Johann Friedrich von Meyer

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Johann Friedrich Meyer , von Meyer since 1789 , (born September 12, 1772 in Frankfurt am Main ; † January 28, 1849 ibid) was a German lawyer , Protestant theologian and politician. His fame was based primarily on decades of biblical research and a translation of the Bible that appeared in 1819, which earned him the nickname Bible-Meyer .

origin

Johann Friedrich von Meyer ("Bibel-Meyer")

Meyer was the son of the merchant who immigrated to Frankfurt from Hildesheim in 1758 and owned a sheet metal rolling mill Johann Anton Meyer (1734–1800) and his wife Anna Catharina Mühl (1735–1797). His father was raised to the nobility in 1789. His brothers Heinrich Anton (1766–1834) and Johann Georg (1765–1838) became shareholders in his father's company, and Johann Georg also founded a bank.

Life

He attended the Frankfurt grammar school , where he developed a special affinity for ancient languages ​​and classical literature. At the request of his father, but he was referring to 17 years, the University of Göttingen to law study. There he made friends with the writer Theobald Wilhelm Broxtermann , de he taught diplomats in Wetzlar in 1797. In 1792 he completed his studies with a doctorate to become Dr. jur. successfully, but switched to the University of Leipzig , where he heard philosophical and scientific lectures and received the degree of Dr. phil. acquired.

In 1794 he went to the Reich Chamber of Commerce in Wetzlar as an intern . Here he married Maria Magdalena Franziska von Zwackh († 1849) in 1795, the daughter of the later President of the Palatinate, Franz Xaver von Zwack auf Holzhausen. Meyer later served as the Palatinate-Bavarian Council of Appeal in Mannheim and Chamber Director of the Prince of Salm-Kyrburg . After losing this position due to the coalition wars , he returned to Frankfurt am Main in 1802.

In 1807 Carl Theodor von Dalberg appointed him to the city judge. His legal career took him further to the Appeals Court Council (1822) and the President of the Appeals Court (1840 to 1848). At the same time, he began a political career in his hometown, which led him to the office of senator after the establishment of the Free City of Frankfurt and in 1821 to the office of lay judges. In 1825, 1839 and 1843 he held the office of Senior Mayor , the highest office in the Free City. Since 1837 he has also represented the four Free Cities as a deputy in the Bundestag .

His fame was based less on his political offices than on his scientific work. Since 1807, with the help of his good knowledge of the classical languages ​​Latin, Greek and Hebrew, he had studied the Bible intensively . In 1816 he became co-founder and president of the Frankfurt Bible Society, which still exists today . His judgment that Luther's translation had to be revised linguistically and philologically led him to develop his own revision of the Luther Bible, which appeared in three volumes in 1819. In it he tried to preserve the character of the Luther Bible and at the same time to take into account the advances in Urtext research and in the knowledge of Hebrew. In 1821 the University of Erlangen recognized his achievements with the award of an honorary theological doctorate . His Bible research earned him the nickname “ Bible-Meyer” . In 1822 he defended his translation, which went beyond the Luther text, with the words: "Yes, we should dishonor Luther in such a way that we perpetuate his shortcomings?"

Despite his erudition and deeply felt piety, Meyer was devoted to worldly life. He was a gifted draftsman, played the harp and wrote a number of novels and dramas during his student days. In 1794/95 he worked on Christoph Martin Wieland's German Mercury . In 1803 he was given the management of the municipal theater in Frankfurt, an office which he gave up again in early 1805 because of intrigues directed against him, despite some success with the public .

Meyer died on January 28, 1849, thirteen hours after his wife's sudden death. His son was the Frankfurt paleontologist Hermann von Meyer (1801–1869). There is a memorial plaque on the site of his former home in Grosse Bockenheimer Gasse .

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predecessor Office successor
Johann Gerhard Christian Thomas Frankfurt envoy to the German Confederation from
1838 to 1847 		Eduard Ludwig von Harnier
personal data
SURNAME Meyer, Johann Friedrich von
ALTERNATIVE NAMES Meyer, Johann Friedrich
BRIEF DESCRIPTION German lawyer, Protestant theologian and politician
DATE OF BIRTH September 12, 1772
PLACE OF BIRTH Frankfurt am Main
DATE OF DEATH January 28, 1849
Place of death Frankfurt am Main