Nehemiah 8:8 (GNV)

Passage

And they read in the booke of the Lawe of God distinctly, and gaue the sense, and caused them to vnderstand the reading.

Nearby Context

Nehemiah 8:6 And Ezra praysed the Lord the great God, and all the people answered, Amen, Amen, with lifting vp their handes: and they bowed themselues, and worshipped the Lord with their faces toward the grounde.

Nehemiah 8:7 Also Ieshua, and Bani, and Sherebiah, Iamin, Akkub, Shabbethai, Hodiiah, Maaseiah, Kelita, Azariah, Iozabad, Hanan, Pelaiah, and the Leuites caused the people to vnderstand the lawe, and the people stood in their place.

Nehemiah 8:8 And they read in the booke of the Lawe of God distinctly, and gaue the sense, and caused them to vnderstand the reading.

Nehemiah 8:9 Then Nehemiah (which is Tirshatha) and Ezra the Priest and scribe, and the Leuites that instructed the people, saide vnto all the people, This day is holie vnto ye Lord your God: mourne not, neither weepe: for all the people wept, whe they heard the words of the Lawe.

Nehemiah 8:10 He saide also vnto the, Go, and eate of the fat, and drinke the sweete, and send part vnto them, for whome none is prepared: for this day is holie vnto our Lord: be ye not sorie therefore: for the ioy of the Lord is your strength.

Study Lenses

The verse centers on "read", "booke", "lawe", "distinctly", "gaue", "sense", "caused", and "vnderstand". It is saying that the verse draws attention to "read" and "booke", so its meaning should be read from those terms before moving to application.

The nearby context moves from verse 7's "Also Ieshua and Bani and Sherebiah Iamin..." into verse 9's "Then Nehemiah which is Tirshatha and Ezra...", so "read" and "booke" 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 "read" and "booke" with trust shaped by these words, not by a vague optimism outside the passage.