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The Histories · Old Testament

Ezra 8

Ezra 8: the company at Ahava, the fast, and the treasure weighed at Jerusalem

General context

Ezra lists the chief of the fathers who went up with him from Babylon in the reign of Artaxerxes, by family with the number of males in each, beginning with the sons of Phinehas, Ithamar and David. He gathers them at the river that runs to Ahava, camps three days, and finds none of the sons of Levi among the people and priests. He sends chief men to Iddo at the place Casiphia to ask for ministers for the house of God, and they bring back a man of understanding of the sons of Mahli, along with Sherebiah, Hashabiah and their kin, and two hundred and twenty Nethinims, all named. Ezra proclaims a fast at the river to seek a right way, because he was ashamed to ask the king for soldiers after telling him that God's hand is on all who seek him. They fast and are answered. He separates twelve chief priests, Sherebiah, Hashabiah and ten others, and weighs out to them the silver, gold and vessels offered by the king, his counsellors, his lords and all Israel present, telling them they and the vessels are holy and charging them to keep the treasure until it is weighed at Jerusalem. They depart on the twelfth day of the first month, are delivered from enemies and ambush on the way, and reach Jerusalem. After three days the treasure is weighed in the house of God by Meremoth the son of Uriah with Eleazar and two Levites, and the weight is recorded. The returned captives offer twelve bullocks, ninety-six rams, seventy-seven lambs and twelve he goats, and deliver the king's commissions to his lieutenants and governors, who further the people and the house of God.

Cited passages: Ezra 8:1, Ezra 8:2, Ezra 8:15, Ezra 8:17, Ezra 8:18, Ezra 8:19, Ezra 8:20, Ezra 8:21, Ezra 8:22, Ezra 8:23, Ezra 8:24, Ezra 8:25, Ezra 8:28, Ezra 8:29, Ezra 8:31, Ezra 8:33, Ezra 8:34, Ezra 8:35, Ezra 8:36

Ezra 8 (KJV)

1These are now the chief of their fathers, and this is the genealogy of them that went up with me from Babylon, in the reign of Artaxerxes the king.

2Of the sons of Phinehas; Gershom: of the sons of Ithamar; Daniel: of the sons of David; Hattush.

3Of the sons of Shechaniah, of the sons of Pharosh; Zechariah: and with him were reckoned by genealogy of the males an hundred and fifty.

4Of the sons of Pahath-moab; Elihoenai the son of Zerahiah, and with him two hundred males.

5Of the sons of Shechaniah; the son of Jahaziel, and with him three hundred males.

6Of the sons also of Adin; Ebed the son of Jonathan, and with him fifty males.

7And of the sons of Elam; Jeshaiah the son of Athaliah, and with him seventy males.

8And of the sons of Shephatiah; Zebadiah the son of Michael, and with him fourscore males.

9Of the sons of Joab; Obadiah the son of Jehiel, and with him two hundred and eighteen males.

10And of the sons of Shelomith; the son of Josiphiah, and with him an hundred and threescore males.

11And of the sons of Bebai; Zechariah the son of Bebai, and with him twenty and eight males.

12And of the sons of Azgad; Johanan the son of Hakkatan, and with him an hundred and ten males.

13And of the last sons of Adonikam, whose names are these, Eliphelet, Jeiel, and Shemaiah, and with them threescore males.

14Of the sons also of Bigvai; Uthai, and Zabbud, and with them seventy males.

15And I gathered them together to the river that runneth to Ahava; and there abode we in tents three days: and I viewed the people, and the priests, and found there none of the sons of Levi.

16Then sent I for Eliezer, for Ariel, for Shemaiah, and for Elnathan, and for Jarib, and for Elnathan, and for Nathan, and for Zechariah, and for Meshullam, chief men; also for Joiarib, and for Elnathan, men of understanding.

17And I sent them with commandment unto Iddo the chief at the place Casiphia, and I told them what they should say unto Iddo, and to his brethren the Nethinims, at the place Casiphia, that they should bring unto us ministers for the house of our God.

18And by the good hand of our God upon us they brought us a man of understanding, of the sons of Mahli, the son of Levi, the son of Israel; and Sherebiah, with his sons and his brethren, eighteen;

19And Hashabiah, and with him Jeshaiah of the sons of Merari, his brethren and their sons, twenty;

20Also of the Nethinims, whom David and the princes had appointed for the service of the Levites, two hundred and twenty Nethinims: all of them were expressed by name.

21Then I proclaimed a fast there, at the river of Ahava, that we might afflict ourselves before our God, to seek of him a right way for us, and for our little ones, and for all our substance.

22For I was ashamed to require of the king a band of soldiers and horsemen to help us against the enemy in the way: because we had spoken unto the king, saying, The hand of our God is upon all them for good that seek him; but his power and his wrath is against all them that forsake him.

23So we fasted and besought our God for this: and he was intreated of us.

24Then I separated twelve of the chief of the priests, Sherebiah, Hashabiah, and ten of their brethren with them,

25And weighed unto them the silver, and the gold, and the vessels, even the offering of the house of our God, which the king, and his counsellors, and his lords, and all Israel there present, had offered:

26I even weighed unto their hand six hundred and fifty talents of silver, and silver vessels an hundred talents, and of gold an hundred talents;

27Also twenty basons of gold, of a thousand drams; and two vessels of fine copper, precious as gold.

28And I said unto them, Ye are holy unto the Lord; the vessels are holy also; and the silver and the gold are a freewill offering unto the Lord God of your fathers.

29Watch ye, and keep them, until ye weigh them before the chief of the priests and the Levites, and chief of the fathers of Israel, at Jerusalem, in the chambers of the house of the Lord.

30So took the priests and the Levites the weight of the silver, and the gold, and the vessels, to bring them to Jerusalem unto the house of our God.

31Then we departed from the river of Ahava on the twelfth day of the first month, to go unto Jerusalem: and the hand of our God was upon us, and he delivered us from the hand of the enemy, and of such as lay in wait by the way.

32And we came to Jerusalem, and abode there three days.

33Now on the fourth day was the silver and the gold and the vessels weighed in the house of our God by the hand of Meremoth the son of Uriah the priest; and with him was Eleazar the son of Phinehas; and with them was Jozabad the son of Jeshua, and Noadiah the son of Binnui, Levites;

34By number and by weight of every one: and all the weight was written at that time.

35Also the children of those that had been carried away, which were come out of the captivity, offered burnt offerings unto the God of Israel, twelve bullocks for all Israel, ninety and six rams, seventy and seven lambs, twelve he goats for a sin offering: all this was a burnt offering unto the Lord.

36And they delivered the king’s commissions unto the king’s lieutenants, and to the governors on this side the river: and they furthered the people, and the house of God.

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Historical context

The whole chapter is in Ezra's first-person voice, continuing from the end of chapter 7, so the shame about asking for soldiers, the fast and the charge to the priests are his own report. Two entries in the family list, the sons of Shechaniah and the sons of Shelomith, read the son of Jahaziel and the son of Josiphiah without giving the son's own name. Hattush is listed among the sons of David, the only Davidic name in the company. Verse 18 speaks of a man of understanding from the sons of Mahli and then adds and Sherebiah; the wording leaves open whether Sherebiah is that man or a second person. Sherebiah and Hashabiah arrive as Levites, yet verse 24 groups them with twelve of the chief of the priests; the text does not resolve this. Chapter 7 says Ezra began to go up on the first day of the first month, while this chapter dates the departure from Ahava to the twelfth day, with three days in camp between; the text gives both dates without reconciling them. The narrator states that God was intreated and that the company was delivered from enemies, but describes no attack. Meremoth the son of Uriah the priest receives the treasure at Jerusalem; nothing links him here to other Meremoths in later chapters. The king's commissions are delivered to lieutenants and governors, and the chapter ends without naming them.

Cited passages: Ezra 8:1, Ezra 8:22, Ezra 8:5, Ezra 8:10, Ezra 8:2, Ezra 8:18, Ezra 8:24, Ezra 7:9, Ezra 8:31, Ezra 8:15, Ezra 8:23, Ezra 8:33, Ezra 8:36

Literary context

The chapter is built around weighing and counting. It opens with a census of males by family, pauses to count the Levites and Nethinims recruited at Casiphia, and reaches its centre when Ezra weighs silver, gold and vessels into the hands of twelve priests, then closes with the same treasure weighed again by number and by weight at Jerusalem. The doubled weighing frames the journey, and the danger of the road is handled in a single sentence rather than a scene. The most personal moment is Ezra's admission that he was ashamed to ask for an escort because of what he had told the king, and the fast that follows turns that embarrassment into prayer. His charge to the priests, ye are holy unto the Lord; the vessels are holy also, sets people and objects on the same footing. The repeated phrase the hand of our God upon us carries over from chapter 7 and accounts for each success. The delivery of the king's commissions in the final verse brings the royal letter of chapter 7 to its intended recipients and clears the way for the crisis of chapter 9.

Cited passages: Ezra 8:3, Ezra 8:20, Ezra 8:26, Ezra 8:34, Ezra 8:31, Ezra 8:22, Ezra 8:21, Ezra 8:28, Ezra 8:18, Ezra 7:28, Ezra 8:36

Key moments

  1. No Levites in the camp (Ezra 8:15). After three days at Ahava Ezra finds no sons of Levi among the people and priests.
  2. Ministers sought from Casiphia (Ezra 8:17). Ezra sends chief men to Iddo to bring ministers for the house of God.
  3. A fast instead of soldiers (Ezra 8:22). Ashamed to ask the king for troops, Ezra proclaims a fast to seek a right way.
  4. Treasure weighed to twelve priests (Ezra 8:25). Ezra weighs the silver, gold and vessels into the hands of twelve chief priests.
  5. Holy men, holy vessels (Ezra 8:28). Ezra tells the priests that they and the vessels are holy to the Lord.
  6. Delivered on the road (Ezra 8:31). The company leaves Ahava on the twelfth day and is kept from enemies and ambush.
  7. Weighed again in the house (Ezra 8:33). On the fourth day Meremoth and others weigh the treasure and record it.

For reflection

Ezra refuses an armed escort because of what he had already said to the king about God's hand, and then fasts. Is his choice best read as trust, as consistency before an audience, or as both, and what in the text supports each reading?

People in this chapter

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