Nehemiah 8:14 (DBY)

Passage

And they found written in the law which Jehovah had commanded through Moses, that the children of Israel should dwell in booths in the feast of the seventh month,

Nearby Context

Nehemiah 8:12 And all the people went their way, to eat and to drink, and to send portions, and to make great rejoicing. For they had understood the words that were declared to them.

Nehemiah 8:13 And on the second day were gathered together the chief fathers of all the people, the priests, and the Levites, to Ezra the scribe, even to gain wisdom as to the words of the law.

Nehemiah 8:14 And they found written in the law which Jehovah had commanded through Moses, that the children of Israel should dwell in booths in the feast of the seventh month,

Nehemiah 8:15 and that they should publish and proclaim through all their cities, and at Jerusalem, saying, Go forth to the mount, and fetch olive-branches, and wild olive-branches, and myrtle-branches, and palm-branches, and branches of thick trees, to make booths, as it is written.

Nehemiah 8:16 And the people went forth and brought [them], and made themselves booths, everyone upon the roof of his house, and in their courts, and in the courts of the house of God, and in the open space of the water-gate, and in the open space of the gate of Ephraim.

Study Lenses

The verse centers on "found", "written", "jehovah", "commanded", "through", "moses", "children", and "israel". It is saying that the verse draws attention to "found" and "written", so its meaning should be read from those terms before moving to application.

The nearby context moves from verse 13's "And on the second day were gathered..." into verse 15's "and that they should publish and proclaim...", so "found" and "written" belong inside that flow. In Nehemiah context, the local focus is covenant, worship, and faithfulness.

A plain takeaway is to answer the verse's own emphasis on "found" and "written" with trust shaped by these words, not by a vague optimism outside the passage.