* Ramsay (St. Paul the Trav. p. 203) suggests that the ‘man
of Macedonia’ who was seen by Paul in a vision (Ac 169) is to be identified with Luke himself, who meets the apostle at Troas.
MACHBANNAI
became the property of Antipas, being situated in nis tetrarchy. When Awtipas divorced his wife, the daughter of Aretas, king of the Nabateans, she desired to be sent to Machaerus, which is incon- sistently described (Jos. Ant. XVII. y. 1) as on the borders of the dominions of the two kings, and as subject to Aretas. The inscriptions do not reveal the exact frontier at the time; but there is no evidence in support of the latter statement of Josephus. He is probably in error, sepedally as the context implies that the queen chose her place of retieat with a view to avail herself of its proximity to her father’s dominions for the pur- ose of escape. Shortly afterwards John the 3aptist was imprisoned and put to death in the dungeons of Machaerus (ib. XVII. v. 2; Mk Θ᾽} is not against this, as Keim, Jesus of Nazara, iv. 218, note 1, shows). The fortress, of whose im- portance Tiiny speaks (Hist. Nat. v. 16, 72), was arrisoned by the Romans until A.D. 66 (Jos. Wars, Il. xvii. 6), when they withdrew to avoid its investment. But six nee later it was re- covered (ib. Vil. vi. 4), and finally demolished by Lucilius Bassus.
Lireraturg. — Tristram, Land Moab? (1874), 253 ff.; Biedeker - Socin, Pal. 317; G. A. Smith, Hist. Geog. 569f.; Ritter, Erdkunde, xv. io 577f.; Schtrer, HJP 1. 1i. 250f.; Keim, Jesus of Nazara, Eng. tr. ii. 329 ff.; Edersheim, Jesus the Messiah, i. 120, 658 ff. R. W. Moss.
MACHBANNAI (3222; B Μελχαβανναί, A Μαχα- eel Gadite who joined David at Ziklag, 1 Ch 12%,
MACHBENA (73320, van d. H. 83322 ; B Μαχαβηνά, A Mayaunva, Luc. MaxfSavd).—Named in the genea- logical list of Judah (see GENEALOGY, IV. 34) as the ‘son’ of Sheva, 1 Ch 2”. It is clear that a place and not a person is intended. Machbena is probably the same as Cabbon (0,32) of Jos 15%, which may perhaps be identified with e/-Kubeibeh, situated about 3 miles south of Beit Jibrin (see Dillm, on Jos 15%), J. A. SELBIE.
MACHI (‘>> [derivation and meaning uncertain : if the vocalization implied in Μακχί is correct, the word comes from the Hiph. of 723, and means ‘striking’); LXX Maxxl, Maxl, Maxocl: F has the more familiar form Μαχείρ, in which it agrees with the Peshitta ;sO%0).—The name occurs only once, in Nu 13", where P mentions Machi as the father of Geuel, who acted on behalf of the tribe of Gad as one of the twelve men sent to spy out the land of Canaan. J. TAYLOR.
MACHIR (7>>).—1. Son of Manasseh (the son of Joseph), Gn 50%,—the eldest son, according to J (Jos 17!*), the only son, according to P (Nu 26”). Machir has, however, really a tribal significance : he, or his ‘sons,’ represent the leading branch of the tribe of Manasseh,—usually that warlike part of the tribe (Jos 17!° ‘for he was a man of war, and had Gilead and Bashan’) which, after Moses had assigned inheritances on the E. of Jordan to Reuben and Gad (Nu 32), went and took possession of (the N. half of) Gilead (v.®; ef. v.*, Bt 35), to which other passages add Bashan (N. and N.E. of Gilead) as well (Jos 13® 1710} : in Deborah's song, however (Jg δ᾽" ‘from Machir came down com- manders’ [Moore, ‘truncheon - bearers’; Heb. o’ppnp)), it seems that Machir must denote that part of Manasseh which was settled on the W. of Jordan (so practically all commentators). On account, partly, of this localization of Machir in Deborah’s time W. of Jordan, it has been supposed by many modern scholars that the conquest of Gilead was in reality etfected, not at the time
when Israel first invaded the lands Εἰ, of Jordan in |
MACHPELAH 197
the days of Moses, but subsequently, later even than the time of Deborah, by Manassites invading it from W. Palestine (cf. MANASSEH). From the connexion subsisting between Machir and Gilead, he is habitually spoken of as the ‘father’* of Gilead, Jos 171 1y$in 3 κ (where the art. shows dis- tinctly that ‘Gilead’ is the name of a locality), 1 Ch 231. 3 714 (cf. Nu 26” P, where it is said that Machir ‘begat’ Gilead); and, conversely, Gilead is called the ‘son’ of Machir, Nu 27! 36], Jos 17 (all P), 1 Ch 7*7 (cf. GILEAD 4, above, vol. ii. p. 174). In Nu 26”(P) mention is made of the suite of the Machirites, who traced their descent from ‘Machir.’ See, further, MANASSEH, where the genealogies in which Machir is included are printed in tabular form, and where the inferences which seem to be suggested by the differences between them are more fully stated. 2. See next article. S. R. DRIVER.
MACHIR (720, Maxelp).— The son of Ammiel, described as living at Lo-debar, on the E. of Jordan. The site of this spot is uncertain, but it probably lay on the N. border of Gilead, and is to te identified with Lidebir (Jos 18% RVm). We gather from the biblical narrative that Machir, who was evidently a wealthy and powerful landowner, had remained faithful to the house of Saul during the struggle between David and Ishbaal (or Ishbosheth), and after the latter’s death had extended his protec- tion to Meribbaal (or Mephibosheth), the lame son of Jonathan, until assured of the friendly intentions of the reigning monarch (2 § 918:), His friendly support doubtless contributed in no small measure to Meribbaal’s escape from the subsequent destruc- tion of his father’s house at the hands of the Gibeonites (21!"4), an event which chronologically must have preceded 9:᾽-- Ata later date Machir, together with Barzillai of Gilead, and Shobi, an Ammonite prince, came to the assistance of David and his army at Mahanaim when they were pur- sued by the rebellious Absalom, and furnished them with ample supplies of food and drink (177-*). According to Josephus (Ant. VII. ix. 8), Machir was the principal man of the nner of Gilead.