Ezra 2 Footnotes

2:1 As some people debate the appropriateness of the Jewish presence in Israel, it is important to remember that God promised this land to Abraham and his descendants (Gn 17:1-8). This passage is used by some to lend support to the Jewish claim to the land of Israel. The returnees traced their ancestry to this land. No other identifiable group can claim a more ancient relationship to the Holy Land.

2:2 There is no reason to doubt the accuracy of the list’s head count. It is probable that it represents a series of returns, so that all these people did not return as one group. The scope of the captivity was extensive (2Kg 24:14-16). After seventy years, this exiled community would have grown even more numerous. The total number that returned would be much higher if women and children had been counted. Recent demographic analyses of the archaeological data have led some to propose that the province of Judah never had this many people within its borders in the fifth century BC, even if one assumes this list records successive returns covering over a century. However, these studies are based on incomplete data and a number of suppositions about population density. In addition, no consideration has been given to the possible depleting effects of disease, conflict, and discouragement that may have caused many people to move on to more favorable locations, like Elephantine, for example. This list also occurs at Neh 7:4-73. For an explanation of its reoccurrence, see note on Neh 7:4-69.

2:3 This group is not to be confused with the community of faith. While it is likely that many of those listed had a saving faith in God, faith was not the principal criteria for this list. Ancestry was the determining factor. In all times, saving faith is the sole determining factor for salvation (Rm 2:28-29).

2:62 To qualify for service in the priesthood, certain standards had to be met. The ancestry standards established here reveal that ability or desire were not the only criteria for some areas of spiritual service.

2:63 God had specified the use of Urim and Thummim for discerning his will (Ex 28:30). This practice does not persist in the church since all believers now have the Holy Spirit indwelling them and also have the complete written revelation of God’s will in the Bible to help them discern God’s will.

2:68 Some believers today discourage the use of money for buildings and other expenses that they consider to be unnecessary for the church’s mission, claiming that all money should go toward reaching and helping people. The freewill gifts contributed for the rebuilding of the temple, however, are regarded positively (see 1Ch 29:1-9).