Nehemiah 8:13-18

Nehemiah 8:13-18

[13] And on the second  day  were gathered together  the chief  of the fathers  of all the people,  the priests,  and the Levites,  unto Ezra  the scribe,  even to understand  the words  of the law.  [14] And they found  written  in the law  which the LORD  had commanded  by  Moses,  that the children  of Israel  should dwell  in booths  in the feast  of the seventh  month:  [15] And that they should publish  and proclaim  in all their cities,  and in Jerusalem,  saying,  Go forth  unto the mount,  and fetch  olive  branches,  and pine  branches,  and myrtle  branches,  and palm  branches,  of thick  trees,  to make  booths,  as it is written.  [16] So the people  went forth,  and brought  them, and made  themselves booths,  every one  upon the roof of his house,  and in their courts,  of the house  of God,  and in the street  of the water  gate,  and in the street  of the gate  of Ephraim.  [17] And all the congregation  of them that were come again  out of the captivity  made  booths,  and sat  under the booths:  for since the days  of Jeshua  the son  of Nun  unto that day  had not the children  of Israel  done so.  And there was very  great  gladness.  [18] Also day  from the first  day  unto the last  day,  he read  in the book  of the law  of God.  And they kept  the feast  seven  days;  and on the eighth  day  was a solemn assembly,  according unto the manner. 

What does Nehemiah 8:13-18 Mean?

Contextual Meaning

Note that the spiritually revived people had an insatiable appetite to learn more about God"s Word. This is a normal outcome of true revival.
Perhaps part of what Ezra and his associates read to the people, or at least to the leaders, included Leviticus 23 ( Nehemiah 8:13). In Leviticus 23 , God called on the Jews to observe the Feast of Tabernacles (Booths) on the fifteenth through the twenty-first days of the seventh month ( Leviticus 23:34-36). This was a happy celebration that looked back to the Israelites" years of wandering in the wilderness when they lived in booths that they made out of branches. The Contemporary English Version translators called this feast the Feast of Shelters. It also looked forward to the Israelites" entrance into, and permanent residence in, the Promised Land. Consequently, it would have had special significance for the returned exiles who now again had entered into the Promised Land after being absent from it for years. They had come through a kind of wilderness experience themselves. They even had to travel through a literal wilderness to get back to their land.
Nehemiah did not record whether the people also observed the Day of Atonement that fell on the tenth of the same month. Probably they did, since they were restoring the other Israelite institutions. Perhaps he passed over mentioning it because the Day of Atonement was a sad day in the Jewish year. It was the only fast among Israel"s festivals wherein the people afflicted themselves in repentance for their sins. Nehemiah seems to have wanted in this chapter, and in the whole book, to emphasize the positive aspects of the restoration, namely, God"s faithfulness and the people"s joy.
The restoration community had observed the Feast of Tabernacles previously ( Ezra 3:4). However, the present celebration was the most festive and well-attended one since Joshua had brought the Israelites into the Promised Land ( Nehemiah 8:17). This reflects growing joy and spiritual strength among the Jews who returned from exile.
"Let it be stressed, however, that it is joy in God. What we witness here is not the tacking on of vacuous festivity to an act of worship which is itself kept drab. The rejoicing is worship. What must be cultivated is a rejoicing together in the goodness of God." [1]
The Law also prescribed the solemn assembly on the twenty-second of the month ( Leviticus 23:36). Probably this was the day when the people would have normally renewed their commitment to God formally. It was customary in the ancient Near East for citizens to regularly make such a commitment to their lord (suzerain) in such a fashion.
"Today, even more, not just the pastors and "experts" but all believers should "do theology," reflecting together on the application of biblical, ethical principles to every area of life. To do theology or theologize is to apply biblical principles to every aspect of life." [1]
"The sequence in chapter8 is striking: intellectual response to the Word ( Nehemiah 8:1-8), emotional response to the Word ( Nehemiah 8:9-12), and volitional response to the Word ( Nehemiah 8:13-18)." [3]
"The Word of God had a tremendous impact on the Restoration community. It pointed the people to their sin ( Nehemiah 8:9), led them to worship ( Nehemiah 8:12; Nehemiah 8:14), and gave them great joy ( Nehemiah 8:17)." [4]