8:1 All the people gathered together in the plaza which was in front of the Water Gate. They asked Ezra the scribe to bring the book of the law of Moses which the LORD had commanded Israel.
Notice that “all” the people gathered in front of the Water Gate. This must have been the largest Bible study in history.
Ezra was mentioned for the first time by Nehemiah, but he had already been teaching in Jerusalem for the past 13 years. Revival cannot happen without the written Word of God. The Temple was rebuilt, the walls were rebuilt, the singers, priests, and Levites were in place. Now, Ezra would began teaching the Word of God.
8:2 So Ezra the priest brought the law before the assembly which included men and women and all those able to understand what they heard. (This happened on the first day of the seventh month.)
This event happened on the Feast of Trumpets. The Feast of Trumpets is a picture of the Rapture of the Church.
Notice that there were no individual Sunday school classes for the little ones. All those who could understand were gathered to worship with their families. The ones who could not understand were kept in nurseries.
8:3 So he read it before the plaza in front of the Water Gate from dawn till noon before the men and women and those children who could understand. All the people were eager to hear the book of the law.
These people had not heard the Word of God in over seventy years. They were willing to listen to Ezra teach for six hours. Most carnal Christians today cannot listen to a sermon for more than 20 minutes. They begin squirming and wishing that the preacher would shut up so that they can go eat a big lunch.
8:4 Ezra the scribe stood on a towering wooden platform constructed for this purpose. Standing near him on his right were Mattithiah, Shema, Anaiah, Uriah, Hilkiah, and Masseiah. On his left were Pedaiah, Mishael, Malkijah, Hashum, Hashbaddanah, Zechariah, and Meshullam.
The platform was big enough to hold 14 people for long hours of reading and explanation. These men were probably trained priests who assisted Ezra in teaching the people.
8:5 Ezra opened the book in plain view of all the people, for he was elevated above all the people. When he opened the book, all the people stood up.
When Ezra opened the Word of God, everyone stood up. Why? They loved God and they had respect for his word. They remained standing throughout the entire six hours of reading. They listened from morning to noon. They were not sitting in a comfortable easy chair in an air-conditioned auditorium with soundtrack and video. These people loved the Word of God.
Immature believers do not love the Word of God. They enjoy entertainment, skits, plays, and music concerts. Mature believers just want to hear the Bible taught book by book, verse by verse from the original languages.
8:6 Ezra blessed the LORD, the great God, and all the people replied “Amen! Amen!” as they lifted their hands. Then they bowed down and worshiped the LORD with their faces to the ground.
These people did not just bow their heads and close their eyes. They lifted up their hands, went down on all fours, and touched the ground with their foreheads. Most believers are too lazy and too arrogant to worship God in this way.
8:7 Jeshua, Bani, Sherebiah, Jamin, Akkub, Shabbethai, Hodiah, Maaseiah, Kelita, Azariah, Jozabad, Hanan, and Pelaiah—all of whom were Levites—were teaching the people the law, as the people remained standing.
Ezra read from the Law in Hebrew. Most of the people spoke Aramaic or one of the Assyrian languages. Therefore, these 13 men taught the Word of God to the people in languages that they could understand. Notice that the people remained standing in the outer courtyard without shade, heat, or air-conditioning. Many modern believers will stand in hostile elements to watch a football game, but not for a bible study.
8:8 They read from the book of God’s law, explaining it and imparting insight. Thus the people gained understanding from what was read.
Notice that Ezra read a verse, and the teachers explained the verse. This was book by book, verse-by-verse, expository teaching. This kind of teaching led a great revival in Israel. This is the way that the Bible needs to be taught in modern churches today. If America wants a revival, then the entire counsel of the Word of God needs to be taught book by book, verse by verse, from the original languages.
8:9 Then Nehemiah the governor, Ezra the priestly scribe, and the Levites who were imparting understanding to the people said to all of them, “This day is holy to the LORD your God. Do not mourn or weep.” For all the people had been weeping when they heard the words of the law.
This day may have been the Day of Atonement. The Day of Atonement is a typology of the Jews recognizing Jesus as their Messiah.
Many of these people had never heard the Word of God. When they heard it, they were convicted of their sin. The weeping caused tears of repentance and tears of joy.
8:10 He said to them,“Go and eat delicacies and drink sweet drinks and send portions to those for whom nothing is prepared. For this day is holy to our Lord. Do not grieve, for the joy of the LORD is your strength.”
The people were sad, because they had not obeyed the Law. They rejoiced, because they could now understand the Law and obey it.
8:11 Then the Levites quieted all the people saying, “Be quiet, for this day is holy. Do not grieve.”
The study of the Bible is to bring joy. There is nothing more enjoyable in life than studying God’s Word. If a believer does not experience this joy, then he needs to go to the Lord in prayer and ask God to give him this joy of bible study.
8:12 So all the people departed to eat and drink and to share their food with others and to enjoy tremendous joy, for they had gained insight in the matters that had been made known to them.
After the six-hour Bible study, the large congregation attended a giant picnic. Everyone shared their meals with the poor.
It is important to note that believers are not called to feed the poor of the world through governmental and church social programs. They are called to feed the poor only in their own congregation. Otherwise, they will be feeding the army of the satanic world system.
Food will not bring a person to the Lord Jesus Christ. Man is so totally depraved and evil that he would rather starve than to believe in the gospel. It is not the churches job to feed the poor of the world. It is the job of the church to feed the poor in their local congregation and to take the gospel to the unbelieving world. Many churches do not understand this premise.
8:13 On the second day of the month the family leaders met with Ezra the scribe, together with all the people, the priests, and the Levites, to consider the words of the law.
The people enjoyed the Bible study so much, that they asked Ezra to teach again the very next night. Jewish tradition indicates that Ezra gathered together a body of bible scholars. He called them the Great Synagogue. They taught the Word of God, compared the Scriptures, corrected the Scriptures, and copied the Scriptures.
8:14 They discovered written in the law that the LORD had commanded through Moses that the Israelites should live in temporary shelters during the festival of the seventh month,
After seventy years, the people discovered that they were all to celebrate the Feast of Tabernacles together in tents.
8:15 and that they should make a proclamation and disseminate this message in all their cities and in Jerusalem: “Go to the hill country and bring back olive branches and branches of wild olive trees, myrtle trees, date palms, and other leafy trees to construct temporary shelters, as it is written.” 16 So the people went out and brought these things back and constructed temporary shelters for themselves, each on his roof and in his courtyard and in the courtyards of the temple of God and in the plaza of the Water Gate and the plaza of the Ephraim Gate. 17 So all the assembly which had returned from the exile constructed temporary shelters and lived in them. The Israelites had not done so from the days of Joshua son of Nun until that day. Everyone experienced very great joy.18 Ezra read in the book of the law of God day by day, from the first day to the last. They observed the festival for seven days, and on the eighth day they held an assembly as was required.
Ezra read the Law during the Feast of Tabernacles, because Moses had indicated that this was to be done every seven years. The Feast of Tabernacles looks forward to Jesus establishing the Millennial Kingdom at His Second Coming.