142. adar

Lexical Summary

adar: To be glorious, to be majestic, to be noble

Original Word: אָדַר
Part of Speech: Verb
Transliteration: adar
Pronunciation: ah-dar
Phonetic Spelling: (aw-dar')
KJV: (become) glorious, honourable
NASB: majestic, glorious
Word Origin: [a primitive root]

1. to expand, i.e. be great
2. (figuratively) magnificent

Strong's Exhaustive Concordance

become glorious, honorable

A primitive root; to expand, i.e. Be great or (figuratively) magnificent -- (become) glorious, honourable.

NAS Exhaustive Concordance

Word Origin
a prim. root
Definition
wide, great
NASB Translation
glorious (1), majestic (2).

Brown-Driver-Briggs

[אָדַר] verb (poetry)

wide, great, (thence) high, noble (? Assyrian adâru Dl^W) —

Niph`al Participle majestic, glorious, of ׳י, נֶאְדָּר Exodus 15:11; construct נֶאְדָּרִי Exodus 15:6 (see Di);

Hiph`il Imperfect יַאְדִּיר make glorious the teaching Isaiah 42:21 (׳י subject)

Topical Lexicon

Semantic Range and Nuances

אָדַר portrays weightiness, splendor, and magnificence. In usage it never refers to human achievement alone but reserves its strongest force for the unrivaled majesty of the LORD and the radiant glory He bestows. The verb may be rendered “majestic,” “glorious,” or “magnify,” stressing either an inherent quality in God or the elevation of something by God.

Occurrences in Scripture

1. Exodus 15:6 – the “Song of the Sea” celebrates God’s right hand as “majestic in power.”
2. Exodus 15:11 – the same hymn extols Him as “majestic in holiness.”
3. Isaiah 42:21 – the prophet declares that the LORD “was pleased... to magnify His law and make it glorious.”

These three settings—Israel’s earliest corporate worship song and Isaiah’s Servant section—frame ‘adar as a word of worship and covenant faithfulness.

Divine Majesty in the Song of Moses (Exodus 15)

The Red Sea victory established Israel’s national memory around the LORD’s supremacy. “Your right hand, O LORD, is majestic in power” (Exodus 15:6) links ‘adar to the arm of salvation that crushes evil. Verse 11 raises the theme to the realm of holiness: “Who is like You, majestic in holiness… performing wonders?” The repetition shapes Israel’s theology: the more God acts in history, the more His inherent splendor is perceived. No other deity rivals His moral purity or saving strength.

Yahweh’s Magnification of the Torah (Isaiah 42:21)

Centuries later Isaiah anchors hope in the same majesty. “The LORD was pleased, for the sake of His righteousness, to magnify His law and make it glorious”. Here ‘adar shifts from describing God’s inherent glory to His action of elevating the Torah. The covenant instruction is not merely preserved; it is showcased. By exalting His law, God safeguards His righteousness and prepares the way for the Servant who will embody that law perfectly (Isaiah 42:1–4).

Theological Trajectories

1. Inherent vs. Ascribed Glory: In Exodus 15, glory is innate to God; in Isaiah 42, it is conferred upon the law. Both uses affirm that true glory originates with God and flows outward to what He chooses to exalt.
2. Covenant Continuity: The same majestic God who redeemed Israel (Exodus) now magnifies the covenant stipulations (Isaiah). Salvation and revelation are inseparable.
3. Divine Pleasure: Isaiah notes that God “was pleased” to magnify His law, underscoring that glory is not a reluctant concession but an expression of divine delight.

Witness to Messiah

Isaiah 42 belongs to the Servant Songs that New Testament writers apply to Jesus Christ (Matthew 12:18–21). By magnifying the Torah, the Father sets the stage for the Messiah who fulfills it (Matthew 5:17). Christ is both the embodiment of majesty and the One through whom the law’s glory is revealed to the nations.

Implications for Worship and Ministry

• Praise grounded in history: Congregational worship should rehearse God’s mighty acts, as Israel did at the sea.
• Holiness and majesty: The church confesses not only God’s power but His moral uniqueness. Ethical preaching cannot be separated from doxology.
• Exalting Scripture: Following God’s own pattern, ministries that elevate the Word share in His delight and extend His glory.
• Global mission: Isaiah’s context points outward; when God magnifies His law, He intends it to reach the coastlands. Proclamation of the gospel continues that trajectory.

Intertextual Links

Psalms frequently echo the ‘adar theme (for example, “O LORD my God, You are very great; You are clothed with splendor and majesty,” Psalm 104:1), while Hebrews 1:3 identifies the Son as “the radiance of God’s glory,” completing the canonical arc from Exodus to Isaiah to the New Covenant.

Summary

Strong’s Hebrew 142 presents a concentrated testimony: God is incomparable in majesty, and He joyfully extends that majesty to His redemptive acts and to His revealed Word. From the shores of the Red Sea to the promise of the Servant, אָדַר invites every generation to stand in awe and to proclaim the excellence of the LORD and of His Word.

Forms and Transliterations

וְיַאְדִּֽיר׃ ויאדיר׃ נֶאְדָּ֣ר נֶאְדָּרִ֖י נאדר נאדרי ne’·dā·rî ne’·dār ne’dār ne’dārî neDar nedaRi veyaDir wə·ya’·dîr wəya’dîr

Englishman's Concordance

Exodus 15:6
HEB: יְמִֽינְךָ֣ יְהוָ֔ה נֶאְדָּרִ֖י בַּכֹּ֑חַ יְמִֽינְךָ֥
NAS: O LORD, is majestic in power,
KJV: O LORD, is become glorious in power:
INT: your right LORD is majestic power hand

Exodus 15:11
HEB: מִ֥י כָּמֹ֖כָה נֶאְדָּ֣ר בַּקֹּ֑דֶשׁ נוֹרָ֥א
NAS: is like You, majestic in holiness,
KJV: among the gods? who [is] like thee, glorious in holiness,
INT: Who is like majestic holiness Awesome

Isaiah 42:21
HEB: יַגְדִּ֥יל תּוֹרָ֖ה וְיַאְדִּֽיר׃
NAS: the law great and glorious.
KJV: the law, and make [it] honourable.
INT: to make the law and glorious

3 Occurrences

Strong's Hebrew 142
3 Occurrences

ne’·dār — 1 Occ.
ne’·dā·rî — 1 Occ.
wə·ya’·dîr — 1 Occ.