Beelzeboul

Beelzeboul is a Greek New Testament form of the Hebrew name Beelzebub, which itself derives from Baʿal Zevuv (בַּעַל זְבוּב), meaning "lord of flies." This name originally referred to a Philistine god worshipped in the city of Ekron, as attested in the Hebrew Bible (2 Kings 1:2–6, 16). The Greek rendering Βεελζεβούλ (Beelzeboul) found in the New Testament may represent a deliberate misspelling or pun, possibly based on the Hebrew word zevel (זֶבֶל), meaning "dung," thus serving as a derogatory alteration of the original deity's name.

In the New Testament, Beelzeboul appears as a name for Satan or the chief of demons. In the Synoptic Gospels (Matthew 12:24, Mark 3:22, Luke 11:15), Jewish religious leaders accuse Jesus of casting out demons by the power of "Beelzebul" (a variant spelling in many English translations). Jesus refutes this claim, arguing that a kingdom divided against itself cannot stand. The name also occurs in the Gospel of Matthew (10:25) in a saying of Jesus: "If they have called the master of the house Beelzebul, how much more will they malign those of his household?"

The spelling Beelzeboul is specific to the Greek New Testament and differs from the Latin Vulgate reading Beelzebub, which preserves the original Hebrew form. Modern English translations of the New Testament often transliterate the Greek as "Beelzebul" rather than the older "Beelzebub." In later Christian demonology, Beelzebub (or Beelzeboul) became one of the seven princes of Hell, associated with the sins of gluttony and envy. He appears as a lieutenant of Satan in John Milton's 1667 epic poem Paradise Lost and is referenced in the novel Lord of the Flies by William Golding, whose title alludes to the name's meaning.

Etymology

The original Hebrew name Baʿal Zevuv combines the Canaanite title Ba'al ("lord") with zevuv ("flies"). A longer form, Baʿal Zevul ("Ba'al of the exalted house"), may have been the authentic Philistine epithet, but a Hebrew scribal modification mocked the deity as the "lord of flies" akin to a dung deity. The Greek Beelzeboul may have doubled this pejoration by introducing a connection to zelous ("emulation") or simply a corrupted pronunciation

• Meaning: "Lord of flies" (Hebrew origin), possibly also "lord of dung" (via Greek or pun)
• Origin: Philistine deity, later adopted in Judaism and Christianity as a demonic name
• Type: First name, primarily a literal Biblical name in religious contexts
• Usage Region: Judaism and Christianity; specifically the Greek New Testament