Bani בָּנִי

Bani is mentioned in Ezr.2.10 and Neh.7.15 as the ancestor of a family that returned to Judah from Babylonian exile. The lists in these passages record the names of the families who journeyed back to their homeland to resettle and rebuild. In Ezr.8.10, a descendant of Bani named Shelomith is mentioned among those who returned with Ezra. Later, in Ezr.10.29, another descendant of Bani is listed among those who had married foreign women and pledged to put them away in response to Ezra's call for repentance. The repeated mention of Bani's descendants suggests that his family played a role in the restoration of Jewish life and worship after the exile.