The Joy of Religion
R. J. Campbell. Nehemiah 8:9-10 And Nehemiah, which is the Tirshatha, and Ezra the priest the scribe, and the Levites that taught the people, said to all the people… Christ never means us to stay in shadowland; He desires us to substitute His joy for the less permanent joys of earth; and it should be our wish to please Him by apprehending the deep and solemn joyousness which is the very soul of His religion. It is joy to know Christ, to love Him, to serve Him, to follow Him. It is joy to meditate on the Divine grace in redemption; it is joy to know that we are being sanctified; it is joy to share with others our spiritual heritage. It is joy to look forward to that fair season when conflict and struggle shall be over, and the best we have loved on earth will reunite with us in a joy that shall never be broken or shadowed any more. Compared with this vision, what has the world to offer? No kind of gratification that the world gives over lasts very long. There is a law of diminishing returns in our earthly joys. Our tastes alter, our wishes change, all pleasures and successes pall in time. There is, as Professor Romanes has said, only one joy which, instead of diminishing, continually increases in intensity and power while life remains: it is the joy of religion. A grand, exalted sentiment it is, but never an unreal or fictitious one. (R. J. Campbell.) Parallel Verses KJV: And Nehemiah, which is the Tirshatha, and Ezra the priest the scribe, and the Levites that taught the people, said unto all the people, This day is holy unto the LORD your God; mourn not, nor weep. For all the people wept, when they heard the words of the law. WEB: Nehemiah, who was the governor, and Ezra the priest the scribe, and the Levites who taught the people, said to all the people, "This day is holy to Yahweh your God. Don't mourn, nor weep." For all the people wept, when they heard the words of the law.