The Pulpit Commentary — Daniel — Section 58

he was a member of the Davidic family. of Hezekie.h (2 Chron. xni. 10-H). There Han11.niah (J!nnanyah; Greek, 'A,,,.vlus: the is e.lso a prophet of this name (2 Chron. xv. HC'brew form, as in the ORBO or other names 1) in 1J,e d1tys of Ase. King of Jurle.h. with the same termination, is sometimes While this name ie so common beforo tho leni;-thenerl to.flannn.~ahu). Then&me moans Captivity, it is not so common after it, "The Lord Jebo,·ah is gracions." This name tbongh there is 11. captRin of the e.rmy of is one of the most common in the Bible. Judas Ml!.008.bmus cnllC(l "Aze.rie.s." Whilo 8ometimes it is reversed, and becomes nll the names contain the nnme of God, Jeh-0hanan or Johanan, and hence "John." either in the covenant form "Jebove.h" or The earliest is the head of the sixteenth of the common form "el," yet there is nothing the tw,:,nt'l"-fonr courses into which David in the names to suggest the history before divided the Hemanites (2 Chron. x.xv. 4). In us. Jewish tradition mnde them out to be the reign of llzzi11.h there appears one RB of the roye.l family ; of this there is no cer- a chief captain (2 Chron. xxvi. 11). In tainty. In the time of Jerome it we.s held Jereminh tbore are three; most prominent, they were eunuchs, e.nd thus the prophecy however, is the false prophet who declared in Isaiah (xxxix. 7) we.s fulfillod. Others that Jeooniab and all his follow-captives have held that Isa.. lvi. 8, "Let not the would be brought back in the spa.oe of two eunuch se.y, I am a dry tree," had e. referenoe :,-ean; (Jer. xxviii. 15). One of the ancestors to those captives. So fe.r, however, e.s we of our Lord, called in Luke (iii. 27) know, eunuchs might be attendants of Joanna. the son of Rhesn, grandson of Assyrian e.nd Be.bylonie.n monarchs, might Zerubbabel. is called in 1 Chron. iii. 19 be11.r the state umbrella. over their heads, Hananiah. and reckoned a son of Zerubbabel. might give the cup to them, might arrange In the Book of Nehemiah there a.re severe.I their couch for them, or announce their persons spoken of 88 bee.ring this no.me, not approach to the he.rem, but were not their imp088ibly w; many as six. In New councillors or warriors. That wa.e left for Testament times it we.s still common : the days of the Byzantine Empire, when the Ananie.s the husband of Sapphire. (Acts v. eunuch Narsesretained lte.ly for the empire. l) ; the devout Jew of De.mo.scus, sent to Ver. 7.-Unto whom the prince of the Panl (Acts ix. 10); the high priest in the e'lllluohe gave names; for he ge.ve 'llllto Daniel time of Paul (Acts xxiii. 2). Unlike the name of :Belteshazzar; e.nd to Hane.nie.h, Hnnaniah, Misb!l.el is one of the rarer of Shadrach; e.nd to Mishael, of Meshe.ch ; names. It occurs as the name of one of the e.nd to .he.ria.h., of Abed-nego. The only sons of U zziel, the uncle of Moses e.nd Aaron thing to be noted in ;regard to the versions (Exod. vi. 22; Lev. x. 4), and again e.s one is that, with the exception of the Peshitte., who stood at Ezra's left band when he all of them identify the ne.me of Daniel read the Law(Neh. viii. 4). There is some with the.t of the le.et King of Babylon. Both question as to the meaning of the no.me. are called Balta8ar or BaJ,t,a88ar in the Two interpretations have been sug11,"ested; Volgate, the LXX., and Theodotion. The the simplest e.nd most direct is, " Who is difference me.de in the Peshitta is not the what God is;" the other is, "Who is like same as that in the Hebrew ; the prophet God." The objection to the first is the.t is called Beletsbazzar, and the king Belit- the contracted relative is employed, which shazzar. 1 Thie would indico.te something does not elsewhere appear in this book. wrong. The Greek versions render Abed- This, however, is not insuperable, e.s the con• nego 'AfJ~•11u-yw, which also the Vulgate has, tracted form of the relative waa in common This he.bit of changing the ne.mes of those use in the northern kingdom, and might, who entered their service prevailed e.mong therefore, appee.r in a no.we; the objection Ee.stern potente.t.ea. Joseph became Zaph• to tLe second is that a letter is omitted, nath-paaneah (Gen. xli. 45). Not only did but 1111ch omissions continually occur. those about the court receive new names, Hi tzig refers to D'O', from c,•, as a case in but, not infrequently, subject monarchs, a.a point. Aze.rie.h, "Jehovah is Helper," is, token of subjection, were newly named, e.e like Hananie.h,e. verycom.mon name through- Jehoiakim, who bad formerly been Eliakim. out Jewish history. It is the no.me by which Professor Fuller mentions the case of the Uzziah is called in 2 Kings xiv. 21; xv. 1, 7, Egyptian monarch Paammeti.k II., whose 8, 17 (called Uzzie.h in vers. 13, 30, e.s also in name as subject of A.sahur-bani-po.l was 2 Chron. xxvii.). It is the ne.me of four Naho-sezib-ani. Not only so, but monarchs high priests:(]) one (1 Chron. vL 10) during of their own will changed their ne.mee with the reign of Solomon, the grandson of changed circumstances; thus Pul in Be.by- Zadok; (2) the high priest during the reign lon is Tigle.th-pileeer in Nineveh. Still in or Jehoshaphat (1 Chron. vi. II); (3) high modern times this is continued in the head priest dnring the reign of Lis namt>sake 1 In eh. vii. I the king's name ie given Azarie.h or Uzzie.h Kiog of Judnb (2 Cluon. nvi. 17-:!0J; (4) high priest in the reign a.a Beletshe.zze.r. (JH, I, 1-21.] THE BOOK OF DANIEL. 17