What's in a Biblical name (2024)

Of the 10 most popular boys' names given to babies in 2000, eight are found in the Bible. Four of the top 10 girls' names are there as well. Many parents don't even think about where a name comes from when they give their children names. They just like the sound or have a friend or relative with that name.

But in the days of the Bible, names were much more meaningful. How would you like to be named Hairy, or Refreshment, or The Spoil Speeds, the Prey Hastens? Your name may actually have a meaning like this, but it's not so obvious. You'd have to look in a book of names to find out what it means.

"In the Bible, many names said just what they meant," says Prof. David Noel Freedman of the Department of History at the University of California, San Diego. Names were more than just labels. To ancient Hebrews and Babylonians, nothing existed until it had a name. Its name expressed its character.

So if parents named a child Grace, they expected the child to be graceful.

In the Biblical story of Nabal, he did something foolish. His wife, Abigail, said "as his name is, so is he: Nabal [fool] is his name, and folly is with him" (I Samuel 25:25). "It's hard to believe that his parents actually named him 'Stupid,' " Dr. Freedman says. "We don't know for sure, but the name may have had another meaning and it just happened to also sound the same as Fool, like the words 'stair' and 'stare' sound alike but mean different things."

Other names worked out a lot better. Joseph and Mary were instructed to name their son Jesus. That's a Greek form of the name Joshua, which means "savior." Esau had a lot of hair when he was born, so his parents named him Hairy.

Job and his wife might not have been thinking about character when they named some of their daughters. Kerenhappuch means "horn of antimony" (black eye shadow), but maybe she just had thick eyelashes. Keziah might have been a type of perfume or even a spice for food. Their third daughter was named Jemimah, which means dove.

How about a girl named 'Lipstick'?

If people followed this practice today, girls might have names like Mascara, Lipstick, or Nutmeg. (Actually, Cinnamon has been used as a girl's name recently, so naming girls after spices is still a possibility.)

People in Biblical times even changed their names when they felt they had greatly changed as a person. When Jesus wanted to emphasize that Simon would be a steadfast upholder of his teachings, he gave him the name Peter, based on the Greek word for rock. Jacob's name means "supplanter," and he lived up to his name when he stole the inherited rights belonging to his older brother, Esau. When he became a changed man, he changed his name to Israel (he strives with God).

Many Bible names contain "El" or "Yah," which are Hebrew words for God. Notice the "el" at the end of Michael, Daniel, and Samuel. Can you hear the "yah" at the end of Obadiah, Nehemiah, and Jeremiah?

In Old Testament times, children were usually named by their mothers. These "El" and "Yah" names were meant to honor God and ensure that God was a part of their children's lives. These names declared "God rules" and "Who is like God?"

Because a name was so much a part of a person, if you acted "in someone's name," you acted with their authority. That's why Mordecai could write a command in the name of King Ahasuerus and it became law (Exodus 8:8-10).

Prophets sometimes spoke "in the name of God" to emphasize their authority. By declaring something in the name of God, they declared that they spoke for God Himself.

Unfortunately for their children, prophets also had a tendency to give their kids names related to their prophesies. Hosea felt the people of Israel didn't deserve God's mercy or protection, so he named a daughter Loruhamah (not pitied) and a son Loammi (not my people).

And it was Isaiah who signified the destruction of cities Rezin and Pekah by naming his son Mahershalalhashbaz (the spoil speeds, the prey hastens). If we named children after events today, they might be called Question the Vote Count or March Madness.

'This is my son, Vulture'

People in the Bible who traveled around living in tents also named their children after the animals they saw, especially if the child showed any characteristics of the animal.

They named them Gazelle (Zibiah), Mountain Sheep (Zimri), even Vulture (Aiah). They also chose names of the features around them such as Cliff (Sela), Meadow (Abel), or Hill (Gibeon). Would parents living in cities today ever call their children High-Rise or Billboard?

FAQs

What does the Bible say about what's in a name? ›

Revelation 3:12

No matter what a person's name means, it identifies him. Our new names will identify us with a person ("God"), a place ("New Jerusalem"), and very likely a function or responsibility in God's government ("My new name").

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What is the power behind a name? ›

Not only can a name connect each of us to our own identity and individuality, but it can also carry power, responsibility, and blessings.

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What does name represent in the Bible? ›

A "name" is that by which a person, place or thing is marked and known. In Scripture, names were generally descriptive of the person, of his position, of some circ*mstance affecting him, hope entertained concerning him, etc., so that "the name" often came to stand for the person.

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What is the meaning of Proverbs 22 2? ›

God makes it very clear that His eyes are on the poor and He pays attention to how others treat them. This verse notes that the rich and poor are both where they are because the LORD allowed them to be there — at least for now! If you are rich, thank God, because He allowed you to be there today.

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What's in a name Bible lesson? ›

The Bible tells us that there is no other name that can save us. What's in a name? If the name is Jesus, there is salvation! Heavenly Father, we thank you that there is salvation in the name of Jesus.

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Why is a name important to God? ›

Biblical names could be used to communicate God's message. Biblical names were also used to establish an affiliation with God. Biblical names are given to establish authority over another, or to indicate a new beginning or new direction in a person's life.

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What is the power of a name in the Bible? ›

Names carried weight and character and were often tied to a person's destiny. That's why, throughout Scripture, when God was about to do something new with a person, He would often change the name. Names carried weight and character and were often tied to a person's destiny.

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What does a name symbolize? ›

Our names are an incredibly important part of our identity. They carry deep personal, cultural, familial, and historical connections. They also give us a sense of who we are, the communities in which we belong, and our place in the world.

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What makes a name so powerful? ›

Names convey and create meaning. They reveal something about who we are, where we come from, and where we're headed.

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Why does God call us by name? ›

Lastly, God calls us by name to be part of his family forever. Read: Luke 10:20 • How does this verse make you feel?

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What does God reveal about his name? ›

God's unique name announced in Exodus 3:14 is Ehyeh. Ehyeh is the name God uses to reveal Himself when Moses asks who he should say sent him to the Israelites before the Exodus. God said to Moses, “I am who I am.” And he said, “Say this to the people of Israel: 'Ehyeh has sent me to you.

What does what's in a name mean? ›

August 25, 2022. Walter Isler | Vice President, Account Executive. When playwright William Shakespeare asked the question, “What's in a name?” in Romeo and Juliet, he was referring to the idea that names themselves are a convention to distinguish things or people, but themselves do not have any worth or meaning.