The Name of God's Chosen People after the Exile.

The people of the nation of Israel are first named as Jews in the closing chapters of the second book of Kings (see 2 Kings 16:5-6; 25:25, KJV). In the NIV this has been changed to 'men of Judah' which means the same. The name 'Jew' first came into use during the Babylonian captivity, when it referred mainly people from the tribe of Judah who were taken to Babylon. The name came to describe all Israelites who returned from captivity regardless of their tribal origins, and they have continued to be so described world-wide to this day. In 1948, those of the Jewish nation who were re-established in the land reverted to the name 'Israel'.

The apostle Paul gives a figurative meaning to the name, pointing out that circumcision practised by the Jews, did not necessarily identify a real Jew: "A man is not a Jew if he is only one outwardly, nor is circumcision merely outward and physical. No, a man is a Jew if he is one inwardly; and circumcision is circumcision of the heart, by the Spirit, not by the written code. Such a man's praise is not from men, but from God." (Romans 2:28-29). The rather cryptic final sentence of this quotation may be a play upon the name 'Judah' because the name means, in Hebrew, 'Praise'. When Judah was born, his mother Leah said: "'This time I will praise the Lord.' So she named him Judah." (Genesis 29:35).

Jehovah
Jerusalem
  New Jerusalem
Jesus
Jews
Joy, Joyful, Rejoicing
Judge
Justification