Zadok
Zadok, son of Baana, repaired a section of Jerusalem's wall during Nehemiah's rebuilding project.
Biography
Zadok son of Baana is listed in Nehemiah 3:4 as one of the many volunteers who contributed labor to the rebuilding of Jerusalem's walls under Nehemiah's leadership, approximately 444 BC. He repaired a section of the wall, participating in a project that Nehemiah organized by assigning specific stretches of the city's defenses to different families, guilds, and officials. The wall-building project was both a practical necessity, providing security for the vulnerable post-exilic community, and a symbolic act of restoration, signaling that Jerusalem was reclaiming its identity as a fortified, inhabited city. Zadok's inclusion by name in Nehemiah's account honors his participation in this communal act of faith.
Significance
Zadok son of Baana exemplifies the ordinary faithfulness that undergirds extraordinary renewal. Nehemiah 3 reads like a roll of honor, a divine ledger of every person who contributed their effort to restoring God's city. The work of rebuilding Jerusalem's walls was an act of trust in God's promise to restore Israel, and each laborer, however obscure, participated in that promise becoming visible. Zadok's contribution reminds readers that kingdom work is rarely accomplished by solitary heroes alone but through the collective, unheralded labor of many. This principle of participatory, communal obedience is central to both the post-exilic restoration and the building of the church.
Verse Appearances (1)
Nehemiah
References
- Orr, J. (ed.) (1915) The International Standard Bible Encyclopedia. Chicago: Howard-Severance Company. [Public Domain]
- Tyndale House, Cambridge (n.d.) Translators Individualised Proper Names with all References (TIPNR). STEPBible. Available at: https://www.stepbible.org. [CC BY 4.0]
- Wikidata contributors (n.d.) Wikidata. Available at: https://www.wikidata.org. [CC0]
- Church of England (1769) The Holy Bible, Authorized (King James) Version. [Public Domain]