The children of Bani, six hundred forty and two.

EZRA 2:10KJV
Know the Bible

Ezra 2:10 (KJV)

What does Ezra 2:10 mean?

Ezra 2:10 records that 642 descendants of Bani returned from exile. This verse is part of a list naming families and the number of their members who came back to Jerusalem and Judah after the Babylonian captivity.

Ezra is writing to document the specific groups who returned from Babylon, showing the careful record-keeping of the community’s restoration. The verse simply lists the family of Bani and the exact count of its returning members, emphasizing the organized nature of the return and the importance of each family in rebuilding the nation.

Where else these words appear

“Bani” Hebrew H1137 · used in 14 verses

  • 2 Samuel 23:36 Igal the son of Nathan of Zobah, Bani the Gadite,
  • Ezra 10:34 Of the sons of Bani; Maadai, Amram, and Uel,
  • Nehemiah 9:4 Then stood up upon the stairs, of the Levites, Jeshua, and Bani, Kadmiel, Shebaniah, Bunni, Sherebiah, Bani, and Chenani, and cried with a loud voice unto the LORD their God.

“forty” Hebrew H705 · used in 124 verses

  • Genesis 5:13 And Cainan lived after he begat Mahalaleel eight hundred and forty years, and begat sons and daughters:
  • Deuteronomy 8:2 And thou shalt remember all the way which the LORD thy God led thee these forty years in the wilderness, to humble thee, and to prove thee, to know what was in thine heart, whether thou wouldest keep his commandments, or no.
  • 1 Chronicles 5:18 The sons of Reuben, and the Gadites, and half the tribe of Manasseh, of valiant men, men able to bear buckler and sword, and to shoot with bow, and skilful in war, were four and forty thousand seven hundred and threescore, that went out to the war.