בַּצְלוּת
Batsluth or Batslith, an Israelite
Definition
בַּצְלוּת (Batslûwth) is a proper noun referring to an Israelite individual or family group among the exiles who returned from Babylon. The name appears in two parallel lists of returnees in Ezra 2:52 and Nehemiah 7:54, where it is spelled slightly differently (Bazluth and Bazlith, respectively). It identifies a specific clan or household head within the broader community of the Nethinim (temple servants), who were dedicated to assisting the Levites in the restored worship in Jerusalem.
Biblical Usage
This word is used exclusively in post-exilic census lists documenting the families who returned from the Babylonian captivity to rebuild Judah. It occurs in the identical contexts of Ezra 2:52 and Nehemiah 7:54, which are parallel accounts. The usage pattern is purely genealogical and administrative, serving to record the lineage and identity of a family group among the temple servants (Nethinim).
Etymology
The name בַּצְלוּת likely derives from the root בצל (b-ts-l), related to H1211 (בֶּצֶל, betsel), meaning 'onion' or 'bulb.' The nominal forms בַּצְלוּת or בַּצְלִית (batslith) suggest a meaning like 'peeling' or 'that which is stripped off,' possibly referring to the layers of an onion. As a personal or family name, it was probably descriptive or metaphorical, though its exact significance for the bearer is unclear.
Semantic Range
In the cultural context of the return from exile, recording one's lineage was crucial for establishing identity, inheritance rights, and priestly or Levitical status. Being listed among the Nethinim (temple servants) signified a hereditary role in supporting worship. A name derived from a common vegetable ('onion') reflects the ordinary, humble origins of many returning families, whose faithfulness in maintaining their identity during exile allowed for the restoration of temple worship.
Nethinim (Nᵉthiynîm, H5411) — The broader class of temple servants to which the Batsluth family belonged.
Word Details
How this works
Hebrew definitions are from Brown-Driver-Briggs (1906) and Strong's Exhaustive Concordance (1890), both public domain. BDB was groundbreaking for its era but reflects 19th-century assumptions about Semitic etymology. Modern scholarship (HALOT, DCH) has revised many entries. Use these definitions as a starting point for exploration, not as the final word on a term's meaning in context.
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