Ezra 7:28

Hebrew (Westminster Leningrad Codex)

English Translation

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 the hand of Yahweh my God on me, and I gathered together out of Israel chief men to go up with me.

World English Bible · Public Domain

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וְיֽוֹעֲצָ֔יו

yâʻats

H3289

“and · counseling · him”

Conjunction + Verb, Qal, Participle Active, Masculine, Plural, Construct + Suffix, Personal, 3rd Person, Masculine, Singular

Appears 79× in the Hebrew Bible
First appears at Exodus 18:19

Full BDB Definition

Origin: a primitive root

TWOT: 887

to advise, consult, give counsel, counsel, purpose, devise, plan - (Qal) - to advise, counsel, give counsel, consult - counsellor (participle) - (Niphal) to consult together, exchange counsel, deliberate, counsel together - (Hithpael) to conspire

About this verse

These counts appear in no published source. They are computed here, from the morphology-tagged text and Lemma’s own curated glosses. What Lemma adds →

21: words
19: distinct lemmas
Historical: section

Grammatical profile

5 verbs
11 nouns
1 adjective
1 pronoun
3 prepositions

Verb forms

הִטָּה Hiphil · Perfect
וְיֽוֹעֲצָ֔יו Qal · Participle Active
הִתְחַזַּ֗קְתִּי Hithpael · Perfect
וָאֶקְבְּצָ֧ה Qal · Sequential Imperfect
לַעֲל֥וֹת Qal · Infinitive Construct

Repetition

Words recur within this verse — often emphatic in Hebrew:

וְעָלַ֣י upon H5921 ×2
הַמֶּ֨לֶךְ֙ king H4428 ×2

Hebrew & Septuagint length

In English translation the verse runs 47 words from the Hebrew and 50 from the Septuagint (LXX English) — closely comparable.

A rough comparison of the two English renderings, which tokenize alike — not a word-level alignment.

Word counts can differ between the Hebrew and the Greek without any difference in meaning — e.g. the Hebrew direct-object marker אֵת has no separate Greek word, and Greek often adds the article ὁ.

In the original languages it is 21 Hebrew tokens and 39 Greek tokens — but the two are counted differently (Hebrew bundles its prefixes and suffixes into one token; the Greek is in lemma form), so that isn’t a like-for-like length.

Cross-references

Topical passages linked to Ezra 7:28 in the Treasury of Scripture Knowledge — connected by theme and wording, ordered by reader-vote popularity; previews shown in the World English Bible.

2 Timothy 4:17–18 But the Lord stood by me, and strengthened me, that through me the message might be fully proclaimed, and that all the Gentiles might hear; and I was delivered out of the mouth of the lion.
Genesis 32:28 He said, "Your name will no longer be called 'Jacob,' but, 'Israel,' for you have fought with God and with men, and have prevailed."
Ezra 5:5 But the eye of their God was on the elders of the Jews, and they did not make them cease, until the matter should come to Darius, and then answer should be returned by letter concerning it.
Ezra 8:18 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;
Ezra 9:9 For we are bondservants; yet our God has not forsaken us in our bondage, but has extended loving kindness to us in the sight of the kings of Persia, to give us a reviving, to set up the house of our God, and to repair the ruins of it, and to give us a wall in Judah and in Jerusalem.
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 castle which appertains to the house, and for the wall of the city, and for the house that I shall enter into. The king granted me, according to the good hand of my God on me.
Genesis 43:14 May God Almighty give you mercy before the man, that he may release to you your other brother and Benjamin. If I am bereaved of my children, I am bereaved."
Ezra 7:9 For on the first [day] of the first month began he to go up from Babylon; and on the first [day] of the fifth month came he to Jerusalem, according to the good hand of his God on him.

Ezra 7:6 this Ezra went up from Babylon: and he was a ready scribe in the law of Moses, which Yahweh, the God of Israel, had given; and the king granted him all his request, according to the hand of Yahweh his God on him.
Nehemiah 1:11 Lord, I beg you, let now your ear be attentive to the prayer of your servant, and to the prayer of your servants, who delight to fear your name; and please prosper your servant this day, and grant him mercy in the sight of this man. Now I was cup bearer to the king.
Jonah 3:7 He made a proclamation and published through Nineveh by the decree of the king and his nobles, saying, "Let neither man nor animal, herd nor flock, taste anything; let them not feed, nor drink water;
Ezra 7:14 Because you are sent of the king and his seven counselors, to inquire concerning Judah and Jerusalem, according to the law of your God which is in your hand,

Cross-references courtesy of OpenBible.info (CC BY 4.0).

Hebrew and Greek witnesses Masoretic Hebrew ↔ Greek Septuagint

The same verse in the two great witnesses to the Old Testament, shown verse-for-verse.

These are two independent witnesses, not word-aligned to each other, and the Septuagint is shown in lemma (dictionary) form.

Hebrew Ezra 7:28 Masoretic · Westminster Leningrad Codex

וְעָלַ֣י הִטָּה חֶ֗סֶד לִפְנֵ֤י הַמֶּ֨לֶךְ֙ וְיֽוֹעֲצָ֔יו וּלְכָל שָׂרֵ֥י הַמֶּ֖לֶךְ הַגִּבֹּרִ֑ים וַאֲנִ֣י הִתְחַזַּ֗קְתִּי כְּיַד יְהוָ֤ה אֱלֹהַי֙ עָלַ֔י וָאֶקְבְּצָ֧ה מִיִּשְׂרָאֵ֛ל רָאשִׁ֖ים לַעֲל֥וֹת עִמִּֽי

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 the hand of Yahweh my God on me, and I gathered together out of Israel chief men to go up with me.

World English Bible · Public Domain

Greek LXX Ezra 7:28 Septuagint · lemma form

καί ἐπί ἐγώ κλίνω ἔλεος ἐν ὀφθαλμός ὁ βασιλεύς καί ὁ σύμβουλος αὐτός καί πᾶς ὁ ἄρχων ὁ βασιλεύς ὁ ἐπηρμένων καί ἐγώ κραταιόω ὡς χείρ θεός ὁ ἀγαθός ἐπί ἐγώ καί συνἄγω ἀπό ἰσραήλ ἄρχων ἀναβαίνω μετά ἐγώ

and has given me favor in the eyes of the king, and of his councillors, and all the rulers of the king, the exalted ones. And I was strengthened according to the good hand of God upon me, and I gathered chief men of Israel to go up with me.

LXX2012 (modern English Septuagint) · Public Domain

In the Septuagint this is one book — Esdras B (2 Esdras): Ezra is chapters 1–10, Nehemiah 11–23.

Hebrew: Westminster Leningrad Codex (CC BY 4.0). Greek: Septuagint (public domain); English from LXX2012 (modern English Septuagint) (Public Domain). How the Septuagint differs from the Hebrew →

Commentary

Notes on Ezra 7:28 from classic Christian and Jewish commentators (each source and its license shown beneath its notes). The classic Christian expositions comment on the surrounding passage and are grouped to its opening verse, so a note may address several verses; the Jewish commentaries on the Tanakh (Rashi and others) are per-verse, so they appear only where the commentator wrote on this verse.

Lemma curates 59 commentaries, every one of them public domain or Creative Commons licensed, each selected and text-cleaned for this edition rather than reprinted as found. About our sources →

Trapp's Complete Commentary

John Trapp

Ezr 7:28 And hath extended mercy unto me before the king, and his counsellors, and before all the king’s mighty princes. And I was strengthened as the hand of the LORD my God [was] upon me, and I gathered together out of Israel chief men to go up with me.

Ver. 28. And hath extended mercy unto me] sc. By making use of my service for the promoting of his. Any employment about God is a high preferment, and so to be esteemed; yea, it is a mercy, and sealeth up further mercy.

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.

Joseph Benson's Commentary

Ezr 7:28. And hath extended mercy to me, &c. — The king, in the honour he did Ezra, we may suppose, had an eye to his merits, and preferred him because he judged him to be an intelligent, dis-interested, and upright man: but he himself ascribes his elevation purely to God’s mercy. And I was strengthened — Endowed with courage and ability to undertake the services; as the hand of the Lord my God was upon me — To direct and support me. If God gives us his hand, we are bold and cheerful, if he withdraws it, we are weak as water. Whatever service we are enabled to do for God and our generation, God must have all the glory of it.

Joseph Benson's Commentary on the Old and New Testaments (1811–1818) — public domain. Text from a community e-Sword module.

Adam Clarke's Commentary

Verse 28. And I was strengthened] In what the king decreed he saw the hand of God; he therefore gave him the praise, and took courage. There is a most amiable spirit of piety in these reflections. Ezra simply states the case; shows what the king had determined, and tells what he said; and then points out the grand agent in the whole business-it was the Lord God of his fathers. Thus God had put it into the king's heart to beautify the house of Jehovah; and, as that house was built for the salvation of the souls of men, he gives God praise for putting it into the king's heart to repair it: he who loves God and man will rejoice in the establishment of the Divine worship, because this is the readiest way to promote the best interests of man.

Adam Clarke's Commentary on the Bible (1810–1826) — public domain. Text from a community e-Sword/MySword module.

Ellicott's Commentary for English Readers

(28) And hath extended mercy unto me.—The honour done to himself before the council of Persia he ascribes to the mercy of God. Once more we have an anticipation of the journey, with a parenthesis intervening.

A Bible Commentary for English Readers, edited by Charles John Ellicott (1878–1897) — public domain. Text from a community e-Sword module.

The Cambridge Bible for Schools and Colleges

gen. ed. J. J. S. Perowne

28. hath extended mercy unto me] First usage of the 1st person, which continues to close of chap. 9. ‘Hath extended mercy’, cf. Ezr_9:9; Gen_39:21.

his counsellers] see on Ezr_7:14.

as the hand … was upon] R.V. according to the hand: see on Ezr_7:6.

out of Israel] i.e. of the laity, cf. Ezr_2:2.

chief men] literally, ‘heads’, cf. Ezr_5:10.

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.

The Pulpit Commentary

Hath extended mercy unto me before the king. i.e. "hath given me favour in the king"s sight made him graciously disposed towards me" (see ver. 6). And his counsellors and princes. Compare the comment on ver. 14. The "counsellors" and "princes" are the same persons.

The Pulpit Commentary (1880–1919), ed. H.D.M. Spence-Jones & Joseph S. Exell — public domain. Text from a community e-Sword module.

John Wesley's Explanatory Notes

As the hand, &c. - If God gives us his hand, we are bold and chearful: if he withdraws it, we are weak as water. Whatever service we are enabled to do for God and our generation, God must have all the glory of it.

John Wesley, Explanatory Notes Upon the Whole Bible (1754–1765) — public domain. Text via the GEBible commentary corpus.

Rashi

Rabbi Shlomo Yitzchaki (Rashi)

and his advisers They are his seven advisers mentioned above (verse 14).

according to the hand of the Lord my God upon me as the help of the Holy One, blessed be He, was upon me; and I gathered from the Israelites remaining in Babylon the chiefs of the fathers’ houses and the great men to ascend with me from Babylon.

Rashi on the Tanakh — English translations: “The Judaica Press complete Tanach with Rashi, translated by A. J. Rosenberg” (CC BY 4.0); “Pentateuch with Rashi's commentary by M. Rosenbaum and A.M. Silbermann, 1929-1934” (public domain); “The Metsudah Tanach series, Lakewood, N.J” (CC BY 4.0); and “The Book of Joshua, Metsudah Publications, 1997” (CC BY 4.0). Text via Sefaria.

Lesson kit

Teaching starters — assembled from the data on this page, not authored interpretation. Every prompt links to the verse data it draws on. Edit before teaching.

Ezra, in the Historical, opens this verse with 21 words (19 distinct Hebrew lemmas). Its most distinctive word is yâʻats (“to counsel”). A historical commentator’s framing appears above. Read the whole chapter for the surrounding context.

Discussion questions

The word yâʻats carries the sense “to counsel.” How does it shape the verse?
How does 2 Timothy 4:17–18, which shares this passage’s theme, read alongside this verse?
What does the repetition of “upon” (2× in this one verse) do in this verse?
The translations on this page render this verse differently — a whole-verse word diff, not a word-by-word alignment. What might account for the different wordings?
«הִטָּה» is a Hiphil Perfect verb. How does that grammatical form shape the action described?
Compare how Trapp's Complete Commentary and Joseph Benson's Commentary read this verse. Where do they agree or differ?

Things to notice

This verse counts 21 Hebrew ↔ 39 Greek words.
These translations choose different wording for 27 words in this verse.
“upon” occurs 2× in this single verse.
19 distinct Hebrew lemmas span 21 words in this verse.