Ezra 1:8, Ezra 1:11 NIV

Joseph Benson's Commentary of the Old and New Testaments - Ezra 1:8

Ezra 1:8. And numbered them Caused them to be delivered to the Jews by number; unto Sheshbazzar, the prince of Judah The captain and governor of these returning Jews, Ezra 2:2. The sceptre, therefore, was not yet departed from Judah. This person’s name was originally Zerubbabel, but it was common for the great men of Judah, at the time of the captivity, to have two names, one of their own country, which was domestic, and another of the Chaldeans, which was used at court. “Zerubbabel was... read more

Donald C. Fleming

Bridgeway Bible Commentary - Ezra 1:1-11

1:1-2:70 ZERUBBABEL’S RETURNCyrus had been ruler of Persia for some time before he conquered Babylon in 539 BC. His policy was, when he conquered a nation, to allow any people held captive by that nation to return to their homeland. Therefore, soon after he conquered Babylon (i.e. in his first year as the Jews’ new ruler) he gave permission for the Jews to return to Jerusalem (1:1-4). Jeremiah’s prophecy made seventy years earlier had come true: the Jews were released from Babylon’s power to... read more

E.W. Bullinger

E.W. Bullinger's Companion Bible Notes - Ezra 1:8

Sheshbazzar = the Chaldean name of the prince of Judah. Not Zerubbabel, which means born at Babel. Probably = Nehemiah, for he was the son of Hachaliah and Zidkijah (Nehemiah 10:1 ), and therefore a "prince of. Judah". read more

Thomas Coke

Thomas Coke Commentary on the Holy Bible - Ezra 1:8

Ver. 8. Sheshbazzar, the prince of Judah— His name was originally Zerubbabel; but it was common for the great men of Judah, at the time of the captivity, to have two names; one of their own country, which was domestic, and another of the Chaldeans, which was used at court. Zerubbabel was born at Babylon, and his name, זרבבל zerubbabel, which signifies an exile, or stranger in Babylon, implies the misery of the people of Israel at that time; but שׁשׁבצר Sheshbazzar, which is a compound of two... read more

Robert Jamieson; A. R. Fausset; David Brown

Commentary Critical and Explanatory on the Whole Bible - Ezra 1:8

8. Shesh-bazzar, the prince of Judah—that is, Zerubbabel, son of Salathiel (compare Ezra 3:8; Ezra 5:16). He was born in Babylon, and called by his family Zerubbabel, that is, stranger or exile in Babylon. Shesh-bazzar, signifying "fire-worshipper," was the name given him at court, as other names were given to Daniel and his friends. He was recognized among the exiles as hereditary prince of Judah. read more

Thomas Constable

Expository Notes of Dr. Thomas Constable - Ezra 1:7-11

Preparations for the return 1:7-11Sometimes warring armies in the ancient Near East carried images of their gods into battle to help secure victory (cf. 2 Samuel 5:21; 1 Chronicles 14:12). When one army defeated the other, the victors would take the images of their defeated foes captive, and lock them up, to testify to the impotence of those gods."To displace the authority of a city, it was normal practice for a conquering power to carry off the emblems of deity (cf. Jeremiah 48:7)." [Note:... read more

John Dummelow

John Dummelow's Commentary on the Bible - Ezra 1:1-11

The Return of the Jews from CaptivityThe chapter narrates how Cyrus, king of Persia, permitted the Jews in Babylon to return to Jerusalem to rebuild the Temple there, and restored the vessels taken from it.1. Now, etc.] The book of Ezra begins with the last words of 2 Ch; Ezra 1:1-2 and the first half of Ezra 1:3 occurring in 2 Chronicles 36:22, 2 Chronicles 36:23. The three books, Chronicles, Ezra, and Nehemiah, were probably at first continuous, in this order; but subsequently the arrangement... read more

Charles John Ellicott

Ellicott's Commentary for English Readers - Ezra 1:5-11

(5-11) Immediate result of the decree.(5) With all them whose spirit God had raised.—Namely, all is the more exact rendering. The same influence that prompted the decree of Cyrus was necessary to overcome the inertness of the captives: many preferred to remain in Babylon.—The people were enumerated as tribes, families, and fathers’ houses; the second and third orders of classification are not here distinguished from each other.(6) Precious things.—The Hebrew equivalent is a rare word, which,... read more

William Nicoll

Expositor's Bible Commentary - Ezra 1:7-11

THE ROYAL EDICTEzra 1:2-4; Ezra 1:7-11IT has been asserted that the Scripture version of the edict of Cyrus cannot be an exact rendering of the original, because it ascribes to the Great King some knowledge of the God of the Jews, and even some faith in Him. For this reason it has been suggested that either the chronicler or some previous writer who translated the decree out of the Persian language, in which of course it must have been first issued, inserted the word Jehovah in place of the... read more

Arno Clemens Gaebelein

Arno Gaebelein's Annotated Bible - Ezra 1:1-11

Analysis and Annotations I. THE RETURN UNDER ZERUBBABEL AND THE REBUILDING OF THE TEMPLE CHAPTER 1 1. The proclamation of Cyrus (Ezra 1:1-4 ) 2. The response of the chiefs of Judah and Benjamin (Ezra 1:5-6 ) 3. The vessels of the house of the LORD restored (Ezra 1:7-11 ) Ezra 1:1-4 . Cyrus (meaning “the Sun”) the King of Persia was, according to ancient historians, the son of Cambyses, Prince of Persia, and Mandam, daughter of Astyages, King of the Median Empire. The theory that he was... read more