Skip to content
mannafest.faith
Read

Ezra 2:1

in Ezra 2

Now these are the people of the province who came up from the captivity of the exiles carried away to Babylon by Nebuchadnezzar its king. They returned to Jerusalem and Judah, each to his own town,

BSB

The same verse in ASV and KJV ▾

ASV

Now these are the children of the province, that went up out of the captivity of those that had been carried away, whom Nebuchadnezzar the king of Babylon had carried away unto Babylon, and that returned unto Jerusalem and Judah, every one unto his city;

KJV

Now these are the children of the province that went up out of the captivity, of those which had been carried away, whom Nebuchadnezzar the king of Babylon had carried away unto Babylon, and came again unto Jerusalem and Judah, every one unto his city;

⋯

This verse in Ezra 2

Commentary

3 notes on this verse
The province - Judaea was no longer a kingdom, but a mere “province” of Persia. “The children of the province” are the Israelites who returned to Palestine, as distinct from those who remained in Babylonia and Persia. Every one unto his city - That is, to the city whereto his forefathers had belonged. Of course, in the few cases where this was not known Ezr 2:59-62, the plan could not be carried out. Two other copies of the following list have come down to us - one in Neh. 7:7-69, and the other in 1 Esdras 5:8-

This site's exposition

the province that went up

on Ezra 2:1-2

The list answers the summons of Cyrus with a name and a city for each returning family, Zerubbabel and Jeshua the high priest named first among ten leaders. Every one unto his city ties the return to residence and not merely to release, an answer in kind to the exile that once took them from those same cities. The list's own form echoes the genealogical registers of 1 Chronicles 1 to 9, which did legal work for Israel before the exile and does the same work again here.

The record, by era

The Puritans and the Awakening1 voice

A commentator

Matthew Henry

1662–1714

Commentary on the Whole Bible (1710)

That they are called children of the province. Judah, which had been an illustrious kingdom, to which other kingdoms had been made provinces, subject to it and dependent on it, was now itself made a province, to receive laws and commissions from the king of Persia and to be accountable to him. See how sin diminishes and debases a nation, which righteousness would exalt.

How the passage was read

What the Jewish commentators add

And these are the people of the province These are the Children of Israel who are from the province of the land of Israel, who are now coming up to Jerusalem from the captivity that is in the exile.
Rashi: France, 1040–1105 · Rashi on Ezra 2:1:1, via Sefaria, The Judaica Press complete Tanach with Rashi, translated by A. J. Rosenberg
1 more on this passage, in their own words ▾
[Those] who came these people of the province, in the beginning, when they went into exile from Israel to Babylon with Zerubbabel etc.
Rashi: France, 1040–1105 · Rashi on Ezra 2:2:1, via Sefaria, The Judaica Press complete Tanach with Rashi, translated by A. J. Rosenberg

This section is reception history: how the passage was read and kept in the Jewish tradition. Where a reading parts from an essential of the Christian faith, the section says so at that point.

Texts and citation data: Sefaria; each excerpt follows its version’s licence. 4 further sources are cited on this chapter that carry no English text this site may quote or only restate the verse.

The words behind it

17 Hebrew words

Every Hebrew word of this verse in the order it stands, with what it means and the door to its own study. The last column counts the times a word stands in the whole Bible: the rarer the word, the more the places it appears belong together.

  • וְאֵ֣לֶּה׀and these

    veelehH428 →746 times

  • בְּנֵ֣י[are] [the] children of

    beneiH1121 →4930 times

  • הַמְּדִינָ֗הthe province

    hamedinahH4082 →

  • הָֽעֹלִים֙who came up

    haolimH5927 →890 times

  • מִשְּׁבִ֣יfrom [the] captivity of

    misheviH7628 →49 times

  • הַגּוֹלָ֔הthe exile

    hagolahH1473 →43 times

  • אֲשֶׁ֥רwhom

    ʾasherH834 →5497 times

  • הֶגְלָ֛הhe had taken into exile

    heglahH1540 →

  • נְבוּכַדְנֶצַּ֥רNebuchadnezzar

    nevukhadnetzorH5019 →

  • מֶֽלֶךְ־[the] king of

    melekh-H4428 →2525 times

  • בָּבֶ֖לBabylon

    bavelH894 →262 times

  • לְבָבֶ֑לto Babylon

    levavelH894 →262 times

  • וַיָּשׁ֛וּבוּand they returned

    vaiyashuvuH7725 →1056 times

  • לִירוּשָׁלִַ֥םto Jerusalem

    lirushalimH3389 →643 times

  • וִֽיהוּדָ֖הand Judah

    vihudahH3063 →819 times

  • אִ֥ישׁeach

    ʾishH376 →1663 times

  • לְעִירֽוֹ׃to own city his

    leiroH5892 →1090 times

A shaded row is a word that stands 400 times or fewer in the Bible.

Related verses

18 in all, six open

The number beside each verse is how many compiled reference works tie it to this one. The strongest six stand open.

2 Kings 25:11Then Nebuzaradan captain of the guard carried into exile the people who remained in the city, along with the deserters who had defected to the king of Babylon and the rest of the population.6 works2 Kings 24:14–16He carried into exile all Jerusalem—all the commanders and mighty men of valor, all the craftsmen and metalsmiths—ten thousand captives in all. Only the poorest people of the land remained.5 worksNehemiah 7:6–73These are the people of the province who came up from the captivity of the exiles carried away to Babylon by Nebuchadnezzar its king. They returned to Jerusalem and Judah, each to his own town,4 worksNehemiah 11:3These are the heads of the provinces who settled in Jerusalem. (In the villages of Judah, however, each lived on his own property in their towns—the Israelites, priests, Levites, temple servants, and descendants of Solomon’s servants—3 worksJeremiah 39:1–18In the ninth year of Zedekiah king of Judah, in the tenth month, Nebuchadnezzar king of Babylon marched against Jerusalem with his entire army and laid siege to the city.2 worksEsther 1:1This is what happened in the days of Xerxes, who reigned over 127 provinces from India to Cush.2 works
The other 12 cross-references, with their words ▾
Esther 1:11to bring Queen Vashti before him, wearing her royal crown, to display her beauty to the people and officials. For she was beautiful to behold.2 worksJeremiah 52:1–34Zedekiah was twenty-one years old when he became king, and he reigned in Jerusalem eleven years. His mother’s name was Hamutal daughter of Jeremiah; she was from Libnah.2 worksLamentations 1:3Judah has gone into exile under affliction and harsh slavery; she dwells among the nations but finds no place to rest. All her pursuers have overtaken her in the midst of her distress.2 worksEzra 6:2And a scroll was found in the fortress of Ecbatana, in the province of Media, with the following written on it: Memorandum:2 worksEsther 1:3In the third year of his reign, Xerxes held a feast for all his officials and servants. The military leaders of Persia and Media were there, along with the nobles and princes of the provinces.2 worksZephaniah 2:7The coast will belong to the remnant of the house of Judah; there they will find pasture. They will lie down in the evening among the houses of Ashkelon, for the LORD their God will attend to them and restore their captives.2 worksEzra 5:8Let it be known to the king that we went into the province of Judah, to the house of the great God. The people are rebuilding it with large stones, and placing timbers in the walls. This work is being carried out diligently and is prospering in their hands.2 works2 Chronicles 36:1–23Then the people of the land took Jehoahaz son of Josiah and made him king in Jerusalem in place of his father.2 worksLamentations 4:22O Daughter of Zion, your punishment is complete; He will not prolong your exile. But He will punish your iniquity, O Daughter of Edom; He will expose your sins.2 worksEsther 8:9At once the royal scribes were summoned, and on the twenty-third day of the third month (the month of Sivan), they recorded all of Mordecai’s orders to the Jews and to the satraps, governors, and princes of the 127 provinces from India to Cush—writing to each province in its own script, to every people in their own language, and to the Jews in their own script and language.2 worksEsther 1:8By order of the king, no limit was placed on the drinking, and every official of his household was to serve each man whatever he desired.2 worksEzra 8:35Then the exiles who had returned from captivity sacrificed burnt offerings to the God of Israel: 12 bulls for all Israel, 96 rams, 77 lambs, and a sin offering of 12 male goats. All this was a burnt offering to the LORD.2 works

The walk

8 stops

Each card is a verse this one points to, and under it the verses that one points to in turn. Where several paths arrive at the same place, that place is listed first: the text keeps returning to it.

  • Through

    Esther 1:1

    This is what happened in the days of Xerxes, who reigned over 127 provinces from India to Cush.

    it leads to

    • Daniel 9:1

      In the first year of Darius son of Xerxes, a Mede by descent, who was made ruler over the kingdom of the Chaldeans—

    • Ezra 4:6

      At the beginning of the reign of Xerxes, an accusation was lodged against the people of Judah and Jerusalem.

    • Esther 8:9

      At once the royal scribes were summoned, and on the twenty-third day of the third month (the month of Sivan), they recorded all of Mordecai’s orders to the Jews and to the satraps, governors,…

    • Daniel 6:1

      Now it pleased Darius to appoint 120 satraps to rule throughout the kingdom,

    • Esther 9:30

      And Mordecai sent letters with words of peace and truth to all the Jews in the 127 provinces of the kingdom of Xerxes,

  • Through

    2 Kings 25:11

    Then Nebuzaradan captain of the guard carried into exile the people who remained in the city, along with the deserters who had defected to the king of Babylon and the rest of the population.

    it leads to

    • Ezekiel 12:15–16

      And they will know that I am the LORD, when I disperse them among the nations and scatter them throughout the countries.

    • 2 Chronicles 36:20

      Those who escaped the sword were carried by Nebuchadnezzar into exile in Babylon, and they became servants to him and his sons until the kingdom of Persia came to power.

    • Jeremiah 52:12

      On the tenth day of the fifth month, in the nineteenth year of Nebuchadnezzar’s reign over Babylon, Nebuzaradan captain of the guard, a servant of the king of Babylon, entered Jerusalem.

About Ezra

Ezra Kneels in Prayer, Gustave Doré, 1866. Public domain.
Ezra Kneels in Prayer, Gustave Doré, 1866. Public domain.
Ezra: the study guide →Read Ezra 2 →

This page draws on Albert Barnes, Notes, Explanatory and Practical, on the Old and New Testaments (1832-1869); Keil, The Books of Ezra, Nehemiah, and Esther and Matthew Henry, Commentary on the Whole Bible.

Read on in Ezra 2 →