A Brighter Day Begins with His Word.

PUBLIC-DOMAIN CHRISTIAN BOOK

A Dictionary of the Bible — Volume 1

James Hastings · 1,192,276 words · 1189 reading sections

SECTION 721

Section 721

Confiscation. — An act for which no provision is made in the Mosaic economy, but authorized in a modified form by Pers. rule, so that a residence might be destroyed ; but no mention is made of the forfeiture or property for the benefit of the State (Ezr 6", Dn 2= 3-='). The act described in Ezr "i^ seems to convey the …

1,033 words
SECTION 722

Section 722

Fines were permitted at the option of the injured party as a special privilege to freedmen (slaves being punished), and in earliest times the money was presented to the priest or at the sanctuary. It was not in accordance with Sem. doctrine to com- pel the aggrieved to accept material compensation (\V. R. Smith, RS 329…

1,010 words
SECTION 723

Section 723

Indignities. — There was resort to various means of heajiing contumely on an ofl'ender ; such as ignominious or obscure burial for a blasphemer (Jos. Ant. IV. viii. 6 ; 1 K 14", 2 K 9'" 21'»- -«, 2 Ch 24''», Jer 22'"). Some victims were slain and left in the street or cast behind the walls (Ps 79-- ^ To 2'). Heads of t…

1,088 words
SECTION 724

Section 724

Retaliation was authorized in the code of Ex 2124. 23 jj ^yj^g ij, ^gg among other nations, esp. the Egyptians (cf. the lex talionis of the Romans). It was not unequivocally approved by ancient authors, because it was apt to degenerate into mere revenge and would often be unfair in its operation. The possibility of its…

902 words
SECTION 725

Section 725

The Stocks (nj?'7'?> ivXdf vtirrfavpiY'/o'')- This machine, though probably of Egyp. ori-^in, is not described in the Mosaic legislation, but in it Hanani, the seer, was put by Asa (2 Ch 16'°), and Jeremiah was punished (Jer 20^). In Jer 27' KV uses 'bars for AV 'yokes,' and in Jer 29* changes 'priiion' to 'stoclcs,' a…

960 words
SECTION 726

Section 726

LiTEEATUBE.— In addition to the authorities cited in the art , the reader may consult Hamburger, RE. art. *Lohn u. Strafe' (pp. 691 -703) and *Vergeltung" (pp. 1252-57) ; artt. on the varioui cnmes and punishments enumerated above, in Riehm, II WB, lienogt KEt and Srhenkel, liiljeUex.;Sa3.liii:hutz,da«Mo/tautehe Rpcht …

1,011 words
SECTION 727

Section 727

Tlie upright post to which alone the name properly belongs, was usually a piece of some strong, cheap wood, olive or oak, of such length that wlien firmly planted in tlie ground the top was from 71 to ii ft. high. Most modern illustra- tions err in making the upright much too high. •• Copvriohl. 1S9S, bi/ It was erec…

1,155 words
SECTION 728

Section 728

All authorities agree that of all deaths crucifixion was the most abhorred. This was due not only to its pain, which was of the most intense character (see the account of Richter, quoted in .Smith, DB), but also to its shatne, which in the case of the Koman w.TS due to its servile association, in that of the Jew to its…

993 words
SECTION 729

Section 729

530 CROWN CROWN brevity of the description in Ex has occasioned differences of opinion among archieologists as to both its purpose and its position. Some imagine it a rim to prevent objects from falling off. But the border which passed round the table of shewbread, as well as the table itself, had a crown ; nor woul…

1,003 words
SECTION 730

Section 730

i. In 1 Mac 10® 11" 13^ allusion is made to crowns due from the Jews to the Syrian kings, by which are meant, not coins so named, but money tribute, which represented allegiance as formerly the presentation of a crown had done (1 Mac 13", 2 Mac U* ; Jos. Ant. XII. iii. 3, are- (papirris tpopoi; see Levy, Gesch. der Jii…

1,049 words
SECTION 731

Section 731

CRUSE.— See Food. The English word, now archaic though not quite obsolete, is npimrcntly of Scandinavian origin, and means an eartnenware jar for holding liquids ; less freq. for drinking from, as Skelton (1526), 'Then he may drink out of a stone cruyse.' In AV it holds water (1 S 26"- "■ ". 1 K 19"), oU (1 K 17'^ '*•…

963 words
SECTION 732

Section 732

G. E. Post. CDLTDRE.— Only 2 Es 8« AV and RV, ' give us seed unto our heart, and culture to our under- standing, that there may come fruit of it.' The Eng. word is a direct and accurate tr. of the Lat. (cultura), and is used in its own earliest sense of the cultivation or tillage of the soil. Coverdale, Matthew, and …

915 words
SECTION 733

Section 733

Joseph's divining cup (V'3; Gn 44'*) was of silver, and, we may infer, of elaborate workmanship, since the same word is used for the bowls (AV) or cups (RV), i.e. the flower-shaped ornamentation, on the candlestick of tlie tabernacle (which see for details, also Bowl). That the yjj was larger than the k6^ is clear from…

983 words
SECTION 734

Section 734

H. Porter. CUPBOARD (Kv\lKtor, 1 Mac 15").— A sideboard used for the display of gold and silver plate. This is the earliest meaning of cuiiboard, a board or table for disi)laying cups and otlier ve.ssela ; cf. Greene (1592), ' Her mistress the cubboorde for shewe.' set all her plate on J. Hastings. CURIOUS. — Of th…

903 words
SECTION 735

Section 735

was common in ancient warfare to ' devote,' or put under the ban, the enemy and anything oreverything wliich belonged to him. All wars were holy wars ; warriors were consecrated (Is 13') ; and the ban, which seemed natural in the circumstances, might be of greater or less extent. In Dt 2^, which speaks of the conquest …

1,231 words
SECTION 736

Section 736

The word 'curse' is also nsed in the English Bible as the tr. of ni>^p and (tardpa. The interest of this centres in the passage Gal 3""", and in the ref. there to Dt 2r-''. The non-observance of the law, St. Paul teaches, puts men (some limit it to the Jews) under a curse ; from this curse Christ redeems them by becomi…

916 words
SECTION 737

Section 737

f fKv»crcfa, Inr. af.. is more prolmhly a s>-nonym of rnitici^aftc, one wlin prepared and put together the lenprttm Hiipplied hv the weavcni. Sue llamsay and Nestle in Bxp04. 2'tntM, WiL (180^) 1(1», 1B3, 280. 536 CUSH CUSHAN-RISHATHABI founder is given in the ethnological tables of Gn (IC) as son of Ham, and brotl…

1,236 words
SECTION 738

Section 738

D. S. MARGOLIOtTTH. CUSH (E'13, LXX Xowe/)- — Mentioned only in the title of Ps 7. The older translators appear to have read V'^ (Aq. Symm. Theod. Jer.). 'As the name of a person, the word is of uncertain mean- ing' (Delitzsch). Cush is described as a Benjamite, and was probably a follower of Saul who opposed David, 'r…

972 words
SECTION 739

Section 739

CUTHA (A Koved, B om., AV Coutha), 1 Ea S". — His sons were among the temple servants who returned from Babylon with Zerubbabel. There is no corresponding name in the lists of Ezra and Neh. The name may be taken from the Babylonian town Cuthah or Cuth (2 K 17"- *'). H St J Thackeray CUTTINGS IN THE FLESH.— i. In the …

918 words
SECTION 740

Section 740

In our search for the real origin of the latter, two points have to be kept in mind : both the cuttings and the baldness are expressly stated to lie ' for the dead,' and, not less explicitly, to be incom- patible with Israel's unique relation to J", a relation at once of sonship (Dt 41') and of con- secration ("S tnji …

1,005 words
SECTION 741

Section 741

CYAMON CYPKU8 539 Here, then, we have another heathen cnstom forbidden to the worahippers of J" ; and the un- mistakable evidence of its unworthy associations being tlie cause of its prohibition — although in itself a thing indifferent (Dillm. Theol. d. A.T. p. 428) — strengthens the view above advanced oa to the hi…

1,005 words
SECTION 742

Section 742

The forests of C. had not wholly disappeared even in imperial times, though they were already very much reduced in area by the continuous export of timber (Strabo, xiv. 5). The cypress ( A V ' fir ') or Karamanian pine is the principal forest tree; and the juniper (?, the 'cypress Itirzn/i.'] ofIs44'*') probably former…

1,004 words
SECTION 743

Section 743

transferred to the Senate (Dio. Cass. liii. 12. liv. 4); consequently, Ac 13' is strictly accurate in describ ing Sergius Paulus as proconsul {dyBi'iraTos) in A.D 46. Of this Sergius Paulus no coins are kno'vvn, but an inscription exists at Karavostasi, which ia dated irl QavXov [drBv] irdrou (Hogarth, Devia Cypria p. …

990 words
SECTION 744

Section 744

After Alexander's death, the district of which C was capital became a dependency of Egypt. Under the Kom. rule it was called Cyrenaica, and was politically connected with Crete. In the 4th cent, the city was destroyed by the Saracens, and is now desolate. Cyrenian (Kupiji/aioj). — Two Cyrenians are men- tioned in Scri…

969 words
SECTION 745

Section 745

542 CYRUS CYRUS The annalistic tablet, which, when complete, bejraa with the first year of the rei^ of Nabonidus, tells us that in the seventh year of the latter's reign (B.C. 549) Astyajres had marched against ' Cyrus, king of Ansan,' but that his army revolted against him and delivered him to Cyrus, who then march…

938 words
SECTION 746

Section 746

The proclamation of Cyrus shows that he was not a Zoroastrian like Darius and Xerxes, but that as he claimed to be the successor of the Bab. kings, so also he acknowled^d the supremacy of Bel- Merodach the supreme Babylonian god. tience the restoration of the Jewish exiles was not due to any sympathy with monotheism, b…

964 words
SECTION 747

Section 747

An excellent e<lition of the MS, incln<ling a com- plete traiisiriiitiun of the text and a full introduc- tion, was pulilished by Scrivener in 1S64, and this year (1897) the University of Cambridge has undertaken to bring out an edition in photographic facsimile. Dj.— In the Epistles of St. Panl the same symbol — writ…

927 words
SECTION 748

Section 748

The name and worship of D. were upon either theory imported into Pal. from Babylonia. The name is held to have been originally Sumerian, but a Semitic derivation was found for it in con- nexion with its use to designate the god of aijri- culture. D. was identified with dagan, the iJeb. word for com, when corn is though…

922 words
SECTION 749

Section 749

A. Hender-son. DALMATIA (AaX/iarfa) in apostolic times was an Ul-defined mountainous district on the E. coast of the Adriatic, stretching towards Macedonia. In its more exact use, the name, which is not known DALPIION DAMASCUS 545 to the earlier Greek writers, was used of the S. portion of the Rora. province lU…

1,365 words
SECTION 750

Section 750

ictiy. 546 DAMASCUS DAMASCUS attempt not only failed : it hastened the disaster they wished to avert. Ahaz appealed to Tiglath- pileser, who at once ' went up against D. and took it, and carried the people of it captive to Kir,' Rezin himself bein" slain (2 K 16*) ; and Assyr. colonists were placed in it (Jos.^nt. …

920 words
SECTION 751

Section 751

ii. Geography. — One of the most beautiful and fertile plains in the world is that which lies to the east of the Anti-Lebanon range, at an elevation of about 2200 ft. above sea-level. Great Hermon, Jebel esh-Sheikh, a vast snowy bank filling all the horizon, forms the western boundary. A chain of hills, thrown off to e…

1,062 words
SECTION 752

Section 752

has frequently changed its course in the northern reaches. The traffic has long been confined to the passing of the Haf, the Moslem pilgrimage to and from LlHaramein, El-Medinah, and Mecca. The great road from Aleppo in the north is split as with a wedge at Emcsa by the Anti-Lebanon ridge. It throws an arm round either…

912 words
SECTION 753

Section 753

The traditions associating certain spots with Abraham, Naaman, and Elisha are of the most shadowy character. Hardly more reliable are those relating to the experiences of St. Paul. A spot about half a mile E. of the city is shown as the scene of his conversion. It is now the Christian burying-ground. But tradition has …

1,205 words
SECTION 754

Section 754

DA^' DANCING 549 niUHt have been soon conipeUed to retreat. Not only so, but we learn that it was forced back even from the lowlands by the Aniorites (Jg l*""*"). Wellhausen thinks that it was really the Philis- tines who drove them back into the hill country. But it seems safer to accept the statement of the Mcxt, …

1,015 words
SECTION 755

Section 755

At Dan Jeroboam set up one of the calves of gold (1 K 12*'). Dan di-sajipears from Scripture after the invasion of Benliadad (I K \S^, 2 Ch 16*). It is referred to by Josephus, Eusebius, and .ferome in terms that identify it with the present Tell el-^^adi (although G. A. Smith prefers to locate Dan at Banias). The moun…

984 words
SECTION 756

Section 756

however, that we find comparatively few reference-S to this part of the cultus in OT, or that no pro- vision is made for it in the regulations contained in the recognized standards of the priests. There is no trace of the existence among the Hebrews of any class of priests corresponding to the Salii of ancient Rome, an…

948 words
SECTION 757

Section 757

Tho LAt. dominiu * lord,' was coDCract«d in old French in ▼ariouB ways, of which one waa dans, and was thence adopted lato £ng. in the form dan. Spenser, F. Q, iv, ii, 32, has — * Dan Chaucer, well of English undefyld.' Chaucer himself uses 'dan' freely as a title of respect = sir. from this word was formed dawjer (f…

1,102 words
SECTION 758

Section 758

The story of D. appears to have been written in imitation of that of Joseiih — history, however, often repeats itself ; yet, if the story is liistorical, it is strange that no reference is made to D. in the * Cheyne miggeflt* a connexion between D. and Zoroaster, the name having been coined out of the Zend ddnu, ' wis…

978 words
SECTION 759

Section 759

• Zockler in Lange's Bibelwerk, 1869 ; C. H. H.Wright, Introd. to OT, 1890; Kohler, Lehrbuch der Biblischen Gesch. voL li. p. 645, 1893. , »,. , J t We do not know, of course, just how the author reckoned these kings. Two main schemes have been suggested : (a) (Hitag, Kuenen, Comill, Bevan, «t al.). (1) Alexander. (2)…

912 words
SECTION 760

Section 760

2. Historical Statements. Daniel, according to 1', began his career as a youthful student at the Bab. court in the 3rd year of Jehoiakim, and lived at least until the 3rd year of Cyrus, i.e. from 606 or 605 to 536 or 535 B.C. Within this period are men- tioned as kings of Babylon, Nebuchadnezzar (2'), Belahazzar (5'- *…

906 words
SECTION 761

Section 761

• The remote possibility that B. was a gnvndson of N. on hia mother's side has been uri^^ed as an explanation of the author's statements. This, however, is highly improbable, and an un- natural interpretAtion (cf. Bar inf-). t They have given four different accounts of the origin of Cynis and his relation to the last …

908 words
SECTION 762

Section 762

5. The Homiletical Purpose of the Bk. of Dn is most agreeable to the Antiochian period. The narratives in chs. 1. 3. 6 are exhortations to keep the Jewish law and to remain faithful to the worship of J". While such teaching might be appropriate at all times, it was esp. so then in its peculiar form. The question of eat…

971 words
SECTION 763

Section 763

Tlie view which has been presented of the 15k. of Dn doubtless will appear to some to destroy its religious value and render it unworthy of a place within the sacred Canon. No one, however, under the modem view can read the book witliout being taught lessons of sublime faith, and having a firmer assurance of the ultima…

1,027 words
SECTION 764

Section 764

The prevailing modem interpretation is C (B has had few advocates). The reasons for the adoption of C are as follows : Whatever may have been the facts of history, the author does distinguish between the Median and Persian kingdoms. After tlie iJabylonian he places the Median represented in the reign of Darius (o*"* 6'…

1,037 words
SECTION 765

Section 765

• The references (riven from the Hk. of Knoch are by some reeanleil as helonpn^ to a Christian addition to the original Jewinb work (see art. £kocu, Book ok). God, just as the stone cut out of the mountain without hands ('2*^- ■") stands in conliaaC to the image, an evidently human or earthly product. That later write…

953 words
SECTION 766

Section 766

iv. Veksions.— The LXX text of Dn has been preserved only in one MS, Codex Chisianua, which cannot be older than the 9th cent., and is perhaps much later (Bevan). In place of the LXX the Greek VS of Theodotion was used (even by Irenaeus, + 202). There is no Targ. on Daniel. The follow- Ing diagram (from Behrmanu, p. xx…

912 words
SECTION 767

Section 767

R. M. Boyd. DARA, jrrj 1 Ch 2«, Adpa AB ; but codd. Heb., Luc. AapaS^, Pesb., Targ. presuppose »T1^ Darda (which see). DARDA (vni, AapaXi B, Aopad A, Aaplai Luc.)— Mentioned with Ethan the Ezrahite, lleman, and Calcol as a son of Mahol, and a proverbial type of 558 DARIC DARIUS wisdom, but yet surpassed by Solomo…

1,051 words
SECTION 768

Section 768

According to Joseph us {Ant. XI. i. 3), whose narra- tive rests on clis. 2 and 3 of 1 Es, the goodwill of Darius towards the Jews went back to the time when he was a pri"ate individual, and had vowed that if he became king he would restore the sacred vessels to the temple of Jerusalem. He and Zerubbabel were old friend…

905 words
SECTION 769

Section 769

• He brought the array of Cyrus to Babylon on the 16th Tammuz, Cynis arriving^ nearly four months later, on the 3rd Marcheshvan. t It is noteworthy that Xcnophon (Cyrxtp. N. 6) aaya that Oohryaa waa ' a man in yean*.' I .los. {A nt. X. xi. 4, days that Darius (the Mrde). whom he represcnta aa the kinsman of Oynis, ' …

1,043 words
SECTION 770

Section 770

G. T. PfUVF.s. DARKON (; "y.). — 'Children of D.' were among those who returned with Zerubbabel (Kzr 2", Neh 758). D. is called in 1 Es 5-23 Lozon. See Ge.vealogy. DARK SAYING.— This is the tr" of Heb. ^-^V /iidhdh, in Ps 49* 78'-, Pr 1^. Elsewhere /ndliHk is tr* ' dark speech ' Nu 12* ; ' dark sentence ' Dn 8-^ ; •ha…

1,087 words
SECTION 771

Section 771

The biblical account of D. is to be found (i.) in the narrative of 1 S 16- I K 2 ; (ii.) in 1 Ch 2. 3. 'harles Srribner's Sons DAVID 10-29; see also Hu 41''--- ; and (^iii.) in the titles of many psalnis. Of these three sources the first is alike the oldest and the primary authority ; in- formation derived from the o…

1,040 words
SECTION 772

Section 772

A. ( Budde. ,1) IS 16I»-M1S5. 2«-»(,«-8i''-» 20.22. •23l-"«->«-l»2.'.2-'* ■24. 27, 28'. ' 29. 80. 2s*-26 8], 2 S ]i~*.l'-2i 0, 8*. '^-3" 4, 51-3. i7_:o (^y21llsJ2'23»-»») 6i>->2 6. S"',V.i-i» s'«-i» = 20M-M9--Jn, 1 K 1 2 B. (Hudde, E) 1 8 17. Ib'-» i»-") '-'» lu'-" 21'-» 2.S'«i^'8i'' 26, 2 S !»-■«. Det.iched narrativ…

940 words
SECTION 773

Section 773

Many attempts have been made to harmonize the two narratives. It is suggested that D. had returned home from his position as minstrel, and had since grown out of recognition ; or that Saul's question to Abner related to D.'s family, but that lie personally was known to Saul. Neither of these explanations can be regarde…

1,065 words
SECTION 774

Section 774

DAVID of a suspicion thai D. had conspired with Jonathan to dethrone liini (cf. 1 S 203 f- 22'^). Everything that we are told of Jonathan goes to prove the baselessness of such a suspicion, and his continued affection for I), is evidence of D.'s innocence ; but we can well imagine that the melancholy from which Saul s…

1,223 words
SECTION 775

Section 775

For the rest of Saul's reign D. was an exile from his home, and an outlaw (1 S 21-31). Some inci- dents during this period of his life are described with minute and graphic touches, which bear the evident stamp of geiiuiiiene.ss ; in other cases the accuracy of the narrative is more doubtful. The analysis of these chap…

1,121 words
SECTION 776

Section 776

Gadites and men of Judah and Benjamin joined him here, and not long afterwards (1 S 23") D.'s followers are reckoned at GOO. His parents he l)laced under the protection of the king of Moab, a step which may perhaps be explained by reference to the Book of Ruth, where D.'s descent is traced from Kuth the Moabitess. Acco…

1,151 words
SECTION 777

Section 777

It seems to have been after this, according to the original history of A, that David removed to the desert tract west of the Dead Sea, and made his abode in ICngedi, whither he was followed by Saul, after the retreat of the Philistines. We are told that on one occasion Saul entered a large cave for a necessary purpose,…

1,024 words
SECTION 778

Section 778

566 DAVID DAVID battle of Gilboa, for it was only two days after his return to Ziklai; that 1). heard of the defeat of Israel and the death of Saul and his three eldest sons. The tidings were brought by a young Amalekite, who is said to have presented to D. the royal crown and bracelet ; but the account given by him…

1,053 words
SECTION 779

Section 779

Except for the important record of events in Il.'s family, our accounts of his reign are fragmentary and incomplete ; our history is not arranged in a strictly chronological manner, and the time and order of events must be to some extent a matter of conjecture. In spite of the present arrangement of 2 S 5, there can be…

1,008 words
SECTION 780

Section 780

the succession would have been avoided. On re- moving to Jerusalem D. look fresh wives and concu- bines from this place, and the names of several more sons are recorded (2 S S'^"-, 1 Ch 3^' 14*-" ; on variations in the three lists, cf. Driver, Text of Sam.). We umst not judge 1). herein from a modern Western standpoint…

1,216 words
← PreviousPage 13 of 20Next →

Source & rights

Public-domain historical reference work (1898–1905); OCR text from Internet Archive. Historical scholarship and terminology reflect its era; OCR may contain errors. Verify quotations and current scholarly claims independently.

Project Gutenberg source record →

Historical Christian writing; not Scripture.