J. C. Lambert.
PROCURATOR.— A 'procurator' (the exact Gr. equivalent is eiriTpoTros) was properlj* a slave or freedman who looked after (procurabat) a man's property (cf. Mt 20^, Lk 8^). The nearest Eng.
equivalent is ' steward " (wh. see). This upper servant acted for his master, in the absence of the latter, in all matters connected with monej", and it may safely be said that only a small estate amongst the Romans would be without one. The position Avas one of responsibility, but it is obAious that the imiJortance of the person in the world was directly in pi'oportion to the importance of his master. An agent of the Emperor, who always possessed vast landed and house property, as well as the whole or part of the taxes of every province of the Roman Empire, held a higher position in society than the procurator of any other person. The Emi^eror's financial interests were so varied, that he required a large number of such servants to look after them, and lii^ high position enabled him to draw them from a higher class than that of freedmen and slaves. The majority of them were of equestrian rank, and some of these jJi'ocurator- ships were deemed of higher importance than others. The diverse character of their duties will be seen from the fact that Cagnat (Conrs cF^pi- graphie Latinc'^, p. 121 ft'. ) enumerates thirty-nine dift'erent kinds of iM'ocurators, whose titles have reference to every possible aspect of the Emperor's revenue and expenditure.
Certain of the smaller Imperial pro\dnces (see under GOVERNOR) were put under jsrocurators as governors, to whom the Emperor delegated ad- ministrative and military functions. Such a pro- curatorship was, of course, o'le of the highest of the Imperial procuratorships, and carried Avith it a large salary ; but it must be clearly understood that a procurator, however high, remained a ser- vant of the Emperor, and owed his life and fortune solely to the fa^-our of the prince, who advanced those quickest who served liis interests best. The word ' procurator ' is not used in the NT, but the participle of the verb (ewLrpow^vovro^) occurs as a variant in Lk 3^ to riyeuovevofTos, a more general term applicable to all governors of provinces, and even to the EmiJeror himself. Pontius Pilate was procurator proidncice ludacae. See also art. Governor.
LiTERATrRE. — Grcenidge, Roman Public Life, pp. 414 fif., 435 ; Schiirer, GJV^, i. 454 ff. {HJP i. ii. 166 £f.] ; art. 'Procurator' in Hasting-s' DB and the Encyc. Bibl. ; Hirschfeld, L'nh'tsitch- xtngen aus dem Gebiete dcr rotn. Veriraltungsgcsch.^ (Berlin, liK)5) ; Marquardt, Bomische Staatsvencaltung, i. 554 fif.
Alex. Souter.
PRODIGAL SON. — The details of this parable (Lk 15) seem to have been carefully thought out, as the structure of the story is faii'ly complete and its movement quite natural. The younger of a certain man's sons, dissatisfied with the quiet life he is leading, resolves to leave his father's house ; and, having received the share of property that fell to him, goes to a distant country and gives himself up Avitli the fullest abandonment to every indulg- ence that appetite craved. But his career of gaiety and dissipation soon comes to an end. He jja^-^ses from one stage to another in his doA\Tiward course till he reaches the loAvest. "Without a fi'iend and in the direst straits, he is forced to take service as a swine-herd — a grade of employment esteemed by Jewish society as the loAvest. The misery to Avhich he had brought himself, however, and the neglect from which he sufi'ers. siiow him how great has been his folly and how wrong liis conduct. He there- fore resolves to return home, confess his fault, and solicit the place of a servant in his father's household. He carries out his intention, but his father receives him with the greatest eagerness and att'ection, and orders a feast to be prepared in celebration of his safe return.
The elder brother, however, is veryindigoiant, and refuses to take any part in the general rejoicing. His father entreats him to enter into the spirit
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PRODIGAL SON
PROFANING, PROFANITY
of the occasion ; but he is obstinate and petulant, and complains that this display in honour of his brother is in marked contrast with the treatment accorded him. He who had lived at home in duti- ful submission had not received the slightest token in recognition of his merits or services, whereas his brother who had squandered his means in a career of vice is being honoured in the most en- thusiastic and lavish manner.
Here, then, we have a father and his son differing as to how a younger son who had grievously mis- behaved himself ought to be treated. The fact of the young man's wrongdoing and the sincerity of his repentance are accepted l)y both ; but while the elder brother challenges the justice and pro- priety of rejoicing over the return of one who had been so headstrong and foolish, the father firmly defends the course he had followed, and, in ter- minating the discussion, speaks with a finality that is not to be questioned : ' It was meet that we should make merry and be glad : for this thy brother was dead, and is alive again ; ami was lost, and is found. '
The prodigal is a minor character in the parable. The contrast is draM'n between the father and the elder brother in reference to their treatment of the wrongdoer, and not between the brothers either in regard to character or conduct. The substance of the parable is this : a father who welcomes back an erring and repentant son has his action em- phatically approved, and an elder brother who maintains an attitude of surly aloofness is shown to merit severe disapprobation.