Ezra 6:19 kjv
And the children of the captivity kept the passover upon the fourteenth day of the first month.
Ezra 6:19 nkjv
And the descendants of the captivity kept the Passover on the fourteenth day of the first month.
Ezra 6:19 niv
On the fourteenth day of the first month, the exiles celebrated the Passover.
Ezra 6:19 esv
On the fourteenth day of the first month, the returned exiles kept the Passover.
Ezra 6:19 nlt
On April 21 the returned exiles celebrated Passover.
Ezra 6 19 Cross References
| Verse | Text | Reference |
|---|---|---|
| Exod 12:3-14 | Tell all the congregation of Israel that on the tenth day of this month… Passover lamb… blood on the doorposts… eat it in haste… keep it as a feast to the LORD throughout your generations. | Institution of the Passover |
| Exod 12:6 | ...keep it until the fourteenth day of this month, when all the assembled congregation of Israel shall kill their lambs at twilight. | Specific date for Passover sacrifice |
| Exod 12:18 | In the first month, from the fourteenth day of the month at evening, you shall eat unleavened bread… | Beginning of Feast of Unleavened Bread |
| Lev 23:5 | In the first month, on the fourteenth day of the month at twilight, is the LORD's Passover. | Confirmation of Passover date and month |
| Num 9:1-5 | The LORD spoke to Moses in the wilderness of Sinai, in the first month of the second year after they had come out of the land of Egypt, saying, “Let the people of Israel keep the Passover at its appointed time." | Early observance of Passover |
| Deut 16:5-6 | You may not offer the Passover sacrifice within any of your towns that the LORD your God is giving you, but at the place that the LORD your God will choose, to make his name dwell in it, there you shall offer the Passover sacrifice... | Passover at God's chosen place (Jerusalem Temple) |
| Josh 5:10 | While the people of Israel were encamped at Gilgal, they kept the Passover on the fourteenth day of the month in the evening… | First Passover in Canaan |
| 2 Chr 30:1-27 | Hezekiah sent to all Israel and Judah… to come to the house of the LORD at Jerusalem, to keep the Passover to the LORD, the God of Israel. | Hezekiah's great Passover revival |
| 2 Chr 35:1-19 | Josiah kept a Passover to the LORD in Jerusalem… no Passover like it had been observed in Israel since the days of Samuel the prophet… | Josiah's exceptional Passover revival |
| Ezra 3:1-6 | When the seventh month came… the people gathered… to Jerusalem. They rebuilt the altar… offered burnt offerings... kept the Feast of Booths... | Initial spiritual acts after return (Sukkot) |
| Ezra 6:16-18 | And the people of Israel, the priests, the Levites, and the rest of the returned exiles celebrated the dedication of this house of God with joy… they appointed the priests and the Levites… for the service of God at Jerusalem... | Dedication of the completed Second Temple |
| Neh 8:14-18 | ...they found it written in the Law that the LORD had commanded… that the people of Israel should dwell in booths during the feast of the seventh month... | Renewal of feast observance under Ezra/Nehemiah |
| Ps 126:1 | When the LORD restored the fortunes of Zion, we were like those who dream. | Joy of return from captivity |
| Isa 43:18-19 | "Remember not the former things, nor consider the things of old. Behold, I am doing a new thing; now it springs forth, do you not perceive it? I will make a way in the wilderness and rivers in the desert." | New Exodus imagery for post-exilic return |
| Jer 16:14-15 | "Therefore, behold, days are coming, declares the LORD, when it shall no longer be said, ‘As the LORD lives who brought up the people of Israel out of the land of Egypt,’ but ‘As the LORD lives who brought up the people of Israel from the land of the north and from all the countries where he had driven them.'" | New Exodus (return from exile) as a greater deliverance |
| 1 Cor 5:7 | Cleanse out the old leaven that you may be a new lump, as you really are unleavened. For Christ, our Passover lamb, has been sacrificed. | Christ as the ultimate Passover Lamb |
| Jn 1:29 | The next day he saw Jesus coming toward him, and said, "Behold, the Lamb of God, who takes away the sin of the world!" | Jesus as the ultimate sacrifice |
| Mt 26:17-19 | Now on the first day of Unleavened Bread, the disciples came to Jesus, saying, "Where will you have us prepare for you to eat the Passover?" He said, "Go into the city…" | Jesus observing Passover with His disciples |
| Lk 22:7-8 | Then came the day of Unleavened Bread, on which the Passover lamb had to be sacrificed. So Jesus sent Peter and John, saying, "Go and prepare the Passover for us, that we may eat it." | Jesus' final Passover observance |
| Heb 9:11-14 | But when Christ appeared as a high priest of the good things that have come, then through the greater and more perfect tent… He entered once for all into the holy places, not by means of the blood of goats and calves but by means of his own blood… | Christ's sacrifice, fulfilling types and shadows |
| Rev 5:9 | "Worthy are you to take the scroll and to open its seals, for you were slain, and by your blood you ransomed people for God from every tribe and language and people and nation..." | The Lamb (Christ) as worthy Redeemer |
| Zec 8:7-8 | "Thus says the LORD of hosts: Behold, I will save my people from the country of the east and from the country of the west, and I will bring them to dwell in Jerusalem. And they shall be my people, and I will be their God, in faithfulness and in righteousness." | Prophecy of restored people in Jerusalem |
| Ez 37:21-23 | "...I will take the people of Israel from the nations among which they have gone, and will gather them from all around, and bring them to their own land… and make them one nation in the land... No longer shall they defile themselves with their idols or with their detestable things…" | Re-gathering and cleansing of Israel |
| Rom 6:4 | We were buried therefore with him by baptism into death, in order that, just as Christ was raised from the dead by the glory of the Father, we too might walk in newness of life. | Typological cleansing and new life in Christ |
Ezra 6 verses
Ezra 6 19 Meaning
Ezra 6:19 describes the joyful observance of the Passover by the community of returning exiles in Jerusalem. This event, occurring immediately after the completion and dedication of the Second Temple, signifies the restoration of proper worship, renewed covenant fidelity, and spiritual rededication to God's commands, marking a new chapter for the post-exilic nation.
Ezra 6 19 Context
Ezra 6:19 is the culmination of a significant period for the post-exilic Jewish community. The broader context of Ezra 6 describes the persistent efforts of the returning exiles to rebuild the Temple in Jerusalem despite strong opposition. After a period of stagnation, the Persian King Darius I, prompted by the prophecies of Haggai and Zechariah and a diligent search of historical records (Cyrus's decree), issued a decree allowing and even funding the temple's completion. The temple was finally finished in the sixth year of Darius's reign (Ezra 6:15). The subsequent verses (Ezra 6:16-18) recount the joyous dedication of this Second Temple with abundant sacrifices and the proper establishment of the priestly and Levitical divisions. Immediately following this, Ezra 6:19 notes the keeping of the Passover. This sequence of temple completion, dedication, and then Passover observance, highlights the restored focus on proper worship according to the Law, signaling spiritual renewal and commitment to God's covenant after generations of exile caused by disobedience. It re-establishes their identity as a distinct people called to obey their God.
Ezra 6 19 Word analysis
And (וְ wĕ): An important conjunction linking this action directly to the previous events of temple dedication. It shows that the observance of Passover was a natural and immediate follow-up to the re-establishment of the Temple.
the children of the captivity (בְּנֵי גָלוּתָא bĕnê ḡā∙lū∙ṯā’): This Aramaic phrase identifies the community not as the original inhabitants of Judah, but specifically as the descendants of those who were exiled to Babylon and later returned. This designation carries both a sense of humility (remembering their ancestors' failures that led to exile) and triumph (God's faithfulness in restoring them). It highlights their unique identity as a remnant delivered from bondage.
kept (עַבְדִו ʿaḇ∙dū’): From the Aramaic root meaning "to do, to make, to perform, to observe." This implies an active and deliberate carrying out of the Passover ritual, not just a casual acknowledgment. It suggests meticulous adherence to the Law, indicative of sincere obedience and renewed commitment.
the Passover (פִּסְחָא pis∙ḥā’): The Aramaic equivalent of the Hebrew Pesach. This central Jewish feast commemorates God's deliverance of Israel from slavery in Egypt. Its observance here carries deep theological significance, re-establishing a national identity rooted in God's historical acts of redemption. It evokes the first Exodus, implicitly celebrating the return from Babylon as a new act of divine deliverance.
upon the fourteenth day (בְּיוֹם אַרְבְּעָה עֲשַׂר bĕyōm ’arbĕʿāh ‘aśar): This precise timing underscores the returnees' strict adherence to the Law of Moses (Exod 12:6; Lev 23:5; Num 9:5). It demonstrates their renewed reverence for divine instructions and commitment to perform religious rites exactly as commanded, differentiating them from prior periods of compromise and idolatry that contributed to their exile.
of the first month (בְּיַרְחָא קַדְמָיָא bĕyarḥā’ qaḏmāyā’): The first month of the religious calendar, also known as Nisan or Abib (Exod 13:4). Its selection reinforces obedience to divine instruction. The "first month" symbolizes new beginnings and cleansing, a fitting backdrop for a community emerging from judgment and starting afresh in covenant relationship with God in their restored land and Temple.
The children of the captivity kept the Passover: This phrase powerfully summarizes the restoration. It identifies a humbled but faithful community (the "children of the captivity") actively engaged in the core worship of their heritage (keeping "the Passover"), signaling a significant turning point from past disobedience to renewed allegiance to God. This group, defined by their historical judgment, now demonstrates vibrant spiritual life.
kept the Passover upon the fourteenth day of the first month: This emphasis on precise timing (the specific "day" and "month") highlights the community's dedication to proper worship. It wasn't merely observing the feast, but doing so with meticulous accuracy according to God's commands. This precision serves as a testament to their sincere desire for covenant fidelity, distinguishing them sharply from the syncretistic practices of surrounding nations and their own idolatrous past.
Ezra 6 19 Bonus section
- The particular significance of this Passover lies in its being the first to be celebrated in the completed Second Temple. Previous observations, whether during the return or shortly after the altar was rebuilt (Ezra 3:1-3), could not fulfill the command to offer the sacrifice "at the place that the LORD your God will choose" (Deut 16:5-6) with the same integrity until the temple structure itself was complete. This adds a layer of proper fulfillment to their obedience.
- This celebration subtly counters any residual pagan influences or the effects of life among foreign nations, asserting Israel's distinctiveness and absolute loyalty to YHWH's commanded worship system. It acts as a clear statement against syncretism and religious indifference.
- The fact that it's "the children of the captivity" implies that they were the spiritual inheritors of the covenant, distinct from those who remained behind in Babylon or those who never repented from their idolatry. This highlights the concept of the faithful remnant, who endure judgment and emerge dedicated to God.
Ezra 6 19 Commentary
Ezra 6:19 is a deeply symbolic and significant verse in the narrative of Israel's post-exilic return. The observance of Passover here is far more than a routine religious exercise; it is a foundational act of spiritual re-establishment for a people delivered from generations of judgment. Coming directly after the Second Temple's dedication, this Passover solidifies the restored religious identity of Israel. The term "children of the captivity" underscores their collective memory of sin and suffering, contrasting sharply with their present joy and restored privilege to worship God rightly. Their meticulous adherence to the specified "fourteenth day of the first month" signals a profound repentance for past disobedience and a genuine commitment to follow God's laws precisely, thereby contrasting with the behaviors that led to the exile. This act was a communal affirmation of God's redemptive power, linking their return from Babylon to the Exodus from Egypt, positioning it as a fresh act of liberation and a renewed covenant. It served to bind the community together, cleansed and devoted, ready to serve God in His newly dedicated house. For practical application, this illustrates that true restoration includes returning to proper worship and diligent obedience to God's word, after a period of straying.