The Book of Ezra is a book of the Hebrew Bible; which formerly included the Book of Nehemiah in a single book, commonly distinguished in scholarship as Ezra–Nehemiah. The two became separated with the first printed rabbinic bibles of the early 16th century, following late medieval Latin Christian tradition. Its subject is the Return to Zion following the close of the Babylonian captivity, and it is divided into two parts, the first telling the story of the first return of exiles in the first year of Cyrus the Great (538 BC) and the completion and dedication of the new Temple in Jerusalem in the sixth year of Darius I (515 BC), the second telling of the subsequent mission of Ezra to Jerusalem and his struggle to purify the Jews from marriage with non-Jews. Together with the Book of Nehemiah, it represents the final chapter in the historical narrative of the Hebrew Bible.
The Book of Nehemiah has been, since the 16th century, a separate book of the Hebrew Bible. Before that date, it had been included in the Book of Ezra; but in Latin Christian bibles from the 13th century onwards, the Books of Ezra and Nehemiah become separated; a separation that became canonised with the first printed bibles in Hebrew and Latin. Told largely in the form of a first-person memoir, it concerns the rebuilding of the walls of Jerusalem by Nehemiah, a Jew who is a high official at the Persian court, and the dedication of the city and its people to God's laws (Torah).
Malachi, Malachias, Malache or Mal'achi was the writer of the Book of Malachi, the last book of the Neviim (prophets) section in the Hebrew Bible. No allusion is made to him by Ezra, however, and he does not directly mention the restoration of the temple. The editors of the 1906 Jewish Encyclopedia implied that he prophesied after Haggai and Zechariah and speculated that he delivered his prophecies about 420 BCE, after the second return of Nehemiah from Persia, or possibly before his return, comparing Malachi 2:8 with Nehemiah 13:15.
The New International Version (NIV) is an English translation of the Bible first published in 1978 by Biblica. The NIV was published to meet the need for a modern translation done by Bible scholars using the earliest, highest quality manuscripts available. Of equal importance was that the Bible be expressed in broadly understood modern English.
The Hivites were one group of descendants of Canaan, son of Ham, according to the Table of Nations in Genesis 10 (10:17). A variety of proposals have been made, but beyond the references in the Bible to Hivites in the land of Canaan, no consensus has been reached about their precise historical identity.
Ramathaim-Zophim, also called Ramah and Ramatha in the Douay-Rheims, is a town that has been identified with the modern Palestinian village of Nabi Samwil, about 5 miles north-west of Jerusalem.
The Tomb of Samuel Hebrew: קבר שמואל הנביא, translit. Kever Shmuel ha-Nevi; Arabic: النبي صموئيل, translit. an-Nabi Samu'il or Nebi Samwil), is the traditional burial site of the biblical Hebrew and Islamic prophet Samuel, atop a steep hill at an elevation of 908 meters above sea level. It is situated in the Palestinian village of Nabi Samwil in the West Bank, 1.3 kilometers north of the Jerusalem neighborhood of Ramot. On the site is a building containing a mosque built in the 18th century that was formerly a church. The tomb itself is located in an underground chamber where a small synagogue is located. The Israeli Ministry of Tourism website states "Over time practically every ancient Jewish traveler mentioned the place and its synagogue."
Ramah was a city in ancient Israel in the land allocated to the tribe of Benjamin, whose names means "height". It was located near Gibeon and Mizpah to the West, Gibeah to the South, and Geba to the East. It has been identified with modern Er-Ram, about 8 km north of Jerusalem.
Mizpah was a city of the tribe of Benjamin referred to in the Hebrew Bible.
Ezra–Nehemiah is a book in the Hebrew Bible found in the Ketuvim section, originally with the Hebrew title of Ezra. The book covers the period from the fall of Babylon in 539 BC to the second half of the 5th century BC, and tells of the successive missions to Jerusalem of Zerubbabel, Ezra, and Nehemiah, and their efforts to restore the worship of the God of Israel and to create a purified Jewish community.
Joiada is a name found from the form "Jehoiada" in the Hebrew Bible and used alternately in English versions.
The Jeshanah Gate was repaired by Joiada son of Paseah and Meshullam son of Besodeiah. They laid its beams and put its doors with their bolts and bars in place
Yehud Province, or simply Yehud, was an autonomous province of the Persian Achaemenid Empire, roughly equivalent to the older kingdom of Judah but covering a smaller area, within the satrapy of Eber-Nari. The area of Yehud Medinata corresponded to the previous Babylonian province of Yehud, which was formed after the fall of the kingdom of Judah to the Neo-Babylonian Empire. Yehud Medinata continued to exist for two centuries, until being incorporated into the Hellenistic empires following the conquests of Alexander the Great.
Beeroth was a Biblical city seven miles northwest of Jerusalem. The city was an ancient Hivite settlement, and is mentioned in Joshua 9:17, 18:25, 2 Samuel 4:2-3, Ezra 2:25 and Nehemiah 7:29. Another town named Beeroth is mentioned in Deuteronomy 10:6.
Meconah was a biblical town near Ziklag. It was occupied by the Jews under Nehemiah. It has been equated with Madmannah by Simsons but this is not always agreed with. The present day site is unknown.
Joseph Blenkinsopp an academic theologian and Old Testament scholar, is the John A. O'Brien Professor Emeritus of Biblical Studies in the Department of Theology at the University of Notre Dame. His research focuses on the Old Testament Prophets and on the Pentateuch.
Acts 16 is the sixteenth chapter of the Acts of the Apostles in the New Testament of the Christian Bible. It records the second missionary journey of Paul, together with Silas and Timothy. The book containing this chapter is anonymous but early Christian tradition uniformly affirmed that Luke composed this book as well as the Gospel of Luke.
Jeremiah 41 is the forty-first chapter of the Book of Jeremiah in the Hebrew Bible or the Old Testament of the Christian Bible. This book contains prophecies attributed to the prophet Jeremiah, and is one of the Books of the Prophets. This chapter is part of a narrative section consisting of chapters 37 to 44. Chapter 41 recounts the murder of Gedaliah, the Babylonian governor of occupied Judah, and the chaotic situation which followed this event. Jeremiah himself is not mentioned in this chapter.
