ACHBOR
gnawing = mouse. (1.) An Edomitish king (Gen. 36:38; 1-Chr 1:49). (2.) One of Josiah's officers sent to the prophetess Huldah to inquire regarding the newly-discovered book of the law (2-Kings 22:12, 2-Kings 22: 14). He is also called Abdon (2-Chr 34:20). ......
ACHOR
trouble, a valley near Jericho, so called in consequence of the trouble which the sin of Achan caused Israel (Josh. 7:24, Josh. 7:26). The expression "valley of Achor" probably became proverbial for that which caused trouble, and when Isaiah (Isa. 65:10) refers to it he uses it in this sense: "The valley of Achor, a place for herds to lie down in;" i.e., that which had been a source of calamity wo......
ADORAM
See ADONIRAM.......
ADORE
to worship; to express reverence and homage. The forms of adoration among the Jews were putting off the shoes (Exo 3:5; Josh. 5:15), and prostration (Gen. 17:3; Psa 95:6; Isa. 44:15, Isa. 44: 17, 19;46:6). To "kiss the Son" in Psa 2:12 is to adore and worship him. (See Dan. 3:5, Dan. 3: 6.) The word itself does not occur in Scripture.......
ALLEGORY
used only in Gal. 4:24, Gal. 4: where the apostle refers to the history of Isaac the free-born, and Ishmael the slave-born, and makes use of it allegorically. Every parable is an allegory. Nathan (2-Sam 12:1) addresses David in an allegorical narrative. In the eightieth Psalm there is a beautiful allegory: "Thou broughtest a vine out of Egypt," etc. In Eccl. 12:2, Eccl. 12: there is a striking a......
AMBASSADOR
In the Old Testament the Hebrew word _tsir_, meaning "one who goes on an errand," is rendered thus (Josh. 9:4; Prov. 13:17; Isa. 18:2; Jer. 49:14; Obad. 1:1). This is also the rendering of _melits_, meaning "an interpreter," in 2-Chr 32:31; and of _malak_, a "messenger," in 2-Chr 35:21; Isa. 30:4;33:7; Ezek. 17:15. This is the name used by the apostle as designating those who are appointed by God ......
AMORITES
highlanders, or hillmen, the name given to the descendants of one of the sons of Canaan (Gen. 14:7), called Amurra or Amurri in the Assyrian and Egyptian inscriptions. On the early Babylonian monuments all Syria, including Palestine, is known as "the land of the Amorites." The southern slopes of the mountains of Judea are called the "mount of the Amorites" (Deut. 1:7, Deut. 1: 19, 20). They seem t......
ANCHOR
From Acts 27:29, Acts 27: 30, 40, it would appear that the Roman vessels carried several anchors, which were attached to the stern as well as to the prow. The Roman anchor, like the modern one, had two teeth or flukes. In Heb. 6:19 the word is used metaphorically for that which supports or keeps one steadfast in the time of trial or of doubt. It is an emblem of hope. "If you fear, Put all your......
APPII FORUM
i.e., "the market of Appius" (Acts 28:15, Acts 28: R.V.), a town on the road, the "Appian Way," from Rome to Brundusium. It was 43 miles from Rome. Here Paul was met by some Roman Christians on his way to the capital. It was natural that they should halt here and wait for him, because from this place there were two ways by which travellers might journey to Rome.......
ASHTORETH
the moon goddess of the Phoenicians, representing the passive principle in nature, their principal female deity; frequently associated with the name of Baal, the sun-god, their chief male deity (Judg. 10:6; 1-Sam 7:4;12:10). These names often occur in the plural (Ashtaroth, Baalim), probably as indicating either different statues or different modifications of the deities. This deity is spoken of a......
BAAL-HAZOR
having a courtyard, or Baal's village, the place on the borders of Ephraim and Benjamin where Absalom held the feast of sheep-shearing when Amnon was assassinated (2-Sam 13:23). Probably it is the same with Hazor (Neh. 11:33), now Tell' Asur, 5 miles north-east of Bethel.......
BAAL-PEOR
lord of the opening, a god of the Moabites (Num. 25:3;31:16; Josh. 22:17), worshipped by obscene rites. So called from Mount Peor, where this worship was celebrated, the Baal of Peor. The Israelites fell into the worship of this idol (Num. 25:3, Num. 25: 5, 18; Deut. 4:3; Psa 106:28; Hos. 9:10).......
BAPTISM FOR THE DEAD
only mentioned in 1-Cor 15:29. This expression as used by the apostle may be equivalent to saying, "He who goes through a baptism of blood in order to join a glorified church which has no existence [i.e., if the dead rise not] is a fool." Some also regard the statement here as an allusion to the strange practice which began, it is said, to prevail at Corinth, in which a person was baptized in the ......
BEOR
a torch. (1.) The father of Bela, one of the kings of Edom (Gen. 36:32). (2.) The father of Balaam (Num. 22:5;24:3, 24: 15;31:8). In 2-Pet 2:15 he is called Bosor.......
BESOR
cold, a ravine or brook in the extreme south-west of Judah, where 200 of David's men stayed behind because they were faint, while the other 400 pursued the Amalekites (1-Sam 30:9, 1-Sam 30: 10, 21). Probably the Wadyes Sheriah, south of Gaza.......
BETH-HORON
house of the hollow, or of the cavern, the name of two towns or villages (2-Chr 8:5; 1-Chr 7:24) in the territory of Ephraim, on the way from Jerusalem to Joppa. They are distinguished as Beth-horon "the upper" and Beth-horon "the nether." They are about 2 miles apart, the former being about 10 miles north-west of Jerusalem. Between the two places was the ascent and descent of Beth-horon, leading ......
BETH-PEOR
house of Peor; i.e., "temple of Baal-peor", a place in Moab, on the east of Jordan, opposite Jericho. It was in the tribe of Reuben (Josh. 13:20; Deut. 3:29;4:46). In the "ravine" or valley over against Beth-peor Moses was probably buried (Deut. 34:6). ......
BORROW
The Israelites "borrowed" from the Egyptians (Exo 12:35, Exo 12: R.V., "asked") in accordance with a divine command (3:22;11:2). But the word (sha'al) so rendered here means simply and always to "request" or "demand." The Hebrew had another word which is properly translated "borrow" in Deut. 28:12; Psa 37:21. It was well known that the parting was final. The Egyptians were so anxious to get the Is......
BOSOR
the Chaldee or Aramaic form of the name Beor, the father of Balaam (2-Pet 2:15). ......
BY-WORD
Hebrew _millah_ (Job 30:9), a word or speech, and hence object of talk; Hebrew _mashal_ (Psa 44:14), a proverb or parable. When it denotes a sharp word of derision, as in Deut. 28:37, Deut. 28: 1-Kings 9:7, 1-Kings 9: 2-Chr 7:20, 2-Chr 7: the Hebrew _sheninah_ is used. In Jer. 24:9 it is rendered "taunt."......
CANKERWORM
(Heb. yelek), "the licking locust," which licks up the grass of the field; probably the locust at a certain stage of its growth, just as it emerges from the caterpillar state (Joel 1:4;2:25). The word is rendered "caterpillar" in Psa 105:34; Jer. 51:14, Jer. 51: 17 (but R.V. "canker-worm"). "It spoileth and fleeth away" (Nah. 3:16), or as some read the passage, "The cankerworm putteth off [i.e., t......
CAPHTOR
a chaplet, the original seat of the Philistines (Deut. 2:23; Jer. 47:4; Amos 9:7). The name is found written in hieroglyphics in the temple of Kom Ombos in Upper Egypt. But the exact situation of Caphtor is unknown, though it is supposed to be Crete, since the Philistines seem to be meant by the "Cherethites" in 1-Sam 30:14 (see also 2-Sam 8:18). It may, however, have been a part of Egypt, the Cap......
CASTOR AND POLLUX
the "Dioscuri", two heroes of Greek and Roman mythology. Their figures were probably painted or sculptured on the prow of the ship which Luke refers to (Acts 28:11). They were regarded as the tutelary divinities of sailors. They appeared in the heavens as the constellation Gemini.......
CHANCELLOR
one who has judicial authority, literally, a "lord of judgement;" a title given to the Persian governor of Samaria (Ezra 4:8, Ezra 4: 9, 17). ......
CHEDORLAOMER
(= Khudur-Lagamar of the inscriptions), king of Elam. Many centuries before the age of Abraham, Canaan and even the Sinaitic peninsula had been conquered by Babylonian kings, and in the time of Abraham himself Babylonia was ruled by a dynasty which claimed sovereignity over Syria and Palestine. The kings of the dynasty bore names which were not Babylonian, but at once South Arabic and Hebrew. The ......
CHOR-ASHAN
smoking furnace, one of the places where "David himself and his men were wont to haunt" (1-Sam 30:30, 1-Sam 30: 31). It is probably identical with Ashan (Josh. 15:42;19:7), a Simeonite city in the Negeb, i.e., the south, belonging to Judah. The word ought, according to another reading, to be "Bor-ashan." ......
CHORAZIN
named along with Bethsaida and Capernaum as one of the cities in which our Lord's "mighty works" were done, and which was doomed to woe because of signal privileges neglected (Matt. 11:21; Luke 10:13). It has been identified by general consent with the modern Kerazeh, about 2 1/2 miles up the Wady Kerazeh from Capernaum; i.e., Tell Hum. ......
COMFORTER
the designation of the Holy Ghost (John 14:16, John 14: 26;15:26;16:7; R.V. marg., "or Advocate, or Helper; Gr. paracletos"). The same Greek word thus rendered is translated "Advocate" in 1-John 2:1 as applicable to Christ. It means properly "one who is summoned to the side of another" to help him in a court of justice by defending him, "one who is summoned to plead a cause." "Advocate" is the pro......
COR
This Hebrew word, untranslated, denotes a round vessel used as a measure both for liquids and solids. It was equal to one homer, and contained ten ephahs in dry and ten baths in liquid measure (Ezek. 45:14). The Rabbins estimated the cor at forty-five gallons, while Josephus estimated it at about eighty-seven. In 1-Kings 4:22;5:11; 2-Chr 2:10;27:5, 27: the original word is rendered "measure." ......
CORAL
Heb. ramoth, meaning "heights;" i.e., "high-priced" or valuable things, or, as some suppose, "that which grows high," like a tree (Job 28:18; Ezek. 27:16), according to the Rabbins, red coral, which was in use for ornaments. The coral is a cretaceous marine product, the deposit by minute polypous animals of calcareous matter in cells in which the animal lives. It is of numberless shapes as it gr......
CORBAN
a Hebrew word adopted into the Greek of the New Testament and left untranslated. It occurs only once (Mark 7:11). It means a gift or offering consecrated to God. Anything over which this word was once pronounced was irrevocably dedicated to the temple. Land, however, so dedicated might be redeemed before the year of jubilee (Lev. 27:16). Our Lord condemns the Pharisees for their false doctrine, in......
CORD
frequently used in its proper sense, for fastening a tent (Exo 35:18;39:40), yoking animals to a cart (Isa. 5:18), binding prisoners (Judg. 15:13; Psa 2:3;129:4), and measuring ground (2 Sam. 8;2; Psa 78:55). Figuratively, death is spoken of as the giving way of the tent-cord (Job 4:21. "Is not their tent-cord plucked up?" R.V.). To gird one's self with a cord was a token of sorrow and humiliation......
CORIANDER
Heb. gad, (Exo 16:31; Num. 11:7), seed to which the manna is likened in its form and colour. It is the Coriandrum sativum of botanists, an umbelliferous annual plant with a round stalk, about two feet high. It is widely cultivated in Eastern countries and in the south of Europe for the sake of its seeds, which are in the form of a little ball of the size of a peppercorn. They are used medicinally ......
CORINTH
a Grecian city, on the isthmus which joins the Peloponnesus to the mainland of Greece. It is about 48 miles west of Athens. The ancient city was destroyed by the Romans (B.C. 146), and that mentioned in the New Testament was quite a new city, having been rebuilt about a century afterwards and peopled by a colony of freedmen from Rome. It became under the Romans the seat of government for Southern ......
CORINTHIANS, FIRST EPISTLE TO THE
was written from Ephesus (1-Cor 16:8) about the time of the Passover in the third year of the apostle's sojourn there (Acts 19:10;20:31), and when he had formed the purpose to visit Macedonia, and then return to Corinth (probably A.D. 57). The news which had reached him, however, from Corinth frustrated his plan. He had heard of the abuses and contentions that had arisen among them, first from A......
CORINTHIANS, SECOND EPISTLE TO THE
Shortly after writing his first letter to the Corinthians, Paul left Ephesus, where intense excitement had been aroused against him, the evidence of his great success, and proceeded to Macedonia. Pursuing the usual route, he reached Troas, the port of departure for Europe. Here he expected to meet with Titus, whom he had sent from Ephesus to Corinth, with tidings of the effects produced on the chu......
CORMORANT
(Lev. 11:17; Deut. 14:17), Heb. shalak, "plunging," or "darting down," (the Phalacrocorax carbo), ranked among the "unclean" birds; of the same family group as the pelican. It is a "plunging" bird, and is common on the coasts and the island seas of Palestine. Some think the Hebrew word should be rendered "gannet" (Sula bassana, "the solan goose"); others that it is the "tern" or "sea swallow," whi......
CORN
The word so rendered (dagan) in Gen. 27:28, Gen. 27: 37, Num. 18:27, Num. 18: Deut. 28:51, Deut. 28: Lam. 2:12, Lam. 2: is a general term representing all the commodities we usually describe by the words corn, grain, seeds, peas, beans. With this corresponds the use of the word in John 12:24. In Gen. 41:35, Gen. 41: 49, Prov. 11:26, Prov. 11: Joel 2:24 ("wheat"), the word thus translated (bar; i......
CORNELIUS
a centurion whose history is narrated in Acts 10. He was a "devout man," and like the centurion of Capernaum, believed in the God of Israel. His residence at Caesrea probably brought him into contact with Jews who communicated to him their expectations regarding the Messiah; and thus he was prepared to welcome the message Peter brought him. He became the first fruit of the Gentile world to Christ.......
CORNER
The angle of a house (Job 1:19) or a street (Prov. 7:8). "Corners" in Neh. 9:22 denotes the various districts of the promised land allotted to the Israelites. In Num. 24:17, Num. 24: the "corners of Moab" denotes the whole land of Moab. The "corner of a field" (Lev. 19:9;23:22) is its extreme part, which was not to be reaped. The Jews were prohibited from cutting the "corners," i.e., the extremiti......
CORNET
Heb. shophar, "brightness," with reference to the clearness of its sound (1-Chr 15:28; 2-Chr 15:14; Psa 98:6; Hos. 5:8). It is usually rendered in the Authorized Version "trumpet." It denotes the long and straight horn, about eighteen inches long. The words of Joel, "Blow the trumpet," literally, "Sound the cornet," refer to the festival which was the preparation for the day of Atonement. In Dan. ......
COUNSELLOR
an adviser (Prov. 11:14;15:22), a king's state counsellor (2-Sam 15:12). Used once of the Messiah (Isa. 9:6). In Mark 15:43, Mark 15: Luke 23:50, Luke 23: the word probably means a member of the Jewish Sanhedrim. ......
CROWN OF THORNS
our Lord was crowned with a, in mockery by the Romans (Matt. 27:29). The object of Pilate's guard in doing this was probably to insult, and not specially to inflict pain. There is nothing to show that the shrub thus used was, as has been supposed, the spina Christi, which could have been easily woven into a wreath. It was probably the thorny nabk, which grew abundantly round about Jerusalem, and w......
DEBORAH
a bee. (1.) Rebekah's nurse. She accompanied her mistress when she left her father's house in Padan-aram to become the wife of Isaac (Gen. 24:59). Many years afterwards she died at Bethel, and was buried under the "oak of weeping", Allon-bachuth (35:8). (2.) A prophetess, "wife" (woman?) of Lapidoth. Jabin, the king of Hazor, had for twenty years held Israel in degrading subjection. The spirit o......
DEBTOR
Various regulations as to the relation between debtor and creditor are laid down in the Scriptures. (1.) The debtor was to deliver up as a pledge to the creditor what he could most easily dispense with (Deut. 24:10, Deut. 24: 11). (2.) A mill, or millstone, or upper garment, when given as a pledge, could not be kept over night (Exo 22:26, Exo 22: 27). (3.) A debt could not be exacted during ......
DIVORCE
The dissolution of the marriage tie was regulated by the Mosaic law (Deut. 24:1). The Jews, after the Captivity, were reguired to dismiss the foreign women they had married contrary to the law (Ezra 10:11). Christ limited the permission of divorce to the single case of adultery. It seems that it was not uncommon for the Jews at that time to dissolve the union on very slight pretences (Matt. 5:31, ......
DOCTOR
(Luke 2:46;5:17; Acts 5:34), a teacher. The Jewish doctors taught and disputed in synagogues, or wherever they could find an audience. Their disciples were allowed to propose to them questions. They assumed the office without any appointment to it. The doctors of the law were principally of the sect of the Pharisees. Schools were established after the destruction of Jerusalem at Babylon and Tiberi......
DOOR-KEEPER
This word is used in Psa 84:10 (R.V. marg., "stand at the threshold of," etc.), but there it signifies properly "sitting at the threshold in the house of God." The psalmist means that he would rather stand at the door of God's house and merely look in, than dwell in houses where iniquity prevailed. Persons were appointed to keep the street door leading into the interior of the house (John 18:16,......
DOOR-POSTS
The Jews were commanded to write the divine name on the posts (mezuzoth') of their doors (Deut. 6:9). The Jews, misunderstanding this injunction, adopted the custom of writing on a slip of parchment these verses (Deut. 6:4, Deut. 6: 11:13), which they enclosed in a reed or cylinder and fixed on the right-hand door-post of every room in the house.......
DOORS
moved on pivots of wood fastened in sockets above and below (Prov. 26:14). They were fastened by a lock (Judg. 3:23, Judg. 3: 25; 5:5) or by a bar (Judg. 16:3; Job 38:10). In the interior of Oriental houses, curtains were frequently used instead of doors. The entrances of the tabernacle had curtains (Exo 26:31, Exo 26: 36). The "valley of Achor" is called a "door of hope," because immediately af......
DOR
dwelling, the Dora of the Romans, an ancient royal city of the Canaanites (Josh. 11:1, Josh. 11: 2;12:23). It was the most southern settlement of the Phoenicians on the coast of Syria. The original inhabitants seem never to have been expelled, although they were made tributary by David. It was one of Solomon's commissariat districts (Judg. 1:27; 1-Kings 4:11). It has been identified with Tantura (......
DORCAS
a female antelope, or gazelle, a pious Christian widow at Joppa whom Peter restored to life (Acts 9:36). She was a Hellenistic Jewess, called Tabitha by the Jews and Dorcas by the Greeks.......
EMMOR
an ass, Acts 7:16. (See HAMOR.)......
EN-HAKKORE
fountain of the crier, the name of the spring in Lehi which burst forth in answer to Samson's prayer when he was exhausted with the slaughter of the Philistines (Judg. 15:19). It has been identified with the spring 'Ayun Kara, near Zoreah.......
ENDOR
fountain of Dor; i.e., "of the age", a place in the territory of Issachar (Josh. 17:11) near the scene of the great victory which was gained by Deborah and Barak over Sisera and Jabin (comp. Psa 83:9, Psa 83: 10). To Endor, Saul resorted to consult one reputed to be a witch on the eve of his last engagement with the Philistines (1-Sam 28:7). It is identified with the modern village of Endur, "a di......
EXORCIST
(Acts 19:13). "In that sceptical and therefore superstitious age professional exorcist abounded. Many of these professional exorcists were disreputable Jews, like Simon in Samaria and Elymas in Cyprus (8:9;13:6)." Other references to exorcism as practised by the Jews are found in Matt. 12:27; Mark 9:38; Luke 9:49, Luke 9: 50. It would seem that it was an opinion among the Jews that miracles might ......
FEAR OF THE LORD THE
is in the Old Testament used as a designation of true piety (Prov. 1:7; Job 28:28; Psa 19:9). It is a fear conjoined with love and hope, and is therefore not a slavish dread, but rather filial reverence. (Comp. Deut. 32:6; Hos. 11:1; Isa. 1:2;63:16;64:8.) God is called "the Fear of Isaac" (Gen. 31:42, Gen. 31: 53), i.e., the God whom Isaac feared. A holy fear is enjoined also in the New Testamen......
FESTUS, PORCIUS
the successor of Felix (A.D. 60) as procurator of Judea (Acts 24:27). A few weeks after he had entered on his office the case of Paul, then a prisoner at Caesarea, was reported to him. The "next day," after he had gone down to Caesarea, he heard Paul defend himself in the presence of Herod Agrippa II. and his sister Bernice, and not finding in him anything worthy of death or of bonds, would have s......
FIRST-BORN
sons enjoyed certain special privileges (Deut. 21:17; Gen. 25:23, Gen. 25: 31, 34;49:3; 1-Chr 5:1; Heb. 12:16; Psa 89:27). (See BIRTHRIGHT.) The "first-born of the poor" signifies the most miserable of the poor (Isa. 14:30). The "church of the first-born" signifies the church of the redeemed. The destruction of the first-born was the last of the ten plagues inflicted on the Egyptians (Exo 11:1......
FIRST-BORN, REDEMPTION OF
From the beginning the office of the priesthood in each family belonged to the eldest son. But when the extensive plan of sacrificial worship was introduced, requiring a company of men to be exclusively devoted to this ministry, the primitive office of the first-born was superseded by that of the Levites (Num. 3:11), and it was ordained that the first-born of man and of unclean animals should henc......
FIRST-BORN, SANCTIFICATION OF THE
A peculiar sanctity was attached to the first-born both of man and of cattle. God claimed that the first-born males of man and of animals should be consecrated to him, the one as a priest (Exo 19:22, Exo 19: 24), representing the family to which he belonged, and the other to be offered up in sacrifice (Gen. 4:4). ......
FORCES
of the Gentiles (Isa. 60:5, Isa. 60: 11; R.V., "the wealth of the nations") denotes the wealth of the heathen. The whole passage means that the wealth of the Gentile world should be consecrated to the service of the church. ......
FORD
Mention is frequently made of the fords of the Jordan (Josh. 2:7; Judg. 3:28;12:5, 12: 6), which must have been very numerous; about fifty perhaps. The most notable was that of Bethabara. Mention is also made of the ford of the Jabbok (Gen. 32:22), and of the fords of Arnon (Isa. 16:2) and of the Euphrates (Jer. 51:32). ......
FOREHEAD
The practice common among Oriental nations of colouring the forehead or impressing on it some distinctive mark as a sign of devotion to some deity is alluded to in Rev. 13:16, Rev. 13: 17;14:9;17:5;20:4. The "jewel on thy forehead" mentioned in Ezek. 16:12 (R.V., "a ring upon thy nose") was in all probability the "nose-ring" (Isa. 3:21). In Ezek. 3:7 the word "impudent" is rightly rendered in ......
FOREIGNER
a Gentile. Such as resided among the Hebrews were required by the law to be treated with kindness (Exo 22:21;23:9; Lev. 19:33, Lev. 19: 34;23:22; Deut. 14:28;16:10, 16: 11;24:19). They enjoyed in many things equal rights with the native-born residents (Exo 12:49; Lev. 24:22; Num. 15:15;35:15), but were not allowed to do anything which was an abomination according to the Jewish law (Exo 20:10; Lev.......
FOREKNOWLEDGE OF GOD
Acts 2:23; Rom. 8:29;11:2; 1-Pet 1:2), one of those high attributes essentially appertaining to him the full import of which we cannot comprehend. In the most absolute sense his knowledge is infinite (1-Sam 23:9; Jer. 38:17;42:9, 42: Matt. 11:21, Matt. 11: 23; Acts 15:18). ......
FORERUNNER
John the Baptist went before our Lord in this character (Mark 1:2, Mark 1: 3). Christ so called (Heb. 6:20) as entering before his people into the holy place as their head and guide. ......
FOREST
Heb. ya'ar, meaning a dense wood, from its luxuriance. Thus all the great primeval forests of Syria (Eccl. 2:6; Isa. 44:14; Jer. 5:6; Micah 5:8). The most extensive was the trans-Jordanic forest of Ephraim (2-Sam 18:6, 2-Sam 18: 8; Josh. 17:15, Josh. 17: 18), which is probably the same as the wood of Ephratah (Psa 132:6), some part of the great forest of Gilead. It was in this forest that Absalom ......
FORGIVENESS OF SIN
one of the constituent parts of justification. In pardoning sin, God absolves the sinner from the condemnation of the law, and that on account of the work of Christ, i.e., he removes the guilt of sin, or the sinner's actual liability to eternal wrath on account of it. All sins are forgiven freely (Acts 5:31;13:38; 1-John 1:6). The sinner is by this act of grace for ever freed from the guilt and pe......
FORNICATION
in every form of it was sternly condemned by the Mosaic law (Lev. 21:9;19:29; Deut. 22:20, Deut. 22: 21, 23-29;23:18; Exo 22:16). (See ADULTERY.) But this word is more frequently used in a symbolical than in its ordinary sense. It frequently means a forsaking of God or a following after idols (Isa. 1:2; Jer. 2:20; Ezek. 16; Hos. 1:2;2:1; Jer. 3:8, Jer. 3:9). ......
FORTUNATUS
fortunate, a disciple of Corinth who visited Paul at Ephesus, and returned with Stephanas and Achaicus, the bearers of the apostle's first letter to the Corinthians (1-Cor 16:17). ......
GEDOR
a wall. (1.) A city in the mountains or hill country of Judah (Josh. 15:58), identified with Jedar, between Jerusalem and Hebron. (2.) 1-Chr 4:39, 1-Chr 4: the Gederah of Josh. 15:36, Josh. 15: or the well-known Gerar, as the LXX. read, where the patriarchs of old had sojourned and fed their flocks (Gen. 20:1, Gen. 20: 14, 15;26:1, 26: 6, 14). (3.) A town apparently in Benjamin (1-Chr 12:7), t......
GLORIFY
(1.) To make glorious, or cause so to appear (John 12:28;13:31, 13: 32;17:4, 17:5). (2.) Spoken of God to "shew forth his praise" (1-Cor 6:20;10:31). ......
GLORY
(Heb. kabhod; Gr. doxa). (1.) Abundance, wealth, treasure, and hence honour (Psa 49:12); glory (Gen. 31:1; Matt. 4:8; Rev. 21:24, Rev. 21: 26). (2.) Honour, dignity (1-Kings 3:13; Heb. 2:7 1-Pet 1:24); of God (Psa 19:1;29:1); of the mind or heart (Gen. 49:6; Psa 7:5; Acts 2:46). (3.) Splendour, brightness, majesty (Gen. 45:13; Isa. 4:5; Acts 22:11; 2-Cor 3:7); of Jehovah (Isa. 59:19;60:1; 2-Th......
GOMORRAH
submersion, one of the five cities of the plain of Siddim (q.v.) which were destroyed by fire (Gen. 10:19;13:10;19:24, 19: 28). These cities probably stood close together, and were near the northern extremity of what is now the Dead Sea. This city is always mentioned next after Sodom, both of which were types of impiety and wickedness (Gen. 18:20; Rom. 9:29). Their destruction is mentioned as an "......
GOVERNOR
(1.) Heb. nagid, a prominent, conspicuous person, whatever his capacity: as, chief of the royal palace (2-Chr 28:7; comp. 1-Kings 4:6), chief of the temple (1-Chr 9:11; Jer. 20:1), the leader of the Aaronites (1-Chr 12:27), keeper of the sacred treasury (26:24), captain of the army (13:1), the king (1-Sam 9:16), the Messiah (Dan. 9:25). (2.) Heb. nasi, raised; exalted. Used to denote the chiefs ......
HABOR
the united stream, or, according to others, with beautiful banks, the name of a river in Assyria, and also of the district through which it flowed (1-Chr 5:26). There is a river called Khabur which rises in the central highlands of Kurdistan, and flows south-west till it falls into the Tigris, about 70 miles above Mosul. This was not, however, the Habor of Scripture. There is another river of th......
HADORAM
is exalted. (1.) The son of Tou, king of Hamath, sent by his father to congratulate David on his victory over Hadarezer, king of Syria (1-Chr 18:10; called Joram 2-Sam 8:10). (2.) The fifth son of Joktan, the founder of an Arab tribe (Gen. 10:27; 1-Chr 1:21). (3.) One who was "over the tribute;" i.e., "over the levy." He was stoned by the Israelites after they had revolted from Rehoboam (2-Chr......
HAEMORRHOIDS
or Emerods, bleeding piles known to the ancient Romans as mariscae, but more probably malignant boils of an infectious and fatal character. With this loathsome and infectious disease the men of Ashdod were smitten by the hand of the Lord. This calamity they attributed to the presence of the ark in their midst, and therefore they removed it to Gath (1-Sam 5:6). But the same consequences followed fr......
HAMMOTH-DOR
warm springs, a Levitical city of Naphtali (Josh. 21:32); probably Hammath 19:35.......
HAMOR
he-ass, a Hivite from whom Jacob purchased the plot of ground in which Joseph was afterwards buried (Gen. 33:19). He is called "Emmor" in Acts 7:16. His son Shechem founded the city of that name which Simeon and Levi destroyed because of his crime in the matter of Dinah, Jacob's daughter (Gen. 34:20). Hamor and Shechem were also slain (ver. 26).......
HAZOR
enclosed; fortified. (1.) A stronghold of the Canaanites in the mountains north of Lake Merom (Josh. 11:1). Jabin the king with his allied tribes here encountered Joshua in a great battle. Joshua gained a signal victory, which virtually completed his conquest of Canaan (11:10). This city was, however, afterwards rebuilt by the Canaanites, and was ruled by a king with the same hereditary name of Ja......
HAZOR-HADATTAH
New Hazor, a city in the south of Judah (Josh. 15:25). It is probably identified with the ruins of el-Hazzarah, near Beit Jebrin.......
HOR
mountain. (1.) One of the mountains of the chain of Seir or Edom, on the confines of Idumea (Num. 20:22;33:37). It was one of the stations of the Israelites in the wilderness (33:37), which they reached in the circuitous route they were obliged to take because the Edomites refused them a passage through their territory. It was during the encampment here that Aaron died (Num. 33:37). (See AARON.) T......
HOREB
desert or mountain of the dried-up ground, a general name for the whole mountain range of which Sinai was one of the summits (Exo 3:1;17:6;33:6; Psa 106:19, Psa 106: etc.). The modern name of the whole range is Jebel Musa. It is a huge mountain block, about 2 miles long by about 1 in breadth, with a very spacious plain at its north-east end, called the Er Rahah, in which the Israelites encamped fo......
HOREM
consecrated, one of the fenced cities of Naphtali (Josh. 19:38). ......
HORITES
cave-men, a race of Troglodytes who dwelt in the limestone caves which abounded in Edom. Their ancestor was "Seir," who probably gave his name to the district where he lived. They were a branch of the Hivites (Gen. 14:6;36:20; 1-Chr 1:38, 1-Chr 1: 39). They were dispossessed by the descendants of Esau, and as a people gradually became extinct (Deut. 2:12). ......
HORMAH
banning; i.e., placing under a "ban," or devoting to utter destruction. After the manifestation of God's anger against the Israelites, on account of their rebellion and their murmurings when the spies returned to the camp at Kadesh, in the wilderness of Paran, with an evil report of the land, they quickly repented of their conduct, and presumed to go up "to the head of the mountain," seeking to en......
HORN
Trumpets were at first horns perforated at the tip, used for various purposes (Josh. 6:4, Josh. 6:5). Flasks or vessels were made of horn (1-Sam 16:1, 1-Sam 16: 13; 1-Kings 1:39). But the word is used also metaphorically to denote the projecting corners of the altar of burnt offerings (Exo 27:2) and of incense (30:2). The horns of the altar of burnt offerings were to be smeared with the blood ......
HORNET
Heb. tsir'ah, "stinging", (Exo 23:28; Deut. 7:20; Josh. 24:12). The word is used in these passages as referring to some means by which the Canaanites were to be driven out from before the Israelites. Some have supposed that the word is used in a metaphorical sense as the symbol of some panic which would seize the people as a "terror of God" (Gen. 35:5), the consternation with which God would inspi......
HORONAIM
two caverns, a city of Moab to the south of the Arnon, built, apparently, upon an eminence, and a place of some importance (Isa. 15:5; Jer. 48:3, Jer. 48: 5, 34). ......
HORONITE
the designation of Sanballat (Neh. 2:10, Neh. 2: 19), a native of Horonaim, or of one of the two Beth-horons, the "upper" or the "nether," mentioned in Josh. 16:3, Josh. 16:5. ......
HORSE
always referred to in the Bible in connection with warlike operations, except Isa. 28:28. The war-horse is described Job 39:19. For a long period after their settlement in Canaan the Israelites made no use of horses, according to the prohibition, Deut. 17:16. David was the first to form a force of cavalry (2-Sam 8:4). But Solomon, from his connection with Egypt, greatly multiplied their number (1-......
HORSE-GATE
a gate in the wall of Jerusalem, at the west end of the bridge, leading from Zion to the temple (Neh. 3:28; Jer. 31:40). ......
HORSE-LEECH
occurs only in Prov. 30:15 (Heb. 'alukah); the generic name for any blood-sucking annelid. There are various species in the marshes and pools of Palestine. That here referred to, the Hoemopis, is remarkable for the coarseness of its bite, and is therefore not used for medical purposes. They are spoken of in the East with feelings of aversion and horror, because of their propensity to fasten on the......
HORSEMAN
Heb. ba'al parash, "master of a horse." The "horsemen" mentioned Exo 14:9 were "mounted men", i.e., men who rode in chariots. The army of Pharaoh consisted of a chariot and infantry force. We find that at a later period, however, the Egyptians had cavalry (2-Chr 12:3). (See HORSE.) ......
IMMORTALITY
perpetuity of existence. The doctrine of immortality is taught in the Old Testament. It is plainly implied in the writings of Moses (Gen. 5:22, Gen. 5: 24;25:8;37:35;47:9;49:29, 49: comp. Heb. 11:13; Exo 3:6, Exo 3: comp. Matt. 22:23). It is more clearly and fully taught in the later books (Isa. 14:9; Psa 17:15;49:15;73:24). It was thus a doctrine obviously well known to the Jews. With the full ......
INKHORN
The Hebrew word so rendered means simply a round vessel or cup for containing ink, which was generally worn by writers in the girdle (Ezek. 9:2, Ezek. 9: 3,11). The word "inkhorn" was used by the translators, because in former times in this country horns were used for containing ink. ......
IVORY
(Heb. pl. shenhabbim, the "tusks of elephants") was early used in decorations by the Egyptians, and a great trade in it was carried on by the Assyrians (Ezek. 27:6; Rev. 18:12). It was used by the Phoenicians to ornament the box-wood rowing-benches of their galleys, and Hiram's skilled workmen made Solomon's throne of ivory (1-Kings 10:18). It was brought by the caravans of Dedan (Isa. 21:13), and......
JAARE-OREGIM
forests of the weavers, a Bethlehemite (2-Sam 21:19), and the father of Elhanan, who slew Goliath. In 1-Chr 20:5 called JAIR. ......
JEHORAM
Jehovah-exalted. (1.) Son of Toi, king of Hamath, sent by his father to congratulate David on the occasion of his victory over Hadadezer (2-Sam 8:10). (2.) A Levite of the family of Gershom (1-Chr 26:25). (3.) A priest sent by Jehoshaphat to instructruct the people in Judah (2-Chr 17:8). (4.) The son of Ahab and Jezebel, and successor to his brother Ahaziah on the throne of Israel. He reigne......
JEZREEL, PORTION OF
the field adjoining the city (2-Kings 9:10, 2-Kings 9: 21, 36, 37). Here Naboth was stoned to death (1-Kings 21:13). ......
JORAM
=Jeho'ram. (1.) One of the kings of Israel (2-Kings 8:16, 2-Kings 8: 25, 28). He was the son of Ahab. (2.) Jehoram, the son and successor of Jehoshaphat on the throne of Judah (2-Kings 8:24).......
JORDAN
Heb. Yarden, "the descender;" Arab. Nahr-esh-Sheriah, "the watering-place" the chief river of Palestine. It flows from north to south down a deep valley in the centre of the country. The name descender is significant of the fact that there is along its whole course a descent to its banks; or it may simply denote the rapidity with which it "descends" to the Dead Sea. It originates in the snows of......
JUDAH UPON JORDAN
The Authorized Version, following the Vulgate, has this rendering in Josh. 19:34. It has been suggested that, following the Masoretic punctuation, the expression should read thus, "and Judah; the Jordan was toward the sun-rising." The sixty cities (Havoth-jair, Num. 32:41) on the east of Jordan were reckoned as belonging to Judah, because Jair, their founder, was a Manassite only on his mother's s......
KARKOR
foundation, a place in the open desert wastes on the east of Jordan (Judg. 8:10), not far beyond Succoth and Penuel, to the south. Here Gideon overtook and routed a fugitive band of Midianites under Zeba and Zalmunna, whom he took captive.......
KORAH
ice, hail. (1.) The third son of Esau, by Aholibamah (Gen. 36:14; 1-Chr 1:35). (2.) A Levite, the son of Izhar, the brother of Amram, the father of Moses and Aaron (Exo 6:21). The institution of the Aaronic priesthood and the Levitical service at Sinai was a great religious revolution. The old priesthood of the heads of families passed away. This gave rise to murmurings and discontent, while the......
KORAHITES
that portion of the Kohathites that descended from Korah. (1.) They were an important branch of the singers of the Kohathite division (2-Chr 20:19). There are eleven psalms (42-49; 84; 85; 87; 88) dedicated to the sons of Korah. (2.) Some of the sons of Korah also were "porters" of the temple (1-Chr 9:17); one of them was over "things that were made in the pans" (31), i.e., the baking in pans fo......
KORE
partridge. (1.) A Levite and temple-warder of the Korahites, the son of Asaph. He was father of Shallum and Meshelemiah, temple-porters (1-Chr 9:19;26:1). (2.) A Levitical porter at the east gate of the temple (2-Chr 31:14). (3.) In 1-Chr 26:19 the word should be "Korahites," as in the Revised Version. ......
KORHITES
a Levitical family descended from Korah (Exo 6:24; 1-Chr 12:6;26:1; 2-Chr 20:19). ......
LORD
There are various Hebrew and Greek words so rendered. (1.) Heb. Jehovah, has been rendered in the English Bible LORD, printed in small capitals. This is the proper name of the God of the Hebrews. The form "Jehovah" is retained only in Exo 6:3; Psa 83:18; Isa. 12:2;26:4, 26: both in the Authorized and the Revised Version. (2.) Heb. 'adon, means one possessed of absolute control. It denotes a ma......
LORD'S DAY
only once, in Rev. 1:10, Rev. 1: was in the early Christian ages used to denote the first day of the week, which commemorated the Lord's resurrection. There is every reason to conclude that John thus used the name. (See SABBATH.) ......
LORD'S PRAYER
the name given to the only form of prayer Christ taught his disciples (Matt. 6:9). The closing doxology of the prayer is omitted by Luke (11:2), also in the R.V. of Matt. 6:13. This prayer contains no allusion to the atonement of Christ, nor to the offices of the Holy Spirit. "All Christian prayer is based on the Lord's Prayer, but its spirit is also guided by that of His prayer in Gethsemane and ......
LORD'S SUPPER
(1-Cor 11:20), called also "the Lord's table" (10:21), "communion," "cup of blessing" (10:16), and "breaking of bread" (Acts 2:42). In the early Church it was called also "eucharist," or giving of thanks (comp. Matt. 26:27), and generally by the Latin Church "mass," a name derived from the formula of dismission, Ite, missa est, i.e., "Go, it is discharged." The account of the institution of th......
LUKE, GOSPEL ACCORDING TO
was written by Luke. He does not claim to have been an eye-witness of our Lord's ministry, but to have gone to the best sources of information within his reach, and to have written an orderly narrative of the facts (Luke 1:1). The authors of the first three Gospels, the synoptics, wrote independently of each other. Each wrote his independent narrative under the guidance of the Holy Spirit. Each ......
MAGOR-MISSABIB
fear on every side, (Jer. 20:3), a symbolical name given to the priest Pashur, expressive of the fate announced by the prophet as about to come upon him. Pashur was to be carried to Babylon, and there die. ......
MARK, GOSPEL ACCORDING TO
It is the current and apparently well-founded tradition that Mark derived his information mainly from the discourses of Peter. In his mother's house he would have abundant opportunities of obtaining information from the other apostles and their coadjutors, yet he was "the disciple and interpreter of Peter" specially. As to the time when it was written, the Gospel furnishes us with no definite in......
MATTHEW, GOSPEL ACCORDING TO
The author of this book was beyond a doubt the Matthew, an apostle of our Lord, whose name it bears. He wrote the Gospel of Christ according to his own plans and aims, and from his own point of view, as did also the other "evangelists." As to the time of its composition, there is little in the Gospel itself to indicate. It was evidently written before the destruction of Jerusalem (Matt. 24), and......
MEDIATOR
one who intervenes between two persons who are at variance, with a view to reconcile them. This word is not found in the Old Testament; but the idea it expresses is found in Job 9:33, Job 9: in the word "daysman" (q.v.), marg., "umpire." This word is used in the New Testament to denote simply an internuncius, an ambassador, one who acts as a medium of communication between two contracting partie......
MORDECAI
the son of Jair, of the tribe of Benjamin. It has been alleged that he was carried into captivity with Jeconiah, and hence that he must have been at least one hundred and twenty-nine years old in the twelfth year of Ahasuerus (Xerxes). But the words of Esther do not necessarily lead to this conclusion. It was probably Kish of whom it is said (ver. 6) that he "had been carried away with the captivi......
MOREH
an archer, teacher; fruitful. (1.) A Canaanite probably who inhabited the district south of Shechem, between Mounts Ebal and Gerizim, and gave his name to the "plain" there (Gen. 12:6). Here at this "plain," or rather (R.V.) "oak," of Moreh, Abraham built his first altar in the land of Palestine; and here the Lord appeared unto him. He afterwards left this plain and moved southward, and pitched hi......
MOREH, THE HILL OF
probably identical with "little Hermon," the modern Jebel ed-Duhy, or perhaps one of the lower spurs of this mountain. It is a gray ridge parallel to Gilboa on the north; and between the two lay the battle-field, the plain of Jezreel (q.v.), where Gideon overthrew the Midianites (Judg. 7:1). ......
MORESHETH-GATH
possession of the wine-press, the birthplace of the prophet Micah (1:14), who is called the "Morasthite" (Jer. 26:18). This place was probably a suburb of Gath. ......
MORIAH
the chosen of Jehovah. Some contend that Mount Gerizim is meant, but most probably we are to regard this as one of the hills of Jerusalem. Here Solomon's temple was built, on the spot that had been the threshing-floor of Ornan the Jebusite (2-Sam 24:24, 2-Sam 24: 25; 2-Chr 3:1). It is usually included in Zion, to the north-east of which it lay, and from which it was separated by the Tyropoean vall......
MORTAR
(Heb. homer), cement of lime and sand (Gen. 11:3; Exo 1:14); also potter's clay (Isa. 41:25; Nah. 3:14). Also Heb. 'aphar, usually rendered "dust," clay or mud used for cement in building (Lev. 14:42, Lev. 14: 45). Mortar for pulverizing (Prov. 27:22) grain or other substances by means of a pestle instead of a mill. Mortars were used in the wilderness for pounding the manna (Num. 11:8). It is co......
MOUNT OF CORRUPTION
(2-Kings 23:13; Vulg., "mount of offence"), the name given to a part of the Mount of Olives, so called because idol temples were there erected in the time of Solomon, temples to the Zidonian Ashtoreth and to the "abominations" of Moab and Ammon. ......
MOUNT OF THE AMORITES
the range of hills which rises abruptly in the wilderness of et-Tih ("the wandering"), mentioned Deut. 1:19, Deut. 1: 20, "that great and terrible wilderness." ......
NAHOR
snorting. (1.) The father of Terah, who was the father of Abraham (Gen. 11:22; Luke 3:34). (2.) A son of Terah, and elder brother of Abraham (Gen. 11:26, Gen. 11: 27; Josh. 24:2, Josh. 24: R.V.). He married Milcah, the daughter of his brother Haran, and remained in the land of his nativity on the east of the river Euphrates at Haran (Gen. 11:27). A correspondence was maintained between the famil......
NICANOR
conqueror, one of the seven deacons appointed in the apostolic Church (Acts 6:1). Nothing further is known of him. ......
NORTH COUNTRY
a general name for the countries that lay north of Palestine. Most of the invading armies entered Palestine from the north (Isa. 41:25; Jer. 1:14, Jer. 1:15;50:3, 50:9, 50:41;51:48; Ezek. 26:7). ......
NORTHWARD
(Heb. tsaphon), a "hidden" or "dark place," as opposed to the sunny south (Deut. 3:27). A Hebrew in speaking of the points of the compass was considered as always having his face to the east, and hence "the left hand" (Gen. 14:15; Job 23:9) denotes the north. The "kingdoms of the north" are Chaldea, Assyria, Media, etc. ......
ONESIPHORUS
bringing profit, an Ephesian Christian who showed great kindness to Paul at Rome. He served him in many things, and had oft refreshed him. Paul expresses a warm interest in him and his household (2-Tim 1:16;4:19). ......
ORACLE
In the Old Testament used in every case, except 2-Sam 16:23, 2-Sam 16: to denote the most holy place in the temple (1-Kings 6:5, 1-Kings 6: 19-23;8:6). In 2-Sam 16:23 it means the Word of God. A man inquired "at the oracle of God" by means of the Urim and Thummim in the breastplate on the high priest's ephod. In the New Testament it is used only in the plural, and always denotes the Word of God (R......
OREB
raven, a prince of Midian, who, being defeated by Gideon and put to straits, was slain along with Zeeb (Judg. 7:20). Many of the Midianites perished along with him (Psa 83:9; Isa. 10:26).......
OREB, THE ROCK OF
the place where Gideon slew Oreb after the defeat of the Midianites (Judg. 7:25; Isa. 10:26). It was probably the place now called Orbo, on the east of Jordan, near Bethshean.......
OREN
ash or pine, the son of Jerahmeel (1-Chr 2:25).......
ORGAN
some kind of wind instrument, probably a kind of Pan's pipes (Gen. 4:21; Job 21:12; Psa 150:4), which consisted of seven or eight reeds of unequal length.......
ORION
Heb. Kesil; i.e., "the fool", the name of a constellation (Job 9:9;38:31; Amos 5:8) consisting of about eighty stars. The Vulgate renders thus, but the LXX. renders by Hesperus, i.e., "the evening-star," Venus. The Orientals "appear to have conceived of this constellation under the figure of an impious giant bound upon the sky." This giant was, according to tradition, Nimrod, the type of the folly......
ORNAN
1-Chr 21:15. (See ARAUNAH.)......
ORPAH
forelock or fawn, a Moabitess, the wife of Chilion (Ruth 1:4;4:10). On the death of her husband she accompanied Naomi, her mother-in-law, part of the way to Bethlehem, and then returned to Moab.......
ORPHANS
(Lam. 5:3), i.e., desolate and without protectors. The word occurs only here. In John 14:18 the word there rendered "comfortless" (R.V., "desolate;" marg., "orphans") properly means "orphans." The same Greek word is rendered "fatherless" in James 1:27.......
PALMER-WORM
(Heb. gazam). The English word may denote either a caterpillar (as rendered by the LXX.), which wanders like a palmer or pilgrim, or which travels like pilgrims in bands (Joel 1:4;2:25), the wingless locusts, or the migratory locust in its larva state.......
PEOR
opening. (1.) A mountain peak (Num. 23:28) to which Balak led Balaam as a last effort to induce him to pronounce a curse upon Israel. When he looked on the tribes encamped in the acacia groves below him, he could not refrain from giving utterance to a remarkable benediction (24:1). Balak was more than ever enraged at Balaam, and bade him flee for his life. But before he went he gave expression to ......
PETHOR
interpretation of dreams, identified with Pitru, on the west bank of the Euphrates, a few miles south of the Hittite capital of Carchemish (Num. 22:5, Num. 22: "which is by the river of the land of the children of [the god] Ammo"). (See BALAAM.) ......
POOR
The Mosaic legislation regarding the poor is specially important. (1.) They had the right of gleaning the fields (Lev. 19:9, Lev. 19: 10; Deut. 24:19, Deut. 24:21). (2.) In the sabbatical year they were to have their share of the produce of the fields and the vineyards (Exo 23:11; Lev. 25:6). (3.) In the year of jubilee they recovered their property (Lev. 25:25). (4.) Usury was forbidden, an......
PORCH, SOLOMON'S
a colonnade on the east of the temple, so called from a tradition that it was a relic of Solomon's temple left standing after the destruction of Jerusalem by the Babylonians. (Comp. 1-Kings 7:6.) The word "porch" is in the New Testament the rendering of three different Greek words: (1.) Stoa, meaning a portico or veranda (John 5:2;10:23; Acts 3:11;5:12). (2.) Pulon, a gateway (Matt. 26:71). ......
PORCIUS FESTUS
See FESTUS. ......
PORTER
a gate-keeper (2-Sam 18:26; 2-Kings 7:10; 1-Chr 9:21; 2-Chr 8:14). Of the Levites, 4,000 were appointed as porters by David (1-Chr 23:5), who were arranged according to their families (26:1) to take charge of the doors and gates of the temple. They were sometimes employed as musicians (1-Chr 15:18). ......
PRAETORIUM
The Greek word (praitorion) thus rendered in Mark 15:16 is rendered "common hall" (Matt. 27:27, Matt. 27: marg., "governor's house"), "judgment hall," (John 18:28, John 18: 33, marg., "Pilate's house",19:9; Acts 23:35), "palace" (Phil. 1:13). This is properly a military word. It denotes (1) the general's tent or headquarters; (2) the governor's residence, as in Acts 23:35 (R.V., "palace"); and (3)......
PROPORTION OF FAITH
(Rom. 12:6). Paul says here that each one was to exercise his gift of prophecy, i.e., of teaching, "according to the proportion of faith." The meaning is, that the utterances of the "prophet" were not to fluctuate according to his own impulses or independent thoughts, but were to be adjusted to the truth revealed to him as a beliver, i.e., were to be in accordance with it. In post-Reformation ti......
RAZOR
The Nazarites were forbidden to make use of the razor (Num. 6:5; Judg. 13:5). At their consecration the Levites were shaved all over with a razor (Num. 8:7; comp. Psa 52:2; Ezek. 5:1).......
RECORDER
(Heb. mazkir, i.e., "the mentioner," "rememberancer"), the office first held by Jehoshaphat in the court of David (2-Sam 8:16), also in the court of Solomon (1-Kings 4:3). The next recorder mentioned is Joah, in the reign of Hezekiah (2-Kings 18:18, 2-Kings 18: 37; Isa. 36:3, Isa. 36: 22). In the reign of Josiah another of the name of Joah filled this office (2-Chr 34:8). The "recorder" was the ch......
SCORPIONS
mentioned along with serpents (Deut. 8:15). Used also figuratively to denote wicked persons (Ezek. 2:6; Luke 10:19); also a particular kind of scourge or whip (1-Kings 12:11). Scorpions were a species of spider. They abounded in the Jordan valley. ......
SEORIM
barley, the chief of the forth priestly course (1-Chr 24:8). ......
SERVITOR
occurs only in 2-Kings 4:43, 2-Kings 4: Authorized Version (R.V., "servant"). The Hebrew word there rendered "servitor" is elsewhere rendered "minister," "servant" (Exo 24:13;33:11). Probably Gehazi, the personal attendant on Elisha, is here meant. ......
SHIHOR
dark, (1-Chr 13:5), the southwestern boundary of Canaan, the Wady el-'Arish. (See SIHOR; NILE.)......
SHIHOR-LIBNATH
black-white, a stream on the borders of Asher, probably the modern Nahr Zerka, i.e., the "crocodile brook," or "blue river", which rises in the Carmel range and enters the Mediterranean a little to the north of Caesarea (Josh. 19:26). Crocodiles are still found in the Zerka. Thomson suspects "that long ages ago some Egyptians, accustomed to worship this ugly creature, settled here (viz., at Caesar......
SIHOR
(correctly Shi'hor) black; dark the name given to the river Nile in Isa. 23:3; Jer. 2:18. In Josh. 13:3 it is probably "the river of Egypt", i.e., the Wady el-Arish (1-Chr 13:5), which flows "before Egypt", i.e., in a north-easterly direction from Egypt, and enters the sea about 50 miles south-west of Gaza. ......
SOLOMON'S PORCH
(John 10:23; Acts 3:11;5:12), a colonnade, or cloister probably, on the eastern side of the temple. It is not mentioned in connection with the first temple, but Josephus mentions a porch, so called, in Herod's temple (q.v.). ......
SORCERER
from the Latin sortiarius, one who casts lots, or one who tells the lot of others. (See DIVINATION.) In Dan. 2:2 it is the rendering of the Hebrew mekhashphim, i.e., mutterers, men who professed to have power with evil spirits. The practice of sorcery exposed to severest punishment (Mal. 3:5; Rev. 21:8;22:15). ......
SOREK
choice vine, the name of a valley, i.e., a torrent-bed, now the Wady Surar, "valley of the fertile spot," which drains the western Judean hills, and flowing by Makkedah and Jabneel, falls into the sea some eight miles south of Joppa. This was the home of Deliah, whom Samson loved (Judg. 16:4). ......
STAR, MORNING
a name figuratively given to Christ (Rev. 22:16; comp. 2-Pet 1:19). When Christ promises that he will give the "morning star" to his faithful ones, he "promises that he will give to them himself, that he will give to them himself, that he will impart to them his own glory and a share in his own royal dominion; for the star is evermore the symbol of royalty (Matt. 2:2), being therefore linked with ......
STORK
Heb. hasidah, meaning "kindness," indicating thus the character of the bird, which is noted for its affection for its young. It is in the list of birds forbidden to be eaten by the Levitical law (Lev. 11:19; Deut. 14:18). It is like the crane, but larger in size. Two species are found in Palestine, the white, which are dispersed in pairs over the whole country; and the black, which live in marshy ......
SWORD
of the Hebrew was pointed, sometimes two-edged, was worn in a sheath, and suspended from the girdle (Exo 32:27; 1-Sam 31:4; 1-Chr 21:27; Psa 149:6: Prov. 5:4; Ezek. 16:40;21:3). It is a symbol of divine chastisement (Deut. 32:25; Psa 7:12;78:62), and of a slanderous tongue (Psa 57:4;64:3; Prov. 12:18). The word of God is likened also to a sword (Heb. 4:12; Eph. 6:17; Rev. 1:16). Gideon's watchwo......
SYCAMORE
more properly sycomore (Heb. shikmoth and shikmim, Gr. sycomoros), a tree which in its general character resembles the fig-tree, while its leaves resemble those of the mulberry; hence it is called the fig-mulberry (Ficus sycomorus). At Jericho, Zacchaeus climbed a sycomore-tree to see Jesus as he passed by (Luke 19:4). This tree was easily destroyed by frost (Psa 78:47), and therefore it is found ......
TABOR
a height. (1.) Now Jebel et-Tur, a cone-like prominent mountain, 11 miles west of the Sea of Galilee. It is about 1,843 feet high. The view from the summit of it is said to be singularly extensive and grand. This is alluded to in Psa 89:12; Jer. 46:18. It was here that Barak encamped before the battle with Sisera (q.v.) Judg. 4:6. There is an old tradition, which, however, is unfounded, that it wa......
TADMOR
palm, a city built by Solomon "in the wilderness" (2-Chr 8:4). In 1-Kings 9:18, 1-Kings 9: where the word occurs in the Authorized Version, the Hebrew text and the Revised Version read "Tamar," which is properly a city on the southern border of Palestine and toward the wilderness (comp. Ezek. 47:19;48:28). In 2-Chr 8:14 Tadmor is mentioned in connection with Hamath-zobah. It is called Palmyra by t......
THORN
(1.) Heb. hedek (Prov. 15:19), rendered "brier" in Micah 7:4. Some thorny plant, of the Solanum family, suitable for hedges. This is probably the so-called "apple of Sodom," which grows very abundantly in the Jordan valley. "It is a shrubby plant, from 3 to 5 feet high, with very branching stems, thickly clad with spines, like those of the English brier, with leaves very large and woolly on the un......
THORN IN THE FLESH
(2-Cor 12:7). Many interpretations have been given of this passage. (1.) Roman Catholic writers think that it denotes suggestions to impiety. (2.) Luther, Calvin, and other Reformers interpret the expression as denoting temptation to unbelief. (3.) Others suppose the expression refers to "a pain in the ear or head," epileptic fits, or, in general, to some severe physical infirmity, which was a......
TINKLING ORNAMENTS
(Isa. 3:18), anklets of silver or gold, etc., such as are still used by women in Syria and the East. ......
TORCHES
On the night of his betrayal, when our Lord was in the garden of Gethsemane, Judas, "having received a band of men and officers from the chief priests and Pharisees, cometh thither with lanterns and torches and weapons" (John 18:1). Although it was the time of full moon, yet in the valley of the Kidron "there fell great, deep shadows from the declivity of the mountain and projecting rocks; there w......
TORMENT
Gr. basanos (Matt. 4:24), the "touch-stone" of justice; hence inquisition by torture, and then any disease which racks and tortures the limbs. ......
TORTOISE
(Heb. tsabh). Ranked among the unclean animals (Lev. 11:29). Land tortoises are common in Syria. The LXX. renders the word by "land crocodile." The word, however, more probably denotes a lizard, called by the modern Arabs _dhabb_. ......
UNICORN
described as an animal of great ferocity and strength (Num. 23:22, Num. 23: R.V., "wild ox," marg., "ox-antelope;"24:8; Isa. 34:7, Isa. 34: R.V., "wild oxen"), and untamable (Job 39:9). It was in reality a two-horned animal; but the exact reference of the word so rendered (reem) is doubtful. Some have supposed it to be the buffalo; others, the white antelope, called by the Arabs rim. Most probably......
WARS OF THE LORD, THE BOOK OF THE
(Num. 21:14, Num. 21: 15), some unknown book so called (comp. Gen. 14:14; Exo 17:8; Num. 14:40;21:1, 21: 21-25, 33-35; 31. The wars here recorded might be thus designated). ......
WORD OF GOD
(Heb. 4:12, Heb. 4: etc.). The Bible so called because the writers of its several books were God's organs in communicating his will to men. It is his "word," because he speaks to us in its sacred pages. Whatever the inspired writers here declare to be true and binding upon us, God declares to be true and binding. This word is infallible, because written under the guidance of the Holy Spirit, and t......
WORD, THE
(Gr. Logos), one of the titles of our Lord, found only in the writings of John (John 1:1; 1-John 1:1; Rev. 19:13). As such, Christ is the revealer of God. His office is to make God known. "No man hath seen God at any time; the only begotten Son, which is in the bosom of the Father, he hath declared him" (John 1:18). This title designates the divine nature of Christ. As the Word, he "was in the beg......
WORKS, COVENANT OF
entered into by God with Adam as the representative of the human race (comp. Gen. 9:11, Gen. 9: 12;17:1), so styled because perfect obedience was its condition, thus distinguishing it from the covenant of grace. (See COVENANT OF WORKS.) ......
WORKS, GOOD
The old objection against the doctrine of salvation by grace, that it does away with the necessity of good works, and lowers the sense of their importance (Rom. 6), although it has been answered a thousand times, is still alleged by many. They say if men are not saved by works, then works are not necessary. If the most moral of men are saved in the same way as the very chief of sinners, then good ......
WORM
(1.) Heb. sas (Isa. 51:8), denotes the caterpillar of the clothes-moth. (2.) The manna bred worms (tola'im), but on the Sabbath there was not any worm (rimmah) therein (Exo 16:20, Exo 16: 24). Here these words refer to caterpillars or larvae, which feed on corrupting matter. These two Hebrew words appear to be interchangeable (Job 25:6; Isa. 14:11). Tola'im in some places denotes the caterpill......
WORMWOOD
Heb. la'anah, the Artemisia absinthium of botanists. It is noted for its intense bitterness (Deut. 29:18; Prov. 5:4; Jer. 9:15; Amos 5:7). It is a type of bitterness, affliction, remorse, punitive suffering. In Amos 6:12 this Hebrew word is rendered "hemlock" (R.V., "wormwood"). In the symbolical language of the Apocalypse (Rev. 8:10, Rev. 8: 11) a star is represented as falling on the waters of t......
WORSHIP
homage rendered to God which it is sinful (idolatry) to render to any created being (Exo 34:14; Isa. 2:8). Such worship was refused by Peter (Acts 10:25, Acts 10:26) and by an angel (Rev. 22:8, Rev. 22:9). ......
WORSHIPPER
(Gr. neocoros = temple-sweeper (Acts 19:35) of the great goddess Diana). This name neocoros appears on most of the extant Ephesian coins ......
ZIOR
littleness, a city in the mountains of Judah (Josh. 15:54); the modern Si'air, 4 1/2 miles north-north-east of Hebron.......
ZIPPOR
a little bird, the father of Balak, king of Moab (Num. 22:2, Num. 22: 4).......
ZIPPORAH
a female bird. Reuel's daughter, who became the wife of Moses (Exo 2:21). In consequence of the event recorded in Exo 4:24, Exo 4: she and her two sons, Gershom and Eliezer, when so far on the way with Moses toward Egypt, were sent back by him to her own kinsfolk, the Midianites, with whom they sojourned till Moses afterwards joined them (18:2).......
ZORAH
place of wasps, a town in the low country of Judah, afterwards given to Dan (Josh. 19:41; Judg. 18:2), probably the same as Zoreah (Josh. 15:33). This was Samson's birthplace (Judg. 13:2, Judg. 13: 25), and near it he found a grave (16:31). It was situated on the crest of a hill overlooking the valley of Sorek, and was fortified by Rehoboam (2-Chr 11:10). It has been identified with Sur'ah, in the......
ACTS OF THE APOSTLES
the title now given to the fifth and last of the historical books of the New Testament. The author styles it a "treatise" (1:1). It was early called "The Acts," "The Gospel of the Holy Ghost," and "The Gospel of the Resurrection." It contains properly no account of any of the apostles except Peter and Paul. John is noticed only three times; and all that is recorded of James, the son of Zebedee, is......
ADAM, THE CITY OF
is referred to in Josh. 3:16. It stood "beside Zarethan," on the west bank of Jordan (1-Kings 4:12). At this city the flow of the water was arrested and rose up "upon an heap" at the time of the Israelites' passing over (Josh. 3:16). ......
ALEXANDER THE GREAT
the king of Macedonia, the great conqueror; probably represented in Daniel by the "belly of brass" (Dan. 2:32), and the leopard and the he-goat (7:6;11:3, 11:4). He succeeded his father Philip, and died at the age of thirty-two from the effects of intemperance, B.C. 323. His empire was divided among his four generals.......
ANATHEMA
anything laid up or suspended; hence anything laid up in a temple or set apart as sacred. In this sense the form of the word is _anath(ee)ma_, once in plural used in the Greek New Testament, in Luke 21:5, Luke 21: where it is rendered "gifts." In the LXX. the form _anathema_ is generally used as the rendering of the Hebrew word _herem_, derived from a verb which means (1) to consecrate or devote; ......
APOTHECARY
rendered in the margin and the Revised Version "perfumer," in Exo 30:25;37:29; Eccl. 10:1. The holy oils and ointments were prepared by priests properly qualified for this office. The feminine plural form of the Hebrew word is rendered "confectionaries" in 1-Sam 8:13.......
ARIMATHEA
a "city of the Jews" (Luke 23:51), the birth-place of Joseph in whose sepulchre our Lord was laid (Matt. 27:57, Matt. 27: 60; John 19:38). It is probably the same place as Ramathaim in Ephraim, and the birth-place of Samuel (1-Sam 1:1, 1-Sam 1: 19). Others identify it with Ramleh in Dan, or Rama (q.v.) in Benjamin (Matt. 2:18).......
ATHENS
the capital of Attica, the most celebrated city of the ancient world, the seat of Greek literature and art during the golden period of Grecian history. Its inhabitants were fond of novelty (Acts 17:21), and were remarkable for their zeal in the worship of the gods. It was a sarcastic saying of the Roman satirist that it was "easier to find a god at Athens than a man." On his second missionary jo......
BEEROTH OF THE CHILDREN OF JAAKAN
(Deut. 10:6). The same as Bene-jaakan (Num. 33:31).......
BETHEL
house of God. (1.) A place in Central Palestine, about 10 miles north of Jerusalem, at the head of the pass of Michmash and Ai. It was originally the royal Canaanite city of Luz (Gen. 28:19). The name Bethel was at first apparently given to the sanctuary in the neighbourhood of Luz, and was not given to the city itself till after its conquest by the tribe of Ephraim. When Abram entered Canaan he f......
BETHELITE
a designation of Hiel (q.v.), who rebuilt Jericho and experienced the curse pronounced long before (1-Kings 16:34). ......
BETHER
dissection or separation, certain mountains mentioned in 2:17; probably near Lebanon. ......
BETHESDA
house of mercy, a reservoir (Gr. kolumbethra, "a swimming bath") with five porches, close to the sheep-gate or market (Neh. 3:1; John 5:2). Eusebius the historian (A.D. 330) calls it "the sheep-pool." It is also called "Bethsaida" and "Beth-zatha" (John 5:2, John 5: R.V. marg.). Under these "porches" or colonnades were usually a large number of infirm people waiting for the "troubling of the water......
BROTHER
(1.) In the natural and common sense (Matt. 1:2; Luke 3:1, Luke 3: 19). (2.) A near relation, a cousin (Gen. 13:8;14:16; Matt. 12:46; John 7:3; Acts 1:14; Gal. 1:19). (3.) Simply a fellow-countryman (Matt. 5:47; Acts 3:22; Heb. 7:5). (4.) A disciple or follower (Matt. 25:40; Heb. 2:11, Heb. 2: 12). (5.) One of the same faith (Amos 1:9; Acts 9:30;11:29; 1-Cor 5:11); whence the early discipl......
CANAAN, THE LANGUAGE OF
mentioned in Isa. 19:18, Isa. 19: denotes the language spoken by the Jews resident in Palestine. The language of the Canaanites and of the Hebrews was substantially the same. This is seen from the fragments of the Phoenician language which still survive, which show the closest analogy to the Hebrew. Yet the subject of the language of the "Canaanites" is very obscure. The cuneiform writing of Babyl......
CHIEF OF THE THREE
a title given to Adino the Eznite, one of David's greatest heroes (2-Sam 23:8); also called Jashobeam (1-Chr 11:11). ......
COLOSSIANS, EPISTLE TO THE
was written by Paul at Rome during his first imprisonment there (Acts 28:16, Acts 28: 30), probably in the spring of A.D. 57, or, as some think, 62, and soon after he had written his Epistle to the Ephesians. Like some of his other epistles (e.g., those to Corinth), this seems to have been written in consequence of information which had somehow been conveyed to him of the internal state of the chu......
COMMANDMENTS, THE TEN
(Exo 34:28; Deut. 10:4, Deut. 10: marg. "ten words") i.e., the Decalogue (q.v.), is a summary of the immutable moral law. These commandments were first given in their written form to the people of Israel when they were encamped at Sinai, about fifty days after they came out of Egypt (Exo 19:10). They were written by the finger of God on two tables of stone. The first tables were broken by Moses wh......
CONGREGATION, MOUNT OF THE
(Isa. 14:13), has been supposed to refer to the place where God promised to meet with his people (Exo 25:22;29:42, 29: 43) i.e., the mount of the Divine presence, Mount Zion. But here the king of Babylon must be taken as expressing himself according to his own heathen notions, and not according to those of the Jews. The "mount of the congregation" will therefore in this case mean the northern moun......
COVERING OF THE EYES
occurs only in Gen. 20:16. In the Revised Version the rendering is "it (i.e., Abimelech's present of 1,000 pieces of silver to Abraham) is for thee a covering of the eyes." This has been regarded as an implied advice to Sarah to conform to the custom of married women, and wear a complete veil, covering the eyes as well as the rest of the face. ......
DALE, THE KING'S
the name of a valley, the alternative for "the valley of Shaveh" (q.v.), near the Dead Sea, where the king of Sodom met Abraham (Gen. 14:17). Some have identified it with the southern part of the valley of Jehoshaphat, where Absalom reared his family monument (2-Sam 18:18). ......
DEDICATION, FEAST OF THE
(John 10:22, John 10: 42), i.e., the feast of the renewing. It was instituted B.C. 164 to commemorate the purging of the temple after its pollution by Antiochus Epiphanes (B.C. 167), and the rebuilding of the altar after the Syrian invaders had been driven out by Judas Maccabaeus. It lasted for eight days, beginning on the 25th of the month Chisleu (December), which was often a period of heavy rai......
EAST, CHILDREN OF THE
the Arabs as a whole, known as the Nabateans or Kedarenes, nomad tribes (Judg. 6:3, Judg. 6:33;7:12;8:10). ......
EL-BETHEL
God of Bethel, the name of the place where Jacob had the vision of the ladder, and where he erected an altar (Gen. 31:13;35:7). ......
EPHRAIM IN THE WILDERNESS
(John 11:54), a town to which our Lord retired with his disciples after he had raised Lazarus, and when the priests were conspiring against him. It lay in the wild, uncultivated hill-country to the north-east of Jerusalem, betwen the central towns and the Jordan valley.......
EPHRAIM, THE TRIBE OF
took precedence over that of Manasseh by virtue of Jacob's blessing (Gen. 41:52;48:1). The descendants of Joseph formed two of the tribes of Israel, whereas each of the other sons of Jacob was the founder of only one tribe. Thus there were in reality thirteen tribes; but the number twelve was preserved by excluding that of Levi when Ephraim and Manasseh are mentioned separately (Num. 1:32; Josh. 1......
ESTHER
the queen of Ahasuerus, and heroine of the book that bears her name. She was a Jewess named Hadas'sah (the myrtle), but when she entered the royal harem she received the name by which she henceforth became known (Esther 2:7). It is a Syro-Arabian modification of the Persian word satarah, which means a star. She was the daughter of Abihail, a Benjamite. Her family did not avail themselves of the pe......
ESTHER, BOOK OF
The authorship of this book is unknown. It must have been obviously written after the death of Ahasuerus (the Xerxes of the Greeks), which took place B.C. 465. The minute and particular account also given of many historical details makes it probable that the writer was contemporary with Mordecai and Esther. Hence we may conclude that the book was written probably about B.C. 444-434, and that the a......
FATHER
a name applied (1) to any ancestor (Deut. 1:11; 1-Kings 15:11; Matt. 3:9;23:30, 23: etc.); and (2) as a title of respect to a chief, ruler, or elder, etc. (Judg. 17:10;18:19; 1-Sam 10:12; 2-Kings 2:12; Matt. 23:9, Matt. 23: etc.). (3) The author or beginner of anything is also so called; e.g., Jabal and Jubal (Gen. 4:20, Gen. 4: 21; comp. Job 38:28). Applied to God (Exo 4:22; Deut. 32:6; 2-Sam 7......
FISHING, THE ART OF
was prosecuted with great industry in the waters of Palestine. It was from the fishing-nets that Jesus called his disciples (Mark 1:16), and it was in a fishing-boat he rebuked the winds and the waves (Matt. 8:26) and delivered that remarkable series of prophecies recorded in Matt. 13. He twice miraculously fed multitudes with fish and bread (Matt. 14:19;15:36). It was in the mouth of a fish that ......
FOUNTAIN OF THE VIRGIN
the perennial source from which the Pool of Siloam (q.v.) is supplied, the waters flowing in a copious stream to it through a tunnel cut through the rock, the actual length of which is 1,750 feet. The spring rises in a cave 20 feet by 7. A serpentine tunnel 67 feet long runs from it toward the left, off which the tunnel to the Pool of Siloam branches. It is the only unfailing fountain in Jerusalem......
HAROSHETH OF THE GENTILES
(Judg. 4:2) or nations, a city near Hazor in Galilee of the Gentiles, or Upper Galilee, in the north of Palestine. It was here that Jabin's great army was marshalled before it went forth into the great battlefield of Esdraelon to encounter the army of Israel, by which it was routed and put to flight (Judg. 4). It was situated "at the entrance of the pass to Esdraelon from the plain of Acre" at the......
HEATHEN
(Heb. plural goyum). At first the word _goyim_ denoted generally all the nations of the world (Gen. 18:18; comp. Gal. 3:8). The Jews afterwards became a people distinguished in a marked manner from the other _goyim_. They were a separate people (Lev. 20:23;26:14; Deut. 28), and the other nations, the Amorites, Hittites, etc., were the _goyim_, the heathen, with whom the Jews were forbidden to be a......
HEBREW OF THE HEBREWS
one whose parents are both Hebrews (Phil. 3:5; 2-Cor 11:22); a genuine Hebrew. ......
HERMONITES, THE
(Psa 42:6, Psa 42: 7) = "the Hermons", i.e., the three peaks or summits of Hermon, which are about a quarter of a mile apart.......
HEROD THE GREAT
(Matt. 2:1; Luke 1:5; Acts 23:35), the son of Antipater, an Idumaean, and Cypros, an Arabian of noble descent. In the year B.C. 47 Julius Caesar made Antipater, a "wily Idumaean," procurator of Judea, who divided his territories between his four sons, Galilee falling to the lot of Herod, who was afterwards appointed tetrarch of Judea by Mark Antony (B.C. 40), and also king of Judea by the Roman se......
INTERCESSION OF THE SPIRIT
(Rom. 8:26, Rom. 8: 27; John 14:26). "Christ is a royal Priest (Zech. 6:13). From the same throne, as King, he dispenses his Spirit to all the objects of his care, while as Priest he intercedes for them. The Spirit acts for him, taking only of his things. They both act with one consent, Christ as principal, the Spirit as his agent. Christ intercedes for us, without us, as our advocate in heaven, a......
ISAIAH, THE BOOK OF
consists of prophecies delivered (Isa. 1) in the reign of Uzziah (1-5), (2) of Jotham (6), (3) Ahaz (4:28), (4) the first half of Hezekiah's reign (14:28), (5) the second half of Hezekiah's reign (36-66). Thus, counting from the fourth year before Uzziah's death (B.C. 762) to the last year of Hezekiah (B.C. 698), Isaiah's ministry extended over a period of sixty-four years. He may, however, have s......
JETHER
surplus; excellence. (1.) Father-in-law of Moses (Exo 4:18 marg.), called elsewhere Jethro (q.v.). (2.) The oldest of Gideon's seventy sons (Judg. 8:20). (3.) The father of Amasa, David's general (1-Kings 2:5, 1-Kings 2: 32); called Ithra (2-Sam 17:25). (4.) 1-Chr 7:38. (5.) 1-Chr 2:32; one of Judah's posterity. (6.) 1-Chr 4:17. ......
JETHETH
a peg, or a prince, one of the Edomitish kings of Mount Seir (Gen. 36:40). ......
JOHN THE BAPTIST
the "forerunner of our Lord." We have but fragmentary and imperfect accounts of him in the Gospels. He was of priestly descent. His father, Zacharias, was a priest of the course of Abia (1-Chr 24:10), and his mother, Elisabeth, was of the daughters of Aaron (Luke 1:5). The mission of John was the subject of prophecy (Matt. 3:3; Isa. 40:3; Mal. 3:1). His birth, which took place six months before th......
JOKTHEEL
subdued by God. (1.) A city of Judah near Lachish (Josh. 15, 38). Perhaps the ruin Kutlaneh, south of Gezer. (2.) Amaziah, king of Judah, undertook a great expedition against Edom (2-Chr 25:5), which was completely successful. He routed the Edomites and slew vast numbers of them. So wonderful did this victory appear to him that he acknowledged that it could have been achieved only by the special......
JOSHUA, THE BOOK OF
contains a history of the Israelites from the death of Moses to that of Joshua. It consists of three parts: (1.) The history of the conquest of the land (1-12). (2.) The allotment of the land to the different tribes, with the appointment of cities of refuge, the provision for the Levites (13-22), and the dismissal of the eastern tribes to their homes. This section has been compared to the Domesday......
JUDGMENT, THE FINAL
the sentence that will be passed on our actions at the last day (Matt. 25; Rom. 14:10, Rom. 14: 11; 2-Cor 5:10; 2-Thess 1:7). The judge is Jesus Christ, as mediator. All judgment is committed to him (Acts 17:31; John 5:22, John 5: 27; Rev. 1:7). "It pertains to him as mediator to complete and publicly manifest the salvation of his people and the overthrow of his enemies, together with the glorio......
KINGS, THE BOOKS OF
The two books of Kings formed originally but one book in the Hebrew Scriptures. The present division into two books was first made by the LXX., which now, with the Vulgate, numbers them as the third and fourth books of Kings, the two books of Samuel being the first and second books of Kings. They contain the annals of the Jewish commonwealth from the accession of Solomon till the subjugation of ......
LEATHER
a girdle of, worn by Elijah (2-Kings 1:8) and John the Baptist (Matt. 3:4). Leather was employed both for clothing (Num. 31:20; Heb. 11:37) and for writing upon. The trade of a tanner is mentioned (Acts 9:43;10:6, 10: 32). It was probably learned in Egypt. ......
MACCABEES, BOOKS OF THE
There were originally five books of the Maccabees. The first contains a history of the war of independence, commencing (B.C. 175) in a series of patriotic struggles against the tyranny of Antiochus Epiphanes, and terminating B.C. 135. It became part of the Vulgate Version of the Bible, and was thus retained among the Apocrypha. The second gives a history of the Maccabees' struggle from B.C. 176 ......
MATTHEW
gift of God, a common Jewish name after the Exile. He was the son of Alphaeus, and was a publican or tax-gatherer at Capernaum. On one occasion Jesus, coming up from the side of the lake, passed the custom-house where Matthew was seated, and said to him, "Follow me." Matthew arose and followed him, and became his disciple (Matt. 9:9). Formerly the name by which he was known was Levi (Mark 2:14; Lu......
METHEG-AMMAH
bridle of the mother, a figurative name for a chief city, as in 2-Sam 8:1, 2-Sam 8: "David took Metheg-ammah out of the hand of the Philistines" (R.V., "took the bridle of the mother-city"); i.e., subdued their capital or strongest city, viz., Gath (1-Chr 18:1). ......
MOUNT OF THE AMALEKITES
a place near Pirathon (q.v.), in the tribe of Ephraim (Judg. 12:15). ......
MOUNT OF THE CONGREGATION
only in Isa. 14:13, Isa. 14: a mythic mountain of the Babylonians, regarded by them as the seat of the gods. It was situated in the far north, and in Babylonian inscriptions is described as a mountain called Im-Kharasak, "the mighty mountain of Bel, whose head reaches heaven, whose root is the holy deep." In their geography they are said to have identified it with mount El-wend, near Ecbatana. ......
MOUNT OF THE VALLEY
(Josh. 13:19), a district in the east of Jordan, in the territory of Reuben. The "valley" here was probably the Ghor or valley of the Jordan, and hence the "mount" would be the hilly region in the north end of the Dead Sea. (See ZARETH-SHAHAR.) ......
NUMBERING OF THE PEOPLE
Besides the numbering of the tribes mentioned in the history of the wanderings in the wilderness, we have an account of a general census of the whole nation from Dan to Beersheba, which David gave directions to Joab to make (1-Chr 21:1). Joab very reluctantly began to carry out the king's command. This act of David in ordering a numbering of the people arose from pride and a self-glorifying spir......
PALM TREES, THE CITY OF
the name given to Jericho (q.v.), Deut. 34:3; Judg. 1:16;3:13.......
PERSEVERANCE OF THE SAINTS
their certain continuance in a state of grace. Once justified and regenerated, the believer can neither totally nor finally fall away from grace, but will certainly persevere therein and attain everlasting life. This doctrine is clearly taught in these passages, John 10:28, John 10: 29; Rom. 11:29; Phil. 1:6; 1-Pet 1:5. It, moreover, follows from a consideration of (1) the immutability of the di......
RAMATH OF THE SOUTH
(Heb. Ramath-negeb). The Heb. negeb is the general designation for south or south-west of Judah. This was one of the towns of Simeon (Josh. 19:8). It is the same as "south Ramoth" (1-Sam 30:27; R.V., "Ramoth of the south"). Its site is doubtful. Some have thought it another name for Baalath-beer.......
RESURRECTION OF THE DEAD
will be simultaneous both of the just and the unjust (Dan. 12:2; John 5:28, John 5: 29; Rom. 2:6; 2-Thess 1:6). The qualities of the resurrection body will be different from those of the body laid in the grave (1-Cor 15:53, 1-Cor 15: 54; Phil. 3:21); but its identity will nevertheless be preserved. It will still be the same body (1-Cor 15:42) which rises again. As to the nature of the resurrecti......
ROMANS, EPISTLE TO THE
This epistle was probably written at Corinth. Phoebe (Rom. 16:1) of Cenchrea conveyed it to Rome, and Gaius of Corinth entertained the apostle at the time of his writing it (16:23; 1-Cor 1:14), and Erastus was chamberlain of the city, i.e., of Corinth (2-Tim 4:20). The precise time at which it was written is not mentioned in the epistle, but it was obviously written when the apostle was about to......
RUTH THE BOOK OF
was originally a part of the Book of Judges, but it now forms one of the twenty-four separate books of the Hebrew Bible. The history it contains refers to a period perhaps about one hundred and twenty-six years before the birth of David. It gives (1) an account of Naomi's going to Moab with her husband, Elimelech, and of her subsequent return to Bethlehem with her daughter-in-law; (2) the marria......
SALT, THE CITY OF
one of the cities of Judah (Josh. 15:62), probably in the Valley of Salt, at the southern end of the Dead Sea. ......
SCHOOLS OF THE PROPHETS
(1-Sam 19:18; 2-Kings 2:3, 2-Kings 2: 5, 7, 12, 15) were instituted for the purpose of training young men for the prophetical and priestly offices. (See PROPHET; SAMUEL.) ......
SEA, THE
(Heb. yam), signifies (1) "the gathering together of the waters," the ocean (Gen. 1:10); (2) a river, as the Nile (Isa. 19:5), the Euphrates (Isa. 21:1; Jer. 51:36); (3) the Red Sea (Exo 14:16, Exo 14: 27;15:4, 15: etc.); (4) the Mediterranean (Exo 23:31; Num. 34:6, Num. 34: 7; Josh. 15:47; Psa 80:11, Psa 80: etc.); (5) the "sea of Galilee," an inland fresh-water lake, and (6) the Dead Sea or "sal......
SEA, THE MOLTEN
the great laver made by Solomon for the use of the priests in the temple, described in 1-Kings 7:23; 2-Chr 4:2. It stood in the south-eastern corner of the inner court. It was 5 cubits high, 10 in diameter from brim to brim, and 30 in circumference. It was placed on the backs of twelve oxen, standing with their faces outward. It was capable of containing two or three thousand baths of water (comp.......
SEETHE
to boil (Exo 16:23). ......
SERMON ON THE MOUNT
After spending a night in solemn meditation and prayer in the lonely mountain-range to the west of the Lake of Galilee (Luke 6:12), on the following morning our Lord called to him his disciples, and from among them chose twelve, who were to be henceforth trained to be his apostles (Mark 3:14, Mark 3: 15). After this solemn consecration of the twelve, he descended from the mountain-peak to a more l......
SHALLECHETH, THE GATE OF
i.e., "the gate of casting out," hence supposed to be the refuse gate; one of the gates of the house of the Lord, "by the causeway of the going up" i.e., the causeway rising up from the Tyropoeon valley = valley of the cheesemakers (1-Chr 26:16).......
SHILOAH, THE WATERS OF
=Siloah, (Neh. 3:15) and Siloam (q.v.)......
SHINAR, THE LAND OF
LXX. and Vulgate "Senaar;" in the inscriptions, "Shumir;" probably identical with Babylonia or Southern Mesopotamia, extending almost to the Persian Gulf. Here the tower of Babel was built (Gen. 11:1), and the city of Babylon. The name occurs later in Jewish history (Isa. 11:11; Zech. 5:11). Shinar was apparently first peopled by Turanian tribes, who tilled the land and made bricks and built citie......
SHUAL, THE LAND OF
land of the fox, a district in the tribe of Benjamin (1-Sam 13:17); possibly the same as Shalim (9:4), in the neighbourhood of Shaalabbin (Josh. 19:42). ......
SILOAH, THE POOL OF
Heb. shelah; i.e., "the dart", Neh. 3:15; with the art. _shiloah_, "sending," Isa. 8:6 (7:3)=Siloam (q.v.) ......
SIMEON, THE TRIBE OF
was "divided and scattered" according to the prediction in Gen. 49:5. They gradually dwindled in number, and sank into a position of insignificance among the other tribes. They decreased in the wilderness by about two-thirds (comp. Num. 1:23;26:14). Moses pronounces no blessing on this tribe. It is passed by in silence (Deut. 33). This tribe received as their portion a part of the territory alre......
SINIM, THE LAND OF
(Isa. 49:12), supposed by some to mean China, but more probably Phoenicia (Gen. 10:17) is intended. ......
SKULL, THE PLACE OF A
See GOLGOTHA. ......
SOSTHENES
safe in strength, the chief ruler of the synagogue at Corinth, who was seized and beaten by the mob in the presence of Gallio, the Roman governor, when he refused to proceed against Paul at the instigation of the Jews (Acts 18:12). The motives of this assault against Sosthenes are not recorded, nor is it mentioned whether it was made by Greeks or Romans. Some identify him, but without sufficient g......
TAVERNS, THE THREE
a place on the great "Appian Way," about 11 miles from Rome, designed for the reception of travellers, as the name indicates. Here Paul, on his way to Rome, was met by a band of Roman Christians (Acts 28:15). The "Tres Tabernae was the first mansio or mutatio, that is, halting-place for relays, from Rome, or the last on the way to the city. At this point three roads run into the Via Appia, that fr......
TEMPLE, THE SECOND
After the return from captivity, under Zerubbabel (q.v.) and the high priest Jeshua, arrangements were almost immediately made to reorganize the long-desolated kingdom. The body of pilgrims, forming a band of 42,360, including children, having completed the long and dreary journey of some four months, from the banks of the Euphrates to Jerusalem, were animated in all their proceeding by a strong r......
THEATRE
only mentioned in Acts 19:29, Acts 19: 31. The ruins of this theatre at Ephesus still exist, and they show that it was a magnificent structure, capable of accommodating some 56,700 persons. It was the largest structure of the kind that ever existed. Theatres, as places of amusement, were unknown to the Jews. ......
THEBEZ
brightness, a place some 11 miles north-east of Shechem, on the road to Scythopolis, the modern Tabas. Abimelech led his army against this place, because of its participation in the conspiracy of the men of Shechem; but as he drew near to the strong tower to which its inhabitants had fled for safety, and was about to set fire to it, a woman cast a fragment of millstone at him, and "all to brake hi......
THEFT
Punished by restitution, the proportions of which are noted in 2-Sam 12:6. If the thief could not pay the fine, he was to be sold to a Hebrew master till he could pay (Exo 22:1). A night-thief might be smitten till he died, and there would be no blood-guiltiness for him (22:2). A man-stealer was to be put to death (21:16). All theft is forbidden (Exo 20:15;21:16; Lev. 19:11; Deut. 5:19;24:7; Psa 5......
THEOCRACY
a word first used by Josephus to denote that the Jews were under the direct government of God himself. The nation was in all things subject to the will of their invisible King. All the people were the servants of Jehovah, who ruled over their public and private affairs, communicating to them his will through the medium of the prophets. They were the subjects of a heavenly, not of an earthly, king.......
THEOPHILUS
lover of God, a Christian, probably a Roman, to whom Luke dedicated both his Gospel (Luke 1:3) and the Acts of the Apostles (1:1). Nothing beyond this is known of him. From the fact that Luke applies to him the title "most excellent", the same title Paul uses in addressing Felix (Acts 23:26;24:3) and Festus (26:25), it has been concluded that Theophilus was a person of rank, perhaps a Roman office......
THESSALONIANS, EPISTLES TO THE
The first epistle to the Thessalonians was the first of all Paul's epistles. It was in all probability written from Corinth, where he abode a "long time" (Acts 18:11, Acts 18: 18), early in the period of his residence there, about the end of A.D. 52. The occasion of its being written was the return of Timotheus from Macedonia, bearing tidings from Thessalonica regarding the state of the church t......
THESSALONICA
a large and populous city on the Thermaic bay. It was the capital of one of the four Roman districts of Macedonia, and was ruled by a praetor. It was named after Thessalonica, the wife of Cassander, who built the city. She was so called by her father, Philip, because he first heard of her birth on the day of his gaining a victory over the Thessalians. On his second missionary journey, Paul preache......
THEUDAS
thanksgiving, referred to by Gamaliel in his speech before the council at Jerusalem (Acts 5:36). He headed an insurrection against the Roman authority. Beyond this nothing is known of him. ......
THIEVES, THE TWO
(Luke 23:32, Luke 23: 39-43), robbers, rather brigands, probably followers of Barabbas. Our Lord's cross was placed between those of the "malefactors," to add to the ignominy of his position. According to tradition, Demas or Dismas was the name of the penitent thief hanging on the right, and Gestas of the impenitent on the left. ......
TIMOTHEUS
the Greek form of the name of Timothy (Acts 16:1, Acts 16: etc.; the R.V. always "Timothy"). ......
TITHE
a tenth of the produce of the earth consecrated and set apart for special purposes. The dedication of a tenth to God was recognized as a duty before the time of Moses. Abraham paid tithes to Melchizedek (Gen. 14:20; Heb. 7:6); and Jacob vowed unto the Lord and said, "Of all that thou shalt give me I will surely give the tenth unto thee." The first Mosaic law on this subject is recorded in Lev. 2......
TOB, THE LAND OF
a district on the east of Jodan, about 13 miles south-east of the Sea of Galilee, to which Jephthah fled from his brethren (Judg. 11:3, Judg. 11: 5). It was on the northern boundary of Perea, between Syria and the land of Ammon (2-Sam 10:6, 2-Sam 10: 8). Its modern name is Taiyibeh. ......
TOWER OF THE FURNACES
(Neh. 3:11;12:38), a tower at the north-western angle of the second wall of Jerusalem. It was probably so named from its contiguity to the "bakers' street" (Jer. 37:21). ......
TRANSFIGURATION, THE
of our Lord on a "high mountain apart," is described by each of the three evangelists (Matt. 17:1; Mark 9:2; Luke 9:28). The fullest account is given by Luke, who, no doubt, was informed by Peter, who was present on the occasion. What these evangelists record was an absolute historical reality, and not a mere vision. The concurrence between them in all the circumstances of the incident is exact. J......
TREE OF THE KNOWLEDGE OF GOOD AND EVIL
stood in the midst of the garden of Eden, beside the tree of life (Gen. 2, 3). Adam and Eve were forbidden to take of the fruit which grew upon it. But they disobeyed the divine injunction, and so sin and death by sin entered our world and became the heritage of Adam's posterity. (See ADAM.) ......
UZ, THE LAND OF
where Job lived (1:1; Jer. 25:20; Lam. 4:21), probably somewhere to the east or south-east of Palestine and north of Edom. It is mentioned in Scripture only in these three passages. ......
WITNESS OF THE SPIRIT
(Rom. 8:16), the consciousness of the gracious operation of the Spirit on the mind, "a certitude of the Spirit's presence and work continually asserted within us", manifested "in his comforting us, his stirring us up to prayer, his reproof of our sins, his drawing us to works of love, to bear testimony before the world," etc. ......