Volume 47   Number 11                                                                       July 2005

The apostle Paul exhorted his son in the faith: “Till I come, give attendance to reading, to exhortation, to doctrine.” (1 Timothy 4:13, KJV) In one translation the same verse is rendered, “Till I come, apply yourself to public reading, preaching, and teaching.” (Twentieth Century New Testament) When we come together in the church, different acts of worship take place in order to glorify God and to edify the members of the Lord’s Body. One of these acts, which will be considered in this article (and next month, too), is the public reading of the Holy Scriptures. While prayer is man speaking to God, reading the Bible is God speaking to man!

Reading God’s Word to God’s people is a practice that goes way back before the coming of Christ. When Israel was afraid to listen directly to the voice of God at Mt. Sinai (Exodus 20:18,19), we find Moses reading the ‘words of the LORD’, or the ‘book of the covenant’ to the children of Israel in Exodus 24:3,4,7: “And Moses came and told the people all the words of the LORD, and all the judgments: and all the people answered with one voice, and said, All the words which the LORD hath said will we do. 4 And Moses wrote all the words of the LORD, and rose up early in the morning, and built an altar under the hill, and twelve pillars, according to the twelve tribes of Israel. 7 And he took the book of the covenant, and read in the audience of the people: and they said, ‘All that the LORD hath said will we do, and be obedient.’ ” Though Israel did not live up to their good intentions to keep the Word of God, we still see from this case how important it was for the people to not only hear what was said, but also to make a commitment to do what Jehovah said. For anyone who may be waiting for God to speak directly to them: Better listen now to what He has already said in the Bible!

Nearly forty years later, a reminder was given to Israel at the second reading of the Law recorded in the book of Deuteronomy (second law, or mishneh; the iteration, or doubling of the Law) At that time God makes a further requirement on generations to come: “And Moses commanded them, saying, At the end of every seven years, in the solemnity of the year of release, in the feast of tabernacles, when all Israel is come to appear before the LORD thy God in the place which he shall choose, you shall read this law before all Israel in their hearing. Gather the people together, men, and women, and children, and thy stranger that is within thy gates, that they may hear, and that they may learn, and fear the LORD your God, and observe to do all the words of this law: And that their children, which have not known any thing, may hear, and learn to fear the LORD your God, as long as ye live in the land whither ye go over Jordan to possess it.” (Deuteronomy 31:10-13) Reading the Law of God would have a powerful effect on His people, especially the children “which have not known anything.” Is there anything better for our children to listen to?

After inheriting the Land of Promise, Israel once again heard the public reading of the Law under the leadership of Joshua. “And afterward he read all the words of the law, the blessings and cursings, according to all that is written in the book of the law. There was not a word of all that Moses commanded, which Joshua read not before all the congregation of Israel, with the women, and the little ones, and the strangers that were conversant among them.” (Joshua 8:34,35) So great was their regard for God’s Word on that occasion that they even made a stone copy (v.32) of the Law! We do not have to go to such effort to have our own copies of His Word, but do we truly appreciate the treasure we have in the Bible?

It is not hard to see why Paul would remind Timothy to pay attention to the reading of the Scriptures: History shows us how easily the Word of God is neglected and put aside! In the story of King Josiah, we see how not only the public reading of God’s Word had been abandoned, but even the King no longer had his own copy of the Law, as required by the Law (Deuteronomy 17:18-20)! When a copy of the Law was found and given to King Josiah, the Bible tells us that he tore his clothing in anguish and mourning! How far God’s people had drifted from the Law of God! But good King Josiah repented and sought the Lord as a result of hearing God’s powerful Word. He abolished the pervasive idolatry of the day, and made necessary reforms to the Kingdom of Judah. The same Word that motivated Josiah to such drastic reformation was then passed along to the people of God: “And the king went up into the house of the LORD, and all the men of Judah and all the inhabitants of Jerusalem with him, and the priests, and the prophets, and all the people, both small and great: and he read in their ears all the words of the book of the covenant which was found in the house of the LORD.” (2 Kings 23:2; See also 2 Chronicles 34)

After the Babylonian captivity, the Jews once again took their place in the land Jehovah had promised to Abraham hundreds of years before. Much restoration was required in Jerusalem to rebuild the temple and the city wall. But the public reading of the Holy Scriptures was even more important to the revitalizing of the nation, so we read in Nehemiah 8:1-12 of that great day when God’s Word was once again proclaimed by Ezra and his fellow Levites in Mount Zion! This passage is printed on the next page (minus verse four). Take a moment to read the account again to see how the Word was read to all who could understand; how it was read distinctly in such a way as to make the sense known to the hearers so they could comprehend what was being read. Note how the people first wept, then rejoiced when they heard the Word! Nehemiah, Ezra, and the Levites proclaimed this event a day of joy and feasting in Jerusalem! What a happy condition we are in when we get to hear the Word of God!

The faith that saves our souls comes from ‘hearing’ the Word of God (Romans 10:17). Not only is it good to read the Bible in private, we must also pay attention to the public reading of the Scriptures. When God speaks, let us be all ears!

2 So Ezra the priest brought the Law before the assembly of men and women and all who could hear with understanding on the first day of the seventh month.

3 Then he read from it in the open square that was in front of the Water Gate from morning until midday, before the men and women and those who could understand; and the ears of all the people were attentive to the Book of the Law.

5 And Ezra opened the book in the sight of all the people, for he was standing above all the people; and when he opened it, all the people stood up.

6 And Ezra blessed the LORD, the great God. Then all the people answered, ‘Amen, Amen!’ while lifting up their hands. And they bowed their heads and worshiped the LORD with their faces to the ground.

7 Also Jeshua, Bani, Sherebiah, Jamin, Akkub, Shabbethai, Hodijah, Maaseiah, Kelita, Azariah, Jozabad, Hanan, Pelaiah, and the Levites, helped the people to understand the Law; and the people stood in their place.

8 So they read distinctly from the book, in the Law of God; and they gave the sense, and helped them to understand the reading.

9 ¶ And Nehemiah, who was the governor, Ezra the priest and scribe, and the Levites who taught the people said to all the people, ‘This day is holy to the LORD your God; do not mourn nor weep.’ For all the people wept, when they heard the words of the Law.

10 Then he said to them, ‘Go your way, eat the fat, drink the sweet, and send portions to those for whom nothing is prepared; for this day is holy to our LORD. Do not sorrow, for the joy of the LORD is your strength.’

11 So the Levites quieted all the people, saying, ‘Be still, for the day is holy; do not be grieved.’

12 And all the people went their way to eat and drink, to send portions and rejoice greatly, because they understood the words that were declared to them.” (Nehemiah 8:1-3;5-12 NKJ)