Nehemiah 9:5,6

2. God is praised for His power in creation.

TEXT, Nehemiah 9:5 b - Nehemiah 9:6

5b

O may Thy glorious name be blessed

And exalted above all blessing and praise!

6

Thou alone art the LORD.

Thou has made the heavens,
The heaven of heavens with all their host,
The earth and all that is on it,
The seas and all that is in them.
Thou dost give life to all of them
And the heavenly host bows down before Thee.

COMMENT

Here begins the longest prayer recorded in the Bible: longer than either Jesus-' prayer in John 17 or Solomon's prayer at the dedication of the Temple in 1 Kings 8. Its author is not named, but Ezra is most commonly thought to have composed it. The Anchor Bible1 has an extensive chart of verbal and thought parallels in the O.T. to this prayer verse by verse. The author was obviously immersed in the Biblical tradition; the things he mentions are exactly the historical events recorded in the O.T. We may conclude that the Book which he had was essentially the same as the one which we have, up to that point.[71][71] Anchor Bible, op, cit., p. 167ff.

The prayer begins (Nehemiah 9:5 b) with praise to God. There is a difference between thanksgiving to God for what he has done and praise to Him for who He is: for His majesty and power and glory, and His mighty acts. This along with Nehemiah 9:6, is praise. The reference to God's name is to His character and person: name in the O.T. means personality, or person: see the Word Studies that follow.

In Nehemiah 9:6, the first reference to the heavenly host is to the stars, all in their orderly ranks; the second reference is to His angels, all the heavenly beings.

WORD STUDIES

NAME (Nehemiah 9:5, Shem): basically it means a sign, monument, or memorial of a person, thing, or event. This word is translated memorial in Isaiah 55:13. But the emphasis is on the person or event of which it is only the sign. To do something in someone's name is to act by his authority (Exodus 5:23). To know someone by name suggests acquaintance with him personally (Exodus 33:12). To make oneself a name indicates fame and renown (2 Samuel 7:9); conversely, to have no name is to be a nobody (Job 30:8); a good name signified a good reputation or character (Proverbs 22:1); the destruction of one's name meant that his person and the memory of him would be no more (Deuteronomy 9:14).

God's name, then, is His person, His authority, the knowledge of Him, His fame or glory, His character, the memory of all that He has done.

WORSHIP (Nehemiah 9:3); BOW DOWN (Nehemiah 9:6): these are the same word. It contains three ideas; (1) sink down, bow down, fall prostrate, do honor or reverence to someone whether to an equal or to a superior; (2) hence, to worship or adore; (3) therefore, to do homage or yield allegiance to someone.

Worship is incomplete without commitment.