נַפְתָּלִי51 H5321
Naphtali — the sixth son of Jacob (by Bilhah), and the Israelite tribe and territory bearing his name
Naphtali ('my wrestling,' from the wordplay in Gen 30:8 where Rachel declares 'with mighty wrestlings I have wrestled with my sister') designates both Jacob's second son by Bilhah and the tribe descended from him, whose allotment stretched through the lush highlands of upper Galilee. Across 51 occurrences, the name appears in genealogies (Gen 35:25; 46:24; 1 Chr 2:2), the tribal census and camp arrangements of Numbers (Num 1:42; 2:29; 10:27), the territorial descriptions of Joshua (Josh 19:32-39; 20:7), and prophetic oracles — notably Isaiah's promise that 'the land of Naphtali' will see a great light (Isa 9:1), a passage Matthew applies to Jesus' Galilean ministry (Matt 4:15). Spanish 'Neftali,' French 'Nephthali,' German 'Naftali' all transliterate the name directly.
Senses
1. Naphtali (tribe/person) — The proper name Naphtali, covering the patriarch (Gen 30:8; 35:25; 46:24; 49:21), the tribe descended from him as an administrative and military unit (Judg 1:33; 4:6, 10; 5:18; Deut 33:23), and the tribal territory in northern Canaan centered around Kedesh-Naphtali (Josh 19:32-39; 20:7). Isaiah 9:1 [8:23] transforms the name into an eschatological marker — the 'land of Naphtali' that will be honored after its humiliation by Assyria (2 Kgs 15:29). All 51 occurrences refer to this single patriarchal-tribal-territorial complex, with BDB noting the possible original sense 'crafty one' alongside the folk etymology of Genesis 30:8. 51×
AR["نَفْتَالِي"]·ben["নপ্তালি", "নপ্তালির", "নফতালি", "নফতালী", "নফতালীর"]·DE["Naftali", "Naftalis"]·EN["Naphtali"]·FR["Nephthali"]·heb["נפתלי"]·HI["नप्ताली", "नप्ताली-का", "नप्ताली-के", "नफ़्ताली-के"]·ID["Naftali"]·IT["Neftali"]·jav["Naftali"]·KO["납달리", "납달리는", "납달리라", "납달리여", "납달리와", "납달리의"]·PT["Naftali"]·RU["Нафтали", "Нефталима", "Неффалим", "Неффалима"]·ES["Naftali", "Naftalí", "Neftalí"]·SW["Naftali", "la-Naftali", "yote"]·TR["Naftali", "Naftali'nin", "Naftali'yi"]·urd["نفتالی", "نفتالی-کا", "نفتالی-کو", "نفتالی-کے"]
Related Senses
G3588 1. definite article (18298×)H0853 1. definite direct object marker (10915×)G2532 1. (8312×)H3068 1. YHWH (the divine name) (6522×)H0834a 1. relative pronoun (who/which/that) (4839×)H3588a 1. causal: because, for (3498×)G1161 1. and (2806×)H3478 1. Israel (proper name and nation) (2507×)G4771 1. you (plural address) (1853×)H1931 1. personal pronoun he/she/it (1431×)G3739 1. relative pronoun who/which/that (1149×)H1732 1. David (proper name) (1075×)H2088 1. this, this one (demonstrative) (1059×)G1063 1. (1047×)G3778 1. this thing, these things (1003×)H???? 2. (1002×)G2424 1. (924×)G3754 1. that (content clause) (881×)H2009 1. presentative particle: behold, look (881×)H0589 1. I (first person singular pronoun) (874×)
BDB / Lexicon Reference
נַפְתָּלִי51 n.pr.m. et trib. Naphtali, Νεφθαλει(μ), etc. (interpr. as my wrestling Gn 30:8; perhaps orig. crafty, cunning one);— 1. second son of Jacob and Bilhah Gn 30:8 (J), 35:25; 46:24 (P), 1 Ch 2:2, cf. Gn 49:21 (poem). 2. as a tribe of Isr.: a. Ju 1:33; 4:10; 5:18; Dt 33:23(×2) +; so (Hex, only P) בְּנֵי נ׳ Ju 4:6; Nu 1:42 + 6 times, מַטֵּה נ׳ Nu 2:29; 1 K 7:14 + 5 times, מַטֵּה בְּנֵי נ׳…