God’s Word Translation
Ezra 2:1
1These were the people in the province. They were the ones who left the place where the exiles had been taken captive. (King Nebuchadnezzar of Babylon had taken them to Babylon.) These exiles returned to Jerusalem and Judah. All of them went to their own cities.
Ezra 2:1 in other versions
- King James Version (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;
- New International Version (NIV)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 their own town,
- English Standard Version (ESV)Now these were the people of the province who came up out of the captivity of those exiles whom Nebuchadnezzar the king of Babylon had carried captive to Babylonia. They returned to Jerusalem and Judah, each to his own town.
- New King James Version (NKJV)Now these are the people of the province who came back from the captivity, of those who had been carried away, whom Nebuchadnezzar the king of Babylon had carried away to Babylon, and who returned to Jerusalem and Judah, everyone to his own city.
Context of Ezra 2:1
These were the people in the province. They were the ones who left the place where the exiles had been taken captive. (King Nebuchadnezzar of Babylon had taken them to Babylon.) These exiles returned to Jerusalem and Judah. All of them went to their own cities. 2They went with Zerubbabel, Jeshua, Nehemiah, Seraiah, Reelaiah, Mordecai, Bilshan, Mispar, Bigvai, Rehum, and Baanah. This is the number of Israelite men from the people in exile: 3the descendants of Parosh … 2,172
Read all of Ezra 2Ezra 2:1 word by word
וְאֵ֣לֶּה׀ בְּנֵ֣י הַמְּדִינָ֗ה הָֽעֹלִים֙ מִשְּׁבִ֣י הַגּוֹלָ֔ה אֲשֶׁ֥ר הֶגְלָ֛ה נְבוּכַדְנֶצַּ֥ר מֶֽלֶךְ־בָּבֶ֖ל לְבָבֶ֑ל וַיָּשׁ֛וּבוּ לִירוּשָׁלִַ֥ם וִֽיהוּדָ֖ה אִ֥ישׁ לְעִירֽוֹ׃Read the interlinear
Words taken from the KJV.
- the childrenבֵּןbên · son: descendant/peopleH1121
- of the provinceמְדִינָהmedîynâh · provinceH4082
- that went upעָלָה‛âlâh · to ascend: riseH5927
- out of the captivityשְׁבִיshebîy · captivityH7628
- of those which had been carried awayגּוֹלָהgôlâh gôlâh · captivityH1473
- whom Nebuchadnezzarנְבוּכַדְרֶאצַּר, נְבוּכַדְנֶצַּרנבוּכדרא צּור נבוּכדראצּר · NebuchadnezzarH5019
- the kingמֶ֫לֶךְmelek · kingH4428
- of Babylonבָּבֶ֫ל, בָּבֶלbâbel · BabylonH894
- had carried awayגָּלָהgâlâh · to reveal: removeH1540
- and came againשׁוּבshûb · to return: returnH7725
- unto Jerusalemיְרוּשָׁלִַ֫ם, יְרוּשְׁלֵםyerûshâlaim yerûshâlayim · JerusalemH3389
- and Judahיְהוּדָהyehûdâh · JudahH3063
- every oneאִישׁ'îysh · man: anyoneH376
- unto his cityעִיר‛îyr ‛âr ‛âyar · cityH5892
Cross-references for Ezra 2:1
- Ezra 5:8Your Majesty should know that we went to the province of Judah, to the temple of the great God. The temple is being built with large stones and with wooden beams laid in its walls. The builders are doing an excellent job and making rapid progress.
- Ezra 6:2A scroll was found in the palace of Ecbatana, which is in the province of Media. This was written on it: MEMORANDUM
- Nehemiah 7:6These were the people in the province. They were the ones who left the place where the exiles had been taken captive. King Nebuchadnezzar of Babylon had taken them captive. They returned to Jerusalem and Judah. All of them went to their own cities.
- Esther 1:1In the days of Xerxes the following events took place. This was the same Xerxes who ruled over 127 provinces from India to Sudan.
- Esther 8:9At that time on the twenty-third day of Sivan, the third month, the king’s scribes were summoned. What Mordecai had ordered was written to the Jews and to the satraps, governors, and officers of the 127 provinces from India to Sudan. It was written to each province in its own script, to each people in their own language, and to the Jews in their own script and their own language.
- Acts 23:34After the governor had read the letter, he asked Paul which province he was from. When he found out that Paul was from the province of Cilicia,
- 2 Kings 24:14He captured all Jerusalem, all the generals, all the soldiers (10,000 prisoners), and all the craftsmen and smiths. Only the poorest people of the land were left.
- 2 Kings 25:11Nebuzaradan, the captain of the guard, captured the few people left in the city, those who surrendered to the king of Babylon, and the rest of the population.
- 2 Chronicles 36:1Then people of the land took Josiah’s son Jehoahaz and made him king in Jerusalem in place of his father.
- Jeremiah 39:1In the tenth month of Zedekiah’s ninth year as king of Judah, King Nebuchadnezzar of Babylon attacked Jerusalem with his entire army and blockaded it.
- Jeremiah 52:1Zedekiah was 21 years old when he began to rule, and he ruled for 11 years in Jerusalem. His mother’s name was Hamutal, daughter of Jeremiah from Libnah.
- Lamentations 1:3“Judah has been exiled after ⌞much⌟ suffering and harsh treatment. Its ⌞people⌟ live among the nations; they find no rest. Those who chased them caught up with them in places where there was no way out.
- Lamentations 4:22People of Zion, the punishment for your wickedness will end. The Lord will not let you remain in exile. People of Edom, he will punish you for your wickedness. He will expose your sins.”
- Zephaniah 2:7The coast will belong to the faithful few from the nation of Judah. There they will graze their sheep. In the evening they will lie down in the houses of Ashkelon. The Lord their God will take care of them and will restore their fortunes.
Commentaries on Ezra 2:1
- Adam Clarke Bible Commentary · v. 1These 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, Ezra 5:8. Besides, the province is contradistinguished from…Read the comment
- Barnes’ Notes on the Bible · v. 1The 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 Ezra 2:59-62, the plan could not be carried out. Two other copies of the following list have come down…Read the comment
- Matthew Henry Concise Commentary · v. 1The numbers that returned. (1-35) The numbers of the priests and Levites. (36-63) The offerings for the temple. (64-70) Verses 1-35 An account was kept of the families that came up out of captivity. See how sin lowers a nation, which righteousness would exalt!Read the comment
- Tyndale Open Study Notes · v. 1-70This chapter is Ezra's first major digression from the main story. The returning exiles needed to identify true Jews to maintain their community identity and theological purity. This helped them know whom they could marry and who could worship at the temple. This list is not the initial list of all Jews who returned to Jerusalem (compare Nehemiah 7:6–73). Instead, it is a slightly later list, created after Sheshbazzar died, of people who had settled in…Read the comment
- Jamieson–Fausset–Brown Commentary · v. 1-701. 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. This name is applied by the sacred historian to intimate that the Jewish exiles, though now released from captivity and allowed to return into their own land, were still the subjects of Cyrus, inhabiting a province dependent upon Persia. came again…Read the comment
In the dictionaries
Commentaries on Ezra 2
- Adam Clarke Bible Commentary
- Barnes’ Notes on the Bible
- Matthew Henry Concise Commentary
- Tyndale Open Study Notes
- Jamieson–Fausset–Brown Commentary
- Rashi on Tanakh
- Keil & Delitzsch Commentary
- John Wesley’s Notes
- Darby Translation Notes
- Geneva Bible Translation Notes
- Kingcomments
- Matthew Henry’s Complete Commentary
- Matthew Henry’s Modern English Commentary
- Scofield Reference Notes, 1917 Edition
- Seventh-day Adventist Bible Commentary
- EGW Writings
God’s Word Translation — © 1995 God’s Word to the Nations Bible Society
Commentaries