Jaalah is a name found in the King James Bible, appearing 1 time in the text.
Who This Was
Jaalah was one of the Nethinim, a group of temple servants whose descendants returned to Jerusalem after the Babylonian exile. The Nethinim were set apart for service connected with the temple, and though Scripture does not describe Jaalah’s specific duties, his inclusion in the return lists shows that he and his family were counted among those who came back to rebuild the life of worship in the land of Judah.
Jaalah appears in Ezra 2:56, in the register of those who returned from captivity. The verse reads, “The children of Jaalah, the children of Darkon, the children of Giddel.” He is named not as an individual acting alone, but as the head of a family line—”the children of Jaalah”—whose descendants were numbered among the returning exiles. This register was compiled to document those who came back to Jerusalem and Judah, each family and group taking its place in the restored community.
Scripture says nothing further about Jaalah personally: no deed, no word, no failure, and no triumph is recorded. What is known of him is that his household was among the Nethinim who returned, and that his name was preserved in the record of the restoration. His story is one of quiet inclusion in the work of rebuilding, a servant whose family was faithful to come back and take up its appointed place in the service of the house of God.
The Name
The name Jaalah is a Hebrew name, and its meaning is not clearly recoverable from the text or from established lexical sources. Some have suggested a possible connection to a root associated with a young goat or with ascending, but no meaning for this name is firmly established. It is best to say plainly that the meaning of Jaalah is uncertain, and that Scripture gives no interpretation of it.
A Closing Thought
Most of the people in Scripture are like Jaalah: named once, described briefly, and never heard from again. Yet his name stands in the record of those who returned to rebuild worship in Jerusalem. Faithfulness is often hidden and uncelebrated, but God keeps His own record. If your service is quiet and unnoticed, take heart—the One who numbers the returning exiles also knows the name of every servant who takes up His work, however small the part may seem.
At a Glance
- Gender: Male
- Testament: Old
- Mentions in the KJV: 1
Where It Appears in Scripture
- Ezra 2:56 — The children of Jaalah, the children of Darkon, the children of Giddel,