Nehemiah 8 Footnotes

8:1 Ezra’s abrupt appearance at this point and the shift to third person reporting has led some scholars to contend that some portion of this material (8:1–10:39) was added to Nehemiah’s memoir by a later editor and that these events actually preceded Nehemiah’s presence in Judah. This is probably partially correct. Most likely this material was placed here by the author of Ezra/Nehemiah. However, Neh 8:9 includes Nehemiah in this event. It seems preferable to conclude that Ezra was active during Nehemiah’s governorship, and that this material was inserted at this point because it fits in the actual chronology of the events of the return. Nehemiah’s memoir notes that the wall was completed on the “twenty-fifth day of the month Elul,” which was the sixth month in the Jewish calendar (6:15). The covenant renewal ceremony began on the first day of the seventh month (8:2).

8:3 Some scholars argue that much of the OT Scriptures were written or obtained their current form during the postexilic period. The reverence that the people show for the Scriptures in this public reading dictates against this argument. Their response suggests that the people had a long-standing knowledge of and love for their sacred writings.

8:14 Instructions for observance of the Festival of Shelters are found in Lv 23:34-42. This passage in Nehemiah attributes these instructions to Moses, providing further support for an early date for the Pentateuch and its Mosaic authorship.