Nehemiah 8–9

8TH CHAPTER

The Public Reading of Moses’ Teachings

¹⸤When the seventh month came,⸥ all the people gathered together in the courtyard in front of Water Gate. They told Ezra the scribe to bring the Book of Moses’ Teachings, which the Lord had commanded Israel ⸤to follow⸥. ²Then Ezra the priest brought the Teachings in front of the assembly. This included men, women, and any ⸤children⸥ who could understand what they heard. This took place on the first day of the seventh month. ³From daybreak until noon, he read from it in the courtyard in front of Water Gate to the men, women, and ⸤children⸥ who could understand it. All the people listened to the Book of Moses’ Teachings. 

⁴Ezra the scribe stood on a raised wooden platform made for this occasion. Mattithiah, Shema, Anaiah, Uriah, Hilkiah, and Maaseiah stood beside him on his right. Pedaiah, Mishael, Malchiah, Hashum, Hashbaddanah, Zechariah, and Meshullam stood beside him on his left. ⁵Ezra, standing higher than all the other people, opened the book in front of all the people. As he opened it, all the people stood up. ⁶Ezra thanked the Lord, the great God. All the people responded, “Amen! Amen!” as they raised their hands and then bowed with their faces to the ground and worshiped the Lord. ⁷The Levites—Jeshua, Bani, Sherebiah, Jamin, Akkub, Shabbethai, Hodiah, Maaseiah, Kelita, Azariah, Jozabad, Hanan, and Pelaiah—explained the Teachings to the people while they were standing there. ⁸They read the Book of God’s Teachings clearly and explained the meaning so that the people could understand what was read. 

⁹Then Nehemiah the governor, Ezra the priest and scribe, and the Levites who taught the people told them, “This is a holy day for the Lord your God. Don’t mourn or cry.” All the people were crying as they listened to the reading of God’s Teachings. ¹⁰Then he told them, “Go, eat rich foods, drink sweet drinks, and send portions to those who cannot provide for themselves. Today is a holy day for the Lord. Don’t be sad because the joy you have in the Lord is your strength.” ¹¹So the Levites calmed all the people by saying, “Listen. Today is a holy day. Don’t be sad.” 

¹²Then all the people went to eat and drink and to send portions. They had a big, joyful celebration because they understood the words that had been explained to them. 

The Festival of Booths Is Observed

¹³On the second day the leaders of the families of all the people, including the priests and the Levites, met with Ezra the scribe to study the words of God’s Teachings. ¹⁴They found written in the Teachings that the Lord had given an order through Moses that the people of Israel should live in booths during a festival in the seventh month. ¹⁵They should announce this command and send this message throughout all their cities and Jerusalem: “Go to the mountains, and get branches—olive and wild olive, myrtle, palm, and other thick-leaved branches—to make booths as it is written.” 

¹⁶So the people went to get branches to make booths for themselves. Some made booths on their roofs, others in their courtyards, in the courtyards of God’s temple, in the open area by Water Gate, or in the open area at Ephraim Gate. 

¹⁷The whole assembly that had come back from exile made booths and lived in them. From the time of Jeshua (son of Nun) to that day, the people of Israel had not done this. There was a big, joyful celebration. ¹⁸Day by day, from the first day of the festival to the last day, Ezra continued to read from the Book of God’s Teachings. The people celebrated the festival for seven days, and on the eighth day, they had a closing festival assembly in accordance with the regulations. 

9TH CHAPTER

A Day of Fasting and Confession

¹When the Israelites assembled on the twenty-fourth day of this month, they fasted, wore sackcloth, and threw dirt on their heads. ²Those who were descendants of Israel separated themselves from all foreigners. They stood and confessed their sins as well as the wicked things their ancestors had done. ³They stood in their places, and for one-fourth of the day, ⸤they listened as⸥ the Book of the Teachings of the Lord their God was read, and for another fourth ⸤of the day⸥, they confessed their sins and worshiped the Lord their God. 

A Day of Prayer

⁴Then Jeshua, Bani, Kadmiel, Shebaniah, Bunni, Sherebiah, Bani, and Chanani stood on the stairs built for the Levites and cried loudly to the Lord their God. ⁵Then the Levites—Jeshua, Kadmiel, Bani, Hashabneiah, Sherebiah, Hodiah, Shebaniah, and Pethahiah—said, “Stand up, and thank the Lord your God: 

CREATION

From everlasting to everlasting your glorious name is praised 

and lifted high above all blessing and praise. 

⁶You alone are the Lord. 

You made heaven, the highest heaven, with all its armies. 

You made the earth and everything on it, the seas and everything in them. 

You give life to them all, and the armies of heaven worship you. 

ABRAHAM

⁷You are the Lord, the God who chose Abram 

and took him from Ur of the Chaldeans and gave him the name Abraham. 

⁸You found that his heart was faithful to you. 

You made a promise^ato him to give the land of the Canaanites, Hittites, 

Amorites, Perizzites, Jebusites, and Girgashites to his descendants. 

You kept your promise because you are fair. 

THE EXODUS

⁹You saw how our ancestors suffered in Egypt, 

and you heard them crying at the Red Sea. 

¹⁰You performed miraculous signs and did amazing things to Pharaoh 

and all his servants and all the people in his land 

because you knew how arrogantly they were treating our ancestors. 

You made a name for yourself, a name which remains to this day. 

¹¹You divided the sea in front of them 

so that they could walk through the sea on dry ground. 

You threw into deep water those who pursued your people 

as someone throws a stone into raging water. 

WANDERING IN THE WILDERNESS

¹²You led them during the day by a column of smoke 

and during the night by a column of fire to give them light 

to see the way they should go. 

¹³You came from heaven to Mount Sinai and spoke with them from heaven. 

You gave them fair rules, trustworthy teachings, 

and good laws and commandments. 

¹⁴You taught them about your holy day of rest. 

You gave them commandments, laws, and teachings 

through your servant Moses. 

¹⁵You gave them bread from heaven to satisfy their hunger 

and made water flow from a rock to quench their thirst. 

You told them to take possession of the land 

that you swore you would give them. 

¹⁶But they—our own ancestors—acted arrogantly. 

They became stubborn and wouldn’t obey your commands. 

¹⁷They refused to listen. 

They forgot the miracles you performed for them. 

They became stubborn and appointed a leader 

to take them back to slavery ⸤in Egypt⸥. 

But you are a forgiving God, 

one who is compassionate, merciful, patient, 

and always ready to forgive. 

You never abandoned them, 

¹⁸even when they made a metal statue of a calf for themselves 

and said, ‘This is your god who took you out of Egypt.’ 

They committed outrageous sins. 

¹⁹But because of your endless compassion, 

you didn’t abandon them in the desert. 

The column of smoke didn’t leave them during the day, 

but it led them on their way. 

The column of fire didn’t leave them during the night, 

but it gave them light to see the way they should go. 

²⁰You gave them your good Spirit to teach them. 

You didn’t keep your manna to yourself. 

You gave them water to quench their thirst. 

²¹You provided for them in the desert for 40 years, 

and they had everything they needed. 

Their clothes didn’t wear out, and their feet didn’t swell. 

CONQUEST OF CANAAN

²²You gave kingdoms and nations to the Israelites 

and assigned them their boundaries. 

So they took possession of the land of Sihon, 

the land of the king of Heshbon, 

and the land of King Og of Bashan. 

²³You made their children as numerous as the stars in the sky. 

You brought them into the land you told their parents to enter and possess. 

²⁴Their children took possession of the land. 

You defeated for them the Canaanites, who lived in the land. 

You handed the Canaanite kings and their people over to them 

to do whatever they wanted with the Canaanites. 

²⁵The Israelites captured fortified cities and a rich land. 

They took possession of houses filled with all sorts of good things, 

cisterns, vineyards, olive trees, 

and plenty of fruit trees. 

So they ate and were satisfied and grew fat. 

They enjoyed the vast supply of good things you gave them. 

ISRAEL’S REBELLION

²⁶But they were defiant and rebelled against you. 

They threw your teachings over their shoulders 

and killed your prophets who warned them to turn back to you. 

They committed outrageous sins. 

²⁷You handed them over to their enemies, who made them suffer. 

When they began to suffer, they cried to you. 

You heard them from heaven. 

You gave them saviors to rescue them from their enemies 

because of your endless compassion. 

²⁸As soon as they felt some relief, 

they were again doing what you considered evil. 

You abandoned them to their enemies, who conquered them. 

They cried to you again, and you heard them from heaven. 

You rescued them many times because of your compassion. 

²⁹You warned them in order to bring them back to your teachings, 

but they became arrogant and would not obey your commandments. 

They sinned by not following your regulations. 

If anyone follows them, he will find life in them. 

But they gave you the cold shoulder, 

became impossible to deal with, and wouldn’t listen. 

³⁰You were patient with them for many years. 

You warned them by your Spirit through your prophets. 

However, they wouldn’t listen. 

So you handed them over to the people in the surrounding nations. 

³¹But your compassion is endless. 

You didn’t destroy them or abandon them. 

You are a merciful and compassionate God. 

THE PRESENT

³²And now, our God, you are the great, mighty, and awe-inspiring God. 

You faithfully keep your promises. 

Do not consider all the hardships 

that we have been going through as unimportant. 

The hardships have come to our kings, leaders, priests,…