Beelzebub

From Hebrew בַּעַל זְבוּב (Ba'al Zevuv) meaning "lord of flies", the name of a Philistine god according to the Old Testament. It is possibly intended as a mocking alteration of בַּעַל זְבוּל (Ba'al Zevul) meaning "Ba'al of the exalted house".

Based on the Hebrew form, this spelling is used in the Latin translation of the Old Testament, and it is commonly rendered Baal-Zebub or Baalzebub in English translations. In the New Testament, this spelling appears in both the Latin and most older English translations, despite the fact that the Greek original uses Βεελζεβούλ (Beelzeboul). Recent English translations of the New Testament tend to use Beelzebul.

Later Christian tradition holds that Beelzebub is a demon or fallen angel. He is Satan's chief lieutenant in the 1667 epic poem Paradise Lost by John Milton.