List of Jewish biblical figures explained
This is a list of Jewish biblical figures.
Hebrew Bible
- Aaron, brother of Moses and Miriam, and the first High Priest
- Abigail, a prophetess who became a wife of King David
- Abishai, one of King David's generals and relative
- Abner, cousin of King Saul and commander of his army, assassinated by Yoav
- Abraham, Isaac and Jacob, Judaism's "Three Patriarchs"
- Absalom, rebellious son of King David
- Amram and Jochebed, both Levites, parents of Moses, Aaron, and Miriam
- Bathsheba, queen, wife of King David, and mother of King Solomon
- Boaz, husband of Ruth and ancestor of King David
- Daniel
- Ezra, Nehemiah and Zerubbabel, prophets and leaders of the Babylonian captivity and Return to Zion
- Elijah and Elisha, important prophets who rebuked the kings of Israel
- Elkanah and Hannah, parents of the judge and prophet Samuel
- Esther and Mordechai, Persian queen, and her cousin, saviors of the Jews on Purim
- Gedaliah, last governor of Judea appointed by Babylonians, (assassinated)
- Gershom and Eliezer, Moses and Zipporah's sons
- Hananiah, Mishael, and Azariah (fellow exiles with and friends of Daniel) were thrown into a furnace by Nebuchadnezzar, yet survived "without the smell of smoke"
- Hosea, Joel, Amos, Obadiah, Jonah, Micah, Nahum, Habakkuk, Zephaniah, Haggai, Zechariah, Malachi, the Twelve Minor Prophets
- Isaiah, Jeremiah, Ezekiel, the Major Prophets
- Jeroboam, Nadab, Baasha, Elah, Zimri, Omri, Ahab, Ahaziah, Jehoram, Jehu, Jehoahaz, Jehoash, Jeroboam II, Zachariah, Shallum, Menahem, Pekahiah, Pekah, Hoshea, the kings of the northern Kingdom of Israel
- Jethro, a priest of Midian, Zipporah's father, and father-in-law of Moses, became a convert after Mt. Sinai
- Jonah, prophet during Kingdom of Israel
- Jonathan, son of King Saul and slain with him in battle, trusted friend of David
- Joshua, Othniel, Ehud, Shamgar, Deborah, Barak, Gideon, Abimelech, Tola, Jair, Jephthah, Ibzan, Elon, Abdon, Samson, and Eli, Samuel, the Judges who ruled after Moses and before the kings
- Saul, David, and Solomon, the kings who ruled the United Kingdom of Israel and Judah
- Leah, wife of Jacob
- Melchizedek King of Salem at the time of Abraham
- Miriam, prophetess, sister of Moses and Aaron
- Moses, adopted by Pharaoh's daughter in Egypt, leader of the Exodus from Egypt received the Torah or Law of Moses.
- Nathan, prophet in time of King David
- Neriah a prophet, and his son Baruch the scribe of Jeremiah
- Reuben, Simeon, Levi, Judah, Issachar, Zebulun, Gad, Asher, Dan, Naphtali, Joseph, Benjamin, the Twelve Tribes the Children of Israel, sons of Jacob called Israel. (Ephraim and Manasseh, Joseph's sons were also counted as part of the twelve tribes at times.)
- Rachel, wife of Jacob
- Rebekah, wife of Isaac and mother of Esau and Jacob
- Rehoboam, Abijam, Asa, Jehoshaphat, Jehoram, Ahaziah, (Queen) Athaliah, Jehoash, Amaziah, Uzziah, Jotham, Ahaz, Hezekiah, Manasseh, Amon, Josiah, Jehoahaz, Jehoiakim, Jeconiah, Zedekiah, the kings of the southern Kingdom of Judah
- Ruth, Moabite convert and ancestor of King David
- Samuel, last of the Judges and first of the Prophets
- Sarah, Rebekah, Rachel, and Leah, Judaism's Four Matriarchs
- Tamar, daughter-in-law, and then levirate wife, of Judah
- Tamar, daughter of David, raped by Amnon
- Yoav, relative of King David, impulsive military leader
- Zilpah and Bilhah, additional wives of Jacob, mothers of four of the twelve Tribes
- Zipporah, Moses' wife, daughter of Jethro, a convert
See also
