Hebrew word · H5896

עִירָא

'ira'

Ira

A personal name. Its meaning is uncertain. Proposed links include a root meaning "to be awake/watchful" and the word ʿayir, "young donkey." No proposal is certain.

Appears 6 times in 6 verses of the Hebrew Old Testament. ·

What it means

A man living at the time of United Monarchy, first mentioned at 2Sa.23.26;

son of: Ikkesh (H6142)

§ Ira = "watchful of a city"

1) the Jairite, one of David's great officers

2) one of David's mighty warriors

3) a Tekoite, son of Ikkesh, and another of David's mighty warriors

Abridged from Brown, Driver and Briggs, A Hebrew and English Lexicon of the Old Testament (1906), via STEPBible.org (CC BY 4.0).

In depth

From the study of 1 Chronicles 27:9

Range of meaning

A personal name. Its meaning is uncertain. Proposed links include a root meaning "to be awake/watchful" and the word ʿayir, "young donkey." No proposal is certain.

Against the English

Rendered "Ira" everywhere.

Used elsewhere in the period

Three men named Ira appear in David's court: Ira son of Ikkesh the Tekoite, one of the Thirty (2 Sam 23:26; 1 Chr 11:28), who is the man here; Ira the Ithrite (2 Sam 23:38); and Ira the Jairite, described as David's priest (2 Sam 20:26). They should not be confused.

Where it appears

2 Samuel · 3

  1. 2 Samuel 20:26 עִירָא֙ Ira

    and Ira the Jairite was David’s priest.

  2. 2 Samuel 23:26 עִירָ֥א Ira

    Helez the Paltite, Ira son of Ikkesh the Tekoite,

  3. 2 Samuel 23:38 עִירָא֙ Ira

    Ira the Ithrite, Gareb the Ithrite,

1 Chronicles · 3

  1. 1 Chronicles 11:28 עִירָ֤א Ira

    Ira son of Ikkesh the Tekoite, Abiezer the Anathothite,

    Here: First warrior named in this verse. The name's meaning is uncertain; it may be linked to a root meaning 'be watchful' or to the word for a young donkey (ʿayir). This is a different man from Ira the Jairite, David's priest (2 Sam 20:26), and from Ira the Ithrite later in this list (11:40).

  2. 1 Chronicles 11:40 עִירָא֙ Ira

    Ira the Ithrite, Gareb the Ithrite,

  3. 1 Chronicles 27:9 עִירָ֥א Ira

    The sixth, for the sixth month, was Ira son of Ikkesh the Tekoite. There were 24,000 men in his division.

    Here: A personal name. This is the same Ira son of Ikkesh who appears among David's elite warriors in 2 Samuel 23:26 and 1 Chronicles 11:28. What the name means is uncertain.

Word data: STEPBible.org (CC BY 4.0), main text only.