Jeshua

Jeshua is a later Hebrew form of the name Joshua (meaning salvation of the LORD, the same root as Jesus in Greek). It is borne by several post-exilic figures, most importantly: (1.) Joshua/Jeshua the high priest, son of Jehozadak, who returned from Babylon with Zerubbabel and led the restoration of the altar and the temple foundation (Ezra 2:2; 3:2; Haggai 1:1; Zechariah 3). He is the subject of Zechariah's vision of the high priest accused by Satan and clothed in clean garments — a vivid image of priestly restoration and atonement. (2.) A priestly course, the ninth of the twenty-four divisions (1 Chronicles 24:11). (3.) A Levite over the tithes under Hezekiah (2 Chronicles 31:15).

The name's identity with Jesus (Greek Iesous from Hebrew Yeshua) is not incidental: Matthew 1:21 explicitly links the name's meaning — "he will save his people from their sins" — to the infant's divine mission, making the naming of Jesus a theological statement about his salvific role.