Ezra 2:9 — Word Study
WLCבְּנֵ֣י זַכָּ֔י שְׁבַ֥ע מֵא֖וֹת וְשִׁשִּֽׁים׃ ס
BSAthe descendantsbên [sons, children, or posterity] of ZaccaiZakkay [pure, or cleanse, seven hundred and sixty, or seven hundred and threescore] 760shebaʻ
| Greek | English | Parsing |
|---|---|---|
| בְּנֵ֣י | [the] descendants of | Noun common, masculine plural construct |
| זַכָּ֔י | Zaccai | Noun proper masculine |
| שְׁבַ֥ע | seven | Adj |
| מֵא֖וֹת | hundred | |
| וְשִׁשִּֽׁים׃ ס | and sixty | Conjunction |
Every word in the verse. Click a row to open it in the panel on the left.
| BSB | the descendants of Zaccai, 760; |
| KJV | The children of Zaccai, seven hundred and threescore. |
| ASV | The children of Zaccai, seven hundred and threescore. |
| YLT | Sons of Zaccai, seven hundred and sixty. |
| WEB | The children of Zaccai, seven hundred sixty. |
| BBE | The children of Zaccai, seven hundred and sixty. |
All translations agree on the meaning of בְּנֵי and the count of 760.
The sentence consists of a main clause followed by a numeral phrase, typical of genealogical listings.
2 commentators on this verse
Jamieson, Cambridge & more — read them ›
clause
The sentence as the grammar sees it Open the tree ›
Every word here is used elsewhere in the Old Testament.
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 2:9
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 List of Returning Exilesgenerated
Ezra 2:9 is part of a larger passage that enumerates the families of those who returned from exile in Babylon. This list serves to establish the heritage and lineage of the returning Israelites, emphasizing their connection to their ancestral roots and the fulfillment of God's promises to restore His people.
Cross References
| Reference | Text (BSB) | |
|---|---|---|
| 1 | Nehemiah 7:14 | the descendants of Zaccai, 760; |
The Treasury of Scripture Knowledge — 1 reference, hung on the phrase they belong to
The Key Word — בְּנֵי, be.Neigenerated
The word בֵּן (ben) means 'son' or 'descendant' and can refer to various familial relationships, including grandchildren and broader descendants. It is a noun in the masculine plural form, indicating multiple descendants.
Derived from a root meaning 'to build', it signifies familial connections and inheritance. The term is used throughout the Old Testament to denote lineage and is foundational in genealogical contexts, such as in 1 Chronicles 24:26.
How Translations Differ — measured against the Berean Standard Biblegenerated
In this study, the verse is examined in the Berean Standard Bible, which uses the phrase the descendants of.
Sentence Structuregenerated
The main clause is governed by a noun phrase: בְּנֵי זַכָּי, the descendants of Zaccai, followed by a numeral phrase stating the count: שְׁבַע מֵא֖וֹת וְשִׁשִּֽׁים, 760.
The structure emphasizes the family lineage first, followed by the numerical detail, which is typical in genealogical listings.
Septuagint Backgroundgenerated
The Septuagint translates בְּנֵי as υἱοὶ (huioi), meaning 'sons'. This choice aligns closely with the Hebrew meaning, maintaining the emphasis on lineage.
However, the Septuagint does not preserve the exact numerical detail found in the Hebrew, indicating a potential interpretative difference in how the genealogical data was understood.
In plain words — the whole versegenerated
Ezra 2:9 lists the descendants of Zaccai, noting that there are 760 of them. This verse is part of a record that details the families of those who returned from Babylonian exile, emphasizing their heritage.
Frequently Asked Questionsgenerated
It refers to the sons or children of Zaccai, indicating a lineage that includes all his male descendants.
The number signifies the size of Zaccai's family, which reflects the overall restoration of the community returning from exile.
This verse is part of a genealogical record that establishes the identity of the returning exiles and their rightful place in the community.
It connects to themes of cleanliness and purity in the context of returning from exile, suggesting a restoration of identity and holiness.
Reflection Questionsgenerated
- What does it mean to be part of a lineage or family in your own life?
- How can understanding genealogies in the Bible deepen your appreciation for the history of God's people?
- In what ways does the idea of purity resonate with your personal faith journey?
- How can you honor your heritage while also looking forward to the future?
Commentators on this verse — 2 expositors, verse by verse
Each of these wrote on Ezra 2:9 itself, not merely on the chapter around it.
Robert Jamieson1802–1880Jamieson, Fausset, and Brown's CommentaryThe children of Zaccai, seven hundred and threescore. The children of Zaccai. The number of this family accompanying Zerubbabel amounted to 760 (cf. Nehemiah 7:14). The name is identical with Zaccheus (Luke 19:2).
Read Robert Jamieson on Ezra 2 →CambridgeThe Cambridge Bible for Schools and Colleges3–19. Names of households or families. Many of these names occur again in other lists, e.g. Ezra 8:1-14; Ezra 10:18-44; Nehemiah 10:1-27, and in connexion with much later events in the lifetime of Ezra and Nehemiah. These names therefore are not to be regarded as the names of the leading men of the various families who accompanied Zerubbabel, but as the titles of the families or clans into which the people were divided. These titles were probably taken from the founders of the families and were many of them of great antiquity. The mention of the same names of the ‘families’ at the return of Ezra (Ezra 8:1-14) merely shows that, though a certain number of a household had accompanied…
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 Zaccai, 760;
The children of Zaccai, seven hundred sixty.
the descendants of Zaccai, 760;
the descendants of Zaccai: 760;
Tyndale line
The children of Zaccai, seven hundred and threescore.
The children of Zaccai, seven hundred and threescore.
The children of Zaccai, seven hundred and threescore.
The children of Zaccai, seven hundred and sixty.
The sonnes of Zaccai, seuen hundreth and threescore:
Strictly literal
The children of Zaccai, seven hundred and sixty.
Sons of Zaccai, seven hundred and sixty.
sons of Zaccai, seven hundred and sixty;
The children of Zaccai, seven hundred and sixty.
The descendants of Zakkai: 760.
From the Latin
The children of Zachai, seven hundred sixty.
Simplified
the sons of Zaccai, 760;
The children of Zaccai, seven hundred and sixty.
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 presents בְּנֵי זַכָּי שְׁבַע מֵא֖וֹת וְשִׁשִּֽׁים, which is consistent with the Hebrew used in Ezra 2:9. The Septuagint matches three of the five words but does not preserve the same numerical detail.
בְּנֵ֣י זַכָּ֔י שְׁבַ֥ע מֵא֖וֹת וְשִׁשִּֽׁים׃ ס
3 of the 5 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 2:9
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…
זַכַּי (zakkay) refers to a personal name meaning 'pure.' It is associated with Zaccai, a head of a family of exiles returning from Babylon, first mentioned in Ezra 2:9. The word is derived from a root that signifies purity, connecting it to the broader theme of cleanliness or innocence.
זַכַּי n.pr.m. head of a family of returned exiles
base
H2140 זַכַּי
2140 Zakkay zak-kah'-ee
from 2141; pure; Zakkai, an Israelite:--Zaccai.
see HEBREW for 02141
זַכַּי (zak.kay) — Zaccai.
A man living at the time of Exile and Return, first mentioned at Ezr.2.9
§ Zaccai = "pure"
the head of a family of 760 exiles returning with Zerubbabel
N-proper — Noun proper masculineHNpm
zak'-a-i, zak'-i.
See ZABBAI, (2).
(pure). The sons of Zaccai to the number of 760, returned with Zerrubbabel. (Ezra 2:9; Nehemiah 7:14) (B.C. before 536.)
pure meat; just
שֶׁ֫בַע (sheba`) means 'seven' and is a cardinal number. It can also imply 'seven times' or refer to a week. The term appears in various contexts, including combinations like 17 or 700. Its Aramaic equivalent is שִׁבְעָה (shiv.ah), also meaning 'seven'.
שֶׁ֫בַע, שִׁבְעָה 394 n.m. et f. seven
base
H7651 שֶׁ֫בַע, שִׁבְעָה seven
7651 sheba` sheh'-bah
or (masculine) shibrah {shib-aw'}; from 7650; a primitive
cardinal number; seven (as the sacred full one); also
(adverbially) seven times; by implication, a week; by
extension, an indefinite number:--(+ by) seven(-fold),-s,
(-teen, -teenth), -th, times). Compare 7658.
see HEBREW for 07650
see HEBREW for 07658
שֶׁ֫בַע (she.va) — seven.
1) seven (cardinal number)
1a) as ordinal number
1b) in combination-17, 700 etc
Aramaic equivalent: shiv.ah (שִׁבְעָה "seven" H7655)
Adj — AdjHAcbsc
sev'-'-n (shebha`; hepta).
See NUMBER.
Seven
This number occurs frequently in Scripture, and in such connections as lead to the supposition that it has some typical meaning. On the seventh day God rested, and hallowed it (Gen. 2:2, 3). The division of time into weeks of seven days each accounts for many instances of the occurrence of this number. This number has been called the symbol of perfection, and also the symbol of rest. “Jacob’s seven years’ service to Laban; Pharaoh’s seven fat oxen and seven lean ones; the seven branches of the golden candlestick; the seven trumpets and the seven priests who sounded them; the seven days’ siege of Jericho; the seven churches, seven spirits, seven stars, seven seals, seven vials, and many others, sufficiently prove the importance of this sacred number” (see Lev. 25:4;
The frequent recurrence of certain numbers in the sacred literature of the Hebrews is obvious to the most superficial reader, but seven so far surpasses the rest, both in the frequency with which it recurs and in the importance of the objects with which it is associated, that it may fairly be termed the representative symbolic number. The influence of the number seven was not restricted to the Hebrews; it prevailed among the Persians, ancient Indians, Greeks and Romans. The peculiarity of the Hebrew view consists in the special dignity of the seventh, and not simply in that of seen. The Sabbath being the seventh day suggested the adoption of seven as the coefficient, so to say, for their appointment of all sacred periods; and we thus find the 7th month ushered in by the Feast of Trumpets, and signalized by the celebration of the Feast of Tabernacles and the Great Day of Atonement; 7…
As from the beginning this was the number of days in the week, so it often has in Scripture a sort of emphasis attached to it, and is very generally used as a round or perfect number. Clean beasts were taken into the ark by sevens, Ge 7:1-24. The years of plenty and famine in Egypt were marked by sevens, Ge 41:1-57. With the Jews, not only was there a seventh day Sabbath, but every seventh year was a Sabbath, and after every seven times seven years came a jubilee. Their great feasts of unleavened bread and of tabernacles were observed for seven days; the number of animals in many of their sacrifices was limited to seven. The golden candlestick had seven branches. Seven priests with seven trumpets went around the walls of Jericho seven days, and seven times on the seventh day. In…
מֵאָה (me'ah) means 'hundred' in Hebrew. It can refer to a simple number, a component of a larger number, or a fraction representing one one-hundredth. The entries consistently describe its use as a numeral without significant disagreement.
מֵאָה 583 n.f. hundred
as simple number
as part of larger number
a hundredth part
base
H3967 מֵאָה hundred . as simple number
. as part of larger number
. a hundredth part
3967 me'ah may-aw'
or metyah {may-yaw'}; properly, a primitive numeral; a
hundred; also as a multiplicative and a
fraction:--hundred((-fold), -th), + sixscore.
מֵאָה (me.ah) — hundred.
1) hundred
1a) as simple number
1b) as part of larger number
1c) as a fraction-one one-hundredth (1/100)
Aramaic equivalent: me.ah (מְאָה "hundred" H3969)
HAcfpa — HAcfpa
hun'-dred (me'-ah; hekaton).
See NUMBER.
שִׁשִּׁים (shishshiym) means 'sixty' in Hebrew. It is a numeral derived from the root associated with the number 8337. The term is used in various contexts in the Old Testament to denote the quantity of sixty, also referred to as 'three score.' There is an Aramaic equivalent, שִׁתִּין (shit.tin), which also means sixty.
שִׁשִּׁים 59 n.indecl. sixty
base
H8346 שִׁשִּׁים sixty
8346 shishshiym shish-sheem'
multiple of 8337; sixty:--sixty, three score.
see HEBREW for 08337
שִׁשִּׁים (shish.shim) — sixty.
sixty, three score
Aramaic equivalent: shit.tin (שִׁתִּין "sixty" H8361)
HC/Acmpa — ConjunctionHC/Acmpa
siks'-ti (shishshim; hexekonta).
See NUMBER.