At that time all the people gathered together in the square before the Water Gate, and they asked Ezra the scribe to bring out the Book of the Law of Moses, which the LORD had commanded for Israel.All the people gathered themselves together as one man into the wide place that was in front of the water gate; and they spoke to Ezra the scribe to bring the book of the law of Moses, which Yahweh had commanded to Israel.And all the people gathered themselves together as one man into the street that was before the water gate; and they spake unto Ezra the scribe to bring the book of the law of Moses, which the Lord had commanded to Israel.And all the people gathered themselves together as one man into the broad place that was before the water gate; and they spake unto Ezra the scribe to bring the book of the law of Moses, which Jehovah had commanded to Israel.
3 sermons cite this verse
… which, to be clear, is biblically right to do in musical worship. So you turn over to Nehemiah chapter 12, you see the people doing this and a whole lot more in musical worship. So it's not that that's bad, but I can't help but to wonder, what would it look like if all it took was God's word, his voice, to cause that kind of scene among us? what if all it took was just hearing the word of god to cause all of us to rise to our feet what if just hearing god's word caused all of us to throw our hands in the air and shout amen amen what if just hearing god's word brought us physically to our knees or bowing down with our faces on the ground. And this is not an isolated event in scripture. Look at Ezra chapter 9. God's people hear his word. Listen to what happens. Everyone who, notice the word, trembled at the words of the God of Israel gathered around me because of this unfaithfulness in the exile. I sat there appalled until the evening sacrifice. Then at the evening sacrifice. I rose from my self-abasement with my tunic and cloak torn. I fell on my knees with my hands spread out to the Lord my God, and I prayed. I'm too ashamed and disgraced, my God, to lift up my face to you because our sins are higher than our heads and our guilt has reached to the heavens. …
Well, son of my family, let's all remain standing. If you are standing, if not, if you would stand to join us at all of our campuses for the reading of God's word this morning. Nehemiah chapter 8, verse 1. And all the people gathered as one man into the square before the water gate. And they told Ezra, the scribe, to bring the book of the law of Moses that the Lord had commanded Israel. So Ezra, the priest, brought the law before the assembly, both men and women and all who could understand what they heard, on the first day of the seventh month. and he read from it facing the square before the water gave from early morning until midday in the presence of the men and the women those who could understand and the ears of all the people were attentive to the book of the law and Ezra the scribe stood on a wooden platform that they had made just for this purpose beside him stood Mathetiah Shema and Anahiam Uriah and Hilkiah and Masai on his right hand and Padaiah and Mishael and Malkijah, Hashum, Hashbaranah, Zechariah, and Meshulam on his left hand. …
… priests, and there's a whole list of them, and he gathers the people at the water gate. as Nehemiah 8.1. He brings the book of the law of Moses. And I want you to see at the end of this opening section, Nehemiah 8.8. Maybe you've heard it before. This is, I think, if there's a one-sentence definition of preaching, this is it. Now, this isn't everything that should be said about preaching. This is the floor, not the ceiling. You see what Nehemiah 8.8 says? they, meaning Ezra and these various priests and scribes, they read from the book, from the law of God. Clearly, ESV footnote says it may mean paragraph by paragraph, just like we do here, verse by verse, line by line. And they gave the sense so that the people understood the reading. As I said last week, some of you will be at this church for a few years, you'll move away or you'll graduate and you'll go somewhere else. Maybe some of you are new to town and you're looking for a church. We're not the only Bible-believing church in town, praise God. …