I. Name

As used in two passages of the OT, Heb. ברד, vocalized as bārād, has been interpreted as the name of an ancient deity of the Canaanite pantheon. In some texts from Tell Mardikh-Ebla of the third millennium bce^dBaradu (madu) occurs as a divine name. Etymologically, both biblical bārād and Eblaitic Baradu (madu) are to be related to the Semitic root *brd and to be explained as “(big) Chill”.