Nehemiah’s Prayer

¹These are the words of Nehemiah son of Hacaliah:In the month of Chislev,in the twentieth year, while I was in the citadel of Susa,

²Hanani, one of my brothers, arrived with men from Judah. So I questioned them about the remnant of the Jews who had survived the exile, and also about Jerusalem.

³And they told me, “The remnant who survived the exile are there in the province, in great trouble and disgrace. The wall of Jerusalem is broken down, and its gates have been burned with fire.”

⁴When I heard these words, I sat down and wept. I mourned for days, fasting and praying before the God of heaven.

⁵Then I said:“O LORD, God of heaven, the great and awesome God who keeps His covenant of loving devotionwith those who love Him and keep His commandments,

⁶let Your eyes be open and Your ears attentive to hear the prayer that I, Your servant, now pray before You day and night for Your servants, the Israelites.I confess the sins that we Israelites have committed against You. Both I and my father’s house have sinned.

⁷We have behaved corruptly against You and have not kept the commandments, statutes, and ordinances that You gave Your servant Moses.

⁸Remember, I pray, the word that You commanded Your servant Moses when You said, ‘If you are unfaithful, I will scatter you among the nations,

⁹but if you return to Me and keep and practice My commandments, then even if your exiles have been banished to the farthest horizon,I will gather them from there and bring them to the place I have chosen as a dwelling for My Name.’

¹⁰They are Your servants and Your people. You redeemed them by Your great power and mighty hand.

¹¹O Lord, may Your ear be attentive to my prayer and to the prayers of Your servantswho delight to revere Your name. Give Your servant success this day, I pray, and grant him mercy in the sight of this man.”(At that time I was the cupbearer to the king.)

Prepare the Way for the LORD

¹“Comfort, comfort My people,”says your God.

²“Speak tenderly to Jerusalem,and proclaim to herthat her forced labor has been completed;her iniquity has been pardoned.For she has received from the hand of the LORDdouble for all her sins.”

³A voice of one calling:“Prepare the way for the LORD in the wilderness;make a straight highway for our God in the desert.

⁴Every valley shall be lifted up,and every mountain and hill made low;the uneven ground will become smooth,and the rugged land a plain.

⁵And the glory of the LORD will be revealed,and all humanity together will see it.”For the mouth of the LORD has spoken.

The Enduring Word

⁶A voice says, “Cry out!”And I asked, “What should I cry out?”“All flesh is like grass,and all its glory like the flowers of the field.

⁷The grass withers and the flowers fallwhen the breath of the LORD blows on them;indeed, the people are grass.

⁸The grass withers and the flowers fall,but the word of our God stands forever.”

Here Is Your God!

⁹Go up on a high mountain,O Zion, herald of good news.Raise your voice loudly,O Jerusalem, herald of good news.Lift it up,do not be afraid!Say to the cities of Judah,“Here is your God!”

¹⁰Behold, the Lord GOD comes with might,and His arm establishes His rule.His reward is with Him,and His recompense accompanies Him.

¹¹He tends His flock like a shepherd;He gathers the lambs in His armsand carries them close to His heart.He gently leads the nursing ewes.

¹²Who has measured the waters in the hollow of his hand,or marked off the heavens with the span of his hand?Who has held the dust of the earth in a basket,or weighed the mountains on a scaleand the hills with a balance?

¹³Who has directed the Spirit of the LORD,or informed Him as His counselor?

¹⁴Whom did He consult to enlighten Him,and who taught Him the paths of justice?Who imparted knowledge to Himand showed Him the way of understanding?

¹⁵Surely the nations are like a drop in a bucket;they are considered a speck of dust on the scales;He lifts up the islandslike fine dust.

¹⁶Lebanon is not sufficient for fuel,nor its animals enough for a burnt offering.

¹⁷All the nations are as nothing before Him;He regards them as nothingness and emptiness.

¹⁸To whom will you liken God?To what image will you compare Him?

¹⁹To an idol that a craftsman castsand a metalworker overlays with goldand fits with silver chains?

²⁰One lacking such an offeringchooses wood that will not rot.He seeks a skilled craftsmanto set up an idol that will not topple.

²¹Do you not know?Have you not heard?Has it not been declared to you from the beginning?Have you not understood since the foundation of the earth?

²²He sits enthroned above the circle of the earth;its dwellers are like grasshoppers.He stretches out the heavens like a curtain,and spreads them out like a tent to dwell in.

²³He brings the princes to nothingand makes the rulersof the earth meaningless.

²⁴No sooner are they planted, no sooner are they sown,no sooner have their stems taken root in the ground,than He blows on them and they wither,and a whirlwind sweeps them away like stubble.

²⁵“To whom will you liken Me,or who is My equal?” asks the Holy One.

²⁶Lift up your eyes on high:Who created all these?He leads forth the starry host by number;He calls each one by name.Because of His great power and mighty strength,not one of them is missing.

²⁷Why do you say, O Jacob,and why do you assert, O Israel,“My way is hidden from the LORD,and my claim is ignored by my God”?

²⁸Do you not know?Have you not heard?The LORD is the everlasting God,the Creator of the ends of the earth.He will not grow tired or weary;His understanding is beyond searching out.

²⁹He gives power to the faintand increases the strength of the weak.

³⁰Even youths grow tired and weary,and young men stumble and fall.

³¹But those who wait upon the LORD will renew their strength;they will mount up with wings like eagles;they will run and not grow weary,they will walk and not faint.

Water from the Rock

¹Then the whole congregation of Israel left the Desert of Sin,moving from place to place as the LORD commanded. They camped at Rephidim, but there was no water for the people to drink.

²So the people contended with Moses, “Give us water to drink.”“Why do you contend with me?” Moses replied. “Why do you test the LORD?”

³But the people thirsted for water there, and they grumbled against Moses: “Why have you brought us out of Egypt—to make us and our children and livestock die of thirst?”

⁴Then Moses cried out to the LORD, “What should I do with these people? A little more and they will stone me!”

⁵And the LORD said to Moses, “Walk on ahead of the people and take some of the elders of Israel with you. Take along in your hand the staff with which you struck the Nile, and go.

⁶Behold, I will stand there before you by the rock at Horeb.And when you strike the rock, water will come out of it for the people to drink.”So Moses did this in the sight of the elders of Israel.

⁷He named the place Massahand Meribahbecause the Israelites quarreled, and because they tested the LORD, saying, “Is the LORD among us or not?”

The Defeat of the Amalekites

⁸After this, the Amalekites came and attacked the Israelites at Rephidim.

⁹So Moses said to Joshua, “Choose some of our men and go out to fight the Amalekites. Tomorrow I will stand on the hilltop with the staff of God in my hand.”

¹⁰Joshua did as Moses had instructed him and fought against the Amalekites, while Moses, Aaron, and Hur went up to the top of the hill.

¹¹As long as Moses held up his hands, Israel prevailed; but when he lowered them, Amalek prevailed.

¹²When Moses’ hands grew heavy, they took a stone and put it under him, and he sat on it. Then Aaron and Hur held his hands up, one on each side, so that his hands remained steady until the sun went down.

¹³So Joshua overwhelmed Amalek and his army with the sword.

¹⁴Then the LORD said to Moses, “Write this on a scroll as a reminder and recite it to Joshua, because I will utterly blot out the memory of Amalek from under heaven.”

¹⁵And Moses built an altar and named it The LORD Is My Banner.

¹⁶“Indeed,” he said, “a hand was lifted up toward the throne of the LORD. The LORD will war against Amalek from generation to generation.”

Your Word Is a Lamp to My Feet

¹Blessedare those whose way is blameless,who walk in the Law of the LORD.

²Blessed are those who keep His testimoniesand seek Him with all their heart.

³They do no iniquity;they walk in His ways.

⁴You have ordained Your precepts,that we should keep them diligently.

⁵Oh, that my ways were committedto keeping Your statutes!

⁶Then I would not be ashamedwhen I consider all Your commandments.

⁷I will praise You with an upright heartwhen I learn Your righteous judgments.

⁸I will keep Your statutes;do not utterly forsake me.

⁹How can a young man keep his way pure?By guarding it according to Your word.

¹⁰With all my heart I have sought You;do not let me stray from Your commandments.

¹¹I have hidden Your word in my heartthat I might not sin against You.

¹²Blessed are You, O LORD;teach me Your statutes.

¹³With my lips I proclaimall the judgments of Your mouth.

¹⁴I rejoice in the way of Your testimoniesas much as in all riches.

¹⁵I will meditate on Your preceptsand regard Your ways.

¹⁶I will delight in Your statutes;I will not forget Your word.

¹⁷Deal bountifully with Your servant,that I may live and keep Your word.

¹⁸Open my eyes that I may seewondrous things from Your law.

¹⁹I am a stranger on the earth;do not hide Your commandments from me.

²⁰My soul is consumed with longingfor Your judgments at all times.

²¹You rebuke the arrogant—the cursed who stray from Your commandments.

²²Remove my scorn and contempt,for I have kept Your testimonies.

²³Though rulers sit and slander me,Your servant meditates on Your statutes.

²⁴Your testimonies are indeed my delight;they are my counselors.

²⁵My soul cleaves to the dust;revive me according to Your word.

²⁶I recounted my ways, and You answered me;teach me Your statutes.

²⁷Make clear to me the way of Your precepts;then I will meditate on Your wonders.

²⁸My soul melts with sorrow;strengthen me according to Your word.

²⁹Remove me from the path of deceitand graciously grant me Your law.

³⁰I have chosen the way of truth;I have set Your ordinances before me.

³¹I cling to Your testimonies, O LORD;let me not be put to shame.

³²I run in the path of Your commandments,for You will enlarge my heart.

³³Teach me, O LORD, the way of Your statutes,and I will keep them to the end.

³⁴Give me understanding that I may obey Your law,and follow it with all my heart.

³⁵Direct me in the path of Your commandments,for there I find delight.

³⁶Turn my heart to Your testimoniesand not to covetous gain.

³⁷Turn my eyes away from worthless things;revive me with Your word.

³⁸Establish Your word to Your servant,to produce reverence for You.

³⁹Turn away the disgrace I dread,for Your judgments are good.

⁴⁰How I long for Your precepts!Revive me in Your righteousness.

⁴¹May Your loving devotion come to me, O LORD,Your salvation, according to Your promise.

⁴²Then I can answer him who taunts,for I trust in Your word.

⁴³Never take Your word of truth from my mouth,for I hope in Your judgments.

⁴⁴I will always obey Your law,forever and ever.

⁴⁵And I will walk in freedom,for I have sought Your precepts.

⁴⁶I will speak of Your testimonies before kings,and I will not be ashamed.

⁴⁷I delight in Your commandmentsbecause I love them.

⁴⁸I lift up my hands to Your commandments, which I love,and I meditate on Your statutes.

⁴⁹Remember Your word to Your servant,upon which You have given me hope.

⁵⁰This is my comfort in affliction,that Your promise has given me life.

⁵¹The arrogant utterly deride me,but I do not turn from Your law.

⁵²I remember Your judgments of old, O LORD,and in them I find comfort.

⁵³Rage has taken hold of mebecause of the wicked who reject Your law.

⁵⁴Your statutes are songs to mein the house of my pilgrimage.

⁵⁵In the night, O LORD, I remember Your name,that I may keep Your law.

⁵⁶This is my practice,for I obey Your precepts.

⁵⁷The LORD is my portion;I have promised to keep Your words.

⁵⁸I have sought Your face with all my heart;be gracious to me according to Your promise.

⁵⁹I considered my waysand turned my steps to Your testimonies.

⁶⁰I hurried without hesitatingto keep Your commandments.

⁶¹Though the ropes of the wicked bind me,I do not forget Your law.

⁶²At midnight I rise to give You thanksfor Your righteous judgments.

⁶³I am a friend to all who fear You,and to those who keep Your precepts.

⁶⁴The earth is filled with Your loving devotion, O LORD;teach me Your statutes.

⁶⁵You are good to Your servant, O LORD,according to Your word.

⁶⁶Teach me good judgment and knowledge,for I believe in Your commandments.

⁶⁷Before I was afflicted, I went astray;but now I keep Your word.

⁶⁸You are good, and You do what is good;teach me Your statutes.

⁶⁹Though the arrogant have smeared me with lies,I keep Your precepts with all my heart.

⁷⁰Their hearts are callous and insensitive,but I delight in Your law.

⁷¹It was good for me to be afflicted,that I might learn Your statutes.

⁷²The law from Your mouth is more precious to methan thousands of pieces of gold and silver.

⁷³Your hands have made me and fashioned me;give me understanding to learn Your commandments.

⁷⁴May those who fear You see me and rejoice,for I have hoped in Your word.

⁷⁵I know, O LORD, that Your judgments are righteous,and that in faithfulness You have afflicted me.

⁷⁶May Your loving devotion comfort me, I pray,according to Your promise to Your servant.

⁷⁷May Your compassion come to me, that I may live,for Your law is my delight.

⁷⁸May the arrogant be put to shame for subverting me with a lie;I will meditate on Your precepts.

⁷⁹May those who fear You turn to me,those who know Your testimonies.

⁸⁰May my heart be blameless in Your statutes,that I may not be put to shame.

⁸¹My soul faints for Your salvation;I wait for Your word.

⁸²My eyes fail, looking for Your promise;I ask, “When will You comfort me?”

⁸³Though I am like a wineskin dried up by smoke,I do not forget Your statutes.

⁸⁴How many days must Your servant wait?When will You execute judgment on my persecutors?

⁸⁵The arrogant have dug pits for mein violation of Your law.

⁸⁶All Your commandments are faithful;I am persecuted without cause—help me!

⁸⁷They almost wiped me from the earth,but I have not forsaken Your precepts.

⁸⁸Revive me according to Your loving devotion,that I may obey the testimony of Your mouth.

⁸⁹Your word, O LORD, is everlasting;it is firmly fixed in the heavens.

⁹⁰Your faithfulness continues through all generations;You established the earth, and it endures.

⁹¹Your ordinances stand to this day,for all things are servants to You.

⁹²If Your law had not been my delight,then I would have perished in my affliction.

⁹³I will never forget Your precepts,for by them You have revived me.

⁹⁴I am Yours; save me,for I have sought Your precepts.

⁹⁵The wicked wait to destroy me,but I will ponder Your testimonies.

⁹⁶I have seen a limit to all perfection,but Your commandment is without limit.

⁹⁷Oh, how I love Your law!All day long it is my meditation.

⁹⁸Your commandments make me wiser than my enemies,for they are always with me.

⁹⁹I have more insight than all my teachers,for Your testimonies are my meditation.

¹⁰⁰I discern more than the elders,for I obey Your precepts.

¹⁰¹I have kept my feet from every evil path,that I may keep Your word.

¹⁰²I have not departed from Your ordinances,for You Yourself have taught me.

¹⁰³How sweet are Your words to my taste—sweeter than honey in my mouth!

¹⁰⁴I gain understanding from Your precepts;therefore I hate every false way.

¹⁰⁵Your word is a lamp to my feetand a light to my path.

¹⁰⁶I have sworn and confirmedthat I will keep Your righteous judgments.

¹⁰⁷I am severely afflicted, O LORD;revive me through Your word.

¹⁰⁸Accept the freewill offerings of my mouth, O LORD,and teach me Your judgments.

¹⁰⁹I constantly take my life in my hands,yet I do not forget Your law.

¹¹⁰The wicked have set a snare for me,but I have not strayed from Your precepts.

¹¹¹Your testimonies are my heritage forever,for they are the joy of my heart.

¹¹²I have inclined my heart to perform Your statutes,even to the very end.

¹¹³The double-minded I despise,but Your law I love.

¹¹⁴You are my hiding place and my shield;I put my hope in Your word.

¹¹⁵Depart from me, you evildoers,that I may obey the commandments of my God.

¹¹⁶Sustain me as You promised, that I may live;let me not be ashamed of my hope.

¹¹⁷Uphold me, and I will be saved,that I may always regard Your statutes.

¹¹⁸You reject all who stray from Your statutes,for their deceitfulness is in vain.

¹¹⁹All the wicked on earth You discard like dross;therefore I love Your testimonies.

¹²⁰My flesh trembles in awe of You;I stand in fear of Your judgments.

¹²¹I have done what is just and right;do not leave me to my oppressors.

¹²²Ensure Your servant’s well-being;do not let the arrogant oppress me.

¹²³My eyes fail, looking for Your salvation,and for Your righteous promise.

¹²⁴Deal with Your servant according to Your loving devotion,and teach me Your statutes.

¹²⁵I am Your servant; give me understanding,that I may know Your testimonies.

¹²⁶It is time for the LORD to act,for they have broken Your law.

¹²⁷Therefore I love Your commandments more than gold,even the purest gold.

¹²⁸Therefore I admire all Your preceptsand hate every false way.

¹²⁹Wonderful are Your testimonies;therefore I obey them.

¹³⁰The unfolding of Your words gives light;it informs the simple.

¹³¹I open my mouth and pant,longing for Your commandments.

¹³²Turn to me and show me mercy,as You do to those who love Your name.

¹³³Order my steps in Your word;let no sin rule over me.

¹³⁴Redeem me from the oppression of man,that I may keep Your precepts.

¹³⁵Make Your face shine upon Your servant,and teach me Your statutes.

¹³⁶My eyes shed streams of tearsbecause Your law is not obeyed.

¹³⁷Righteous are You, O LORD,and upright are Your judgments.

¹³⁸The testimonies You have laid down are righteousand altogether faithful.

¹³⁹My zeal has consumed mebecause my foes forget Your words.

¹⁴⁰Your promise is completely pure;therefore Your servant loves it.

¹⁴¹I am lowly and despised,but I do not forget Your precepts.

¹⁴²Your righteousness is everlastingand Your law is true.

¹⁴³Trouble and distress have found me,but Your commandments are my delight.

¹⁴⁴Your testimonies are righteous forever.Give me understanding, that I may live.

¹⁴⁵I call with all my heart; answer me, O LORD!I will obey Your statutes.

¹⁴⁶I call to You; save me,that I may keep Your testimonies.

¹⁴⁷I rise before dawn and cry for help;in Your word I have put my hope.

¹⁴⁸My eyes anticipate the watches of night,that I may meditate on Your word.

¹⁴⁹Hear my voice, O LORD, according to Your loving devotion;give me life according to Your justice.

¹⁵⁰Those who follow after wickedness draw near;they are far from Your law.

¹⁵¹You are near, O LORD,and all Your commandments are true.

¹⁵²Long ago I learned from Your testimoniesthat You have established them forever.

¹⁵³Look upon my affliction and rescue me,for I have not forgotten Your law.

¹⁵⁴Defend my cause and redeem me;revive me according to Your word.

¹⁵⁵Salvation is far from the wickedbecause they do not seek Your statutes.

¹⁵⁶Great are Your mercies, O LORD;revive me according to Your ordinances.

¹⁵⁷Though my persecutors and foes are many,I have not turned from Your testimonies.

¹⁵⁸I look on the faithless with loathingbecause they do not keep Your word.

¹⁵⁹Consider how I love Your precepts, O LORD;give me life according to Your loving devotion.

¹⁶⁰The entirety of Your word is truth,and all Your righteous judgments endure forever.

¹⁶¹Rulers persecute me without cause,but my heart fears only Your word.

¹⁶²I rejoice in Your promiselike one who finds great spoil.

¹⁶³I hate and abhor falsehood,but Your law I love.

¹⁶⁴Seven times a day I praise Youfor Your righteous judgments.

¹⁶⁵Abundant peace belongs to those who love Your law;nothing can make them stumble.

¹⁶⁶I wait for Your salvation, O LORD,and I carry out Your commandments.

¹⁶⁷I obey Your testimoniesand love them greatly.

¹⁶⁸I obey Your precepts and Your testimonies,for all my ways are before You.

¹⁶⁹May my cry come before You, O LORD;give me understanding according to Your word.

¹⁷⁰May my plea come before You;rescue me according to Your promise.

¹⁷¹My lips pour forth praise,for You teach me Your statutes.

¹⁷²My tongue sings of Your word,for all Your commandments are righteous.

¹⁷³May Your hand be ready to help me,for I have chosen Your precepts.

¹⁷⁴I long for Your salvation, O LORD,and Your law is my delight.

¹⁷⁵Let me live to praise You;may Your judgments sustain me.

¹⁷⁶I have strayed like a lost sheep;seek Your servant, for I have not forgotten Your commandments.