² Then ^(A)Ezra the priest brought the Law before the assembly of men, women, and all who could listen with understanding, on ^(B)the first day of the seventh month. ³ And he read from it before the public square which was in front of ^(C)the Water Gate, from ^[a]early morning until midday, in the presence of men and women, those who could understand; and ^[b]all the people were attentive to the Book of the Law.

⁵ Then Ezra opened ^(A)the book in the sight of all the people, for he was standing above all the people; and when he opened it, all the people ^(B)stood up. ⁶ Then Ezra blessed the Lord, the great God. And all the people answered, “^(C)Amen, Amen!” with the raising of their hands; then ^(D)they kneeled down and worshiped the Lord with their faces to the ground.

⁸ They read from the book, from the Law of God, ^[a]translating to give the sense so that they understood the reading.

This Day Is Holy

⁹ Then Nehemiah, who was the ^[b](A)governor, and Ezra ^(B)the priest and scribe, and the Levites who taught the people said to all the people, “^(C)This day is holy to the Lord your God; ^(D)do not mourn or weep.” For all the people were weeping when they heard the words of the Law. ¹⁰ Then he said to them, “Go, eat the festival foods, drink the sweet drinks, and ^(E)send portions to him who has nothing prepared; for this day is holy to our Lord. Do not be grieved, for the joy of the Lord is your ^[c]refuge.”

Jesus’ Public Ministry

¹⁴ And ^(A)Jesus returned to Galilee in the power of the Spirit, and ^(B)news about Him spread through all the surrounding region. ¹⁵ And He began ^(C)teaching in their synagogues and was praised by all.

¹⁶ And He came to ^(D)Nazareth, where He had been brought up; and as was His custom, ^(E)He entered the synagogue on the Sabbath, and ^(F)stood up to read. ¹⁷ And the scroll of Isaiah the prophet was handed to Him. And He unrolled the scroll and found the place where it was written:

²⁰ And He ^(I)rolled up the scroll, gave it back to the attendant, and ^(J)sat down; and the eyes of all the people in the synagogue were intently directed at Him. ²¹ Now He began to say to them, “Today this Scripture has been fulfilled in your ^[a]hearing.”