Nehemiah 9:2

2 Those of Israelite descent separated themselves from all foreigners, and they stood and confessed their sins and the guilt^[a] of their fathers.

Nehemiah 9:2 Meaning and Commentary

Nehemiah 9:2

And the seed of Israel separated themselves from all strangers,
&c.] Such as were genuine Israelites, of the seed of Abraham, who had married wives of the Gentiles, strangers to the commonwealth of Israel, either before the reformation by Ezra, not being then discovered, or had fallen into this evil since; but now, on the reading of the law, were convinced of it, and so separated themselves from such wives, which was a proof of the truth of their repentance:

and stood and confessed their sins, and the iniquities of their
fathers:
particularly their taking of strange wives, which their fathers had also done, and set them a bad example, which they had followed; of standing and confessing, see ( Luke 18:13 ) .

Nehemiah 9:2 In-Context

1 On the twenty-fourth day of this month the Israelites assembled; they were fasting, [wearing] sackcloth, [and had put] dust on their heads.

2 Those of Israelite descent separated themselves from all foreigners, and they stood and confessed their sins and the guilt of their fathers.

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.

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.

5 Then the Levites-Jeshua, Kadmiel, Bani, Hashabneiah, Sherebiah, Hodiah, Shebaniah, and Pethahiah-said: Stand up. Bless the Lord your God from everlasting to everlasting. Praise Your glorious name, and may it be exalted above all blessing and praise.

Footnotes

• [a]. liability for punishment