The name Bartimaeus (Greek: Βαρτιμαῖος) appears in Mark 10.46. It’s a transliteration of the Aramaic bar Timaeus.
- “Bar” = “son of” (common in Aramaic names, e.g., Bar-Jonah, Barabbas).
- “Timaeus” is the trickier part.
There are a few possibilities:
- From Greek τιμή (timē) = “honour, value”
- If so, “Bartimaeus” could mean “son of honour.”
- Mark may be making a point of irony: the blind beggar named “son of honour” is restored to dignity by Jesus.
- From Aramaic/Hebrew root ṭm’ (טמא) = “unclean”
- Timaeus could reflect the Semitic word for “unclean.”
- “Bartimaeus” could mean “son of uncleanness” or “unclean son.”
- A man labelled “unclean” by name is healed and welcomed by Jesus.
- Mark’s deliberate double meaning
- Perhaps Mark highlights both: He explains “son of Timaeus” for his audience, but the name may resonate in Aramaic as “son of the unclean,” while also sounding Greek as “son of honour.”
- That kind of wordplay fits Mark’s style, drawing attention to the reversal theme in the story.
Bartimaeus can mean “unclean son,” depending on whether we trace it back to the Semitic root. But it’s also possible Mark wanted readers to hear “son of honour,” so the name may carry both layers of meaning.
God bless,
Malcolm
