Chapter 2

2:5-60 - The second chapter of Ezra provides a list of the Jewish people returning to Judah after their captivity in Babylon. It makes for rather dull reading: just a list of men's names and the number of offspring that accompanied each of them. The same list is given in the seventh chapter of Nehemiah (as though once were not enough), but the two lists contradict each other in 19 places. As an example, consider the very first of these contradictions: Ezra 2:5 says "the children of Arah, seven hundred seventy and five," but Neh.7:10 contradicts this saying, "the children of Arah, six hundred fifty and two." There are 18 other similar contradictions between the two accounts.

* The numbers in Ezra and Nehemiah are exactly correct and complementary.  Ezra lists a total of 29,818 people.  Nehemiah lists 1,765 people that Ezra does not list.  If you add these two numbers, you have 31,583 people.

* Nehemiah lists a total of 31,089 people.  Ezra lists 494 people that Nehemiah does not.  If you add these two numbers, you have 31,583 people.

* The sum at the end of these accounts is the same: 42,360.  If you subtract 31,583 from 42,360 you get 10,777.  This is the number of unnamed people that were counted.  They were either not of Judah, not of Benjamin, or their registers were not found.  These people were likely from the other tribes.

2:6 - The children of Pahathmoab, Jeshua, and Joab.

* This explanation for this discrepancy is above (see Ezra 2:5-60).

2:8 - The children of Zattu

* This explanation for this discrepancy is above (see Ezra 2:5-60).

2:10 - The children of Bani

* This explanation for this discrepancy is above (see Ezra 2:5-60).

2:11 - The children of Bebai

* This explanation for this discrepancy is above (see Ezra 2:5-60).

2:12 - The children of Azgad

* This explanation for this discrepancy is above (see Ezra 2:5-60).

2:13 - The children of Adonikam

* This explanation for this discrepancy is above (see Ezra 2:5-60).

2:14 - The children of Bigvai

* This explanation for this discrepancy is above (see Ezra 2:5-60).

2:15 - The children of Adin

* This explanation for this discrepancy is above (see Ezra 2:5-60).

2:17 - The children of Bezai

* This explanation for this discrepancy is above (see Ezra 2:5-60).

2:21 - The children of Bethlehem

* This explanation for this discrepancy is above (see Ezra 2:5-60).

2:33 - The children of Lod, Hadid, and Ono

* This explanation for this discrepancy is above (see Ezra 2:5-60).

2:35 - The children of Senaah

* This explanation for this discrepancy is above (see Ezra 2:5-60).

2:41 - The singers: the children of Asaph

* This explanation for this discrepancy is above (see Ezra 2:5-60).

2:42 - The children of the porters

* This explanation for this discrepancy is above (see Ezra 2:5-60).

2:60 - The children of Delaiah

* This explanation for this discrepancy is above (see Ezra 2:5-60).

2:64 - Here we are told that "the whole congregation together was forty and two thousand tree hundred and threescore [42,360]." Yet if we count up all of the numbers in the list just given in Ezra 2:3-62 we obtain a different number: 29,818.

* This explanation for this discrepancy is above (see Ezra 2:5-60).

2:65 - Singing men and women

* This explanation for this discrepancy is above (see Ezra 2:5-60).

2:69 - Gold, silver, and priests' garments

* This explanation for this discrepancy is above (see Ezra 2:5-60).

Chapter 3

3:2 - Who was Zerubbabel's father?

* Pedaiah was Zerubbabel's father.  This is evidenced in 1 Chronicles 3:19.

* Ezra 3:2 and Nehemiah 12:1 use a Hebrew word for "son" that means "grandfather."  There aren't any ancient Hebrew terms for grandfather or grandson.  This is why all of the Israelites are called the "sons of Israel (Jacob)," even though they could only literally be called his great grandchildren.

Chapter 5

5:1, 6:14 - Was Zechariah Iddo's son or grandson?

* Zechariah was Iddo's grandson.  This Hebrew word for "son" is better translated "grandson."

* Zechariah 1:1 and 1:7 clearly state that Zechariah's father was Berechiah's son.

Chapter 8

8:18 - Was Mahli the son of Levi?

* According to 1 Chronicles 6:16-19, Mahli was Levi's grandson and the son of Merari.  This confusion with the English word "son" has already been addressed.

Chapter 9

9:2 - The Israelites offend God by "taking" foreign wives and thereby corrupting "the holy seed."

* The Israelites weren't supposed to interbreed with pagans.  These pagans had rejected God and they would bring the Israelites to ruin.  God wanted to keep the Israelites separated from the pagans.  Pagan idolatry always brought the Israelites down.

9:3 - When Ezra hears of the intermarriages, he tears up his clothes, plucks out his hair and beard, and sits down astonished. 

* This passage says that he plucked out some of the hair from his head and beard.  These were signs of mourning.

Chapter 10

10:2-3, 10-12 - Ezra tells the men that they must abandon their wives and children if they are to avoid God's wrath.

* Yes, the people repented from their sins and left the pagan wives and children.