Lectionary Calendar
Wednesday, June 18th, 2025
the Week of Proper 6 / Ordinary 11
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Read the Bible

Wycliffe Bible

Nehemiah 5:2

And there weren that seiden, Oure sones and oure douytris ben ful manye; take we wheete for the prijs of hem, and ete we, and lyue.

Bible Study Resources

Concordances:

- Nave's Topical Bible - Borrowing;   Country;   Covetousness;   Creditor;   Interest;   Lending;   Poor;   Repentance;   Rich, the;   Usury;   Thompson Chain Reference - Nehemiah;  

Dictionaries:

- American Tract Society Bible Dictionary - Restitution;   Servant;   Bridgeway Bible Dictionary - Lending;   Malachi;   Baker Evangelical Dictionary of Biblical Theology - Family Life and Relations;   Violence;   Wealth;   Easton Bible Dictionary - Jubilee;   Holman Bible Dictionary - Banking;   Borrow;   Malachi;   Merchant;   Nehemiah;   Hastings' Dictionary of the Bible - Debt;   Nehemiah;   Poverty;  

Encyclopedias:

- Condensed Biblical Cyclopedia - Babylonish Captivity, the;   International Standard Bible Encyclopedia - Get;   Malachi;   Poverty;   Salvation;   Take;   Tax;  

Parallel Translations

Christian Standard Bible®
Some were saying, “We, our sons, and our daughters are numerous. Let us get grain so that we can eat and live.”
Hebrew Names Version
For there were that said, We, our sons and our daughters, are many: let us get grain, that we may eat and live.
King James Version
For there were that said, We, our sons, and our daughters, are many: therefore we take up corn for them, that we may eat, and live.
English Standard Version
For there were those who said, "With our sons and our daughters, we are many. So let us get grain, that we may eat and keep alive."
New Century Version
Some of them were saying, "We have many sons and daughters in our families. To eat and stay alive, we need grain."
New English Translation
There were those who said, "With our sons and daughters, we are many. We must obtain grain in order to eat and stay alive."
Amplified Bible
For there were some who were saying, "We, along with our sons and our daughters, are many; therefore allow us to get grain, so that we may eat and survive."
New American Standard Bible
For there were those who said, "We, our sons, and our daughters are many; therefore let's get grain so that we may eat and live."
World English Bible
For there were that said, We, our sons and our daughters, are many: let us get grain, that we may eat and live.
Geneva Bible (1587)
For there were that said, We, our sonnes & our daughters are many, therefore we take vp corne, that we may eate and liue.
Legacy Standard Bible
Now there were those who were saying, "We, with our sons and our daughters, are many; therefore let us get grain that we may eat and live."
Berean Standard Bible
Some were saying, "We and our sons and daughters are numerous. We must get grain in order to eat and stay alive."
Contemporary English Version
and said, "We have large families, and it takes a lot of grain merely to keep them alive."
Complete Jewish Bible
Some of them said, "Counting our sons and daughters, there are a lot of us! Allow us to get grain for them, so that we can eat and stay alive."
Darby Translation
And there were that said, We, our sons and our daughters, are many, and we must procure corn that we may eat and live.
Easy-to-Read Version
Some of them were saying, "We have many children. We must get some grain if we are going to eat and stay alive."
George Lamsa Translation
For there were those who said, Our sons and our daughters and our brothers are many; therefore let us purchase grain that we may eat and live.
Good News Translation
Some said, "We have large families, we need grain to keep us alive."
Lexham English Bible
There were those who were saying, "Our sons and daughters, we are many. We must get grain so that we may eat and live."
Literal Translation
For some were saying, With our sons and our daughters, we are many. Let us take up grain for them, so that we may eat and live.
Miles Coverdale Bible (1535)
And there were some yt sayde: oure sonnes and doughters are to many, let vs take corne for the, & eate, that we maye lyue.
American Standard Version
For there were that said, We, our sons and our daughters, are many: let us get grain, that we may eat and live.
Bible in Basic English
For there were some who said, We, our sons and our daughters, are a great number: let us get grain, so that we may have food for our needs.
Bishop's Bible (1568)
For there were some that saide, Our sonnes and daughters and we are very many: therefore wyll we take corne for them, that we may eate and liue.
JPS Old Testament (1917)
For there were that said: 'We, our sons and our daughters, are many; let us get for them corn, that we may eat and live.'
King James Version (1611)
For there were that said, We, our sonnes, and our daughters are many: therefore wee take vp corne for them, that we may eat, and liue.
Brenton's Septuagint (LXX)
And some said, We are numerous with our sons and our daughters; so we will take corn, and eat, and live.
English Revised Version
For there were that said, We, our sons and our daughters, are many: let us get corn, that we may eat and live.
Update Bible Version
For there were some that said, We, our sons and our daughters, are many: let us get grain, that we may eat and live.
Webster's Bible Translation
For there were that said, We, our sons, and our daughters, [are] many: therefore we take up corn [for them], that we may eat, and live.
New King James Version
For there were those who said, "We, our sons, and our daughters are many; therefore let us get grain, that we may eat and live."
New Living Translation
They were saying, "We have such large families. We need more food to survive."
New Life Bible
For some said, "We, our sons and our daughters are many. Let us get grain, that we may eat and live."
New Revised Standard
For there were those who said, "With our sons and our daughters, we are many; we must get grain, so that we may eat and stay alive."
J.B. Rotherham Emphasized Bible
And there were some who were saying, Our sons and our daughters, are we pledging, - that we may obtain corn, and eat, and keep ourselves alive.
Douay-Rheims Bible
And there were some that said: Our sons and our daughters are very many: let us take up corn for the price of them, and let us eat and live.
Revised Standard Version
For there were those who said, "With our sons and our daughters, we are many; let us get grain, that we may eat and keep alive."
Young's Literal Translation
yea, there are who are saying, `Our sons, and our daughters, we -- are many, and we receive corn, and eat, and live.'
New American Standard Bible (1995)
For there were those who said, "We, our sons and our daughters are many; therefore let us get grain that we may eat and live."

Contextual Overview

1 And greet cry of the puple and of her wyues was maad ayens her britheren Jewis. 2 And there weren that seiden, Oure sones and oure douytris ben ful manye; take we wheete for the prijs of hem, and ete we, and lyue. 3 And there weren that seiden, Sette we forth oure feeldis, and vyneris, and oure howsis, and take we wheete in hungur. 4 And othere men seiden, Take we money bi borewyng in to the tributis of the kyng, and yyue oure feeldis and vyneris. 5 And now as the fleischis of oure britheren ben, so and oure fleischis ben; and as ben the sones of hem, so and oure sones ben; lo! we han maad suget oure sones and oure douytris in to seruage, and seruauntissis ben of oure douytris, and we han not wherof thei moun be ayenbouyt; and othere men han in possessioun oure feeldis, and oure vyneris.

Bible Verse Review
  from Treasury of Scripure Knowledge

our sons: Psalms 127:3-5, Psalms 128:2-4, Malachi 2:2

we take up corn: Genesis 41:57, Genesis 42:2, Genesis 43:8

Reciprocal: Genesis 47:19 - buy us Exodus 22:25 - General Deuteronomy 28:32 - sons 2 Kings 4:1 - the creditor Job 29:12 - I delivered Psalms 15:5 - putteth

Cross-References

Genesis 1:27
And God made of nouyt a man to his ymage and liknesse; God made of nouyt a man, to the ymage of God; God made of nouyt hem, male and female.
Genesis 2:15
Therfor the Lord God took man, and settide hym in paradis of likyng, that he schulde worche and kepe it.
Genesis 2:23
And Adam seide, This is now a boon of my boonys, and fleisch of my fleisch; this schal be clepid virago, `for she is takun of man.
Malachi 2:15
Whether oon made not, and residue of spirit is his? and what sekith oon, no but the seed of God? Therfore kepe ye youre spirit, and nyle thou dispise the wijf of thi yongthe;
Matthew 19:4
Which answeride, and seide to hem, Han ye not red, for he that made men at the bigynnyng, made hem male and female?
Mark 10:6
But fro the bigynnyng of creature God made hem male and female;
Acts 17:26
and made of oon al the kinde of men to enhabite on al the face of the erthe, determynynge tymes ordeyned, and termes of the dwellynge of hem,

Gill's Notes on the Bible

For there were that said, we, our sons, and our daughters, are many,.... Not that they complained of the number of their children, for a numerous offspring was always reckoned a blessing with the Jews; but this they observed to show that their families, being large, required a considerable quantity of food to support them:

therefore we take up corn for them, that we may eat and live; that is, they were obliged to take it at an exorbitant price, which is the thing complained of; or otherwise they must starve, the rich taking the advantage of their poverty and present dearth.

Barnes' Notes on the Bible

Are many - A slight emendation brings this verse into exact parallelism with the next, and gives the sense - “We have pledged our sons and our daughters, that we might get corn, and eat and live.” Compare Nehemiah 5:5.

Clarke's Notes on the Bible

Verse Nehemiah 5:2. We, our sons, and our daughters, are many — Our families are larger than we can provide for; we are obliged to go in debt; and our richer brethren take advantage of our necessitous situation, and oppress us. The details which are given in the next verse are sufficiently plain.


 
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