Nehemiah 11:24
in Nehemiah 11Pethahiah son of Meshezabel, a descendant of Zerah son of Judah, was the king’s agent in every matter concerning the people.
BSB
The same verse in ASV and KJV ▾
ASV
And Pethahiah the son of Meshezabel, of the children of Zerah the son of Judah, was at the king’s hand in all matters concerning the people.
KJV
And Pethahiah the son of Meshezabeel, of the children of Zerah the son of Judah, was at the king’s hand in all matters concerning the people.
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This verse in Nehemiah 11
Commentary
8 notes on this verseAnd Pethahiah the son of Meshezabeel, of the children of Zerah, the son of Judah,.... The twin brother of Pharez, Gen 38:30 was at the king's hand in all matters concerning the people; to speak for them to the king, as Jarchi; when they had a favour to ask of him, a petition to present to him, he delivered it for them, and by him the king returned the answer.
This site's exposition
the residue of Israel
on Nehemiah 11:20-24
The residue of Israel, priests, and Levites kept their ancestral holdings in the towns of Judah while the Nethinims, the temple's lowest servants, dwelt on Ophel close by the wall of the house they served, under their own overseers Ziha and Gispa. The singers drew a certain portion for every day by the king's own commandment, the Persian court funding Israel's worship much as the hand of God refrain has already shown Artaxerxes funding Ezra's caravan. Pethahiah, of the line of Zerah, stood at the king's hand in all matters concerning the people, a Jew holding the empire's own seat of arbitration over his countrymen.
The record, by era
The Puritans and the Awakening3 voices
He is said to be at the king's hand, or on the king's part, in all matters concerning the people, to determine controversies that arose between the king's officers and his subjects, to see that what was due to the king from the people was duly paid in and what was allowed by the king for the temple service was duly paid out, and happy it was for the Jews that one of themselves was in this post.
9 And Joel the son of Zichri was their overseer: and Judah the son of Senuah was second over the city. 10 Of the priests: Jedaiah the son of Joiarib, Jachin. 11 Seraiah the son of Hilkiah, the son of Meshullam, the son of Zadok, the son of Meraioth, the son of Ahitub, was the ruler of the house of God.
quarantine:scripture (2026-07-29) — verbatim-scripture
Was, &c. - Or, on the king's part, to determine civil causes and controversies between man and man, by the laws of that kingdom; between the king and people; as in matters of tribute, or grievances.
The Nineteenth Century2 voices
A commentator
Jamieson, Fausset & Brown1802–1910
Commentary Critical and Explanatory on the Whole Bible (1871)
proposed
Pethahiah . . . was at the king's hand in all matters concerning the people--This person was entrusted with judicial power, either for the interest, or by the appointment, of the Persian monarch, and his duty consisted either in adjusting cases of civil dispute, or in regulating fiscal concerns.
Pethahiah - was at the king’s hand - He was the governor appointed by the Persian king over the Jewish nation in those matters in which the civil government interfered with Jewish concerns. He no doubt fixed, levied, and received the tribute.
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
It is difficult to say what office Pethahiah filled. So far as we know, the only regular officers under the Persian system of government were the satrap, the subsatrap, the permanent royal secretary, the commandant, and the occasional commissary.
The words behind it
12 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 |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| וּפְתַֽחְיָ֨ה | ufetachyah | and Pethahiah | H6611 → | |
| בֶּן־ | ben- | [the] son of | H1121 → | 4930 times |
| מְשֵֽׁיזַבְאֵ֜ל | mesheizavel | Meshezabel | H4898 → | 3 times |
| מִבְּנֵי־ | mibenei- | one of [the] descendants of | H1121 → | 4930 times |
| זֶ֤רַח | zerach | Zerah | H2226 → | |
| בֶּן־ | ben- | [the] son of | H1121 → | 4930 times |
| יְהוּדָה֙ | yehudah | Judah | H3063 → | 819 times |
| לְיַ֣ד | leyad | [was] to [the] side of | H3027 → | 1618 times |
| הַמֶּ֔לֶךְ | hamelekh | the king | H4428 → | 2525 times |
| לְכָל־ | lekhol | to every | H3605 → | 5413 times |
| דָּבָ֖ר | davar | matter | H1697 → | 1440 times |
| לָעָֽם׃ | laam | of the people | H5971 → | 1873 times |
וּפְתַֽחְיָ֨הand Pethahiah
ufetachyahH6611 →
בֶּן־[the] son of
ben-H1121 →4930 times
מְשֵֽׁיזַבְאֵ֜לMeshezabel
mesheizavelH4898 →3 times
מִבְּנֵי־one of [the] descendants of
mibenei-H1121 →4930 times
זֶ֤רַחZerah
zerachH2226 →
בֶּן־[the] son of
ben-H1121 →4930 times
יְהוּדָה֙Judah
yehudahH3063 →819 times
לְיַ֣ד[was] to [the] side of
leyadH3027 →1618 times
הַמֶּ֔לֶךְthe king
hamelekhH4428 →2525 times
לְכָל־to every
lekholH3605 →5413 times
דָּבָ֖רmatter
davarH1697 →1440 times
לָעָֽם׃of the people
laamH5971 →1873 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
1 Chronicles 18:17Benaiah son of Jehoiada was over the Cherethites and Pelethites; and David’s sons were chief officials at the king’s side.
it leads to
- 2 Samuel 8:18
Benaiah son of Jehoiada was over the Cherethites and Pelethites; and David’s sons were priestly leaders.
- 2 Samuel 8:18
Through
Genesis 38:30Then his brother came out with the scarlet thread around his wrist, and he was named Zerah.
it leads to
- 1 Chronicles 9:6
From the Zerahites: Jeuel and 690 relatives.
- Matthew 1:3
Judah was the father of Perez and Zerah by Tamar, Perez the father of Hezron, and Hezron the father of Ram.
- 1 Chronicles 2:4
Tamar, Judah’s daughter-in-law, bore to him Perez and Zerah. Judah had five sons in all.
- 1 Chronicles 9:6
Through
Numbers 26:20These were the descendants of Judah by their clans: The Shelanite clan from Shelah, the Perezite clan from Perez, and the Zerahite clan from Zerah.
it leads to
- Genesis 46:12
The sons of Judah: Er, Onan, Shelah, Perez, and Zerah; but Er and Onan died in the land of Canaan. The sons of Perez: Hezron and Hamul.
- Genesis 46:12
Through
1 Chronicles 23:28but their duty was to assist the descendants of Aaron with the service of the house of the LORD, being responsible for the courts and chambers, the purification of all the holy things, and…
it leads to
- 2 Chronicles 35:3–6
To the Levites who taught all Israel and were holy to the LORD, Josiah said: “Put the holy ark in the temple built by Solomon son of David king of Israel. It is not…
- 2 Chronicles 31:11
Then Hezekiah commanded them to prepare storerooms in the house of the LORD, and they did so.
- 2 Chronicles 35:11–14
And they slaughtered the Passover lambs, while the priests sprinkled the blood handed to them and the Levites skinned the animals.
- 2 Chronicles 35:3–6
About Nehemiah
Who and where
1 name in this verse with a page on the site.
This page draws on Adam Clarke, Commentary on the Bible; Albert Barnes, Notes, Explanatory and Practical, on the Old and New Testaments (1832-1869); Jamieson, Fausset & Brown, Commentary Critical and Explanatory on the Whole Bible; John Gill, Exposition of the Old Testament (1748-1763); John Gill, Exposition of the Old Testament; John Wesley, Explanatory Notes upon the Old Testament and Matthew Henry, Commentary on the Whole Bible.