Extra Details Concerning The Singers/Musicians (Nehemiah 11:22-24).
The singers/musicians have already been mentioned in Nehemiah 11:17. Now further details are given concerning them.
‘The overseer also of the Levites at Jerusalem was Uzzi the son of Bani, the son of Hashabiah, the son of Mattaniah, the son of Mica, of the sons of Asaph, the singers, over the business of the house of God.'
Head over the singers/musicians was Uzzi, a ‘son of Asaph'. Asaph was the chief musician in David's day (1 Chronicles 16:5). Uzzi, along with his fellow-musicians, had responsibility for the use of music in the worship in the Temple. His pedigree, which is listed, was impeccable.
‘For there was a commandment from the king concerning them, and a settled provision for the singers, as every day required.'
If we translate like this these singers were maintained by the Persian royal house, ‘as every day required'. The king's expectation would thus be that thereby God would be pleased and would bless the Persian kings. We can compare how they were also relieved from taxes (Ezra 7:24). The Persian kings went to great lengths to keep on the right side of the gods.
However, it may be translated ‘the command of the king was over them in the matters of every day'. It may therefor relate, not to provisioning, but to the duties required of them by the king as part of their worship, including the duty to intercede on behalf of him and his sons (see Ezra 6:10).
‘And Pethahiah the son of Meshezabel, of the sons of Zerah the son of Judah, was at the king's hand in all matters concerning the people.'
The kings of Persia took an interest in the religious affairs of their subjects (they wanted to ensure that their gods would honour the Persian royal family) and therefore had to hand a representative for Jewish affairs, at this time one named Pethahiah, who presumably lived at the Persian court but maintained a close watch on Jewish affairs on the king's behalf.