The Meaning of Nehemiah 8:4 Explained

Nehemiah 8:4

KJV: And Ezra the scribe stood upon a pulpit of wood, which they had made for the purpose; and beside him stood Mattithiah, and Shema, and Anaiah, and Urijah, and Hilkiah, and Maaseiah, on his right hand; and on his left hand, Pedaiah, and Mishael, and Malchiah, and Hashum, and Hashbadana, Zechariah, and Meshullam.

YLT: And Ezra the scribe standeth on a tower of wood that they made for the purpose, and Mattithiah standeth near him, and Shema, and Anaiah, and Urijah, and Hilkiah, and Maaseiah, on his right; and on his left Pedaiah, and Mishael, and Malchijah, and Hashum, and Hashbaddana, Zechariah, Meshullam.

Darby: And Ezra the scribe stood upon a high stage of wood, which they had made for the purpose. And beside him stood Mattithiah, and Shema, and Anaiah, and Urijah, and Hilkijah, and Maaseiah on his right hand; and on his left hand, Pedaiah, and Mishael, and Malchijah, and Hashum, and Hashbaddana, Zechariah, Meshullam.

ASV: And Ezra the scribe stood upon a pulpit of wood, which they had made for the purpose; and beside him stood Mattithiah, and Shema, and Anaiah, and Uriah, and Hilkiah, and Maaseiah, on his right hand; and on his left hand, Pedaiah, and Mishael, and Malchijah, and Hashum, and Hashbaddanah, Zechariah, and Meshullam.

KJV Reverse Interlinear

And Ezra  the scribe  stood  upon a pulpit  of wood,  which they had made  for the purpose;  and beside  him stood  Mattithiah,  and Shema,  and Anaiah,  and Urijah,  and Hilkiah,  and Maaseiah,  on his right hand;  and on his left hand,  Pedaiah,  and Mishael,  and Malchiah,  and Hashum,  and Hashbadana,  Zechariah,  [and] Meshullam. 

What does Nehemiah 8:4 Mean?

Context Summary

Nehemiah 8:1-18 - New Light From God's Law
Surely this was the first public Bible-reading! When will the people be again as hungry for the Word of God as these Jews who stood in the open space from early dawn till the scorching noon? What reverence for the Word! When Ezra opened the Book, all the people stood up. What holy worship! When he blessed the great God, all the people answered, Amen, amen! What a model to us all! They gave the sense, so that they understood. What searching of heart! The people wept when they heard the words of the law.
There is nothing which weakens us so much as does unrestrained remorse. Contriteness of heart is wholesome and helpful, but excessive grief incapacitates us for our duties. It is well therefore to cultivate holy joy; the joy of sin forgiven, of acceptance with God, of hope that anchors us to the unseen, and that cannot be ashamed. You may not be able to joy in yourself or your surroundings, but you may always rejoice in the Lord. [source]

Chapter Summary: Nehemiah 8

1  The reverent manner of reading and hearing the law
9  They comfort the people
13  The eagerness of the people to hear and be instructed
16  They keep the feast of tabernacles

What do the individual words in Nehemiah 8:4 mean?

So stood Ezra the scribe on a platform of wood which they had made for the purpose and stood beside him Mattithiah and Shema and Anaiah and Urijah and Hilkiah and Maaseiah at his right hand and at his left hand Pedaiah and Mishael and Malchijah and Hashum and Hashbadana Zechariah [and] Meshullam -
וַֽיַּעֲמֹ֞ד עֶזְרָ֣א הַסֹּפֵ֗ר עַֽל־ מִגְדַּל־ עֵץ֮ אֲשֶׁ֣ר עָשׂ֣וּ לַדָּבָר֒ וַיַּֽעֲמֹ֣ד אֶצְל֡וֹ מַתִּתְיָ֡ה וְשֶׁ֡מַע וַ֠עֲנָיָה וְאוּרִיָּ֧ה וְחִלְקִיָּ֛ה וּמַעֲשֵׂיָ֖ה עַל־ יְמִינ֑וֹ וּמִשְּׂמֹאל֗וֹ פְּ֠דָיָה וּמִֽישָׁאֵ֧ל וּמַלְכִּיָּ֛ה וְחָשֻׁ֥ם וְחַשְׁבַּדָּ֖נָה זְכַרְיָ֥ה מְשֻׁלָּֽם פ

וַֽיַּעֲמֹ֞ד  So  stood 
Parse: Conjunctive waw, Verb, Qal, Consecutive imperfect, third person masculine singular
Root: עָמַד  
Sense: to stand, remain, endure, take one’s stand.
עֶזְרָ֣א  Ezra 
Parse: Proper Noun, masculine singular
Root: עֶזְרָא  
Sense: the priest and scribe who led the reforms of the returned exiles in Jerusalem; co-worker with Nehemiah.
הַסֹּפֵ֗ר  the  scribe 
Parse: Article, Noun, masculine singular
Root: סָפַר 
Sense: to count, recount, relate.
מִגְדַּל־  a  platform 
Parse: Noun, masculine singular construct
Root: מִגְדָּל  
Sense: tower.
עֵץ֮  of  wood 
Parse: Noun, masculine singular
Root: עֵץ  
Sense: tree, wood, timber, stock, plank, stalk, stick, gallows.
עָשׂ֣וּ  they  had  made 
Parse: Verb, Qal, Perfect, third person common plural
Root: עָשָׂה 
Sense: to do, fashion, accomplish, make.
לַדָּבָר֒  for  the  purpose 
Parse: Preposition-l, Article, Noun, masculine singular
Root: דָּבָר  
Sense: speech, word, speaking, thing.
וַיַּֽעֲמֹ֣ד  and  stood 
Parse: Conjunctive waw, Verb, Qal, Consecutive imperfect, third person masculine singular
Root: עָמַד  
Sense: to stand, remain, endure, take one’s stand.
אֶצְל֡וֹ  beside  him 
Parse: Preposition, third person masculine singular
Root: אֵצֶל  
Sense: beside, by, near, nearness, joining, proximity subst.
מַתִּתְיָ֡ה  Mattithiah 
Parse: Proper Noun, masculine singular
Root: מַתִּתְיָה 
Sense: a Levite who presided over the offerings.
וְשֶׁ֡מַע  and  Shema 
Parse: Conjunctive waw, Proper Noun, masculine singular
Root: שֶׁמַע  
Sense: a Reubenite, son of Joel, father of Azaz, and grandfather of Bela.
וַ֠עֲנָיָה  and  Anaiah 
Parse: Conjunctive waw, Proper Noun, masculine singular
Root: עֲנָיָה  
Sense: a priest who helped Ezra and signed the covenant with Nehemiah.
וְאוּרִיָּ֧ה  and  Urijah 
Parse: Conjunctive waw, Proper Noun, masculine singular
Root: אוּרִיָּה 
Sense: Hittite husband of Bathsheba.
וְחִלְקִיָּ֛ה  and  Hilkiah 
Parse: Conjunctive waw, Proper Noun, masculine singular
Root: חִלְקִיָּה 
Sense: father of Eliakim, an officer of Hezekiah.
וּמַעֲשֵׂיָ֖ה  and  Maaseiah 
Parse: Conjunctive waw, Proper Noun, masculine singular
Root: מַעֲשֵׂיָה 
Sense: a descendant of Jeshua who had taken a foreign wife in the time of Ezra.
עַל־  at 
Parse: Preposition
Root: עַל 
Sense: upon, on the ground of, according to, on account of, on behalf of, concerning, beside, in addition to, together with, beyond, above, over, by, on to, towards, to, against.
יְמִינ֑וֹ  his  right  hand 
Parse: Noun, feminine singular construct, third person masculine singular
Root: יָמִין  
Sense: right, right hand, right side.
וּמִשְּׂמֹאל֗וֹ  and  at  his  left  hand 
Parse: Conjunctive waw, Preposition-m, Noun, masculine singular construct, third person masculine singular
Root: שְׂמֹאל  
Sense: the left, the left hand, the left side.
פְּ֠דָיָה  Pedaiah 
Parse: Proper Noun, masculine singular
Root: פְּדָיָה 
Sense: father of Zebudah, the wife of king Josiah and the mother of king Jehoiakim both of Judah.
וּמִֽישָׁאֵ֧ל  and  Mishael 
Parse: Conjunctive waw, Proper Noun, masculine singular
Root: מִישָׁאֵל  
Sense: the godly friend of Daniel who Nebuchadnezzar renamed Meshach; one of the three friends who with Daniel refused to make themselves unclean by eating food from the king’s table which went against the dietary laws which God had given the Jews; also one of the three who were thrown into the fiery furnace for refusing to bow down to a graven image of Nebuchadnezzar and who were saved by the angel of the Lord.
וּמַלְכִּיָּ֛ה  and  Malchijah 
Parse: Conjunctive waw, Proper Noun, masculine singular
Root: מַלְכִּיָּה 
Sense: the father of Pashur in the time of Jeremiah.
וְחָשֻׁ֥ם  and  Hashum 
Parse: Conjunctive waw, Proper Noun, masculine singular
Root: חָשֻׁם  
Sense: head of a family of 223 exiles returning with Zerubbabel.
וְחַשְׁבַּדָּ֖נָה  and  Hashbadana 
Parse: Conjunctive waw, Proper Noun, masculine singular
Root: חַשְׁבַּדָּנָה  
Sense: one of the men who stood on the left of Ezra while he read the law to the people.
זְכַרְיָ֥ה  Zechariah 
Parse: Proper Noun, masculine singular
Root: זְכַרְיָה 
Sense: th in order of the minor prophets; a priest, son of Berechiah and grandson of Iddo, who, along with Haggai, directed the rebuilding of the temple in the days of Zerubbabel.
מְשֻׁלָּֽם  [and]  Meshullam 
Parse: Proper Noun, masculine singular
Root: מְשֻׁלָּם  
Sense: grandfather of Shaphan, the scribe. 2 son of Zerubbabel. 3 a Benjamite of the sons of Elpaal. 4 a Benjamite, father of Sallu. 5 a Benjamite who lived at Jerusalem after the captivity. 6 a Benjamite. 6a perhaps the same as 3 or 4. 7 a Gadite in the reign of king Jotham of Judah. 8 son of Berechiah who assisted in rebuilding the wall of Jerusalem. 9 son of Besodeiah who assisted Jehoiada the son of Paseah in restoring the old gate of Jerusalem. 0 a chief of the people who sealed the covenant with Nehemiah. father of Hilkiah and high priest probably in the reign of king Amon of Judah.
פ  - 
Parse: Punctuation