These are the heads of the provinces who settled in Jerusalem. (In the villages of Judah, however, each lived on his own property in their towns—the Israelites, priests, Levites, temple servants, and descendants of Solomon’s servants—
Jerusalem is called here the holy city (Neh 11:1), because there the temple was, and that was the place God had chosen to put his name there; upon this account, one would think, the holy seed should all have chosen to dwell there and have striven for a habitation there; but, on the contrary, it seems they declined dwelling there, 1.
Commenting on Nehemiah 11:1-19
And at Jerusalem dwelt certain of the children of Judah, and of the children of Benjamin,.... It belonging partly to one tribe and partly to the other, and so inhabited by both, as it originally was, Jos 15:63 of the children of Judah; Athaiah; called Uthai, Ch1 9:4 whose lineage is traced through Uzziah, Zechariah, Amariah, Shephatiah, Mahalaleel: of the children of Perez; a son of Judah, see Ch1 9:4.
THEIR NAMES. (Neh. 11:3-36) the chief of the province--that is, Judea. Nehemiah speaks of it, as it then was, a small appendix of the Persian empire. in the cities of Judah dwelt every one in his possession in their cities--The returned exiles, who had come from Babylon, repaired generally, and by a natural impulse, to the lands and cities throughout the country which had been anciently assigned them.
Commenting on Nehemiah 11:3-36