38 matching verse commentaries
John Gill - Exposition - John Gill
And Hashabiah, and with him Jeshaiah of the sons of Merari,.... These were of the same division of Levites as Sherebiah: his brethren and their sons, twenty; these thirty eight, with those they came with, were all Levites; the Nethinims follow.
John Gill - Exposition - John Gill
Also of the Nethinims, whom David and the princes had appointed for the service of the Levites,.... To wait upon them, and minister to them, as they did to the priests; some think those were the same with the Gibeonites, whom Joshua gave to the service of the sanctuary, and David confirmed; but others are of opinion these were different from them,...
John Gill - Exposition - John Gill
Then I proclaimed a fast there, at the river Ahava,.... After the messengers to Iddo were returned with those they brought with them: that we might afflict ourselves before our God; humble themselves before him for their sins, confess them, and declare their repentance of them, and ask forgiveness for them: to seek of him a right way for us; to...
John Gill - Exposition - John Gill
For I was ashamed to require of the kings band of soldiers and horsemen,.... Which he might have had, only asking for them; so great was the interest he had in the king's favour: to help us against the enemy in the way; the Arabs, Samaritans, and others, that might lie in wait for them, to rob them of their substance: because we had spoken unto...
John Gill - Exposition - John Gill
So we fasted, and besought our God for this,.... Sought the Lord by fasting and prayer for a good journey, and preservation in it: and he was entreated of us; accepted their prayer, as Jarchi, so that they came safe to Jerusalem.
John Gill - Exposition - John Gill
Then I separated twelve of the chief of the priests,.... That were in company with him; so that it seems there were more than the two mentioned, Ezra 8:2, very probably their families, or some of their brethren, were with them: Sherebiah, Hashabiah, and ten of their brethren with them; these men named were Levites, and not priests, Ezra 8:18 and...
John Gill - Exposition - John Gill
And I weighed unto them the silver, and the gold, and the vessels,.... When he delivered them to them; this he did as a proof of his own integrity and faithfulness, and as a security against any charge or accusation of embezzling any part of them, and to set them an example, and also that they might be under no temptation of acting such a part,...
John Gill - Exposition - John Gill
I even weighed unto their hand six hundred fifty talents of silver,.... Which, according to Scheuchzer (a) amount to 975,000 imperials, and, of our money, 2,229,450 pounds sterling: and silver vessels one hundred talents; which came to 35,300 pounds, or 50,000 imperials; according to Jarchi, there were one hundred vessels, and every vessel weighed...
John Gill - Exposition - John Gill
Also twenty basins of gold, of a thousand drams,.... Which were upwards of 1000 pounds of our money; for Bishop Cumberland says (e), the Persian "daric", "drachma", or "drachm", weighed twenty shillings and four pence; and, according to Dr. Bernard, it exceeded one of our guineas by two grains, [See comments on 1 Chronicles 29:7] and two vessels...
John Gill - Exposition - John Gill
And I said unto them, ye are holy unto the Lord, the vessels are holy also,.... As they were dedicated and set apart to holy service, so the vessels were sacred to holy uses, and therefore not to be converted to any other: and the silver and the gold are a freewill offering unto the Lord God of your fathers: and therefore not to be made use of but...
John Gill - Exposition - John Gill
Watch ye, and keep them,.... The vessels, the gold, and the silver, that they be not hurt and diminished: 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: that is, until they had delivered them in full weight, as they had received them,...
John Gill - Exposition - John Gill
So took the priests and the Levites,.... The twelve priests and twelve Levites, mentioned in Ezra 8:24, the weight of the silver and the gold, and the vessels, to bring them to Jerusalem unto the house of our God; this they undertook to do, and did.
John Gill - Exposition - John Gill
Then we departed from the river of Ahava, on the twelfth day of the first month, to go unto Jerusalem,.... The month Nisan, answering to part of March and part of April; this was two days before the passover began: and the hand of our God was upon us; guiding, directing, and protecting them by his providence: and he delivered us from the hand of...
John Gill - Exposition - John Gill
And we came to Jerusalem, and abode there three days. Before they went about any business, delivered what was committed to them for the use of the temple, and the commissions to the king's officers; as it was but proper they should have some rest after such a fatiguing journey.
John Gill - Exposition - John Gill
Now on the fourth day,.... After their arrival at Jerusalem: was the silver, and the gold, and the vessels, weighed in the house of our God; the temple, that it might be seen and known that the exact weight which had been deposited with them was now faithfully delivered: this was done by the hand of Meremoth the son of Uriah the priest, and with...
John Gill - Exposition - John Gill
By number and by weight of everyone,.... They were delivered in by tale and weight, which exactly agreed to the number and weight in which they received them: and all the weight was written at that time; an account was taken in writing, and laid up, that it might not only be known hereafter what freewill offerings had been made in Babylon, but...
John Gill - Exposition - John Gill
Also the children of those that had been carried away, which were come out of the captivity,.... Namely, those that now came along with Ezra: offered burnt offerings unto the God of Israel; by way of thankfulness for their deliverance from captivity, and for their safe journey: twelve bullocks for all Israel: according to the number of the tribes;...
John Gill - Exposition - John Gill
And they delivered the king's commissions unto the king's lieutenants, and to the governors on this side the river,.... The governors of the provinces of Syria, Palestine, and Judea, which were on that side of Euphrates the land of Israel was: and they furthered the people, and the house of God; or "lifted them up" (i), eased them of all burdens,...