Martha Meaning in the Bible

Martha comes from the Aramaic marta, the feminine of mar, 'lord' or 'master' — literally 'mistress, lady of the house.' It is one of very few New Testament women's names that is Aramaic rather than Hebrew or Greek, and it describes a social role. She acts like it: in Luke 10:38 it is Martha, not Lazarus, who 'received him into her house.'

The Luke 10 scene has been used unfairly against her for centuries. Martha is 'cumbered about much serving' while Mary sits at Jesus' feet, and Jesus says 'Martha, Martha, thou art careful and troubled about many things: but one thing is needful.' The rebuke is about anxiety and comparison, not hospitality — He does not tell her to stop working, and the doubled name is the same affectionate form He uses for Simon and for Jerusalem.

John 11 shows the other Martha entirely. Four days after Lazarus dies she meets Jesus on the road, says plainly 'if thou hadst been here, my brother had not died,' hears 'I am the resurrection, and the life,' and answers: 'Yea, Lord: I believe that thou art the Christ, the Son of God, which should come into the world' (John 11:27). It is a confession of the same order as Peter's at Caesarea Philippi.

The name faded through the late twentieth century and is only now beginning to be reconsidered. For families drawn to vintage New Testament names, Martha is an unusually strong candidate: plain, capable, and attached to one of the Gospels' most theologically articulate women.