So stood the two companies of them that gave thanks in the house of God, and I, and the half of the rulers with me:
Nehemiah 12:40 belongs to the great thanksgiving day for the dedication of the restored and finished wall of Jerusalem after the return from the Babylonian captivity, in the restoration work at Jerusalem under Nehemiah. Nehemiah led that last reformation as a governor appointed of the Lord and given the burden of restoring Jerusalem, amid ups and downs, battles and conflicts, and defeats and victories. Before the companies stood in the house of God, the priests and the Levites purified themselves and purified the people, together with the gates and the wall, so that all was purified and prepared.
Two great processions of princes, priests, singers, and people went up on the wall at opposite points and marched on top of the wall until they joined at both ends and became one continuous company around the whole city, and then the whole united company stood still and gave thanks. The dedication was kept with gladness, thanksgiving, and singing with cymbals, psalteries, and harps, with the singers singing loud under Jezrahiah their overseer. Great sacrifices were offered that day, and there was rejoicing because God had made them rejoice with great joy, in which wives and children shared so that the joy of Jerusalem was heard even afar off.
The standing of the two thanksgiving companies shows the glorious success to which God carries His work notwithstanding every effort of adversaries to hinder, typical of His work in other ages and especially in the last days. It stands just before the final reform for better observance of the Sabbath. Thanksgiving is almost inseparably connected in Scripture with sacrifices and offerings, so that material giving is the really practical feature of Thanksgiving, and the example of Jerusalem is an excellent basis for a Thanksgiving program.
Nehemiah 12:40 belongs to the great thanksgiving day for the dedication of the restored and finished wall of Jerusalem after the return from the Babylonian captivity, in the restoration work at Jerusalem under Nehemiah. Nehemiah led that last reformation as a governor appointed of the Lord and given the burden of restoring Jerusalem, amid ups and downs, battles and conflicts, and defeats and victories. Before the companies stood in the house of God, the priests and the Levites purified themselves and purified the people, together with the gates and the wall, so that all was purified and prepared.
Two great processions of princes, priests, singers, and people went up on the wall at opposite points and marched on top of the wall until they joined at both ends and became one continuous company around the whole city, and then the whole united company stood still and gave thanks. The dedication was kept with gladness, thanksgiving, and singing with cymbals, psalteries, and harps, with the singers singing loud under Jezrahiah their overseer. Great sacrifices were offered that day, and there was rejoicing because God had made them rejoice with great joy, in which wives and children shared so that the joy of Jerusalem was heard even afar off.
The standing of the two thanksgiving companies shows the glorious success to which God carries His work notwithstanding every effort of adversaries to hinder, typical of His work in other ages and especially in the last days. It stands just before the final reform for better observance of the Sabbath. Thanksgiving is almost inseparably connected in Scripture with sacrifices and offerings, so that material giving is the really practical feature of Thanksgiving, and the example of Jerusalem is an excellent basis for a Thanksgiving program.