אַזְדָּא (a.zad)
a.zad
gone
A:AQuick Reference
- Language
- Biblical Hebrew
- Testament
- Old Testament
- Occurrences
- 2 verses
- Root
- —
- Part of speech
- A:A
Word Overview
The Aramaic verb azda means simply to be gone or to depart. It functions as the Aramaic equivalent of the Hebrew zal, appearing in only two verses within the book of Daniel. In these instances, it describes a state of absence or removal, marking something that has passed from view.
While some lexica note an adjective form meaning "sure" or "assured," the verbal usage in Scripture is strictly tied to movement away. The word carries no inherent emotional weight; it is a neutral descriptor of location and time. Translators typically render it as "gone" or "passed," maintaining the straightforward nature of the original term without adding interpretive layers.
This brevity reflects the practical style of Daniel’s court narratives, where precise action matters more than poetic elaboration. The word serves its purpose by confirming that an event or person has left the scene, allowing the narrative to move forward without lingering on what is no longer present.
Based on public-domain lexicons (Strong's, Thayer, Gesenius, Brown-Driver-Briggs and others).
What This Word Means for Your Faith
In the court of Babylon, King Nebuchadnezzar faced an impossible demand: he required his wise men to tell him not only the meaning of a dream but the dream itself. When they refused, he declared that the matter was azda—gone from him. This Aramaic word simply marks something as absent or removed. It is a neutral term, describing a state of departure without adding emotional weight or poetic flourish.
For us, this brevity offers a quiet comfort. Life often presents situations where answers seem lost to the past, or where we feel disconnected from what once was clear. The text does not dwell on the king’s frustration but moves forward with the reality that some things have passed. We are invited to trust that even when understanding feels distant, God remains present and sovereign over the unfolding of history.
How it's translated
How this word is rendered word-by-word in the 2 verses where it appears, by frequency.
- [is] assured2×
Forms in the text
The inflected forms of this word as they appear in Scripture, by frequency.
- אַזְדָּ֖א1×
- אַזְדָּ֑א1×
Key Verses
-
Daniel 2:5
The king answered the Chaldeans, “The thing has gone from me. If you don’t make known to me the dream and its interpretation, you will be cut in pieces, and your houses will be made a dunghill.
The king uses this term to declare his demand impossible, marking the dream as completely absent from his memory.
-
Daniel 2:8
The king answered, “I know of a certainty that you are trying to gain time, because you see the thing has gone from me.
Nebuchadnezzar repeats the word to assert that he knows the wise men are stalling because the content has truly vanished from him.