Ezra 2:20 — Word Study
WLCבְּנֵ֥י גִבָּ֖ר תִּשְׁעִ֥ים וַחֲמִשָּֽׁה׃ ס
BSAthe descendantsbên [sons, children, or offspring] of GibbarGibbâr△ [the valiant, a leader of a family] 95tishʻîym
| Greek | English | Parsing |
|---|---|---|
| בְּנֵ֥י | [the] descendants of | Noun common, masculine plural construct |
| גִבָּ֖ר | Gibbar | Noun proper masculine |
| תִּשְׁעִ֥ים | ninety | Adj |
| וַחֲמִשָּֽׁה׃ ס | and five | Conjunction |
Every word in the verse. Click a row to open it in the panel on the left.
| BSB | the descendants of Gibbar, 95; |
| KJV | The children of Gibbar, ninety and five. |
| ASV | The children of Gibbar, ninety and five. |
| YLT | Sons of Gibbar, ninety and five. |
| WEB | The children of Gibbar, ninety-five. |
| BBE | The children of Gibbar, ninety-five. |
Where they part company is בֵּן — see How Translations Differ.
The sentence consists of a main clause identifying the descendants followed by a numeral phrase indicating their count.
2 commentators on this verse
Jamieson, Cambridge & more — read them ›
clause
The sentence as the grammar sees it Open the tree ›
1 of 4 occurs nowhere else in the Old Testament — a word chosen on purpose.
Bars are logarithmic — אֵת, the commonest word in the Hebrew Bible, stands about 11,000 times, so a linear scale would leave everything else invisible. Click a row to open that word.
Deep Study — Ezra 2:20
Sections marked generated are written from the data on this page rather than by a named author. Everything else — the lexicon entries, the cross references, the manuscript readings, the counts — is quoted from its source unchanged.
Context — The Return of the Exilesgenerated
Ezra 2:20 records the number of descendants of Gibbar among those returning from exile, highlighting the importance of lineage and family in the restoration of Israel. This list serves to document the people who returned with Zerubbabel, emphasizing their heritage and the continuity of the Israelite community after the Babylonian captivity.
Cross References
| Reference | Text (BSB) | |
|---|---|---|
| 1 | Nehemiah 7:25 | the descendants of Gibeon, 95; |
The Treasury of Scripture Knowledge — 1 reference, hung on the phrase they belong to
The Key Word — בֵּן, be.Neigenerated
The word בֵּן (ben) means 'son' or 'descendant' and signifies a familial relationship. It can refer to a son, grandson, or even a broader sense of lineage, indicating a connection to heritage and inheritance.
In this verse, it is used in the construct form, indicating that the descendants of Gibbar are being identified as a specific group. The term encompasses not only immediate offspring but also the broader family line.
How Translations Differ — measured against the Berean Standard Biblegenerated
This study reads the verse in the Berean Standard Bible, so the BSB is the wording every comparison below is made against.
Sentence Structuregenerated
The finite verb is absent in this enumeration, as the structure is a straightforward listing of the descendants and their count. The subject is 'the descendants of Gibbar,' followed by a numeral phrase indicating their number.
The Hebrew word order places emphasis on the family name first, then the count, which is a common structure in genealogical lists.
Septuagint Backgroundgenerated
The Septuagint translates בֵּן as υἱοὶ (huioi), meaning 'sons.' This choice reflects the same familial connection as in the Hebrew, maintaining the focus on lineage.
The name גִבָּר is rendered as γαβερ (gaber), which emphasizes the valiant nature of the individual, consistent with the Hebrew meaning.
In plain words — the whole versegenerated
Ezra 2:20 lists the descendants of Gibbar, indicating there are 95 of them. This verse is part of a larger record of families returning from exile, showing the importance of ancestry in the restoration of Israel.
Frequently Asked Questionsgenerated
Gibbar was an Israelite who returned from exile with Zerubbabel, identified as a leader of a family.
The number 95 represents the count of Gibbar's descendants who returned from Babylonian exile.
Lineage is crucial for establishing identity and inheritance within the Israelite community, especially after returning from exile.
This verse contributes to the genealogy of those returning, illustrating the restoration of the Israelite community and their heritage.
Reflection Questionsgenerated
- How does understanding my own lineage shape my identity?
- In what ways can I honor my heritage and family history?
- What significance does community and ancestry hold in my life?
- How can I learn from the stories of those who returned from exile?
Commentators on this verse — 2 expositors, verse by verse
Each of these wrote on Ezra 2:20 itself, not merely on the chapter around it.
Robert Jamieson1802–1880Jamieson, Fausset, and Brown's CommentaryThe children of Gibbar, ninety and five. The children of Gibbar - [Septuagint, Gaber] - called (Nehemiah 7:25) Gibeon.
Read Robert Jamieson on Ezra 2 →CambridgeThe Cambridge Bible for Schools and Colleges20–35. Names of towns and places. It is possible that the register dealt first with the dwellers in Jerusalem. The inhabitants of the towns and places nearest to Jerusalem and best known are mentioned next: last of all, the inhabitants of the less known or more remote places. The numbers are much smaller than those of the households (3–19).
Read Cambridge on Ezra 2 →The verse in English, compared — 17 translations, and where they part company
Every translation on this page is a decision someone had to make and commit to. Read down a column and you see one translator's judgement; read across a row and you see the range the Greek actually allows. The BSB is the wording the rest of this page is measured against, so it is listed first.
Modern formal
the descendants of Gibbar, 95;
The children of Gibbar, ninety-five.
the descendants of Gibbar, 95;
the descendants of Gibbar: 95.
Tyndale line
The children of Gibbar, ninety and five.
The children of Gibbar, ninety and five.
The children of Gibbar, ninety and five.
The children of Gibbar, ninety and five.
The sonnes of Gibbar, ninetie and fiue:
Strictly literal
The children of Gibbar, ninety-five.
Sons of Gibbar, ninety and five.
sons of Gibbar, ninety-five;
The children of Gibbar, ninety and five.
The men of Gibbar: ninety-five.
From the Latin
The children of Gebbar, ninety-five.
Simplified
the sons of Gibbar, 95;
The children of Gibbar, ninety-five.
Counted from the translations carried on this site, not from a survey of every English Bible. A rendering shared by many versions is usually inherited rather than independently arrived at — the Tyndale line in particular runs through most of them.
The sentence as the grammar sees it — from the MACULA Hebrew treebank
This is not our own analysis: it is the scholarly syntax tree for the verse, showing how the clause actually holds together.
Boxes are the grammarian's groupings — clause, noun phrase, prepositional phrase.
The four witnesses to this verse — Masoretic, Septuagint, Samaritan, Qumran
The Masoretic Text states 'בְּנֵ֥י גִבָּ֖ר תִּשְׁעִ֥ים וַחֲמִשָּֽׁה׃ ס' which translates to 'the descendants of Gibbar, 95;'. The Septuagint agrees with the Masoretic Text in terms of the number and the name, although the specific wording and structure may differ due to translation choices. There are no significant differences noted in the Samaritan Pentateuch or the Dead Sea Scrolls for this verse, indicating a strong consistency across these ancient witnesses regarding the descendants of Gibbar being 95 in number.
בְּנֵ֥י גִבָּ֖ר תִּשְׁעִ֥ים וַחֲמִשָּֽׁה׃ ס
4 of the 4 words are matched. This is the word-by-word correspondence, not the Septuagint's own sentence — its word order and its articles are its own.
Four traditions, not one. “On the leather” means the letters physically survive on the scroll, as against letters an editor has supplied to fill a hole in it — a restoration is a scholar’s reading, not a reading of the manuscript. Words in [square brackets] are supplied; the notes count them apart from what survives.
The map of this verse — what each word keeps company with
This is a map of two things, both counted rather than judged. Company kept: which words stand within three words of each of these, anywhere in the Hebrew Bible — the thicker the line, the more often the pair meet compared with chance. Built from: the words a word is made out of, taken from its own Strong’s entry. It is not a map of meaning: nothing here claims two words mean the same thing. Click any circle to see the numbers behind it.
Lexicons — every word in Ezra 2:20
One dossier per word, with every reference work grouped by kind — Hebrew lexicons, morphology, Bible dictionaries, topical chains and the English of the translators themselves. The verse sits at the head of each block with the word under study lit, so you never lose your place. The panel above gives the short answer; this is the long one, and it is the part of the page worth indexing.
Every entry below is the lexicographer's own text. On the Hebrew: Brown-Driver-Briggs entire and its gloss set, Strong's Hebrew Dictionary, and Tyndale House's Translators Brief lexicon. Where a cell says a work has no entry, that work genuinely has none for this word.
בֵּן (ben) means 'son' or 'male child' and encompasses a wide range of meanings, including descendants, young animals, and even figurative uses like sparks or arrows. It can refer to members of a tribe or class and is used in various contexts throughout the Old Testament, such as in 1 Chronicles 24:26. The word is derived from a root meaning 'to build' and implies a connection to family or lineage.
בֵּן 4870 n.m. son
son, male child, born of a woman
children (male and female)
youth, young men
the young of animals
of plant shoots
fig. of lifeless things, sparks, stars, arrows
member of a guild, order or class
of animals son of (the) herd
ב׳ as n. relat. followed by word of quality, characteristic, etc.
n. relat. of age
base
בְּנוֹ 1 Ch 24:26, 27 as n.pr.m. in AV, RV, but render: the sons of Jaaziah his son, & the sons of Merari by Jaaziah his son, cf. VB & Be Öt.
done
H1121a בֵּן son . son, male child, born of a woman
. children (male and female)
. youth, young men
. the young of animals
. of plant shoots
. fig. of lifeless things, sparks, stars, arrows
. . member of a guild, order or class
. of animals son of (the) herd
. ב׳ as n. relat. followed by word of quality, characteristic, etc.
. n. relat. of age
H1121b בְּנוֹ as n. pr. m. in AV, RV, but render: the sons of Jaaziah his son, & the sons of Merari by Jaaziah his son
1121 ben bane
from 1129; a son (as a builder of the family name), in the
widest sense (of literal and figurative relationship,
including grandson, subject, nation, quality or condition,
etc., (like 1, 251, etc.)):--+ afflicted, age, (Ahoh-)
(Ammon-) (Hachmon-) (Lev-)ite, (anoint-)ed one, appointed to,
(+) arrow, (Assyr-) (Babylon-) (Egypt-) (Grec-)ian, one born,
bough, branch, breed, + (young) bullock, + (young) calf, X
came up in, child, colt, X common, X corn, daughter, X of
first, + firstborn, foal, + very fruitful, + postage, X in, +
kid, + lamb, (+) man, meet, + mighty, + nephew, old, (+)
people, + rebel, + robber, X servant born, X soldier, son, +
spark, + steward, + stranger, X surely, them of, + tumultuous
one, + valiant(-est), whelp, worthy, young (one), youth.
see HEBREW for 01129
see HEBREW for 01
see HEBREW for 0251
בֵּן (ben) — son: child.
: child/son
בְּנוֹ (be.no) — Beno.
A man of the tribe of Levi living at the time of Divided Monarchy, first mentioned at 1Ch.24.26;
son of: Jaaziah (H3269);
brother of: Shoham (H7719), Zaccur (H2139I) and Ibri (H5681)
§ Beno = "his son"
the sons of Jaaziah and the sons of Merari by Jaahziah (his son)
בֵּן (ben) — son: descendant/people.
: descendant, people, tribe, nation
A sub-meaning of ben (בֵּן ": child" H1121)
§ : child/son
בֵּן (ben) — son: young animal.
: calf/lamb/young(ANIMAL)
A sub-meaning of ben (בֵּן ": child" H1121)
§ : descendant
בֵּן (ben) — son: type of.
: rebel/son(Belial)
A sub-meaning of ben (בֵּן ": child" H1121)
§ : people/men/nation/tribe
בֵּן (ben) — son.
: [inheriting]son/heir
A sub-meaning of ben (בֵּן ": child" H1121)
בֵּן (ben) — son: warrior.
: warrior/son(strong)
N-mp — Noun common · masculine plural constructHNcmpc
ov:
(1) In Anglo-Saxon, had the meaning "from," "away from" (as the strengthened form "off" has still), and was not used for genitive or possessive relations, these being expressed by special case-forms. In the Norman period, however, "of" was taken to represent the French de (a use well developed by the time of Chaucer), and in the Elizabethan period both senses of "of" were in common use. But after about 1600 the later force of the word became predominant, and in the earlier sense (which is now practically obsolete) it was replaced by other prepositions. In consequence the King James Version (and in some cases the Revised Version (British and American)) contains many uses of "of" that are no longer familiar--most of them, to be sure, causing no difficulty, but there still being a few responsible for real obscurities.
OF, preposition ov. [Gr.]
1. From or out of; proceeding from, as the cause, source, means, author or agent bestowing.
I have received of the Lord that which also I delivered to you. 1 Corinthians 11:1.
For it was of the Lord to harden their hearts. Joshua 11:1.
It is of the Lord's mercies that we are not consumed.
Lamentations 3:1.
The whole disposing thereof is of the Lord. Proverbs 16:1.
Go, inquire of the Lord for me. 2 Chronicles 34:2.
That holy thing that shall be born of thee. Luke 1:1.
Hence of is the sign of the genitive case, the case that denotes production; as the son of man, the son proceeding from man, produced from man. This is the primary sense, although we now say, produced by man. 'Part of these were slain; ' that is, a number separate, for part denotes a division; the sense then is, a number from or out of the whole were slain. So also, 'some of these were slain; ' that is…
גִּבָּר (Gibbar) refers to a name meaning 'the valiant' and identifies a head of a family of returning exiles under Zerubbabel. It is an intensive form of another Hebrew word meaning 'mighty' or 'hero.' The term appears in Ezra 2:20.
גִּבָּר n.pr. (Aram. id. = hero) Ezr 2:20
ref
H1402 גִּבָּר
1402 Gibbar ghib-bawr'
intensive of 1399; Gibbar, an Israelite:--Gibbar.
see HEBREW for 01399
גִּבָּר (gib.bar) — Gibbar.
Gibbar = "the valiant"
a head of a family of returning exiles under Zerubbabel
Another name of giv.on (גִּבְעוֹן "Gibeon" H1391)
N-proper — Noun proper masculineHNpm
תִּשְׁעִים (tish`iym) means 'ninety' and is derived from the root word for 'nine.' It is used as a numeral in the Old Testament, specifically denoting the quantity ninety. The entries consistently define it as a number without any significant disagreement.
תִּשְׁעִים 20 n.indecl. ninety
base
H8673 תִּשְׁעִים ninety
8673 tish`iym tish-eem'
multiple from 8672; ninety:--ninety.
see HEBREW for 08672
תִּשְׁעִים (tish.im) — ninety.
ninety
Adj — AdjHAcmpa
חָמֵשׁ (chamesh) means 'five' in Hebrew. It serves as both a cardinal number and can indicate a multiple of five when combined with another number. The word also has an ordinal form, 'fifth.' The entries consistently define this numeral without any noted disagreement.
חָמֵשׁ, חֲמִשָּׁה 342 n.m. and f. five
base
H2568 חָמֵשׁ, חֲמִשָּׁה five
2568 chamesh khaw-maysh'
masculine chamishshah {kham-ish-shaw}; a primitive numeral;
five:--fif(-teen), fifth, five (X apiece).
חָמֵשׁ (cha.mesh) — five.
1) five
1a) five (cardinal number)
1b) a multiple of five (with another number)
1c) fifth (ordinal number)
HC/Acbsa — ConjunctionHC/Acbsa
fiv (chamesh; pente).
See NUMBER.