Where, however, did this understanding of the term come from? Why was it so different from the understanding of the rabbis? One can only speculate—and though I am no Bible scholar, permit me to do so.I find his speculation implausible. I know of no parallel to the idea that the phrase "a son of Baal" would mean something like "an evil man" in biblical Hebrew. That doesn't sound right to me. And when the name is altered elsewhere in the Hebrew Bible, it is altered to keep it from looking like a divine name. What would be the reason for the change in this idiom?
Past PaleoJudaica posts on the diabolical one in his various guises are here and follow the links.
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