Ezra 8:10

Study note

Setting — Ezra records the returning exiles, cataloging each family group’s leader alongside the exact number of men accompanying him. This list follows the same pattern for the descendants of Joab and Bebai.

The words — בֶּן־ (ben-) means “son of,” establishing patrilineal descent, while הַזְּכָרִים (ha.zekharim) specifies “the males,” restricting the count to adult men.

The thread — This genealogical counting pattern repeats in Ezra 8:9 for Joab’s descendants and Ezra 8:11 for Bebai’s descendants.

Why it lands — The text demands precise accountability for community leadership and resources, requiring the reader to track how post-exilic society reorganized itself through documented family lines and headcounts.

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.