The Word and Prayer

Prayer in Nehemiah (15)

“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.” (Nehemiah 8:6, NKJV) 

This series has sought to feature prayer in the book of Nehemiah, particularly prayer for the work of the kingdom of God. This historical account of the return of the exiles has directed our attention to the work of building the wall around Jerusalem and to dependence upon God in its doing. We are reminded that all we accomplish, He has done for us. 

In chapter eight we continue to hear the incessant murmur of prayer. But as we arrive at that chapter we are greeted with the sound of a partner to prayer. The people of God are gathered to hear the public reading of the Word, in this case, the Torah. 

The scene is alive with interest. The people are not begrudgingly attending a church service to hear a 30-minute sermon. They are the ones who clamored to be fed with the Word of God. We are told that Ezra the scribe “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” (Neh. 8:3). 

Simply hearing the Word was not enough. The people sought to understand what was being read, and those who were spiritual leaders were among the people, helping them make sense of what was being read. It was as though these leaders were dieticians cutting the meat of God’s Word into bite size pieces and helping them to savor what they were being served. 

The Word found its mark, stimulating the people in worship to its Author. “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” (Neh. 8:6). 

A faith-fueled reading of our Bibles cannot but help to cause us to engage the God it reveals for who He is and what He has done and is doing. Our reading becomes a dialog rather than a monolog. It will provoke praise, confession, thanksgiving, lament, petition, introspection, and even the silence of awe in communion with our God. 

The truth of God’s Word will sink deep into our beings, assimilated by the digestive juices of prayer to our spiritual nourishment and growth in grace. Our very beings are affected, sustained, fortified, and changed. By the Spirit, that embraced Word will accomplish the purpose intended for us in it. 

The response of the people recorded is to bow their heads and worship God with their faces to the ground. Worship is perhaps the pinnacle of prayer in that it engages God first in His being and then in His benefactions. Ultimately, every blessing comes to us through Christ. He is the foundation and the focus of our prayer. 

But the Word of God not only rouses our souls by the adrenaline of praise, it nourishes our beings for the conduct of life. We are informed that the people wept when they heard the words of the Law, likely tears prompted by a godly sorrow for their sin and rebellion, made all the starker in light of God’s faithful mercies to them. 

In the face of their sin and shame, the counsel of their leaders was this: “Do not sorrow, for the joy of the LORD is your strength” (Neh. 8:10). 

What is the joy of the Lord? Is it joy given by God or joy found in God? Perhaps we are not made to choose one to the exclusion of the other. We are told in the New Testament book of Hebrews of Jesus, “who for the joy that was set before Him endured the cross, despising the shame, and has sat down at the right hand of the throne of God” (Heb. 12:2). 

It is the joy of our loving God to seek and to save us, to secure us as His very own. That joy is the fountain from which our joy flows. As the people of God in Nehemiah realized, despite their sin and infidelity, the love of God would not let them go. It is no wonder that the joy of the Lord is our strength for the journey. 

How do the Word of God and prayer work in tandem to dry our tears and give us strength? 

If you have found this meditation helpful, take a moment and give thanks to God. Then share what you learned with a friend. This is how the grace of God spreads (2 Cor. 4.15). 

Except as indicated, all Scriptures are taken from the New King James Version. © Copyright 1982 by Thomas Nelson, Inc. Used by permission. All rights reserved.