Bible Strands
Ezra 2:66
They had 736 horses, 245 mules,
Berean Standard Bible
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Study note
Setting — Ezra 2:66 appears in a post-exilic census ledger, recording the livestock inventory of the returning community immediately after listing human servants and singers. The passage functions as administrative documentation rather than a speech directed to a specific audience.
The words — The Hebrew פִּרְדֵי/הֶ֕ם (pir.dei./Hem) translates literally as "their mules," while מָאתַ֖יִם (ma.Ta.yim) means "two hundred." These terms anchor the verse in a precise count of transport animals.
The thread — This verse continues the inventory pattern established in Ezra 2:65 and Ezra 2:67, which systematically tallies human retainers, camels, and donkeys. The recurring structure tracks the material resources required for the community's restoration.
Why it lands — The verse requires the reader to acknowledge the logistical scale of the return by recording specific animal counts without commentary. It demands attention to the raw data that sustains the community's physical relocation.
Drafted by a language model from the text, its original words and its cross-references, then checked against them. It can still be wrong: open the verse in the app to report it.
The Hebrew words
King James Version
Their horses were seven hundred thirty and six; their mules, two hundred forty and five;