a8:9-10
bEzek 9:4
cLuke 6:21
dNum 29:1-6

‏ Nehemiah 8:8-9

Summary for Neh 8:9-10: 8:9-10  a Ezra the priest and scribe: See study note on Ezra 7:6.

• Don’t mourn or weep ... today is a sacred day: God touched the people’s hearts, prompting them to regret their failures to keep God’s laws. While weeping is an appropriate response to sin (see Ezek 9:4  b; Luke 6:21  c), Ezra and Nehemiah encouraged the people to rejoice at what God had done. Because this New Year’s festival was to be a time of joy (Num 29:1-6  d), weeping would have destroyed the spirit of the day.
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