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    Ezra · 36 verses

    Ezra 8

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    Ezra was too ashamed to ask the king for protection, so he asked God instead—and got it.

    The company gathers, and one sort of servant is missingvv. 1–20

    The return begins as a roll call, with family after family arriving in neat numerical batches: 150 here, 200 there, and eventually the wonderfully specific 28. Ezra then gathers the exiles at the canal flowing to Ahava and discovers, after three days of camping, that no Levites are among them. This is the sort of omission that makes a list suddenly become a crisis. Leaders are summoned—including Elnathan twice, with no explanation whether this is one Elnathan having a little echo or two of them—and sent to Iddo at Casiphia. The remedy arrives in the form of Sherebiah, Hashabiah, their relations, and 220 temple servants, all designated by name.

    A public principle meets a private dangervv. 21–23

    By the Ahava Canal, Ezra proclaims a fast and asks for a safe journey, children and possessions included. He has already told the king that God protects those who seek Him, so asking for soldiers and horsemen would now be painfully awkward. The king’s escort is declined; the divine one is requested. The chapter, with admirable economy, reports the result: the request was granted.

    The treasure travels, is counted, and becomes a rather puzzling offeringvv. 24–36

    Ezra entrusts the sacred cargo to twelve leading priests, Sherebiah, Hashabiah, and ten others, weighing out silver, gold, bowls, and polished bronze into their hands. They set off without the king’s escort, arrive at Jerusalem, rest three days, and on the fourth day weigh everything again before Meremoth, Eleazar, Jozabad, and Noadiah. Nothing is left to the imagination when the treasure is checked: number and weight are both verified. Then come the sacrifices—12 bulls, 96 rams, 77 lambs, and 12 male goats described as a sin offering, followed immediately by the sentence that all of it was a burnt offering. The royal edicts are delivered, and the officials west of the Euphrates assist the people and the house of God.

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    Berean Standard Bible, public domain. Names the Hebrew and Greek put in the verse link to the person, place or people they name; the address beside each verse is a link to that verse, which is what a reader copies and shares.

    1. Ezra 8:1These are the family heads and genealogical records of those who returned with me from Babylon during the reign of King Artaxerxes:

    2. Ezra 8:2from the descendants of Phinehas, Gershom; from the descendants of Ithamar, Daniel; from the descendants of David, Hattush

    3. Ezra 8:3of the descendants of Shecaniah; from the descendants of Parosh, Zechariah, and with him were registered 150 men;

    4. Ezra 8:4from the descendants of Pahath-Moab, Eliehoenai son of Zerahiah, and with him 200 men;

    5. Ezra 8:5from the descendants of Zattu, Shecaniah son of Jahaziel, and with him 300 men;

    6. Ezra 8:6from the descendants of Adin, Ebed son of Jonathan, and with him 50 men;

    7. Ezra 8:7from the descendants of Elam, Jeshaiah son of Athaliah, and with him 70 men;

    8. Ezra 8:8from the descendants of Shephatiah, Zebadiah son of Michael, and with him 80 men;

    9. Ezra 8:9from the descendants of Joab, Obadiah son of Jehiel, and with him 218 men;

    10. Ezra 8:10from the descendants of Bani, Shelomith son of Josiphiah, and with him 160 men;

    11. Ezra 8:11from the descendants of Bebai, Zechariah son of Bebai, and with him 28 men;

    12. Ezra 8:12from the descendants of Azgad, Johanan son of Hakkatan, and with him 110 men;

    13. Ezra 8:13from the later descendants of Adonikam, these were their names: Eliphelet, Jeiel, and Shemaiah, and with them 60 men;

    14. Ezra 8:14and from the descendants of Bigvai, both Uthai and Zaccur, and with them 70 men.

    15. Ezra 8:15Now I assembled these exiles at the canal that flows to Ahava, and we camped there three days. And when I searched among the people and priests, I found no Levites there.

    16. Ezra 8:16Then I summoned the leaders: Eliezer, Ariel, Shemaiah, Elnathan, Jarib, Elnathan, Nathan, Zechariah, and Meshullam, as well as the teachers Joiarib and Elnathan.

    17. Ezra 8:17And I sent them to Iddo, the leader at Casiphia, with a message for him and his kinsmen, the temple servants at Casiphia, that they should bring to us ministers for the house of our God.

    18. Ezra 8:18And since the gracious hand of our God was upon us, they brought us Sherebiah—a man of insight from the descendants of Mahli son of Levi, the son of Israel—along with his sons and brothers, 18 men;

    19. Ezra 8:19also Hashabiah, together with Jeshaiah, from the descendants of Merari, and his brothers and their sons, 20 men.

    20. Ezra 8:20They also brought 220 of the temple servants, all designated by name. David and the officials had appointed them to assist the Levites.

    21. Ezra 8:21And there by the Ahava Canal I proclaimed a fast, so that we might humble ourselves before our God and ask Him for a safe journey for us and our children, with all our possessions.

    22. Ezra 8:22For I was ashamed to ask the king for an escort of soldiers and horsemen to protect us from our enemies on the road, since we had told him, “The hand of our God is gracious to all who seek Him, but His great anger is against all who forsake Him.”

    23. Ezra 8:23So we fasted and petitioned our God about this, and He granted our request.

    24. Ezra 8:24Then I set apart twelve of the leading priests, together with Sherebiah, Hashabiah, and ten of their brothers,

    25. Ezra 8:25and I weighed out to them the contribution of silver and gold and the articles that the king, his counselors, his leaders, and all the Israelites there had offered for the house of our God.

    26. Ezra 8:26I weighed out into their hands 650 talents of silver, articles of silver weighing 100 talents, 100 talents of gold,

    27. Ezra 8:2720 gold bowls valued at 1,000 darics, and two articles of fine polished bronze, as precious as gold.

    28. Ezra 8:28Then I told them, “You are holy to the LORD, and these articles are holy. The silver and gold are a freewill offering to the LORD, the God of your fathers.

    29. Ezra 8:29Guard them carefully until you weigh them out in the chambers of the house of the LORD in Jerusalem before the leading priests, Levites, and heads of the Israelite families.”

    30. Ezra 8:30So the priests and Levites took charge of the silver and gold and sacred articles that had been weighed out to be taken to the house of our God in Jerusalem.

    31. Ezra 8:31On the twelfth day of the first month we set out from the Ahava Canal to go to Jerusalem, and the hand of our God was upon us to protect us from the hands of the enemies and bandits along the way.

    32. Ezra 8:32So we arrived at Jerusalem and rested there for three days.

    33. Ezra 8:33On the fourth day, in the house of our God, we weighed out the silver and gold and sacred articles into the hand of Meremoth son of Uriah, the priest. Eleazar son of Phinehas was with him, along with the Levites Jozabad son of Jeshua and Noadiah son of Binnui.

    34. Ezra 8:34Everything was verified by number and weight, and the total weight was recorded at that time.

    35. Ezra 8:35Then the exiles who had returned from captivity sacrificed burnt offerings to the God of Israel: 12 bulls for all Israel, 96 rams, 77 lambs, and a sin offering of 12 male goats. All this was a burnt offering to the LORD.

    36. Ezra 8:36They also delivered the king’s edicts to the royal satraps and governors of the region west of the Euphrates, who proceeded to assist the people and the house of God.

    01 — Also here

    Who else the chapter reaches

    Names written in the English are linked in the text above. These are the ones that are not: an entity the Hebrew or Greek names under a spelling the translation does not use, or one reached only by an assertion about a verse of this chapter.

    Named in the Hebrew or Greek somewhere in this chapter, under a form the English renders differently — the registry's Ludim against the translation's Ludites — so there is no word in the sentence to hang the link on.

    Reached by an assertion Atlas extracted from a verse of this chapter rather than by a name written in it — a pronoun, a title, or a participant the sentence carries without naming. This layer is model-read and measured at 88.6–90.3% precision, and it is kept separate from the names above for that reason.

    02 — Read alongside

    Where this is echoed

    Readers' own connections, from OpenBible's crowd-voted cross-references — agreement about relevance, and not scholarly confidence. 236 passages were voted onto 33 verses of this chapter; the 16 shown lead on votes, and each is listed at the verse it was voted onto most strongly.

    • 221 Peter 3:12For the eyes of the Lord are on the righteous, and His ears are inclined to their prayer. But the face of the Lord is against those who do evil.”
    • 22Psalms 33:18–19Surely the eyes of the LORD are on those who fear Him, on those whose hope is in His loving devotion
    • 222 Chronicles 16:9For the eyes of the LORD roam to and fro over all the earth, to show Himself strong on behalf of those whose hearts are fully devoted to Him. You have acted foolishly in this matter. From now on, therefore, you will be at war.”
    • 22Psalms 34:15–16The eyes of the LORD are on the righteous, and His ears are inclined to their cry.
    • 22Lamentations 3:25The LORD is good to those who wait for Him, to the soul who seeks Him.
    • 222 Chronicles 15:2So he went out to meet Asa and said to him, “Listen to me, Asa and all Judah and Benjamin. The LORD is with you when you are with Him. If you seek Him, He will be found by you, but if you forsake Him, He will forsake you.
    • 22Romans 8:28And we know that God works all things together for the good of those who love Him, who are called according to His purpose.
    • 221 Chronicles 28:9As for you, Solomon my son, know the God of your father and serve Him wholeheartedly and with a willing mind, for the LORD searches every heart and understands the intent of every thought. If you seek Him, He will be found by you; but if you forsake Him, He will reject you forever.
    • 22Hebrews 10:38But My righteous one will live by faith; and if he shrinks back, I will take no pleasure in him.”
    • 22Ezra 7:28and who has shown me favor before the king, his counselors, and all his powerful officials. And because the hand of the LORD my God was upon me, I took courage and gathered the leaders of Israel to return with me.
    • 22Joshua 23:16If you transgress the covenant of the LORD your God, which He commanded you, and go and serve other gods and bow down to them, then the anger of the LORD will burn against you, and you will quickly perish from this good land He has given you.”
    • 22Zephaniah 1:2–6“I will completely sweep away everything from the face of the earth,” declares the LORD.
    • 212 Chronicles 20:3Jehoshaphat was alarmed and set his face to seek the LORD. And he proclaimed a fast throughout Judah.
    • 23Jeremiah 29:12–13Then you will call upon Me and come and pray to Me, and I will listen to you.
    • 21Joel 1:14Consecrate a fast; proclaim a solemn assembly! Gather the elders and all the residents of the land to the house of the LORD your God, and cry out to the LORD.
    • 211 Samuel 7:6When they had gathered at Mizpah, they drew water and poured it out before the LORD. On that day they fasted, and there they confessed, “We have sinned against the LORD.” And Samuel judged the Israelites at Mizpah.

    Onward

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