Nehemias

NEHEMIAS

ne-he-mi'-as:

Greek form of the Hebrew Nehemiah.

(1) Neemias, one of the leaders of the return under Zerubbabel (1 Esdras 5:8) equals "Nehemiah" of Ezra 2:2; Nehemiah 7:7.

(2) Neemias, Codex Vaticanus Naimias, the prophet Nehemiah (1 Esdras 5:40 where the King James Version margin reads "Nehemias who also is Atharias"). Neither Nehemias nor Attharias is found in the parallel Ezra 2:63; Nehemiah 7:65, but ha-tirshatha' equals Tirshatha, "the governor," by whom Zerubbabel must be intended. Thus, the Hebrew word for "governor" has been converted into a proper name and by some blunder the name Nehemiah inserted, perhaps because he also was known by the title of "governor."

S. Angus