Among the Jews and other nations of antiquity magical formuliE were employed in which the potent names of supernatural powers were recited. Among the Jews this was cliieily the name of Jehovah varied in all possible forms, while among the Christians the name of Christ was so em- ployed. See article Magic and also Exorcism
POST
POTIPHAE
23
Other remedies of a material cliaracter were also useil. It is Uoulitful whether in Ja 5'* there is anything of a magical or semi-magical character, implying a belief in demon-possession. It should he noticed, however, that in this case the ' name ' was invoked, just as in exorcisms.
Owen C. Whitehocse.
POST. — i. Door or gate-post. — 1. S:x, rendered ' lintel ' in 1 K 6^' (RVni ' posts '), where, probably, the stone case of the door is intended ; aa also in Ezk 40 and 41, where KV prefers 'jambs' to AV 'posts.' It is derived from Sik as indicating what projects in front of or around the door. 2. n-pN (possibly from Dx in a metajiliorical sense), once rendered by AV 'posts' (Is 6'); KV substitutes 'foundations.' 3. nriD, from an unused root m ' to move oneself about,' applied to the post on whicli the hinges turn. In later times the name was transferred to the small cylinder attached to tlie doorpost, containing a strip of parchment on which are written these two pa-ssages, viz. Ut 6*'' and ll""". Every pious person on passing out or in touches this reverently, and tlien kisses his finger. 4. "jB, from root •■,5d ' to spread out,' rendered ' post' three times in AV (2 Ch 3', Ezk iV^ Am 9'). In each ca.se RV rightly .substitutes 'threshold.'
On the doorposts the blood of the lamb was sprinkled (Ex 12' etc.) ; and here the words of the law were to be written (Dt 6' etc., see No. 3, above). Moslems copy the Jews in writing verses from the Koran on their doorposts. The German Temjile Christians in Palestine have engraved a text of Seri[iture over every doorway in their colonies. A servant who Nvished not to avail himself of the law of freedom was brought by his master ' unto God,' 'unto the doorpost,' and h.ad his ear pierced with an awl (Ex 21"). A special sanctity seems in the East always to gather round the doorway (see art. THltE.silOLD). To this it may be due that while the woodwork of the temple was of Lebanon cedar, the doorposts were made of native-grown olive (1 K6^).
ii. Carrier of letters or despatches. — p, pi. D'r] ('runners'), once (2 K II") I'V"!, from pi 'ta run.' The 'runners' formed the roj'al guard (I S 22", see art. GUAUD), kept the king's house, and were available for other service (1 K H""-, 2 K 1U=» 11^'). From them were chosen the couriers, who conveyed royal mandates throughout the kingdom (2 Ch 30", Est 3"- "). Those of the Persian monarch were mounted on 'swift steeds' (Est S'^-^RV*). The swiftness characteristic of this service gives point to the saying of Job 9^ ' My days are swifter than a post.' W. EwiNG.
POT.— See Food in vol. ii. p. 40, s. 'Vessels.'
POTIPHAR (-B-21S ; I.XX in Gn .S?*" A nerpf^^s, E Luc. IIeTf0/);;s, in 39' ADE Luc. llerc^/jijs ; t Vulg. Putij,/Mr).
The name is Rencrally repirded (e.g. by Ebcre, in Smith, Dm I. ii. 1794») aa a Ilel). abbreviation of Potlphera in^ X^-t in wiiich caae it wouI*l be I'^^'yp. P'-dy-p'-R', and mean * lie whom the Ra ^or the Sun-(;od) gave ' ; eoe Setiio, De alejih prost/ietieo in lingua cog. verln formis prwpimto, 1802, p, 31 (a reference, (or which tlie writer is infieiitt-d to .Mr. F. lA. Oritlith), wlio quotes as parallel form.itions J^'-dij-'lmn 'Ho whum Ammon ffave,' P'-dy-'tt * Ho wliom Isis gave.' Sotlio also observes that in Oreelt transcriptions the first two syllables are commonly represented by IIiti-, as in Hiti;^ itself, Hiti- Keit, niTioe^T«/>ni, niri3;iw»r(f, lUreffiptt, etc., and refers, for a long list of such names, fBm papyri and other sources, to
*The rendering *ne\ft steeds' is probaT)le, but not certain T^yy (a rare eynon}in of ciO) denotes a species of horse posscHsod of some valuable quality, wtiich may lilcely enough have been twi/tnesg.
t The form UuTKprit Is also found, as in ed. Aid., and a 15th cent. SiS ap. Lagarde, (/<-7». Urarce [cf. p. 20] ; Philo, i. 134, n04 (Jliing.); Cramer, Anecd. Par. ii. 174, 46 <P«Hhey. p. 78). liut it IS certainly false (Grillltli).
Parthey, .r.g. Personennameix, 1804, p. 79 JT. Lieblein's pro- posal (J'.-iL'A, 1698, p. 208 1.) to identiiy Totipliar' with the isolated and uncertain Pt-ber (p. 24 n.*), does not malce the etymology any clearer.
The name of the 'officer' (o-iy, lit. eunuch) of Pharaoh, and ' captain of the Ijody • guard ' (v D'C;?Ci ; see vol. ii. p. 768" n. X), to whom Joseph was sold by the Midianites (Gn 37^), and who apjiointed Joseph to wait upon the prisoners con- lined in the state-prison ((6. p. 768 n. ||), which was in his liou.se (40'") ; in the existing text of Gn, al.so, the Egyptian who made Joseph sujier- intendcnt of his liousehold, and whose wife made the advances to Joseph which the latter rejected (39'").
It is doubtful whether these two personages are not in reality distinct. Gn 37*' 40ii''- belong to E, and Sil'if- to J ; and tliere are strong reoiions (cf. ib. pp. 707**, 7(38 n. §) for sunposing, as is done by nearly all modern critics, tliat the words ' Poliphar, an oiricer (eunuch) of Pharaoli's, the captain of tlie ^'uard' in 39^ are an addition made by the redactor, who identifR-d Joseph's 'master,' mentioned in cli. 39, witll l*otipliar. the ' capt;vin of the body-guard,' of 37^6 40-'**- ; if tliis view be correct, the original narrative of ch. 39 (J) knew nothing of 'Poliphar,' but simply mentioned 'an' (unnamed) ' I^^gyjitian,' to wliom the Islimaelites sold Joseph. It may be noticed that, ill the existing narrative, the description, *an Egyptian,' attached in .391 to ' Potiphar, an eunuch of Pharaoh's,' etc., seems a rather pointless a<]dition, whereas, standing alone it would have an a<iequate raisoti d'etre.