Ezra 8:15

Ver. 15. Ahava— This was a river of Assyria, and, very probably, that which ran along the Adiabene, where the river Diava, or Adiava, is known to be, and upon which Ptolemy places the city of Abane, or Avano. Here, as some imagine, was the country which, in the 2nd book of Kings, Exodus 17:24 is called Ava, whence the king of Assyria translated the people called Avites into Palestine, and in their room settled some of the captive Israelites. It was a common thing for those who travelled from Babylon to Jerusalem, in order to avoid the scorching heat of the desart of Arabia, to shape their course northward at first, and then, turning westward, to pass through Syria into Palestine. But Ezra had a further reason for taking this route; for, as he intended to get together as many Israelites as he could, to carry along with him to Jerusalem, he took his course this way, and made a halt in the country of Ava, or Ahava, from which place he might send emissaries into the Caspian mountains, to invite such Jews as were there to come and join them. See Calmet.