Ater

Ater (meaning left hand or shut) is the name of three individuals in the post-exilic community. (1.) Ater of Hezekiah, head of a family of ninety-eight men who returned with Zerubbabel (Ezra 2:16; Nehemiah 7:21). (2.) A gatekeeping family of ninety-eight members who returned from Babylon (Ezra 2:42; Nehemiah 7:45). (3.) A leader who sealed the covenant with Nehemiah (Nehemiah 10:17). All three references are genealogical and post-exilic.