5839. Azaryah
Lexical Summary
Azaryah: Azariah

Original Word: עֲזַרְיָה
Part of Speech: Proper Name Masculine
Transliteration: `Azaryah
Pronunciation: ah-zar-YAH
Phonetic Spelling: (az-ar-yaw')
KJV: Azariah
NASB: Azariah
Word Origin: [(Aramaic) corresponding to H5838 (עֲזַריָה עֲזַריָהוּ - Azariah)]

1. Azarjah, one of Daniel's companions

Strong's Exhaustive Concordance
Azariah

(Aramaic) corresponding to Azaryah; Azarjah, one of Daniel's companions -- Azariah.

see HEBREW Azaryah

NAS Exhaustive Concordance
Word Origin
(Aramaic) corresponding to Azaryah
Definition
one of Daniel's companions
NASB Translation
Azariah (1).

Topical Lexicon
Identity

Azariah is one of the four young Judean exiles featured in the early chapters of Daniel. He is better known by the Babylonian name Abed-Nego, which was assigned to him after his deportation (Daniel 1:7). The single appearance of the Hebrew form in Daniel 2:17 identifies him within the intimate circle of Daniel’s companions: “Then Daniel returned to his house and explained the matter to his friends Hananiah, Mishael, and Azariah”.

Historical Background

Azariah was taken to Babylon during the first deportation under King Nebuchadnezzar in 605 B.C. (Daniel 1:1-3). Trained in the king’s court, he received education in the language and literature of the Chaldeans, preparation intended to assimilate promising Israelites into imperial service. Despite pressure to conform, Azariah resolved—along with Daniel, Hananiah, and Mishael—to remain faithful to the covenant God of Israel.

Biblical Narrative

1. Dietary test (Daniel 1:8-20). Azariah’s initial act of faithfulness came when he agreed to partake only of vegetables and water, trusting God’s provision rather than defiling himself with royal delicacies.
2. Crisis of the forgotten dream (Daniel 2). After Daniel was threatened with execution alongside the Chaldean wise men, he sought the prayers of “Hananiah, Mishael, and Azariah” (Daniel 2:17-18). Their united intercession preceded God’s revelation of the mystery and the subsequent preservation of life, underscoring corporate prayer and solidarity among the faithful.
3. The golden image and the fiery furnace (Daniel 3). Referred to by his Babylonian name Abed-Nego, Azariah refused to bow before Nebuchadnezzar’s ninety-foot idol. Cast into the furnace with his companions, he experienced miraculous deliverance when “a fourth man” like “a son of the gods” appeared (Daniel 3:25). The event publicly vindicated the Lord and compelled the king to bless “the God of Shadrach, Meshach, and Abed-Nego” (Daniel 3:28).

Spiritual Significance

• Faith under pressure: Azariah exemplifies unwavering loyalty to God despite cultural assimilation and mortal peril.
• Power of collective prayer: Daniel 2 records that God’s mercy was sought “concerning this mystery,” demonstrating how united supplication secures divine intervention.
• Witness to the nations: The furnace episode transformed an imperial decree of idolatry into a proclamation of God’s supremacy, illustrating how obedience can turn persecution into testimony.
• Christological foreshadowing: The presence of the fourth figure in the flames prefigures God’s redemptive presence amid suffering and anticipates the incarnate deliverer who walks with His people.

Lessons for Faith and Practice

1. Conviction must precede comfort; true discipleship resists compromise regardless of the cost.
2. God honors those who honor Him (1 Samuel 2:30), often using their faithfulness to reveal His glory to unbelievers.
3. Trials refine rather than destroy. As Azariah emerged unsinged, believers can trust that “these have come so that the proven genuineness of your faith… may result in praise, glory, and honor” (1 Peter 1:7).
4. Prayerful community remains indispensable. Isolation breeds vulnerability, but fellowship in prayer invites divine wisdom and courage.

Relation to New Testament Themes

Azariah’s experience resonates with the apostolic call to civil obedience that never compromises worship (Acts 5:29) and with the promise that Christ is present “where two or three gather in My name” (Matthew 18:20). The furnace deliverance foreshadows the ultimate rescue in Christ, who “will rescue us from every evil deed and bring us safely into His heavenly kingdom” (2 Timothy 4:18).

Summary

Though the Hebrew name Azariah appears only once, the man’s life contributes profoundly to Scripture’s portrayal of covenant fidelity. His steadfastness, reliance on prayer, and witness before a hostile empire encourage believers to entrust themselves to the God who delivers from both impending wrath and present trials.

Forms and Transliterations
וַעֲזַרְיָ֛ה ועזריה vaazarYah wa‘ăzaryāh wa·‘ă·zar·yāh
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Englishman's Concordance
Daniel 2:17
HEB: וְ֠לַחֲנַנְיָה מִֽישָׁאֵ֧ל וַעֲזַרְיָ֛ה חַבְר֖וֹהִי מִלְּתָ֥א
NAS: Mishael and Azariah, about the matter,
KJV: Mishael, and Azariah, his companions:
INT: Hananiah Mishael and Azariah his friends the matter

1 Occurrence

Strong's Hebrew 5839
1 Occurrence


wa·‘ă·zar·yāh — 1 Occ.

5838
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