The Daily Audio Bible

8 ¹ 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. ² And Ezra the priest brought the law before the assembly, both men and women, and all that could hear with understanding, upon the first day of the seventh month. ³ And he read therein before the broad place that was before the water gate ^[a]from early morning until midday, in the presence of the men and the women, and of those that could understand; and the ears of all the people were attentive unto the book of the law. ⁴ And Ezra the scribe stood upon a ^[b]pulpit of wood, which they had made for the purpose; and beside him stood Mattithiah, and Shema, and Anaiah, and Uriah, and Hilkiah, and Maaseiah, on his right hand; and on his left hand, Pedaiah, and Mishael, and Malchijah, and Hashum, and Hashbaddanah, Zechariah, and Meshullam. ⁵ And Ezra opened the book in the sight of all the people (for he was above all the people); and when he opened it, all the people stood up. ⁶ And Ezra blessed Jehovah, the great God; and all the people answered, Amen, Amen, with the lifting up of their hands: and they bowed their heads, and worshipped Jehovah with their faces to the ground. ⁷ Also Jeshua, and Bani, and Sherebiah, Jamin, Akkub, Shabbethai, Hodiah, Maaseiah, Kelita, Azariah, Jozabad, Hanan, Pelaiah, and the Levites, caused the people to understand the law: and the people stood in their place. ⁸ And they read in the book, in the law of God, ^[c]distinctly; and they gave the sense, ^[d]so that they understood the reading.

⁹ And Nehemiah, who was the governor, and Ezra the priest the scribe, and the Levites that taught the people, said unto all the people, This day is holy unto Jehovah your God; mourn not, nor weep. For all the people wept, when they heard the words of the law. ¹⁰ Then he said unto them, Go your way, eat the fat, and drink the sweet, and send portions unto him for whom nothing is prepared; for this day is holy unto our Lord: neither be ye grieved; for the joy of Jehovah is your ^[e]strength. ¹¹ So the Levites stilled all the people, saying, Hold your peace, for the day is holy; neither be ye grieved. ¹² And all the people went their way to eat, and to drink, and to send portions, and to make great mirth, because they had understood the words that were declared unto them.

¹³ And on the second day were gathered together the heads of fathers’ houses of all the people, the priests, and the Levites, unto Ezra the scribe, even to give attention to the words of the law. ¹⁴ And they found written in the law, how that Jehovah had commanded by Moses, that the children of Israel should dwell in booths in the feast of the seventh month; ¹⁵ and that they should publish and proclaim in all their cities, and in Jerusalem, saying, Go forth unto the mount, and fetch olive branches, and branches of wild olive, and myrtle branches, and palm branches, and branches of thick trees, to make booths, as it is written. ¹⁶ So the people went forth, and brought them, and made themselves booths, every one upon the roof of his house, and in their courts, and in the courts of the house of God, and in the broad place of the water gate, and in the broad place of the gate of Ephraim. ¹⁷ And all the assembly of them that were come again out of the captivity made booths, and dwelt in the booths: for since the days of Jeshua the son of Nun unto that day had not the children of Israel done so. And there was very great gladness. ¹⁸ Also day by day, from the first day unto the last day, he read in the book of the law of God. And they kept the feast seven days; and on the eighth day was a ^[f]solemn assembly, according unto the ordinance.

9 Now in the twenty and fourth day of this month the children of Israel were assembled with fasting, and with sackcloth, and earth upon them. ² And the seed of Israel separated themselves from all foreigners, and stood and confessed their sins, and the iniquities of their fathers. ³ And they stood up in their place, and read in the book of the law of Jehovah their God a fourth part of the day; and another fourth part they confessed, and worshipped Jehovah their God. ⁴ Then stood up upon the stairs of the Levites, Jeshua, and Bani, Kadmiel, Shebaniah, Bunni, Sherebiah, Bani, and Chenani, and cried with a loud voice unto Jehovah their God.

⁵ Then the Levites, Jeshua, and Kadmiel, Bani, Hashabneiah, Sherebiah, Hodiah, Shebaniah, and Pethahiah, said, Stand up and bless Jehovah your God from everlasting to everlasting; and ^[g]blessed be thy glorious name, which is exalted above all blessing and praise. ⁶ Thou art Jehovah, even thou alone; thou hast made heaven, the heaven of heavens, with all their host, the earth and all things that are thereon, the seas and all that is in them, and thou preservest them all; and the host of heaven worshippeth thee. ⁷ Thou art ^[h]Jehovah the God, who didst choose Abram, and broughtest him forth out of Ur of the Chaldees, and gavest him the name of Abraham, ⁸ and foundest his heart faithful before thee, and madest a covenant with him to give the land of the Canaanite, the Hittite, the Amorite, and the Perizzite, and the Jebusite, and the Girgashite, to give it unto his seed, and hast performed thy words; for thou art righteous.

⁹ And thou sawest the affliction of our fathers in Egypt, and heardest their cry by the Red Sea, ¹⁰ and showedst signs and wonders upon Pharaoh, and on all his servants, and on all the people of his land; for thou knewest that they dealt proudly against them, and didst get thee a name, as it is this day. ¹¹ And thou didst divide the sea before them, so that they went through the midst of the sea on the dry land; and their pursuers thou didst cast into the depths, as a stone into the mighty waters. ¹² Moreover in a pillar of cloud thou leddest them by day; and in a pillar of fire by night, to give them light in the way wherein they should go. ¹³ Thou camest down also upon mount Sinai, and spakest with them from heaven, and gavest them right ordinances and true laws, good statutes and commandments, ¹⁴ and madest known unto them thy holy sabbath, and commandedst them commandments, and statutes, and a law, by Moses thy servant, ¹⁵ and gavest them bread from heaven for their hunger, and broughtest forth water for them out of the rock for their thirst, and commandedst them that they should go in to possess the land which thou hadst ^[i]sworn to give them.

¹⁶ But they and our fathers dealt proudly, and hardened their neck, and hearkened not to thy commandments, ¹⁷ and refused to obey, neither were mindful of thy wonders that thou didst among them, but hardened their neck, and in their rebellion appointed a captain to return to their bondage. But thou art ^[j]a God ready to pardon, gracious and merciful, slow to anger, and abundant in lovingkindness, and forsookest them not. ¹⁸ Yea, when they had made them a molten calf, and said, This is thy God that brought thee up out of Egypt, and had wrought great provocations; ¹⁹ yet thou in thy manifold mercies forsookest them not in the wilderness: the pillar of cloud departed not from over them by day, to lead them in the way; neither the pillar of fire by night, to show them light, and the way wherein they should go. ²⁰ Thou gavest also thy good Spirit to instruct them, and withheldest not thy manna from their mouth, and gavest them water for their thirst. ²¹ Yea, forty years didst thou sustain them in the wilderness, and they lacked nothing; their clothes waxed not old, and their feet swelled not.

9 Am I not free? am I not an apostle? have I not seen Jesus our Lord? are not ye my work in the Lord? ² If to others I am not an apostle, yet at least I am to you; for the seal of mine apostleship are ye in the Lord. ³ My defence to them that examine me is this. ⁴ Have we no right to eat and to drink? ⁵ Have we no right to lead about a wife that is a ^[a]believer, even as the rest of the apostles, and the brethren of the Lord, and Cephas? ⁶ Or I only and Barnabas, have we not a right to forbear working? ⁷ What soldier ever serveth at his own charges? who planteth a vineyard, and eateth not the fruit thereof? or who feedeth a flock, and eateth not of the milk of the flock? ⁸ Do I speak these things after the manner of men? or saith not the law also the same? ⁹ For it is written in the law of Moses, ^[b]Thou shalt not muzzle the ox when he treadeth out the corn. Is it for the oxen that God careth, ¹⁰ or saith he it ^[c]assuredly for our sake? Yea, for our sake it was written: because he that ploweth ought to plow in hope, and he that thresheth, to thresh in hope of partaking. ¹¹ If we sowed unto you spiritual things, is it a great matter if we shall reap your carnal things? ¹² If others partake of this right over you, do not we yet more? Nevertheless we did not use this right; but we bear all things, that we may cause no hindrance to the ^[d]gospel of Christ. ¹³ Know ye not that they that minister about sacred things eat of the things of the temple, and they that wait upon the altar have their portion with the altar? ¹⁴ Even so did the Lord ordain that they that proclaim the ^[e]gospel should live of the ^[f]gospel. ¹⁵ But I have used none of these things: and I write not these things that it may be so done in my case; for it were good for me rather to die, than that any man should make my glorying void. ¹⁶ For if I ^[g]preach the gospel, I have nothing to glory of; for necessity is laid upon me; for woe is unto me, if I ^[h]preach not the gospel. ¹⁷ For if I do this of mine own will, I have a reward: but if not of mine own will, I have a stewardship intrusted to me. ¹⁸ What then is my reward? That, when I ^[i]preach the gospel, I may make the ^[j]gospel without charge, so as not to use to the full my right in the ^[k]gospel.