Old Testament Names

Updated September 9, 2022 | Infoplease Staff

We do not pretend that this list is all-inclusive. We list only those names that occur most often in crossword puzzles.

  • Aaron: First high priest of Jews; son of Amram; brother of Miriam and Moses; father of Abihu, Eleazer, Ithamar, and Nadab.
  • Abel: Son of Adam and Eve; slain by Cain.
  • Abigail: Wife of Nabal; later, wife of David.
  • Abihu: Son of Aaron.
  • Abimelech: King of Gerar.
  • Abner: Commander of army of Saul and Ishbosheth; slain by Joab.
  • Abraham (or Abram): Patriarch; forefather of the Jews; son of Terah; husband of Sarah; father of Isaac and Ishmael.
  • Absalom: Son of David and Maacah; revolted against David; slain by Joab.
  • Achish: King of Gath; gave refuge to David.
  • Achsa (or Achsah): Daughter of Caleb; wife of Othniel.
  • Adah: Wife of Lamech.
  • Adam: First man; husband of Eve; father of Cain, Abel, and Seth.
  • Adonijah: Son of David and Haggith.
  • Agag: King of Amalek; spared by Saul; slain by Samuel.
  • Ahasuerus: King of Persia; husband of Vashti and, later, Esther; sometimes identified with Xerxes the Great.
  • Ahijah: Prophet; foretold accession of Jeroboam.
  • Ahinoam: Wife of David.
  • Amasa: Commander of army of David; slain by Joab.
  • Amnon: Son of David and Ahinoam; raped Tamar; slain by Absalom.
  • Amram: Husband of Jochebed; father of Aaron, Miriam and Moses.
  • Asenath: Wife of Joseph.
  • Asher: Son of Jacob and Zilpah.
  • Balaam: Prophet; rebuked by his donkey for cursing God.
  • Barak: Jewish captain; associated with Deborah.
  • Baruch: Secretary to Jeremiah.
  • Bathsheba: Wife of Uriah; later, wife of David.
  • Belshazzar: Crown prince of Babylon.
  • Benaiah: Warrior of David; proclaimed Solomon King.
  • Ben-Hadad: Name of several kings of Damascus.
  • Benjamin: Son of Jacob and Rachel.
  • Bezaleel: Chief architect of Tabernacle.
  • Bilbah: Servant of Rachel; mistress of Jacob.
  • Bildad: Comforter of Job.
  • Boaz: Husband of Ruth; father of Obed.
  • Cain: Son of Adam and Eve; slayer of Abel; father of Enoch.
  • Cainan: Son of Enos.
  • Caleb: Spy sent out by Moses to visit Canaan; father of Achsa.
  • Canaan: Son of Ham.
  • Chilion: Son of Elimelech; husband of Orpah.
  • Cush: Son of Ham; father of Nimrod.
  • Dan: Son of Jacob and Bilhah.
  • Daniel: Prophet; saved from lions by God.
  • Deborah: Hebrew prophetess and judge; helped Israelites conquer Canaanites.
  • Delilah: Mistress and betrayer of Samson.
  • Elam: Son of Shem.
  • Eleazar: Son of Aaron; succeeded him as high priest.
  • Eli: High priest and judge; teacher of Samuel; father of Hophni and Phinehas.
  • Eliakim: Chief minister of Hezekiah.
  • Eliezer: Servant of Abraham.
  • Elihu: Comforter of Job.
  • Elijah (or Elias): Prophet; went to heaven in chariot of fire.
  • Elimelech: Husband of Naomi; father of Chilion and Mahlon.
  • Eliphaz: Comforter of Job.
  • Elisha (or Eliseus): Prophet; successor of Elijah.
  • Elkanah: Husband of Hannah; father of Samuel.
  • Enoch: Son of Cain.
  • Enoch: Father of Methuselah.
  • Enos: Son of Seth; father of Cainan.
  • Ephraim: Son of Joseph.
  • Esau: Son of Isaac and Rebecca; sold his birthright to his twin brother Jacob.
  • Esther: Jewish wife of Ahasuerus; saved Jews from Haman's plotting.
  • Eve: First woman; wife of Adam.
  • Ezra (or Esdras): Hebrew scribe and priest.
  • Gad: Son of Jacob and Zilpah.
  • Gehazi: Servant of Elisha.
  • Gideon: Israelite hero; defeated Midianites.
  • Goliath: Philistine giant; slain by David.
  • Hagar: Handmaid of Sarah; concubine of Abraham; mother of Ishmael.
  • Haggith: Mother of Adonijah.
  • Ham: Son of Noah; father of Cush, Mizraim, Phut, and Canaan.
  • Haman: Chief minister of Ahasuerus; hanged on gallows prepared for Mordecai.
  • Hannah: Wife of Elkanah; mother of Samuel.
  • Hanun: King of Ammonites.
  • Haran: Brother of Abraham; father of Lot.
  • Hazael: King of Damascus.
  • Hephzi-Bah: Wife of Hezekiah; mother of Mannaseh.
  • Hiram: King of Tyre.
  • Holofernes: General of Nebuchadnezzar; slain by Judith.
  • Hophni: Son of Eli.
  • Isaac: Hebrew patriarch; son of Abraham and Sarah; half brother of Ishmael; husband of Rebecca; father of Esau and Jacob.
  • Ishmael: Son of Abraham and Hagar; half brother of Isaac.
  • Issachar: Son of Jacob and Leah.
  • Ithamar: Son of Aaron.
  • Jabal: Son of Lamech and Adah.
  • Jabin: King of Hazor.
  • Jacob: Hebrew patriarch; founder of Israel; son of Isaac and Rebecca; husband of Leah and Rachel; father of sons Asher, Benjamin, Dan, Gad, Issachar, Joseph, Judah, Levi, Naphtali, Reuben, Simeon, and Zebulun, and daughter Dinah.
  • Jael: Slayer of Sisera.
  • Japheth:Son of Noah.
  • Jehoiada: High priest; husband of Jehoshabeath; revolted against Athaliah and made Joash King of Judah.
  • Jehoshabeath (or Jehosheba): Daughter of Jehoram of Judah; wife of Jehoiada.
  • Jephthah: Judge in Israel; sacrificed his only daughter because of vow.
  • Jesse: Son of Obed; father of David.
  • Jethro: Midianite priest; father of Zipporah.
  • Jezebel: Phoenician princess; wife of Ahab; mother of Ahaziah, Athaliah, and Jehoram.
  • Joab: Commander in chief under David; slayer of Abner, Absalom, and Amasa.
  • Job: Patriarch; underwent many afflictions; comforted by Bildad, Elihu, Eliphaz and Zophar.
  • Jochebed: Wife of Amram.
  • Jonah: Prophet; cast into sea and swallowed by great fish.
  • Jonathan: Son of Saul; friend of David.
  • Joseph: Son of Jacob and Rachel; sold into slavery by his brothers; husband of Asenath; father of Ephraim and Manassah.
  • Joshua: Successor of Moses; son of Nun.
  • Jubal: Son of Lamech and Adah.
  • Judah: Son of Jacob and Leah.
  • Judith: Slayer of Holofernes.
  • Kish: Father of Saul.
  • Laban: Father of Leah and Rachel.
  • Lamech: Son of Methuselah; father of Noah.
  • Lamech: Husband of Adah and Zillah; father of Jabal, Jubal, and Tubal-Cain.
  • Leah: Daughter of Laban; wife of Jacob; sister of Rachel.
  • Levi: Son of Jacob and Leah.
  • Lot: Son of Haran; escaped destruction of Sodom.
  • Maacah: Mother of Absalom and Tamar.
  • Mahlon: Son of Elimelech; first husband of Ruth.
  • Manasseh: Son of Joseph.
  • Melchizedek: King of Salem.
  • Methuselah: Patriarch; son of Enoch; father of Lamech.
  • Michal: Daughter of Saul; wife of David.
  • Miriam: Prophetess; daughter of Amram; sister of Aaron and Moses.
  • Mizraim: Son of Ham.
  • Mordecai: Uncle of Esther; with her aid, saved Jews from Haman's plotting.
  • Moses: Prophet and lawgiver; son of Amram; brother of Aaron and Miriam; husband of Zipporah.
  • Naaman: Syrian captain; cured of leprosy by Elisha.
  • Nabal: Husband of Abigail.
  • Naboth: Owner of vineyard; stoned to death because he would not sell it to Ahab.
  • Nadab: Son of Aaron.
  • Nahor: Father of Terah.
  • Naomi: Wife of Elimelech; mother-in-law of Ruth.
  • Naphtali: Son of Jacob and Bilhah.
  • Nathan: Prophet; reproved David for causing Uriah's death.
  • Nebuchadnezzar (or Nebuchadrezzar): King of Babylon; destroyer of Jerusalem.
  • Nehemiah: Jewish leader; empowered by Artaxerxes to rebuild Jerusalem.
  • Nimrod: Mighty hunter; son of Cush.
  • Noah: Patriarch; son of Lamech; escaped Deluge by building Ark; father of Ham, Japheth and Shem.
  • Nun (or Non): Father of Joshua.
  • Obed: Son of Boaz; father of Jesse.
  • Og: King of Bashan.
  • Orpah: Wife of Chilion.
  • Othniel: Kenezite; judge of Israel; husband of Achsa.
  • Phinehas: Son of Eleazer.
  • Phinehas: Son of Eli.
  • Phut (or Put): Son of Ham.
  • Potiphar: Egyptian official; bought Joseph.
  • Rachel: Wife of Jacob; mother of Joseph; sister of Leah.
  • Rebecca (or Rebekah): Wife of Isaac; mother of Esau and Jacob.
  • Reuben: Son of Jacob and Leah.
  • Ruth: Wife of Mahlon, later of Boaz; daughter-in-law of Naomi.
  • Samson: Judge of Israel; famed for strength; betrayed by Delilah.
  • Samuel: Hebrew judge and prophet; son of Elkanah.
  • Sarah (or Sara, Sarai): Wife of Abraham; mother of Isaac.
  • Sennacherib: King of Assyria.
  • Seth: Son of Adam; father of Enos.
  • Shem: Son of Noah; father of Elam.
  • Simeon: Son of Jacob and Leah.
  • Sisera: Canaanite captain; slain by Jael.
  • Tamar: Daughter of David and Maachah; raped by Amnon.
  • Terah: Son of Nahor; father of Abraham.
  • Tubal-Cain: Son of Lamech and Zillah.
  • Uriah: Husband of Bathsheba; sent to death in battle by David.
  • Vashti: Wife of Ahasuerus; set aside by him.
  • Zadok: High priest during David's reign.
  • Zebulun (or Zabulon): Son of Jacob and Leah.
  • Zillah: Wife of Lamech.
  • Zilpah: Servant of Leah; mistress of Jacob.
  • Zipporah: Daughter of Jethro; wife of Moses.
  • Zophar: Comforter of Job.

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