Nehemiah 9:18-31 - Peter Pett's Commentary on the Bible

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Bible Comments

God's Continual Activity On Behalf Of His People (Nehemiah 9:18-31).

In this second main section they now outlined to God how regularly the people had rebelled against Him, and yet how nevertheless He had constantly abundantly provided for them. The first sub-section (Nehemiah 9:18-25) repeats the pattern of Nehemiah 9:9-15 in describing God's continued protection through the pillars of cloud and fire (Nehemiah 9:19, compare Nehemiah 9:12); His continued instruction of them (Nehemiah 9:20 a, compare Nehemiah 9:13-14); His provision of food and water and all needed sustenance (Nehemiah 9:20-21, compare Nehemiah 9:15 a), and His finally giving them possession of the land and more (Nehemiah 9:22-25; compare Nehemiah 9:15 b). It will be noted that it summaries the period in the wilderness and the successful campaign of Joshua.

The second sub-section (Nehemiah 9:26-31) takes up their story in terms similar to the Book of Judges. They were constantly disobedient and rebelled, and God constantly delivered them up into the hands of their enemies, but when they cried to Him, He raised up saviours who delivered them out of their hands (Nehemiah 9:26-27, compare Judges 2:12-16). However, once they ‘had rest' (a typical Judges description - Judges 3:30 and often) they again did evil, and were again delivered into the hands of their enemies, and again cried to YHWH, and were again delivered according to His mercies (Nehemiah 9:28), at which point He continually faced them up to His Instruction (torah). But they constantly rebelled against it, even though it was the way of life, and ‘hardened their necks' as they had continually done (see Nehemiah 9:16-17). And this had gone on for ‘many years' (we would say centuries). He had borne with them, and had spoken to them by His Spirit though the prophets, but they had constantly refused to hear, and that is why He had given them into the hands of the peoples of the lands (the great nations, as is apparent from Nehemiah 9:32). Here we have the history of the books of Kings. Nevertheless in His mercy God did not make a full end of them (Nehemiah 9:31), as the fact that they were there back in the land bore witness.

There is a clear inference from all this that their hope was that once again, after the period of disobedience of their fathers, God, having brought home to them His Instruction (chapter 8), would at some stage deliver them if they were true to His covenant.

Related Commentaries of Nehemiah 9:18

Nehemiah 9:18-31

18 Yea, when they had made them a molten calf, and said, This is thy God that brought thee up out of Egypt, and had wrought great provocations;

19 Yet thou in thy manifold mercies forsookest them not in the wilderness: the pillar of the cloud departed not from them by day, to lead them in the way; neither the pillar of fire by night, to shew them light, and the way wherein they should go.

20 Thou gavest also thy good spirit to instruct them, and withheldest not thy manna from their mouth, and gavest them water for their thirst.

21 Yea, forty years didst thou sustain them in the wilderness, so that they lacked nothing; their clothes waxed not old, and their feet swelled not.

22 Moreover thou gavest them kingdoms and nations, and didst divide them into corners: so they possessed the land of Sihon, and the land of the king of Heshbon, and the land of Og king of Bashan.

23 Their children also multipliedst thou as the stars of heaven, and broughtest them into the land, concerning which thou hadst promised to their fathers, that they should go in to possess it.

24 So the children went in and possessed the land, and thou subduedst before them the inhabitants of the land, the Canaanites, and gavest them into their hands, with their kings, and the people of the land, that they might do with them as they would.

25 And they took strong cities, and a fat land, and possessed houses full of all goods, wellse digged, vineyards, and oliveyards, and fruit trees in abundance: so they did eat, and were filled, and became fat, and delighted themselves in thy great goodness.

26 Nevertheless they were disobedient, and rebelled against thee, and cast thy law behind their backs, and slew thy prophets which testified against them to turn them to thee, and they wrought great provocations.

27 Therefore thou deliveredst them into the hand of their enemies, who vexed them: and in the time of their trouble, when they cried unto thee, thou heardest them from heaven; and according to thy manifold mercies thou gavest them saviours, who saved them out of the hand of their enemies.

28 But after they had rest, they didf evil again before thee: therefore leftest thou them in the hand of their enemies, so that they had the dominion over them: yet when they returned, and cried unto thee, thou heardest them from heaven; and many times didst thou deliver them according to thy mercies;

29 And testifiedst against them, that thou mightest bring them again unto thy law: yet they dealt proudly, and hearkened not unto thy commandments, but sinned against thy judgments, (which if a man do, he shall live in them;) and withdrewg the shoulder, and hardened their neck, and would not hear.

30 Yet many years didst thou forbearh them, and testifiedst against them by thy spirit in thy prophets: yet would they not give ear: therefore gavest thou them into the hand of the people of the lands.

31 Nevertheless for thy great mercies' sake thou didst not utterly consume them, nor forsake them; for thou art a gracious and merciful God.