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Nehemiah 12:22

in Nehemiah 12

In the days of Eliashib, Joiada, Johanan, and Jaddua, during the reign of Darius the Persian, the heads of the families of the Levites and priests were recorded.

BSB

The same verse in ASV and KJV ▾

ASV

As for the Levites, in the days of Eliashib, Joiada, and Johanan, and Jaddua, there were recorded the heads of fathers’ houses; also the priests, in the reign of Darius the Persian.

KJV

The Levites in the days of Eliashib, Joiada, and Johanan, and Jaddua, were recorded chief of the fathers: also the priests, to the reign of Darius the Persian.

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This verse in Nehemiah 12

Commentary

6 notes on this verse

A commentator

Adam Clarke

1762–1832

Commentary on the Bible · Written before 1832.

Jaddua - This was probably the high priest who went in his pontifical robes, accompanied by his brethren, to meet Alexander the Great, when he was advancing towards Jerusalem, with the purpose to destroy it, after having conquered Tyre and Gaza. Alexander was so struck with the appearance of the priest, that he forbore all hostilities against Jerusalem, prostrated himself before Jaddua, worshipped the Lord at the temple, and granted many privileges to the Jews. See Josephus, Ant. lib. xi., c. 3, and Prideaux’s Connections, lib. 7, p. 6

This site's exposition

to the reign of Darius the Persian

on Nehemiah 12:22-23

The record closes with a dating notice: the priests and Levites stand recorded down to the reign of Darius the Persian, a king later than Nehemiah's own governorship, showing the register kept itself current well past the events this chapter narrates. The book of the chronicles named here is a separate official register of the priesthood, since the biblical book of Chronicles preserves no matching list. That the roll runs to the days of Johanan the son of Eliashib shows a public archive maintained by the temple across at least two more generations.

The record, by era

The Puritans and the Awakening3 voices

A commentator

Matthew Henry

1662–1714

Commentary on the Whole Bible (1710)

proposed

Perhaps then the forementioned families of the priests began to degenerate, and the third generation of them came short of the first two; but the work of God shall never fail for want of instruments. Then a generation of Levites was raised up, who were recorded chief of the fathers (

quarantine:debris (2026-07-29) — unbalanced-parens

A commentator

Matthew Henry

1662–1714

Commentary on the Whole Bible (1710)

proposed

7 ) and in praying ( ch. ix. 4, 5 ) were all Levites, not priests, regard being had to their personal qualifications more than to their order. These Levites were some of them singers (

quarantine:debris (2026-07-29) — leading-citation-number

The Levites, in the days of Eliashib,....

The Nineteenth Century1 voice

These verses interrupt the account of the church officers in the time of Joiakim, resumed in Neh 12:24. They appear to be an addition to the original text, made about the time of Alexander the Great, when the Books of Chronicles, Ezra, and Nehemiah would seem to have first taken their existing shape. The same writer who introduced these verses, probably also added Neh 12:11 to the original text. Darius the Persian - Probably Darius Codomannus (336-331 B.C.), the antagonist of Alexander the Great. See the introduction of the Book of Nehemiah. This passage shows that the practice of keeping a record of public events in state archives was continued after the return from the captivity, at least to the time of Johanan, the son, i. e., “the grandson,” of Eliasbib.

How the passage was read

What the Jewish commentators add

On the verses either side of this one

even until the days of Johanan All those who were the heads of the fathers’ houses of the Levites until the days of Johanan the High Priest were enumerated in the chronicles.
Rashi: France, 1040–1105 · Rashi on Nehemiah 12:23:1, 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. 2 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

14 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.

  • הַלְוִיִּם֩the Levites

    halviyimH3881 →291 times

  • בִּימֵ֨יin [the] days of

    bimeiH3117 →2304 times

  • אֶלְיָשִׁ֜יבEliashib

    ʾelyashivH475 →17 times

  • יוֹיָדָ֤עJoiada

    yoyada'H3111 →5 times

  • וְיוֹחָנָן֙and Johanan

    veyochananH3110 →

  • וְיַדּ֔וּעַand Jaddua

    veyadua'H3037 →3 times

  • כְּתוּבִ֖ים[were] recorded

    ketuvimH3789 →224 times

  • רָאשֵׁ֣יleaders of

    rasheiH7218 →599 times

  • אָב֑וֹתfathers

    ʾavotH1 →1212 times

  • וְהַכֹּ֣הֲנִ֔יםand the priests

    vehakohanimH3548 →750 times

  • עַל־on

    ʾal-H5921 →5755 times

  • מַלְכ֖וּת[the] reign of

    malkhutH4438 →

  • דָּרְיָ֥וֶשׁDarius

    dareyaveshH1867 →

  • הַפָּֽרְסִֽי׃ פthe Persian

    haparesiH6542 →

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

Related verses

5 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.

Ezra 10:6Then Ezra withdrew from before the house of God and walked to the chamber of Jehohanan son of Eliashib. And while he stayed there, he ate no food and drank no water, because he was mourning over the unfaithfulness of the exiles.3 worksNehemiah 13:28Even one of the sons of Jehoiada son of Eliashib the high priest had become a son-in-law to Sanballat the Horonite. Therefore I drove him away from me.3 worksNehemiah 12:10–13Jeshua was the father of Joiakim, Joiakim was the father of Eliashib, Eliashib was the father of Joiada,2 worksNehemiah 12:12In the days of Joiakim, these were the heads of the priestly families: of the family of Seraiah, Meraiah; of Jeremiah, Hananiah;2 worksNumbers 1:50Instead, you are to appoint the Levites over the tabernacle of the Testimony, all its furnishings, and everything in it. They shall carry the tabernacle and all its articles, care for it, and camp around it.2 works

What the record shows

1 entry
  • Darius II Nothus — attested in contemporary inscriptionundisputed

    Own royal inscriptions; period documents

    Biblical figure (King of Persia, 425/424-405/404 BC) identified in extra-biblical epigraphy.

    Counterpoint: Nehemiah 12:22 says only "Darius the Persian," and commentators are split on who that is. Derek Kidner and others read Darius II (423-404 BC); scholars who follow Josephus in placing the high priest Jaddua in Alexander's generation argue for Darius III (336-330 BC), which would make the verse a later addition to Nehemiah's list.

About Nehemiah

Nehemiah Views the Ruins of Jerusalem's Walls, Gustave Doré, 1866. Public domain.
Nehemiah Views the Ruins of Jerusalem's Walls, Gustave Doré, 1866. Public domain.
Nehemiah: the study guide →Read Nehemiah 12 →

This page draws on Adam Clarke, Commentary on the Bible; Albert Barnes, Notes, Explanatory and Practical, on the Old and New Testaments (1832-1869); John Gill, Exposition of the Old Testament; John Gill, Exposition of the Old Testament (1748-1763) and Matthew Henry, Commentary on the Whole Bible.

Read on in Nehemiah 12 →