Ezra 8:15

THE GATHERING AND PREPARATIONS AT THE RIVER THAT RUNNETH TO AHAVA, Ezra 8:15-20.

15. The river that runneth to Ahava So that Ahava was not the name of the river, but the place to which or near which the river ran. It was probably the same as the Ava or Ivah of 2 Kings 17:24; 2 Kings 18:34; and the river is to be understood of the Euphrates at that spot, or, what is more probable, some canal or small stream that flowed into the Euphrates at that place. Ahava, or Ava, was situated in the northern part of Babylonia, and is represented by the modern Hit. See note on 2 Kings 17:24.

None of the sons of Levi That is, none of the Levites as distinguished from the priests. All the priests were sons of Levi, but all the sons of Levi were not priests. The priests were confined to the descendants of Aaron, (through Phinehas and Ithamar of Ezra 8:2.) The Levites proper were descendants of other sons of Levi. See the genealogy of 1 Chronicles 6:0.