Ezra 2:1
in Ezra 2Now 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
8 notes on this verseA commentator
Albert Barnes1798–1870
Notes, Explanatory and Practical, on the Old and New Testaments (1832-1869)
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
each to his own town
on Ezra 2:1-2
The list answers the summons of Cyrus with a family and a town for each household. Each returns to his town, so the return restores residence as well as release. The form of the list follows the genealogies of 1 Chronicles 1 to 9, which did legal work for Israel.
The record, by era
The Medieval Church2 voices
Now these are the children of the province, who went up from the captivity, etc. He calls them the children of the province of Judea, not of Babylon. For to this belonged not only those who were transferred from it to Babylon, but also those …
And they returned to Jerusalem and Judah, etc. For when those who have strayed from the faith are freed from the power of Satan, along with those who have recently learned the faith, they return to Jerusalem of desired peace and to Judah of devoted …
The Puritans and the Awakening2 voices
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.
Now these are the children of the province,....
The Nineteenth Century1 voice
A commentator
Jamieson, Fausset & Brown1802–1910
Commentary Critical and Explanatory on the Whole Bible (1871)
proposed
children of the province--that is, Judea (Ezr 5:8), so called as being now reduced from an illustrious, independent, and powerful kingdom to an obscure, servile, tributary province of the Persian empire.
quarantine:debris (2026-07-29) — starts-lowercase
1 more voice on this verse
The Nineteenth Century1 voice
These are the children of the province - That is, of Judea; once a kingdom, and a flourishing nation; now a province, subdued, tributary, and ruined! Behold the goodness and severity of God! Some think Babylon is meant by the province; and that the children of the province means those Jews who were born in Babylon. But the first is most likely to be the meaning, for thus we find Judea styled, Ezr 5:8. Besides, the province is contradistinguished from Babylon even in this first verse, The children of the province - that had been carried away unto Babylon.
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.
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.
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 wordsEvery 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.
| Hebrew | Sound | Meaning | Word study | In the Bible |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| וְאֵ֣לֶּה׀ | veeleh | and these | H428 → | 746 times |
| בְּנֵ֣י | benei | [are] [the] children of | H1121 → | 4930 times |
| הַמְּדִינָ֗ה | hamedinah | the province | H4082 → | |
| הָֽעֹלִים֙ | haolim | who came up | H5927 → | 890 times |
| מִשְּׁבִ֣י | mishevi | from [the] captivity of | H7628 → | 49 times |
| הַגּוֹלָ֔ה | hagolah | the exile | H1473 → | 43 times |
| אֲשֶׁ֥ר | ʾasher | whom | H834 → | 5497 times |
| הֶגְלָ֛ה | heglah | he had taken into exile | H1540 → | |
| נְבוּכַדְנֶצַּ֥ר | nevukhadnetzor | Nebuchadnezzar | H5019 → | |
| מֶֽלֶךְ־ | melekh- | [the] king of | H4428 → | 2525 times |
| בָּבֶ֖ל | bavel | Babylon | H894 → | 262 times |
| לְבָבֶ֑ל | levavel | to Babylon | H894 → | 262 times |
| וַיָּשׁ֛וּבוּ | vaiyashuvu | and they returned | H7725 → | 1056 times |
| לִירוּשָׁלִַ֥ם | lirushalim | to Jerusalem | H3389 → | 643 times |
| וִֽיהוּדָ֖ה | vihudah | and Judah | H3063 → | 819 times |
| אִ֥ישׁ | ʾish | each | H376 → | 1663 times |
| לְעִירֽוֹ׃ | leiro | to own city his | H5892 → | 1090 times |
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.
The walk
8 stopsEach 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 1:1This 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,
- Daniel 9:1
Through
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.
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.
- Ezekiel 12:15–16
Where this verse is studied
On this page
Studies2
On this verse
On this chapter
About Ezra
Who and where
3 names in this verse with a page on the site.
- PersonPatriarchsJudahJacob's fourth son who pledges himself for Benjamin; the tribe that carries the scepter to Shiloh (49:10) and the line to Christ (…
- PlaceBabil Governorate (archaeological site)BabylonAncient Mesopotamian city and imperial capital; site of the Israelite exile and a recurring biblical symbol of worldly power.
- PlaceJerusalemJerusalemThe city David took from the Jebusites and made his capital, where Solomon built the temple, where Christ was crucified and rose,…
This page draws on Adam Clarke, Commentary on the Bible; Albert Barnes, Notes, Explanatory and Practical, on the Old and New Testaments (1832-1869); Bede, Commentary on Ezra and Nehemiah; Jamieson, Fausset & Brown, Commentary Critical and Explanatory on the Whole Bible; John Gill, Exposition of the Old Testament (1748-1763); Keil, The Books of Ezra, Nehemiah, and Esther and Matthew Henry, Commentary on the Whole Bible.