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Uriah

Biblical
Pronunciation

Understanding ARPABET Pronunciation

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The pronunciation guide uses the ARPABET phonetic system—the same system used in speech recognition and text-to-speech applications.

Vowel Examples:
AE1 = cat, bat
EH1 = bed, head
IY1 = see, me
OW1 = go, boat
UW1 = boot, do
Stress Numbers:
0 = no stress (unstressed)
1 = primary stress (loud)
2 = secondary stress (medium)
Example:
AH0 TH IY1 N AH0
= a-THEE-na (Athena)

The stressed syllable (marked with 1) is pronounced louder and clearer than others.

Quick Definition

Hittite soldier loyal to David, murdered to cover Bathsheba’s pregnancy

Detailed Definition
Uriah, one of David’s mighty men, refused to go home while his comrades fought, leading David to arrange his death. His integrity contrasts David’s sin. In poetry, Uriah symbolizes unwavering loyalty, the tragic cost of others’ sin, and the foreigner more faithful than the king—often representing the innocent whose blood cries out for justice and whose honor exposes royal corruption.
Example
Example in poetry:
In 2 Samuel 11–12, Uriah’s loyalty—refusing to go home while his men are at war—inspires tragic poetry about integrity in a corrupt court; George Herbert alludes to Uriah in moral verse as man of honor betrayed by power; Contemporary poems contrast Uriah’s faithfulness with David’s abuse of authority; In poems about justice, Uriah’s death becomes symbol of systemic violence against the righteous; Some liturgical laments honor Uriah as Hittite who lived more faithfully than Israel’s king; Educational poems cite Uriah to teach about covenant loyalty and prophetic accountability.
Additional Notes
Uriah the Hittite, Bathsheba’s loyal husband, is deliberately placed in battle by David to be killed (2 Samuel 11); his integrity (“would not go home while the ark and Israel were in tents”) contrasts sharply with David’s betrayal; Uriah embodies foreign loyalty within Israel and the cost of royal sin; poets use him to explore honor, displacement, and the silent victims of power.
Also Known As
Uriah the Hittite Uriah husband of Bathsheba
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