The wall around Jerusalem was finished, and the Temple was started. Now that the Law had been read to all the people, it was a day of reckoning.
The people gathered in sackcloth and ashes to confess their sins and repent. Then a decision had to be made.
The people gathered in sackcloth and ashes to confess their sins and repent. Then a decision had to be made.
As a people, we may take God's blessings for granted, but we take His curses very seriously. For us, promises are binding.
So all these people now make this special promise to God. And they all ask for bad things to happen if they don’t keep their promise. All these people promise to follow the law of God. That law of God was given to us through Moses his servant. These people promise with an oath to carefully obey all the commands, rules, and teachings of our Lord God.
Nehemiah 10: 28 ERV
The promise made to God included marriage, the Sabbath, and taking care of the temple. Pretty big stuff. Writing an agreement and signing it was the easy part. Living it out would no doubt be harder, and affect everyone of us.
We were literally all on the same page, so it was time to populate Jerusalem. Since the Temple is in Jerusalem, all the leaders would live there.
We figured about ten percent of the people could comfortably live there also. We wanted to be fair about who would live in Jerusalem, and who would live in a surrounding town.
We figured about ten percent of the people could comfortably live there also. We wanted to be fair about who would live in Jerusalem, and who would live in a surrounding town.
Now the leaders of the Israelites moved into the city of Jerusalem. The rest of the people used lots to decide who else should move there with the leaders. They chose a tenth of the people to live in Jerusalem, the holy city. The rest of the people stayed in their own towns.
Nehemiah 11:1 ERV
There was space for everyone, and everyone had a place. God just kept loving on His kids. It was time to begin thinking about how we could show our thanks in a really big way.
It was amazing! All kinds of music and rejoicing to celebrate the completion of the wall.
It was amazing! All kinds of music and rejoicing to celebrate the completion of the wall.
So on that special day, the priests offered many sacrifices. Everyone was very happy because God had made them happy. Even the women and children were excited and happy. People far away could hear the happy sounds coming from Jerusalem.
Nehemiah 12: 23 ERV
I wish you could have been there, Dear Reader! We raised such a ruckus of praise that people from miles around heard us. Don't you just bet that's what it will be like when we all get to heaven?
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