The Hebrew name Eldad (אֶלְדָּד) means 'God has loved' or 'God is a friend.' He was one of the seventy elders appointed by Moses who received the Spirit and prophesied in the camp — even though he had not gone to the Tent of Meeting.
Eldad's story in Numbers 11 is a striking lesson about the sovereignty of the Spirit. When he and Medad prophesied in the camp rather than at the Tent of Meeting, Joshua urged Moses to stop them. But Moses replied, 'Are you jealous for my sake? I wish that all the LORD's people were prophets and that the LORD would put his Spirit on them!' (Numbers 11:29). This is a proto-Pentecost vision — Moses longing for the day when God's Spirit would rest on all His people, not just appointed leaders. Joel's prophecy (2:28) and Pentecost (Acts 2) are the fulfillment of what Moses glimpsed through Eldad.