Its abundant harvest goes to the kings You have set over us because of our sins. And they rule over our bodies and our livestock as they please. We are in great distress. Its abundant harvest goes to the kings You have set over us because of our sins.This phrase reflects the consequences of Israel's disobedience to God. The abundant harvest signifies the fertility and productivity of the land, which was a blessing from God. However, due to the people's sins, these blessings are now enjoyed by foreign kings. This situation fulfills the warnings given in Deuteronomy 28:33, where it is stated that a nation unknown to them would eat the fruit of their labor. The kings set over them are likely the Persian rulers, as Nehemiah was a cupbearer to King Artaxerxes of Persia. This reflects the broader biblical theme of God using foreign nations to discipline His people, as seen in the Babylonian exile. And they rule over our bodies and our livestock as they please.
This part of the verse highlights the extent of foreign domination. The Israelites are not only economically oppressed but also physically subjugated. The reference to "bodies" suggests forced labor or servitude, reminiscent of the Egyptian bondage described in Exodus. The control over livestock indicates a loss of autonomy and economic freedom, as livestock were crucial for agriculture and sustenance. This situation is a direct result of the covenant curses outlined in Leviticus 26 and Deuteronomy 28, where disobedience leads to subjugation by foreign powers. We are in great distress.
The phrase captures the emotional and spiritual state of the Israelites. Their distress is not only due to physical oppression but also a recognition of their spiritual failure. This acknowledgment is part of a larger confession and repentance process seen throughout Nehemiah 9, where the people recount their history of rebellion and God's faithfulness. The distress echoes the cries of the Israelites in Egypt (Exodus 3:7) and during the period of the Judges, where they repeatedly turned back to God in times of trouble. This cycle of sin, oppression, repentance, and deliverance is a recurring theme in the Old Testament, pointing to the need for a savior, ultimately fulfilled in Jesus Christ. Persons / Places / Events 1. NehemiahA Jewish leader who played a crucial role in rebuilding Jerusalem's walls and leading spiritual renewal among the Israelites after the Babylonian exile. 2. IsraelitesThe people of God who are confessing their sins and the sins of their ancestors, acknowledging the consequences of their disobedience. 3. KingsForeign rulers who have dominion over the Israelites as a result of their disobedience to God. 4. JerusalemThe city where these events are taking place, significant as the center of Jewish worship and identity. 5. Babylonian ExileThe period when the Israelites were taken captive by Babylon, leading to the events described in Nehemiah. Teaching Points Consequences of SinSin has tangible consequences, often leading to bondage and distress. The Israelites' servitude to foreign kings is a direct result of their disobedience. God's SovereigntyEven in distress, God remains sovereign. The foreign kings are described as being set over the Israelites by God, indicating His control over all circumstances. Repentance and ConfessionGenuine repentance involves acknowledging personal and communal sin, as demonstrated by the Israelites. Dependence on GodIn times of distress, turning to God and seeking His mercy is crucial. The Israelites' confession is a step towards restoration. Stewardship and ResponsibilityThe misuse of God's blessings due to sin serves as a reminder to be responsible stewards of what God has entrusted to us. Bible Study Questions 1. How does the Israelites' situation in Nehemiah 9:37 reflect the consequences outlined in Deuteronomy 28? 2. In what ways can we see God's sovereignty in the midst of the Israelites' distress? 3. How does the concept of repentance in Nehemiah 9 relate to the call for repentance in 2 Chronicles 7:14? 4. What are some modern-day examples of being in "great distress" due to sin, and how can we apply the lessons from Nehemiah 9:37 to these situations? 5. How can we ensure that we are good stewards of the resources and blessings God has given us, avoiding the pitfalls seen in Nehemiah 9:37? Connections to Other Scriptures Deuteronomy 28This chapter outlines the blessings for obedience and curses for disobedience, which directly relate to the Israelites' situation in Nehemiah 9:37. 2 Chronicles 7:14This verse emphasizes the importance of humility, prayer, and repentance, which is echoed in the Israelites' confession in Nehemiah 9. Romans 6:16This passage discusses being slaves to sin or righteousness, paralleling the Israelites' servitude due to their sins. Lamentations 5:5This verse describes the suffering and servitude of the Israelites, similar to their distress in Nehemiah 9:37. Ezra 9:7Ezra's confession of sin and acknowledgment of the consequences mirrors the confession in Nehemiah 9. People Abram, Amorites, Bani, Bunni, Canaanites, Chenani, Egyptians, Ezra, Girgashite, Girgashites, Hashabniah, Hittites, Hodiah, Hodijah, Israelites, Jebusites, Jeshua, Kadmiel, Levites, Og, Perizzites, Pethahiah, Pharaoh, Shebaniah, Sherebiah, SihonPlaces Assyria, Bashan, Egypt, Gate of Ephraim, Heshbon, Mount Sinai, Red Sea, UrTopics Abundant, Bodies, Cattle, Distress, Dominion, Gives, Goes, Harvest, Hast, Increase, Kings, Livestock, Multiplying, Placed, Please, Pleasure, Power, Produce, Rich, Rule, Ruling, Sins, Trouble, Yield, Yieldeth, YieldsDictionary of Bible Themes Nehemiah 9:37 4464 harvest
5136 body
5559 stress Nehemiah 9:36-37 4510 sowing and reaping Library The Joy of the Lord is Your Strength. Neh 9:10
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John Newton—Olney HymnsQuestions About the Nature and Perpetuity of the Seventh-Day Sabbath.
AND PROOF, THAT THE FIRST DAY OF THE WEEK IS THE TRUE CHRISTIAN SABBATH. BY JOHN BUNYAN. 'The Son of man is lord also of the Sabbath day.' London: Printed for Nath, Ponder, at the Peacock in the Poultry, 1685. EDITOR'S ADVERTISEMENT. All our inquiries into divine commands are required to be made personally, solemnly, prayerful. To 'prove all things,' and 'hold fast' and obey 'that which is good,' is a precept, equally binding upon the clown, as it is upon the philosopher. Satisfied from our observations …
John Bunyan—The Works of John Bunyan Volumes 1-3 Ten Reasons Demonstrating the Commandment of the Sabbath to be Moral.
1. Because all the reasons of this commandment are moral and perpetual; and God has bound us to the obedience of this commandment with more forcible reasons than to any of the rest--First, because he foresaw that irreligious men would either more carelessly neglect, or more boldly break this commandment than any other; secondly, because that in the practice of this commandment the keeping of all the other consists; which makes God so often complain that all his worship is neglected or overthrown, …
Lewis Bayly—The Practice of Piety The "Fraternity" of Pharisees
To realise the state of religious society at the time of our Lord, the fact that the Pharisees were a regular "order," and that there were many such "fraternities," in great measure the outcome of the original Pharisees, must always be kept in view. For the New Testament simply transports us among contemporary scenes and actors, taking the then existent state of things, so to speak, for granted. But the fact referred to explains many seemingly strange circumstances, and casts fresh light upon all. …
Alfred Edersheim—Sketches of Jewish Social Life Fragrant Spices from the Mountains of Myrrh. "Thou Art all Fair, My Love; There is no Spot in Thee. " --Song of Solomon iv. 7.
FRAGRANT SPICES FROM THE MOUNTAINS OF MYRRH. HOW marvellous are these words! "Thou art all fair, My love; there is no spot in thee." The glorious Bridegroom is charmed with His spouse, and sings soft canticles of admiration. When the bride extols her Lord there is no wonder, for He deserves it well, and in Him there is room for praise without possibility of flattery. But does He who is wiser than Solomon condescend to praise this sunburnt Shulamite? Tis even so, for these are His own words, and were …
Charles Hadden Spurgeon—Till He Come The Personality of the Holy Spirit.
Before one can correctly understand the work of the Holy Spirit, he must first of all know the Spirit Himself. A frequent source of error and fanaticism about the work of the Holy Spirit is the attempt to study and understand His work without first of all coming to know Him as a Person. It is of the highest importance from the standpoint of worship that we decide whether the Holy Spirit is a Divine Person, worthy to receive our adoration, our faith, our love, and our entire surrender to Himself, …
R. A. Torrey—The Person and Work of The Holy Spirit The Early Life of Malachy. Having Been Admitted to Holy Orders He Associates with Malchus
[Sidenote: 1095.] 1. Our Malachy, born in Ireland,[134] of a barbarous people, was brought up there, and there received his education. But from the barbarism of his birth he contracted no taint, any more than the fishes of the sea from their native salt. But how delightful to reflect, that uncultured barbarism should have produced for us so worthy[135] a fellow-citizen with the saints and member of the household of God.[136] He who brings honey out of the rock and oil out of the flinty rock[137] …
H. J. Lawlor—St. Bernard of Clairvaux's Life of St. Malachy of Armagh The Prophecy of Obadiah.
We need not enter into details regarding the question as to the time when the prophet wrote. By a thorough argumentation, Caspari has proved, that he occupies his right position in the Canon, and hence belongs to the earliest age of written prophecy, i.e., to the time of Jeroboam II. and Uzziah. As bearing conclusively against those who would assign to him a far later date, viz., the time of the exile, there is not only the indirect testimony borne by the place which this prophecy occupies in …
Ernst Wilhelm Hengstenberg—Christology of the Old Testament The Preface to the Commandments
And God spake all these words, saying, I am the LORD thy God,' &c. Exod 20: 1, 2. What is the preface to the Ten Commandments? The preface to the Ten Commandments is, I am the Lord thy God.' The preface to the preface is, God spake all these words, saying,' &c. This is like the sounding of a trumpet before a solemn proclamation. Other parts of the Bible are said to be uttered by the mouth of the holy prophets (Luke 1: 70), but here God spake in his own person. How are we to understand that, God spake, …
Thomas Watson—The Ten Commandments Of Immediate Revelation.
Of Immediate Revelation. [29] Seeing no man knoweth the Father but the Son, and he to whom the Son revealeth him; and seeing the revelation of the Son is in and by the Spirit; therefore the testimony of the Spirit is that alone by which the true knowledge of God hath been, is, and can be only revealed; who as, by the moving of his own Spirit, he disposed the chaos of this world into that wonderful order in which it was in the beginning, and created man a living soul, to rule and govern it, so by …
Robert Barclay—Theses Theologicae and An Apology for the True Christian Divinity Influences that Gave Rise to the Priestly Laws and Histories
[Sidenote: Influences in the exile that produced written ceremonial laws] The Babylonian exile gave a great opportunity and incentive to the further development of written law. While the temple stood, the ceremonial rites and customs received constant illustration, and were transmitted directly from father to son in the priestly families. Hence, there was little need of writing them down. But when most of the priests were carried captive to Babylonia, as in 597 B.C., and ten years later the temple …
Charles Foster Kent—The Origin & Permanent Value of the Old Testament The Holy War,
MADE BY SHADDAI UPON DIABOLUS, FOR THE REGAINING OF THE METROPOLIS OF THE WORLD; OR, THE LOSING AND TAKING AGAIN OF THE TOWN OF MANSOUL. THE AUTHOR OF 'THE PILGRIM'S PROGRESS.' 'I have used similitudes.'--Hosea 12:10. London: Printed for Dorman Newman, at the King's Arms in the Poultry; and Benjamin Alsop, at the Angel and Bible in the Poultry, 1682. ADVERTISEMENT BY THE EDITOR. Bunyan's account of the Holy War is indeed an extraordinary book, manifesting a degree of genius, research, and spiritual …
John Bunyan—The Works of John Bunyan Volumes 1-3 Ezra-Nehemiah
Some of the most complicated problems in Hebrew history as well as in the literary criticism of the Old Testament gather about the books of Ezra and Nehemiah. Apart from these books, all that we know of the origin and early history of Judaism is inferential. They are our only historical sources for that period; and if in them we have, as we seem to have, authentic memoirs, fragmentary though they be, written by the two men who, more than any other, gave permanent shape and direction to Judaism, then …
John Edgar McFadyen—Introduction to the Old Testament Links Nehemiah 9:37 NIVNehemiah 9:37 NLTNehemiah 9:37 ESVNehemiah 9:37 NASBNehemiah 9:37 KJV
Nehemiah 9:37 Commentaries
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