4) that Joacim was a very
rich man. Nor is there anything in the Greek of either version to
indicate his royalty, though the assertion that "he was more honourable
than all others" fits in well with the notion. But if the story was
co?«val in its first form with the events narrated in it, the fact might
be taken as universally known; or it might be thought politic to
suppress it, as likely to be unpalatable to the reigning Babylonian
monarch, in the written record. Thus it is possible to answer to a great
extent Bissell's objection on v. 7, "that there seems to be no good
reason why it should not have been definitely stated."
His name is given as ????‰?±???µ???? both here, in II. Kings xxiv. 8, 12, and in
I. Esd. i. 43, exactly the same as that of his father and predecessor
Jehoiakim in I. Esd. i. 37 (39). Elsewhere the name is transliterated
????µ?‡???????±?‚ and ????‰?±?‡???? (Bar. i. 3, Jer. xxii. 24, _var. lect._, II. Chron.
xxxvi. 8, 9). In Judith iv. 6, xx. 8 we have ????‰?±???µ???? without variation,
as the name of the high priest.
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