David J.A. Clines
University of Sheffield

INTRODUCTION TO EZRA-NEHEMIAH
These books are our most important source of evidence for the history of the early post-exilic period, from 538 to c. 430 B.C.E. They bear the names of the two best-known leaders of the Jewish community of those years, Ezra the priest and Nehemiah the governor, both of them active in the middle of the fifth century, though their activity in Jerusalem perhaps never overlapped.

Connections with other books
The narrative of Ezra-Nehemiah continues directly from the end of 2 Chronicles, and the style and interests of the author are so alike to those of the Chronicler that most scholars have thought that the whole sequence of 1 Chronicles through Nehemiah was once a single work by one author. Even if the differences between 1 and 2 Chronicles on the one hand and Ezra-Nehemiah on the other point to different authorship, it seems that Ezra-Nehemiah was composed as a sequel to 1 and 2 Chronicles and that the authors of both works were Jerusalem clergy of the fourth century.
1 Esdras, in the Protestant Apocrypha but not among the Catholic Deuterocanonical books, is another work bearing the name of Ezra. Its narrative parallels the story from 2 Chronicles 35 to Nehemiah 8, only its last two chapters being concerned with Ezra. 2 Esdras is found in the Apocrypha of Anglo-Saxon churches, but is usually assigned to the Pseudepigrapha by the Lutheran tradition, and in Catholic Bibles it is either included among the New Testament Apocrypha or omitted altogether. It has nothing to do with the historical Ezra, being a set of apocalypses attributed to him.

The Structure of Ezra-Nehemiah
The books of Ezra-Nehemiah are a narrative of the restoration of the Jewish people to its homeland. And what drives that story are the decrees of two Persian kings, Cyrus and Artaxerxes, and what counts as restoration is the fulfillment of their demands. In Ezra 1 Cyrus commands that the Jews return to the land and resume their temple worship; and in accord with that Ezra 1­6 narrates the return and the rebuilding of the temple. In Ezra 7 Artaxerxes commands obedience to the law of Moses on the part of all the Jews; and in Nehemiah 2 he authorizes the re-establishment of Jerusalem, which will be the focus of national identity. And in accord with these initiatives Ezra 7 through Nehemiah 13 narrates the imposition of the Mosaic law and its effects, Ezra insisting on obedience to its demands for separation from non-Jews and Nehemiah likewise creating a distinctive Jewish identity when he encloses Jerusalem with a wall and purges the community from all things foreign.
The Sources of Ezra-Nehemiah
The author has obviously drawn on various sources for the narrative, at times editing them quite heavily and at other times simply copying them. Extensive sources were an Ezra 'memoir,' which provided the material for Ezra 7­10 and Neh 8­9, and a Nehemiah memoir, lightly edited to form Neh 1-7; 11.1-2; 12.32-43; 13.4-31 (though it is disputed whether Neh 3, for example, was ever part of such a memoir). Use of first-person language in some of the Ezra material and all of the Nehemiah narrative does not of course prove that the documents are authentic, but it is very probable that in the Nehemiah memoir at least we are reading the record of a leading statesman about events in which he was personally involved.
The author has also perhaps drawn on an 'Aramaic chronicle,' a collection of Persian documents in Aramaic purporting to be official correspondence about Jerusalem. That would explain why Ezra 4.7­6.18 is entirely in Aramaic while the rest of Ezra-Nehemiah is mostly in Hebrew. The typical bureaucratic language of these documents suggests they are authentic, though there are evidences of editing by a Jewish author. Other Persian documents are quoted in Ezra 1.2-4 (the edict of Cyrus) and 7.12-28 (Artaxerxes' authorization to Ezra, in Aramaic).
Other sources include various Jewish lists, e.g., of inhabitants of Judea (Ezra 2.3-58 = Neh 7.8-60; Neh 11.3-9), and of priests and Levites (Neh 11.10-23; 12.1-26), and the document recording the people's pledge to keep the details of the law and the names of those who signed it (Neh 10).
Historical Background
These books have their historical setting in two distinct periods, in the sixth and in the fifth centuries B.C.E.
1. 539­515 B.C.E. The Persian emperor Cyrus, having gained the Babylonian empire in 539, gave permission to the Jewish exiles in Babylonia to return to the land of Israel and to rebuild the temple. Sacrifice is said to have been resumed immediately upon their return, but repairs on the temple did not apparently progress. Only in 520, when Zerubbabel was governor of the province of Judea (Yehud), did the temple-building start in earnest, and it was finished in 515 (6.15).
2.458­430 B.C.E. It is debated whether Ezra's work is to be dated to 458 or 398, but on the assumption of the earlier date, the second period begins with the commissioning of the Jewish priest Ezra by Artaxerxes I to establish Pentateuchal law as state law in the province of Judea and to regulate the temple worship (Ezra 7). Ezra read the law to the people at the festival of booths in September, 458 (Neh 8), and his commission of enquiry into marriages of Jews with non-Jews sat from December of that year until the spring of 457 (Ezra 9­10).
A decade later, in 445, Nehemiah, a Jewish official in the service of Artaxerxes, was appointed governor of Judea (Neh 2; 5.14), with responsibility to rebuild the wall of Jerusalem and thus presumably to enhance the status of the city. Nehemiah, having completed that task (Neh 6.15), remained as governor for 12 years and enlarged the city's population by resettling villagers in the capital. At some time after 433, he returned for a second term of duty and carried out reforms of the religious life of the community (Neh 13.4-31).

EZRA
1.1-11 Cyrus the Persian king authorizes the Jews in exile in Babylonia to return to the land to rebuild the temple; the returning exiles carry with them treasures earlier plundered from the temple.
1.1-2 Mostly the same wording as 2 Chron 36.22, perhaps copied into 2 Chron as a link to Ezra.
1.1 the first year of King Cyrus of Persia. The first year of the reign of Cyrus II (the Great) over the Babylonian empire, 538-37 B.C.E. Cyrus had been king over Anshan (Elam) since 559 B.C.E.; he then conquered Persia, Media, Lydia, Assyria, and finally Babylonia.
1.1 the word of the LORD by the mouth of Jeremiah. Jer 25.11 predicts subjection to Babylon 70 years, and Jer 29.10 tells Jewish exiles in Babylon that after 70 years Yahweh will bring them back to Jerusalem. The first deportation was in 597 B.C.E. (2 Kgs 24.12-16), only 60 years previously; perhaps 70 is understood as a round number. Or perhaps the reference in Dan 1.1 to a deportation in 609 B.C.E. is a genuine historical reminiscence.
1.1 herald written edict. After the public announcement of the royal edict, the herald would have a copy of it posted on an official notice board.
1.2-4. Another edict of Cyrus is in 6.3-5, concerning the rebuilding of the temple.
1.2 a house. A temple is often called the 'house' of the deity who dwells in it.
1.2 Judah, the Persian province known as Yehud (in Hebrew) or Judea.
1.3 permitted may mean 'commanded,' since this is the edict of an autocrat.
1.3 rebuild implies knowledge of the destruction of the Jerusalem temple (in 587 or 586 B.C.E.).
1.4 survivors from the destruction of Jerusalem, i.e. those exiled to Babylon.
1.4 the people of their place are apparently Gentile neighbors.
1.5 families, lit. 'father's houses,' the extended family consisting of all descendants of a living patriarch (except women married into other families) and the family's slaves or servants.
1.5 Judah and Benjamin, the tribes (contrast Judah the state in 1.3).
1.5 priests traced their ancestry to Aaron, son of Levi; Levites were other members of the Levi tribe who undertook more menial duties in the temple worship (cf. Num 3.5-9).
1.7 Nebuchadnezzar had carried away: when he captured Jerusalem in 587 B.C.E. and plundered the temple (2 Kgs 24.13; 25.13-15; 2 Chron 36.10, 18; Jer 52.17-19).
1.7 the house of his gods, or rather, 'god': the temple, called Esagila, of his preferred deity, Marduk of Babylon.
Sheshbazzar, perhaps Shenazzar, a son of Jehoiachin the exiled king of Judah (1 Chron 3.18). Cf. on 5.14.
1.9-11. The number of items in the inventory comes to 2499, which differs from the total given as 5400. RSV emended the 30 gold basins to 1000 (as in the parallel 1 Esd 2.13), the 410 silver bowls to 2410 (as in 1 Esd 2.13), and the total to 5,469 (as in 1 Esd 2.14).
2.2 Apparently a list of leaders from various periods after the return: Zerubbabel, Jeshua are the governor and the priest of 3.1; perhaps Nehemiah is the governor Nehemiah (Neh 1.1), Seraiah the father of the priest Ezra (Ezra 7.1) and Bigvai the governor of Yehud after Nehemiah known from the Elephantine papyri.
2.2b-58. A census of inhabitants of Judah (the province Yehud), at some unknown time after the return from exile. The list is paralleled in Neh 7 and 1 Esd 5, with many variations especially in the numerals.
2.2 the Israelite people: i.e. laypersons, as distinct from priests, Levites and other religious professionals (2.36-58).
2.3-35 Parosh : These are not the names of individuals but of clans or phratries (2.3-20) and of towns (2.21-35).
2.36-39 priests: Other lists of post-exilic priests in Neh 10.2-8; 12.1-7.
2.40-42 Levites are also listed in Neh 10.9-13; 12.8-11. The temple singers (cf. 1 Chron 9.35-44) and gatekeepers (cf. 1 Chron 9.17-27) seem also to be regarded as Levites (as in Neh 12.9, 24-25).
2.43-54 temple servants: a hereditary caste of temple servitors, Heb. nethinim, mostly with non-Israelite names.
2.55-57 Solomon's servants: ostensibly the descendants of Solomon's Canaanite slaves (1 Kgs 9.20-21; 2 Chron 8.7-8), now temple officials.
2.59-69 Unlike 2.2b-58, a census of inhabitants of the province, this appears to be a report of the return of the exiles, from five towns in Babylonia.
2.61 Barzillai, a contemporary of David (2 Sam 17.27-29; 19.31-39). For a male to take the name of his wife's family is unparallelled in the OT.
2.62 unclean, in the ritual sense, and so unable to officiate as priests or be fed from the temple revenues (not to partake of the most holy food).
2.63 We cannot tell which governor (Heb. tirshatha, a Persian title signifying 'His Excellency') of the Persian province of Yehud is intended here.
2.63 Urim and Thummim: Sacred lots enabling the answers to difficult questions to be divined. They were apparently two small objects kept in a pouch of the high priest's ephod (Exod 28.30; Lev 8.8); they could yield the responses 'Yes,' 'No' or 'No answer' (cf. 1 Sam 14.36-37; 23.9-12; 30.7-8).
2.64 The figure of 42,360 members of the assembly differs from the total of the individual sums (29,818) in 2.2b-58. Such figures often suffer from errors in transmission. But perhaps the 42,360 are returnees (including women) and the 29,818 are inhabitants of the province at a later date (including those who had not been exiled, but excluding women).
2.65 Both male and female servants and singers are counted, so probably women members of the community are also included in the total of 2.64.
2.65 singers are secular entertainers; the temple singers have been mentioned in 2.41, and there were no female singers in the temple, as far as we know.
2.66-67 horses and mules are for riding, camels and donkeys for carrying loads; the list seems to be something like a caravan inventory.
2.68 The building and furnishing of the Second Temple is here regarded as the responsibility of the community at large rather than of a king, as it was with Solomon's Temple (1 Kgs 6­7). The giving of freewill offerings is reminiscent of the accounts of the construction of the tabernacle (Exod 25.2-7; 35.21-29); 1 Chron 29.2-9 also ascribes the funding of the First Temple to the donations of the people
2.69 61,000 darics: A daric was a gold coin of 8.4 grams, apparently named for Darius I (521­486 B.C.E.) who was represented on his coins half-length or kneeling with a bow and arrow). The reference to 'darics' at a time earlier than Darius is anachronistic, and suggests a composition or revision of this text later than the time is purports to describe. The total weight of gold in 61,000 darics (41,000 in Neh 7.70-72) is 1,133 lbs.
2.69 minas are not coins, but weights of c. 570 grams (20 oz.), 50 times the weight of a shekel. 5,000 minas of silver would weigh 6,250 lbs.
2.69 priestly robes, i.e., tunics, of intricately embroidered linen (Exod 28.4; cf. 28.39; 39.27).
3.1-13 Sacrifices are resumed and preparations for the rebuilding are made.
3.1 the seventh month: Tishri (September/October) of 538 B.C.E.
3.1 the Israelites were in the towns, i.e., the populace had settled in their ancestral homes in the country towns and villages (as well, of course, as in Jerusalem).
3.1 the people gathered together in Jerusalem: The seventh month, the most important in the liturgical year (Num 29), required in principle the presence in Jerusalem at least of all males in order to celebrate the festival of booths (see on 3.4).
3.2 Jeshua, the high priest (cf. Neh 12.10; Hag 1.1, 14; 2.2), called Joshua in Haggai, is here named before Zerubbabel because the context concerns worship. Usually their names are given in the reverse order (Ezra 2.2; 3.8; 4.3; 5.2; etc.). Jeshua's father Jozadak (= Jehozadak) was high priest at the time of the exile in 587 B.C.E. (1 Chron 6.15).
3.2 Zerubbabel, grandson of the exiled king of Judah, Jehoiachin (Jeconiah) (1 Chron 3.17-19), the Jewish governor appointed by the Persians.
3.2 to build the altar: the assumption is that the altar of the First Temple had been destroyed (for destroying altars, cf. 2 Kgs 23.15).
3.2 as prescribed in the law of Moses, i.e., built of unhewn stones (Exod 20.25; cf. Deut 27.6; 1 Macc 4.42-27).
3.3 on its foundation, i.e., on the foundation of the old altar still remaining. Continuity of tradition is deemed important for the legitimacy of the worship.
3.3 because they were in dread: The re-establishment of worship is the priority in the restoration of the state as a means of warding off danger from the neighboring peoples, lit. 'the peoples of the lands,' such as Edomites and Ammonites. Contrast the term 'people of the land' for the inhabitants of Palestine proper (cf. on 4.4).
3.3 burnt offerings morning and evening: the prescribed 'perpetual offering' (tamîd), a lamb together with flour, oil and wine, the staple produce of the land (Exod 29.38-42; Num 28.3-8).
3.4 the festival of booths (Tabernacles), held from the 15th to the 22nd of the seventh month (Lev 23.33-36).
3.4 the daily burnt offerings are detailed in Num 29.12-38, totalling in the week 71 bulls, 15 rams, 105 lambs and 7 goats.
3.5 Throughout the year there would be offered sacrifices: the public regular burnt offerings daily, the new moon monthly, the sacred festivals seasonally, and the private freewill offering[s] irregularly. The sacred festivals are enumerated in Lev 23.
3.6 the first day of the seventh month: According to the narrator's report, the date is September 17, 538 B.C.E.
3.6 the foundation of the temple was not yet laid: Better, 'work had not yet started on the temple rebuilding.' Many of the foundations must have survived from the ruins of the First Temple (see further on 5.16). The point is that sacrificial worship was resumed long before the temple building itself was repaired.
3.7 The account of the building of the Second Temple is intended to remind readers of the building of Solomon's temple (1 Chron 22; 2 Chron 2), for the narrator sees the Second Temple as essentially a rebuilding and continuation of the First Temple.
3.7 money is probably an anachronistic translation, for coins were not yet in common use. The Heb. is lit. 'silver,' which would have been weighed out as wages.
3.7 masons, including stonecutters (as in 1 Chron 22.2).
3.7 carpenters: The English word is too specific; the Heb. is lit. 'cutters,' i.e., workers in wood, metal and stone (cf. 1 Chron 22.15).
3.7 food, drink, and oil to the Sidonians and the Tyrians: Solomon too paid his workmen from Sidon and Tyre in kind (wheat and oil, 1 Kgs 5.11).
3.7 cedar trees from Lebanon; These tall and robust trees, for long highly prized throughout the ancient Near East, were ideal for roof beams. Isa 60.3 speaks of the 'glory of Lebanon' coming to Jerusalem to 'beautify' the temple.
3.7 to the sea, to Joppa: better, 'to the port (NEB roadstead) at Joppa.' In Solomon's time too, according to 2 Chron 2.16), logs bound together as rafts had been towed from the Lebanon to Joppa, Tell Qasile, just north of modern Tel Aviv.
3.7 the grant from King Cyrus: probably not the money grant (6.4) but his permission for timber to be taken free from Lebanon, which had become a royal Persian forest.
3.8 In the second year: 537 B.C.E.. Not much is said to have been done at this time (cf. 'laid the foundation,' 4.10), for work ceases until the reign of Darius (522­486 B.C.E.) (4.5), and then resumed and completed in his sixth year (6.15).
3.8 in the second month: Ziv (Iyyar) (April­May). In the same month Solomon began work on his temple (1 Kgs 6.1; 2 Chron 3.2); it was a suitable season for building work, after the spring rains and the early harvest of flax and barley.
3.8 all who had come from the captivity: Those who had not been in exile in Babylonia but had remained in the land seem to be studiously ignored by the author.
3.8 the Levites, from twenty years old: the minimum age for levitical duties, according to the Chronicler (cf. 1 Chron 23.24, 27; 2 Chron 31.17).
3.9 In accordance with his custom, the author lingers over the names and functions of the Levites, creating the impression that he himself was a Levite. Jeshua is a Levite, not the high priest (3.2).
3.10 laid the foundations: Whether there was any foundation-laying we do not know (cf. on 3.6), for the Heb. says only that they 'restored, repaired'--which must mean in the context that they began to repair. 2 Kgs 25.9 speaks only of the burning of the temple by the Babylonians, and the large dressed foundation stones, up to 12 or 15 feet in length (1 Kgs 5.17; 7.10), would not have been much damaged by the collapse of the temple.
3.10 in their vestments: Heb. has simply 'clothed'; presumably a word like 'in linen' has been accidentally omitted.
3.10 trumpets of silver (Num 10.2) blown by priests and cymbals of bronze (1 Chron 15.19) sounded by the sons of Asaph, the musician guild among the Levites (see 2.41; 2 Chron 29.25-26), were a rhythmical backing for the vocal music.
3.10 according to the directions of King David: 1 Chron 16.5-6; 25.1, 6.
3.11 For he is good toward Israel: A quotation from a psalm such as 106.1 or 136 (obviously intended for responsive singing). The theme of the praise is God's fidelity (steadfast love) to the nation; true to his promise, he has enabled them to return to the land.
3.11 The shout is often associated with military victory and the return of the ark of the covenant, seat of the divine king (e.g., 1 Sam 4.5-6; Ps 47.5; 132.16), to the center of the people.
3.11 because the foundation was laid: rather, 'because of the rebuilding' (cf. on 3.10).
3.12 the first house: Solomon's Temple, destroyed in 587 B.C.E., 50 years previously.
3.12 when they saw this house: Rather, with the Heb., 'this (or, that) was the temple in their eyes (i.e., as far as they were concerned)'--a parenthetical phrase that follows the first house on its foundations.
4.1-5 The building of the temple ceases, ostensibly because of oppositions from northern neighbors.
4.1 the adversaries: Presumably the 'people of the land' (4.4).
4.1 the returned exiles: again, no word of those who had stayed in the land (cf. on 3.8).
4.2 Esarhaddon, king of Assyria (681-669 B.C.E.), who will have imported colonists from other parts of his empire to settle in northern Israel after the deportation of many inhabitants in 721 B.C.E. (cf. also on 4.10).
4.3 no part with us: Perhaps it is implied that they continued worship of their national gods along with Yahweh (as former colonists are said to have done, 1 Kgs 17.41).
4.4 people of the land: these non-Jewish settlers.
4.4 discouraged: lit., 'relaxed the hands of,' i.e., 'weakened the morale of.'
4.5 until the reign of King Darius (522-486 B.C.E.). This opposition is offered as the explanation of the cessation of temple building from 537 to 520 B.C.E.
4.6-23 This section has nothing to do with the building of the temple, but with opposition to the building of Jerusalem, many years later. It is set in the time of Ahasuerus (Xerxes), in his accession year (December 486 to April 6, 485 B.C.E.), and in the time of Artaxerxes I (465­424 B.C.E.). Apparently the section has been included here to illustrate the kinds of methods that enemies of the Jews would have employed to 'discourage' them (4.4).
4.7 Bishlam: perhaps Belshunu, the governor of the province Beyond the River.
4.7 translated at the court into Persian (cf. 4.18).
4.8­6.18 The text is in Aramaic (as the last word of 4.8 says; see NRSV footnote), not Hebrew; several Aramaic documents seem to be cited here.
4.8-16 An accusation (no doubt false) by officials of the province of Samaria that the Jews intend to revolt against the Persians. It is in the name of various Persian officials (judges, envoys ) and ethnic groups settled there (people of Erech ).
4.8-9 The repetitions can best be explained if 4.8 was the summary that typically appeared on the outside of a papyrus letter.
4.10 Osnapper: Asshurbanipal (669­c. 633 B.C.E.), the last of the great Assyrian kings.
4.10 the province Beyond the River: the satrapy Abar-Nahara of which Samaria and Yehud (Judea) were provinces.
4.14 share the salt: are partners in a covenant ratified by a meal seasoned with salt (cf. Lev 2.13; Num 18.19).
4.15 the annals: cf. 6.1-2; Esth 6.1.
4.21 until I make a decree: A Persian decree for rebuilding the city is mentioned in Neh 2.5-6.
4.23 force and power: military strength.
4.24 resumes from 4.5 the narrative about the temple, after the digression about the city.
4.25 the second year of Darius: 520 B.C.E.
5.1-17 Restoration of the temple builing is resumed. Two prophets provide a new stimulus for the rebuilding (5.1-2), the provincial government investigates the work (5.3-5), and report to the central government (5.6-17).
5.1 Haggai and Zechariah: see Hag 1.1; Zech 1.1.
5.2 Zerubbabel and Jeshua: see on 3.2.
5.3 the province Beyond the River: cf. on 4.10.
5.5 Strangely, no mention is made here of Zerubbabel, nor at the completion of the temple (6.14-18), despite Zechariah's assurance that 'his hands shall complete it' (Zech 4.9). Had Zerubbabel died, or fallen out of favor with the Persians?
5.5 a report: given in 5.7-17.
5.5. answer: given in 6.2-12.
5.8 timber is laid in the walls: as in the building edict of Cyrus (6.4), as also in the account of Solomon's Temple (1 Kgs 6.36; 7.12), possibly to limit damage in case of earthquake.
5.11 a great king of Israel: Solomon.
5.12 King Nebuchadnezzar of Babylon, the Chaldean: Nebuchadnezzar II ruled the neo-Babylonian empire 604-562 B.C.E., and captured Jerusalem in 597 B.C.E., taking many inhabitants into captivity (2 Kgs 24­25). He was by tribal affiliation a Chaldean from southern Babylonia
5.13 made a decree: The reference is to 6.3-5; cf. also 1.1.
5.14 the vessels which Nebuchadnezzar had taken: cf. on 1.7.
5.14 Sheshbazzar: cf. on 1.8. a man named Sheshbazzar is perhaps no more respectful in Aramaic than in English; the idiom is often found in Aramaic papyri in reference to slaves. The term translated governor may not mean 'provincial ruler' (as in 5.6; Neh 5.14), but simply 'commissioner' for this project.
5.16 Sheshbazzar laid the foundations (or rather, the platform on which the temple was built; the term is different from that in 3.10). In all the other evidence it is Zerubbabel who is said to have begun the rebuilding (3:2; 4:3; 5:2; Hag 1.14; Zech 4.9). Perhaps it was the commissioner Sheshbazzar who was named in the official Persian correspondence, and not the governor Zerubbabel.
5.16 from that time until now it has been under construction: But both Ezra 4.4, 24 and Hag 1.2, 4, 9 report that work ceased for about 17 years. The leaders obviously do not want to admit this; and it is true enough that since the work has not yet been completed, it could be said to be still 'in progress.'
6.1-12 The decree of Darius, authorizing the rebuilding of the temple, quotes the earlier decree of Cyrus (6.2-5).
6.2 Ecbatana, modern Hamadan, the former capital of Media and the summer residence of the Persian kings.
6.2 scroll, or 'roll,' a rolled piece of leather or papyrus written on in Aramaic, and kept in a clay sealing shaped like a napkin ring.
6.3 the place where sacrifices are offered: The Persians themselves did not sacrifice.
6.3 its height and its width sixty cubits: The length dimension is missing. Solomon's temple was 60 cubits long, 20 wide, 30 high (1 Kgs 6.2). If the second Temple was 60 cubits long, it would have been a perfect cube, 60 x 60 x 60 cubits; but it would also have been six times the volume of Solomon's temple! To fit on the same foundations, the Second Temple would most likely have had the same dimensions.
6.3 cubits: c. 17.5 ins., or, if the 'royal' or 'great' cubit was used (Ezek 41.8), c. 20.4 ins. On the basis of the standard cubit, the temple would have been 90 x 30 x 45 ft.
6.4 three courses of hewn stones and one course of timber: cf. on 5.8.
6.4 paid from the royal treasury: hence the necessity for details of size and building materials in the edict. It is said that this is the first time in recorded history that a ruler not only approved the practise of a foreign religion is his empire but also devoted state resources to its maintenance.
6.5 which Nebuchadnezzar took out of the temple in Jerusalem: cf. on 1.7.
6.8 from the tribute of the province Beyond the River: i.e., from Tattenai's own revenues, not from central Persian funds.
6.9 wheat offered as flour, alone or mixed with olive oil: cf. Lev 5.11; 2.1-7.
6.9 salt accompanied cereal offerings (Lev 2.13), and wine was a libation with daily and festival burnt offerings (Exod 29:38-41; Lev 23.13, 18, 37).
6.12 who has established his name there: a very Jewish, and not at all a Persian, phrase (cf. e.g. Deut 12.11).
6.13-18 The temple is finally completed and dedicated.
6.14 The twin impulses, from divine and human sources, are artlessly conjoined. The reference to King Artaxerxes (464-423 B.C.E.) is out of place here, since he did not come to the throne until well after the temple was completed.
6.15 on the third day in the sixth year: March 12, 515 B.C.E. Apparently that was a sabbath, in which case it was the day after the completion of the work (cf. Gen 2.2). But perhaps we should follow 1 Esd 7.5 and read 'the twenty-third day,' viz. April 1, a Friday.
6.16 the returned exiles: cf. on 4.1.
6.17 The ceremony of dedication is obviously modeled on that of Solomon (1 Kgs 8; 2 Chron 7.4-7), though the number of animals said to have been sacrificed is very much smaller (cf. 1 Kgs 8.63).
6.17 a sin offering: to decontaminate the temple from impurity (cf. Ezek 43.18-27).
6.17 the number of the tribes: Although only members of Judah, Benjamin and Levi are said to have constituted the post-exilic community, they regard themselves as the authentic Israel and as worshipping on behalf of all the tribes.
6.18 as it is written in the book of Moses: In the biblical tradition, however, it was not Moses but David who arranged the divisions and courses of these clergy (1 Chron 23­26); Moses simply established the two classes (Exod 29; Lev 8; Num 3; 4; 8).
6.19-22 Now that the temple is finished, it can serve its purpose as the center for the festival cult. The first festival that falls due is Passover (cf. Exod 12), some six weeks (but cf. on 6.15) after the dedication, on April 21, 515 B.C.E.
6.21 all who had joined them and separated themselves: For the first time (cf. on 4.1; 5.16), the presence of a wider circle of Jews than those who had returned from exile is acknowledged.
6.21 pollutions of the nations of the lands: the worship of foreign gods, practised by non-Jews in the land of Israel.
6.22 the festival of unleavened bread: an extension of Passover, and celebrated from the fifteenth to the twenty-first of the first month (Exod 12.15-20; Lev 23.6-8; Deut 16.1-8). Unleavened bread was a reminder of the food the Israelites ate before they made their hasty escape from Egypt (Deut 16.3).
6.22 the king of Assyria: The Assyrian empire was of course long since defunct when Cyrus and Darius reigned; but they were its heirs, and they have reversed the evil against Israel initiated by the Assyrian kings.
7.1-10 Ezra's lineage and office (7.1-6) and a brief notice of his coming to Jerusalem (7.7-10) (more detail in 8:15-36).
7.1 After this: the narrative moves suddenly from the end of the sixth century to the middle of the fifth (or beginning of the fourth, if the king is Artaxerxes II; see on 7.7).
7.1.Artaxerxes: see on 7.7.
7.1 Ezra's genealogy shows him to be a member of the high-priestly family, though not high priest himself.
7.6 scribe: doctor of the Jewish law (cf. also Sir 39.1-11).
7.6 all that he asked: to be inferred from the king's letter of 7.12-26.
7.7 in the seventh year of King Artaxerxes: 458 B.C.E. if the king is Artaxerxes I (465-424), 398 B.C.E. if it is Artaxerxes II (405-359).
7.9 On the assumption that Ezra's journey took place in 458 B.C.E., he left Babylonia on April 8 and arrived in Jerusalem on August 4.
7.10 To study, i.e., to learn and to interpret, and to do, are the twin ideals of post-exilic Judaism.
7.11-26 After an introductory verse in Hebrew (7.10), there follows a long official document in Aramaic (7.11-26), the language in which most documents of this kind are found in Ezra. This is Artaxerxes' firman or letter of authorization to Ezra.
7.12 Peace: The Aramaic means 'perfect,' which may be an abbreviation of a greeting formula, or may be a scribal mark to show that the matter has been dealt with.
7.13 people priests Levites: The familiar threefold division of Israel into lay persons and two types of religious personnel (see also 2.70; 6.16).
7.13 freely offers: Another typically Jewish term (cf. also 1.6; 2.68; 3.5; 8.28), suggesting a Jewish drafting of this letter.
7.14 seven counselors: known in Greek sources as the king's advisers from the leading aristocratic families (cf. also Esth 1.14).
7.14 to make inquiries according to the law: To discover how far Jewish law is being observed in Judea.
7.14 which is in your hand, i.e., of which you have the mastery. The law was almost certainly the Pentateuch in more or less its present form.
7.16 find: as donations from fellow-Jews and others (cf. 1.4).
7.21-24 Ezra's authorization includes an edict addressed to the treasurers of the province for support of the temple worship in Jerusalem. The grant seems to be an annual one, except that the amount of silver (one hundred talents, more than three tons) is hugely disproportionate (perhaps talents is an error for 'minas,' one-sixtieth of the weight?).
7.25 Ezra's authority extends only to Jews in the province, whether they already know Pentateuchal law or need to be taught it.
7.27-28 The text changes back to Hebrew at this point, and the narrator quotes a first-person account of Ezra's work.
8.1-14 Ezra's company numbered about 1,500 males, all from families of which some members had already returned (the twelve phratry names are to be found also in Ezra 2.3-15). Unlike Ezra 2, here the priests are mentioned first (8.2).
8.15-20 The presence of Levites seems to have been needed for the sybolism, so that Ezra's caravan should include representatives of all Israel. The place names are unknown.
8.20 mentioned by name: perhaps in the first-person Ezra memoir, but omitted by the editor of the present book of Ezra.
8.21 a fast that we might deny ourselves: Fasting seems to have been a symbolic entering of a near-death state so as to represent oneself as an endangered person who is in need of divine care.
8.21 a safe journey, lit. a 'straight, or, level way,' perhaps recalling Isa 40.3.
8.24 the leading priests: Sherebiah: better, 'the leading priests, and Sherebiah, Hashabiah'; for these are Levites (8.18-19), and 12 priests and 12 Levites would be a symbol of all Israel.
8.26 six hundred and fifty talents: about 19 tons.
8.26 worth talents The numeral is missing; or perhaps the word for talents could be read as 'two talents.'
8.26 one hundred talents of gold: about three tons. The figures are either exaggerated or have been corruption in the course of copying.
8.27 daric: cf. on 2.69.
8.28 holy: i.e. belonging to God, whether objects or persons. Any seizure of the gifts or their guardians would be an assault on God.
8.35-36 These summary verses, which probably were originally followed by the account of the law-reading ceremony of Neh 7.73b­8.18, are in third-person narrative, and so apparently not from the Ezra memoir.
8.36 satraps: The term is used loosely, for there was only one satrap of the province Beyond the River, though Ezra will have encountered various 'governors.'
9.1­10.44 Ezra is now informed that certain Jews have broken the law by marrying non-Jews (9.1-2); he responds with mourning (9.3-5) and a prayer of repentance (9.5-15) since he feels the people as a whole have been implicated in this breach of the law. A group of rigorists then propose to Ezra the action they think he should take (10.1-5), and Ezra accedes, calling a public assembly which determines that foreign wives should be divorced (10.6-17). A list follows, of the 113 men who had married non-Jews. The first-person form in chap. 9 suggests that an Ezra memoir is being drawn on; in chap. 10 the third-person form resumes.
It is hard to fault the desire of the beleaguered post-exilic community to maintain its own distinctive way of life, its religion and its language (cf. on Neh 13.23), but harder still for the modern reader to acquiesce in the drastic solution proposed in this narrative. Hints of opposition, in the presence of non-Jewish persons even in noble families in subsequent generations (Neh 6.17-18), and in Nehemiah's less rigorous response to a similar situation (Neh 13.23-27), suggest that Ezra's decision was regarded as extreme even within the post-exilic community itself.
9.1 After these things had been done: Most probably the account of the law-reading of Nehemiah 8, and perhaps also that of the penitential service of Nehemiah 9, earlier came between the moment of Ezra's arrival in Jerusalem and the events of Ezra 9­10.
9.1 the peoples of the lands: non-Jewish or part-Jewish inhabitants.
9.1 There were no surviving Canaanites, Hittites, Perizzites, Jebusites or Amorites still in Palestine in Ezra's time. The names come from an old stereotyped list of foreign nations with whom intermarriage was forbidden (esp. in Deut 7.1-4), and they are mentioned here to invoke the ancient law as relevant to the current situation. Marriage with Ammonites and Moabites, though they were recognized as members of the Semitic family of nations, had also been strongly prohibited (Deut 23.3-6), but with Egyptians it was not forbidden (Deut 23.7).
9.2 the holy seed: The phrase is from Isa 6.13, with overtones of the language of the blessings to Abraham (e.g. Gen 12.7; 13.14-16; 17.1-8). The racist language expresses of course a concern with religious rather than simply ethnic identity; but whether that makes it better of worse is a matter of opinion.
9.3 I tore my garment (tunic or undergarment) and my mantle (cloak or outer garment): an act of mourning, a stylized stripping oneself naked as a symbol of death.
9.3 pulled hair: a customary modification of the forbidden practice of shaving the head in mourning (Lev 19.27; 21.5).
9.4 all who trembled at the words of the God of Israel: the strict adherents of the law (cf. 10.2; Isa 66.2, 5).
9.4 appalled: i.e., dumbfounded, the conventional shocked silence at a time of lamentation (cf. Job 2.12-13; Ezek 26.16).
9.4 until the evening sacrifice: the ninth hour, about 3 p.m., an appropriate time for prayer (1 Kgs 18.36; Acts 3.1).
9.5 spread out my hands, palms upward: a gesture of supplication in prayer.
9.7 utter shame, as is now the case: because as a people they are subject to the Persians.
9.8 a remnant: those of the nation who remain.
9.8 a stake, lit. a 'tent-peg': the rebuilt temple as a guarantee of security and God's presence.
9.8 brighten our eyes: revive our spirits (cf. 2 Sam 14.27; Ps 23.2).
9.9 slaves: not literally, but, as Persian subjects, lacking national independence.
9.9 a wall in Judea and Jerusalem: a metaphor (cf. Ps 80.2) for the protection of the Persian government.
9.11 The words quoted by Ezra come mostly from the Pentateuch, so he must regard Moses as a prophet (as does Deut 18.15; 34.10); there are allusions to Deut 7.1; Lev 18.24-30; Deut 18.9; 2 Kgs 21.16; Deut 7.3; 23.6; 11.8; 6.11; 1.38-39.
10.2 Shecaniah, son of Jehiel, of the descendants of Elam: Strangely, a Jehiel of the family of Elam was among those who had married foreign wives, so, if it is the same Jehiel, Shecaniah would have been advocating his own excommunication!
10.3 to send away all those wives: to divorce them.
10.3 according to the law: The law sanctions divorce in the case of a man finding some 'uncleanness' in his wife (Deut 24.1-4); apparently the law is here being applied to the case of the (ritual) 'uncleanness' of foreign birth. Previously, while the law forbade certain intermarriage, there was no rule about what action should be taken once it had occurred.
10.6 the chamber: There will have been rooms in the temple for accommodating priests and Levites when they were on duty in the temple.
10.6 Jehohanan (or Johanan) son of Eliashib: perhaps the high priest, if the high priestly genealogy of Neh 12.10-11 is rightly seen to have some gaps.
10.7 assemble at Jerusalem: an assembly of all Israelite males, as required in the law for certain festivals (Exod 23.17; Deut 16.16).
10.8 forfeited: lit. 'devoted' to Yahweh, and so removed from the owner's use for secular purposes.
10.8 banned: the earliest attestation of excommunication (cf. John 9.22; 12.42).
10.9 the ninth month: December, when the heavy winter rains, and sometimes even snow, fall in Jerusalem, lying 2,000 feet above sea level.
10.9 the open square: the scene of Ezra's prayer (10.1) and perhaps also of his law-reading (Neh 8).
10.14 The appointment of a commission to examine the individual cases casts a veneer of propriety and legality over the proceedings, which had however been decided on by a popular assembly of which the vast majority had nothing to lose by the decision.
10.15 The opposition may be to the proposal to postpone the investigations, and these four men may be more rigorous, not more liberal, than the majority; the Levite Meshullam may well be Ezra's companion in 8.16, and Shabbathai's name suggests that he came from a very observant family (cf. Isa 58.13).
10.16-17 A full three months (from December 29, 458 to March 27, 457 if the contemporary Persian king was Artaxerxes I; cf. on 7.7) were spent on the identification of 113 offenders; it cannot have always have been easy to determine the racial status of a woman who was of partly Jewish and partly non-Jewish descent. The list may of course be incomplete: it includes none of the temple servants, nor inhabitants of the towns listed in 2.20-35.
10.44 The narrative can be reasonably expected to have concluded with some such note, but the Heb. is not intelligible, and the NRSV has recourse to the parallel in 1 Esd 9.36.

NEHEMIAH
1.1-11 Nehemiah, hearing of some recent attack upon Jerusalem, prays for the success of his planned request to the Persian king to be allowed to rebuild the city walls. The narrative is told in the first person, and presumably has been only lightly edited from a memoir composed by Nehemiah himself.
1.1 Nehemiah, a Jew who had risen to high office in the Persian administration; cf. on 1.11; 5.14.
1.1 Chislev: the ninth month, November/December.
1.1 the twentieth year: apparently of Artaxerxes I (464-423 B.C.E.). But chap. 2 is dated in the month Nisan (the first month) of the twentieth year; since Nisan does not of course follow Chislev, the year date is 1.1 is apparently an error for 'nineteenth,' i.e. 446 B.C.E.
1.1 Susa: the spring residence of the Persian kings.
1.2 the Jews that survived, those who had escaped the captivity: apparently both the descendants of those who had never been exiled and those who had returned from exile.
1.3 broken down: This cannot refer to the destruction of the city in 587 B.C.E., since it is presented as fresh news. Perhaps this assault on the city is the result of the military force deployed against Jerusalem according to Ezra 4.23 in the reign of Artaxerxes.
1.4 sat down: a customary posture in mourning and fasting (cf. Job 2.8, 13).
1.5-11 Nehemiah's prayer uses much conventional language, taken especially from Deuteronomy. See especially Deut 5.31; 7.8, 9, 21; 9.29; 12.11; 30. 1-5.
1.6 confessing: This is a general confession, without reference to any specific sins (unlike Ezra's prayer of Ezra 9).
1.8-9 the word that you commanded: What follows is not a literal quotation but a free summary of Deut 30.1-5.
1.11 this man: He has not yet mentioned his name, but God is expected to know, and readers will soon be enlightened. Perhaps Nehemiah's language gives a hint of how he regards his sovereign: he is a mere man.
1.11 cupbearer: An important office in the Persian court. As taster of the king's wine and guard of the royal apartment he would no doubt have great personal influence on the king's decisions.
2.1-20 Nehemiah gains appointment from the king as (implicitly) governor of Judea (2.1-8). He meets with hostility from the governors of neighboring provinces (2.9-10), arrives in Jerusalem and inspects the state of the walls (2.11-16), and determines to rebuild them regardless of the opposition (2.17-20).
2.3 the city: Nehemiah wisely never mentions the name of Jerusalem, since it was notorious as a rebellious city (cf. Ezra 4.12, 15).
2.4 What do you request?: The king realizes that Nehemiah's response is no resigned sigh but itself demands a reply.
2.5 rebuild it: This would not simply be a pious act in memory of his fathers; it would, by ancient custom, imply rulership of the rebuilt city, and, since it is a capital, governorship of the province as well..
2.6 the queen is known as Damaspia from Greek sources.
2.7-8 Perhaps it is etiquette that prevents Nehemiah asking explicitly for the governorship, but 5.14 implies that he was appointed governor of Judea at this time. Nehemiah asks only for a passport for safe conduct through the other Persian provinces, and a requisition order for timber from the royal forest.
2.8 the temple fortress: This is the first we hear of it; cf. also 7.2. It may be the Tower of Hananel (3.1), and it may have been the predecessor of the Antonia tower built by Herod.
2.8 and for the wall of the city: for its gates (the city wall itself would have been entirely of stone).
2.9 the province Beyond the River: cf. on Ezra 4.10.
2.10 Sanballat, the governor of the province Samaria, adjoining Judea on the north.
2.10 the Horonite seems to be a contemptuous reference to his humble origins; Nehemiah never accords him his official title.
2.10 Tobiah, probably the governor of the province of Ammon, Nehemiah's eastern neighbor.
2.10 it displeased them greatly: Nehemiah's appointment directly by the king perhaps was felt by them as a threat to their own political and economic status. They were probably more hostile to Nehemiah personally than to the Jews themselves.
2.13 Nehemiah's night-ride took him in an anti-clockwise direction around Jerusalem, beginning at the north or west of the city.
2.13 Valley Gate: in the western wall, 1000 cubits north of the Dung Gate (3.13).
2.13 Dragon's Spring: no longer known.
2.13 Dung Gate, or Potsherd Gate (Jer 19.2), at the southern tip of the city.
2.14 Fountain Gate: in the Kidron Valley on the east of the city.
2.14 King's Pool: the pool of Shelah (Shiloah), fed from the spring Gihon further up the valley (cf. 3. 15; Isa 8.6).
2.14 no place for the animal to continue: The elaborate system of terraces on the eastern slope had collapsed after the Babylonian destruction, and the valley floor was now a vast tumble of stones. The archaeological evidence is that Nehemiah abandoned the old line of wall on the eastern slope and built a new wall on the crest.
2.16 Perhaps he is stressing that the rebuilding of the city walls was entirely his initiative.
2.19 Geshem the Arab: king of Qedar, the ruler, under nominal Persian control, of a large territory in North Arabia, Edom and the Negev of Judah. Cf. also 6.1-6.
2.19 rebelling: The fortification of the city could be seen as a preparation for revolt.
3.1-32 This list did not perhaps form part of Nehemiah's memoirs; for it views the wall-building as completed (e.g., 3.1, 3, 6), but it is set in the narrative between the decision to build (2.18) and the events that occurred during the building (4.1-23).
3.1-7 The North Wall. Gates and wall here are mainly said to be built, suggesting that they were more damaged than those that were only 'repaired.' The north wall fronts the main access road to Jerusalem, and would have to bear the brunt of military attacks. The 'builders' mentioned by name are no doubt those who financed the work rather than those who actually worked with their hands (cf. also 4.16-17, 21-23).
3.1 Sheep Gate: the name would come from the market there. It is probably the north-east gate, the Benjamin Gate.
3.1 consecrated: perhaps a special ceremony for a section of wall adjoining the temple, for the consecration of the wall as a whole occurs much later (12.27-30).
3.3 Fish Gate: naturally enough, on the west of the city, nearest the sea.
3.5 The non-cooperation of the nobles of Tekoa, in the south, may have been due to the influence of Geshem.
3.6 Old Gate: The name should probably be emended to Mishneh Gate, the gate of the extended Second Quarter of the city (cf. 2 Kgs 22.14).
3.7-14 The West Wall. The line of wall here cannot easily be associated with any archaeological remains.
3.8 restored Jerusalem: Some translate 'abandoned' (part of the western or Mishneh quarter of the pre-exilic city).
3.12 he and his daughters: This is the only reference to the participation of women in the building, but we need not assume that these were the only females involved.
3.15-32 The East Wall. Especially in the southern half of this wall, the builders seem to have been working on an entirely new wall (cf. on 2.14). This will explain the large number of gangs that worked on this stretch of wall.
3.15 Pool of Shelah: cf. on 2.14.
3.16 the graves of David: i.e., of the Davidic kings.
3.16 the house of the warriors: presumably an army barracks.
3.25 the upper house of the king: perhaps the Solomonic palace, higher up the hill than David's.
3.26 Ophel, part or whole of the south-eastern hill overlooking the Kidron valley.
3.29 East Gate: a gate of the temple, not of the city wall.
3.31 Muster Gate: probably a gate of the temple court.
4.1-23 This narrative of progress on the wall is interlaced with reports of hostility toward the Jews on the part of the Persian authorities in Samaria.
4.1 Sanballat: see on 2.10.
4.2 the army of Samaria: his troops as governor.
4.2 Will they restore things?: Sanballat pokes fun at what he supposes to be the incompetence of the Jews; the sentence might mean 'Will they repair for themselves?,' building a makeshift wall unlike the elegant city wall of Samaria.
4.2 Will they sacrifice?: perhaps a foundation sacrifice, or a dedication one.
4.3 Tobiah: cf. on 2.17.
4.4-5 Nehemiah's plea to God, though doubtless part of his written report of past events, is presented as a prayer composed at the time of Sanballat's mockery. The imprecation on enemies is a feature of several similar psalms of appeal (e.g., Ps 35; 58:6-9).
4.7 the Arabs: under their king Geshem (cf. on 2.19).
4.8 Ammonites are on the east, Ashdodites on the west of Judah; on all sides, Nehemiah is surrounded by enemies.
4.8 plotted to come: But did they come? There is no evidence that they did.
4.10 Judah: the Judeans. Their speech seems to have poetic form, and may be a work song.
4.12 near them: the enemies.
4.13 Nehemiah's tactic seems to have been to mass armed citizens in those places where the wall could be overlooked from outside the city, so as to give to enemy spies the impression of massive defensive forces.
4.16-22 There are various public relations and morale boosting activities here, forming an armed guard for the builders, arming the workers themselves, appointing a trumpeter to sound an alarm in case of attack, and keeping the workers overnight in the city for security and to prevent intimidation by the enemy.
5.1-13 The threat from without is followed by a threat to the community's stability from within. A shortage of food had led to large-scale debt slavery, and Nehemiah takes measures in response to an outcry from the people.
5.2 with our sons we are many: Preferably, 'we are giving our sons and our daughters as pledges' for borrowings.
5.4 the king's tax: the levy from the provinces for the central Persian government.
5.7 the nobles and the officials: the lenders of money.
5.7 taking interest: The Heb. means rather 'seizing (persons, land and goods) given in pledge against debts.' Interest on loans was illegal (Lev 23.36-37; Deut 23.29-20), but taking pledges was sanctioned by the law (Deut 24.10). Nehemiah, himself one of the moneylenders (5.10), is not confessing to any illegal act, but accepts that pledge-taking from kinspeople is 'not good' (5.10).
5.10 stop this taking of interest: Rather, 'stop this taking in pledge,' perhaps implying also the return of pledges already taken.
5.11 interest on: rather, 'pledge on.'
5.13 the fold of my garment, the ancient equivalent of pockets.
5.13 the people: the nobles and moneylenders.
5.14-19 The account of Nehemiah's generosity as governor now continues the theme of the benefits of his rule for the Judeans.
5.14 Nehemiah's appointment as governor was only implicit in 2.5-8. It ran from 445 to 433/2 B.C.E. As governor, he was entitled to deduct his own expenses from the taxes he collected for the central government, but he refrained from doing so.
5.15 forty shekels of silver a day (about 1 lb).
5.17 those who came to us from the nations: imperial and satrapal (provincial) officials.
6.1-7.4 In spite of traps for Nehemiah, the wall is finished, and security arrangements made.
6.1 Sanballat Tobiah Geshem: see on 2.10, 19; 4.7.
6.2 the plain of Ono: c. 20 m. north-west of Jerusalem.
6.2 to do me harm: Nehemiah does not know what harm exactly.
6.3 It is a witty reply to make the work his excuse for refusing the invitation when the purpose of the invitation is to make him cease the work.
6.5 An open letter (an unsealed sheet of papyrus, or an ostracon, a piece of potsherd) containing a charge of treason could be fatal for Nehemiah.
6.7 It is not impossible that Nehemiah was being hailed by some as a messiah, as Haggai (2.21-23) and Zechariah (3.8; 4.6-10; 6.10-14) had hailed a former governor, Zerubbabel.
6.9 But now, O God : a prayer that suits the time of the events rather than of the writing (cf. on 4.4-5).
6.10-13 Sanballat engineers a further attempt to discredit Nehemiah and make him stop the wall-building.
6.10-11 Shemaiah seems to have been inveigling Nehemiah to enter the temple, which was forbidden to him as a layman, in order to destroy his reputation. How this is connected to what Nehemiah perceived as a threat to his life is hard to tell.
6.10 Shemaiah: an otherwise unknown prophet, apparently in league with Sanballat.
6.10 confined to his house: for some religious reason.
6.14 A prayer like that of 6.9 except that it belongs rather to the time of writing.
6.14 Noadiah and the rest of the prophets: Allusions to otherwise unknown events.
6.15 The wall was finished on October 2, 445 B.C.E., having been begun on August 11.
6.17-19 Instead of an account of the dedication of the wall, which will come at 12.27-43, we have a further note of hostility to Nehemiah. It is hard to see what Tobiah hoped to achieve by both threatening Nehemiah and having his friends praise him to Nehemiah.
7.1 the singers, and the Levites: probably to be omitted as a scribal addition.
7.2 It is likely that the text refers to only one city governor, Hanani, Nehemiah's brother, Hananiah being an alternative writing of the name.
7.3 The strict security precautions are hard to understand, but obviously not opening the gates until the sun is hot was unusual.
7.4 wide and large: 30 or 40 acres.
7.4 no houses: no new houses, that is; for there were already inhabitants of the city (cf. e.g. 3.20; 7.3).
7.5-73 Nehemiah takes a census of the people in order to prepare for the repopulating of the city (11.1-2). This list that follows is largely identical with Ezra 2. This old list, which Nehemiah says he found, may have been useful in establishing which families were of pure Jewish descent, for only those would have been eligible for transfer to Jerusalem.
7.73b­9.37 In these chapters Ezra is the principal figure, and it seems that they were originally integrated with the Ezra memoir of Ezra 7­10.
7.73b­8.12 Ezra summons the people to a ceremony for the reading of the law. In the present context, it occurs about a week after the finishing of the wall (cf. 6.15). But on the view that Neh 8­9 reports events of 458 B.C.E., and that that was the year of Ezra's arrival, the law-reading took place two months after Ezra came to Jerusalem (cf. 8.2 with Ezra 7.9).
8.1 the square before the Water Gate: on the east of the city, outside the temple area, where even ritually defiled citizens could be present.
8.2 They told the scribe Ezra: Though Ezra is plainly the initiator of the law teaching (cf. Ezra 7.25), he wants to represent it as a response to the people's request.
8.2 the first day of the seventh month: The new moon day introducing the most important festival month in Israel. This day (Tishri 1) later became New Year's Day (Rosh haShanah).
8.2 all who could hear with understanding: older children.
8.4-8. The narrative parallels that of the reading of the 'book of the law' under Josiah (2 Chron 34.14-32).
8.4 Mattithiah Meshullam: a representative group of 13 laymen lending their authority; cf. the 13 Levites in 8.7.
8.5 opened the book: rather, 'unrolled the scroll.'
8.6 Amen: 'It is firm, established,' signifying the assent of the listeners.
8.7-8 The Levites apparently moved among the people, ensuring they understood what was read by Ezra. with interpretation: the term, meaning 'distinctly' or 'with pauses,' perhaps implies translation from Hebrew to Aramaic.
8.9 Nehemiah: This is the only evidence that Ezra and Nehemiah were contemporaries; and since the verb said is singular it seems likely that Nehemiah, who was the governor should be deleted.
8.9 mourn or weep in repentance for having disobeyed the law.
8.10 They should celebrate the new moon festival as they were planning to, and send portions to the poor and foreigners (Deut 14.29; 26.12-13).
8.13-18 The following day a smaller group, the family heads and temple officials in Jerusalem, studied with Ezra the details for exact observance of the next festival, Booths (cf. on Ezra 3.4), to begin on the fifteenth of the month. Living for a week in huts commemorated the journeying in the wilderness (Lev 23.42).
8.17 Jeshua: Joshua, Moses' successor. The festival itself had been always celebrated, as far as we know (cf. Judg 21.19; 1 Sam 1.3; Ezra 3.4); the novelty now was apparently that all Israel could celebrate it together in one place, last possible when they were camped by Gilgal with Joshua (though Josh 5.10 speaks of Passover and not specifically of Booths).
9.1-37 Two days later, a day of penitence is held (9.1-4), and the prayer of the Levites is reported (9.5-37). Strangely, the Day of Atonement (Yom Kippur) on the tenth has not been mentioned; perhaps the ceremony of the twenty-fourth replaces it.
9.1 Rituals of mourning are often used to express penitence. Mourners and penitents alike want to depict themselves as being like the dead, so they fast from food, wear sackcloth from which shrouds are made, and put earth on their heads as if they were buried.
9.2 separated themselves from all foreigners: Not the divorce of foreign wives in Ezra 9­10, but it reflects the same concern for religious distinctiveness. Though foreigners living in Judea could participate in the festival (Deut 16.14), and were obliged to keep the law (Num 15.15-16), they had no need to confess Israel's sins as their own.
9.5-37 The Levites first summon the people to Stand up and bless the LORD (9.5a). Their prayer must then begin with Blessed be your glorious name, addressed to God. The theme of the prayer is Israelite history viewed as a story of apostasy: there has been divine blessing (9.6-15), blessing continued despite rebellion (9.16-25), and rebellion renewed (9.26-31). It concludes with an appeal for deliverance from foreign domination (9.32-27, especially 9.32 do not treat lightly all the hardship that has come upon us).
9.6 There is no good reason to add And Ezra said, for the Levitical prayer continues from 9.5b.
9.7 Gen 11.31­12.3.
9.8 Gen 15.
9.9 Exod 3.7; 14.10.
9.10 Deut 4.34; 29.2-3; Exod 18.11.
9.11 Exod 14.21-23.
9.12 Exod 13.21.
9.13 Exod 19­23.
9.14 Exod 20.8-11.
9.15 Exod 16.4; 17.6.
9.17 Exod 16.2-3; cf. 34.6.
9.18 Exod 32.4.
9.19 Num 14.14.
9.20 Num 11.17; 11.6-9; 20.7-11.
9.21 Deut 2.7; 8.4.
9.22 Num 21.32-35; Deut 2.24­3.11.
9.23 Gen 22.17.
9.27 Cf. Judg 2.11-18.
9.29 Cf. Deut 4.1.
9.38­10.39 The pledge of reform is here firmly attached to the prayer of penitence (because of all this). But historically it seems more likely that it stemmed from the community of Nehemiah (probably following the events of Neh 13) rather than that of Ezra, who is not named in it.
10.1-27 The priests' names (10.2-8) are probably 'course' (or duty roster) names rather than the names of individuals. The laymen's names (10.14-27) often correspond to Ezra 2 = Neh 7, suggesting that individuals signed on behalf of their family.
10.28-39 The people pledge to keep not just Pentateuchal law in general but particular interpretations of it.
10.28 all who have separated themselves: cf. Ezra 6.21.
10.30 Cf. Exod 34.11-16; Deut 7.1-4; and cf. on Ezra 9­10.
10.31 No former sabbath law (e.g. Exod 20.8-11) defined buying food as work. And previously the fallow year law (Exod 23.10-11), which works to the disadvantage of the farmer, had not been combined with the remission year law (Deut 15.1-8), which works to the disadvantage of the merchant.
10.32 Previously any temple tax had been only occasional (as 2 Kgs 12.4-15), not annual.
10.33 For the temple expenditures, cf. Exod 25.23-30; Num 28­29.
10.34 The law prescribed a continual fire on the altar (Lev 6.8-13), but not how the wood should be collected.
10.35-39 Most of these gifts for the temple personnel are prescribed in various parts of the law, but this is the first time they are all brought together. For first fruits, see Num 18.12-13; for first born, see Exod 22.29-30; for the first, or better, 'prime produce,' manufactured rather than raw, see Num 18.12; for tithes see Num 18.26-32.
10.38 Priests receive a tenth of the Levites' income (Num 18.26-28).
11.1-2 Nehemiah's memoir seems to resume from the point reached at 7.73a, though it is soon interrupted again at 11.3 by various lists, mostly from a time later than Nehemiah. Those who are forcibly removed by lot from the villages in order to repeople Jerusalem are honored by being called those who willingly offered.
11.3-19 These Jerusalemite family heads and clergy are contemporary with Nehemiah (another version of the list in 1 Chron 9).
11.20 is a heading that rightly belongs to 11.25-36.
11.21-24 are supplements to 11.10-19.
11.24 Pethahiah seems to be a governor two generations after Nehemiah.
11.25-36 This list of towns in Judah and Benjamin almost certainly does not belong to Nehemiah's time.
12.1-26 contains lists of: priests and Levites purportedly from c. 520 B.C.E. (12.1-9); high priests down to Jaddua, in 323 B.C.E. (12.10-11); priests and Levites from the time of Joiakim, some time between 520 and 445 B.C.E. (12.12-21, 24-26); and a note about the source of these lists (12.22-23).
12.27-43 The dedication of the wall was obviously told in Nehemiah's memoir.
12.27-30 The Levite singers, who normally came up to Jerusalem only for their tours of duty, now assemble en masse for this ceremony.
12.31-43 The circumambulation of the walls is carried out by two processions starting at the same place, walking along the top of the wall in opposite directions, and meeting finally in the temple area. Each procession has a choir, a group of lay nobles, seven priests, and eight Levite musicians. With vocal music in front and instrumental music in the rear, they must have been enveloped in stereoscopic sound. The ceremony concludes with many sacrifices (12.43).
12.44­13.3 This is an idealized summary of the post-exilic community: the clergy are properly maintained by the community, and they perform the worship of God as prescribed in ancient times. And the integrity of the worshiping community is secured by the exclusion of all foreigners forbidden in the law (cf. Num 21.21-23; 22­24; Deut 23.3-6).
13.4-31 The editor's glowing picture of the post-exilic community (12.44­13.3) is followed immediately by Nehemiah's account of his reforms, suggesting a less rosy reality. Or is reality whatever is the best that can be said, rather than the sad exceptions to a happy norm? Nehemiah has been back to Persia in 432 B.C.E., and on his return finds several matters amiss.
13.4-9 Nehemiah's old enemy Tobiah (2.10; 6.17-19) has during Nehemiah's absence installed himself in a temple apartment with the permission of Eliashib the temple dean, to whom he was apparently related by marriage (13.4; cf. 6.18). Not only is Tobiah not a priest or Levite, he is an Ammonite (cf. 13.1; Deut 23.3)! This is an act of sacrilege and a defilement that must be cleansed (13.9). It is probably also an attack on Nehemiah's personal authority--which explains Nehemiah's reaction.
13.10-14 In reorganizing the temple storerooms Nehemiah realizes that adequate provisions for the Levites have not been given by the populace. The portions (tithes) of the Levites are their regular income; without them they have to leave Jerusalem and earn their living on their farms (for Levite villages with their pasturelands, see Num 35.1-8). So temple worship has virtually come to a standstill. Nehemiah makes the support of the Levites the responsibility of the lay leaders (officials, 13.11), and appoints treasurers (including priests since their income derives from the Levites'; cf. on 10.38) to supervise the delivery of the tithes. The community pledge of Nehemiah 10 goes a step further by establishing levitical depots across the country (10.37) to facilitate collection.
13.15-22 Nehemiah finds also that the sabbath law is being contravened: there is work (against Exod 20.8-11), harvesting (against Exod 34.21) and using animals (against Exod 23.12). And there is buying from non-Jewish merchants--which was not specifically forbidden in the law. Nehemiah makes the family heads responsible for enforcing sabbath observance (13.17) and takes direct action to prevent sabbath trading by posting guards at the city gates (13.19). The community pledge of 10.31, no doubt responding to the same situation, relies on the people's conscience rather than a show of force to ensure obedience (10.31).
13.23-29 Intermarriage with non-Jews had obviously not ceased when Ezra's community insisted on divorces of foreign wives (Ezra 9­10). That had been about 30 years previously, in a former generation (if Ezra's date is indeed 458 B.C.E.); if Ezra did not precede Nehemiah, but came to Jerusalem in 398 B.C.E., it will of course have been Nehemiah's demands that had been ignored. In either case, Nehemiah, though physically more vigorous than Ezra (13.25), actually takes a more moderate line; for he only forbids intermarriage in the future and takes no action against existing marriages. The fact that the son (or grandson) of the high priest had married into the family of Nehemiah's arch-enemy Sanballat (13.28) shows that Nehemiah's views were far from universally accepted.
13.30-31 Nehemiah's summary of his activities shows well how he would like to be remembered: as a religious reformer rather than simply a civil governor and restorer of Jerusalem's walls.