Then all who trembled … gathered round me: The Hebrew text of this verse begins literally with “Then to me gathered,” translating the connective conjunction as sequential in meaning. Focusing on himself as shown by the Hebrew word order, Ezra describes all who trembled. This syntactic pattern is not common in English, but equivalent forms may be available in other languages and translators should then use them to retain the focus of the text. This is done, for example, in French by Chouraqui, Darby and Osty-Trinquet, and in German by Luther.

Quoted with permission from Noss, Philip A. and Thomas, Kenneth J. A Handbook on Ezra. (UBS Helps for Translators). New York: UBS, 2005. For this and other handbooks for translators see here .

Ezra was joined by all who trembled at the words of the God of Israel. This was a phrase used of those who were strict followers of the Law. Trembling may refer to the physical trembling of a person who is frightened, but in the Old Testament it is also a manifestation of religious emotion (see Ezra 10.3; Isa 66.2, 5). Good News Translation interprets it here, not in the general sense of being God-fearing, but rather in the immediate context of what had been reported to Ezra and what the people feared would happen as a result of their actions, so it has “were frightened.” For God of Israel, see Ezra 1.3.

The cause of Ezra’s grief and consternation and the gathering of the people was the faithlessness of the returned exiles. The Hebrew text simply says exiles (see Ezra 1.11), but Revised Standard Version adds returned to make it clear that this refers to those who had returned to Jerusalem, both the ones who had come previously and those who had accompanied Ezra now. For faithlessness see verse 2 above.

The verb gathered is in a form that indicates that it was a growing crowd of people that joined Ezra. They were not encircling him in a threatening manner, but they were gathering together to be with him as the evening approached.

Evening sacrifice: The Hebrew word for evening indicates the time of this sacrifice to be between the setting of the sun and the darkness of the night. However, the reference here may be to the time of prayer that took place at about 3 o’clock in the afternoon (see Psa 141.2; Dan 9.21; Acts 3.1). The translator should use a term that refers to the evening hours and not the afternoon when the sun is still hot. Sacrifice here translates a Hebrew word that primarily refers to an offering that is not a blood sacrifice (compare Ezra 3.3; 6.3, 10), such as the grain offering given at the time of the morning and evening sacrifices (see “cereal offering” in Ezra 7.17). Chouraqui therefore says “evening offering” and Osty-Trinquet says “evening oblation.” A general term should be used here that does not refer exclusively to the sacrifice of a living creature.

Quoted with permission from Noss, Philip A. and Thomas, Kenneth J. A Handbook on Ezra. (UBS Helps for Translators). New York: UBS, 2005. For this and other handbooks for translators see here .