“Don’t be dejected and sad, for the joy of the Lord is your strength!” (Nehemiah 8:10)
After an oral reading from the book of the Law, those gifted in its truths exposited the text to make the meaning clear. But why did they need to translate the Scripture? These people were Jews by birth, but not by tongue or culture. Having been reared in a Persian environment, naturally they brought it with them. The words read to them were from the Hebrew Bible. They heard a Hebrew Bible through Persian ears. There was a communication breakdown.
So, these trained scribes took the Hebrew text and made it meaningful to the ears of the listeners. After they had translated it, the verse says, “they [gave] the sense so that they understood the reading” (Nehemiah 8:8 NASB). They unlocked the door leading to understanding—the ability to see something beneath the surface. They gave their audience an in-depth meaning of the words and passages so that the people could understand and a transformation in their thinking would begin.
The people began to weep because they knew they were guilty. They thought back over the years they had lived with no spiritual guidance. They also recalled the sins of their forefathers that had caused them to fall into captivity. The depth of their guilt brought weeping. (And that’s a good sign, by the way. At times, guilt is an excellent motivation. Not all guilt is wrong. Sometimes God uses guilt to bring people out of sin and into a saving knowledge of Jesus Christ.)
In this moment of guilt, Nehemiah stood and told them to stop weeping because God is forgiving. “Let’s move on. This is a holy day. This is a day not to cry but to celebrate.” He said to them:
“Go, eat the festival food, drink the sweet drinks, 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 refuge.” So the Levites silenced all the people, saying, “Be still, for the day is holy; do not be grieved.” (8:10–11 NASB)
To their credit, the people applied the message and, in doing so, became a mobilised people:
All the people went away to eat, drink, to send portions, and to celebrate a great festival, because they understood the words which had been made known to them. (8:12 NASB)
That is the essence of a revival! The Bible had been proclaimed and the people began to mobilise.
