Nehemiah 9:8
in Nehemiah 9You found his heart faithful before You, and made a covenant with him to give the land of the Canaanites and Hittites, of the Amorites and Perizzites, of the Jebusites and Girgashites—to give it to his descendants. You have kept Your promise, because You are righteous.
BSB
The same verse in ASV and KJV ▾
ASV
and foundest his heart faithful before thee, and madest a covenant with him to give the land of the Canaanite, the Hittite, the Amorite, and the Perizzite, and the Jebusite, and the Girgashite, to give it unto his seed, and hast performed thy words; for thou art righteous.
KJV
And foundest his heart faithful before thee, and madest a covenant with him to give the land of the Canaanites, the Hittites, the Amorites, and the Perizzites, and the Jebusites, and the Girgashites, to give it, I say, to his seed, and hast performed thy words; for thou art righteous:
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This verse in Nehemiah 9
Commentary
6 notes on this verseAnd this covenant was sure, for God found Abraham's heart faithful before God, and found it so because he made it so (for faith is not of ourselves, it is the gift of God), and therefore performed his words; for with the upright he will show himself upright, and wherever he finds a faithful heart he will be found a faithful God.
This site's exposition
Ur of the Chaldeans
on Nehemiah 9:7-8
The prayer moves from creation to election: "the God who chose Abram, who brought him out of Ur" (9:7). Verse 8 adds the covenant's ground, "You found his heart faithful." It closes on "You have kept Your promise, because You are righteous," the note the prayer keeps returning to.
This site's exposition
You found his heart faithful before You
Genesis 15 holds both halves of the verse: Abram believes at 15:6, and the covenant naming the land's peoples follows at 15:18-21. Genesis lists ten peoples, and the prayer names six. Matthew Henry reads God's faithfulness as answering the faithful heart He found.
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
And foundest his heart faithful before thee,....
The Nineteenth Century1 voice
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.
The words behind it
25 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 |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| וּמָצָ֣אתָ | umatzata | and you found | H4672 → | 455 times |
| אֶת־ | ʾet- | <obj.> | H853 → | 10935 times |
| לְבָבוֹ֮ | levavo | heart his | H3824 → | |
| נֶאֱמָ֣ן | neeman | faithful | H539 → | |
| לְפָנֶיךָ֒ | lefaneikha | <to> before you | H6440 → | 2123 times |
| וְכָר֨וֹת | vekharot | and you made | H3772 → | |
| עִמּ֜וֹ | imo | with him | H5973 → | 1050 times |
| הַבְּרִ֗ית | haberit | the covenant | H1285 → | 284 times |
| לָתֵ֡ת | latet | to give | H5414 → | 2011 times |
| אֶת־ | ʾet- | <obj.> | H853 → | 10935 times |
| אֶרֶץ֩ | ʾeretz | [the] land of | H776 → | 2504 times |
| הַכְּנַעֲנִ֨י | hakenaani | the Canaanite[s] | H3669 → | |
| הַחִתִּ֜י | hachiti | the Hittite[s] | H2850 → | |
| הָאֱמֹרִ֧י | haemori | the Amorite[s] | H567 → | |
| וְהַפְּרִזִּ֛י | vehapperizi | and the Perizzite[s] | H6522 → | |
| וְהַיְבוּסִ֥י | vehayvusi | and the Jebusite[s] | H2983 → | |
| וְהַגִּרְגָּשִׁ֖י | vehagirgashi | and the Girgashite[s] | H1622 → | |
| לָתֵ֣ת | latet | to give | H5414 → | 2011 times |
| לְזַרְע֑וֹ | lezaro | to offspring his | H2233 → | 229 times |
| וַתָּ֙קֶם֙ | vatakem | and you fulfilled | H6965 → | 628 times |
| אֶת־ | ʾet- | <obj.> | H853 → | 10935 times |
| דְּבָרֶ֔יךָ | devareikha | words your | H1697 → | 1440 times |
| כִּ֥י | ki | for | H3588 → | 4482 times |
| צַדִּ֖יק | tzadik | [are] righteous | H6662 → | |
| אָֽתָּה׃ | ʾatah | you | H859 → | 1094 times |
וּמָצָ֣אתָand you found
umatzataH4672 →455 times
אֶת־<obj.>
ʾet-H853 →10935 times
לְבָבוֹ֮heart his
levavoH3824 →
נֶאֱמָ֣ןfaithful
neemanH539 →
לְפָנֶיךָ֒<to> before you
lefaneikhaH6440 →2123 times
וְכָר֨וֹתand you made
vekharotH3772 →
עִמּ֜וֹwith him
imoH5973 →1050 times
הַבְּרִ֗יתthe covenant
haberitH1285 →284 times
לָתֵ֡תto give
latetH5414 →2011 times
אֶת־<obj.>
ʾet-H853 →10935 times
אֶרֶץ֩[the] land of
ʾeretzH776 →2504 times
הַכְּנַעֲנִ֨יthe Canaanite[s]
hakenaaniH3669 →
הַחִתִּ֜יthe Hittite[s]
hachitiH2850 →
הָאֱמֹרִ֧יthe Amorite[s]
haemoriH567 →
וְהַפְּרִזִּ֛יand the Perizzite[s]
vehapperiziH6522 →
וְהַיְבוּסִ֥יand the Jebusite[s]
vehayvusiH2983 →
וְהַגִּרְגָּשִׁ֖יand the Girgashite[s]
vehagirgashiH1622 →
לָתֵ֣תto give
latetH5414 →2011 times
לְזַרְע֑וֹto offspring his
lezaroH2233 →229 times
וַתָּ֙קֶם֙and you fulfilled
vatakemH6965 →628 times
אֶת־<obj.>
ʾet-H853 →10935 times
דְּבָרֶ֔יךָwords your
devareikhaH1697 →1440 times
כִּ֥יfor
kiH3588 →4482 times
צַדִּ֖יק[are] righteous
tzadikH6662 →
אָֽתָּה׃you
ʾatahH859 →1094 times
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
Genesis 15:6Abram believed the LORD, and it was credited to him as righteousness.
it leads to
- James 2:23
And the Scripture was fulfilled that says, “Abraham believed God, and it was credited to him as righteousness,” and he was called a friend of God.
- Galatians 3:6–14
So also, “Abraham believed God, and it was credited to him as righteousness.”
- Romans 4:9
Is this blessing only on the circumcised, or also on the uncircumcised? We have been saying that Abraham’s faith was credited to him as righteousness.
- Romans 4:20–25
Yet he did not waver through disbelief in the promise of God, but was strengthened in his faith and gave glory to God,
- Romans 4:3–6
For what does the Scripture say? “Abraham believed God, and it was credited to him as righteousness.”
- James 2:23
Through
Hebrews 6:18Thus by two unchangeable things in which it is impossible for God to lie, we who have fled to take hold of the hope set before us may be strongly encouraged.
it leads to
- Numbers 23:19
God is not a man, that He should lie, or a son of man, that He should change His mind. Does He speak and not act? Does He promise and not fulfill?
- Titus 1:2
in the hope of eternal life, which God, who cannot lie, promised before time began.
- 1 Samuel 15:29
Moreover, the Glory of Israel does not lie or change His mind, for He is not a man, that He should change His mind.”
- Numbers 23:19
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) and Matthew Henry, Commentary on the Whole Bible.