🔼The name Baal-hanan: Summary
- Meaning
- Lord Of Grace
- Etymology
- From (1) the verb בעל (ba'al), to be lord, and (2) the verb חנן (hanan), to be gracious.
🔼The name Baal-hanan in the Bible
There are two men named Baal-hanan in the Bible. One is a king of Edom, son of Achbor and successor of king Shaul (Genesis 36:38). The other Baal-hanan is a Gederite and officer in charge of orchards in the Shephelah in service of King David of Israel (1 Chronicles 27:28).
🔼Etymology of the name Baal-hanan
The name Baal-hanan obviously consists of two parts. The first part is equal to the name Baal, which was also the name of the patron god of Canaan, and which is a common Hebrew word meaning lord, master or even husband:
בעל
The verb בעל (ba'al) means to exercise dominion over; to own, control or be lord over. The ubiquitous noun בעל (ba'al) means lord, master and even husband, and its feminine counterpart בעלה (ba'ala) means mistress or landlady.
God is obviously called 'lord' all over the Bible and the sin of the Baal priests (1 Kings 18:40) was not that they called upon some other deity but rather their incessant howling of the word 'lord' without any further responsibility or effects (see Matthew 7:21 and 11:4-5).
The second part of the name Baal-hanan comes from the verb חנן (hanan), meaning to be gracious:
חנן
The verb חנן (hanan) means to be gracious or to favor. Nouns חן (hen), חנינה (hanina), תחנה (tehinna) and תחנון (tahanun) mean favor or grace. Adverb חנם (hinnam) means freely or gratis, and adjective חנון (hannun) means gracious.
🔼Baal-hanan meaning
For a meaning of the name Baal-hanan, NOBSE Study Bible Name List proposes Lord Of Grace. Jones' Dictionary of Old Testament Proper Names reads Lord Of Compassion. BDB Theological Dictionary assumes that the Baal-part refers to the god Baal and reads Baal Is Gracious.
Note that the name Baal-hanan consists of the same two elements as the familiar extra-Biblical name Hannibal.