I am using the daily Bible reading schedule from “The Bible.net” for my daily Bible reading.

Today, I am reading and commenting on Nehemiah 7-8.

Once the walls and gates of Jerusalem had been rebuilt, Nehemiah invited (or perhaps ordered) all of the people under his authority to gather for a reading of the Book of the Law.  The passage sort of glosses over this, but the people who gathered reacted to the reading in a similar fashion to that of King Josiah.  They were saddened by their failure to keep God’s regulations.  However, Nehemiah and the religious leaders encouraged the people to celebrate their ability to gather and hear God’s Law rather than mourn their previous failure to follow it.

Then once this day of celebration was over, representatives of the people met to review the Book of the Law.  It was this group of laypeople who recognized the importance of the Festival of Shelters.  They saw how celebrating that Festival would help the people become more committed to serving the Lord.  This entire passage gives us an understanding of the importance of both trained and untrained eyes studying God’s Law.  Experts can give us an understanding of what the Bible says, but sometimes we need to see for ourselves how it applies to our lives.