emblem of the imril \' .uni inien-il \- ■.! i
(-Mk9«-^'"
*-). The
iind in the s
ji^e. Ihe k,.
•line con- to their le v.alley
ni;s in Mk lich tire is world, by
iillii
accompanymg the li.iptisin ot tin' Unix Spnit ^^■llleh he foretold that Christ slioul<l bestow (IMt 3" = Lk 3i«).
The eyes of the glorified Christ, as seen in the vision of the Apocalypse, are compared to a flame of fire (Rev 1" '218 19'-).
Origen (Horn, in Jei: xx. n) h.-w | arjraphon of Jesus : ' He wlio is near int is far from me is far from tlie kinirdom.
reserved the following;
James Patrick.
"InMk 1454 = Lk 2256 If: In classical Gr. a simijai H here a Are is thought of as the source of light as well as heat (so also 1 Mao 1221), cf. v.28 where mp is emploved). Its appro- priateness in both the .Synoptic passages is due to the fact that it was night, and, in the Lk. passage, to the further fact that it was the blaze of the fire which revealed Peter to the maid. In both cases RV brings cut the meaning by rendering Tpiii t6 si: ' in the light of the tire.'
FIRKIN {/j-erpnTris, Jn 2" oidy).— An Attic liquid measure, which is generally regarded as the equi- valent of the Hebrew hath' (cf. XXX 2 Ch 4=), and is therefore ' able to contain seventy-two sextaries ' (Jos. Ant. VIII. ii. 9), accurately 71-28 pints, or approximately 9 English gallons. ' Firkin ' (AV and RV) — the fourth jmrt of a barrel containuig from 32 to 36 gallons— as a translation is sufficiently
Pre\iinisly eiM|aie,l fur the ablutions of the guests, the \\ater ] lilt ^ a re filled afresh. Their char- acter .and contents pnne the reality of the miracle. Very efl'ective is the touch added by the expres- sion fws &VU, 'up to the brim,' if only in presenting a sure basis for calculating the quantity of this wedding gift. The lowest estimate of the quantity of wine must be over 12 firkins or 108 gallons'; yet, had the vessels been larger they had been filled ; had there been more vessels, more wine. To such lavishness there need not be imputed in- discretion. Our Lord did not give simply to meet a pressing need, or even for future use, but rather to exemplify the illimitable power of the Giver. ' Tt is His first miracvdous sign ... it must become the type of the fulness of grace and joy and strength whicli the only-begotten Son brings to the earth ' (Godet on Jn 2*).
Literature.— Art. ' Weights and Measures' in Hastings' DB, iv. 911-013 ; Enci/c. Bibl. iv. col. 6294 f.
Alex. A. Duncan.
FIRST AND LAST (6 TpCnot xoi 6 t'lrxa-ros).— This title occurs three times in Rev. (1" 2* 22"). In the first two passages it is clearly Christ wdio claims the title for Himself, as appears from the references to the Resurrection in the immediate contexts. In all pruhiihility the same is the ca.se in the third passa-e ij_"- !. eNe tlii're is an abrupt change of
the speake) il Mr-e. later (v.i« 'I, Je.sus, have
sent mine aiejel,' I'te. ). Ilewever, Alford and some others hold that God the Father is the speaker in 22'=.
' The First and the Last' is claimed by Jehovah as a descrii)tion of Himself, with slight variations in the lovm, in Is 4P 44'' 4Si- (cf, also 43'»). The (Ireek form of the title in ]!ev. is not identical with that uiM'n by the LXX in a]i\- of these passages, in all of which the LXX has dillcrcnces represent- ing difl'erem-es in the Hebrew (41^ iyi^ deos TpOros, ^ai CIS rd tTrcpxifieva eyii eijxL ; 44'' iyu Trpuro! Kal iyCi /lerd Tavra ; 48'" 67(6 etyut TrpwToj, Kal iyiij ei/xi cU t6v aluva). It is plain, however, that a supreme de- scription of Jehovah in the OT is applied in Rev. to Christ, and the significance of the transference as regards tho Christology of the book is unmistak- able. Besides this, in 22'', where, as has been said, it is natural to regard Christ as the speaker, the title ' the First and" the Last ' st.'i,nds between two others, 'the Aljiha and the Omega,' 'the lieginiiim; and the Kn.l,- the lirst of wlii.li is found also in l^aml ■_'!". ami the ^ero.ul in ■'V, in which
I'S III,
niaintained l.y some (Ilaslii|.j>- ///;, v<.l. iv. p. 263"), God the Father, or 'God in tho Undivided Unity of His Being.' It may be, therefore, that in Rev. itself we have the same supreme titles dven to (iod the Father and to Christ. But whether this be so or not, once it is admitted that 22'^ is spoken by Christ, the accumulation in that verse of de- scriptions which could only belong to the infinite being of God emphatically marks the belief of the
Ha.
Oft
>f Christ (see ol. iv. p. 263').
■itiulaled l»v Moses
Mainionides (liitii cent, a.d.), tli'' perfect faith tliat the Creator, liliss. and the last' {Authorized Dail't I Hebrew Conijregations of the British I says that the title was also given I Messiah (Hor. Ueb. torn. ii. lib. i.
596
FIRST AND LAST
FIRSTBORN
'] : ' JltJKl Primus. Ipse Deus- us, et ego noviesimus ; quilius voluit. JudsBi vero antiqui