I. Name

A location south of Jerusalem, on the way to Bethlehem, where David won his first victory over the Philistines (2 Sam. 5.18–20; 1 Chr. 14.9–11). In the story the naming of the place is assigned to David and explained thus: “Yahweh broke (pāraṣ) through my enemies before me, like a bursting flood (pereṣ māyim)” (v 20). Since the name Baal-perazim is directly combined with the divine help of Yahweh, it is clear that the element ‘Baal’ was understood by the author as a honorific title of Yahweh (compare Hos. 2…