Sidebar Widget only works when using a semicolor at end?

I’m new to using Widgitized sidebars, and I’ve been trying to place in my first.

When using the code suggested to place the sidebar into my theme I keep getting a Parse Error saying
Parse error: syntax error, unexpected $end And it keeps referencing the closing html tag (or whatever is at the end of my document).

I found how to fix this by changing the colon at the end of my php code for the widget to a semi-colon.
Before:
`<?php if(!function_exists(‘dynamic_sidebar’) || !dynamic_sidebar()) : ?>
After
<?php if(!function_exists('dynamic_sidebar') || !dynamic_sidebar()); ?>

BUT! now my theme will show the widgets at the top and my hard-coded content below that…. Not good. Can anybody help me out? I have been searching Google and the support forums for hours now and nothing similar to what I’m getting…

Thanks!