216 lines
6.9 KiB
Markdown
216 lines
6.9 KiB
Markdown
National Confession of Sin
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# Chapter 9
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1. On the twenty-fourth day of this month the Israelites assembled; they were fasting, wearing sackcloth, and had put dust on their heads.
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2. Those of Israelite descent separated themselves from all foreigners, and they stood and confessed their sins and the iniquities of their ancestors.
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3. While they stood in their places, they read from the book of the law of the Lord their God for a fourth of the day and spent another fourth of the day in confession and worship of the Lord their God.
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4. Jeshua, Bani, Kadmiel, Shebaniah, Bunni, Sherebiah, Bani, and Chenani stood on the raised platform built for the Levites and cried out loudly to the Lord their God.
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5. Then the Levites--Jeshua, Kadmiel, Bani, Hashabneiah, Sherebiah, Hodiah, Shebaniah, and Pethahiah--said, "Stand up. Blessed be the Lord your God from everlasting to everlasting."
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Blessed be your glorious name,
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and may it be exalted above all blessing and praise.
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6. You, Lord, are the only God.
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You created the heavens,
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the highest heavens with all their stars,
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the earth and all that is on it,
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the seas and all that is in them.
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You give life to all of them,
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and all the stars of heaven worship you.
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7. You, the Lord,
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are the God who chose Abram
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and brought him out of Ur of the Chaldeans,
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and changed his name to Abraham.
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8. You found his heart faithful in your sight,
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and made a covenant with him
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to give the land of the Canaanites,
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Hethites, Amorites, Perizzites,
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Jebusites, and Girgashites--
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to give it to his descendants.
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You have fulfilled your promise,
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for you are righteous.
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9. You saw the oppression of our ancestors in Egypt
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and heard their cry at the Red Sea.
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10. You performed signs and wonders against Pharaoh,
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all his officials, and all the people of his land,
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for you knew how arrogantly they treated our ancestors.
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You made a name for yourself
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that endures to this day.
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11. You divided the sea before them,
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and they crossed through it on dry ground.
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You hurled their pursuers into the depths
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like a stone into raging water.
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12. You led them with a pillar of cloud by day,
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and with a pillar of fire by night,
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to illuminate the way they should go.
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13. You came down on Mount Sinai,
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and spoke to them from heaven.
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You gave them impartial ordinances, reliable instructions,
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and good statutes and commands.
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14. You revealed your holy Sabbath to them,
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and gave them commands, statutes, and instruction
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through your servant Moses.
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15. You provided bread from heaven for their hunger;
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you brought them water from the rock for their thirst.
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You told them to go in and possess the land
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you had sworn to give them.
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16. But our ancestors acted arrogantly;
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they became stiff-necked and did not listen to your commands.
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17. They refused to listen
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and did not remember your wonders
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you performed among them.
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They became stiff-necked and appointed a leader
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to return to their slavery in Egypt.
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But you are a forgiving God,
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gracious and compassionate,
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slow to anger and abounding in faithful love,
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and you did not abandon them.
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18. Even after they had cast an image of a calf
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for themselves and said,
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"This is your god who brought you out of Egypt,"
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and they had committed terrible blasphemies,
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19. you did not abandon them in the wilderness
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because of your great compassion.
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During the day the pillar of cloud
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never turned away from them,
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guiding them on their journey.
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And during the night the pillar of fire
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illuminated the way they should go.
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20. You sent your good Spirit to instruct them.
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You did not withhold your manna from their mouths,
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and you gave them water for their thirst.
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21. You provided for them in the wilderness forty years,
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and they lacked nothing.
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Their clothes did not wear out,
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and their feet did not swell.
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22. You gave them kingdoms and peoples
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and established boundaries for them.
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They took possession
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of the land of King Sihon of Heshbon
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and of the land of King Og of Bashan.
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23. You multiplied their descendants
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like the stars of the sky
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and brought them to the land
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you told their ancestors to go in and possess.
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24. So their descendants went in and possessed the land:
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You subdued the Canaanites who inhabited the land before them
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and handed their kings and the surrounding peoples over to them,
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to do as they pleased with them.
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25. They captured fortified cities and fertile land
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and took possession of well-supplied houses,
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cisterns cut out of rock, vineyards,
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olive groves, and fruit trees in abundance.
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They ate, were filled,
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became prosperous, and delighted in your great goodness.
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26. But they were disobedient and rebelled against you.
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They flung your law behind their backs
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and killed your prophets
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who warned them
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in order to turn them back to you.
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They committed terrible blasphemies.
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27. So you handed them over to their enemies,
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who oppressed them.
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In their time of distress, they cried out to you,
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and you heard from heaven.
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In your abundant compassion
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you gave them deliverers, who rescued them
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from the power of their enemies.
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28. But as soon as they had relief,
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they again did what was evil in your sight.
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So you abandoned them to the power of their enemies,
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who dominated them.
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When they cried out to you again,
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you heard from heaven and rescued them
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many times in your compassion.
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29. You warned them to turn back to your law,
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but they acted arrogantly
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and would not obey your commands.
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They sinned against your ordinances,
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which a person will live by if he does them.
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They stubbornly resisted,
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stiffened their necks, and would not obey.
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30. You were patient with them for many years,
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and your Spirit warned them through your prophets,
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but they would not listen.
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Therefore, you handed them over to the surrounding peoples.
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31. However, in your abundant compassion,
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you did not destroy them or abandon them,
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for you are a gracious and compassionate God.
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32. So now, our God--the great, mighty,
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and awe-inspiring God who keeps his gracious covenant--
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do not view lightly all the hardships that have afflicted us,
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our kings and leaders,
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our priests and prophets,
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our ancestors and all your people,
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from the days of the Assyrian kings until today.
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33. You are righteous concerning all that has happened to us,
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because you have acted faithfully,
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while we have acted wickedly.
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34. Our kings, leaders, priests, and ancestors
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did not obey your law
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or listen to your commands
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and warnings you gave them.
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35. When they were in their kingdom,
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with your abundant goodness that you gave them,
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and in the spacious and fertile land you set before them,
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they would not serve you or turn from their wicked ways.
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36. Here we are today,
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slaves in the land you gave our ancestors
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so that they could enjoy its fruit and its goodness.
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Here we are--slaves in it!
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37. Its abundant harvest goes to the kings
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you have set over us,
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because of our sins.
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They rule over our bodies
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and our livestock as they please.
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We are in great distress.
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Israel's Vow of Faithfulness
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38. In view of all this, we are making a binding agreement in writing on a sealed document containing the names of our leaders, Levites, and priests.
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