked and in their rebellion appointed a leader in order to return to their slavery. But you are a forgiving God, gracious and compassionate, slow to anger and abounding in love. Therefore you did not desert them, 18 even when they cast for themselves an image of a calf and said, ‘This is your god, who brought you up out of Egypt,’ or when they committed awful blasphemies.
The Israelites acknowledged the sins of their ancestors to be that of arrogance, stiff-neckedness, and disobedience. This was important for repentance and renewal. The sins of our ancestors can be debilitating and quite costly to future generations. The Israelites wanted a clean slate from such 'awful blasphemies' so that future generations could experience the fullness of God's divine providence.
Our relationship with God is reliant on our obedience. Not only must we be obedient, but we must always remember what He has done for us. Obedience begets trust. It intimates to God that we trust what He says and where He leads. If we do not obey, we face consequences like the children of Israel did—separation from God.
Remembering what God has done begets praise. God has never failed His people. All that He does is well done. Therefore, we must "rejoice and be exceedingly glad, for great is [our] reward in heaven" (Matt 5:12).
PRAYER: Dear God, I repent of my sins. Forgive me for being arrogant, stiff-necked, and disobedient. You are so gracious and compassionate, slow to anger and abounding in love. Do not desert me, O Lord. Amen!
The Israelites acknowledged the sins of their ancestors to be that of arrogance, stiff-neckedness, and disobedience. This was important for repentance and renewal. The sins of our ancestors can be debilitating and quite costly to future generations. The Israelites wanted a clean slate from such 'awful blasphemies' so that future generations could experience the fullness of God's divine providence.
Our relationship with God is reliant on our obedience. Not only must we be obedient, but we must always remember what He has done for us. Obedience begets trust. It intimates to God that we trust what He says and where He leads. If we do not obey, we face consequences like the children of Israel did—separation from God.
Remembering what God has done begets praise. God has never failed His people. All that He does is well done. Therefore, we must "rejoice and be exceedingly glad, for great is [our] reward in heaven" (Matt 5:12).
PRAYER: Dear God, I repent of my sins. Forgive me for being arrogant, stiff-necked, and disobedient. You are so gracious and compassionate, slow to anger and abounding in love. Do not desert me, O Lord. Amen!