The Meaning of Nehemiah 9:25 Explained

Nehemiah 9:25

KJV: And they took strong cities, and a fat land, and possessed houses full of all goods, wells digged, vineyards, and oliveyards, and fruit trees in abundance: so they did eat, and were filled, and became fat, and delighted themselves in thy great goodness.

YLT: And they capture fenced cities, and fat ground, and possess houses full of all good, digged-wells, vineyards, and olive-yards, and fruit-trees in abundance, and they eat, and are satisfied, and become fat, and delight themselves in Thy great goodness.

Darby: And they took strong cities, and a fat land, and possessed houses full of all good things, wells digged, vineyards and olive-gardens, and fruit trees in abundance. And they did eat and were filled, and became fat, and delighted themselves in thy great goodness.

ASV: And they took fortified cities, and a fat land, and possessed houses full of all good things, cisterns hewn out, vineyards, and oliveyards, and fruit-trees in abundance: so they did eat, and were filled, and became fat, and delighted themselves in thy great goodness.

KJV Reverse Interlinear

And they took  strong  cities,  and a fat  land,  and possessed  houses  full  of all goods,  wells  digged,  vineyards,  and oliveyards,  and fruit  trees  in abundance:  so they did eat,  and were filled,  and became fat,  and delighted  themselves in thy great  goodness. 

What does Nehemiah 9:25 Mean?

Context Summary

Nehemiah 9:22-38 - The Penalty Of Ingratitude And Disobedience
The theme of this prayer is the covenant mercy of God. However great the provocation of the Chosen People, He never swerved from His ancient promise to their fathers. He testified against them by His Spirit and chastened them for their sins. He allowed them to be oppressed by their enemies and carried into captivity. But when they returned and cried for His help they found His manifold mercies waiting to welcome, forgive, and restore them. They were conscious that there was nothing in themselves or even in their fathers to explain these wonderful dealings, and the secret had ever to be found in His great mercies. In this hour of distress, they turned back to Him and bound themselves by a faithful covenant. But, alas, even written promises will not hold the wayward heart of man. What a picture this is of our own lives, and how often have all these experiences been repeated in us! Fortunately for us we are represented now, not by our promises and prayers, but by Jesus Christ, in whom we stand and are accepted and kept. [source]

Chapter Summary: Nehemiah 9

1  A solemn fast, and repentance of the people
4  The Levites make a confession of God's goodness, and their wickedness

What do the individual words in Nehemiah 9:25 mean?

And they took cities fortified and a land rich and possessed houses full of all goods Cisterns [already] dug vineyards and olive groves and trees fruit in abundance So they ate and were filled and grew fat and delighted themselves in Your goodness great
וַֽיִּלְכְּד֞וּ עָרִ֣ים בְּצֻרוֹת֮ וַאֲדָמָ֣ה שְׁמֵנָה֒ וַיִּֽירְשׁ֡וּ בָּתִּ֣ים מְלֵֽאִים־ כָּל־ ט֠וּב בֹּר֨וֹת חֲצוּבִ֜ים כְּרָמִ֧ים וְזֵיתִ֛ים וְעֵ֥ץ מַאֲכָ֖ל לָרֹ֑ב וַיֹּאכְל֤וּ וַֽיִּשְׂבְּעוּ֙ וַיַּשְׁמִ֔ינוּ וַיִּֽתְעַדְּנ֖וּ בְּטוּבְךָ֥ הַגָּדֽוֹל

וַֽיִּלְכְּד֞וּ  And  they  took 
Parse: Conjunctive waw, Verb, Qal, Consecutive imperfect, third person masculine plural
Root: לָכַד  
Sense: to capture, take, seize.
עָרִ֣ים  cities 
Parse: Noun, feminine plural
Root: עִיר 
Sense: excitement, anguish.
בְּצֻרוֹת֮  fortified 
Parse: Adjective, feminine plural
Root: בָּצַר 
Sense: to gather, restrain, fence, fortify, make inaccessible, enclose.
וַאֲדָמָ֣ה  and  a  land 
Parse: Conjunctive waw, Noun, feminine singular
Root: אֲדָמָה 
Sense: ground, land.
שְׁמֵנָה֒  rich 
Parse: Adjective, feminine singular
Root: שָׁמֵן  
Sense: fat, rich, robust.
וַיִּֽירְשׁ֡וּ  and  possessed 
Parse: Conjunctive waw, Verb, Qal, Consecutive imperfect, third person masculine plural
Root: יָרַשׁ  
Sense: to seize, dispossess, take possession off, inherit, disinherit, occupy, impoverish, be an heir.
בָּתִּ֣ים  houses 
Parse: Noun, masculine plural
Root: בַּיִת 
Sense: house.
מְלֵֽאִים־  full 
Parse: Adjective, masculine plural
Root: מָלֵא  
Sense: full, fullness, that which fills.
כָּל־  of  all 
Parse: Noun, masculine singular construct
Root: כֹּל  
Sense: all, the whole.
ט֠וּב  goods 
Parse: Noun, masculine singular
Root: טוּב  
Sense: goods, good things, goodness.
בֹּר֨וֹת  Cisterns 
Parse: Noun, masculine plural
Root: בֹּור 
Sense: pit, well, cistern.
חֲצוּבִ֜ים  [already]  dug 
Parse: Verb, Qal, QalPassParticiple, masculine plural
Root: חָצֵב 
Sense: to dig, cleave, divide, hew, make, cut out, dig out, cut down, quarry, hewer, mason.
כְּרָמִ֧ים  vineyards 
Parse: Noun, masculine plural
Root: כֶּרֶם 
Sense: vineyard.
וְזֵיתִ֛ים  and  olive  groves 
Parse: Conjunctive waw, Noun, masculine plural
Root: זַיִת  
Sense: olive, olive tree.
וְעֵ֥ץ  and  trees 
Parse: Conjunctive waw, Noun, masculine singular construct
Root: עֵץ  
Sense: tree, wood, timber, stock, plank, stalk, stick, gallows.
מַאֲכָ֖ל  fruit 
Parse: Noun, masculine singular
Root: מַאֲכָל  
Sense: food, fruit, meat.
לָרֹ֑ב  in  abundance 
Parse: Preposition-l, Article, Noun, masculine singular
Root: רֹב  
Sense: multitude, abundance, greatness.
וַיֹּאכְל֤וּ  So  they  ate 
Parse: Conjunctive waw, Verb, Qal, Consecutive imperfect, third person masculine plural
Root: אָכַל  
Sense: to eat, devour, burn up, feed.
וַֽיִּשְׂבְּעוּ֙  and  were  filled 
Parse: Conjunctive waw, Verb, Qal, Consecutive imperfect, third person masculine plural
Root: שָׂבַע  
Sense: to be satisfied, be sated, be fulfilled, be surfeited.
וַיַּשְׁמִ֔ינוּ  and  grew  fat 
Parse: Conjunctive waw, Verb, Hifil, Consecutive imperfect, third person masculine plural
Root: שָׁמֵן  
Sense: to be or become fat, grow fat.
וַיִּֽתְעַדְּנ֖וּ  and  delighted  themselves 
Parse: Conjunctive waw, Verb, Hitpael, Consecutive imperfect, third person masculine plural
Root: עָדַן  
Sense: (Hithpael) to luxuriate, delight oneself.
בְּטוּבְךָ֥  in  Your  goodness 
Parse: Preposition-b, Noun, masculine singular construct, second person masculine singular
Root: טוּב  
Sense: goods, good things, goodness.
הַגָּדֽוֹל  great 
Parse: Article, Adjective, masculine singular
Root: גָּבֹול 
Sense: great.