Jedidja

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Jedidja (also Jedidjah , Jedidiah ; Hebrew יְדִידְיָהּ jədîdjâ ) is a name of the biblical King Solomon .

etymology

The name "Jedidja" is made up of the Hebrew noun יָדִיד jādîd , German 'beloved, friend' and a theophoric element, namely-יָה -jah as the short form of the name of God YHWH , together. In 2 Sam 12.25  BHS the name appears asיְדִידְיָהּ jədîdjâh . The Septuagint gives the name as Ιδεδει (so in the Codex Vaticanus ) or Ιδεδι (in the Septuagint edition by Alfred Rahlfs ). Both are to be pronounced Idedi ; the form in the Codex Vaticanus is simply an Itazist spelling that Alfred Rahlfs orthographically normalized. Since the theophoric element -ja in Hebrew names is usually retained as -ia in the Septuagint or becomes the Greek ending -ias (see Elijah , Isaiah , Jeremia , Josia etc.), it can be assumed that the Septuagint does not appear in the Hebrew original Jedidja (ידידיה), but Jedidi (ידידי) stood. That means "my darling" or "my friend". In the Vulgate, on the other hand, the name is rendered with the words Amabilis Domino , meaning "The one who is gracious to the Lord".

In addition, a derivation from the common Semitic root דוד dwd can be assumed, which can also denote the father brother ( Lev 10.4  ELB ). The name "David" is also borrowed from this root, which can imply a special closeness between Jedidja and David.

Mention in the Bible

We only encounter the name once in the Hebrew Bible in 2 Sam 12.25  ELB , namely as an alternative name for Solomon , given by the prophet Nathan . Previously, the firstborn child of King David and Bathsheba had died. The text then reports on the birth of Solomon as the second son of the two. Due to the linguistic design of the story, experts assume 2 possible scenarios:

  1. David either has sex with her after comforting her about her loss.
  2. Or he comforts her by fathering a child with her.

Andreas Kunz-Lübcke assumes that the second possibility is more likely due to the sequence “consolation-change-of-place-sexual intercourse”.

When adding the name “Jedidja” “[…] and he called his name Jedidja because of YHWH.” ( 2 Sam 12.25  ELB ), exegetes disagree as to whether the story about YHWH's love for Solomon is his Education by Nathan and the assignment of the alternative name, is part of the basic stock.

Possibilities of interpretation

In connection with the name "Jedidja", there are some special features.

The double naming of the child is particularly noticeable. Previously, the boy was given the name "Solomon" ( Hebrew שְׁלֹמֹה šəlomo ). The renaming of God by Nathan is an unusual phenomenon. There are various theories to explain this. Honeyman argues that Solomon was the boy's royal name and Jedidja was his “private name”. Others suspect that Jedidja was the name of the firstborn child of David and Bathsheba and that it is related to the previous narrative. Another interpretation relates to the similarity of the orthography in the Hebrew consonant writing between the names "David" (דוד dwd ) and "Jedidja" (ידידה jdjdh ). Accordingly, the naming is a sign to David, who after the murder of Uriah , the marriage to Bathsheba and the death of the first son finally experienced God's grace . According to this interpretation, the etymology of the name can be traced back to "by the grace of YHWH".

literature

Individual evidence

  1. ↑ Michael Fieger, Widu-Wolfgang Ehlers, Andreas Beriger (eds.): Biblia Sacra Vulgata. Latin and German . tape 2 . De Gruyter-Verlag Berlin, Berlin 2018, p. 451 .
  2. ↑ a b c Andreas Kunz-Lübcke:  Jedidja. In: Michaela Bauks, Klaus Koenen, Stefan Alkier (eds.): The scientific biblical dictionary on the Internet (WiBiLex), Stuttgart 2006 ff., As of September 20, 2018
  3. ↑ Randall C. Bailey, Art. Jedidiah. In: David Noel Freedman (Ed.), The Anchor Bible Dictionary, Doubleday 1992, ISBN 3-438-01121-2 , Vol. 3, p. 655