Nitzevet bat Adael ( ''Nīṣṣeḇeṯ baṯ ʿAḏʾēl'' lit. Nitzevet daughter of Adael) is, according to Hanan bar Rava, the mother of David. According to the Bible, her husband, Jesse, had at least nine children: David, Eliab, Abinadab, Shimma, Nethaneel, Raddai, Ozem, Zeruiah, and Abigail.

In the Bible

Zeruiah and Abigail are mentioned in the Bible (2 Sam. 17:25), "Amasa was the son of a man named Jether, an Israelite who had married Abigail, the daughter of Nahash and sister of Zeruiah the mother of Joab." However, since this text would indicate that the father of Abigail and Zeruiah is Nahash rather than Jesse, it would appear that their mother, whose name is unmentioned, married Jesse after the death of Nahash (2 Sam. 10, 1 Sam. 11). Therefore, these women are not Jesse's daughters but half-sisters of David through Nahash's widow. It is not clear if this widow is the same Netzevet unless you conclude that she is indeed the mother of Zeruiah and Abigail as well. Although David's mother is not named in the Bible, she is still mentioned there with her husband: when David was worried about the safety of his parents, he went to Mizpah in

Moab Moab () was an ancient Levant, Levantine kingdom whose territory is today located in southern Jordan. The land is mountainous and lies alongside much of the eastern shore of the Dead Sea. The existence of the Kingdom of Moab is attested to by ...

to ask permission from the king to allow his father and mother to stay under the royal protection of the king: In a few Bible translations, Psalm 86:16 (attributed to David) mentions the writer's mother: :Show that you hear me and be kind to me. :I am your servant, so give me strength. :I am your slave, as my mother was, so save me! — Psalms 86:16

In popular culture

Nitzevet is portrayed by the actress Siir Tilif in the 2025 television series House of David.

References

{{Reflist Talmud people Family of David Women in the Hebrew Bible Unnamed people of the Bible Mothers of monarchs Psalms people