Ezra 2:1–35
The lay leaders
Now these are the people of the province who came up from the captivity of the exiles, whom Nebuchadnezzar king of Babylon had taken captive to Babylon (they returned to Jerusalem and Judah, each to his own town, 2 in company with Zerubbabel, Jeshua, Nehemiah, Seraiah, Reelaiah, Mordecai, Bilshan, Mispar, Bigvai, Rehum and Baanah):
The list of the men of the people of Israel:
3 the descendants of Parosh 2,172
4 of Shephatiah 372
5 of Arah 775
6 of Pahath-Moab (through the line of Jeshua and Joab) 2,812
7 of Elam 1,254
8 of Zattu 945
9 of Zaccai 760
10 of Bani 642
11 of Bebai 623
12 of Azgad 1,222
13 of Adonikam 666
14 of Bigvai 2,056
15 of Adin 454
16 of Ater (through Hezekiah) 98
17 of Bezai 323
18 of Jorah 112
19 of Hashum 223
20 of Gibbar 95
21 the men of Bethlehem 123
22 of Netophah 56
23 of Anathoth 128
24 of Azmaveth 42
25 of Kiriath Jearim, Kephirah and Beeroth 743
26 of Ramah and Geba 621
27 of Micmash 122
28 of Bethel and Ai 223
29 of Nebo 52
30 of Magbish 156
31 of the other Elam 1,254
32 of Harim 320
33 of Lod, Hadid and Ono 725
34 of Jericho 345
35 of Senaah 3,630
It’s easy to pass over long lists of names like this, because we have a hard time understanding them or seeing any significance in them. This list of names was undoubtedly more meaningful to Ezra and his contemporaries than it is to us. But like all Scripture, this list is written for our learning too.
This list is a testimony to God’s goodness in preserving the identity of his chosen people in spite of a 70-year captivity in a far-off land. With Zerubbabel and Jeshua as their leaders, the people remained under the leadership of David’s royal line and of the high priests descended from Aaron. Zerubbabel was the grandson of Jehoiachin, one of the last kings of Judah, who had been carried into captivity in Babylon. The text of Ezra chapter 2 lists only 11 leaders of the return, but the parallel passage in Nehemiah chapter 7 lists 12 leaders, probably to indicate the completeness of this group as a true restoration of Israel.
There are some difficulties in the list itself. From Parosh through Gibbar, the returnees seem to be classified by the names of their ancestors. From Bethlehem through Senaah, they appear to be classified by their hometowns. Some of the terms, such as Elam and Immer, seem to be the names both of towns and individuals. Most of these towns are in the vicinity of Jerusalem (see the map entitled “Judah after the return" below). There are also differences between the lists of Ezra and Nehemiah in some of the names and some of the numbers. We will discuss this problem in the commentary on Nehemiah chapter 7.
