Revival’s Pathway

Nehemiah 8

The borders of Jerusalem were established, property was accurately distributed, and roles were properly assigned when the calendar flipped to the 7th month of the year. By this season, the people would begin to harvest the crops they had been diligently tending in their fields over the previous months. Life would finally be feeling more settled, and the future, more secure. Revival is planted.

And they’re hungry for more. 

So they gather together - men, women, and anyone else who could understand - and ask to hear the Law given by God to their ancestors long ago. For hours they listen to the reading and its interpretation, as the Word works through their very beings. The Word calls their attention, so they stand in honor; it moves through their extremities to raise their hands in agreement; it humbles their posture to bow face-down in worship; and it convicts their hearts to weep tears of joy and of sorrow. Revival convicts.

They realize how faithful their God had been and how far they had wavered from His Words. But what Nehemiah wants them to understand is that God’s goodness is greater than their wrongs; his joy is stronger than their grief, so on the heels of mourning, should be dancing. Revival includes repentance, but from repentance springs contagious joy worth sharing. 

The next day, the leaders are back for even more. 

This time, they want more than understanding; they want to study or “turn their mind to” (Gesenius’ Hebrew-Chaldee Lexicon) the Word. What they discover upon further investigation is that God had instituted a celebration called the Feast of Tents (booths, tabernacles) when the entire nation would camp out for a week. During the time of harvest, they were told to construct shelters made of branches and essentially re-enact Israel’s historic campout in the barren wilderness when God led them out of Egypt (Leviticus 23:33-40). Families would spend a week in a tent while they were harvesting abundant crops, and future generations would know that when life feels settled and secure, it is only because of God. But for centuries, Israel had neglected this tradition.

If you’ve ever set up a tent, you know how awkward it can be; imagine setting up one made of branches. I consider camping out to be inconvenient on vacation, but imagine camping out during a busy work season at home. Obedience will require the belief that God’s ways are truly better, even if they seem cumbersome or the timing seems off.

The people of Nehemiah’s day make this discovery in the very month designated for this celebration, and they immediately spring into action, collecting olive, myrtle, and palm branches to construct tents for each household. They would do what the Word said, because when revival runs its full course, it doesn’t culminate in joyful parties; revival culminates in obedience.