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Meaning and etymology of the name Tirzah




Tirzah Tirzah


There are two Tirzah's in the Bible. One is one of five daughters of Zelophehad, the son of Hepher of Manasseh, who together with her sisters Mahlah, Noah, Hoglah and Milcah bring about a change in Mosaic hereditary law (Numbers 26:33).

The other Tirzah is a city near Samaria, conqured by Joshua (Joshua 12:24). King Solomon praises her beauty (Song 6:4) and king Jeroboam moves his seat of power to there (1 Kings 14:17). Israel's kings down to Omri rule from Tirzah (1 Kings 16:23). Omri buys a hill from a man named Shemer, and builds the city Samaria on it (v24). When his son Ahab becomes king, he rules from Samariah. The last we hear of Tirzah is that it's the scene of a massacre instigated by the cruel king Menahem of Israel (2 Kings 15:16). Judging from verse 14, king Menahem was a native of that town.

The name Tirzah comes from the verb rasa (rasa), meaning to be pleased with or favorable to. HAW Theological Wordbook of the Old Testament reports that this verb is a "very ancient Wets-Semitic root," found in many cognates, in a letter from Amarna (1370 BC) and all over the Bible. This verb is used to indicate God's response towards the Servant (Isaiah 42:1) or of people to people (Malachi 1:8). It's used to indicate acceptability of offerings to God (2 Samuel 24:23), to indicate sadism (Psalm 40:14), or to enjoy rest like a Sabbath (Leviticus 26:34).

This verb comes with one derivative, namely the masculine noun rason (rason), meaning goodwill, favor, pleasure of acceptance (Deuteronomy 33:16, Exodus 28:38, Ezra 10:11).

The T with which the name Tirzah starts comes from a common linguistic construction that allows a noun to express an intensification of the verb.

For a meaning of the name Tirzah, NOBS Study Bible Name List reads Delight. Jones' Dictionary of Old Testament Proper Names reads Pleasantness. And BDB Theological Dictionary has Pleasure, Beauty.






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