Christ revealed Uod as the Father of men, and the kindness and mercy He enjoined on His fol- lowers resemble the type of these which is mani- fested by God. The divine Father regards men as potentially His true sons, and yearns for the prodigal's return (Lk 15*). "To etfect His merciful purpose He uses the instruments of kindnes.s — even His severity is kind. He makes His sun rise on the evil and the goo<i (Mt 5"), and ble.s.ses even the unbelieving with rain and fruitful seasons and gladness of heart (Ac 14"), and He sent Christ to reveal Himself by miracles of kindness, and by ojiening up a way of spiritual salvation. Love to God will dispose men to Wew others as He does, i.e. as persons who are laden with sulVering, but capable of the highest things, and as most likely to bo inlluenced for good by love and kindness (Lk 0»'-, 1 Jn 3").
2. (n) Intensively, kindness is limited, or at least its form is regiilatetl, by the condition that righteousness must he maintained and developed. A holy GimI cannot bestow complete happiness on the unholy. I'enitence, faith, and new obedienco are thorclore demanded in men, and the mi.sery endured wliile they ore absent or deficient is but a proof of tJod's kindness. So, if man's brother sin against him, he must be induced to rejicnt and turn from the wrong (Mt I8"«-)- •'« «'''" on'y showers promiscuous benefits on the evil-doer shows no true kindness to the latter or to tlis community, but rather enoonrages ths sinner in
fi40
KINDRED
KING
Bin, and so shares in it. Here kindness is mani- fested in reclaiming the ollender from evil (which must be clearly represented as such), and in par- ticulai by the manner in which he is approached, by signs of goodwill, by patience, forboarauce, timely speech, and timely silence, and all those nameless, conciliatory arts which can spring only from that love which sulVereth long and is kind, and seeketh not her otcn (I Co 13^-). The ends of righteousness and of true kindness furtlier require that man shall be just before being generous (although when a material debt is paid we still fail to give others their due if it is discharged without love, Ro 13"), and tliat there be no indiscriminate or injudicious bestowal of aid, such as would tend to lessen another's self-respect and reliance on self-help (2 Th 3'"), not to speak of actions which are onl^ to be described as oilicious (1 P 4"). So, too, it is needful to adhere to tlie truth, at the risk of an apparent want of kindness. The Christian should endeavour to rise to the height of Christ's example, so as to be able, on occasion given, to speak the truth to those who are in trying circumstances, with such a spirit of faith and glad confidence in the fatlierly love of God that the announcement will liave, not a hurtful but, as far as may be, a soothing and bracing effect (Epli 4"'- "). Kind- ness, therefore, is based on righteous Christian love as its principle and motive ; and our Lord's golden rule (Mt 7") and parable of the Good Samaritan furnish guidance for the practical ap- plication of the principle.
(b) Extensivdy, kindness is due to all men with wlium one has to do, and even to the lower animals, the example and care of God being again our standard (Jn 4", Mt 6^K People of one's own faith, as being nearer than others, and furnishing more points of contact, and yielding many services which merit gratitude, have speciiu claims (Gal 6'"). But the ungodly and sinful also call for compassionate care in view of their spiritual possibilities. Even the minor courtesies of life in general human intercourse are of value (MtlO'^*=). G. Ferries.
KINDRED (in AV 1611 nearly always kinred) occurs in the plur. in the sense of ' families,' 1 Ch 16^ Ps 22-'' 96' (all nins-c), Ac 3» (irarp^al, RV 'faraUies'), Kev V V IP 13' (0i,Xai, KV 'tribes'). Tindale has the sing, in the same sense, Dt 29'* • Lest there be arnonge you man or woman kynred or trybe that turneth awaye in his hert this daye from the Lord oure God ' (AV 'family'). Cf. Elyot, Gouvernour, ii. 99, 'And also for his endeavour, prowesse, and wisedome, [Moyses] was raoche estemed by Pharao and the nobles of Egipte ; so that he moughte have lived there continually in moche honour and welth, if he would have preferred his singular advaUe be- fore the universal! weale of his o^vne kynred or familie.' J. HASTINGS.
KINE.— See Ox
KING (The Office of, in Israel).— L Origin.
—1. Of the origin of the king [nb^ melek) among Semitic peoples only uncertain inferences can be ilrawn from the meaning of the word and from facts more or less disputed.
MLK in Assyr. and Aram. = ' advise,' ' decree ' ; .A.rab. = ' possess,' ' rule ' ; Heb. and Eth. = ' rule.' riiig suggests that the term arose rather from the intellectual than the merely physical side, from counsel rather than prowess. He whose counsel was found best, eventually became king. Further, the term seems to have arisen after the purely nomadic stage of the Semitic nations (in
which the Sheikh rules)* had ceased, yet before any had gained large territories. For king seems to be closely connected with citij life, in con- trast alike to unsettled wanderings and to per- manent possession of large tracts of country. Thus we find in the time of Abraham several kings in a small space round the Dead Sea, and many throughout Palestine at the time of the conquest, each ruling a to\vn with its adjacent lands, and presumably such villages as were de-