Bede : But I gathered them at the river that flows to Ahava. I do not remember reading this name of the place anywhere else. However, when it is later written, And I proclaimed there a fast by the river Ahava; and after some further writing, We set out from the river Ahava on the twelfth day of the first month; it seems probable that Ahava is both a river and that another river flows into it, at the confluence of which Ezra gathered those who went up with him. Moreover, Josephus substitutes the Euphrates for this name. Whence Ahava can not incongruously be understood as some tributary of the river Euphrates. — Commentary on Ezra and Nehemiah Bede : And we stayed there three days, etc. Ezra acted prudently, so that before beginning such a journey, he carefully ensured he had a supply of ministers of the house of God, through whom, upon arriving in Jerusalem, he could complete what was necessary for the temple's use. — Commentary on Ezra and Nehemiah