Who is…
Noadiah
Hebrew: נוֹעַדְיָה —meaning (roughly): “meeting with the Lord,” “Yahweh has met [by appointment],” “meeting with Yah,” or “one to whom the Lord has revealed Himself”)
This is the name 2 distinct people in the Bible, a woman and a man. Both lived in the post-exilic period of the Old Testament (after the Babylonian exile, roughly 5th century BC).
Noadiah, a false prophetess
She is mentioned only once in Scripture, in a prayer recorded by the Jewish governor Nehemiah in the context of her effort to intimidate him.
Remember, O my God, Tobiah and Sanballat according to these works of theirs, and also Noadiah the prophetess and the rest of the prophets who were trying to make me afraid. —Nehemiah 6:14
Around 445 BC, during the reign of Persian King Artaxerxes I. Nehemiah, serving as governor of Judah, had returned from Persia with royal authorization to rebuild Jerusalem’s walls, which had lain in ruins since the Babylonian destruction in 586 BC.
The rebuilding project faced intense external and internal resistance. Key antagonists included Sanballat (governor of Samaria) and Tobiah (an Ammonite official), who used mockery, threats, rumors, and plots of violence. They were joined by a coalition of local enemies of the Jews who saw the strengthened Jerusalem as a threat to their influence.
Noadiah assisted Tobiah and Sanballat in their efforts to thwart the Jews. She was bribed to stir up discontent among the inhabitants of Jerusalem, and so to embarrass Nehemiah in his great work of rebuilding the ruined walls of the city.
She is a false or compromised prophetess who used her influence to discourage God’s work. Nehemiah’s prayer reveals her actions as sinful and asks God to hold her accountable.
Q & A
More information
Noadiah, a Levite man
He returned from captivity in Babylon (Ezra 8:33)
Q & A
What is the city of Babylon (Babel)? and what is its significance?