Ezra 2 makes it clear that God knows the names of his people. The majority of the chapter is a list of the names of all the people who came up from Babylon.
The foreign names in Ezra 2:43–58 also show us that God’s people are not defined by their genetics but also includes people from outside of traditional
Israel. While it is true in the Old Testament that most of the people of Israel were directly descended from Abraham, Isaac, and Jacob, there were always other people who were also included in their midst. Jesus’ family tree also includes someone from Moab (Matthew 1:5).
God does not save people in general; he saves particular people. The people that come back to Jerusalem are not a random number of people that have been thrown together; it’s all the people whom God loves. God does not just make rescue possible for people and then wait to see who turns up. He saves a specific people. He works in the hearts and minds of individuals. He knows his people by name.
The fact that the Lord knows the name of his people should be a great comfort to Christian believers. We are not just one face in a crowd. We are known by God. He knows our name. He cares about us. He has chosen to save us. He has chosen to love us (Ephesians 1:3–14). He has written our names on the palm of his hand (Isaiah 49:16).
1 Now these were the people of the province who came up out of the captivity of those exiles whom Nebuchadnezzar the king of Babylon had carried captive to Babylonia. They returned to Jerusalem and Judah, each to his own town.