Tishrei 1 – And All the People Gathered as One Man at the Square…

Tishrei 1, 5785; from sunset October 2, 2024, to sunset October 3, 2024

(The first day of the seventh month)

This is an image of a portion of the wall rebuilt by Nehemiah and company.

After Nehemiah made his return from Babylon, a wooden podium was constructed in preparation for the Feast of Trumpets. Today in the Bible, Ezra began educating the children of Israel on the proper way to observe the LORD’s Appointed Times. He started early in the morning and continued teaching until midday.

And all the people gathered as one man at the square which was in front of the Water Gate, and they asked Ezra the scribe to bring the book of the law of Moses which the LORD had given to Israel.

Then Ezra the priest brought the law before the assembly of men, women, and all who could listen with understanding, on the first day of the seventh month. And he read from it before the square which was in front of the Water Gate from early morning until midday, in the presence of men and women, those who could understand; and all the people were attentive to the book of the law.

And Ezra the scribe stood at a wooden podium which they had made for the purpose. And beside him stood Mattithiah, Shema, Anaiah, Uriah, Hilkiah, and Maaseiah on his right hand; and Pedaiah, Mishael, Malchijah, Hashum, Hashbaddanah, Zechariah, and Meshullam on his left hand. And Ezra opened the book in the sight of all the people for he was standing above all the people; and when he opened it, all the people stood up.

Then Ezra blessed the LORD the great God. And all the people answered, “Amen, Amen!” while lifting up their hands; then they bowed low and worshiped the LORD with their faces to the ground.

Also Jeshua, Bani, Sherebiah, Jamin, Akkub, Shabbethai, Hodiah, Maaseiah, Kelita, Azariah, Jozabad, Hanan, Pelaiah, and the Levites, explained the law to the people while the people remained in their place. And they read from the book, from the law of God, translating to give the sense so that they understood the reading. Then Nehemiah, who was the governor, and Ezra the priest and scribe, and the Levites who taught the people said to all the people, “This day is holy to the LORD your God; do not mourn or weep.” For all the people were weeping when they heard the words of the law.

Then he said to them, “Go, eat of the fat, drink of the sweet, and send portions to him who has nothing prepared; for this day is holy to our Lord. Do not be grieved, for the joy of the LORD is your strength.”

So the Levites calmed all the people, saying, “Be still, for the day is holy; do not be grieved.”

And all the people went away to eat, to drink, to send portions and to celebrate a great festival, because they understood the words which had been made known to them. – Nehemiah 8:1-12 (NAS)

The people became emotional because these things had been forgotten. After all of the kings who had done “evil” in the eyes of the LORD and the seventy years of exile, the Appointed Times and the proper service to the LORD had been neglected. When Ezra spoke to the people, it began to dawn upon them what had happened. The Levites encouraged them, saying, “Do not mourn or weep.” Instead, “Go, eat of the fat, drink of the sweet, and send portions to him who has nothing prepared.”

We often wonder if this day, as described in the book of Nehemiah, could be a parallel to those who have begun to gain an understanding of the importance of the LORD’s Appointed Times? When someone begins to understand what they’ve been missing, they can become emotional, even mournful. Many Christians do not understand their importance. We, too, have been neglecting them. Ezra’s words to eat and drink (get our fill) and then take “food” to those who have nothing prepared may be an imperative to us to learn all we can about the Appointed Times and share our knowledge with others. This is one of the things we hope our blog will convey and we hope that you, too, will do your best to understand and share what you’ve learned with others.

Just a reminder that it’s tradition to read Psalm 27 daily through the Feast of Tabernacles. You can find it by clicking on the link.

To read all of our posts on Nehemiah, click on the image above.