Person Old Testament
Bigvai
Bigvai was an ancestor of over 2,000 individuals who returned to Jerusalem from Babylonian captivity. Mentioned in 3 verses across 2 books, first at Ezra 2:14.
Why it matters. Ancestor of exiles who returned to Jerusalem
- Primary passages
- Last reviewed
- 2026-08-30 by the FaithGraph team
About Bigvai
Bigvai was the ancestor of a large group of people who returned to Jerusalem from the Babylonian captivity. According to the records in Ezra and Nehemiah, 2,056 (Ezr. 2:14) or 2,067 (Neh. 7:19) individuals from Bigvai's family were among the returnees. This significant number suggests that Bigvai's descendants formed an important part of the Jewish community in exile. Additionally, Ezra mentions that Uthai and Zabbud, two leaders from the descendants of Bigvai, led a group of 70 men to Jerusalem during Ezra's own return (Ezr. 8:14). The repeated mention of Bigvai's descendants highlights their active role in the restoration of Jerusalem and the Jewish community after the exile.
Description from STEPBible TIPNR (Tyndale House, Cambridge), CC BY 4.0, lightly reformatted. This is background reference material, not Scripture and not a FaithGraph editorial claim.
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Appears in Scripture
Named in 3 verses across 2 books. Occurrence data from STEPBible TIPNR (CC BY 4.0); references only, no translation text.