Keraia
Ezra 2

Ezra 2:62

The List of Returning Exiles · Ezra 2:1–67
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Translations

Modern
These men searched for their family records, but they could not find them and so were excluded from the priesthood as unclean.
Traditional
These sought their register among those that were reckoned by genealogy, but they were not found: therefore were they, as polluted, put from the priesthood.
Literal
These sought their record among those reckoning themselves by genealogy, and they were not found, and they were defiled from the priesthood.
Latin
…hi quæsierunt scripturam genealogiæ suæ, et non invenerunt, et ejecti sunt de sacerdotio.

Original

Hebrew
English
These men searched for their family records, but they could not find them and so were excluded from the priesthood as unclean.

Notes

Ezra 2:61–63

they could not find them: The lack of a genealogy was a problem for three families (Ezra 2:61–62). They were excluded from priestly privileges or responsibilities until the high priest received divine guidance through the Urim and Thummim to know God's will (see Exodus 28:30; Numbers 27:21). Although using the Urim and Thummim was like throwing dice or drawing straws, when done by the priest, the result was a divine decision, not random chance.

Ezra 2:1–70

This 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 their towns.

Theme notes and profiles

Esther Zerubbabel

Parallels

Nehemiah 7:4–69

Glossary

Agia Book of Ezra Census First Book of Esdras Genealogy Singer

Topics

Christian Minister: Priests and Levites Genealogies: Priests Who Could not Prove Their Own, Excluded from The Levites: The List of Those Who Returned from Captivity Priests: Required to Prove Their Genealogy Before They Exercised The