Ezra 2:65
Ver. 65. 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 Gill on "Isa 55:12". Ezra 2:66Ver. 66,67 Their horses were seven hundred thirty and six, their mules two hundred forty and five, their camels four hundred thirty and five, [their] asses six thousand seven hundred and twenty. So that the far greatest part of them must walk on foot, since these can be thought to be little more than sufficient to carry their goods or baggage; some copies of the Vulgate Latin read six hundred and thirty six horses {c}.{c} Ed. of Sixtus V. and the Lovain in James's Contrariety of Popish Bibles, p. 295. Ezra 2:67Ver. 67. See Gill on "Ezr 2:66". Ezra 2:68Ver. 68. And some of the chief of the fathers, when they came to the house of the Lord that is at Jerusalem,.... That is, when they came to the place where it formerly stood, and where were still the ruins of it:offered freely for the house of God, to set it up in its place; to rebuild it upon the spot where it formerly stood; this they did besides the freewill offerings they brought with them from Babylon. Ezra 2:69Ver. 69. They gave after their ability unto the treasure of the world threescore and one thousand drachms of gold,.... These "darcemons or darics" were a Persian coin; one of which, according to Brerewood {k}, was of the value of fifteen shillings of our money, and so this quantity of them amounted to 45,750 pounds; but according to Bishop Cumberland {l} they were of the value of twenty shillings and four pence of our money, and so came to upwards of 61,000 pounds; these everyone, according to his ability, put into the common stock or treasury for the work of building the temple; the Vulgate Latin {m} reads 40,000:and five thousand pounds of silver; and an Hebrew "mina", or pound, being of our money seven pounds, ten shillings, according to Brerewood {n}, amounted to 31,250 pounds: but others {o}, reckoning a drachm of gold at ten shillings, and a mina or pound of silver at nine pounds, make the whole to amount only to 75,500 pounds of our money:and one hundred priests' garments; which, as they were laid up among treasures, so were necessary for the service of the temple.{k} De Pret. & Ponder. Vet. Num. ch. iii. v. {l} Scripture Weights & Measures, ch. 4. p. 115. {m} Sixtus V. Lovain & MSS. in James ut supra. (Contrariety of Popish Bibles, p. 295) {n} Ut supra, (De Pret. & Ponder. Vet. Num.) ch. iv. v. {o} Universal History, vol. 10. p. 183, marg. Ezra 2:70Ver. 70. So the priests and the Levites, and some of the people, and the singers, and the Nethinims, dwelt in their cities,.... Which were assigned to them out of the several tribes, and in which they or their forefathers had dwelt before the captivity:and all Israel in their cities; as those of the tribes of Judah and Benjamin, so of the other ten, as many as returned and joined those who were left in the land.
John Gill's Exposition of the Entire Bible.