According to the good hand of our God on us they brought us a man of discretion, of the sons of Mahli, the son of Levi, the son of Israel; and Sherebiah, with his sons and his brothers, eighteen;
Parallel Translations
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According to the good hand of our God on us they brought us a man of discretion, of the sons of Mahli, the son of Levi, the son of Israel; and Sherebiah, with his sons and his brothers, eighteen;
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And by the good hand of our God upon us they brought us a man of understanding, of the sons of Mahli, the son of Levi, the son of Israel; and Sherebiah, with his sons and his brethren, eighteen;
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And according to the good hand of our God upon us they brought us a man of discretion, of the sons of Mahli, the son of Levi, the son of Israel; and Sherebiah, with his sons and his brethren, eighteen;
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Contradictions (1)
Questions where the Bible appears to say two different things, with the passages on each side set together.
Cross-references (17)
Passages linked to Ezra 8:18 in the Treasury of Scripture Knowledge, ordered by reader-vote popularity; verse text shown in World English Bible.
- Ezra 7:28 and has extended loving kindness to me before the king and his counselors, and before all the king’s mighty princes. I was strengthened according to Yahweh my God’s hand on me, and I gathered together chief men out of Israel to go up with me.
- Nehemiah 2:8 and a letter to Asaph the keeper of the king’s forest, that he may give me timber to make beams for the gates of the citadel by the temple, for the wall of the city, and for the house that I will occupy.” The king granted my requests, because of the good hand of my God on me.
- Jeremiah 3:15 I will give you shepherds according to my heart, who will feed you with knowledge and understanding.
- 1 Chronicles 6:19 The sons of Merari: Mahli and Mushi. These are the families of the Levites according to their fathers’ households.
- Ezra 7:6 this Ezra went up from Babylon. He was a skilled scribe in the law of Moses, which Yahweh, the God of Israel, had given; and the king granted him all his request, according to Yahweh his God’s hand on him.
- Ezra 8:22 For I was ashamed to ask of the king a band of soldiers and horsemen to help us against the enemy on the way, because we had spoken to the king, saying, “The hand of our God is on all those who seek him, for good; but his power and his wrath is against all those who forsake him.”
- Daniel 1:20 In every matter of wisdom and understanding, concerning which the king inquired of them, he found them ten times better than all the magicians and enchanters who were in all his realm.
- Numbers 3:20 The sons of Merari by their families: Mahli and Mushi. These are the families of the Levites according to their fathers’ houses.
- Ezra 8:16 Then sent I for Eliezer, for Ariel, for Shemaiah, for Elnathan, for Jarib, for Elnathan, for Nathan, for Zechariah, and for Meshullam, chief men; also for Joiarib and for Elnathan, who were teachers.
- Ezra 8:24 Then I set apart twelve of the chiefs of the priests, even Sherebiah, Hashabiah, and ten of their brothers with them,
- Nehemiah 8:7 Also Jeshua, Bani, Sherebiah, Jamin, Akkub, Shabbethai, Hodiah, Maaseiah, Kelita, Azariah, Jozabad, Hanan, Pelaiah, and the Levites, caused the people to understand the law; and the people stayed in their place.
- Nehemiah 9:4-5 Then Jeshua, Bani, Kadmiel, Shebaniah, Bunni, Sherebiah, Bani, and Chenani of the Levites stood up on the stairs, and cried with a loud voice to Yahweh their God. Then the Levites, Jeshua, and Kadmiel, Bani, Hashabneiah, Sherebiah, Hodiah, Shebaniah, and Pethahiah, said, “Stand up and bless Yahweh your God from everlasting to everlasting! Blessed be your glorious name, which is exalted above all blessing and praise!
- Nehemiah 10:12 Zaccur, Sherebiah, Shebaniah,
- Nehemiah 12:24 The chiefs of the Levites: Hashabiah, Sherebiah, and Jeshua the son of Kadmiel, with their brothers close to them, to praise and give thanks, according to the commandment of David the man of God, watch next to watch.
- Proverbs 3:6 In all your ways acknowledge him, and he will make your paths straight.
- Proverbs 24:3 Through wisdom a house is built; by understanding it is established;
- 1 Corinthians 14:20 Brothers, don’t be children in thoughts, yet in malice be babies, but in thoughts be mature.
Cross-references from openbible.info (CC BY 4.0)
Explain this verse (11 sources)
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John Trapp 1656 · Public Domain Ezr 8:18 And by the good hand of our…
Ezr 8:18 And by the good hand of our God upon us they brought us a man of understanding, of the sons of Mahli, the son of Levi, the son of Israel; and Sherebiah, with his sons and his brethren, eighteen;
Ver. 18. And by the good hand of God upon us] God was in all this good man’s thoughts: he set upon every passage, as the ancients upon every special piece of work they did, Yεος, Yεος (Pausanias). This was the only way to make his journey comfortable, thus to converse with God all along, et Paradisum mente deambulare, and let your mind walk in paradise, as Jerome counselled the young hermit, assuring him that so long as he had paradise in his mind, and God in his apprehensions, tamdiu in eremo non esset, so long he should not be in a desert.
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They brought us a man of understanding] The Hebrew word Shacal signifieth three things: 1. To understand. 2. To instruct. 3. To prosper. Those that understand themselves, and teach others, shall do much good to themselves and others; see the note on Ezr 8:16. This egregie cordatus homo exceptional sweet hearted man, was Sherebiah, as it followeth here, and Sherebiah, or, even Sherebiah; confer Neh 8:7; Neh 9:4-5.
John Trapp, A Commentary or Exposition upon All the Books of the Old and New Testament (1647–1656) — public domain. Text from a community e-Sword module.
John Gill 1763 · Public Domain And Hashabiah, and with him Jeshaiah of the sons…
And Hashabiah, and with him Jeshaiah of the sons of Merari,.... These were of the same division of Levites as Sherebiah:
his brethren and their sons, twenty; these thirty eight, with those they came with, were all Levites; the Nethinims follow.
John Gill's Exposition of the Whole Bible (1746–1763) — public domain (CC PDM 1.0). Text via the HelloAO Bible API.
John Wesley 1765 · Public Domain By the good hand - If where ministers have…
By the good hand - If where ministers have been wanting, the vacancies are well supplied, let us ascribe it to the good hand of God, qualifying them for the service, inclining them to it, and opening a door for them.
John Wesley, Explanatory Notes Upon the Whole Bible (1754–1765) — public domain. Text via the GEBible commentary corpus.
Joseph Benson 1811 · Public Domain Ezr 8:18. By the good hand of our God…
Ezr 8:18. By the good hand of our God — That is, by the blessing of God upon us, they brought us a man of understanding, &c. — They did not return without their errand; but, though the warning was short, they brought about forty Levites to attend Ezra. By this it appears they were not averse to go, but were slothful, and only wanted to be called upon to go.
Joseph Benson's Commentary on the Old and New Testaments (1811–1818) — public domain. Text from a community e-Sword module.
Albert Barnes 1834 · Public Domain And Sherebiah - Either a name has fallen out…
And Sherebiah - Either a name has fallen out before the words “a man of understanding,” or the “and” here has crept into the text by accident. Sherebiah appears among the most earnest of the Levites under Nehemiah (see the marginal references).
Albert Barnes' Notes on the Bible (1834–1885) — public domain. Text from a community e-Sword/MySword module.
Daniel D. Whedon 1874 · Public Domain 18. Mahli — A Levite descended from Merari. 1Ch_6:19.
18. Mahli — A Levite descended from Merari. 1Ch_6:19.
And Sherebiah — We understand this to be the name of that man of understanding, of the sons of Mahli, whom Ezra’s delegation brought, though the English version seems to present him as another person. But render: And Sherebiah and his sons and his brethren were eighteen, and the meaning will be clearer. From this verse and the two following it appears that Ezra’s men succeeded not only in obtaining Nethinim from Iddo to the number of two hundred and twenty, but also in enlisting in their company thirty-eight Levites, who could show their genealogy from distinguished ancestors.
Daniel D. Whedon (gen. ed.), Commentary on the Old and New Testaments (1874–1909) — public domain. Text from a community e-Sword module.
The Cambridge Bible for Schools and Colleges 1878 · Public Domain 18. And by the good hand] R.V. And according…
18. And by the good hand] R.V. And according to the good hand. For the phrase see on chap. Ezr_7:6.
a man of understanding] R.V. a man of discretion. Marg. Or Ish-sechel. Discretion (sechel). Cf. 1Ch_22:12; 2Ch_2:12; Pro_19:11 : = understanding, Pro_3:4; Pro_13:15; Pro_16:22; Psa_111:10 : = wisdom Pro_12:8; Pro_23:9 : = policy Dan_8:25. The fact that we find in the following clause “And Sherebiah”, &c. favours the supposition that we ought to have the name of the individual mentioned who was “of the sons of Mahli”. Either, as is most probable, this proper name has dropped out of the text before the words “a man of discretion”, or as is possible ‘Ish-sechel’ (LXX. ἀνὴρ Σαχὼν) is a proper name (cf. Ishbosheth, Ish-tob, 2Sa_10:6; Ish-hod, 1Ch_7:18). But such names are rare, and the name Ish-sechel does not occur elsewhere. The view that the ‘and’ before Sherebiah has been carelessly inserted, and that Sherebiah himself is the man of discretion, fails to account for the order of the Hebrew words.
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Mahli, the son of Levi, &c.] Cf. Exo_6:16; Exo_6:19; 1Ch_6:19. Mahli was son of Merari, and therefore a grandson of Levi.
Sherebiah] Cf. Ezr_8:24; Neh_8:7; Neh_9:4; Neh_10:12; Neh_12:24.
The Cambridge Bible for Schools and Colleges (gen. ed. J. J. S. Perowne; Cambridge University Press, 1878–1918) — public domain. Text from a community e-Sword module.
Ellicott's Commentary for English Readers 1878 · Public Domain (18) A man of understanding.—Probably a proper name, Ishsekel.…
(18) A man of understanding.—Probably a proper name, Ishsekel. This is required by the “and” before “Sherebiah,” who was a Levite, referred to by Nehemiah (Ezr_8:7).
A Bible Commentary for English Readers, edited by Charles John Ellicott (1878–1897) — public domain. Text from a community e-Sword module.
The Pulpit Commentary 1880 · Public Domain By the good hand of our God upon us.…
By the good hand of our God upon us. This is Ezra"s usual mode of acknowledging the good providence and favour of Almighty God. (Ezr_7:6, Ezr_7:9, Ezr_7:27; and Ezr_8:31) Similar expressions occur also in Nehemiah, (Neh_2:8, Neh_2:18) but not elsewhere in Scripture. A man of understanding. In the Hebrew Ish-sekel, which some take for a proper name, but without any necessity. No such name is known to have existed; and the real name of "the man of understanding" appears to have been "Sherebiah," who is mentioned more than once in Nehemiah (Neh_8:7 Neh_9:4, Neh_9:5) as a chief Levite. And Sherebiah should be simply "Sherebiah." The preposition "and" (Hebrew) has been inserted by a careless copyist.
The Pulpit Commentary (1880–1919), ed. H.D.M. Spence-Jones & Joseph S. Exell — public domain. Text from a community e-Sword module.
unfoldingWord translationNotes 2017 · CC BY-SA 4.0 Sherebiah ... Mahli ... Hashabiah ... Jeshaiah ... Merari
Sherebiah ... Mahli ... Hashabiah ... Jeshaiah ... Merari
These are men's names. (See: How to Translate Names)
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So they sent us by our God's good hand a man
God's "good hand" represents his kindness in providing for them. AT: "Because God was kind to us, they sent us a man" (See: Metonymy)
a prudent man
This is a man of understanding and wisdom.
son of Levi son of Israel
Here "Israel" is a man's name. It is the name God gave to Jacob.
eighteen ... twenty
18 ... 20 (See:" Numbers)
Jeshaiah
See how you translated this man's name in Esra 8:7. (See: How to Translate Names)
officials
people with specific authority within a government system
translationWords
God
name
son
Levi
Israel
brother
servant
temple
David
unfoldingWord translationNotes — © Distant Shores Media and the Door43 World Missions Community, licensed CC BY-SA 4.0. Source: git.door43.org/Door43/en_tn.
Tyndale Open Study Notes 2022 · CC BY-SA 4.0 8:18 the gracious hand of our God: Ezra, his…
8:18 the gracious hand of our God: Ezra, his leaders, and Iddo all took action to rectify the problem, but ultimately everything was accomplished because of God’s grace. Only thirty-eight Levites (including the leaders) and 220 Temple servants responded.
Tyndale Open Study Notes — © Tyndale Open Resources, licensed CC BY-SA 4.0. Text via the HelloAO Bible API.