Nehemiah 8:1-3, 13-18

God’s Word for Week of August 4

Call to Worship (Psalm 107, Luke 12)

O give thanks to the Lord, for God is good.God’s love and warm embrace last forever.

When we cry out in distress, the Lord hears our call.Praise the Lord who delivers us from sin and death.Christ calls us to clothe ourselves in righteousness.

Worship the One who wraps us with justice and helps us grow in the image of our Creator.

Love well, for your heart is where your treasure is.May our hearts be filled with God’s blessings, divine provisions that

meet our true needs.

Invocation

Loving and forgiving God, be present with us now, as we offer praise and thanksgiving for the abundance we have received

though your grace.You have gathered us in to be your people.

Like a loving parent, you have sustained our needs— sharing your love with us, satisfying our thirst, and filling our hunger

with good things.Help us, Lord, to heed your call, that we might find

deliverance through Christ Jesus, our Lord and Savior. AMEN

Context

The study reviews how God's people responded after learning about the Feast of Booths. The study's aim is to see how God

worked in the hearts of His people to prepare them for His new blessings.

The study's application is to realize that God works in similar ways to bring the blessing of revival to individuals and

communities of faith today.

Context

Nehemiah went to Jerusalem in 444 BC. Ezra had been there 13 years at the time of today’s text. Ezra served as a priest,

however, while Nehemiah came as the civil governor to rebuild the wall and restore Jerusalem as a fortified city.

The opening chapters of the book that bears his name tell how he came to be sent there, and how he proceeded to

rebuild the wall. Despite fierce opposition, Nehemiah led the people through this challenging time.

Context

In our text, Nehemiah encouraged the people to consider the day sacred and to eat, give to others in need, and rejoice in

the Lord, their source of strength.

The Festival of Tabernacles was one of three annual feasts that the ancient Israelites were to celebrate before the Lord (Exodus 23:14-17; also Deuteronomy 16:16). This festival has

different names, and it’s easy to get confused.

Context

At first it was called the “Festival of Ingathering.” Occurring in late September and early October, the name points to the final harvest of the season (Exodus 23:16b;

34:22b). Harvest was a cause for celebration, especially if the harvest was abundant.

Context

The designation “Festival of Tabernacles” came later (Leviticus 23:34; Deuteronomy 16:13-16; 31:10; John 7:2). The

“tabernacles” in view are also called “temporary shelters” (or “booths”); we may think of these as huts or lean-tos.

For seven days, the people were to dwell in these makeshift structures in a time of rejoicing (Leviticus 23:40;

Deuteronomy 16:14, 15) as the Israelites remembered God’s provisions during the wilderness wanderings of the exodus.

Context

Living in tents was the normal lifestyle of the Israelites during the wilderness wanderings. Thus the Festival of Tabernacles recreated that lifestyle for succeeding generations that had

not experienced it.

But some of Nehemiah’s audience in today’s text had themselves experienced something like that lifestyle during

their four-month trek from Babylon to Palestine—what some have called “a second exodus.”

Context

The events of the books of Ezra and Nehemiah occur during what is called the Persian period. This period dates from the

rise of Cyrus in 539 BC to the overthrow of the Persian Empire by Alexander the Great of Greece in the 330s BC.

The Bible records three distinct returns from Babylonian exile during this period. We date the return of the first group—the

one under Zerubbabel and Joshua (or Jeshua)—to 538 BC.

Context

The second return, under Ezra, is dated to 458 BC, some 80 years.

Our final four studies of the Rebuilding take us to the time of the third return, the one of 445 BC. Nehemiah led this return.

The Bible does not mention anyone other than Nehemiah himself in this group but others undoubtedly came with him.

Context

When the altar was completed in 536 B.C. the people then celebrated the Feast of Tabernacles (Ezra 3:4) but here the joy

and involvement was much greater. Ezra read the Law during the Feast of Tabernacles because Moses had indicated that this was to be done every seven

years (Deut. 31:10-13).

Nehemiah 8:1

All the people gathered together into the square before the Water Gate. They told the scribe Ezra to bring the book of the

Law of Moses, which the LORD had given to Israel.

Nehemiah 8:1

Ezra, who had set his heart to study, to obey, and to teach the Law of Moses, fulfilled his heart’s desire in a magnificent way when he had the opportunity to read and explained the law

of God to everyone in Jerusalem at a gathering of all the people.

The Bible in this passage and other passages affirms that the Lord was the One who had given the law to Israel and not

Moses by himself.

Nehemiah 8:2

Accordingly, the priest Ezra brought the law before the assembly, both men and women and all who could hear with

understanding. This was on the first day of the seventh month.

Nehemiah 8:2

Ezra read and interpreted the law of God based on decades of his study and obedience to the law of God.

The Holy Spirit used Ezra’s years of faithfulness and obedient study to help and inspire him to teach men, women, and

children with the ability to reason, understand, and learn how to apply the law of God in their family, community life, and

spiritual life

Nehemiah 8:3

He read from it facing the square before the Water Gate from early morning until midday, in the presence of the men and

the women and those who could understand; and the ears of all the people were attentive to the book of the law.

Nehemiah 8:3

The Bible emphasizes the importance of our human, God-given reason. God has said, “Let us reason together.” A biblical

faith involves understanding truths that can be taught and obeyed in this life.

The Bible does not encourage a blind faith; nor does the Bible teach that people should “just believe.” One reason God gave

us the Bible was to help us learn how to reason and understand God, our world, reality, other people, and

ourselves in ways that will bless and make truly happy God, others, and ourselves.

Nehemiah 8:13

On the second day the heads of ancestral houses of all the people, with the priests and the Levites, came together to the

scribe Ezra in order to study the words of the law.

Nehemiah 8:13

Everyone, from the highest political and religious leaders to men, women, and children of the general population were expected to study, understand, and obey the law of God.

The law of God was given by God for people to obey, and as with any true law there are consequences that follow from

obedience and there are consequences that follow from disobedience.

Nehemiah 8:14

And they found it written in the law, which the LORD had commanded by Moses, that the people of Israel should live in

booths during the festival of the seventh month

Nehemiah 8:14

It seems that even though this festival may have been celebrated in the past that the part about living in booths had

been forgotten. In the Law of Moses, the Lord commanded the people to live

in booths to remind them of their historical heritage. After God had freed them from slavery in Egypt, they had sinned

and rebelled against God; therefore, God punished them and they wandered in the wilderness until the rebellious

generation had died. During their wilderness wandering they had lived in booths made from the branches of nearby trees.

Nehemiah 8:15

and that they should publish and proclaim in all their towns and in Jerusalem as follows, "Go out to the hills and bring branches of olive, wild olive, myrtle, palm, and other leafy

trees to make booths, as it is written."

Nehemiah 8:15

The people who heard the law read and interpreted by Ezra began to obey the law of God as soon as they understood what the law meant; furthermore, their obedience helped them come to understand the law better and better. Then,

throughout all Judah and in all of the towns around Jerusalem, they began to teach others the law of God and

encouraged them to obey God very specifically. They learned to obey God as the law had been written rather than try to find ways to “legally” avoid obeying God’s law—as the scribes and Pharisees in Jesus’ day tried to do with some

of their rules and regulations.

Nehemiah 8:16

So the people went out and brought them, and made booths for themselves, each on the roofs of their houses, and in their

courts and in the courts of the house of God, and in the square at the Water Gate and in the square at the Gate of

Ephraim.

Nehemiah 8:16

The people did what the law of God taught as Ezra interpreted the law and commanded people to obey the law of God. They did not all go to Jerusalem, but wherever they

lived they obeyed God and did what a true celebration required of them.

Their flat roofs could hold booths and those with different housing built their booths in the public square. Those visiting

in Jerusalem built booths even in the temple courts.

Nehemiah 8:17

And all the assembly of those who had returned from the captivity made booths and lived in them; for from the days of

Jeshua son of Nun to that day the people of Israel had not done so. And there was very great rejoicing.

Nehemiah 8:17

Even though they had previously celebrated the feast, they had not fully obeyed God by building booths. God wants

complete obedience, not partial obedience. They experienced great joy when they fully obeyed God to the fullest of their understanding. They had been taught the law of God, had understood the law of God, had obeyed the law

of God, had taught others to obey the law of God, and consequently they rejoiced greatly in their hearts and with

others around them.

Nehemiah 8:18

And day by day, from the first day to the last day, he read from the book of the law of God. They kept the festival seven

days; and on the eighth day there was a solemn assembly, according to the ordinance.

Nehemiah 8:18

The people met day by day to learn more of the “book of the law of God,” and the time of Ezra marks the true beginning of

God’s people becoming “the people of the book” or “the people of the Bible.”

By the time of Jesus, the correct interpretation of the Hebrew Scriptures had become of vital importance and Jesus gave the

correct interpretation of the Scriptures – much as Ezra had done almost 500 years earlier – for Jesus’ teaching led the people to

true obedience to God. As with Ezra, the people knew that Jesus both obeyed and

taught the Law of God. Jesus was not a hypocrite, and He taught with the authority of one who obeyed God.

Conclusion

The people wept when they heard and understood God’s Word (8:9), because they realized how much they had sinned

against God. But the fact is, the more the light of God’s holy Word shines into our hearts, the more we will see areas where we do not

conform to His righteousness. Spiritual renewal always involves repentance.

Conclusion

Ezra and Nehemiah reminded the people to send portions from the part of the sacrifices that they could eat to those

who had nothing (8:10). God’s Word should produce compassion in our hearts for the

needy. His salvation is “to purify for Himself a people for His own

possession, zealous for good deeds” (Titus 2:14).

Conclusion

As the people camped in the temporary shelters, they reflected back on God’s faithful dealings with the nation, in

spite of their sins. And so they were filled with gratitude and love toward God for His gracious dealings with them.

The reading, study, and preaching of God’s Word should produce in all of us a heart of worship as we reflect on His

abundant mercies toward us.

Lessons

People of all classes and ranks should give careful attention to God's Word (Neh. 8:13)

Only God can reveal truth; man can only discover and disseminate it (Neh. 8:14; Deut. 29:29)

If the Word is not proclaimed, it cannot be received and obeyed (Neh. 8:15; Rom. 10:17)

Lessons

The best evidence that we believe God's Word is our full obedience to it (Neh. 8:16)

Obeying God always brings joy— if not now, then later (Neh. 8:17;Luke 6:20-23; Rev. 19:7)

Daily encounters with God's Word can both guide and guard us (Neh.8:18)

Benediction (Colossians 3; Matthew 12)

Gracious God, in our wanderings and selfish desires: we have forsaken fellowship with our families, our friends, and our neighbors; we have neglected our communion with you,

choosing worldly pleasures and desires over truth, justice, and righteousness.

In a world of plenty, we have hoarded our earthly blessings, rather than storing up our heavenly treasures.

Free us from such bondage, that we may truly reveal the presence of Christ in our lives. Amen.

Blessing (Colossians 3)

If we have been raised with Christ Jesus, let us set our minds on heavenly things, not on the things that are on earth.

The old self is gone.Let us revel in the Spirit that strips away the trappings of

death, and dresses us in garments that are new.As new creations in God, we are separated and divided no

longer.Christ is all and in all!