Girl Old Testament Rare
Zeruah
leprous; wasp; hornet
צְרוּעָה tse.ru.ah
Zeruah (Hebrew: צְרוּעָה, tse.ru.ah) means “leprous; wasp; hornet”, by traditional interpretation. It appears once, at 1 Kings 11:26. In United States birth records the name is below the reporting threshold. Appears in the same passages as Eliada.
The bearer in scripture
One person in scripture bears this name.
-
Zeruah
mother of Jeroboam
Scripture against society
The two measures, side by side
At a glance
- Verses
- 1 across 1 book
- Bearers
- 1 one person only
- Testament
- Old
- Era
- Divided Kingdom
- Hapax
- Yes occurs exactly once
Using it today
In United States birth records this name is below the reporting threshold. The Social Security Administration does not publish counts under five, so a name given to four children looks the same as one given to none.
In scripture
| Fact | Detail |
|---|---|
| First appears | 1 Kings 11:26 |
| Cross-references | 23 linked passages |
Names connected to this one
- Rezon co-occurrence Appears in the same passages as Rezon.
- Genubath co-occurrence Appears in the same passages as Genubath.
- Eliada co-occurrence Appears in the same passages as Eliada.
- Nebat co-occurrence Appears with Nebat in 1 Kings 11.
- Tahpenes co-occurrence Appears in the same passages as Tahpenes.
- Hadad co-occurrence Appears in the same passages as Hadad.
- Jeroboam co-occurrence Appears with Jeroboam in 1 Kings 11.
- Shishak co-occurrence Appears in the same passages as Shishak.
Origin & meaning
A woman of the Kingdom of Israel, living at the time of United Monarchy, only mentioned at 1Ki.11.26; married to Nebat (H5028);
mother of: Jeroboam (H3379)
§ Zeruah = "full breasted"
wife of Nebat and mother of king Jeroboam I of the northern kingdom of Israel
Zeruah was the mother of Jeroboam, who became the first king of the northern kingdom of Israel.
The biblical story
Zeruah was the mother of Jeroboam, the first king of the northern kingdom of Israel after the division of the united monarchy. She is mentioned in the account of Jeroboam's rise to power in 1 Kings 11. Zeruah was a widow, and her son Jeroboam was an official in Solomon's administration. Jeroboam rebelled against Solomon and fled to Egypt. After Solomon's death, Jeroboam returned and was made king over the ten northern tribes, fulfilling a prophecy given to him by Ahijah the Shilonite. Zeruah's mention in this context highlights Jeroboam's background and family situation.
Key verses
Zeruah appears in 1 verse. Here are some of the most notable:
-
And Jeroboam the son of Nebat, an Ephrathite of Zereda, Solomon’s servant, whose mother’s name was Zeruah, a widow woman, even he lifted up his hand against the king.
1 Kings 11:26
Show all 1 reference
1 Kings (1)
- 1 Kings 11:26