Franz Ferdinand Benary (22 March 1805, Kassel – 7 February 1880, Berlin) was a German orientalist and exegete. He was the older brother of classical philologist Agathon Benary.
From 1824 he studied theology and oriental languages at the universities of Bonn, Halle and Berlin. At Halle he was especially influenced by the teachings of Wilhelm Gesenius. In 1829 he qualified as a lecturer of oriental languages at the University of Berlin, where in 1831, he was appointed an associate professor of Old Testament exegesis.ADB:Benary, Franz Ferdinand In: Allgemeine Deutsche Biographie (ADB). Band 46, Duncker & Humblot, Leipzig 1902, S. 346 f.
In the realm of politics he was a distinguished member of the Fortschrittspartei (Progressive Party). Along with art historian Heinrich Gustav Hotho, theologian Wilhelm Vatke, philosopher Karl Ludwig Michelet and Agathon Benary, he was a prominent member of the liberal reform faction in regards to Hegelianism at Berlin.Kantian Reason and Hegelian Spirit: The Idealistic Logic of Modern Theology by Gary DorrienHegelianism: The Path Toward Dialectical Humanism, 1805-1841 by John Edward Toews
Selected works Nalodaya; Sanscritum carmen, Calidaso adscriptum una cum Pradschnacari Mithilensis scholiis, 1830 (edition of Kālidāsa). De Hebraeorum leviratu, 1835. Coniectanea quaedam in vetus testamentum, 1835.Most widely held works by Ferdinand Benary WorldCat Identities "Interpretation of the number 666 (χξϛ) in the Apocalypse (13:18) and the various reading 616 (χιϛ)". Translated from the "Zeitschrift für speculative Theologie", (1836) Vol. I Part II by Henry Boynton Smith.Bibliotheca Sacra and Theological Review, Volume 1, Issue 1
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