Biblical Hebrew Forum

[ben.crick AT argonet.co.uk (Ben Crick)]

On Mon 25 Jun 2001 (10:18:43), bnisw AT aol.com wrote:
> How did we get from the hebrew HEYLEL in Is. 14.12 where I understand
> the hebrew to be, "O shining star", and some translate Lucifer?

 Dear Bill

 The original HeYLeL is from the root HLL which implies brightness or
 praiseworthiness ("Hallelujah"). It is the name for the Morning Star (the
 planet Venus), in Greek FWSFOROS, in Latin Lucifer ("lightbearer"). Compare
 KaBoWD, glory, from the root KBD implying weightiness or gravity or great
 worthiness.

 The King of Babylon would call himself "lightbearer"; compare Louis XIV
 of France, who called himself "Le Roi Soleil". In Babylonian mythology,
 one of the stars aspires to rival the sun as the Day Star or Son of the Dawn,
 but is violently thrown down. Thus Babylon aspired to exalt itself above the
 throne of heaven, but was violently thrown down to the pit (verses 13ff).
 Nebuchadnezzar's madness may be in view here (Daniel 4).

 Shalom,
 Ben
-- 
 Revd Ben Crick, BA CF
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