Ezra 7:14
in Ezra 7You are sent by the king and his seven counselors to evaluate Judah and Jerusalem according to the Law of your God, which is in your hand.
BSB
The same verse in ASV and KJV ▾
ASV
Forasmuch as thou art sent of the king and his seven counsellors, to inquire concerning Judah and Jerusalem, according to the law of thy God which is in thy hand,
KJV
Forasmuch as thou art sent of the king, and of his seven counsellors, to enquire concerning Judah and Jerusalem, according to the law of thy God which is in thine hand;
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This verse in Ezra 7
Commentary
9 notes on this verseFor you have been sent from the presence of the king and his seven advisors, etc. And in the book of Esther, we read that it was the custom of the Persian kings to use the counsel of seven wise men in all matters to …
This site's exposition
This is the text of the letter
on Ezra 7:11-14
The king's own letter follows, and verses 12 to 26 run in Aramaic. Artaxerxes styles himself king of kings, a title Adam Clarke notes was partly true of the Persian throne. Ezra is sent by the king to evaluate Judah and Jerusalem by the Law in his hand.
This site's exposition
which is in your hand
The king makes the Law of Ezra's God the measure of the inquiry into Judah and Jerusalem. He calls it a law in Ezra's hand, and verse 25 speaks in the same way of the wisdom of your God which you possess. Verse 6 calls it the Law of Moses.
The record, by era
The Puritans and the Awakening3 voices
According, &c. - To make inquiry into all abuses and deviations from your law, and to redress them. Which - Which is now and always in thine hand, being the matter of thy daily study.
Forasmuch as thou art sent of the king, and of his seven counsellors,....
The rule of his enquiry was to be the law of his God, which was in his hand. He must enquire whether the Jews, in their religion, had and did according to that law--whether the temple was built, the priesthood was settled, and the sacrifices were offered conformably to the divine appointment.
The Nineteenth Century2 voices
A commentator
Jamieson, Fausset & Brown1802–1910
Commentary Critical and Explanatory on the Whole Bible (1871)
Secondly, he was empowered to carry a large donation in money, partly from the royal treasury and partly raised by voluntary contributions among his countrymen, to create a fund out of which to make suitable provision for maintaining the regular worship of God in Jerusalem (Ezr 7:16, 17).
His seven counsellors - It is very likely that the privy counsel of the king consisted of seven persons simply. The names of these seven counsellors or chamberlains may be found in the book of Esther, Est 1:10.
1 more voice on this verse
The Nineteenth Century1 voice
A commentator
Albert Barnes1798–1870
Notes, Explanatory and Practical, on the Old and New Testaments (1832-1869)
proposed
Seven counselors - Herodotus relates that there were seven families pre-eminent in Persia, those of the seven conspirators against the Pseudo-Smerdis (Ezr 4:7 note); and it is reasonable to suppose that the heads of these families formed the special council of the king; the “Achaemenidae,” or royal family, being represented by the head of the branch next in succession to that of the reigning monarch (see the marginal reference).
How the passage was read
What the Jewish commentators add
Because of this Because of this, you are sent from the king and his seven advisors who saw the king’s face.
1 more on this passage, in their own words ▾
An order is issued by me The authorization emanates from me that whoever of Israel, of the priests, or of the Levites, whose heart prompts him to go to Jerusalem, may go with you.
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. 3 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 |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| כָּל־ | kol- | as to | ||
| קֳבֵ֗ל | kovel | because | H6903 → | 29 times |
| דִּי֩ | di | that | H1768 → | 345 times |
| מִן־ | min- | from | H4481 → | 109 times |
| קֳדָ֨ם | kodam | before | H6925 → | 42 times |
| מַלְכָּ֜א | malka' | king the | H4430 → | 180 times |
| וְשִׁבְעַ֤ת | veshivat | and seven | H7655 → | |
| יָעֲטֹ֙הִי֙ | yaatohi | counselors his | H3272 → | |
| שְׁלִ֔יחַ | sheliach | [you are] sent | H7972 → | 14 times |
| לְבַקָּרָ֥א | levakara' | to enquire | H1240 → | 5 times |
| עַל־ | ʾal- | on | H5922 → | 104 times |
| יְה֖וּד | yehud | Judah | H3061 → | 7 times |
| וְלִֽירוּשְׁלֶ֑ם | velirushelem | and to Jerusalem | H3390 → | 26 times |
| בְּדָ֥ת | bedat | in [the] law of | H1882 → | 14 times |
| אֱלָהָ֖ךְ | ʾelahakh | God your | H426 → | 95 times |
| דִּ֥י | di | which | H1768 → | 345 times |
| בִידָֽךְ׃ | vidakh | [is] in hand your | H3028 → | 17 times |
כָּל־as to
kol-
קֳבֵ֗לbecause
kovelH6903 →29 times
דִּי֩that
diH1768 →345 times
מִן־from
min-H4481 →109 times
קֳדָ֨םbefore
kodamH6925 →42 times
מַלְכָּ֜אking the
malka'H4430 →180 times
וְשִׁבְעַ֤תand seven
veshivatH7655 →
יָעֲטֹ֙הִי֙counselors his
yaatohiH3272 →
שְׁלִ֔יחַ[you are] sent
sheliachH7972 →14 times
לְבַקָּרָ֥אto enquire
levakara'H1240 →5 times
עַל־on
ʾal-H5922 →104 times
יְה֖וּדJudah
yehudH3061 →7 times
וְלִֽירוּשְׁלֶ֑םand to Jerusalem
velirushelemH3390 →26 times
בְּדָ֥תin [the] law of
bedatH1882 →14 times
אֱלָהָ֖ךְGod your
ʾelahakhH426 →95 times
דִּ֥יwhich
diH1768 →345 times
בִידָֽךְ׃[is] in hand your
vidakhH3028 →17 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
Isaiah 8:20To the law and to the testimony! If they do not speak according to this word, they have no light of dawn.
it leads to
- 2 Peter 1:19
We also have the word of the prophets as confirmed beyond doubt. And you will do well to pay attention to it, as to a lamp shining in a dark place, until the day…
- 2 Timothy 3:15–17
From infancy you have known the Holy Scriptures, which are able to make you wise for salvation through faith in Christ Jesus.
- Psalms 119:130
The unfolding of Your words gives light; it informs the simple.
- John 5:39
You pore over the Scriptures because you presume that by them you possess eternal life. These are the very words that testify about Me,
- Acts 17:11
Now the Bereans were more noble-minded than the Thessalonians, for they received the message with great eagerness and examined the Scriptures every day to see if these teachings were true.
- 2 Peter 1:19
Through
Daniel 2:47The king said to Daniel, “Your God is truly the God of gods and Lord of kings, the Revealer of Mysteries, since you were able to reveal this mystery.”
it leads to
- Daniel 2:22
He reveals the deep and hidden things; He knows what lies in darkness, and light dwells with Him.
- Daniel 2:28
But there is a God in heaven who reveals mysteries, and He has made known to King Nebuchadnezzar what will happen in the latter days. Your dream and the visions that came into your…
- Amos 3:7
Surely the Lord GOD does nothing without revealing His plan to His servants the prophets.
- Daniel 2:22
Where this verse is studied
On this page
Studies4
On this verse
On this chapter
About Ezra
Who and where
2 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 (…
- 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 9 works. Open the list of works
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; Berean Standard Bible, Ezra 7; Jamieson Fausset and Brown, Commentary Critical and Explanatory on the Whole Bible; Jamieson, Fausset & Brown, Commentary Critical and Explanatory on the Whole Bible; John Gill, Exposition of the Old Testament (1748-1763); John Wesley, Explanatory Notes upon the Old Testament and Matthew Henry, Commentary on the Whole Bible.