mother of Amon (2 K 9119). (Haruz) and her birthplace (Jotbah) are both
given. Similarly in the case of ail the queen- mothers who follow, but of none who precede, Meshullemeth. If the formula ‘daughter of X from (the locality) Z’ is due to a preference of the compiler, it may be an indication of the farthest point of time to which he was independent of his main source, in virtue of oral tradition, ete. But the change of style may have occurred in the main source itself. The name is a feminine form of the frequent masculine Meshullam (cf. LXX B and Luc). It is a passive in MT, but Jerome (Lag. Onom. Sac.* p. 77) gives the active meaning reddens as an alternative to the passive reddita (cf. the spellings of LXX A and Vulg.). W. B. STEVENSON. MESOPOTAMIA.—See ARAM.
MESS.—A mess is a viand, a dish, properly a dish of food sent to the table. It comes from Old Fr. mes (of which the mod. form mets is due, says Skeat, to a wish to show the connexion with mettre), which is formed from Lat. misswm ‘sent.’ Cf. More, Richard III. p. 46, ‘My Lord you have very good strawberries at your gardayne in Hol- berne, I require you let us have a messe of them.’ Shaks. uses the word often, thus Lear, 1. i. 119—
“Ἢ that makes his generation messes
To gorge his appetite.’ Fuller, Holy State, p. 283, says, ‘How often did reverend Whitgift (knowing he had the farre better cheere) send a messe of meat from his own table to the Ministers of Geneva ?’
The word nxyp mas’éth (from xy} to ‘lift up’) is translated ‘mess’ in Gn 43%, 2S 115. Mess occurs also in Sir 8018 ‘Delicates poured upon a mouth shut up are as messes of meat set upon a
ave’ (Gr. θέματα [from τίθημι to place] βρωμάτων).
nd RV introduces the word into He 12" ‘ Esan, who for one mess of meat sold his own birthright’ (ἀντὶ βρώσεως μιᾶς, lit. ‘for one eating,’ i.e. one meal: ‘mease of meat’ is the tr. of the Great (Cranmer’s] Bible ; it is echoed by Shaks. in Merry Wives, 11. i. 68—‘I had as lief you would tell me of a mess of porridge.’ The tr. of the Rhem. NT is ‘a dish of meate’; the AV ‘morsel of meat’ comes from the Bishops’ Bible). {. HASTINGs.
MESSENGER.—The Heb. word πῦρ mal’ak means a messenger, and is so translated about 100 times in AV. It is used of messengers both public and private, both Satanic and Divine. But so frequently does the word designate a messenger from God that it assumes the special meaning of ‘angel.’ In LXX it is nearly always translated b ἄγγελος (exceptions are, e.g., Nu 21*! 225, Dt 2°, all in plu. πρέσβεις ; Jos 6% ol κατασκοπεύσαντες ; 1S 25" παῖδες); but this word ἄγγελος is rendered ‘messenger’ in AV in Mt 11°, Mk 15, Lk 715. 5 9°", 2 Co 127, Ja 2%, where it is evident that human messengers are spoken of; in 2Co 127 St. Paul calls his thorn in the flesh ‘a messenger of Satan to buffet me’ (ἄγγελος σατανᾶ ἵνα με κολαφίζῃ).. It is rarely doubtful whether the meaning is ‘messenger’ in the original sense, or ‘angel’ in the derived or restricted sense. Only once does RV change ‘ mes- senger’ into ‘angel,’ Job 33%, and Oxf. Heb. Lex. says that there the ‘angel’ of RV is too specific ; the reference is to ‘a messenger from God acting as an interpreter and declaring what is right’ (RVm has ‘messenger’). Only once * isa prophet directly called a messenger of God (πῦρ, ἄγγελος), Haggai (1), but the name MALACHI (wh ‘my messenger,’ and Malachi uses the title not only of himself, of the priest as God’s messenger carrying RV
see) is
* Unless Nu 9016 refers to Moses, which is not probable ; keeps AV tr. ‘angel.’
352
MESSIAH
the law of the Lorp to the people (27), of the Forerunner of the Messiah (3'), but even of the Messiah Himself (3), AV and RV ‘messenger,’ RVm ‘angel’). See art. ANGEL. ἡ Other words tr‘ ‘messenger’ are self-evident, but it may be pointed out that in NT ἀπόστολος ‘apostle,’ lit. ‘one sent out,’ is twice rendered ‘messenger,’ 2 Co 8*, Ph 2%, See APOSTLE.
J. HASTINGS. MESSIAH.—
Introduction. L Jewish Messianic belief. 1. Outlines of its history.
(a) ‘Messianic’ expectations prior to or in- dependent of the notion of a unique personal Deliverer.
(Ὁ) Hopes attached to the House of David.
(c) Early Evidence of Expectation of Messiah.
d) Jewish beliefs as reflected in the Gospels.
6) Evidence of Apocalyptic literature.
2 Discussion of special points.
a) The Messiah as Prophet.
δ) The Suffering Messiah.
6) The ‘Son of Man’—Dn 7—Messiah’s pre- existence,
1 The Christian transformation.
Jesus the true Prophet—the Servant of Jehovah— suffering and death the way to aA kingly office of Jesus—His heavenly priesthood—His re- lationship to God.
The argument from prophecy still valid.
Literature.
In approaching this subject, it seems important to distinguish between the historical and the theological points of view from which it may be regarded, and to vindicate the rights of both. There is a danger that a sense, derived from Chris- tian faith, of the purpose and the fulfilment of the nape of the Messiah may somewhat interfere with the accuracy of our view of the course of its history. The Messianic expectation was formed under the influence of the fundamental beliefs and the national experiences of the Israelite people, interpreted first by the prophets and subsequently by more ordinary religious reflexion and specula- tion. In a historical study we must be careful not to attribute greater distinctness or scope to the expectation at any epoch than had then been attained. The actual genesis and connexion of ideas must, so far as possible, be observed; and elements of the final conception, which existed first as separate thoughts and did not affect the process of development during its earlier stages, must be treated as separate till the time when they were in reality combined with the main body of doctrine. On the other hand, in the endeavour to appreciate the true lessons of the history, to understand aright the meaning of the facts, considerations are in place and are necessary, which are, properly speaking, theological—such, namely, as furnish the ground for, or are connected with, our belief in the Moral Government of the world and the Divine plan for man’s Redemption, and determine our estimate both of the Christian Faith and of the OT dispensation, and of their relation to one another.