Bible Word Study
יְדָיָה
Yᵉdâyâh · Jedajah, the name of two Israelites
יְדָיָה
Jedajah, the name of two Israelites
Definition
Yᵉdâyâh (Jedajah) is a Hebrew proper name meaning 'praised of Yah' or 'Yahweh has praised.' It appears as the name of two distinct individuals in the Old Testament. In 1 Chronicles 4:37, Jedajah is listed among the descendants of Simeon, a member of a prominent family. In Nehemiah 3:10, a different Jedajah is noted as the son of Harumaph, who helped repair the wall of Jerusalem near his own house. The name carries the same core meaning in both contexts, identifying individuals within the covenant community of Israel.
Biblical Usage
The name Jedajah is used exclusively for two individuals in post-exilic biblical texts. In 1 Chronicles 4:37, it identifies a Simeonite in a genealogical record, connecting him to Israel's tribal history. In Nehemiah 3:10, it identifies a builder who participated in the crucial restoration of Jerusalem's walls, highlighting personal involvement in the community's physical and spiritual renewal. Both usages occur in contexts emphasizing lineage and communal restoration after the Babylonian exile.
Etymology
The name Yᵉdâyâh is a compound of two Hebrew elements. It derives from the verb yādâ (H3034), meaning 'to praise, give thanks, or confess,' and the shortened form of the divine name Yahweh, Yâh (H3050). Thus, it is a theophoric name (containing God's name) meaning 'Yahweh has praised' or 'praised of Yah.' It belongs to a common class of Hebrew names expressing devotion and acknowledgment of God's action.
Semantic Range
As a theophoric name, Jedajah reflects the Israelite practice of embedding faith in personal identity, acknowledging Yahweh as the source of praise and honor. Its occurrence in Nehemiah, a book about restoration, subtly ties individual contributors to God's work of rebuilding His people. Understanding such names enriches reading by revealing how biblical characters' identities were consciously shaped by their relationship with God, even in mundane lists. In ancient Israel, names were often descriptive and carried significant meaning. A name like Jedajah, which incorporates the divine name Yâh, publicly identified the bearer and their family as worshippers of Yahweh. It was a cultural statement of faith and belonging. In the post-exilic period, such names reinforced Jewish identity and devotion to God amidst foreign influence and the struggle for renewal. Yᵉhôyādāʿ (H3077) — Also a theophoric name ('Yahweh knows'), combining Yâh with a different verb. ʿĂdāyâ (H5718) — Another name meaning 'Yahweh has adorned,' using a different root but the same divine element.
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]