Nehemia 1:5

1:5 Then I said, “Please, O LORD God of heaven, great and awesome God, who keeps his loving covenant ¹  with those who love him and obey ²  his commandments,

Nehemia 1:9

1:9 But if you repent ³  and obey ⁴  my commandments and do them, then even if your dispersed people are in the most remote location, ⁵  I will gather them from there and bring them to the place I have chosen for my name to reside.’

Nehemia 9:8

9:8 When you perceived that his heart was faithful toward you, you established a ⁶  covenant with him to give his descendants ⁷  the land of the Canaanites, the Hittites, the Amorites, the Perizzites, the Jebusites, and the Girgashites. You have fulfilled your promise, ⁸  for you are righteous.

Nehemia 10:29

10:29 hereby participate with their colleagues the town leaders ⁹  and enter into a curse and an oath ¹⁰  to adhere to ¹¹  the law of God which was given through Moses the servant of God, and to obey ¹²  carefully all the commandments of the LORD our Lord, ¹³  along with his ordinances and his statutes.

[1:5]  ¹ tn Heb “the covenant and loyal love.” The phrase is a hendiadys: the first noun retains its full nominal sense, while the second noun functions adjectivally (“loyal love” = loving). Alternately, the first might function adjectivally and the second noun function as the noun: “covenant and loyal love” = covenant fidelity (see Neh 9:32).

[1:5]  ² tn Heb “keep.” The Hebrew verb שָׁמַר (shamar, “to observe; to keep”) is often used as an idiom that means “to obey” the commandments of God (e.g., Exod 20:6; Deut 5:16; 23:24; 29:8; Judg 2:22; 1 Kgs 2:43; 11:11; Ps 119:8, 17, 34; Jer 35:18; Ezek 17:14; Amos 2:4). See BDB 1036 s.v. 3.c.

[1:9]  ³ tn Heb “turn to me.”

[1:9]  ⁴ tn Heb “keep.” See the note on the word “obey” in Neh 1:5.

[1:9]  ⁵ tn Heb “at the end of the heavens.”

[9:8]  ⁶ tn Heb “the” (so NAB).

[9:8]  ⁷ tn Heb “seed.”

[9:8]  ⁸ tn Heb “your words.”

[10:29]  ⁹ tn Heb “the nobles.”

[10:29]  ¹⁰ tn The expression “a curse and an oath” may be a hendiadys, meaning “an oath with penalties.”

[10:29]  ¹¹ tn Heb “to walk in.”

[10:29]  ¹² tn Heb “keep.” See the note on the word “obey” in Neh 1:5.

[10:29]  ¹³ tn The Hebrew term translated “Lord” here is אֲדֹנָי (’adonay).