🔼The name Zered: Summary
- Meaning
- Willow Bush, Luxuriant Growth Of Trees
- Etymology
- From an Aramaic verb זרד (zarad), to prune trees.
🔼The name Zered in the Bible
The name Zered (or Zared as some translations demand) belongs to a נחל (nahal), which denotes an elongated geographical depression of any kind: a valley, a dry wadi, a brook or river or even a torrent.
It was located somewhere in the territory of Moab, close to Iye-abarim and the river Arnon (Numbers 21:12), which was an area that was mentioned in the legendary Book of the Wars of YHWH (Numbers 21:14).
The nahal Zered is mentioned again in Deuteronomy 2:13-14, where the crossing of it marks a milestone in Israel's forty year trek. As the author notes, Israel traveled in 38 years from Kadesh-barnea to the crossing of nahal Zered.
🔼Etymology of the name Zered
There is nothing in the extant Hebrew of the Bible that looks like the name Zered, but scholars have identified an Aramaic root זרד (zrd) that has to do with pruning trees. The Targum translates נחל זרד (nahal zered) as Valley Of Willows.
🔼Zered meaning
For a meaning of the name Zered, NOBSE Study Bible Name List reads Willow Bush and Jones' Dictionary of Old Testament Proper Names proposes Luxuriant Growth Of Trees. BDB Theological Dictionary does not offer an interpretation of this name.