Latest / A Chapter a Day Bible Reading / October 23 - Nehemiah 8

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October 23 - Nehemiah 8 · A Chapter a Day Bible Reading

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  Hello friends, it's Sean here. It's Wednesday.
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  It's the 23rd of October. And thank you for tapping on
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  play and saying come on, Sean, come in.
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  Let's read a chapter of God's Word together because something
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  went very wrong yesterday. Yes, yesterday's the ending of
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  the reading. I don't know whether many of you
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  heard the ending of thought. Hang on, there's been a
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  technical glitch. Something's gone terribly wrong.
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  Sean just cut out halfway through like an opening sentence
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  to a new paragraph. But that, in their wisdom, is
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  where the editors of this book chose to put the new chapter.
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  So I am just reading the word the way it comes to me.
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  And we made it through that long list of exiles who returned to
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  Jerusalem, which is in fact pretty much bang on identical
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  almost to the list that we went through in Ezra not long ago.
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  So we returned to the story where we left it with Ezra, and
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  now we read it from a slightly different angle, through a
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  different viewpoint, this time from the viewpoint of Nehemiah
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  as we see what goes on. And I am going to start with
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  that last half sentence of Chapter 7 before we begin
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  today's reading, just so that it all makes sense as we read it
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  together. You ready?
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  Let us hear what is going to happen to God's people once they
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  have rebuilt that wall, confirm that God's people had returned,
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  and then set themselves up to live as people of God.
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  So let's read together Nehemiah chapter 8.
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  In October, when the Israelites had settled in their towns, all
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  the people assembled with a unified purpose at the square
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  just inside the Watergate. They asked Ezra the scribe to
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  bring out the Book of the Law of Moses, which the Lord had given
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  for Israel to obey. So on October 8th, Ezra the
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  priest brought the Book of the Law before the assembly, which
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  included the men and women and all the children old enough to
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  understand. He faced the square just inside
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  the Watergate from early morning until noon and read aloud to
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  everyone who could understand. All the people listened closely
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  to the Book of the Law. Ezra the scribe stood on a high
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  wooden platform that had been made for the occasion.
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  To his right stood Matataya Shema, Anaya, Uriah, Hilkiah and
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  Marseille. To his left stood Padaya,
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  Michel, Malkajah, Hashem, Hashbadana, Zechariah and
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  Meshalam. Ezra stood on the platform in
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  full view of all the people. When they saw him open the book,
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  they all rose to their feet. Then Ezra praised the Lord, the
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  great God, and all the people chanted Amen, Amen as they
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  lifted their hands. Then they bowed down and
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  worshipped the Lord with their faces to the ground.
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  The Levites, Joshua, Barney, Sharabaya, Jaemin, Akab,
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  Shevataya, Hodaya, Marcia, Kalita, Azariah, Josebad, Hanan,
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  and Pelaya then instructed the people in the law while everyone
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  remained in their places. They read from the book of the
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  Law of God and clearly explained the meaning of what was being
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  read, helping the people understand each passage.
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  Then Nehemiah the governor, Ezra the priest and scribe, and the
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  Levites who were interpreting for the people said to them,
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  don't mourn or weep on such a day as this, for today is a
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  sacred day before the Lord your God.
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  For the people had all been weeping as they listened to the
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  words of the law. And Nehemiah continued, go and
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  celebrate with a feast of rich foods and sweet drinks, and
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  share gifts of food with people who have nothing prepared.
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  This is a sacred day before our Lord.
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  Don't be dejected and sad, for the joy of the Lord is your
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  strength. And the Levites, too, quieted
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  the people, telling them, harsh, don't weep, for this is a sacred
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  day. So the people went away to eat
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  and drink at a festive meal, to share gifts of food, and to
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  celebrate with great joy, because they had heard God's
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  words and understood them. On October nine, the family
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  leaders of all the people, together with the priests and
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  Levites, met with Ezra the scribe to go over the law in
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  greater detail. As they studied the law, they
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  discovered that the Lord had commanded through Moses that the
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  Israelites should live in shelters during the festival to
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  be held that month. He had said that a proclamation
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  should be made throughout their towns and in Jerusalem telling
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  the people to go to the hills to get branches from olive, wild
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  olive, Myrtle, palm, and other leafy trees.
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  They were to use these branches to make shelters in which they
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  would live during the festival, as prescribed in the lore.
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  So the people went out and cut branches and used them to build
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  shelters on the roofs of their houses, in the courtyards, in
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  the courtyards of God's temple, or in the square just inside the
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  Watergate and the Ephraim Gate. So everyone who had returned
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  from captivity lived in these shelters during the festival,
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  and they were all filled with great joy.
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  The Israelites had not celebrated like this since the
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  days of Joshua, son of Nun. Ezra read from the book of the
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  Law of God on each of the seven days of the festival.
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  Then on the 8th day, they held a solemn assembly, as was required
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  by law. Ah, Lord, thank you for your
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  word. Thank you that in it is this
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  truth and this clarity of your message to us.
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  And we hear the reaction of these people long ago when they
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  heard your word after not hearing it for so long.
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  Their response was to weep, for they knew that their people had
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  sinned and turned against you. But here we hear your words of
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  comfort given through Nehemiah and the Levites, telling them
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  not to weep, but to rejoice and to go away and to celebrate
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  together, making sure that they look after those who don't have
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  enough. Oh Lord, thank you for the
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  richness and clarity of your message for us.
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  But for more than that, when we hear your message for us, we can
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  be filled with joy to go and celebrate.
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  Celebrate all you have done for us, for your faithfulness for
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  us, and that as we celebrate, we always have an eye for those who
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  don't have what they need so that we can provide for them as
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  well. Thank you for all you've done
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  for us, for when we were lost to our sin and without the
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  provision to save us. You sent us your Son, and you
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  saved us, and you invited us to your party.
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  Our Lord, continue to shape us. Shape us with hearts of joy and
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  hearts of service. You're a wonderful God with
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  goodness beyond comprehension. And we praise you.
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  And we pray all of this in the loving name of Jesus, Amen.