“I found the following written in it. These were the people of the province who came up out of the captivity of those exiles whom King Nebuchadnezzar of Babylon had carried into exile. They returned to Jerusalem and Judah, each to his town. They came with Zerubbabel, Jeshua, Nehemiah, Azariah, Raamiah, Nahamani, Mordecai, Bilshan, Mispereth, Bigvai, Nehum, and Baanah.”

This is very similar to Ezra, chapter 2. Most of the 12 people named, that is 7, are exactly the same people as in the beginning of chapter 2 of Ezra, Zerubbabel, Jeshua, Nehemiah, Mordecai, Bilshan, Bigvai, and Baanah. These exiles were lead by Zerubbabel. Jeshua was the head of the priests. This Nehemiah is not the Nehemiah writing this book. Mordecai played a major role in the Book of Esther, so that it is hard to believe that this is the same person here. Bilshan is only mentioned in these listings. The family of Bigvai will sign a covenant. It is hard to tell the role of Baanah. The other 4 named may be variations of the same name. Azariah may be the same as Seraiah. Raamiah may be Reelaiah. Mispereth may be Mispar, and Nehum may be Rehum. That leaves only Nahamani as a new person. These exiles supposedly returned to their own towns. According to 2 Kings, the poor people were not taken into captivity.