Hodevah is a name found in the King James Bible, appearing 1 time in the text.
Who This Was
Hodevah was a Levite whose family is listed among those who returned to Jerusalem after the Babylonian exile. The Book of Nehemiah records him in the register of the people who came back from captivity, a census-like account preserved to document who resettled in the land and how the restored community was organized. His name appears in a section devoted specifically to the Levites, the tribe set apart for service connected with the worship of God at the temple.
The single reference to Hodevah is found in Nehemiah 7:43: “The Levites: the children of Jeshua, of Kadmiel, and of the children of Hodevah, seventy and four.” This verse groups Hodevah’s descendants alongside the families of Jeshua and Kadmiel, counting seventy-four men in total. The text does not record any individual action, word, or event in Hodevah’s life. What Scripture preserves is simply his name and his place within a returning family line.
What can be said of him is therefore modest but real: he belonged to the Levites, and his household was among those who made the journey back to Jerusalem. The source note confirms this same detail—that he was a Levite who returned after the exile. Beyond this, the biblical record is silent about his personal circumstances, his role in the temple service, or the length of his life. He stands as one name among many in a list of the faithful remnant.
The Name
The name Hodevah is a Hebrew name, and its meaning is not clearly recoverable from the text itself. Some Hebrew names are built from recognizable roots that allow a confident translation, but for Hodevah the etymology is uncertain, and scholars have not settled on a single established meaning. It may be related to a root suggesting praise or thanksgiving, but this is not firmly established. Rather than assign it a meaning the text does not give, it is honest to say that the precise sense of the name is obscure.
A Closing Thought
Most of us will never appear in a record that outlives us. Hodevah is remembered in a single verse, counted among the Levites who came home. Yet that quiet mention is enough: he was part of the remnant that returned to rebuild worship in Jerusalem. Faithfulness is often unseen and unnamed in the eyes of the world, but God keeps His own register. If your life is hidden and small, take heart—being counted among the faithful is no small thing, and the One who numbers the stars also numbers His people.
At a Glance
- Gender: Male
- Testament: Old
- Mentions in the KJV: 1
Where It Appears in Scripture
- Nehemiah 7:43 — The Levites: the children of Jeshua, of Kadmiel, and of the children of Hodevah, seventy and four.