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Naphtali

The sixth son of Jacob by Bilhah, Rachel’s handmaid. The word Naphtali signifies _wrestling_, or _struggling_. Naphtali is rendered in the installed Bible Names resource as “that struggles or fights.” This unified study connects 7 installed resource categories without replacing their source records.

View overview sources
  • Historical Reference: Nave’s Topical Bible — Public domain
  • Historical Reference: Hitchcock’s Bible Names Dictionary (1869)
  • Historical Reference: Hitchcock's Bible Names Dictionary
  • Historical Reference: A Biblical and Theological Dictionary
  • Historical Reference: concordance
  • Historical Reference: Open Scriptures Hebrew Bible lexical data / BDB-Strong mapping
  • Historical Reference: STEPBible TBESG (based primarily on Abbott-Smith)
  • Historical Reference: Installed reference work

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Subject type
Subject
Strong’s
H5321, G3508
Hebrew
נַפְתָּלִי · Naphtâlîy
Greek
Νεφθαλείμ · Nephthaleim
Name meaning
that struggles or fights According to Hitchcock's Bible Names Dictionary

Strong’s and original-language information

Open Scriptures Hebrew Bible lexical data / BDB-Strong mapping

נַפְתָּלִי

H5321
Transliteration
Naphtâlîy
Pronunciation
naf-taw-lee'
Language
Hebrew
Indexed occurrences
51

Glosses

Naphtali, Naphtali.

Lexicon definition

Naphtali, a son of Jacob, with the tribe descended from him, and its territory

Abbott-Smith Greek Lexicon

Νεφθαλείμ

G3508
Transliteration
Nephthaleim
Language
Greek
Part of speech
N:N--PG
Indexed occurrences
3

Glosses

Naphtali, Nephthalim

Lexicon definition

Νεφθαλείμ (-λίμ, WH in Re, l.with), ὁ indecl. (Heb. נַפְתָּלִי) Naphtali: Mat.4:13, 15" (LXX) Rev.7:6.† (AS)

Strong’s Hebrew and Greek Lexicon

נַפְתָּלִי

H5321
Transliteration
Naphtâlîy
Pronunciation
naf-taw-lee'
Language
Hebrew
Indexed occurrences
51

Glosses

Naphtali.

Lexicon definition

Naphtali, a son of Jacob, with the tribe descended from him, and its territory

Complete dictionary entries

Hitchcock's Bible Names Dictionary

Naphtali

that struggles or fights

Source: Hitchcock's Bible Names Dictionary · View data sources

A Biblical and Theological Dictionary

NAPHTALI

the sixth son of Jacob by Bilhah, Rachel’s handmaid. The word Naphtali signifies _wrestling_, or _struggling_. When Rachel gave him this name, she said, With great wrestlings have I wrestled with my sister, and I have prevailed,” Gen. xxx, 8. Naphtali had but four sons, and yet at the coming out of Egypt his tribe made up fifty-three thousand four hundred men, able to bear arms. Moses, in the blessing he gave to the same tribe, says, O Naphtali, satisfied with favour, and full with the blessing of the Lord, possess thou the west and the south,” Deut. xxxiii, 23. The Vulgate reads it, the sea and the south,” and the Hebrew will admit of either interpretation, that is, the sea of Gennesareth, which was to the south by the inheritance of this tribe. His soil was very fruitful in corn and oil. His limits were extended into upper and lower Galilee, having Jordan to the east, the tribes of Asher and Zebulun to the west, Libanus to the north, and the tribe of Issachar to the south. Under Barak, their general, they and the Zebulunites fought with distinguished bravery against the army of Jabin the younger; and at the desire of Gideon they pursued the Midianites, Judges iv, 10; v, 18; vii, 23. A thousand of their captains, with thirty-seven thousand of their troops, assisted at David’s coronation, and brought great quantities of provision with them, 1 Chron. xii, 34, 40. We find no person of distinguished note among them, save Barak, and Hiram the artificer. Instigated by Asa, Benhadad the elder, king of Syria, terribly ravaged the land of Naphtali; and what it suffered in after invasions by the Syrians we are partly told, 1 Kings xv, 20. The Naphtalites were, many, if not most of them, carried captive by Tiglath-pileser, king of Assyria, 2 Kings xv, 29. Josiah purged their country from idols. Our Saviour and his disciples, during his public ministry, resided much and preached frequently in the land of Naphtali, Isaiah ix, 1; Matt. iv, 13, 15.

Source: A Biblical and Theological Dictionary · View data sources

Concordance

Strong's Concordance

Naphtali

Indexed occurrences: 51

Source: Strong's Concordance · View data sources

All Scripture references58 references

Topical Bible

Bible Names

Hitchcock's Bible Names Dictionary

Naphtali

Meaning:
that struggles or fights

Source: Hitchcock's Bible Names Dictionary · View data sources

Sources

Related UNLEARN Content17 items

Topic

NAPHTALI

Nave’s Topical Bible references for NAPHTALI.

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Dictionary

Beth-anath

House of response, one of the fenced cities of Naphtali (Josh. 19:38). It is perhaps identical with the modern village Ainata, 6 miles west of Kedesh.

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Cinnereth

A harp, one of the "fenced cities" of Naphtali (Josh. 19:35; comp. Deut. 3:17). It also denotes, apparently, a district which may have taken its name from the adjacent city or lake of Gennesaret, anciently called "the sea of Chinnereth" (q.v.), and was probably that enclosed district north of Tiberias afterwards called "the plain of Gennesaret." Called Chinneroth (R.V., Chinnereth) Josh. 11:2. The phrase "all Cinneroth, with all the land of Naphtali" in 1 Kings 15:20 is parallel to "the store-houses of the cities of Naphtali" (R.V. marg.) in 2 Chr. 16:4.

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Diamond

(1.) A precious gem (Heb. yahalom', in allusion to its hardness), otherwise unknown, the sixth, i.e., the third in the second row, in the breastplate of the high priest, with the name of Naphtali engraven on it (Ex. 28:18; 39:11; R.V. marg., "sardonyx.") (2.) A precious stone (Heb. shamir', a sharp point) mentioned in Jer. 17:1. From its hardness it was used for cutting and perforating other minerals. It is rendered "adamant" (q.v.) in Ezek. 3:9, Zech. 7:12. It is the hardest and most valuable of precious stones.

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Hammath

Warm springs, one of the "fenced cities" of Naphtali (Josh. 19:35). It is identified with the warm baths (the heat of the water ranging from 136 degrees to 144 degrees) still found on the shore a little to the south of Tiberias under the name of Hummam Tabariyeh ("Bath of Tiberias").

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Hammoth-dor

Warm springs, a Levitical city of Naphtali (Josh. 21:32); probably Hammath in 19:35.

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Kedesh

Sanctuary. (1.) A place in the extreme south of Judah (Josh. 15:23). Probably the same as Kadesh-barnea (q.v.). (2.) A city of Issachar (1 Chr. 6:72). Possibly Tell Abu Kadeis, near Lejjun. (3.) A "fenced city" of Naphtali, one of the cities of refuge (Josh. 19:37; Judg. 4:6). It was assigned to the Gershonite Levites (Josh. 21:32). It was originally a Canaanite royal city (Josh. 12:22), and was the residence of Barak (Judg. 4:6); and here he and Deborah assembled the tribes of Zebulun and Naphtali before the commencement of the conflict with Sisera in the plain of Esdraelon, "for Yahweh among the mighty" (9, 10). In the reign of Pekah it was taken by Tiglath-Pileser (2 Kings 15:29). It was situated near the "plain" (rather "the oak") of Zaanaim, and has been identified with the modern Kedes, on the hills fully four miles north-west of Lake El Huleh. It has been supposed by some that the Kedesh of the narrative, where Barak assembled his troops, was not the place in Upper Galilee so named, which was 30 miles distant from the plain of Esdraelon, but Kedish, on the shore of the Sea of Galilee, 12 miles from Tabor.

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Migdal-el

Tower of God, a fortified city of Naphtali (Josh. 19:38), supposed by some to be identical with Magdala (q.v.).

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Naphtali, Mount

The mountainous district of Naphtali (Josh. 20:7).

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Naphtali, Tribe of

On this tribe Jacob pronounced the patriarchal blessing, "Naphtali is a hind let loose: he giveth goodly words" (Gen. 49:21). It was intended thus to set forth under poetic imagery the future character and history of the tribe. At the time of the Exodus this tribe numbered 53,400 adult males (Num. 1:43), but at the close of the wanderings they numbered only 45,400 (26:48-50). Along with Dan and Asher they formed "the camp of Dan," under a common standard (2:25-31), occupying a place during the march on the north side of the tabernacle. The possession assigned to this tribe is set forth in Josh. 19:32-39. It lay in the north-eastern corner of the land, bounded on the east by the Jordan and the lakes of Merom and Galilee, and on the north it extended far into Coele-Syria, the valley between the two Lebanon ranges. It comprehended a greater variety of rich and beautiful scenery and of soil and climate than fell to the lot of any other tribe. The territory of Naphtali extended to about 800 square miles, being the double of that of Issachar. The region around Kedesh, one of its towns, was originally called Galil, a name afterwards given to the whole northern division of Canaan. A large number of foreigners settled here among the mountains, and hence it was called "Galilee of the Gentiles" (q.v.), Matt. 4:15, 16. The southern portion of Naphtali has been called the "Garden of Palestine." It was of unrivalled fertility. It was the principal scene of our Lord's public ministry. Here most of his parables were spoken and his miracles wrought. This tribe was the first to suffer from the invasion of Benhadad, king of Syria, in the reigns of Baasha, king of Israel, and Asa, king of Judah (1 Kings 15:20; 2 Chr. 16:4). In the reign of Pekah, king of Israel, the Assyrians under Tiglath-pileser swept over the whole north of Israel, and carried the people into captivity (2 Kings 15:29). Thus the kingdom of Israel came to an end (B.C. 722). Naphtali is now almost wholly a desert, the towns of Tiberias, on the shore of the Lake of Galilee, and Safed being the only places in it of any importance.

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Naphtali

that struggles or fights

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Nekeb

Cavern, a town on the boundary of Naphtali (Josh. 19:33). It has with probability, been identified with Seiyadeh, nearly 2 miles east of Bessum, a ruin half way between Tiberias and Mount Tabor.

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Nephthalim

same as Naphtali

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Pedahel

Redeemed of God, the son of Ammihud, a prince of Naphtali (Num. 34:28).

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Refuge, Cities of

Were six in number (Num. 35). 1. On the west of Jordan were (1) Kadesh, in Naphtali; (2) Shechem, in Mount Ephraim; (3) Hebron, in Judah. 2. On the east of Jordan were, (1) Golan, in Bashan; (2) Ramoth-Gilead, in Gad; and (3) Bezer, in Reuben. (See under each of these names.)

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Zaanaim

Wanderings; the unloading of tents, so called probably from the fact of nomads in tents encamping amid the cities and villages of that region, a place in the north-west of Lake Merom, near Kedesh, in Naphtali. Here Sisera was slain by Jael, "the wife of Heber the Kenite," who had pitched his tent in the "plain [R.V., 'as far as the oak'] of Zaanaim" (Judg. 4:11). It has been, however, suggested by some that, following the LXX. and the Talmud, the letter b, which in Hebrew means "in," should be taken as a part of the word following, and the phrase would then be "unto the oak of Bitzanaim," a place which has been identified with the ruins of Bessum, about half-way between Tiberias and Mount Tabor.

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Zebulun, Lot of

In Galilee, to the north of Issachar and south of Asher and Naphtali (Josh. 19:10-16), and between the Sea of Galilee and the Mediterranean. According to ancient prophecy this part of Galilee enjoyed a large share of our Lord's public ministry (Isa. 9:1, 2; Matt. 4:12-16).

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