🔼The name Elead: Summary
- Meaning
- God Has Testified
- Etymology
- From (1) the word אל ('el), God, and (2) the verb עוד ('ud), to witness.
🔼The name Elead in the Bible
The name Elead occurs only once in the Bible. He is mentioned as one of the sons of Ephraim, the son of Joseph (1 Chronicles 7:21).
Elead appears to be one of two of Ephraim's sons who were killed by a cattle-steeling band of Gathites (the other being Ezer), which obviously caused Ephraim great grief.
What his unnamed wife thought of the situation isn't told, but while consoling her husband she conceived of a son who was given the commemorative name Beriah.
🔼Etymology of the name Elead
The name Elead consists of two elements, the first one being אל ('el), the prominent Canaanite deity whose name became applied to the God of Israel, or the common abbreviation of Elohim, the genus God:
אל אלה
In names אל ('el) usually refers to אלהים ('elohim), that is Elohim, or God, also known as אלה ('eloah). In English, the words 'God' and 'god' exclusively refer to the deity but in Hebrew the words אל ('l) and אלה ('lh) are far more common and may express approach and negation, acts of wailing and pointing, and may even mean oak or terebinth.
The second part of our name comes from the verb עוד ('ud), and in this case is thought to mean to witness or testify:
עדד
Root עדד ('adad) describes a repeated passing by or over, or a repeated encountering. Noun עדה ('idda) describes any well-worn item.
Verb עדה ('ada I) means to advance or pass on. Nouns עד ('ad) and ועד (w'ad) describe the difficult concept of a future era advancing upon the now, or else the prey or booty upon which a predator advances. The conjunction עד ('ad) or עדי ('ady) means "as far as" or until.
The same verb, namely עדה ('ada II) is used to mean to adorn or ornament oneself — that is: to have items approach the canvas of one's bulk in order to testify of some social rank or perhaps the trade or order one belongs to. Noun עדי ('adi) means ornamentation: fancy or declarative things worn on one's body or clothes.
Verb יעד (ya'ad) means to meet, habitually and repeatedly rather than incidentally. Noun עדה ('eda) means congregation or some other joint collective. Nouns מועד (mo'ed), מועד (mo'ad) and מועדה (mu'ada) describe a place (or time) of meeting.
Verb עוד ('ud) means to return and repeat. Noun עוד ('od) denotes an addition, repetition or continuance. Nouns עד ('ed), עדה ('eda), עדה ('eda), עדת ('edut), עדות ('edut) and תעודה (te'uda) all mean witness or testimony in various nuances, and verb עוד ('ud) means to bear witness.
🔼Elead meaning
For a meaning of the name Elead, both NOBSE Study Bible Name List and BDB Theological Dictionary read God Has Testified. Jones' Dictionary of Old Testament Proper Names derived our name from the same verb but insists that this time it means to praise, and proposes Whom God Praises.