Chapter 8: The Forgotten Law

All the people gathered as one in the square before the Water Gate and did something no one had commanded them to do. They told Ezra the scribe to bring out the Book of the Law of Moses. Ezra stood on a high wooden platform built for the occasion, with thirteen men beside him. When he opened the Book, all the people stood.

He read from daybreak until noon. The Levites moved through the crowd explaining the meaning, making it clear, so that everyone could understand what was being read. Many of them were hearing these words for the first time in their lives.

And the people began to weep. The commands, the blessings, the warnings, the promises. They realized how far they had drifted from the God who had carried them through the wilderness, through the exile, and back to this very city.

NEHEMIAH“Go and enjoy choice food and sweet drinks, and send some to those who have nothing prepared. This day is holy to our Lord. Do not grieve, for the joy of the Lord is your strength.”— Nehemiah 8:10

The next day, the leaders discovered something in the Law that had been forgotten for centuries. God had commanded Israel to live in temporary shelters during the feast of the seventh month. They built booths on their rooftops, in their courtyards, and in the public squares. Scripture records that since the days of Joshua son of Nun, the Israelites had not celebrated it like this.

And there was very great joy.