I said,(A)

Yahweh, the God of heaven, the great and awe-inspiring God who keeps His gracious covenant with those who love Him(B) and keep His commands,(C) let Your eyes be open and Your ears be attentive(D) to hear Your servant’s prayer that I now pray to You day and night(E) for Your servants, the Israelites. I confess the sins[a] we have committed against You. Both I and my father’s house have sinned.(F) We have acted corruptly toward You and have not kept the commands, statutes, and ordinances You gave Your servant Moses.(G) Please remember what You commanded Your servant Moses: “If you are unfaithful, I will scatter you among the peoples.(H) But if you return to Me and carefully observe My commands, even though your exiles were banished to the ends of the earth,[b] I will gather them from there and bring them to the place where I chose to have My name dwell.”(I) 10 They are Your servants and Your people. You redeemed them by Your great power and strong hand.(J) 11 Please, Lord, let Your ear be attentive(K) to the prayer of Your servant and to that of Your servants who delight to revere Your name. Give Your servant success today,(L) and have compassion on him in the presence of this man.[c](M)

At the time, I was the king’s cupbearer.(N)

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Footnotes

  1. Nehemiah 1:6 Lit sins of the Israelites
  2. Nehemiah 1:9 Lit skies
  3. Nehemiah 1:11 = the king

Then I said:

Lord, the God of heaven, the great and awesome God,(A) who keeps his covenant of love(B) with those who love him and keep his commandments, let your ear be attentive and your eyes open to hear(C) the prayer(D) your servant is praying before you day and night for your servants, the people of Israel. I confess(E) the sins we Israelites, including myself and my father’s family, have committed against you. We have acted very wickedly(F) toward you. We have not obeyed the commands, decrees and laws you gave your servant Moses.

“Remember(G) the instruction you gave your servant Moses, saying, ‘If you are unfaithful, I will scatter(H) you among the nations, but if you return to me and obey my commands, then even if your exiled people are at the farthest horizon, I will gather(I) them from there and bring them to the place I have chosen as a dwelling for my Name.’(J)

10 “They are your servants and your people, whom you redeemed by your great strength and your mighty hand.(K) 11 Lord, let your ear be attentive(L) to the prayer of this your servant and to the prayer of your servants who delight in revering your name. Give your servant success today by granting him favor(M) in the presence of this man.”

I was cupbearer(N) to the king.

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And said, I beseech thee, O Lord God of heaven, the great and terrible God, that keepeth covenant and mercy for them that love him and observe his commandments:

Let thine ear now be attentive, and thine eyes open, that thou mayest hear the prayer of thy servant, which I pray before thee now, day and night, for the children of Israel thy servants, and confess the sins of the children of Israel, which we have sinned against thee: both I and my father's house have sinned.

We have dealt very corruptly against thee, and have not kept the commandments, nor the statutes, nor the judgments, which thou commandedst thy servant Moses.

Remember, I beseech thee, the word that thou commandedst thy servant Moses, saying, If ye transgress, I will scatter you abroad among the nations:

But if ye turn unto me, and keep my commandments, and do them; though there were of you cast out unto the uttermost part of the heaven, yet will I gather them from thence, and will bring them unto the place that I have chosen to set my name there.

10 Now these are thy servants and thy people, whom thou hast redeemed by thy great power, and by thy strong hand.

11 O Lord, I beseech thee, let now thine ear be attentive to the prayer of thy servant, and to the prayer of thy servants, who desire to fear thy name: and prosper, I pray thee, thy servant this day, and grant him mercy in the sight of this man. For I was the king's cupbearer.

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I prayed to the Lord my God and confessed:

Ah, Lord—the great and awe-inspiring God(A) who keeps His gracious covenant(B) with those who love Him(C) and keep His commands(D) we have sinned,(E) done wrong, acted wickedly, rebelled,(F) and turned away from Your commands and ordinances.(G) We have not listened to Your servants the prophets,(H) who spoke in Your name to our kings, leaders, fathers, and all the people of the land.

Lord, righteousness belongs to You,(I) but this day public shame belongs to us: the men of Judah, the residents of Jerusalem, and all Israel—those who are near and those who are far, in all the countries where You have dispersed them because of the disloyalty they have shown toward You. Lord, public shame(J) belongs to us, our kings, our leaders, and our fathers, because we have sinned against You.(K) Compassion and forgiveness belong to the Lord our God, though we have rebelled against Him 10 and have not obeyed the voice of the Lord our God by following His instructions that He set before us through His servants(L) the prophets.

11 All Israel has broken Your law and turned away,(M) refusing to obey You. The promised curse[a] written in the law of Moses,(N) the servant of God, has been poured out on us because we have sinned against Him. 12 He has carried out His words(O) that He spoke against us and against our rulers[b](P) by bringing on us so great a disaster that nothing like what has been done to Jerusalem has ever been done(Q) under all of heaven. 13 Just as it is written in the law of Moses,(R) all this disaster has come on us, yet we have not appeased(S) the Lord our God by turning from our iniquities and paying attention to Your truth.(T) 14 So the Lord kept the disaster in mind and brought it on us, for the Lord our God is righteous in all He has done. But we have not obeyed Him.

15 Now, Lord our God, who brought Your people out of the land of Egypt with a mighty hand(U) and made Your name renowned(V) as it is this day, we have sinned, we have acted wickedly. 16 Lord, in keeping with all Your righteous acts, may Your anger and wrath(W) turn away from Your city Jerusalem, Your holy mountain;(X) for because of our sins and the iniquities of our fathers, Jerusalem and Your people have become an object of ridicule to all those around us.

17 Therefore, our God, hear the prayer and the petitions of Your servant. Show Your favor(Y) to Your desolate sanctuary(Z) for the Lord’s sake. 18 Listen,[c] my God, and hear. Open Your eyes and see our desolations and the city called by Your name. For we are not presenting our petitions before You based on our righteous acts, but based on Your abundant compassion. 19 Lord, hear! Lord, forgive! Lord, listen and act! My God, for Your own sake, do not delay,(AA) because Your city and Your people are called by Your name.

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Footnotes

  1. Daniel 9:11 Lit The curse and the oath
  2. Daniel 9:12 Lit against rulers who ruled us
  3. Daniel 9:18 Lit Stretch out Your ear

I prayed to the Lord my God and confessed:(A)

“Lord, the great and awesome God,(B) who keeps his covenant of love(C) with those who love him and keep his commandments, we have sinned(D) and done wrong.(E) We have been wicked and have rebelled; we have turned away(F) from your commands and laws.(G) We have not listened(H) to your servants the prophets,(I) who spoke in your name to our kings, our princes and our ancestors,(J) and to all the people of the land.

“Lord, you are righteous,(K) but this day we are covered with shame(L)—the people of Judah and the inhabitants of Jerusalem and all Israel, both near and far, in all the countries where you have scattered(M) us because of our unfaithfulness(N) to you.(O) We and our kings, our princes and our ancestors are covered with shame, Lord, because we have sinned against you.(P) The Lord our God is merciful and forgiving,(Q) even though we have rebelled against him;(R) 10 we have not obeyed the Lord our God or kept the laws he gave us through his servants the prophets.(S) 11 All Israel has transgressed(T) your law(U) and turned away, refusing to obey you.

“Therefore the curses(V) and sworn judgments(W) written in the Law of Moses, the servant of God, have been poured out on us, because we have sinned(X) against you. 12 You have fulfilled(Y) the words spoken against us and against our rulers by bringing on us great disaster.(Z) Under the whole heaven nothing has ever been done like(AA) what has been done to Jerusalem.(AB) 13 Just as it is written in the Law of Moses, all this disaster has come on us, yet we have not sought the favor of the Lord(AC) our God by turning from our sins and giving attention to your truth.(AD) 14 The Lord did not hesitate to bring the disaster(AE) on us, for the Lord our God is righteous in everything he does;(AF) yet we have not obeyed him.(AG)

15 “Now, Lord our God, who brought your people out of Egypt with a mighty hand(AH) and who made for yourself a name(AI) that endures to this day, we have sinned, we have done wrong. 16 Lord, in keeping with all your righteous acts,(AJ) turn away(AK) your anger and your wrath(AL) from Jerusalem,(AM) your city, your holy hill.(AN) Our sins and the iniquities of our ancestors have made Jerusalem and your people an object of scorn(AO) to all those around us.

17 “Now, our God, hear the prayers and petitions of your servant. For your sake, Lord, look with favor(AP) on your desolate sanctuary. 18 Give ear,(AQ) our God, and hear;(AR) open your eyes and see(AS) the desolation of the city that bears your Name.(AT) We do not make requests of you because we are righteous, but because of your great mercy.(AU) 19 Lord, listen! Lord, forgive!(AV) Lord, hear and act! For your sake,(AW) my God, do not delay, because your city and your people bear your Name.”

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And I prayed unto the Lord my God, and made my confession, and said, O Lord, the great and dreadful God, keeping the covenant and mercy to them that love him, and to them that keep his commandments;

We have sinned, and have committed iniquity, and have done wickedly, and have rebelled, even by departing from thy precepts and from thy judgments:

Neither have we hearkened unto thy servants the prophets, which spake in thy name to our kings, our princes, and our fathers, and to all the people of the land.

O Lord, righteousness belongeth unto thee, but unto us confusion of faces, as at this day; to the men of Judah, and to the inhabitants of Jerusalem, and unto all Israel, that are near, and that are far off, through all the countries whither thou hast driven them, because of their trespass that they have trespassed against thee.

O Lord, to us belongeth confusion of face, to our kings, to our princes, and to our fathers, because we have sinned against thee.

To the Lord our God belong mercies and forgivenesses, though we have rebelled against him;

10 Neither have we obeyed the voice of the Lord our God, to walk in his laws, which he set before us by his servants the prophets.

11 Yea, all Israel have transgressed thy law, even by departing, that they might not obey thy voice; therefore the curse is poured upon us, and the oath that is written in the law of Moses the servant of God, because we have sinned against him.

12 And he hath confirmed his words, which he spake against us, and against our judges that judged us, by bringing upon us a great evil: for under the whole heaven hath not been done as hath been done upon Jerusalem.

13 As it is written in the law of Moses, all this evil is come upon us: yet made we not our prayer before the Lord our God, that we might turn from our iniquities, and understand thy truth.

14 Therefore hath the Lord watched upon the evil, and brought it upon us: for the Lord our God is righteous in all his works which he doeth: for we obeyed not his voice.

15 And now, O Lord our God, that hast brought thy people forth out of the land of Egypt with a mighty hand, and hast gotten thee renown, as at this day; we have sinned, we have done wickedly.

16 O Lord, according to all thy righteousness, I beseech thee, let thine anger and thy fury be turned away from thy city Jerusalem, thy holy mountain: because for our sins, and for the iniquities of our fathers, Jerusalem and thy people are become a reproach to all that are about us.

17 Now therefore, O our God, hear the prayer of thy servant, and his supplications, and cause thy face to shine upon thy sanctuary that is desolate, for the Lord's sake.

18 O my God, incline thine ear, and hear; open thine eyes, and behold our desolations, and the city which is called by thy name: for we do not present our supplications before thee for our righteousnesses, but for thy great mercies.

19 O Lord, hear; O Lord, forgive; O Lord, hearken and do; defer not, for thine own sake, O my God: for thy city and thy people are called by thy name.

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