Nehemiah 8 - Summary

On the first day of the seventh month, all the people gathered as one in the square before the Water Gate, and Ezra the scribe brought the law of Moses before the assembly of men, women, and all who could understand, reading from early morning until midday from a wooden platform while the people stood attentively. When Ezra opened the book, the people stood, and when he blessed the Lord, they responded 'Amen, Amen,' lifting their hands, then bowing down and worshiping with faces to the ground; the Levites helped the people understand the law, translating and giving the sense so they understood the reading. The people wept when they heard the law's words, but Nehemiah, Ezra, and the Levites told them not to mourn because this day was holy, instructing them to eat rich food, drink sweet wine, and send portions to those who had nothing, for the joy of the Lord was their strength; the next day the leaders discovered the commandment to dwell in booths during the seventh month, so they proclaimed and observed the Feast of Tabernacles with branches making booths on roofs and in courts, with such rejoicing as had not occurred since Joshua's days, reading from the law daily throughout the seven days.