Nehemiah 11:24 - Exposition

Pethahiah … of the children of Zerah . We have here an indication of the imperfection of the preceding catalogue, which has mentioned no descendants of Zerah among the Jews dwelling in Jerusalem, but made them all sons of Perez ( Nehemiah 11:6 ). As already observed, a verse equivalent to 1 Chronicles 6:9 must have fallen out between 1 Chronicles 6:6 and 1 Chronicles 6:7 of this chapter. The exact office borne by Pethahiah cannot be determined; but he evidently held a confidential position, which made him an intermediary for certain purposes between the Persian king and the Jewish people. Perhaps he received and forwarded petitions and complaints.