1960. huyyedoth

Lexical Summary

huyyedoth: Testimonies, Decrees

Original Word: הֻיְּדָה
Part of Speech: Noun Feminine
Transliteration: huydah
Pronunciation: hoo-yay-doth
Phonetic Spelling: (hoo-yed-aw')
KJV: thanksgiving
NASB: songs of thanksgiving
Word Origin: [from the same as H1959 (הֵידָּד - shouting)]

1. (properly) an acclaim, i.e. a choir of singers

Strong's Exhaustive Concordance

thanksgiving

From the same as heydad; properly, an acclaim, i.e. A choir of singers -- thanksgiving.

see HEBREW heydad

NAS Exhaustive Concordance

Word Origin
from yadah
Definition
songs of praise
NASB Translation
songs of thanksgiving (1).

Brown-Driver-Briggs

הֻיְּדוֺת noun feminine plural songs of praise; — Nehemiah 12:8; so Thes MV, but form strange and dubious; according to Ew^{§ 165 b} abstract הֻיְּדוּת (many MSS.) praising; so Be Ke Öttli; Ol^{§ 220} reads infinitive הוֺדוֺת, so SS.

Topical Lexicon

Scriptural Setting

The single occurrence of הֻיְּדָה (Strong’s 1960) stands in Nehemiah 12:8, within the roster of Levites who served after the return from exile. The verse records that Mattaniah, “together with his brothers, was in charge of the songs of thanksgiving” (Nehemiah 12:8). The term is woven into the narrative of covenant renewal under Nehemiah, when worship was being re-ordered according to the Law and the restored Temple service.

Role in Post-Exilic Worship

1. Custodians of Praise. The Levites named in Nehemiah 12 are not merely singers; they are guardians of a specific liturgical function—thanksgiving. Their appointment signals a deliberate revival of Davidic patterns of organized praise (compare 1 Chronicles 23:30–31).
2. Community Identity. Public thanksgiving distinguished the remnant from surrounding peoples. By orchestrating continual praise, the Levites affirmed Israel’s restored identity as “a kingdom of priests” (Exodus 19:6) despite the nation’s diminished political status.
3. Preparatory for Dedication. The list in Nehemiah 12 precedes the great dedication of the wall (Nehemiah 12:27–43). The thanksgiving ministry thus serves as the spiritual groundwork for national celebration, reminding the people that security is the Lord’s gift, not merely the result of masonry and manpower (Psalm 127:1).

Theology of Thanksgiving

• God-Centered Gratitude. Thanksgiving is not generic positivity but an explicit confession of God’s steadfast love and covenant faithfulness (Psalm 136:1).
• Sacrificial Dimension. Under the Law, “the sacrifice of thanksgiving” (Leviticus 7:12) complemented burnt offerings. Nehemiah’s generation, lacking the resources of Solomon’s era, still prioritised this “spiritual sacrifice” (compare Hebrews 13:15) as essential worship.
• Covenantal Memory. Public praise rehearses redemptive history, anchoring the community in God’s past acts while fostering hope for future grace (Lamentations 3:21–24).

Historical Insights

During the exile, formal Temple music ceased (Psalm 137:2–4). Re-establishing thanksgiving choirs signified that exile’s shame was lifted. Ezra records similar steps decades earlier (Ezra 3:10–11), but Nehemiah’s account shows sustained institutionalisation: names, roles, and duties are documented for posterity, underlining administrative faithfulness.

Connections to Later Worship

1. Second Temple Period. Rabbinic sources suggest that choirs continued until the Temple’s fall in A.D. 70, preserving the pattern rooted in Nehemiah 12.
2. Early Church. New Testament writers echo the same priority: “Give thanks in all circumstances” (1 Thessalonians 5:18) and “singing and making melody to the Lord with your heart” (Ephesians 5:19). The church inherited Israel’s liturgical DNA, now fulfilled in Christ.
3. Eschatological Vision. Heavenly worship is marked by perpetual thanksgiving: “Blessing and glory and wisdom and thanksgiving… be to our God forever” (Revelation 7:12). Nehemiah’s choir foreshadows that consummate chorus.

Ministry Implications

• Worship Planning. Congregations should assign qualified leaders to guard and cultivate intentional thanksgiving, not leaving it to spontaneous impulse.
• Discipleship. Teaching believers to recount God’s works fortifies faith during opposition, as it did for Jerusalem’s builders facing external threats (Nehemiah 4:7–9).
• Corporate Identity. Regular, audible gratitude unites diverse believers around shared testimony, mirroring how post-exilic tribes were knit together after dispersion.

Practical Application for Believers

1. Pattern your private devotion on corporate liturgy: begin prayer with thanksgiving (Philippians 4:6).
2. Integrate testimony moments into church gatherings, allowing the body to “declare His works with rejoicing” (Psalm 107:22).
3. Remember that thanksgiving is missional. A praising people becomes a witnessing people, drawing outsiders to “glorify God because of you” (1 Peter 2:12).

Conclusion

Though הֻיְּדָה appears only once, it encapsulates a vital strand of biblical worship. In the hands of post-exilic Levites, thanksgiving preserved Israel’s covenant consciousness, anticipated New Covenant praise, and models for today’s church a life oriented around grateful proclamation of God’s redeeming acts.

Forms and Transliterations

הֻיְּד֖וֹת הידות h·yə·ḏō·wṯ hyeDot hyəḏōwṯ

Englishman's Concordance

Nehemiah 12:8
HEB: מַתַּנְיָ֑ה עַֽל־ הֻיְּד֖וֹת ה֥וּא וְאֶחָֽיו׃
NAS: [who was] in charge of the songs of thanksgiving, he and his brothers.
KJV: [and] Mattaniah, [which was] over the thanksgiving, he and his brethren.
INT: Mattaniah charge of the songs he and his brothers

1 Occurrence

Strong's Hebrew 1960
1 Occurrence

h·yə·ḏō·wṯ — 1 Occ.