Nehemiah 8
New American Standard Bible
Ezra Reads the Law
8 And all the people gathered as one person at the public square which was in front of (A)the Water Gate, and they [a]asked (B)Ezra the scribe to bring (C)the Book of the Law of Moses which the Lord had [b]given to Israel. 2 Then (D)Ezra the priest brought the Law before the assembly of men, women, and all who could listen with understanding, on (E)the first day of the seventh month. 3 And he read from it before the public square which was in front of (F)the Water Gate, from [c]early morning until midday, in the presence of men and women, those who could understand; and [d]all the people were attentive to the Book of the Law. 4 Ezra the scribe stood at a wooden podium which they had made for the purpose. And beside him stood Mattithiah, Shema, Anaiah, Uriah, Hilkiah, and Maaseiah on his right; and Pedaiah, Mishael, Malchijah, Hashum, Hashbaddanah, Zechariah, and Meshullam on his left. 5 Then Ezra opened (G)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 (H)stood up. 6 Then Ezra blessed the Lord, the great God. And all the people answered, “(I)Amen, Amen!” with the raising of their hands; then (J)they kneeled down and worshiped the Lord with their faces to the ground. 7 Also Jeshua, Bani, Sherebiah, Jamin, Akkub, Shabbethai, Hodiah, Maaseiah, Kelita, Azariah, Jozabad, Hanan, Pelaiah, and the Levites explained the Law to the people while the people remained in their place. 8 They read from the book, from the Law of God, [e]translating to give the sense so that they understood the reading.
This Day Is Holy
9 Then Nehemiah, who was the [f](K)governor, and Ezra (L)the priest and scribe, and the Levites who taught the people said to all the people, “(M)This day is holy to the Lord your God; (N)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 (O)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 [g]refuge.” 11 So the Levites silenced all the people, saying, “Be still, for the day is holy; do not be grieved.” 12 Then all the people went away to eat, drink, (P)to send portions, and to [h]celebrate a great feast, (Q)because they understood the words which had been made known to them.
Feast of Booths Restored
13 Then on the second day the heads of fathers’ households of all the people, the priests, and the Levites were gathered to Ezra the scribe so that they might gain insight into the words of the Law. 14 And they found written in the Law how the Lord had commanded through Moses that the sons of Israel (R)were to live in [i]booths during the feast of the seventh month. 15 (S)And that they were to proclaim and circulate a proclamation in all their cities and (T)in Jerusalem, saying, “(U)Go out to the hills, and bring olive branches and [j]wild olive branches, myrtle branches, palm branches, and branches of other trees with thick branches, to make booths, as it is written.” 16 So the people went out and brought them and made booths for themselves, each (V)on his roof, and in their courtyards and in the courtyards of the house of God, and in the public square at (W)the Water Gate, and in the square at (X)the Gate of Ephraim. 17 The entire assembly of those who had returned from the captivity made booths and lived in the booths. Indeed, the sons of Israel (Y)had not done so since the days of Joshua the son of Nun to that day. And (Z)there was very great rejoicing. 18 (AA)He read from the Book of the Law of God daily, from the first day to the last day. And they (AB)celebrated the feast seven days, and on (AC)the eighth day there was a festive assembly in accordance with the ordinance.
Footnotes
- Nehemiah 8:1 Lit said to
- Nehemiah 8:1 Lit commanded
- Nehemiah 8:3 Lit the light
- Nehemiah 8:3 Lit the ears of all...were to
- Nehemiah 8:8 Or explaining
- Nehemiah 8:9 Heb Tirshatha, a Persian title
- Nehemiah 8:10 Or stronghold
- Nehemiah 8:12 Lit make a great rejoicing
- Nehemiah 8:14 I.e., huts, also called tabernacles
- Nehemiah 8:15 Lit oil tree, species unknown
Nehemiah 8
New Revised Standard Version Updated Edition
8 1
9 And Nehemiah, who was the governor, and Ezra the priest and scribe, and the Levites who taught the people said to all the people, “This day is holy to the Lord your God; do not mourn or weep.” For all the people wept when they heard the words of the law.(E) 10 Then he said to them, “Go your way, eat the fat and drink sweet wine and send portions of them to those for whom nothing is prepared, for this day is holy to our Lord, and do not be grieved, for the joy of the Lord is your strength.”(F) 11 So the Levites stilled all the people, saying, “Be quiet, for this day is holy; do not be grieved.” 12 And all the people went their way to eat and drink and to send portions and to make great rejoicing, because they had understood the words that were declared to them.(G)
The Festival of Booths Celebrated
13 On the second day the heads of ancestral houses of all the people, with the priests and the Levites, came together to Ezra the scribe in order to study the words of the law. 14 And they found it written in the law that the Lord had commanded by Moses that the Israelites should live in booths[a] during the festival of the seventh month(H) 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,[b] as it is written.”(I) 16 So the people went out and brought them and made booths[c] 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.(J) 17 And all the assembly of those who had returned from the captivity made booths[d] and lived in them, for from the days of Jeshua son of Nun to that day the Israelites had not done so. And there was very great rejoicing.(K) 18 And day by day, from the first day to the last day, Ezra[e] 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.(L)
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New Revised Standard Version, Updated Edition. Copyright © 2021 National Council of Churches of Christ in the United States of America. Used by permission. All rights reserved worldwide.