Beelzebub

Beelzebub as depicted in Collin de Plancy's Dictionnaire Infernal (Paris, 1863).

Beelzebub, a name derived from Ba‘al Zebûb, Ba‘al Zəbûb or Ba‘al Zəvûv (Hebrew בעל זבוב; Greek: βεελζεβούβ; literally "Lord of the Flies"), with numerous variants,[1] which was a Semitic deity worshipped in the Philistine city of Ekron. In later christian and biblical sources he appears as a demon and the name of one of the seven princes of Hell.

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Religious meaning

Ba‘al Zebûb literally means "Lord of the Flies" (ba'al being Hebrew for owner or lord and zebûb being a Hebrew collective noun for 'fly'). In Arabic the name is retained as بعل ألذباب (transliterated as: ba'al azabab), literally "Lord of the Flies". Biblical scholar Thomas Kelly Cheyne suggested that it might be a derogatory corruption of Ba'al Zebul, 'Lord of the High Place', or 'Lord of Heaven'.[2] The SeptuagintA renders the name as Baalzeboub, SeptuagintB as Baal myîan 'Baal of flies', but Symmachus the Ebionite may have reflected a tradition of its offensive ancient name when he rendered it as Beelzeboul (Cath.Ency.).

The source for the name Ba‘al Zebûb / Beelzebub is in 2 Kings 1:2-3, 6, 16 where King Ahaziah of Israel, after seriously injuring himself in a fall, sends messengers to inquire of Ba‘al Zebûb, the god of the Philistine city of Ekron, to learn if he will recover.

Ahaziah fell through the lattice in his upper chamber at Samaria and was injured. So he sent messengers whom he instructed: "Go inquire of Baal-zebub, the god of Ekron, whether I shall recover from this injury." (JPS translation)

Elijah the Prophet then condemns Ahaziah to die by Yahweh's words because Ahaziah sought counsel from Ba‘al Zebûb rather than from Yahweh.

In Mark 3:22, the Pharisees accuse Jesus of driving out demons by the power of Beelzeboul, prince of demons, the name also appearing in the expanded version in Matthew 12:24,27 and Luke 11:15,18–19. The name also occurs in Matthew 10:25.

Jesus knew their thoughts and said to them, Every kingdom divided against itself will be ruined, and every city or household divided against itself will not stand. If Satan drives out Lucifer, he is divided against himself. How then can his kingdom stand? And if I drive out demons by Beelzebub, by whom do your people drive them out? So then, they will be your judges. But if I drive out demons by the Spirit of God, then the kingdom of God has come upon you.─Matthew 12:25-28

It is unknown whether Symmachus was correct in identifying these names because we otherwise know nothing about either of them. Zeboul might derive from a slurred pronunciation of zebûb; from 'zebel', a word used to mean 'dung' in the Targums; or from Hebrew zebûl found in 1 Kings 8:13 in the phrase bêt-zebûl 'lofty house' and used in Rabbinical writings to mean 'house' or 'temple' and also as the name for the fourth heaven.

In any case, the form Beelzebub was substituted for Beelzeboul in the Syriac translation and Latin Vulgate translation of the gospels and this substitution was repeated in the King James Version of the Bible, the result of which is the form Beelzeboul was mostly unknown to western European and descendant cultures until some more recent translations restored it.

It is unknown if either or both of these names were a title applied to persons, to divinities exclusively, or otherwise were a corruption of such a title, possibly as a degeneration.

It is well known that scholars are divided, in regard to the god of Ekron, between the belief that zebub may be the original affix to Baal and that it is a substitute for an original zbl which, after the discoveries of Ras Shamra, has been connected with the title of "prince", frequently attributed to Baal in mythological texts. In addition to the intrinsic weakness of this last position, which is not supported by the versions is the fact that it was long ago suggested that there was a relationship between the Philistine god and cults of fly or apotropaic divinities appearing in the Hellenic world, such as Zeus Apomyios or Myiagros. It is exactly this last connection which is confirmed by the Ugaritic text when we examine how Baal effects the expulsion of the flies which are the cause of the patient's sickness. Obviously, this series of elements may be inconclusive as evidence, but the fact that in relationship to Baal Zebub the two constituent terms are here linked, joined by a function (ndy) which is typical of some divinities attested in the Mediterranean world, is a strong argument 340 in favor of the authenticity of the name of the god of Ekron, and of his possible therapeutic activities, which are implicit in 2 Kgs i 2, etc.[3]

Apocryphal literature

In the Testament of Solomon, Beelzebul (not Beelzebub) appears as prince of the demons and says (6.2) that he was formerly a leading heavenly angel who was (6.7) associated with the star Hesperus (which is the normal Greek name for the planet Venus (Αφροδíτη) as evening star). Seemingly Beelzebul is here simply Satan/Lucifer. Beelzebul claims to cause destruction through tyrants, to cause demons to be worshipped among men, to excite priests to lust, to cause jealousies in cities and murders, and to bring on war.

Texts of the Acts of Pilate (also known as the Gospel of Nicodemus) vary in whether they use Beelzebul or Beelzebub. The name is used by Hades as a secondary name for Satan. But it may vary with each translation of the text, other versions give the name Beelzebub as Beelzebub, but separates him from Satan.

Later mythology

"Beelzebub and them that are with him shoot arrows" from John Bunyan's The Pilgrim's Progress (1678)

Beelzebub is commonly described as placed high in Hell's hierarchy; he was of the order of cherubim. According to the stories of the 16th century occultist, Johann Weyer, Beelzebub led a successful revolt against Satan,[4] and is the chief lieutenant of Lucifer, the Emperor of Hell, and presides over the Order of the Fly. Similarly, the 17th century exorcist, Sebastien Michaelis, in his Admirable History (1612), placed Beelzebub among the three most prominent fallen angels, the other two being Lucifer and Leviathan, whereas two 18th century works identified an unholy trinity consisting of Beelzebub, Lucifer, and Astaroth. John Milton featured Beelzebub as seemingly the second-ranking of the many fallen cherubim in the epic poem Paradise Lost, first published in 1667. Wrote Milton of Beelzebub "than whom, Satan except, none higher sat." Beelzebub is also a character in John Bunyan's The Pilgrim's Progress, first published in 1678.

Sebastien Michaelis associated Beelzebub with the deadly sin of pride. However, according to Peter Binsfeld, Beelzebub was the demon of gluttony, one of the other seven deadly sins, whereas Francis Barrett asserted that Beelzebub was the prince of false gods. In any event, Beelzebub was frequently named as an object of supplication by confessed witches. Within religious circles the accusation of demon possession has been used as both an insult and an attempt to categorise unexplained behavior. Not only have the Pharisees disparagingly accused Jesus of using Beelzebub's demonic powers to heal people (Luke 11v14-26) but others have been labeled possessed for acts of an extreme nature. Down through history Beelzebub has been held responsible for many cases of demon possession such as that of Sister Madeleine de Demandolx de la Palud , Aix-en-Provence 1611, who's relationship with Father Jean-Baptiste Gaufridi led not only to countless traumatic events at the hands of her inquisitors but also to the torture and execution of that "bewitcher of young nuns" Gaufridi himself. Beelzebub was also imagined to be sowing his influence in Salem, Massachusetts: his name came up repeatedly during the Salem witch trials, the last large-scale public expression of witch hysteria in North America or Europe, and afterwards Rev. Cotton Mather wrote a pamphlet entitled Of Beelzebub and his Plot.[5]

In the aftermath of the 1634 Loudun possessions, as the priest Urbain Grandier was burnt at the stake, onlookers saw a fly appear and alleged it was Beelzebub fetching his soul.

Lord of the Flies

The Hebrew translation of Beelzebub, 'Lord of the Flies' was the namesake of the book by British novelist and Nobel laureate William Golding. Beelzebub is alluded to throughout the book.

Notes and references

  1. ↑ In addition to Beelzebub, Ba‘al Zebûb, and Ba‘al Zəvûv, (בעל זבוב), there are several variants, such as Belzebud, Beezelbub, Beazlebub, Belzaboul, Beelzeboul, Baalsebul, Baalzebubg, Belzebuth, Beelzebuth, and Beelzebus.
  2. ↑ Born to Kvetch, Michael Wex, St. Martin's Press, New York, 2005, ISBN 0-312-30741-1
  3. ↑ Saracino, Francesco. "Ras Ibn Hani 78/20 and Some Old Testament Connections". Vetus Testamentum. Vol. 32, Fasc. 3 (Jul., 1982), pp. 338-343.
  4. ↑ Rudwin, Maximilian (1970) [1931]. The Devil in Legend and Literature (2nd ed.). New York: AMS Press. p. 76. ISBN 0-404-05451-X. 
  5. ↑ Of Beelzebub and his Plot

See also

External links