Nehemiah 9:20

20 You gave your good Spirit to teach them. You gave them manna to eat and water when they were thirsty.

Nehemiah 9:20 Meaning and Commentary

Nehemiah 9:20

Thou gavest also thy good spirit to instruct them
In the knowledge of the laws delivered to them; the spirit of prophecy, according to Ben Melech, and which Aben Ezra interprets of the spirit put upon the seventy elders, ( Numbers 11:17 Numbers 11:25 ) ,

and withheldest not thy manna from their mouth;
all the while they were in the wilderness, until they came to Canaan's land; called the Lord's manna, because prepared by him, and given by him to them; a part or portion and gift from the Lord, as Ben Melech, from whence it had its name, see ( Exodus 16:15 )

and gavest them water for their thirst;
which seems to have respect to the last rock stricken for them, after their many provocations in the wilderness, ( Numbers 20:11 ) .

Nehemiah 9:20 In-Context

18 Our ancestors even made an idol of a calf for themselves. They said, 'This is your god, Israel, who brought you up out of Egypt.' They spoke against you.

19 "You have great mercy, so you did not leave them in the desert. The pillar of cloud guided them by day, and the pillar of fire led them at night, lighting the way they were to go.

20 You gave your good Spirit to teach them. You gave them manna to eat and water when they were thirsty.

21 You took care of them for forty years in the desert; they needed nothing. Their clothes did not wear out, and their feet did not swell.

22 "You gave them kingdoms and nations; you gave them more land. and the country of Og king of Bashan.