Abda
עַבְדָּא/AB-duh/
“Servant (of God)”
Summary
The name of two men in Scripture: the father of Solomon's officer Adoniram, and a Levite who returned from exile.
☩Father of Adoniram
Abda was the father of Adoniram, who served as Solomon's superintendent of forced labor. This was a position of significant responsibility in overseeing the workforce that built the temple and other royal projects.
Key verses:1 Kings 4:6
☩Levite After the Exile
Another Abda was the son of Shammua, a Levite of the family of Jeduthun who resided in Jerusalem after the exile. He is apparently the same person called Obadiah the son of Shemaiah in the parallel passage, with 'Abda' being a shortened or variant form of 'Obadiah.'
Key verses:Nehemiah 11:171 Chronicles 9:16
References
- 1.John McClintock and James Strong, "Abda," in Cyclopedia of Biblical, Theological and Ecclesiastical Literature, vol. I (Harper & Brothers, 1867–1887).
- 2.James Orr (ed.), "Abda," in International Standard Bible Encyclopedia, vol. I (Howard-Severance Company, 1915).