I. Name

Hades is the Greek name for the underworld and its ruler, as is the case in the Bible. The spelling of the name sometimes varies (Aides/Hades, Aidoneus) and the etymology is debated. The most recent analysis sees a link with the root *a-wid-, ‘invisible’ (Ruijgh 1991:575–576, but see also Burkert 1985:196). Most likely, Hades first denoted a place name and was only later personified. Only the personification will be discussed here. Hades occurs 111 times in the LXX, most often as equivalent of Heb. šĕʾôl…