The whole assembly who had returned from exile made booths and lived in them. From the days of Joshua son of Nun until that day, the Israelites had not celebrated like this. And there was great rejoicing.
Parallel translations
- WEB All the assembly of those who had come back out of the captivity made temporary shelters, and lived in the booths; for since the days of Jeshua the son of Nun to that day the children of Israel had not done so. There was very great gladness.
- KJV And all the congregation of them that were come again out of the captivity made booths, and sat under 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.
- NKJV So the whole assembly of those who had returned from the captivity made booths and sat under the booths; for since the days of Joshua the son of Nun until that day the children of Israel had not done so. And there was very great gladness.
- NASB The entire assembly of those who had returned from the captivity made booths and lived in the booths. Indeed, the sons of Israel had not done so since the days of Joshua the son of Nun to that day. And there was very great rejoicing.
- NLT So everyone who had returned from captivity lived in these shelters during the festival, and they were all filled with great joy! The Israelites had not celebrated like this since the days of Joshua son of Nun.
Scripture taken from the New King James Version®. Copyright © 1982 by Thomas Nelson. Used by permission. All rights reserved.
Scripture quotations taken from the (NASB®) New American Standard Bible®, Copyright © 1960, 1971, 1977, 1995, 2020 by The Lockman Foundation. Used by permission. All rights reserved. lockman.org
Scripture quotations are taken from the Holy Bible, New Living Translation, copyright © 1996, 2004, 2015 by Tyndale House Foundation. Used by permission of Tyndale House Publishers, Carol Stream, Illinois 60188. All rights reserved.
Quick answer
The whole returned assembly kept the feast in booths, something not done so fully since Joshua's day, with very great gladness. It matters because renewed obedience brought genuine joy.
Overview
This was not the first observance of the feast in centuries but the first kept with such whole-hearted, comprehensive devotion since the days of Joshua (Jeshua son of Nun). The remembrance of God's wilderness faithfulness produced 'very great gladness' rather than mere ritual. True obedience to God's Word is a source of joy, a foretaste of the joy believers have in Christ.
Cross-references & the web
Cross-references · 12
- 2 Chr 8:13He observed the daily requirement for offerings according to the commandment of Moses for Sabbaths, New Moons, and the three annual appointed feasts—the Feast of Unleavened Bread, the Feast of Weeks, and the Feast of Tabernacles.
- Ezra 3:4They also celebrated the Feast of Tabernacles in accordance with what is written, and they offered burnt offerings daily based on the number prescribed for each day.
- 2 Chr 7:8–10So at that time Solomon and all Israel with him—a very great assembly of people from Lebo-hamath to the Brook of Egypt—kept the feast for seven days.
- Heb 11:9By faith he dwelt in the promised land as a stranger in a foreign country. He lived in tents, as did Isaac and Jacob, who were heirs with him of the same promise.
- 2 Chr 30:21–23The Israelites who were present in Jerusalem celebrated the Feast of Unleavened Bread for seven days with great joy, and the Levites and priests praised the LORD day after day, accompanied by loud instruments of praise to the LORD.
- John 1:14The Word became flesh and made His dwelling among us. We have seen His glory, the glory of the one and only Son from the Father, full of grace and truth.
- Heb 11:13All these people died in faith, without having received the things they were promised. However, they saw them and welcomed them from afar. And they acknowledged that they were strangers and exiles on the earth.
- Josh 1:1Now after the death of His servant Moses, the LORD spoke to Joshua son of Nun, Moses’ assistant, saying,
- 2 Chr 35:18No such Passover had been observed in Israel since the days of Samuel the prophet. None of the kings of Israel ever observed a Passover like the one that Josiah observed with the priests, the Levites, all Judah, the Israelites who were present, and the people of Jerusalem.
- Heb 4:8For if Joshua had given them rest, God would not have spoken later about another day.
- 1 Chr 29:22That day they ate and drank with great joy in the presence of the LORD. Then, for a second time, they designated David’s son Solomon as king, anointing him before the LORD as ruler, and Zadok as the priest.
- 2 Chr 30:26So there was great rejoicing in Jerusalem, for nothing like this had happened there since the days of Solomon son of David king of Israel.
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Christ at the center
The rebuilt walls and renewed covenant community foreshadow the greater builder who gathers and secures a people for God, the one who declares 'I will build my church.'
How Nehemiah 8:17 points to him is part of the one story that runs through all Scripture — meet Jesus at the heart of the web, or follow a trail that traces him from Genesis to Revelation.
Original language
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