Chapter Two finds us in a phone book of names — and in a foreign language.
But God’s Word is like a treasure map covered with Xs. Digging anywhere – even in a list of names – might uncover our Pearl of Great Price, who is Jesus.
Quick recap: The Israelites had been in captivity for the span of a lifetime. Now a band of young, idealistic leaders with few possessions and high expectations are trekking back to the ruins of Judah. Do they still have enough people — all the right people necessary for God to fulfill His ancient promises?
A couple names from the list of leaders might sound familiar:
“Now these are the people of the province who came up from the captivity of the exiles, whom Nebuchadnezzar king of Babylon had taken captive to Babylon (they returned to Jerusalem and Judah, each to their own town, in company with Zerubbabel, Joshua, Nehemiah, Seraiah, Reelaiah, Mordecai, Bilshan, Mispar, Bigvai, Rehum and Baanah)…”
(Ezra 2:1-2a NIV)
“Mordecai” and “Nehemiah” are names of Bible heroes from other books — but they are not the same people.
For the sake of saving the “best” for last, I’ll work backward through these names.
Reelaiah, Bilshan, Mispar, Bigvai, Rehum, and Baanah — these names are all unfamiliar to me, and the commentaries shed little light on who they are.
Mordecai — not the same Mordecai who was uncle to Queen Esther. (Mordecai and niece Esther apparently stayed behind in Babylon.)
Nehemiah — not the same Nehemiah who came later to rebuild the wall (which got him an eternal book named after him).
Seraiah — shares his name with a high priest who had been put to death by King Nebuchadnezzar. That high priest, Seraiah (not the Seraiah here), was the grandfather of the last person on this list…
Zerubbabel — Zerubbabel was prince of Judah! He was heir to King David’s throne and an ancestor of Jesus. Zerubbabel was allowed to serve as governor, even though Judah was under Persian rule.
Joshua — Joshua was the first high priest among the captives who returned. His name, translated into Greek, is “Jesus.” It means “YHWH [God] is salvation.”
Joshua and Zerubbabel are exciting names! The prophets used them as symbols to explain what Jesus was going to do when He came. (More about that in future posts…)
There are eleven names on the list above — 11 leaders who returned.
In the Bible, God often chose 12 leaders to accomplish His purposes (especially the 12 tribes of Israel and the 12 disciples).
Where is the 12th leader here?
The book of Nehemiah contains the same list, but with one name added, for a full 12:
“These are the people of the province who came up from the captivity of the exiles whom Nebuchadnezzar king of Babylon had taken captive (they returned to Jerusalem and Judah, each to his own town, in company with Zerubbabel, Joshua, Nehemiah, Azariah, Raamiah, Nahamani, Mordecai, Bilshan, Mispereth, Bigvai, Nehum and Baanah)…” (Nehemiah 7:6-7a NIV)
(Variations in names between the Ezra and Nehemiah lists are normal, like writing “Debbie” instead of “Deborah.”)
Our twelfth leader — the one who is included in Nehemiah’s list but not in Ezra’s — is Nahamani. The meaning of his name is interesting and comforting, considering the circumstances of the returning leaders.
Nahamani comes from the root word nacham. It means:
be sorry, repent, regret, be comforted, comfort
(TWOT)
We think of “repent” as people turning away from sin and turning back to God. But this Hebrew word is most often used for God “repenting” — even though God never sins!
When people repent and turn back to God, God “repents” and turns back from His punishment. He offers comfort instead.
…God repents … he relents or changes his dealings with men according to his sovereign purposes… From man’s limited, earthly, finite perspective it only appears that God’s purposes have changed. Thus the OT states that God “repented” of the judgments or “evil” which he had planned to carry out…”
(TWOT)
“Comfort, comfort [nacham, nacham] my people, says your God. Speak tenderly to Jerusalem, and proclaim to her that her hard service has been completed, that her sin has been paid for…” (Isaiah 40:1-2 NIV)
For a tired, poor band of people returning to rebuild their homes after being in captivity as a punishment for idolatry, it might be reassuring to have a leader named “God gives comforts instead of punishment!”
(Short rabbit trail:
“Nahamani” is a variant form for “Nehemiah.”
(EBC-Vol4)
Could “Nahamani” be “Nehemiah” himself, with his name adjusted to distinguish from the first “Nehemiah” who came? The commentaries are silent…)
Does this “11-plus-1 leader” situation ring a bell?
At the time of Jesus’ resurrection, there were only 11 disciples. (Judas had betrayed Jesus and then killed himself.) The 12th disciple was replaced in the next few weeks.
This 12th disciple’s name was Matthias, which means “gift of God.”
The ultimate gift of God — the greatest comfort — is that He removes our shame and punishment (completed fully when Jesus died to pay for our sins).
Any time I feel inadequate (one sandwich short of a picnic, one hour short of a better post, one leader short of seeing God’s promises carried through) God already has a plan to supply whatever is missing. He is the God of completion.
“His divine power has given us everything we need for a godly life…” (2 Peter 1:3a)
“…he who began a good work in you will carry it on to completion until the day of Christ Jesus…” (Philippians 1:6)
This is comfort, and a great gift from God.
References
www.blueletterbible.org
Through the Olive Tree Bible app:
“NICEZN” — Fensham, F. Charles. New International Commentary on the Old Testament: The Books of Ezra and Nehemiah. Eerdmans, 1982.
“EBC” — Garland, David E. and Longman III, Tremper. The Expositor’s Bible Commentary, Vol. 4. Zondervan, 2010.
“TWOT” — Theological Wordbook of the Old Testament. Moody, Chicago, 1980.
Verses are NASB unless otherwise noted.