Led by Day and in the Night - Nehemiah 9:12

In the book of Nehemiah, Nehemiah shared how the Levites said of Jehovah God, “you are righteous. And did see the affliction of our fathers in Egypt, and heard their cry by the Red sea. And showed signs and wonders upon Pharaoh, and on all his servants, and on all the people of his land: for you knew that they dealt proudly against them. So did you get you a name, as it is this day. And you did divide the sea before them, so that they went through the midst of the sea on the dry land; and their persecutors you threw into the deeps, as a stone into the mighty waters”, and in chapter nine and verse twelve of Nehemiah, Nehemiah shared how Jehovah God, “led them … by day … and in the night” where we read,

Moreover you led 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.

The verse reads, “Moreover you led them in the day by a cloudy pillar;” Nehemiah began with the words, “moreover you led them” which means “in addition you, Jehovah God, governed and guided them, the people of Israel” “in the day” or “within the daytime or from sunrise to sunset” “by a cloudy pillar” which means “through the means of an upright column of a cloudy-mass or nimbus”. Nehemiah shared how Jehovah God guided the people of Israel through the means of a cloudy-mass column. 

The verse continues, “and in the night by a pillar of fire, to give them light in the way wherein they should go.” Nehemiah added the words, “and in the night” or “and within the nighttime” “by a pillar of fire” which means “through the means of an upright column containing supernatural flames”, “to give them light in the way” or “to provide, grant, supply and furnish them, the people of Israel, illumination within the path” “wherein they should go” which means “in the place and direction they, the people of Israel, were to proceed and travel”. Nehemiah shared how the Levites referred to the way Jehovah God guided the people of Israel within the nighttime through the means of a column of flames to provide illumination for their travels. 

When we consider the words in this verse, we learn through Nehemiah how the Levites referred to the way God protected and served the people of Israel while they traveled through the wilderness. God gave them a cloudy-mass column during the daytime which protected them from the heat, and a column at flames during the nighttime to provide elucidation for the paths upon which they would travel. In other words, these were visible signs that Jehovah God was with them. God cares for His people, and He cares for us as well. He wants to be in a personal intimate relationship with us through His Son Jesus who died on the cross for the sins of all mankind, and when we put our faith and trust in Him as our “Savior and Lord”, He will forgive our sins, grant us everlasting life and give us the presence of His Holy Spirit who will guide us into all truth and empower us to live according to what He reveals. (See John 16:33; Acts 1:8) 

Next time Nehemiah shares how Jehovah God, “came down also upon mount Sinai”, so read ahead, and we shall join together then.

Until tomorrow…there is more…

See more devotionals on the website "thewordfortodaywithray.com" or look for the daily devotional book “Equipped for Battle – From Generation to Generation”, the marriage book “So, You Want to Be Married”, “One Year in the Sermon on the Mount” and the new poetry book "Random Mushrooms Volumes I and II" and the new novel "Elizabeth County" in all major bookstore sites, http://www.amazon.com ; http://www.barnesandnobles.com ; download to e-books, and find it locally at www.mrzlc.com/bookstore. All references are from "Strongs Concordance".