El'iphal (Heh.Eliphal', ^S"ibx, God is Ms judge; Sept. 'K\i(iiau\ v. r. 'E\(/inV, Vulg. EUphaV), son of Ur (((. v.), and one of David's fiimous guard (1 Chron. xi, 35). B.C. 1016. In the parallel passage (2 Sam. xxiii, 34) he seems to be called " Ei.iriiKi.ET, the son of Ahasljai (q. v.), the son of the ^laachathite ;" but the names are here greatly confused. See David.
Elipli'alat ('EX«/>«\rtr,Vulg. Eliphalach), one of the sons of "Asom," who divorced liis Gentile wife after the exile (1 Esd. ix, 83) ; evidently the Eliph- ELET (q. V.) of the Heb. text (Ezra x, 3.3).
Eliph'alet, a less coiTect mode of Anglicizing (2 Sam. V, 16 ; 1 Chron. xiv, 7) the name Eliphelet (q. v.). It also occurs in the Apocrypha (EXt^aXf-) as the name of one of the sons of Adonicam, who returned
from the exile (1 Esdr. viii, 39) ; the Eliphelet of the Heb. text (Ezra viii, 13).
El'iphaz (Hebrew Eliphaz', fS"^?!!*, God is his strength ; Sept. 'EXKpct'C, but in Gen. "E/\t^dc,Vulg. Eli- phaz), the name of two men.
1. The leading one of the "three friends" who came to condole with Job in his affliction (.Job iv, 1), and who took part in that remarkable discussion which oc- cupies the book of Job. B.C. cir. 2200. He is called "the Teinanite;" hence it is naturally inferred that he was of the region substantially known as Teman (q. v.), in Iduma?a ; and as Eliphaz, the son of Esau, had a son called Teman, from whom the place took its name, many have concluded that this Eliphaz was a descendant of the other Eliphaz. Some, indeed, even go so far as to suppose that the Eliphaz of Job was no other than the son of Esau. This view is of course confined to those who refer the age of Jol) to the time of these patriarchs. But it is doubtful whether even this gives a date sufficientlj' early. See Job.
Eliphaz is the first of the friends to take up the de- bate, in reply to Job's passionate complaints. He ap- pears to have been the oldest of the speakers, from which circumstance, or from natural disposition, his language is more mild and sedate than that of the oth- ers (see Eichler, De visione EUphar.i [iv, 12-31], Lpz. 1781). He begins his orations with delicacy, and con- ducts his part of the controversy with considerable ad- dress (chap, iv, V, XV, xxii). On him falls the main burden of the argument, that God's retribution in this world is perfect and certain, and that consequently suffering must be a proof of previous sin. His words are distinguished from those of Bildad and Zophar by greater calmness and elaboration, and, in the first in- stance, by greater gentleness towards Job, although he ventures afterwards, apparently from conjecture, to impute to him special sins. The great truth brought out bv him is the unapproachable majesty and puritj'- of God (iv, 12-21 ; xv, 12-16). But still, with the oth- er two friends, he is condemned for having, in defence of God's providence, spoken of him "the thing that was not right," i. e. by refusing to recognise the facts of human life, and bj^ contenting himself with an im- perfect retribution as worthy to set forth the righteous- ness of God. On sacrifice and the intercession of Job c41 three are pardsned. — Kitto, s. v. ; Smith, s. v. Set Job, Book of.
2. The son of Esau by one of his first wives, Adah, and father of several Edomitish tribes (Gen. xxxvi, 4, 10, 11, 16 ; 1 Chron. i, 35, 36). B.C. post 1963.
Eliph'eleh (Heb. in the prolonged form Eliphele'- hu, ^in^S'^bx, God will distinguish him; Sept. 'E\i(l)a- \a and 'E\i<pa\ov v. r. 'EXicptva and 'E\i<{ia\aia<: ; Yulg. Elij>halti), a Merarite Levite ; one of the gate- keepers (ni'n"ri\ A.V. porters") appointed by David to plaj' on the harp " on the Sheniinith," on the occa- sion of bringing up the ark to the city of David (1 Chron. xv, 18, 21). B.C. 1043.
Eliph'elet (Hebrew Elipke'lef, -bs'^^X, in pause Elipha'let, -SS'^PN, God is his ddiverance'), the name of several men.
1. (Sept. 'E\iipa\c'tT v. r. 'AXii^aXt'^ and 'AXicdaXer, Vulg. Elipheleth!) One of David's distinguished war- riors, styled "the son of Ahasbai, the son of the I\Ia- achathite" (2 Sam. xxiii, 34); but, by some error and abbreviation, Ei.irnAi. (q. v.), the son of Ur, [and] Hepher, the Mcclierathite," in the parallel passage (1 Chron. xi, 35, 36.)
2. (Sept. 'EX((/iaX6r v. r. 'EXt^nXt^, Vulg. Elipha- leth.') The third of the nine sons of David, born at Jerusalem, exclusive of those by Bathsheba (1 Chron. iii, 6 ; xiv, 5, in which latter passage the name is writ- ten Elpalet). B.C. post 1044.
3. (Sept. 'EXi^oXfr v. r. 'E\i(pa\a,\\\\s. Eliphelet.) The ninth of the same (1 Chron. iii, 8 ; xiv, 7 ; 2 Sam.
ELISABETH
153
ELISHA
V, IG, in which two latter passages the name is An- glicized "Eliphalet"). It is believed that there were not two sons of this name, but that, like Nogah, one is merely a transcriber's repetition. The two are cer- tainly' omitted in Samuel, but, on the other hand, they arc inserted in two separate lists in Chronicles, and in both cases the number of sons is summed up at the close of the list. Josephus mentions but one Elijihale {' E\i<pci\i'), as the last of David's eleven sons, and states that the last two were born of concubines {A7it. vii, 3, 3). See David.