Bible Word Study
מַעֲדְיָה
Maʻădyâh · Maadjah, an Israelite
מַעֲדְיָה
Maadjah, an Israelite
Definition
Maadjah is a proper name meaning 'Ornament of Yahweh' or 'Adornment of the LORD.' It is borne by a priest who returned from the Babylonian exile and served in Jerusalem during the time of Nehemiah. The name appears in the list of priests and Levites who came back with Zerubbabel and Jeshua (Nehemiah 12:5). As a compound name, it explicitly combines a term for beauty or decoration with the divine name Yahweh, signifying a person dedicated to or honored by God.
Biblical Usage
This name is used only once in the Old Testament, in Nehemiah 12:5. It appears in a specific historical context: a genealogical list of priests who returned from exile. Its usage is purely as a personal identifier within a priestly lineage, with no narrative or descriptive action attached to the individual.
Etymology
The name is a compound of two Hebrew elements. The first part comes from the root עָדָה (ʿādâ, H5710), meaning 'to adorn' or 'to ornament.' The second part is the shortened form of the divine name, יָהּ (Yāh, H3050). Thus, the name literally translates to 'Ornament of Yah (the LORD).' It is a theophoric name, a common practice in Israel, where a child's name expressed a relationship or attribute of God.
Semantic Range
While the name itself is not central to a major doctrine, it exemplifies a significant theological practice in ancient Israel: naming children to reflect the character or glory of God. Names like Maadjah served as constant, personal reminders of God's beauty, majesty, and covenant relationship with His people. Understanding such names enriches Bible reading by revealing the personal piety and God-centered identity of individuals, even those mentioned only in lists. In ancient Israelite culture, names were deeply meaningful, often describing a hoped-for characteristic, an circumstance of birth, or an attribute of God. Theophoric names (containing a divine element like 'Yah' or 'El') were extremely common, publicly identifying the bearer and their family with the God of Israel. A name meaning 'Ornament of Yahweh' would have conveyed honor, value, and a sense of being set apart for God's service, which is fitting for a priest. Moadiah (מוֹעַדְיָה, H4153) — A variant spelling of the same name, also meaning 'Ornament of Yahweh,' found in Nehemiah 12:17.
Word Details
How this works
Definitions are from the Brown-Driver-Briggs Hebrew Lexicon (BDB, 1906, public domain). Concordance and morphology data are from the OSHB (Open Scriptures Hebrew Bible).
Full methodology & sources →References
- Abbott-Smith, G. (1921) A Manual Greek Lexicon of the New Testament. Edinburgh: T&T Clark. [Public Domain]
- Brown, F., Driver, S.R. and Briggs, C.A. (1906) A Hebrew and English Lexicon of the Old Testament. Oxford: Clarendon Press. [Public Domain]
- Tyndale House, Cambridge (n.d.) Tyndale Brief lexicon of Extended Strongs for Greek (TBESG). STEPBible. Available at: https://www.stepbible.org. [CC BY 4.0]
- Tyndale House, Cambridge (n.d.) Translators Formatted full LSJ (TFLSJ). STEPBible. Available at: https://www.stepbible.org. [CC BY 4.0]
- Thayer, J.H. (1889) A Greek-English Lexicon of the New Testament. [Public Domain]
- Gesenius, W. (1846) Gesenius' Hebrew-Chaldee Lexicon to the Old Testament. [Public Domain]
- Dodson, J. (2010) Greek Lexicon. Biblical Humanities. [CC0]