Nehemiah 9:15
What does Nehemiah 9:15 mean?
A plain-English look at Nehemiah 9:15 in WEB alongside six other public-domain English translations, with cross-references and chapter context.
What Nehemiah 9:15 means
God provided bread from heaven for hunger and water from the rock for thirst, tangible signs of His faithful care. He also commanded them to go in and possess the land He had sworn to give. Provision and purpose go together: God sustains His people not only to keep them alive but to move them toward His promised future. The verse presents a generous God who meets needs and calls for obedience. It anticipates the tragedy that follows, where abundance is met with unbelief. Remembering this highlights that failure cannot be blamed on lack of care; God had given food, drink, direction, and a clear summons to enter the land.
Parallel translations
WEB
World English Bible · 2000and gavest them bread from heaven for their hunger, and broughtest forth water for them out of the rock for their thirst, and commandedst them that they should go in to possess the land which thou hadst sworn to give them.
KJV
King James Version · 1611And gavest them bread from heaven for their hunger, and broughtest forth water for them out of the rock for their thirst, and promisedst them that they should go in to possess the land which thou hadst sworn to give them.
ASV
American Standard Version · 1901and gavest them bread from heaven for their hunger, and broughtest forth water for them out of the rock for their thirst, and commandedst them that they should go in to possess the land which thou hadst sworn to give them.
BBE
Bible in Basic English · 1949And you gave them bread from heaven when they were in need, and made water come out of the rock for their drink, and gave them orders to go in and take for their heritage the land which your hand had been lifted up to give them.
YLT
Young's Literal Translation · 1862and bread from the heavens Thou hast given to them for their hunger, and water from a rock hast brought out to them for their thirst, and dost say to them to go in to possess the land that Thou hast lifted up Thy hand to give to them.
DRA
Douay-Rheims (Challoner) · 1752And thou gavest them bread from heaven in their hunger, and broughtest forth water for them out of the rock in their thirst, and thou saidst to them that they should go in, and possess the land, upon which thou hadst lifted up thy hand to give it them.
DBY
Darby Bible · 1890And thou gavest them bread from the heavens for their hunger, and broughtest forth water for them out of the rock for their thirst, and didst say to them that they should go in to possess the land which thou hadst sworn to give them.
Context
The prayer has surveyed deliverance, guidance, revelation, and provision. Now, having set the table with God’s goodness, it turns in verse 16 to Israel’s response—pride and disobedience. The contrast will be stark: God’s persistent kindness against His people’s recurrent rebellion, which frames the need for confession and mercy in the present.
Cross references
Related passages from across Scripture, drawn from the Treasury of Scripture Knowledge.
- Nehemiah 9:20
Thou gavest also thy good Spirit to instruct them, and withheldest not thy manna from their mouth, and gavest them water for their thirst.
- Exodus 17:6
Behold, I will stand before thee there upon the rock in Horeb; and thou shalt smite the rock, and there shall come water out of it, that the people may drink. And Moses did so in the sight of the elders of Israel.
- John 6:31
Our fathers ate the manna in the wilderness; as it is written, He gave them bread out of heaven to eat.
- Numbers 14:30
surely ye shall not come into the land, concerning which I sware that I would make you dwell therein, save Caleb the son of Jephunneh, and Joshua the son of Nun.
- Ezekiel 20:15
Moreover also I sware unto them in the wilderness, that I would not bring them into the land which I had given them, flowing with milk and honey, which is the glory of all lands;
- Psalms 105:40
They asked, and he brought quails, And satisfied them with the bread of heaven.
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