Ezra 10:18

The sons of the priests. Aware of the danger that the nation might relapse into the sin he was seeking to root out, Ezra punished the wrongdoers by placing their names on record, that others might take warning. First place in his catalogue of offenders he assigns to the priests, for their responsibility was greatest. As the special custodians of the law, they were obligated to adhere most strictly to its precepts. Next to the priests he lists the Levites, on the same principle. He then concludes with the laymen, arranged under their several families. The list of laymen suggests that only 9 of the 33 families mentioned in Zerubbabel’s list were involved. There is one additional family that does not appear in Zerubbabel’s list. Three of the four priestly families, on the other hand, and even near relatives of the high priest, were among the guilty.

The sons of Jeshua. First among the priests stand four names of sons and other relatives of the high priest Jeshua, who had returned to Jerusalem with Zerubbabel. As in many other places in the Bible, “son” here stands for “grandson,” or even “great-grandson” (see on Ezra 7:1).