Bible Word Study
Ῥησά
rēsa · Rhesa
Ῥησά
Rhesa
Definition
Rhesa is a proper noun identifying a specific individual in the genealogy of Jesus Christ as recorded in the Gospel of Luke. He is listed as the son of Zerubbabel and the father of Joanan (Luke 3:27), placing him in the post-exilic lineage of David. The name appears only in this genealogical context, and no other biographical details or actions are attributed to him in the biblical text. His inclusion serves to connect the royal line from King David through the exile and restoration period directly to Jesus.
Biblical Usage
The word Ῥησά is used exactly once in the New Testament, functioning solely as a personal name within a genealogical list. It appears in Luke 3:27 as part of the detailed ancestry tracing Jesus's lineage back to Adam. Its usage is purely identificatory, with no narrative or descriptive context beyond establishing his position in the family line between Zerubbabel and Joanan.
Etymology
The name Ῥησά (Rhesa) is of uncertain origin and meaning. It is a Greek transliteration, likely of a Hebrew or Aramaic name, but its precise root is not definitively known. Some scholars have suggested a possible connection to the Aramaic word for 'prince' or 'head,' but this remains speculative. As a proper name, its etymology does not contribute a specific lexical meaning to the text.
Semantic Range
While Rhesa himself is not a theologically active figure, his inclusion in Luke's genealogy (Luke 3:23-38) is theologically significant. It emphasizes Jesus's genuine, legal descent from King David through the line of Nathan, fulfilling Old Testament messianic promises (e.g., 2 Samuel 7:12-16). His placement in the post-exilic period also highlights God's faithfulness in preserving the Davidic line through the catastrophe of the Babylonian exile, demonstrating the continuity of God's salvific plan. In first-century Jewish culture, genealogies were of paramount importance for establishing identity, lineage, inheritance rights, and especially messianic claims. A name like Rhesa, recorded in a formal genealogy, would signal his recognized place in a significant family history. For Luke's original audience, which included Gentiles, this meticulous listing validated Jesus's historical and legal standing as the promised Jewish Messiah.
Word Details
How this works
Definitions are from the Dodson Greek-English Lexicon, supplemented by STEPBible TBESG data (CC BY 4.0). Concordance and morphology data are derived from the interlinear 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]