Nehemiah8
English Standard Version
1And the as into the the . And they the to the of the of the Lord had .
2So the the the , and who what they , on the of the .
3And he from it the the , in the of the and the and those who . And the of the were attentive to the of the .
4And the a they had for the . And him , , , , , and on his , and , , , , , , and on his left .
5And the in the of the , he was the , and as he it the .
6And the Lord, the , and the , , , their . And they their heads and the Lord with their to the .
7Also , , , , , , , , , , , , , the , the to the , while the their .
8They from the , from the of , , and they the , so that the people the .
9And , who was the , and the and , and the who the to the , This is to the Lord your ; do or . the as they the of the .
10Then he to them, your way. the and and to anyone who has , this is to our . And do be , the of the Lord is your .
11So the the , , Be , this is ; do be .
12And the their way to and and to and to , they had the were to them.
13On the the of ’ houses of the , with the and the , came to the in order to the of the .
14And they it in the the Lord had the of should in during the of the ,
15and they should it and in their and in , Go to the and of , , , , and other to , as it is .
16So the and them and for themselves, his , and in their and in the of the of , and in the at the and in the at the of .
17And the of those who had from the and in the , the of the of that the of had . And there was .
18And by , the the , he from the of the of . They the , and on the there was a , according to the .
Study Guide
Public-domain commentary and original-language notes for Nehemiah 8.
Chapter Summary
In this chapter: The reading and expounding the law. (1–8). The people called upon to be joyful. (9–12). The feast of tabernacles, The joy of the people. (13–18).
vv1-8
Sacrifices were to be offered only at the door of the temple; but praying and preaching were, and are, services of religion, as acceptably performed in one place as in another. Masters of families should bring their families with them to the public worship of God. Women and children have souls to save, and are therefore to acquaint themselves with the word of God, and to attend on the means of grace. Little ones, as they come to reason, must be trained up in religion. Ministers when they go to the pulpit, should take their Bibles with them; Ezra did so. Thence they must fetch their knowledge; according to that rule they must speak, and must show that they do so. Reading the Scriptures in religious assemblies is an ordinance of God, whereby he is honoured, and his church edified. Those who hear the word, should understand it, else it is to them but an empty sound of words. It is therefore required of teachers that they explain the word, and give the sense of it. Reading is good, and preaching is good, but expounding makes reading the better understood, and preaching the more convincing. It has pleased God in almost every age of the church to raise up, not only those who have preached the gospel, but also those who have given their views of Divine truth in writing; and though many who have attempted to explain Scripture, have darkened counsel by words without knowledge, yet the labours of others are of excellent use. All that we hear must, however, be brought to the test of Scripture. They heard readily, and minded every word. The word of God demands attention. If through carelessness we let much slip in hearing, there is danger that through forgetfulness we shall let all slip after hearing.
vv9-12
It was a good sign that their hearts were tender, when they heard the words of the law. The people were to send portions to those for whom nothing was prepared. It is the duty of a religious feast, as well as of a religious fast, to draw out the soul to the hungry; God's bounty should make us bountiful. We must not only give to those that offer themselves, but send to those out of sight. Their strength consisted in joy in the Lord. The better we understand God's word, the more comfort we find in it; the darkness of trouble arises from the darkness of ignorance.
vv13-18
They found written in the law about the feast of tabernacles. Those who diligently search the Scriptures, find things written there which they have forgotten. This feast of tabernacles was a representation of the believer's tabernacle state in this world, and a type of the holy joy of the gospel church. The conversion of the nations to the faith of Christ, is foretold under the figure of this feast, Zec 14:16. True religion will render us strangers and pilgrims upon earth. We read and hear the word acceptably and profitably, when we do according to what is written therein; when what appears to be our duty is revived, after it has been neglected. They minded the substance; else the ceremony had been of no use. They did it, rejoicing in God and his goodness. These are the means which the Spirit of God crowns with success, in bringing the hearts of sinners to tremble and to become humbled before God. But those are enemies to their own growth in holiness, who always indulge sorrow, even for sin, and put away from them the consolations tendered by the word and Spirit of God.
Key Words
כֹּל: properly, the whole; hence, all, any or every (in the singular only, but often in a plural sense)
עַם: a people (as a congregated unit); specifically, a tribe (as those of Israel); hence (collectively) troops or attendants; figuratively, a flock
אָסַף: to gather for any purpose; hence, to receive, take away, i.e. remove (destroy, leave behind, put up, restore, etc.)
אֶחָד: properly, united, i.e. one; or (as an ordinal) first
אִישׁ: a man as an individual or a male person; often used as an adjunct to a more definite term (and in such cases frequently not expressed in translation)
רְחֹב: a width, i.e. (concretely) avenue or area
פָּנִים: the face (as the part that turns); used in a great variety of applications (literally and figuratively); also (with prepositional prefix) as a preposition (before, etc.)
מַיִם: water; figuratively, juice; by euphemism, urine, semen
שַׁעַר: an opening, i.e. door or gate
אָמַר: to say (used with great latitude)
Cross References
Nehemiah 8Explicit Mosaic law for gathering branches and dwelling in booths during the Feast of Tabernacles.
Supported by Matthew Henry, JFB
Prescribes the holy convocation and blowing of trumpets on the first day of the seventh month.
Supported by Matthew Poole, JFB
Parallels the practice of sending portions to the needy during times of holy feasting and joy.
Supported by Matthew Poole, JFB
Commandments concerning the Feast of Tabernacles and rejoicing with the whole community.
Supported by Matthew Henry, Matthew Poole, JFB
Ehud's message from God prompts Eglon to rise up in reverence, mirroring Israel standing for the Law.
Supported by Matthew Poole
Affirms the priest's messenger role to preserve knowledge and cause the people to understand the Law.
Supported by Matthew Poole
Records the previous, less comprehensive celebration of Tabernacles immediately after returning from exile.
Supported by JFB
Requires the public reading of the Law at the Feast of Tabernacles every seventh year.
Supported by JFB
Locates the assembly street near the Water Gate, where the Nethinims dwelt.
Supported by Matthew Poole, JFB
Prophetic integration of the Feast of Tabernacles representing the future conversion of all nations.
Supported by Matthew Henry
The law concerning battlements on flat roofs, where the people constructed their temporary booths.
Supported by Matthew Poole
Prescribes the solemn assembly on the eighth day of the Feast of Tabernacles.
Supported by JFB
Parallels the great joy and extended praise seen in Hezekiah's historic Passover revival.
Supported by JFB
Jesus cries out on the last, great day of this same Feast of Tabernacles.
Supported by JFB