Names from scripture

81 names

• Abigail

  my father's joy

  Wise and quick, she turned David from a rash decision with a well-timed word.

  1 Samuel 25:3 · also Abby

• Ada

  adornment

  One of the earliest women named in scripture.

  Genesis 4:19 · also Adah

• Anna

  grace

  The prophetess who recognised the infant Jesus in the temple after decades of faithful waiting.

  Luke 2:36

• Bethany

  house of figs

  The village where Jesus was most at home — the home of Mary, Martha and Lazarus.

  John 11:1

• Chloe

  green shoot

  A woman of the early church whose household Paul trusted.

  1 Corinthians 1:11

• Claudia

  traditionally, from the Roman family name

  Sent greetings to Timothy — a believer in Rome near the end of Paul's life.

  2 Timothy 4:21

• Deborah

  bee

  Judge, prophetess and leader of Israel, who went to the battle herself.

  Judges 4:4

• Delilah

  delicate

  A complicated story; a beautiful name many families now choose on its own terms.

  Judges 16:4

• Dinah

  judged, vindicated

  Jacob's only named daughter.

  Genesis 30:21

• Eden

  delight

  The garden itself. Used for girls and boys.

  Genesis 2:8

• Elizabeth

  my God is an oath

  Mother of John the Baptist, who welcomed a pregnant Mary with joy rather than judgement.

  Luke 1:5 · also Eliza, Beth

• Esther

  star

  The queen who risked her life for her people — 'for such a time as this'.

  Esther 2:7

• Eve

  life, living

  The mother of all living.

  Genesis 3:20

• Hannah

  grace, favour

  Prayed for a child through years of waiting, and gave that child back to God.

  1 Samuel 1:2

• Joanna

  God is gracious

  One of the women who supported Jesus' ministry from her own means, and was at the empty tomb.

  Luke 8:3

• Judith

  woman of Judea

  An early name in Genesis, later carried by a heroine of the Apocrypha.

  Genesis 26:34

• Keziah

  cassia, a fragrant spice

  One of Job's daughters, born after his restoration, and noted for her beauty.

  Job 42:14

• Leah

  weary — traditionally

  Overlooked by her husband, chosen by God: the mother of Judah, and so of David.

  Genesis 29:16

• Lydia

  from Lydia

  A businesswoman in purple cloth, the first recorded convert in Europe, whose home became a church.

  Acts 16:14

• Martha

  lady, mistress of the house

  Busy, practical, and the one who said out loud 'I believe' when it mattered.

  Luke 10:38

• Mary

  traditionally, beloved or bitter

  The mother of Jesus. Also Mary Magdalene, first witness of the resurrection.

  Luke 1:27 · also Miriam, Maria

• Miriam

  traditionally, beloved

  Sister of Moses, who watched over the basket in the reeds and led the women in song.

  Exodus 15:20

• Naomi

  pleasantness

  Ruth's mother-in-law, who lost everything and was given a family back.

  Ruth 1:2

• Phoebe

  bright, radiant

  A deacon of the church at Cenchrea, trusted to carry Paul's letter to Rome.

  Romans 16:1

• Priscilla

  ancient, venerable

  Taught alongside her husband Aquila and explained the faith more fully to Apollos.

  Acts 18:2

• Rachel

  ewe

  Loved by Jacob from the first day; mother of Joseph and Benjamin.

  Genesis 29:6

• Rebekah

  to bind, to join

  Drew water for a stranger's camels, and was chosen for it.

  Genesis 24:15 · also Rebecca

• Ruth

  friend, companion

  'Whither thou goest, I will go.' Loyalty as the whole shape of a life.

  Ruth 1:16

• Salome

  peace

  Among the women who brought spices to the tomb on the first morning.

  Mark 16:1

• Sarah

  princess

  Laughed at the promise of a child in old age, and then held him.

  Genesis 17:15

• Selah

  pause, reflect

  Not a person — the word that tells a psalm's reader to stop and take it in.

  Psalm 3:2

• Shiloh

  peaceful, tranquil

  A place of worship, and a word many read as a name for the Messiah. Used for boys too.

  Genesis 49:10

• Susanna

  lily

  Named among the women who supported Jesus and the disciples.

  Luke 8:3

• Tabitha

  gazelle

  Full of good works, and raised by Peter — the widows showed him the clothes she had made.

  Acts 9:36

• Tamar

  date palm

  Named in the line of Christ in Matthew's gospel.

  Genesis 38:6

• Zipporah

  bird

  Wife of Moses.

  Exodus 2:21

• Aaron

  traditionally, exalted or mountain

  Brother of Moses and the first high priest, who spoke when Moses could not.

  Exodus 4:14

• Abel

  breath

  The first shepherd, whose offering was accepted.

  Genesis 4:2

• Adam

  man, from the earth

  The first man.

  Genesis 2:19

• Amos

  carried, borne

  A shepherd and fig-farmer called to be a prophet, who spoke plainly about justice.

  Amos 1:1

• Asher

  happy, blessed

  Leah named him for her happiness. A tribe of Israel.

  Genesis 30:13

• Benjamin

  son of the right hand

  Jacob's youngest, whose mother died at his birth and whose father renamed him for strength.

  Genesis 35:18 · also Ben

• Caleb

  traditionally, wholehearted or dog

  One of two spies who trusted God about the land, and lived to walk into it.

  Numbers 13:6

• Daniel

  God is my judge

  Kept his faith in a foreign court, and his life in a den of lions.

  Daniel 1:6

• David

  beloved

  Shepherd, psalmist, king — 'a man after God's own heart'.

  1 Samuel 16:13

• Eli

  ascended, my God

  The priest who raised Samuel. A short name that stands on its own.

  1 Samuel 1:9

• Elijah

  my God is Yahweh

  The prophet fed by ravens, who heard God in a still small voice.

  1 Kings 17:1

• Ethan

  firm, enduring

  A wise man of Solomon's day, credited with Psalm 89.

  1 Kings 4:31

• Ezra

  help

  A scribe who brought the people back to the law after exile.

  Ezra 7:6

• Gabriel

  God is my strength

  The angel who brought Mary the news.

  Luke 1:26

• Gideon

  hewer, feller

  Threshing wheat in hiding when he was called 'mighty man of valour'.

  Judges 6:11

• Isaac

  he laughs

  The long-promised son, named for his mother's laughter.

  Genesis 21:3

• Isaiah

  Yahweh is salvation

  The prophet of comfort and of the suffering servant.

  Isaiah 1:1

• Jacob

  supplanter, heel-holder

  Wrestled with God and was renamed Israel.

  Genesis 25:26

• James

  supplanter — the Greek form of Jacob

  Two disciples, and the brother of Jesus who wrote the most practical letter in the New Testament.

  Matthew 4:21

• Jesse

  gift

  Father of David — 'a rod out of the stem of Jesse'.

  Ruth 4:17

• John

  God is gracious

  The Baptist, and the disciple Jesus loved.

  John 1:6

• Jonah

  dove

  The prophet who ran, and was given a second chance.

  Jonah 1:1

• Jonathan

  God has given

  David's truest friend, who chose loyalty over his own crown.

  1 Samuel 18:1

• Joseph

  he will add

  Sold by his brothers, and the one who saved them. Also the carpenter who raised Jesus.

  Genesis 30:24

• Joshua

  Yahweh is salvation

  'Be strong and of a good courage.' Led the people into the land.

  Joshua 1:1

• Josiah

  Yahweh supports

  King at eight, who found the lost book of the law and returned the nation to it.

  2 Kings 22:1

• Judah

  praise

  Leah's fourth son — 'now will I praise the Lord'. The tribe of David and of Christ.

  Genesis 29:35

• Levi

  joined, attached

  The priestly tribe. Also the tax collector who became Matthew.

  Genesis 29:34

• Luke

  from Lucania

  The physician who wrote a gospel and the Acts, with an eye for the women and the poor.

  Colossians 4:14

• Malachi

  my messenger

  The last prophet of the Old Testament.

  Malachi 1:1

• Matthew

  gift of God

  Left the tax booth when called, and wrote the first gospel.

  Matthew 9:9

• Micah

  who is like God?

  'Do justly, love mercy, walk humbly with thy God.'

  Micah 1:1

• Nathan

  he gave

  The prophet who told David the truth to his face, and was heard.

  2 Samuel 12:1

• Noah

  rest, comfort

  Built the ark. Named for the comfort his father hoped he would bring.

  Genesis 5:29

• Reuben

  behold, a son

  Jacob's firstborn, who tried to save Joseph from the pit.

  Genesis 29:32

• Samuel

  heard by God

  Hannah's answered prayer, who heard God calling in the night.

  1 Samuel 1:20

• Seth

  appointed

  Given to Eve after loss — 'God hath appointed me another seed'.

  Genesis 4:25

• Silas

  traditionally, of the forest

  Sang hymns in a Philippian jail with Paul at midnight.

  Acts 15:22

• Simon

  he has heard

  Peter's given name. Also Simon of Cyrene, who carried the cross.

  Matthew 4:18

• Solomon

  peace

  Asked for wisdom rather than riches, and was given both.

  1 Kings 3:9

• Stephen

  crown

  The first to die for the faith, praying for those who killed him.

  Acts 6:5

• Thomas

  twin

  Doubted, asked, and was answered — 'my Lord and my God'.

  John 20:24

• Timothy

  honouring God

  Raised in the faith by his mother Eunice and grandmother Lois.

  2 Timothy 1:5

• Titus

  traditionally, of honour

  Paul's trusted companion, left to set the church in Crete in order.

  Titus 1:4

• Zachariah

  Yahweh remembers

  Father of John the Baptist, struck silent until he wrote 'his name is John'.

  Luke 1:5 · also Zechariah, Zach