Tirshatha
Summary
A Persian title meaning 'governor' applied to the rulers of Judea under Persian authority, most notably Nehemiah and Zerubbabel.
☩Usage in Scripture
The title 'Tirshatha' appears in Ezra and Nehemiah, always with the Hebrew article, indicating it was understood as an official designation rather than a personal name. It is added after Nehemiah's name in Nehemiah 8:9 and 10:1. In Ezra 2:63 and Nehemiah 7:65, 70, it probably refers to Zerubbabel, who held the office before Nehemiah.
☩Meaning and Origin
The word is generally derived from a Persian root meaning 'stern' or 'severe.' Gesenius compared it to the German title 'Gestrenger Herr' (stern lord) formerly given to magistrates, or to the English expression 'most dread sovereign.' Another theory connects it to a Bactrian word meaning 'he who takes the place of the king.' Some scholars relate it to a Babylonian root meaning 'to take possession of,' suggesting it may have meant 'tax-collector'—a principal duty of Persian governors.
☩Equivalent Titles
The Tirshatha appears to be equivalent to 'pechah' (governor), the term applied to Nehemiah in Nehemiah 12:26 and to Zerubbabel in Haggai 1:1 and 2:2. The word pechah (related to our 'pasha') was used for governors of provinces under Assyrian, Babylonian, Median, and Persian rule. The Tirshatha seems to have been a Persian title with special honor or functions that distinguished it from the more general term.
References
- 1.John McClintock and James Strong, "Tirshatha," in Cyclopedia of Biblical, Theological and Ecclesiastical Literature, vol. X (Harper & Brothers, 1867–1887).
- 2.James Orr (ed.), "Tirshatha," in International Standard Bible Encyclopedia, vol. V (Howard-Severance Company, 1915).
- 3.Andrew Robert Fausset, "Tirshatha," in The Englishman's Critical and Expository Bible Cyclopædia (Hodder & Stoughton, 1878).