
A lot of people have written and asked for a list of the meanings of the names of people in the Bible. Most of them come from readers of Name Changes in the Bible, one of the most popular GodWords articles. So: you asked for it, you’ve got it. Keep in mind that many names found in the Bible are not translated in the Bible, and that we often rely on translations of the name from other sources.
This list is, of course, incomplete. I mean, just look at how short it is. We’re just getting started. If you can add a name and meaning to it, just use the form at the bottom of the page and let me know.
Name | Language | Meaning | Notes |
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Abba | Chaldee | Father | In the Bible, Abba is a name applied to God three times, all in the New Testament. |
Abda | Hebrew | Servant of Jehovah | There are two Abbas in the Bible:
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Abel | Hebrew | Breath | The second son of Adam and Eve, Abel’s name may reflect the shortness of his life. |
Abijah | Hebrew | Yahweh is my Father | Abijah combines abi (my father) and jah (Yahweh). |
Abraham | Hebrew | Father of many | Abraham combines abi (my father) and raham, (plentiful). |
Abram | Hebrew | Exalted Father | Abram combines ab (father) and ram (exalted), where “father” refers to God. |
Cephas (Peter) | Aramaic | Rock | |
Daniel | Hebrew | My judge is God | There are three Daniels in the Bible:
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Elijah | Hebrew | My God is Yahweh | There are four Elijahs in the Bible:
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Elisha | Hebrew | My God is Yahweh | This is the same name as Elijah. |
Enoch | Hebrew | Dedicated | There are two Enochs in the Bible:
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Hosea | Hebrew | Yahweh is salvation | Hosea is a Hebrew name, a variant form of Hoshe’a, which was Joshua’s name before Moses changed it. |
Israel | Hebrew | To prevail, to become great in number | From both isra (Arabic: to prevail) and tharrah (Arabic: to become great in number) |
Jacob | Hebrew | Heel | From both aqeb (heel) and aqob (deceitful) |
Jesus | 16 Languages | Yahweh is salvation | Jesus is a transliteration of Iesous, which is a Greek form of the Aramaic Yeshu’a, which is a shortened form of Yehoshu’a. This is the same name as Joshua. |
Jonah | Hebrew | A dove | |
Joshua | Hebrew | Yahweh is salvation | Joshua is the same name as Hosea and Jesus. |
Jotham | Hebrew | Yahweh is perfect | There are three Jothams in the Bible:
|
Methusaleh | Hebrew | Two-hundred and thirty | His name appears to be a combination of matayim and shloshim, meaning two hundred and thirty. According to certain Jewish traditions, this refers to the number of parables about God that Methusaleh would share. His name may also suggest having the name of God engraved on his sword. Alternate traditions suggest meanings like “man of the deity” and “man of the weapon.” Yet another tradition suggest that his name is a form of Met-Ushelach, which means death and dispatch. |
Michael | Hebrew (Mikael) | Who is like God | There are eleven Michaels in the Bible:
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Nehemiah | Hebrew | Yahweh Comforts | There are three Nehemiahs in the Bible:
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Noah | Hebrew | Rest | There are two Noahs in the Bible:
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Peter | Greek | Rock | |
Sarai | Hebrew | Princess | |
Sarah | Hebrew | Mother of multitudes | Sarah appears to be a form of the Arabic tharrah, ‘to become great in number’ |
Simeon | Hebrew | To hear | There are three Simeons in the Bible:
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Simon | Greek | Obedient (to hear and obey) | Simon is the Greek rendering of the Hebrew name Shimon or Simeon. There are nine Simons in the Bible. They are described differently in Scripture, to tell them apart:
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