Sermon Tone Analysis

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: The Fingerprints and Bows of God
The Text in Context
Ezra thru Nehemiah highlights the reestablishment of the remnant of Israel in the promised land as a partial fulfillment of the prophetic promise of restoration of the relationship between God and Israel.
An important facet of the promised restoration is the new-covenant prophecy of ,
Nehemiah highlights the reestablishment of the remnant of Israel in the promised land as a partial fulfillment of the prophetic promise of restoration of the relationship between God and Israel.
An important facet of the promised restoration is the new-covenant prophecy of , which looks forward to the time when Israel will obey God from the heart.
Nehemiah shows that he understands that reestablishment in the land and new-covenant obedience belong together in his prayer in .
With the temple and wall of Jerusalem rebuilt and thousands of exiles resettled in Judea, it is appropriate for the narrative focus to shift from their physical reestablishment in the land and concentrate on spiritual renewal, a theme that was previously introduced in the mixed-marriage incident in .
The structure of follows a pattern recognizable from a number of covenant renewals in earlier parts of the Old Testament (; ; ; ; )—proclamation of God’s law, confession of sin, renewal of commitment to obedience.
Whereas records the reading of God’s law and the community’s joy in knowing and obeying it, relates their confession and mourning over sin.
This leads to the renewed commitment to obedience in .
The actions of the remnant seem to anticipate the new covenant.
Since God has brought his people back to their land from captivity and they are returning to him sincerely, the prayer in this chapter expresses hope for another promised aspect of restoration, that they will be freed from servitude to foreign rulers (e.g., ).
Historical and Cultural Background One of the ways in which ancient Near Eastern culture differed from contemporary Western society was in the concept of corporate identity.
Whereas modern Westerners think of themselves primarily as individuals, the ancients took their identity just as much, if not more, from the community with whom they shared a common ancestry.
The community was represented by all of its members, including those of the past and future.
What happened to one member was considered to some extent to have happened to all, and what one did was considered to have consequences, either positive or negative, for all.
This helps to explain why God expected his people to confess the sins of their ancestors (; compare ).
For the people to be reconciled to God, they have to address the history of their relationship with him.
Interpretive Insights 9:2  Those of Israelite descent had separated themselves from all foreigners.
The separation mentioned here would involve at least avoidance of marriages with non-Israelites, thus representing an improvement over the situation in .
The point is not to be antisocial but to avoid participating in activities that violate God’s law (see ). 9:7  who chose Abram.
God took the initiative in beginning a relationship with Israel.
He is the subject of all the verbs in verses 6–15.
The emphasis is on his gracious acts that benefit his people.
9:8  you made a covenant with him . . . the land.
This prayer tells the story of the relationship between God and Israel, and that relationship was founded on the covenant with Abraham.
Since the status of Israel’s possession of the land is a major concern to the community in , as well as throughout Israelite history, God’s gift of the land receives greatest attention among his covenant promises.
9:9  you heard their cry.
In verse 4 the Levites cried out to God.
The Hebrew word for “cry” in verse 9 is the noun form of the verb used in verse 4. The implied hope is that God will hear the present community’s cry as he heard their ancestors’ cry at the Red Sea.
9:16  But they . . .
became arrogant and stiff-necked.
The first part of the prayer has portrayed God as giving blessing after blessing to Israel.
In response, however, Israel was not humble and thankful, as they should have been.
They are contrasted with their faithful God, acting arrogantly, like the Egyptians of verse 10, and being stiff-necked, which draws on the image of an animal struggling to resist a yoke placed on its neck.
They refused to cooperate with God in spite of his goodness to them.
9:17  But you are a forgiving God.
A key theme of the prayer is introduced here.
The Israelites behaved ungratefully and rebelliously toward God, but instead of punishing them, he forgave and continued to provide for them.
It is God’s consistent demonstration of his willingness to forgive that inspires confidence in the returned exiles that he will do so again.
9:19  By day the pillar of cloud did not fail.
Verses 19–21 list several acts of God that correspond closely to his actions of verses 12–15.
Even after the insulting rebellion and idolatry of the Israelites in verses 16–18, God still treated them as compassionately as he had before.
9:24  You subdued before them the Canaanites.
The prayer makes continual reference to God overpowering other peoples for the benefit of the Israelites, including Pharaoh and the Egyptians (vv.
10–11), various kingdoms (v.
22), Sihon and Og (v.
22), and the Canaanites.
This sets up an expectation that God will deliver the current generation from the domination of the Persian kings.
as they pleased.
The identical phrase is used in verse 37 to describe the control the Persian kings exercise over the Judeans.
The Israelites of Joshua’s day both settled the land and controlled it, but the returned exiles have only been able to settle it.
9:25  they reveled in your great goodness.
The enjoyment of blessing that the Israelites experienced after the conquest contrasts with the situation described in verse 36.
The same goodness cannot now be enjoyed by the community because they live as slaves in the same land.
Once again, the current generation is depicted as enduring inferior circumstances.
9:26  But they were disobedient . . .
awful blasphemies.
This entire verse describes the insulting behavior of the Israelites.
Ignoring God’s law implied that his instructions were unimportant.
By sending prophets to warn the people, God was graciously going the extra mile to avoid judging them, but they simply killed his prophets.
The prayer underlines the Israelites’ insolence and ingratitude to the point where no one could expect God to tolerate it.
9:27  So you delivered them . . .
rescued them from the hand of their enemies.
To this point in the prayer, only God’s actions that benefited Israel have been recounted.
Here it is recalled that he punished their behavior by placing them under oppressors.
Even then, however, when the Israelites cried out to him, he compassionately delivered them.
It would have been just for God to ignore their cries, but the extent of his mercy is illustrated by his response.
As the prayer progresses, God’s character shines brighter and the Israelites’ looks worse.
9:32  do not let all this hardship seem trifling.
This is the only actual request in the entire prayer.
Its significance is closely related to the structure of the preceding context.
Verses 26–27 present a cycle of Israelite disobedience, God’s judgment through oppression by foreigners, the Israelites’ call to God, and God’s deliverance.
The entire cycle is repeated in verse 28.
The cycle then begins again in verses 29–31, but only includes the first two steps, bringing the account to the present time.
Thus, verse 32 represents the call for help made by the community.
Given that God has so consistently acted mercifully and powerfully in the past, the implication is that the Judeans can expect him to deliver them from their current foreign oppression as before.
9:36  we are slaves today.
The Judeans’ description of their situation recalls the time of slavery in Egypt.
It is also a way of saying that the oppression brought on by the Assyrians and extended by the Babylonians continues under the Persians.
The Judeans are once again in need of God’s deliverance from subjugation.
slaves in the land you gave our ancestors.
The cruel irony is that, whereas the ancestors left Egypt and inherited the promised land as freed people, this generation has entered the land but continues to be slaves to the Persians.
The sense of slavery likely arises from the heavy taxes imposed by the empire () as well as the right of conscription for military duty and forced labor and the requisition of cattle (9:37).
As long as these circumstances persist, the covenant has not been fully restored (compare, e.g., ).
Theological Insights The Israelites’ prayer shows God they understand that in the history of their relationship with him he has consistently been righteous and they have consistently been wicked.
They recognize his many benevolent acts of provision, compassion, and forgiveness.
They see that he has always kept his word and even been better than his word.
They agree that when he has judged them for disobedience, they have deserved it.
They marvel at his patience.
All this is accentuated by their own history of rebellion and proud disregard for God’s law.
He has maintained his impeccable character even though they have acted so insultingly toward him.
Therefore, since the community is demonstrating its own desire to be faithful to the covenant through its actions in , it confidently requests that God act in mercy yet again to forgive and complete the promised restoration.
For the original readers of this book, this was a strong encouragement to believe that, regardless of past disobedience, God is ready to extend forgiveness to those who honestly confess sin.
Teaching the Text The attitude illustrated by the prayer in is as appropriate for Christians today as it was for Judeans in the postexilic period.
Indeed, it is the only attitude that allows for a healthy relationship with God.
It is based on the recognition that God, as the creator and sustainer of all, is the one who has brought every good thing into our lives.
We realize that we owe him an enormous debt of gratitude, even before considering the effects of our sin.
But the picture comes into sharp contrast when sin is considered.
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