20th November

¹ And all the people gathered themselves together as one man into the street that was before the water gate; and they spake unto Ezra the scribe to bring the book of the law of Moses, which the LORD had commanded to Israel.² And Ezra the priest brought the law before the congregation both of men and women, and all that could hear with understanding, upon the first day of the seventh month.³ And he read therein before the street that was before the water gate from the morning until midday, before the men and the women, and those that could understand; and the ears of all the people were attentive unto the book of the law.⁴ And Ezra the scribe stood upon a pulpit of wood, which they had made for the purpose; and beside him stood Mattithiah, and Shema, and Anaiah, and Urijah, and Hilkiah, and Maaseiah, on his right hand; and on his left hand, Pedaiah, and Mishael, and Malchiah, and Hashum, and Hashbadana, Zechariah, and Meshullam.⁵ And Ezra opened the book in the sight of all the people; (for he was above all the people;) and when he opened it, all the people stood up:⁶ And Ezra blessed the LORD, the great God. And all the people answered, Amen, Amen, with lifting up their hands: and they bowed their heads, and worshipped the LORD with their faces to the ground.⁷ Also Jeshua, and Bani, and Sherebiah, Jamin, Akkub, Shabbethai, Hodijah, Maaseiah, Kelita, Azariah, Jozabad, Hanan, Pelaiah, and the Levites, caused the people to understand the law: and the people stood in their place.⁸ So they read in the book in the law of God distinctly, and gave the sense, and caused them to understand the reading.⁹ And Nehemiah, which is the Tirshatha, and Ezra the priest the scribe, and the Levites that taught the people, said unto all the people, This day is holy unto the LORD your God; mourn not, nor weep. For all the people wept, when they heard the words of the law.¹⁰ Then he said unto them, Go your way, eat the fat, and drink the sweet, and send portions unto them for whom nothing is prepared: for this day is holy unto our LORD: neither be ye sorry; for the joy of the LORD is your strength.¹¹ So the Levites stilled all the people, saying, Hold your peace, for the day is holy; neither be ye grieved.¹² And all the people went their way to eat, and to drink, and to send portions, and to make great mirth, because they had understood the words that were declared unto them.¹³ And on the second day were gathered together the chief of the fathers of all the people, the priests, and the Levites, unto Ezra the scribe, even to understand the words of the law.¹⁴ And they found written in the law which the LORD had commanded by Moses, that the children of Israel should dwell in booths in the feast of the seventh month:¹⁵ And that they should publish and proclaim in all their cities, and in Jerusalem, saying, Go forth unto the mount, and fetch olive branches, and pine branches, and myrtle branches, and palm branches, and branches of thick trees, to make booths, as it is written.¹⁶ So the people went forth, and brought them, and made themselves booths, every one upon the roof of his house, and in their courts, and in the courts of the house of God, and in the street of the water gate, and in the street of the gate of Ephraim.¹⁷ 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.¹⁸ Also day by day, from the first day unto the last day, he read in the book of the law of God. And they kept the feast seven days; and on the eighth day was a solemn assembly, according unto the manner.

¹ For, behold, in those days, and in that time, when I shall bring again the captivity of Judah and Jerusalem,² I will also gather all nations, and will bring them down into the valley of Jehoshaphat, and will plead with them there for my people and for my heritage Israel, whom they have scattered among the nations, and parted my land.³ And they have cast lots for my people; and have given a boy for an harlot, and sold a girl for wine, that they might drink.⁴ Yea, and what have ye to do with me, O Tyre, and Zidon, and all the coasts of Palestine? will ye render me a recompence? and if ye recompense me, swiftly and speedily will I return your recompence upon your own head;⁵ Because ye have taken my silver and my gold, and have carried into your temples my goodly pleasant things:⁶ The children also of Judah and the children of Jerusalem have ye sold unto the Grecians, that ye might remove them far from their border.⁷ Behold, I will raise them out of the place whither ye have sold them, and will return your recompence upon your own head:⁸ And I will sell your sons and your daughters into the hand of the children of Judah, and they shall sell them to the Sabeans, to a people far off: for the LORD hath spoken it.⁹ Proclaim ye this among the Gentiles; Prepare war, wake up the mighty men, let all the men of war draw near; let them come up:¹⁰ Beat your plowshares into swords and your pruninghooks into spears: let the weak say, I am strong.¹¹ Assemble yourselves, and come, all ye heathen, and gather yourselves together round about: thither cause thy mighty ones to come down, O LORD.¹² Let the heathen be wakened, and come up to the valley of Jehoshaphat: for there will I sit to judge all the heathen round about.¹³ Put ye in the sickle, for the harvest is ripe: come, get you down; for the press is full, the fats overflow; for their wickedness is great.¹⁴ Multitudes, multitudes in the valley of decision: for the day of the LORD is near in the valley of decision.¹⁵ The sun and the moon shall be darkened, and the stars shall withdraw their shining.¹⁶ The LORD also shall roar out of Zion, and utter his voice from Jerusalem; and the heavens and the earth shall shake: but the LORD will be the hope of his people, and the strength of the children of Israel.¹⁷ So shall ye know that I am the LORD your God dwelling in Zion, my holy mountain: then shall Jerusalem be holy, and there shall no strangers pass through her any more.¹⁸ And it shall come to pass in that day, that the mountains shall drop down new wine, and the hills shall flow with milk, and all the rivers of Judah shall flow with waters, and a fountain shall come forth out of the house of the LORD, and shall water the valley of Shittim.¹⁹ Egypt shall be a desolation, and Edom shall be a desolate wilderness, for the violence against the children of Judah, because they have shed innocent blood in their land.²⁰ But Judah shall dwell for ever, and Jerusalem from generation to generation.²¹ For I will cleanse their blood that I have not cleansed: for the LORD dwelleth in Zion.

¹ Finally, brethren, pray for us, that the word of the Lord may have free course, and be glorified, even as it is with you:² And that we may be delivered from unreasonable and wicked men: for all men have not faith.³ But the Lord is faithful, who shall stablish you, and keep you from evil.⁴ And we have confidence in the Lord touching you, that ye both do and will do the things which we command you.⁵ And the Lord direct your hearts into the love of God, and into the patient waiting for Christ.⁶ Now we command you, brethren, in the name of our Lord Jesus Christ, that ye withdraw yourselves from every brother that walketh disorderly, and not after the tradition which he received of us.⁷ For yourselves know how ye ought to follow us: for we behaved not ourselves disorderly among you;⁸ Neither did we eat any man's bread for nought; but wrought with labour and travail night and day, that we might not be chargeable to any of you:⁹ Not because we have not power, but to make ourselves an ensample unto you to follow us.¹⁰ For even when we were with you, this we commanded you, that if any would not work, neither should he eat.¹¹ For we hear that there are some which walk among you disorderly, working not at all, but are busybodies.¹² Now them that are such we command and exhort by our Lord Jesus Christ, that with quietness they work, and eat their own bread.¹³ But ye, brethren, be not weary in well doing.¹⁴ And if any man obey not our word by this epistle, note that man, and have no company with him, that he may be ashamed.¹⁵ Yet count him not as an enemy, but admonish him as a brother.¹⁶ Now the Lord of peace himself give you peace always by all means. The Lord be with you all.¹⁷ The salutation of Paul with mine own hand, which is the token in every epistle: so I write.¹⁸ The grace of our Lord Jesus Christ be with you all. Amen.