Ann Pierce Arnett  

Nehemiah 7:6,73; 8:1, 3, 9-10  

These are the people of the province who came up out of the captivity of those exiles whom King Nebuchadnezzar of Babylon had carried into exile; they returned to Jerusalem and Judah, each to his town…. the priests, the Levites, the gatekeepers, the singers, some of the people, the temple servants, and all Israel settled in their towns.   When the seventh month came—the people of Israel being settled in their towns—all the people gathered together into the square before the Water Gate. They told the scribe Ezra to bring the book of the law of Moses, which the Lord had given to Israel. He read from it facing the square before the Water Gate from early morning until midday, in the presence of the men and the women and those who could understand; and the ears of all the people were attentive to the book of the law.   And Nehemiah, who was the governor, and 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 or weep.” For all the people wept when they heard the words of the law.  Then he said to them, “Go your way, eat the fat and drink sweet wine and send portions of them to those for whom nothing is prepared, for this day is holy to our Lord; and do not be grieved, for the joy of the Lord is your strength.”

Reflection:

These past two years have been challenging.  So many losses.  So much conflict.  So many negative messages.  I know God is here with us but some days are so hard.  It feels like we have been carried off to a foreign land. But on one of my bluest days, my husband surprised me when he told me that the Monarch Butterflies had come home to Pacific Grove, California.  Last year they hadn’t returned at all; no one seemed to know why; but this year they were back.  Wow! If that could happen surely there were other signs of hope and joy around as well.  So I began keeping watch.  A cousin I hadn’t heard from in years called to see how we were doing. The rose I thought was dormant produced two pink blooms.  I don’t know why but each time these gifts showed up I found myself saying, “The joy of the Lord is my strength.”  

Where did that phrase originate?  It was so comforting; even when the day was hard I remembered: “the joy of the Lord is my strength.”  I thought it was from a hymn; then I thought it was probably scripture – I wasn’t sure.   So of course,  I googled it.  It’s in Nehemiah!

I’ve always loved that we get a head start each year with our Season of Advent.  When everyone else is counting down the days of the old year, we are living forward into the new one by celebrating the hope of the coming again of our Messiah.  When I think about Advent, I’d have to say that the Prophetic Book of Nehemiah in the Hebrew scriptures is certainly not the first thing that pops into my head.  No! Rather I think of a carol, “Joy to the World” or reading the second chapter of the Gospel of Luke: “In those days a decree went out from Emperor Augustus that all the world should be registered….” 

In my family I am the oldest child, the oldest grandchild, the oldest great-grandchild.  So…that meant that I never got to be the baby Jesus.  For as long as I can remember our family gathered together for a special meal during Advent and when there were enough of my cousins – which was pretty soon after I was born – we would dress up like shepherds and kings and angels in my grandparents, and aunts and uncles’ bathrobes and belts and scarves; and even the poor pets would be tied up with towels and bundles and cardboard crowns and halos would somehow find their way onto our many little heads and I….would read the verses from Luke 2 as everyone trooped into the living room and settled around the feet of the newest baby held in the lap of one of the grownups.  Every year we all loved the story of the miracle of the one who against all odds and in spite of all the powerful kings and Emperors of the world was sent by God to bring joy to the world.

When I began reading about the Books of Ezra and Nehemiah I discovered that they also record a story of joy – the  return of the Israelites to their home in Jerusalem and the rebuilding of the Temple. It is a story of impossible miracles and hope against all reason brought about by God’s steadfast love for his people.  No one would have predicted it.  And, amazingly their savior was the Persian King Cyrus who released the Jews from their exile when he conquered the Babylonians.

So I have been imagining Joseph telling Jesus that sacred story every year at the Feast of the Tabernacles; telling him about God’s steadfast love for his people and the miracle when Cyrus sent them back to their homes.  Perhaps by the time Jesus was ten he too had memorized the story and I can imagine all his cousins playing the parts of King Cyrus and Nehemiah and the Levites, the gatekeepers and the singers and all the grateful people. What a joyful memory for them.  Surely Mary and Joseph; Elizabeth and Zechariah beamed as they listened and watched their children growing up in the faith. Yes, times were hard but there were still so many miracles.

Prayer: 

God of the whole world, We are grateful when we remember your saving and steadfast love for us. The joy of the Lord is our strength.  Amen.