The Lord's Joy

​A Reflection on the 1st Reading for January 26, 2025,
Sunday in Ordinary Time

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Nehemiah
8:2-4a, 5-6, 8-10

The priest Ezra brought the Law before the assembly, both men and women and all who could hear with understanding. This was on the first day of the seventh month. 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. The scribe Ezra stood on a wooden platform that had been made for the purpose.

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. Then Ezra blessed the Lord, the great God, and all the people answered, “Amen, Amen,” lifting up their hands. Then they bowed their heads and worshipped the Lord with their faces to the ground.

So the Levites read from the book, from the Law of God, with interpretation. They gave the sense, so that the people understood the reading. 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 Ezra 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.”

Pause. Pray. Reflect.

This reading includes one of my all-time favourite lines in the bible: “The joy of the Lord is your strength.” 


The book of Nehemiah recounts the temple reconstruction. Two generations before, the city of Jerusalem had been ransacked and the temple destroyed. That any Israelites still lived was itself a miracle. It was common at the time, after a military victory, for men and boys to be killed and for women and young children to be integrated into the conquering culture. Though many Israelites were able to flee, losing political power was equated with losing one’s gods. The exiled Israelites would have faced immense pressure to integrate into their new homelands and to leave behind the religious beliefs that had seemingly failed them.
 
Though most fell away, some Israelites were different. A precious few maintained their beliefs and practices of worship, even while most strayed. And when God sent the prophets Ezra and Nehemiah to restore the people to Himself, it’s no surprise that this reading includes a hefty dose of grief, even as they celebrate – they were so far from the Lord for so long, and most had been far from God’s law and God’s love for them for their entire lives. But Ezra reminds God’s people: “do not be grieved, for the joy of the Lord is your strength.” 
 
Like the Israelites, we separate ourselves from Him by our own sins and failures. Like the Israelites, He calls us back. He gave us the Good News to let us know that we can always find our home in Him. And when we grieve – whether we grieve our own sin or the time we spent apart from Him or those who have gone before us – he reminds us that His joy can be our strength. 
 
When my grandmother passed away, my grief was intense. She was a deeply religious woman, a matriarch who bore 14 children and dearly loved her dozens of grandchildren and great-grandchildren. After the funeral service, I expected to be overwhelmed with sadness, but instead God gave me strength through His joy at calling His faithful servant home to Him. There was a peace and a calm, not replacing the grief but overwhelming it, allowing our family to gather, share stories, and have many laughs together. I know well that she loved God and God loved her, and God’s delight in her makes it much easier to remember her with more joy than grief. 
 
What we have today is miraculous. We don’t have to wait generations for prophets to call us back. We don’t have to travel long distances or rebuild a destroyed temple. God has been so gracious to us, giving us Jesus, through whom we can return to Him anytime we like. We can bring Him our joy and our grief, our pain and our worry, and He will give us His own joy to strengthen us.

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Jenna Young

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