Lexical Definition

‎עַדְנָא‎ ʻAdnâʼ (ad-naw') Adna ^N:N-M-P
from ‎עָדַן‎; pleasure

Adna.

• § Adna = "rest" or "pleasure"
• Adna, the name of two Israelites

1) one of the family of Pahath-moab who returned with Ezra and married a foreign wife
2) a priest, descendant of Harim in the days of Joiakim, the son of Jeshua

Extended Information

• A man living at the time of Exile and Return, only mentioned at Ezr.10.30

Brown-Driver-Briggs

Also see: עַדְנָה

‎עַדְנָא‎

proper name, masculine 1. man with foreign wife Ezra 10:30 (Ginsb; ‎עַדְנָה‎ van d. H. Baer), ᵐ5. Αιδαινε, ᵐ5^L Εδνα.

2. Neh 12:5, ᵐ5‎א‎ Αδανας, ᵐ5^L Εδνας.

Brown-Driver-Briggs References

Profile

Male • Returned divorcee • Israelite who married a foreign woman during the exile

Man living at the time of Exile and Return

Adna was one of the Israelites who had married foreign women during the Babylonian exile and pledged to put away his foreign wife as part of Ezra's reforms.

• A man living at the time of Exile and Return, only mentioned at Ezr.10.30;
• only referred to as Adna עַדְנָא.

Adna is mentioned in Ezra 10:30 as one of the Israelites who had married foreign women during the Babylonian exile. After the return from exile, Ezra the scribe led a reform movement to address the issue of intermarriage, which was seen as a violation of God's law and a threat to the identity and purity of the Jewish community.

During a public assembly, the people confessed their sins and made a covenant to put away their foreign wives and children born to them (Ezra 10:1-5). Adna was among those who were found to have married foreign women and pledged to separate from them as part of the reform process (Ezra 10:30).

The context of Ezra 10 highlights the importance of maintaining religious and ethnic purity among the Jewish people, especially after the return from exile. Intermarriage with foreign women was seen as a form of unfaithfulness to God and a potential source of idolatry and apostasy.

No further details are provided about Adna's background, family, or the specific circumstances of his marriage to a foreign woman. His inclusion in the list of those who had intermarried underscores the widespread nature of the issue and the collective response of the community to address it under Ezra's leadership.

All entries for Adna: עַדְנָא