. Ἐς STENNING.
MECHERATHITE.—See MAACAH.
MEDABA (Mnéa8d).—The form of the name MEDEBA, which appears in 1 Mac 955.
MEDAD.—See ELpap.
MEDAN ()7>).—Name of a son of Abraham and Keturah, Gn 25° (B Madalu, A Maddv)=1 Ch 153 (B Μαδιάμ, A Maddy). The word is probably to be identified with Madan, the god of some Arab tribe, best known through the proper name Add- Al-Madan, ‘worshipper of Al-Madan’; the tribe or family called Bani ‘Abd-Al-Madan was pro- verbial for various sorts of excellence in the earliest Arabic known to us (Kamil of Al-Mubarrad, i. 56, 72). Unlike most of the names of the Arabic deities, the word appears to have an appropriate etymology, and to mean simply ‘object of wor- ship’; and with this sense the employment of the article accords, as well as the alternative vocaliza- tion, Al-Muddn (Sakt Al-Zand of Abu ’1-‘Ala, ed. Boulak, i. 47). The occurrence of the name of this god in a context in which we expect the name of a tribe, implies that the word was used as a national name also; and the word Kais is precisely parallel to Madan as being used for both a nation and a god, and as taking the article in the latter applica- tion. The seat of the worship of Al-Madan appears to have been Yemen (7) Al- Aris, s.v.), whereas the descendants of Keturah appear to be far away from S. Arabia ; but this may be due to the migra- tion of a tribe; and indeed the word occurs as 8
eographical name in N. Arabia (Yaikit and Al- ekri). Ὁ. 5. MARGOLIOUTH.
MEDEBA (x37 ‘gently flowing waters,’ Nu 21", Jos 13% 16 1 Ch 197, Is 15?).—A town in the Mishor,* east of Jordan, about 14 hour S. of
* Mishor (WR Dt 810 44, Jog 199% 16.17.21 208, Jer 48% 2; translated by AV ‘plain,’ or ‘plain country,’ by RV ‘plain,’ m. ‘tableland’) is the name given to one of the divisions of Eastern Palestine, comprising the country between Heshbon and the Arnon, assigned to Reuben. It {s a treeless plateaw
310 MEDEBA
MEDES
Heshbon on the Roman road from that place to Kerak. It originally belonged to Moab, but was taken from them by Sihon, who was in his turn dispossessed by the children of Israel (Nu 21%-*), It was assigned to Reuben (Jos 13% !%, where ν.9 should be translated ‘all the tableland—Medeba to Dibon,’ and v.™ ‘all the tableland as far as Medeba’). The Syrians who came to assist the chil- dien of Ammon pitched at Medeba, and, from the account of Joab’s battle with them, it would seem that the city was then in the hands of the children of Ammon (1 Ch 19°), Since David’s time (2S 8%) Moab must have regained possession of the city and territory around, for, according to the Moabite Stone (line 8), Omri took possession of [the land of] Mehedeba, and Israel dwelt therein during his days and half his son’s days, forty years; but Mesha recovered the territory, and rebuilt the cities which had been held by Omri and his son Ahab. Medeba is (perhaps) named in line 30, but the stone is here Hateet, and the reading not
uite certain. Joram’s attempt in company with Hatsabaphiat to recover these cities (2 K 3) was but partially successful, and the Moabites re- mained in them unchallenged until the prosperous reign of Jeroboam Il., when they were driven to the south of the Arnon. Medeba is mentioned as belonging to Moab in Is 15”, but not in Jer 48— an omission which is the more remarkable, as the list of Moabite cities in Jer is more full than that in Isaiah. Where by comparison with Isaiah we might expect to find it, oceurs Madmen (Jer 485), a name occurring only in that verse. See MADMEN. The LXX renderings are Jos 13° Δαιδαβάν B*, Μαιδαβάν ΒΑΓ, Μαιδαβά A. The word is omitted in ν.}86, 1 Ch 197 Μαιδαβά B, Μηδαβά A, Βαιδαβά κα. The text of Nu 21 is uncertain ; for the last clause LXX has πῦρ ἐπὶ Μωάβ, Pesh. e271D7. +The Ἢ of ws, which has been marked with a point by the Massoretes, is not regarded by the LXX, and neither they nor Pesh. read Medeba. ae 15* τῆς MwaBelridos (B) represents the Medeba of MT.
In Maccabzean times John, the eldest son of Mattathias, was killed by a robber clan which lived at Medeba. The name of this clan was Jambri or Ambri. How Jonathan avenged the death of his brother is related in 1 Mac 9°*-* and Jos. Ant. XIII. i. 2,4. John Hyrcanus laid siege to Medeba, and took it with difliculty (Jos. An¢. xml. ix. 1). Alexander Janneus afterwards took it along with others from the Arabians, and Hyrcanus 1. promised to restore them to Aretas (ib. XIII. xv. 4, XIV. i. 4).
The city appears to have been a flourishing Christian centre during the Byzantine period. It was the seat of a bishopric, and was represented at the Council of Chalcedon. After remaining desolate for centuries it was occupied in 1880 by a colony of Christians from Kerak, and some Latin fathers have established a mission there. In digging for foundations of houses many ancient remains have been brought to light. Besides the large pool with solid walls mentioned by several travellers, the remains of gates, towers, and four churches, besides some beautiful mosaics, have been discovered. An interesting account of a visit to these ruins is contained in ῬΕΙ͂ δέ for July 1895, and Pére Séjourné has written a full article on Medeba in the Revue Biblique for Oct. 1892. A remarkable mosaic map of Christian Palestine and Egypt has also been discovered, a description of which appears in PHFS¢t for July 1897, being