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9 September. Nehemiah chapters 7-8
In chapter 7 the city gates have been completed although few houses have yet been rebuilt. The reconstruction of a city after war is both a difficult challenge, and also an opportunity to make a new start in the way the city is built. It is also an opportunity to rethink how it is governed. The city is put in charge of two men – Hanani the brother of Nehemiah (who presumably was, like him, an administrator by profession), and Hananiah the commander of the citadel, i.e. a military leader (7:2). This latter was chosen because he “feared God more than most people”, and therefore would be a man of integrity. These two between them could make a good go of this challenging situation.
Chapter 8 records the reading of the law to the people. There had been several generations without a functioning civil society. Levels of literacy would have been low, and the younger people would have no knowledge of the traditions of the Temple and its laws. So they have to be taught. Ezra and thirteen other men carry out this task over the course of a week. The picture this passage gives of the assembled crowd bowing down together in response to the reading of the scripture is remarkably similar to how Islam is still practised.
Many people wept when they heard the Law being read. Presumably that was when they realised that some of their actions and habits were in fact contrary to the religious laws, the penalties for which were often harsh. But Ezra and Nehemiah – the civil and religious leaders – told people not to weep, but to rejoice. They understood, as many people still do not, that the purpose of religious laws is not really to punish people, but to guide them. Having scripture as a guide for life is actually something to be thankful for and happy about. As Nehemiah put it, “the joy of the Lord is your strength” (8:10). And so the people celebrated with feasting and joy “because they now understood the words that had been made known to them”.