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BA'AL – Hebrew word for possessor or owner of an object. In connection with many nouns, it expresses some relation between the person and an object. Many of these combinations are found in Bible phraseology, and are still used,...
BA'AL AND BA'AL-WORSHIP – Biblical Data: Altar of Ba'al at Petra, Idumæa.(After a photograph.)The wide-spread and primitive Semitic root ("ba'al") may be most nearly rendered in English by "possess." The term "Ba'al," therefore, which is usually...
BA'AL HA-BAYIT – In more modern usage, the constituent members of a congregation as contrasted with the "toshabim" (transient members or strangers). The Ba'ale Battim consist of those members who pay over a certain amount for their seats in the...
BAAL-BERITH – Biblical Data ("the Ba'al of the Covenant"): A form of Ba'al-worship prevailing in Israel (Judges viii. 33), and particularly in Shechem (Judges ix. 4). The term "Ba'al" is shown by the equivalent "El-berith" (Judges ix. 46, R....
BAAL-GAD – A place situated at the northern limit of Palestine, in the valley of Lebanon, near Mount Hermon (Josh. xi. 17, xii. 7, xiii. 5). Since I Chron. v. 23 mentions Baal-hermon as the northern limit of the tribe of Manasseh, it has...
BAAL-HAMON – A place mentioned in Cant. viii. 11, in which passage Solomon is said to have had a vineyard there: its identity is unknown. Graetz proposes to read "Baal-hermon" for "Baalhamon"; but this is mere conjecture. Balamon (Judith...
BAAL-HANAN – 1. An Edomite king (Gen. xxxvi. 38). He is called the son of Achbor; but the name of his native city is not given. For this andother reasons, Marquart ("Fundamente Israelitischer und Jüdischer Gesch." 1896, pp. 10 et seq.)...
BAAL-HAZOR – A place situated near Ephraim, where Absalom possessed an estate (II Sam. xiii. 23). It was there that during a sheep-shearing festival Amnon was killed at the instigation of his stepbrother Absalom. Baal-hazor has, with some...
BAAL-HERMON – See Baal-gad.J. Jr. F. Bu.
BAAL KORÉ – Term applied to the person who reads the weekly portion from the Pentateuch—usually the ḥazan, though not necessarily so (see Cantillation; Ḥazzan; Music, Synagogal; compare Dembitz, "Jewish Services in Synagogue and Home," pp....
BAAL-MEON – A city in the eastern part of the Jordan district, which is designated in Numbers (xxxii. 3, 38), Joshua (xiii. 17), and Chronicles (v. 8) as Israelitish (Reubenitish), and in Jeremiah (xlviii. 23) and Ezekiel (xxv. 9) as...
BAAL-PEOR – Name of a Canaanitish god. Peor was a mountain in Moab (Num. xxiii. 28), whence the special locality Beth-peor (Deut. iii. 29, etc.) was designated. It gave its name to the Ba'al who was there worshiped, and to whose service...
BAAL-PERAZIM – A place mentioned in the report of the battle between David and the Philistines in II Sam. v. 20 (compare I Chron. xiv. 11). The Philistines encamped in the valley of Rephaim, while David withdrew to the hill-fortress of Adullam...
BAAL-SHALISHA – A place mentioned in II Kings iv. 42, and in the Talmud (Sanh. 12a). Eusebius identifies it with Baithsarisa, 15 Roman miles to the north of Lydda. This, however, is uncertain, and there is much in favor of connecting...
BA'AL SHEM – Designation of certain people who were supposed to work miracles through the name of God. This belief in the miraculous power of the Sacred Name is very old, having a history that covers more than two thousand years (compare...
BAAL SHEM, ELIJAH – See Loans, Elijah.
BAAL SHEM, JOEL – See Heilprin, Joel b. Isaac, and Heilprin, Joel b. Uri.
BA'AL SHEM-ṬOB, ISRAEL B. ELIEZER – Founder of the sect of Ḥasidim; born about 1700; died at Miedzyboz (Medzhibozh), May 22, 1760. The little biographical information concerning him that exists is so interwoven with legends and miracles that in many cases it is...
BAAL-TAMAR – A place near Gibeah, mentioned in the account of the battle between the Benjamites and the other Israelites (Judges xx. 33). Eusebius ("Onomastica Sacra," 238, § 75) knew Baaltamarunder the name of "Beth-thamar"; but at the...
BA'AL TOḲEA' – Term applied to the person who blows the Shofar.A. F. L. C.
BAAL-ZEBUB – Biblical Data: Name of a god of the Philistine city of Ekron, mentioned only in connection with the illness of Ahaziah, king of Israel, in 842 B.C. (II Kings i. 2, 3, 6, 16), when the sick monarch sent messengers to Ekron to...
BAAL-ZEBUB IN RABBINICAL LITERATURE – See Baal-berith in Rabbinical Literature.
BAAL-ZEPHON – Biblical Data: An Egyptian locality in the neighborhood of the Red Sea. In spite of all attempted combinations (Dillmann-Ryssell on Ex. xiv. 2) its situation is still unknown. An Egyptian god, B'irati Dapuna—that is, Ba'alat...
BAALAH – 1. A border town of Judah (Josh. xv. 9, 10; I Chron. xiii. 6) called elsewhere Kirjathjearim.2. A mount on the border of Judah (Josh. xv. 11).3. A city in the south of Judah (Josh. xv. 29), held by the Simeonites (Josh. xix. 3,...
BAALATH – 1. A Danite city (Josh. xix. 44).2. A city built by Solomon mentioned in connection with Tadmor (I Kings ix. 18; II Chron. viii. 6). Its site has not been determined.J. Jr. G. B. L.

BA'AL – Hebrew word for possessor or owner of an object. In connection with many nouns, it expresses some relation between the person and an object. Many of these combinations are found in Bible phraseology, and are still used,...

BA'AL AND BA'AL-WORSHIP – Biblical Data: Altar of Ba'al at Petra, Idumæa.(After a photograph.)The wide-spread and primitive Semitic root ("ba'al") may be most nearly rendered in English by "possess." The term "Ba'al," therefore, which is usually...

BA'AL HA-BAYIT – In more modern usage, the constituent members of a congregation as contrasted with the "toshabim" (transient members or strangers). The Ba'ale Battim consist of those members who pay over a certain amount for their seats in the...

BAAL-BERITH – Biblical Data ("the Ba'al of the Covenant"): A form of Ba'al-worship prevailing in Israel (Judges viii. 33), and particularly in Shechem (Judges ix. 4). The term "Ba'al" is shown by the equivalent "El-berith" (Judges ix. 46, R....

BAAL-GAD – A place situated at the northern limit of Palestine, in the valley of Lebanon, near Mount Hermon (Josh. xi. 17, xii. 7, xiii. 5). Since I Chron. v. 23 mentions Baal-hermon as the northern limit of the tribe of Manasseh, it has...

BAAL-HAMON – A place mentioned in Cant. viii. 11, in which passage Solomon is said to have had a vineyard there: its identity is unknown. Graetz proposes to read "Baal-hermon" for "Baalhamon"; but this is mere conjecture. Balamon (Judith...

BAAL-HANAN – 1. An Edomite king (Gen. xxxvi. 38). He is called the son of Achbor; but the name of his native city is not given. For this andother reasons, Marquart ("Fundamente Israelitischer und Jüdischer Gesch." 1896, pp. 10 et seq.)...

BAAL-HAZOR – A place situated near Ephraim, where Absalom possessed an estate (II Sam. xiii. 23). It was there that during a sheep-shearing festival Amnon was killed at the instigation of his stepbrother Absalom. Baal-hazor has, with some...

BAAL-HERMON – See Baal-gad.J. Jr. F. Bu.

BAAL KORÉ – Term applied to the person who reads the weekly portion from the Pentateuch—usually the ḥazan, though not necessarily so (see Cantillation; Ḥazzan; Music, Synagogal; compare Dembitz, "Jewish Services in Synagogue and Home," pp....

BAAL-MEON – A city in the eastern part of the Jordan district, which is designated in Numbers (xxxii. 3, 38), Joshua (xiii. 17), and Chronicles (v. 8) as Israelitish (Reubenitish), and in Jeremiah (xlviii. 23) and Ezekiel (xxv. 9) as...

BAAL-PEOR – Name of a Canaanitish god. Peor was a mountain in Moab (Num. xxiii. 28), whence the special locality Beth-peor (Deut. iii. 29, etc.) was designated. It gave its name to the Ba'al who was there worshiped, and to whose service...

BAAL-PERAZIM – A place mentioned in the report of the battle between David and the Philistines in II Sam. v. 20 (compare I Chron. xiv. 11). The Philistines encamped in the valley of Rephaim, while David withdrew to the hill-fortress of Adullam...

BAAL-SHALISHA – A place mentioned in II Kings iv. 42, and in the Talmud (Sanh. 12a). Eusebius identifies it with Baithsarisa, 15 Roman miles to the north of Lydda. This, however, is uncertain, and there is much in favor of connecting...

BA'AL SHEM – Designation of certain people who were supposed to work miracles through the name of God. This belief in the miraculous power of the Sacred Name is very old, having a history that covers more than two thousand years (compare...

BAAL SHEM, ELIJAH – See Loans, Elijah.

BAAL SHEM, JOEL – See Heilprin, Joel b. Isaac, and Heilprin, Joel b. Uri.

BA'AL SHEM-ṬOB, ISRAEL B. ELIEZER – Founder of the sect of Ḥasidim; born about 1700; died at Miedzyboz (Medzhibozh), May 22, 1760. The little biographical information concerning him that exists is so interwoven with legends and miracles that in many cases it is...

BAAL-TAMAR – A place near Gibeah, mentioned in the account of the battle between the Benjamites and the other Israelites (Judges xx. 33). Eusebius ("Onomastica Sacra," 238, § 75) knew Baaltamarunder the name of "Beth-thamar"; but at the...

BA'AL TOḲEA' – Term applied to the person who blows the Shofar.A. F. L. C.

BAAL-ZEBUB – Biblical Data: Name of a god of the Philistine city of Ekron, mentioned only in connection with the illness of Ahaziah, king of Israel, in 842 B.C. (II Kings i. 2, 3, 6, 16), when the sick monarch sent messengers to Ekron to...

BAAL-ZEBUB IN RABBINICAL LITERATURE – See Baal-berith in Rabbinical Literature.

BAAL-ZEPHON – Biblical Data: An Egyptian locality in the neighborhood of the Red Sea. In spite of all attempted combinations (Dillmann-Ryssell on Ex. xiv. 2) its situation is still unknown. An Egyptian god, B'irati Dapuna—that is, Ba'alat...

BAALAH – 1. A border town of Judah (Josh. xv. 9, 10; I Chron. xiii. 6) called elsewhere Kirjathjearim.2. A mount on the border of Judah (Josh. xv. 11).3. A city in the south of Judah (Josh. xv. 29), held by the Simeonites (Josh. xix. 3,...

BAALATH – 1. A Danite city (Josh. xix. 44).2. A city built by Solomon mentioned in connection with Tadmor (I Kings ix. 18; II Chron. viii. 6). Its site has not been determined.J. Jr. G. B. L.