Exegetical and Hermeneutical Commentary of Ezra 2:65
Beside their servants and their maids, of whom [there were] seven thousand three hundred thirty and seven: and [there were] among them two hundred singing men and singing women.
65. their servants and their maids ] R.V. their menservants and their maidservants, which is more accurate.
and there were among them ] R.V. and they had. The R.V. is certainly right. The meaning is not that singing men and women were included among the servants, but that ‘the whole congregation’ (Ezr 2:64) had in attendance, besides their servants, their troop of singers.
singing men and singing women] The mention of these has caused some difficulty. (1) Singers have already been mentioned (Ezr 2:41). (2) It has been thought that mention of cattle would be expected by the side of the other beasts. The suggestion has been made that we ought to read ‘oxen’ (sh’vrim) for ‘singing men’ (shr’rim), that the latter word having been introduced by a copyist’s error, the words ‘and singing women’ were added to give completeness to the verse. The conjecture is ingenious but is based on a misapprehension. (1) The singers mentioned in Ezr 2:41 are a Levitical guild, set apart for the Temple services. The singers mentioned here are professionals employed at banquets, feasts &c., or funerals (2Ch 35:25). Such ‘singing men and singing women’ often belonged to the most degraded class. There is nothing strange then in their being mentioned after the menservants and maidservants. A passage in Ecc 2:7-8 exemplifies their position ‘I bought menservants and maidens ; also I had great possessions of herds and flocks : I gathered me also silver and gold : I gat me men singers and women singers and the delights of the sons of men, concubines very many.’ The possession of professional singers was clearly a sign of luxury (cf. 2Sa 19:35). The mention of them shows that there were several very wealthy men among the ‘congregation’. But it is only natural that their place in the list should follow after the mention of the ordinary servants. (2) There is no need here to introduce ‘cattle’. The animals mentioned in the context are beasts of burden (see chap. Ezr 1:4; Ezr 1:6). ‘Oxen’ would be out of place in the list. We are told nothing of the flocks and herds, which the people brought with them. And if it be objected that oxen were used as beasts of burden, it may fairly be answered ( a) that they would scarcely be mentioned first in the list, ( b) that where they are found in a list (1Ch 12:40) they are mentioned last and by a different name. The number of singers here mentioned is 200. In Neh 7:67 and 1Es 5:42 it is 245, in all probability a copyist’s error whose eye had caught the number ‘245’ in the verse following.
Fuente: The Cambridge Bible for Schools and Colleges
Ezr 2:65-70
And some of the chief of the fathers, when they came to the house of the Lord which is at Jerusalem, offered freely.
Possessions and offerings
I. The completion of their journey. They came to the house of the Lord at Jerusalem.
II. The extent of their possessions (Ezr 2:65-67).
III. The presenation of their offerings.
1. The object of their offerings.
2. The spirit of their offerings.
(1) They offered promptly, without delay.
(2) They offered spontaneously, without constraint.
3. The measure of their offerings.
(1) Proportionately.
(2) Liberally.
IV. The settlement in their cities. This suggests–
1. Home after exile.
2. Rest after a long and tedious journey. (William Jones.)
Offering freely
As I was reading my Greek Testament the other day, I was delighted with a discovery concerning the well-known text: God loveth a cheerful giver. The word cheerful is our word for hilarious. And I began to imagine what would happen if the meaning of the word was put into action. Will you give five pounds to missions? Will you contribute a hundred pounds towards our evangelistic work this winter? Ha, ha, ha! I am only too glad for the opportunity to give, since I have so abundantly received. And the hilarious giver writes out a cheque on the spot. How much better that sounds than the doleful, Oh, dear! I am tired with the never-ending calls for money, money, money. But this hilarious giving is not possible except the Spirit is dwelling richly within. For only the Spirit shows the greatness of that salvation which we received through Christ, and the greatness of our consequent obligation. (A. J. Gordon.)
The Church the rallying point of nations
The temple and its worship marked the last days of the kingdom of the Jews anterior to their captivity, and formed the point around which the returning wanderers gathered at their restoration to the home of their fathers. So around the Church, the events of all successive empires have gathered since the day of Pentecost.
I. Every state of importance, alike in ancient, mediaeval, or modern history has gathered round the Church, and has received its shape and definiteness from her. Egypt, Assyria, Persia, Greece, and Rome each became important in their different times in proportion as they were able to bless or to chasten the Church of God. The long dynasties that ruled on the banks of the Nile; the invasion of the Hyksos; the vast undertakings of Rameses or Amasis; the gigantic records of antiquity which rise in such sepulchral magnificence in Egypt from amidst her waste of sand; the high philosophy of one Ptolemy and the literary research of another, proclaim one after the other in successive generations the splendour of an empire whose principal end of existence was to aid in the throes of the early Church; to give a home to the famine.stricken patriarchs; to be a scourge in the successive invasions of Shishak, Pharaoh Hophra, and Pharaoh Necho, and to be the probation of the Jews when God ordained the Chaldean captivity. All these seem to have been the main objects for which Egypt existed as a nation. So in each successive period in after-history the Church became more and more the central body which gave shape to the kingdoms of the world, alike in mediaeval as in modern history. The vast multitudes from the north-east of Europe which swept like a bankless flood over the fertile plains of Italy, arrested by the walls of Constantinople or of Rome, or diverted by the intercession of Ambrose or Gregory, became at length themselves children of the Church whom they had persecuted; and the imaginative genius of the Goth lent mellowness, sublimity, and tone to the architecture and service of the Church. Men who came to persecute remained to pray, and the Gothic invasion formed an era in ecclesiastical history. The kingdom of France beheld a repetition of the acts of Constantine in the conversion of Clovis; and Clotilds and her husband resembled in the story of their conversion Ethelbert, king of Kent, and Bertha his wife. Charlemagne followed in the passage of years, in family as well as name mixed up with those who were giving protection to while they received their own definiteness from the Church of Christ. And the gifts of Pepin became a record to a long after-day of the power which the Church had to give shape to the early civilisation of Europe. From the death of Charlemagne throughout eight following centuries, the interests of Europe became synonymous with those of France or Germany, while they oscillated in alternating supremacy, each of them seeking the recognition of the Church for their claims. The Great Reformation which broke out over Northern and Western Europe bore upon the billows of its tempestuous sea the vessels that carried the destinies of Spain and Austria, France and England, and many of the minor states of Germany; while religious questions became the direct causes which shook the dynasty of the Stuarts, and agitated France through the illustrious periods of Catharine de Medici and Henry the Great and the imbecile reign of Louis XIII; while the names that have rendered so many pages of French history interesting–the Hugonot and Coligni, Conde and Turenne–were immediately brought out by questions connected with the doctrine and discipline of the Church in defence of which each one of them was brought before the notice of history.
II. The Church has in her that principle of vitality which gives her the power to rekindle life where it has been extinct, and to reconstruct the shattered portions of fabrics which have fallen to decay. The children of Israel, leaving their patriarchal government at Goshen to enter upon that developed state of their history which was to issue in the kingly line of David, preserved their nationality and drew together their otherwise scattered forces around the tabernacle, the priesthood, and the lawgiver; and the Church of God became in the wilderness of Sinai the source and fountain of national life and existence to the tribes reseeking their home. A second time the chosen people were called upon to bewail their sins in a long captivity; a second time their national distinctiveness bid fair to be lost, but the voices of Daniel and Ezekiel sounded loudly to penitence and prayer by the Chebar and in Babylon. These were the voices of the Church of God–these represented that eternal principle around which national and individual existence might coil and find compactness. These were the forces from within which kept together the people of the captivity, and were the means of restoring them in their national integrity to their homes. Forlorn and orphaned indeed must the returning tribes have felt; like men who in the chill of the morning wander amid the fading flowers of the banquet of yesterday. At that moment the Church again became the centre of their national revival and around the foundation stones of the temple the scattered people again became a nation. (E. Monro.)
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Fuente: Biblical Illustrator Edited by Joseph S. Exell
For women as well as men were devoted to and employed in this exercise in the temple service, as appears from 1Ch 25:5,6. And the parents of these persons had taken care to instruct and exercise them as far as they could in this art, both for Gods service, and for their own benefit, when Jerusalem and the temple should be rebuilt; which they knew would be done after Jeremiahs seventy years were expired.
Fuente: English Annotations on the Holy Bible by Matthew Poole
Besides their servants and their maids, of whom there were seven thousand three hundred thirty and seven,…. This shows that the greater part of those that returned were of the poorer sort, since there were so few servants that belonged unto them; these came not into the above account:
and there were among them two hundred singing men and singing women; among the servants, who were kept by persons of figure for their pleasure and recreation, see Ec 2:8, for that these were such as were employed in sacred service is not so clear, especially the latter, though some conclude it from 1Ch 25:5, but rather they were such as were employed at marriages, festivals, and funerals; though Jarchi thinks they were employed by the returning captives, to make them cheerful as they travelled along, [See comments on Isa 55:12].
Fuente: John Gill’s Exposition of the Entire Bible
(65) The Rabbis accounted for these ut ltior esset Israelitarum reditus, in order that the return of the Israelites might be more joyful; but they were hired for lamentation as well as joy; and here, possibly, to supply the defect of Levites. In Nehemiah (Neh. 7:67) there are 245: see for the probable reason of the mistranscription the 245 of the next verse in that chapter.
Fuente: Ellicott’s Commentary for English Readers (Old and New Testaments)
65-68. Servants horses camels To some of these the returning Jews were helped by their wealthy friends and neighbours who remained in Babylon, (Ezr 1:4; Ezr 1:6😉 but probably not a few of the wealthy themselves returned with all their possessions to Judah; and of their substance that they had acquired in the land of exile, they offered freely for the house of God. These wealthy ones were doubtless those who followed the advice of the prophet Jeremiah, and built houses and planted gardens, and made the most of their opportunities to improve and prosper while in exile. Jer 29:5-6; Jer 29:28.
In his place Rather, upon its foundation; and these were to be lain on the site of the previous temple. On the site of the Solomonic temple, see note at the beginning of 1 Kings 6.
Fuente: Whedon’s Commentary on the Old and New Testaments
Enumeration Of Their Slaves ( Ezr 2:65 ).
Ezr 2:65
‘Besides their male slaves and their female slaves, of whom there were seven thousand, three hundred and thirty seven, and they had two hundred singing men and singing women.’
These were additional to the assembly of Israel. This very much points then to the fact that these were slaves. Israelite servants would have been counted as part of the assembly. The singing men and women would not be Temple singers, already counted in Ezr 2:41, but singers for the purpose of entertainment in wealthy households and for purposes of mourning (compare 2Sa 19:35; Ecc 2:8; 2Ch 35:25). Thus the total number of slaves was approximately seven thousand, five hundred and thirty seven (the ‘two hundred’ might be a round number, for Nehemiah 7 has 245 singers, although that could be because forty five singers arrived subsequently with the sons of Azgad). These would not be Israelite slaves. Such were forbidden in Israel (Lev 25:39-41). The ownership of these slaves points to a certain initial level of wealth in the restored community, although this would soon be depleted by famine and robbery (Ezr 4:4; Ezr 4:23; Hag 1:6; Hag 1:9-12; Hag 2:16-17).
Fuente: Commentary Series on the Bible by Peter Pett
The Possessions and the Contributions of the Returned Exiles
v. 65. Beside their servants and their maids, of whom there were seven thousand three hundred thirty and seven. And there were among them two hundred singing men and singing women, v. 66. Their horses were seven hundred thirty and six; their mules, two hundred forty and five; v. 67. their camels, four hundred thirty and five; their asses, six thousand seven hundred and twenty.
v. 68. And some of the chief of the fathers, v. 69. They gave after their ability unto the treasure of the work threescore and one thousand drains of gold, v. 70. So the priests, and the Levites, and some of the people, and the singers, and the porters, and the Nethinim dwelt In their cities,
Fuente: The Popular Commentary on the Bible by Kretzmann
Ezr 2:65 Beside their servants and their maids, of whom [there were] seven thousand three hundred thirty and seven: and [there were] among them two hundred singing men and singing women.
Ver. 65. Beside their servants, &c. ] Their masters’ necessary instruments, , saith Aristotle, and wholly at their command. See Pro 12:9 .
Two hundred singing men and singing women.
Fuente: John Trapp’s Complete Commentary (Old and New Testaments)
maids = handmaids.
Fuente: Companion Bible Notes, Appendices and Graphics
servants: Isa 14:1, Isa 14:2
two hundred: Exo 15:20, Exo 15:21, 2Sa 19:35, Neh 7:67, Psa 68:25, Psa 148:12, Psa 148:13, Ecc 2:8, Jer 9:17, Jer 9:18, Mat 9:23
Reciprocal: Psa 147:2 – he
Fuente: The Treasury of Scripture Knowledge
Ezr 2:65. And singing-women For women as well as men were employed in this exercise, in the temple-service.