Nehemiah 9:12
in Nehemiah 9You led them with a pillar of cloud by day and a pillar of fire by night, to light for them the way in which they should travel.
BSB
The same verse in ASV and KJV ▾
ASV
Moreover in a pillar of cloud thou leddest them by day; and in a pillar of fire by night, to give them light in the way wherein they should go.
KJV
Moreover thou leddest them in the day by a cloudy pillar; and in the night by a pillar of fire, to give them light in the way wherein they should go.
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This verse in Nehemiah 9
Commentary
5 notes on this verseThis site's exposition
with a pillar of cloud by day
on Nehemiah 9:12-13
By day "a pillar of cloud" and by night "a pillar of fire" light the way, guidance arriving before any law does. God "came down on Mount Sinai and spoke with them from heaven." The giving of law follows the giving of guidance, and the two stand in one history.
The record, by era
The Puritans and the Awakening2 voices
2 And the seed of Israel separated themselves from all strangers, and stood and confessed their sins, and the iniquities of their fathers. 3 And they stood up in their place, and read in the book of the law of the L ORD their God one fourth part of the day; and another fourth part they confessed, and worshipped the L ORD their God.
quarantine:scripture (2026-07-29) — scripture-overlap:94%@v2-3
Moreover, thou leddest them in the day by a cloudy pillar,.... The Israelites, to shelter them from the heat of the sun in a dry and barren wilderness: and in the night by a pillar of fire, to give them light in the way wherein they should go; through a trackless desert, see Exo 13:21.
The Nineteenth Century2 voices
A commentator
Jamieson, Fausset & Brown1802–1910
Commentary Critical and Explanatory on the Whole Bible (1871)
proposed
Thou, even thou, art Lord alone, &c.--In this solemn and impressive prayer, in which they make public confession of their sins, and deprecate the judgments due to the transgressions of their fathers, they begin with a profound adoration of God, whose supreme majesty and omnipotence is acknowledged in the creation, preservation, and government of all.
By a cloudy pillar - See the notes on the parallel passages, both here and in the other verses.
The words behind it
14 Hebrew wordsEvery Hebrew word of this verse in the order it stands, with what it means and the door to its own study. The last column counts the times a word stands in the whole Bible: the rarer the word, the more the places it appears belong together.
| Hebrew | Sound | Meaning | Word study | In the Bible |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| וּבְעַמּ֣וּד | uveamud | and in a pillar of | H5982 → | 111 times |
| עָנָ֔ן | ʾanan | cloud | H6051 → | |
| הִנְחִיתָ֖ם | hinchitam | you led them | H5148 → | |
| יוֹמָ֑ם | yomam | by day | H3119 → | 50 times |
| וּבְעַמּ֥וּד | uveamud | and in a pillar of | H5982 → | 111 times |
| אֵשׁ֙ | ʾesh | fire | H784 → | 378 times |
| לַ֔יְלָה | laylah | night | H3915 → | 233 times |
| לְהָאִ֣יר | lehair | to light up | H215 → | |
| לָהֶ֔ם | lahem | for them | ||
| אֶת־ | ʾet- | <obj.> | H853 → | 10935 times |
| הַדֶּ֖רֶךְ | haderekh | the way | H1870 → | 707 times |
| אֲשֶׁ֥ר | ʾasher | which | H834 → | 5497 times |
| יֵֽלְכוּ־ | yelekhu- | they walked | H1980 → | 1546 times |
| בָֽהּ׃ | vah | in it |
וּבְעַמּ֣וּדand in a pillar of
uveamudH5982 →111 times
עָנָ֔ןcloud
ʾananH6051 →
הִנְחִיתָ֖םyou led them
hinchitamH5148 →
יוֹמָ֑םby day
yomamH3119 →50 times
וּבְעַמּ֥וּדand in a pillar of
uveamudH5982 →111 times
אֵשׁ֙fire
ʾeshH784 →378 times
לַ֔יְלָהnight
laylahH3915 →233 times
לְהָאִ֣ירto light up
lehairH215 →
לָהֶ֔םfor them
lahem
אֶת־<obj.>
ʾet-H853 →10935 times
הַדֶּ֖רֶךְthe way
haderekhH1870 →707 times
אֲשֶׁ֥רwhich
ʾasherH834 →5497 times
יֵֽלְכוּ־they walked
yelekhu-H1980 →1546 times
בָֽהּ׃in it
vah
A shaded row is a word that stands 400 times or fewer in the Bible.
The walk
8 stopsEach card is a verse this one points to, and under it the verses that one points to in turn. Where several paths arrive at the same place, that place is listed first: the text keeps returning to it.
Through
Psalms 78:14He led them with a cloud by day and with a light of fire all night.
it leads to
- Psalms 105:39
He spread a cloud as a covering and a fire to light up the night.
- Exodus 13:21–22
And the LORD went before them in a pillar of cloud to guide their way by day, and in a pillar of fire to give them light by night, so that they could travel…
- Psalms 105:39
Through
Nehemiah 9:19You in Your great compassion did not forsake them in the wilderness. By day the pillar of cloud never turned away from guiding them on their path; and by the night the pillar of…
it leads to
- Nehemiah 9:27
So You delivered them into the hands of enemies who oppressed them, and in their time of distress they cried out to You. From heaven You heard them, and in Your great compassion You…
- Psalms 106:45
And He remembered His covenant with them, and relented by the abundance of His loving devotion.
- Malachi 3:6
“Because I, the LORD, do not change, you descendants of Jacob have not been destroyed.
- Daniel 9:18
Incline Your ear, O my God, and hear; open Your eyes and see the desolation of the city that bears Your name. For we are not presenting our petitions before You because of our…
- Nehemiah 9:27
Through
Psalms 107:7He led them on a straight path to reach a city where they could live.
it leads to
- Jeremiah 31:9
They will come with weeping, and by their supplication I will lead them; I will make them walk beside streams of waters, on a level path where they will not stumble. For I am…
- Hebrews 12:22
Instead, you have come to Mount Zion, to the city of the living God, the heavenly Jerusalem. You have come to myriads of angels
- Jeremiah 31:9
Where this verse is studied
On this page
Studies5
About Nehemiah
This page draws on Adam Clarke, Commentary on the Bible; Jamieson, Fausset & Brown, Commentary Critical and Explanatory on the Whole Bible; John Gill, Exposition of the Old Testament (1748-1763); Keil, The Books of Ezra, Nehemiah, and Esther and Matthew Henry, Commentary on the Whole Bible.