BIBLES NET. COM
Dictionary]
Easton’s Bible Dictionary
Hearth – Heb. ah (Jer. 36:22, 23;
R.V., “brazier”), meaning a large pot like a
brazier, a portable furnace in which fire was kept in the
king’s winter apartment.
Heb. kiyor (Zech. 12:6; R.V., “pan”), a fire-pan.
Heb. moqed (Ps. 102:3; R.V., “fire-brand”),
properly a fagot.
Heb. yaqud (Isa. 30:14), a burning mass on a hearth.
12:16), the general designation of the donkey used for
carrying burdens (Gen. 42:26) and for ploughing (Isa.
30:24). It is described in Gen. 49:14, 2 Sam. 19:26.
17:6; 48:6), a species of juniper called by the Arabs by
the same name (‘arar), the Juniperus sabina or savin.
“Its gloomy, stunted appearance, with its scale-like
leaves pressed close to its gnarled stem, and cropped close
by the wild goats, as it clings to the rocks about Petra,
gives great force to the contrast suggested by the prophet,
between him that trusteth in man, naked and destitute, and
the man that trusteth in the Lord, flourishing as a tree
planted by the waters” (Tristram, Natural History of
the Bible).
Heathen – (Heb. plural goyum). At
first the word goyim denoted generally all the
nations of the world (Gen. 18:18; comp. Gal. 3:8). The Jews
afterwards became a people distinguished in a marked manner
from the other goyim. They were a separate people
(Lev. 20:23; 26:14-45; Deut. 28), and the other nations,
the Amorites, Hittites, etc., were the goyim, the
heathen, with whom the Jews were forbidden to be associated
in any way (Josh. 23:7; 1 Kings 11:2). The practice of
idolatry was the characteristic of these nations, and hence
the word came to designate idolaters (Ps. 106:47; Jer.
46:28; Lam. 1:3; Isa. 36:18), the wicked (Ps. 9:5, 15,
17).
The corresponding Greek word in the New Testament,
ethne, has similar shades of meaning. In Acts 22:21,
Gal. 3:14, it denotes the people of the earth generally;
and in Matt. 6:7, an idolater. In modern usage the word
denotes all nations that are strangers to revealed
religion.
Heaven – (1.) Definitions. The
phrase “heaven and earth” is used to indicate the
whole universe (Gen. 1:1; Jer. 23:24; Acts 17:24).
According to the Jewish notion there were three
heavens,
(a) The firmament, as “fowls of the heaven” (Gen.
2:19; 7:3, 23; Ps. 8:8, etc.), “the eagles of
heaven” (Lam. 4:19), etc.
(b) The starry heavens (Deut. 17:3; Jer. 8:2; Matt. 24:29).
(c) “The heaven of heavens,” or “the third
heaven” (Deut. 10:14; 1 Kings 8:27; Ps. 115:16; 148:4;
2 Cor. 12:2).
(2.) Meaning of words in the original,
(a) The usual Hebrew word for “heavens” is
shamayim, a plural form meaning “heights,”
“elevations” (Gen. 1:1; 2:1).
(b) The Hebrew word marom is also used (Ps. 68:18;
93:4; 102:19, etc.) as equivalent to shamayim,
“high places,” “heights.”
(c) Heb. galgal, literally a “wheel,” is rendered
“heaven” in Ps. 77:18 (R.V.,
“whirlwind”).
(d) Heb. shahak, rendered “sky” (Deut. 33:26; Job
37:18; Ps. 18:11), plural “clouds” (Job 35:5;
36:28; Ps. 68:34, marg. “heavens”), means
probably the firmament.
(e) Heb. rakia is closely connected with (d), and is
rendered “firmamentum” in the Vulgate, whence our
“firmament” (Gen. 1:6; Deut. 33:26, etc.),
regarded as a solid expanse.
(3.) Metaphorical meaning of term. Isa. 14:13, 14;
“doors of heaven” (Ps. 78:23); heaven
“shut” (1 Kings 8:35); “opened” (Ezek.
1:1). (See 1 Chr. 21:16.)
(4.) Spiritual meaning. The place of the everlasting
blessedness of the righteous; the abode of departed
spirits.
(a) Christ calls it his “Father’s house”
(John 14:2).
(b) It is called “paradise” (Luke 23:43; 2 Cor.
12:4; Rev. 2:7).
(c) “The heavenly Jerusalem” (Gal. 4: 26; Heb.
12:22; Rev. 3:12).
(d) The “kingdom of heaven” (Matt. 25:1; James
2:5).
(e) The “eternal kingdom” (2 Pet. 1:11).
(f) The “eternal inheritance” (1 Pet. 1:4; Heb.
9:15).
(g) The “better country” (Heb. 11:14, 16).
(h) The blessed are said to “sit down with Abraham,
Isaac, and Jacob,” and to be “in Abraham’s
bosom” (Luke 16:22; Matt. 8:11); to “reign with
Christ” (2 Tim. 2:12); and to enjoy “rest”
(Heb. 4:10, 11).
In heaven the blessedness of the righteous consists in the
possession of “life everlasting,” “an
eternal weight of glory” (2 Cor. 4:17), an exemption
from all sufferings for ever, a deliverance from all evils
(2 Cor. 5:1, 2) and from the society of the wicked (2 Tim.
4:18), bliss without termination, the “fulness of
joy” for ever (Luke 20:36; 2 Cor. 4:16, 18; 1 Pet.
1:4; 5:10; 1 John 3:2). The believer’s heaven is not
only a state of everlasting blessedness, but also a
“place”, a place “prepared” for them
(John 14:2).
Heave offering – Heb. terumah,
(Ex. 29:27) means simply an offering, a present, including
all the offerings made by the Israelites as a present. This
Hebrew word is frequently employed. Some of the rabbis
attach to the word the meaning of elevation, and refer it
to the heave offering, which consisted in presenting the
offering by a motion up and down, distinguished from the
wave offering, which consisted in a repeated movement in a
horizontal direction, a “wave offering to the Lord as
ruler of earth, a heave offering to the Lord as ruler of
heaven.” The right shoulder, which fell to the priests
in presenting thank offerings, was called the heave
shoulder (Lev. 7:34; Num. 6:20). The first fruits offered
in harvest-time (Num. 15:20, 21) were heave offerings.
Heber – passing over. (1.) Son of
Beriah and grandson of Asher (Gen. 46:17; 1 Chr. 7:31,
32).
(2.) The Kenite (Judg. 4:11, 17; 5:24), a descendant of
Hobab. His wife Jael received Sisera (q.v.) into her tent
and then killed him.
(3.) 1 Chr. 4:18.
(4.) A Benjamite (1 Chr. 8:17).
(5.) A Gadite (5:13).
Hebrew – a name applied to the
Israelites in Scripture only by one who is a foreigner
(Gen. 39:14, 17; 41:12, etc.), or by the Israelites when
they speak of themselves to foreigners (40:15; Ex. 1:19),
or when spoken of an contrasted with other peoples (Gen.
43:32; Ex. 1:3, 7, 15; Deut. 15:12). In the New Testament
there is the same contrast between Hebrews and foreigners
(Acts 6:1; Phil. 3:5).
Derivation. (1.) The name is derived, according to some,
from Eber (Gen. 10:24), the ancestor of Abraham. The
Hebrews are “sons of Eber” (10:21).
(2.) Others trace the name of a Hebrew root-word signifying
“to pass over,” and hence regard it as meaning
“the man who passed over,” viz., the Euphrates;
or to the Hebrew word meaning “the region” or
“country beyond,” viz., the land of Chaldea. This
latter view is preferred. It is the more probable origin of
the designation given to Abraham coming among the
Canaanites as a man from beyond the Euphrates (Gen. 14:13).
(3.) A third derivation of the word has been suggested,
viz., that it is from the Hebrew word ‘abhar,
“to pass over,” whence ‘ebher, in the
sense of a “sojourner” or “passer
through” as distinct from a “settler” in the
land, and thus applies to the condition of Abraham (Heb.
11:13).
Hebrew language – the language of
the Hebrew nation, and that in which the Old Testament is
written, with the exception of a few portions in Chaldee.
In the Old Testament it is only spoken of as
“Jewish” (2 Kings 18:26, 28; Isa. 36:11, 13; 2
Chr 32:18). This name is first used by the Jews in times
subsequent to the close of the Old Testament.
It is one of the class of languages called Semitic, because
they were chiefly spoken among the descendants of Shem.
When Abraham entered Canaan it is obvious that he found the
language of its inhabitants closely allied to his own.
Isaiah (19:18) calls it “the language of Canaan.”
Whether this language, as seen in the earliest books of the
Old Testament, was the very dialect which Abraham brought
with him into Canaan, or whether it was the common tongue
of the Canaanitish nations which he only adopted, is
uncertain; probably the latter opinion is the correct one.
For the thousand years between Moses and the Babylonian
exile the Hebrew language underwent little or no
modification. It preserves all through a remarkable
uniformity of structure. From the first it appears in its
full maturity of development. But through intercourse with
Damascus, Assyria, and Babylon, from the time of David, and
more particularly from the period of the Exile, it comes
under the influence of the Aramaic idiom, and this is seen
in the writings which date from this period. It was never
spoken in its purity by the Jews after their return from
Babylon. They now spoke Hebrew with a large admixture of
Aramaic or Chaldee, which latterly became the predominant
element in the national language.
The Hebrew of the Old Testament has only about six thousand
words, all derived from about five hundred roots. Hence the
same word has sometimes a great variety of meanings. So
long as it was a living language, and for ages after, only
the consonants of the words were written. This also has
been a source of difficulty in interpreting certain words,
for the meaning varies according to the vowels which may be
supplied. The Hebrew is one of the oldest languages of
which we have any knowledge. It is essentially identical
with the Phoenician language. (See MOABITE.) The Semitic languages, to which class the
Hebrew and Phoenician belonged, were spoken over a very
wide area: in Babylonia, Mesopotamia, Syria, Palestine and
Arabia, in all the countries from the Mediterranean to the
borders of Assyria, and from the mountains of Armenia to
the Indian Ocean. The rounded form of the letters, as seen
in the Moabite stone, was probably that in which the
ancient Hebrew was written down to the time of the Exile,
when the present square or Chaldean form was adopted.
Hebrew of the Hebrews – one whose
parents are both Hebrews (Phil. 3:5; 2 Cor. 11:22); a
genuine Hebrew.
Hebrew-speaking Jews, as distinguished from those who spoke
Greek.
Hebrews, Epistle to – (1.) Its
canonicity. All the results of critical and historical
research to which this epistle has been specially subjected
abundantly vindicate its right to a place in the New
Testament canon among the other inspired books.
(2.) Its authorship. A considerable variety of opinions on
this subject has at different times been advanced. Some
have maintained that its author was Silas, Paul’s
companion. Others have attributed it to Clement of Rome, or
Luke, or Barnabas, or some unknown Alexandrian Christian,
or Apollos; but the conclusion which we think is best
supported, both from internal and external evidence, is
that Paul was its author. There are, no doubt, many
difficulties in the way of accepting it as Paul’s; but
we may at least argue with Calvin that there can be no
difficulty in the way of “embracing it without
controversy as one of the apostolical epistles.”
(3.) Date and place of writing. It was in all probability
written at Rome, near the close of Paul’s two
years’ imprisonment (Heb. 13:19,24). It was certainly
written before the destruction of Jerusalem (13:10).
(4.) To whom addressed. Plainly it was intended for Jewish
converts to the faith of the gospel, probably for the
church at Jerusalem. The subscription of this epistle is,
of course, without authority. In this case it is incorrect,
for obviously Timothy could not be the bearer of it
(13:23).
(5.) Its design was to show the true end and meaning of the
Mosaic system, and its symbolical and transient character.
It proves that the Levitical priesthood was a
“shadow” of that of Christ, and that the legal
sacrifices prefigured the great and all-perfect sacrifice
he offered for us. It explains that the gospel was
designed, not to modify the law of Moses, but to supersede
and abolish it. Its teaching was fitted, as it was
designed, to check that tendency to apostatize from
Christianity and to return to Judaism which now showed
itself among certain Jewish Christians. The supreme
authority and the transcendent glory of the gospel are
clearly set forth, and in such a way as to strengthen and
confirm their allegiance to Christ.
(6.) It consists of two parts: (a) doctrinal (1-10:18), (b)
and practical (10:19-ch. 13). There are found in it many
references to portions of the Old Testament. It may be
regarded as a treatise supplementary to the Epistles to the
Romans and Galatians, and as an inspired commentary on the
book of Leviticus.
Hebron – a community; alliance.
(1.) A city in the south end of the valley of Eshcol, about
midway between Jerusalem and Beersheba, from which it is
distant about 20 miles in a straight line. It was built
“seven years before Zoan in Egypt” (Gen. 13:18;
Num. 13:22). It still exists under the same name, and is
one of the most ancient cities in the world. Its earlier
name was Kirjath-arba (Gen. 23:2; Josh. 14:15; 15:3). But
“Hebron would appear to have been the original name of
the city, and it was not till after Abraham’s stay
there that it received the name Kirjath-arba, who [i.e.,
Arba] was not the founder but the conqueror of the city,
having led thither the tribe of the Anakim, to which he
belonged. It retained this name till it came into the
possession of Caleb, when the Israelites restored the
original name Hebron” (Keil, Com.). The name of this
city does not occur in any of the prophets or in the New
Testament. It is found about forty times in the Old. It was
the favorite home of Abraham. Here he pitched his tent
under the oaks of Mamre, by which name it came afterwards
to be known; and here Sarah died, and was buried in the
cave of Machpelah (Gen. 23:17-20), which he bought from
Ephron the Hittite. From this place the patriarch departed
for Egypt by way of Beersheba (37:14; 46:1). It was taken
by Joshua and given to Caleb (Josh. 10:36, 37; 12:10;
14:13). It became a Levitical city and a city of refuge
(20:7; 21:11). When David became king of Judah this was his
royal residence, and he resided here for seven and a half
years (2 Sam. 5:5); and here he was anointed as king over
all Israel (2 Sam. 2:1-4, 11; 1 Kings 2:11). It became the
residence also of the rebellious Absalom (2 Sam. 15:10),
who probably expected to find his chief support in the
tribe of Judah, now called el-Khulil.
In one part of the modern city is a great mosque, which is
built over the grave of Machpelah. The first European who
was permitted to enter this mosque was the Prince of Wales
in 1862. It was also visited by the Marquis of Bute in
1866, and by the late Emperor Frederick of Germany (then
Crown-Prince of Prussia) in 1869.
One of the largest oaks in Palestine is found in the valley
of Eshcol, about 3 miles north of the town. It is supposed
by some to be the tree under which Abraham pitched his
tent, and is called “Abraham’s oak.”
(2.) The third son of Kohath the Levite (Ex. 6:18; 1 Chr.
6:2, 18).
(3.) 1 Chr. 2:42, 43.
(4.) A town in the north border of Asher (Josh. 19:28).
Hegai – eunuch, had charge of the
harem of Ahasuerus (Esther 2:8).
21:4, 6; Jer. 46:20). Untrained to the yoke (Hos. 10:11);
giving milk (Isa. 7:21); ploughing (Judg. 14:18); treading
out grain (Jer. 50:11); unsubdued to the yoke an emblem of
Judah (Isa. 15:5; Jer. 48:34).
Heb. parah (Gen. 41:2; Num. 19:2). Bearing the yoke (Hos.
4:16); “heifers of Bashan” (Amos 4:1),
metaphorical for the voluptuous females of Samaria. The
ordinance of sacrifice of the “red heifer”
described in Num. 19:1-10; comp. Heb. 9:13.
Heir – Under the patriarchs the
property of a father was divided among the sons of his
legitimate wives (Gen. 21:10; 24:36; 25:5), the eldest son
getting a larger portion than the rest. The Mosaic law made
specific regulations regarding the transmission of real
property, which are given in detail in Deut. 21:17; Num.
27:8; 36:6; 27:9-11. Succession to property was a matter of
right and not of favour. Christ is the “heir of all
things” (Heb. 1:2; Col. 1:15). Believers are heirs of
the “promise,” “of righteousness,”
“of the kingdom,” “of the world,”
“of God,” “joint heirs” with Christ
(Gal 3:29; Heb. 6:17; 11:7; James 2:5; Rom. 4:13;
8:17).
Helah – rust, (1 Chr. 4:5, 7),
one of the wives of Ashur.
place on the east of Jordan and west of the Euphrates where
David gained a great victory over the Syrian army (2 Sam.
10:16), which was under the command of Shobach. Some would
identify it with Alamatta, near Nicephorium.
Helbah – fatness, a town of the
tribe of Asher (Judg. 1:31), in the plain of Phoenicia.
“fertile”, (Ezek. 27: 18 only), a place whence
wine was brought to the great market of Tyre. It has been
usually identified with the modern Aleppo, called Haleb by
the native Arabs, but is more probably to be found in one
of the villages in the Wady Helbon, which is celebrated for
its grapes, on the east slope of Anti-Lebanon, north of the
river Barada (Abana).
27:15; called also Heleb (2 Sam. 23:29); one of David’s
captains.
(2.) Zech. 6:10, one who returned from Babylon.
David’s warriors (2 Sam. 23:29).
11:30); called Heleb (2 Sam. 23:29).
Helek – a portion, (Josh. 17:2),
descended from Manasseh.
Helem – a stroke, great-grandson
of Asher (1 Chr. 7:35).
Heleph – exchange, a city on the
north border of Naphtali (Josh. 19:33).
Helez – strong, or loin (?) (1.)
One of Judah’s posterity (1 Chr. 2:39).
(2.) One of David’s warriors (2 Sam. 23:26).
Joseph in the line of our Lord’s ancestry (Luke
3:23).
Helkai – smooth-tongued, one of
the chief priests in the time of Joiakim (Neh. 12:15).
Helkath – smoothness, a town of
Asher, on the east border (Josh. 19:25; 21:31); called also
Hukok (1 Chr. 6:75).
Helkath-hazzurim – plot of the
sharp blades, or the field of heroes, (2 Sam. 2:16). After
the battle of Gilboa, so fatal to Saul and his house,
David, as divinely directed, took up his residence in
Hebron, and was there anointed king over Judah. Among the
fugitives from Gilboa was Ish-bosheth, the only surviving
son of Saul, whom Abner, Saul’s uncle, took across the
Jordan to Mahanaim, and there had him proclaimed king.
Abner gathered all the forces at his command and marched to
Gibeon, with the object of wresting Judah from David. Joab
had the command of David’s army of trained men, who
encamped on the south of the pool, which was on the east of
the hill on which the town of Gibeon was built, while
Abner’s army lay on the north of the pool. Abner
proposed that the conflict should be decided by twelve
young men engaging in personal combat on either side. So
fiercely did they encounter each other that “they
caught every man his fellow by the head, and thrust his
sword in his fellow’s side; so they fell down together:
wherefore that place was called Helkath-hazzurim.” The
combat of the champions was thus indecisive, and there
followed a severe general engagement between the two
armies, ending in the total rout of the Israelites under
Abner. The general result of this battle was that
“David waxed stronger and stronger, and the house of
Saul waxed weaker and weaker” (2 Sam. 3:1).
helan, to cover; hence the covered or the invisible place.
In Scripture there are three words so rendered:
(1.) Sheol, occurring in the Old Testament sixty-five
times. This word sheol is derived from a root-word meaning
“to ask,” “demand;” hence
insatiableness (Prov. 30:15, 16). It is rendered
“grave” thirty-one times (Gen. 37:35; 42:38;
44:29, 31; 1 Sam. 2:6, etc.). The Revisers have retained
this rendering in the historical books with the original
word in the margin, while in the poetical books they have
reversed this rule.
In thirty-one cases in the Authorized Version this word is
rendered “hell,” the place of disembodied
spirits. The inhabitants of sheol are “the
congregation of the dead” (Prov. 21:16). It is (a) the
abode of the wicked (Num. 16:33; Job 24:19; Ps. 9:17;
31:17, etc.); (b) of the good (Ps. 16:10; 30:3; 49:15;
86:13, etc.).
Sheol is described as deep (Job 11:8), dark (10:21, 22),
with bars (17:16). The dead “go down” to it (Num.
16:30, 33; Ezek. 31:15, 16, 17).
(2.) The Greek word hades of the New Testament has the same
scope of signification as sheol of the Old Testament. It is
a prison (1 Pet. 3:19), with gates and bars and locks
(Matt. 16:18; Rev. 1:18), and it is downward (Matt. 11:23;
Luke 10:15).
The righteous and the wicked are separated. The blessed
dead are in that part of hades called paradise (Luke
23:43). They are also said to be in Abraham’s bosom
(Luke 16:22).
(3.) Gehenna, in most of its occurrences in the Greek New
Testament, designates the place of the lost (Matt. 23:33).
The fearful nature of their condition there is described in
various figurative expressions (Matt. 8:12; 13:42; 22:13;
25:30; Luke 16:24, etc.).
for the defence of the head (1 Sam. 17:5, 38). In the New
Testament the Greek equivalent is used (Eph. 6:17; 1 Thess.
5:8).
Helon – strong, father of Eliab,
who was “captain of the children of Zebulun”
(Num. 1:9; 2:7).
ke-negdo; i.e., “a help as his counterpart” = a
help suitable to him), a wife (Gen. 2:18-20).
Helps – (1 Cor. 12:28) may refer
to help (i.e., by interpretation) given to him who speaks
with tongues, or more probably simply help which Christians
can render to one another, such as caring for the poor and
needy, etc.
Hem – of a garment, the fringe of
a garment. The Jews attached much importance to these,
because of the regulations in Num. 15:38, 39. These borders
or fringes were in process of time enlarged so as to
attract special notice (Matt. 23:5). The hem of
Christ’s garment touched (9:20; 14:36; Luke 8:44).
Heman – faithful. (1.) 1 Kings
4:31; 1 Chr. 2:6, a son of Zerah, noted for his wisdom.
(2.) Grandson of Samuel (1 Chr. 6:33; 15:17), to whom the
88th Psalm probably was inscribed. He was one of the
“seers” named in 2 Chr. 29:14, 30, and took a
leading part in the administration of the sacred
services.
Hemath – a Kenite (1 Chr. 2:55),
the father of the house of Rechab.
Hemlock – (1.) Heb. rosh (Hos.
10:4; rendered “gall” in Deut. 29:18; 32:32; Ps.
69:21; Jer. 9:15; 23:15; “poison,” Job 20:16;
“venom,” Deut. 32:33). “Rosh is the name of
some poisonous plant which grows quickly and luxuriantly;
of a bitter taste, and therefore coupled with wormwood
(Deut. 29:18; Lam. 3:19). Hence it would seem to be not the
hemlock cicuta, nor the colocynth or wild gourd, nor lolium
darnel, but the poppy so called from its heads”
(Gesenius, Lex.).
(2.) Heb. la’anah, generally rendered
“wormwood” (q.v.), Deut. 29:18, Text 17; Prov.
5:4; Jer. 9:15; 23:15. Once it is rendered
“hemlock” (Amos 6:12; R.V.,
“wormwood”). This Hebrew word is from a root
meaning “to curse,” hence the accursed.
Hen – common in later times among
the Jews in Palestine (Matt. 23:37; Luke 13:34). It is
noticeable that this familiar bird is only mentioned in
these passages in connection with our Lord’s
lamentation over the impenitence of Jerusalem.
Mesopotamia destroyed by sennacherib (2 Kings 18:34;
19:13). It is identified with the modern Anah, lying on the
right bank of the Euphrates, not far from Sepharvaim.
Henadad – favour of Hadad, the
name of a Levite after the Captivity (Ezra 3:9).
Hepher – a well or stream. (1.) A
royal city of the Canaanites taken by Joshua (12:17).
(2.) The youngest son of Gilead (Num. 26:32; 27:1).
(3.) The second son of Asher (1 Chr. 4:6).
(4.) One of David’s heroes (1 Chr. 11:36).
Hephzibah – my delight is in her.
(1.) The wife of Hezekiah and mother of king Manasseh (2
Kings 21:1).
(2.) A symbolical name of Zion, as representing the
Lord’s favour toward her (Isa. 62:4).
green plant; herbage (Gen. 1:11, 12, 29, 30; 2:5; 3:18,
etc.); comprehending vegetables and all green herbage (Amos
7:1, 2).
(2.) Yarak, green; any green thing; foliage of trees
(2 Kings 19:26; Ps. 37:2); a plant; herb (Deut. 11:10).
(3.) Or, meaning “light” In Isa. 26:19 it
means “green herbs;” in 2 Kings 4:39 probably the
fruit of some plant.
(4.) Merorim, plural, “bitter herbs,”
eaten by the Israelites at the Passover (Ex. 12:8; Num.
9:11). They were bitter plants of various sorts, and
referred symbolically to the oppression in Egypt.
Herdsman – In Egypt herdsmen were
probably of the lowest caste. Some of Joseph’s brethren
were made rulers over Pharaoh’s cattle (Gen. 47:6, 17).
The Israelites were known in Egypt as “keepers of
cattle;” and when they left it they took their flocks
and herds with them (Ex. 12:38). Both David and Saul came
from “following the herd” to occupy the throne (1
Sam. 9; 11:5; Ps. 78:70). David’s herd-masters were
among his chief officers of state. The daughters also of
wealthy chiefs were wont to tend the flocks of the family
(Gen. 29:9; Ex. 2:16). The “chief of the
herdsmen” was in the time of the monarchy an officer
of high rank (1 Sam. 21:7; comp. 1 Chr. 27:29). The
herdsmen lived in tents (Isa. 38:12; Jer. 6:3); and there
were folds for the cattle (Num. 32:16), and watch-towers
for the herdsmen, that he might therefrom observe any
coming danger (Micah 4:8; Nah. 3:8).
Heres” (Judg. 1:35), Heb. Har-heres, i.e.,
“sun-mountain;” probably identical with Irshemesh
in Josh. 19:41.
(2.) Isa. 19:18, marg.
signifying (1) a choice, (2) the opinion chosen, and (3)
the sect holding the opinion. In the Acts of the Apostles
(5:17; 15:5; 24:5, 14; 26:5) it denotes a sect, without
reference to its character. Elsewhere, however, in the New
Testament it has a different meaning attached to it. Paul
ranks “heresies” with crimes and seditions (Gal.
5:20). This word also denotes divisions or schisms in the
church (1 Cor. 11:19). In Titus 3:10 a “heretical
person” is one who follows his own self-willed
“questions,” and who is to be avoided. Heresies
thus came to signify self-chosen doctrines not emanating
from God (2 Pet. 2:1).
Christian to whom Paul sends greetings (Rom. 16: 14). Some
suppose him to have been the author of the celebrated
religious romance called The Shepherd, but it is very
probable that that work is the production of a later
generation.
Christian (Rom. 16:14).
Hermogenes – Mercury-born, at one
time Paul’s fellow-labourer in Asia Minor, who,
however, afterwards abandoned him, along with one
Phygellus, probably on account of the perils by which they
were beset (2 Tim. 1:15).
prolongation of the Anti-Lebanon range, reaching to the
height of about 9,200 feet above the Mediterranean. It
marks the north boundary of Palestine (Deut. 3:8, 4:48;
Josh. 11:3, 17; 13:11; 12:1), and is seen from a great
distance. It is about 40 miles north of the Sea of Galilee.
It is called “the Hermonites” (Ps. 42:6) because
it has more than one summit. The Sidonians called it
Sirion, and the Amorites Shenir (Deut. 3:9; Cant. 4:8). It
is also called Baal-hermon (Judg. 3:3; 1 Chr. 5:23) and
Sion (Deut. 4:48). There is every probability that one of
its three summits was the scene of the transfiguration
(q.v.). The “dew of Hermon” is referred to (Ps.
89: 12). Its modern name is Jebel-esh-Sheikh, “the
chief mountain.” It is one of the most conspicuous
mountains in Palestine or Syria. “In whatever part of
Palestine the Israelite turned his eye northward, Hermon
was there, terminating the view. From the plain along the
coast, from the Jordan valley, from the heights of Moab and
Gilead, from the plateau of Bashan, the pale, blue,
snow-capped cone forms the one feature in the northern
horizon.”
Our Lord and his disciples climbed this “high mountain
apart” one day, and remained on its summit all night,
“weary after their long and toilsome ascent.”
During the night “he was transfigured before them; and
his face did shine as the sun.” The next day they
descended to Caesarea Philippi.
Hermonites, the – (Ps. 42:6, 7) =
“the Hermons”, i.e., the three peaks or summits
of Hermon, which are about a quarter of a mile apart.
Aristobulus and Bernice, and grandson of Herod the Great.
He was made tetrarch of the provinces formerly held by
Lysanias II., and ultimately possessed the entire kingdom
of his grandfather, Herod the Great, with the title of
king. He put the apostle James the elder to death, and cast
Peter into prison (Luke 3:1; Acts 12:1-19). On the second
day of a festival held in honour of the emperor Claudius,
he appeared in the great theatre of Caesarea. “The
king came in clothed in magnificent robes, of which silver
was the costly brilliant material. It was early in the day,
and the sun’s rays fell on the king, so that the eyes
of the beholders were dazzled with the brightness which
surrounded him. Voices here and there from the crowd
exclaimed that it was the apparition of something divine.
And when he spoke and made an oration to them, they gave a
shout, saying, ‘It is the voice of a god, and not of a
man.’ But in the midst of this idolatrous ostentation
an angel of God suddenly smote him. He was carried out of
the theatre a dying man.” He died (A.D. 44) of the
same loathsome malady which slew his grandfather (Acts.
12:21-23), in the fifty-fourth year of his age, having
reigned four years as tetrarch and three as king over the
whole of Palestine. After his death his kingdom came under
the control of the prefect of Syria, and Palestine was now
fully incorporated with the empire.
by Malthace (Matt. 14:1; Luke 3:1, 19; 9:7; Acts 13:1).
Herod Archelaus – (Matt. 2:22),
the brother of Antipas (q.v.).
Herod Agrippa I. and Cypros. The emperor Claudius made him
tetrarch of the provinces of Philip and Lysanias, with the
title of king (Acts 25:13; 26:2, 7). He enlarged the city
of Caesarea Philippi, and called it Neronias, in honour of
Nero. It was before him and his sister that Paul made his
defence at Caesarea (Acts 25:12-27). He died at Rome A.D.
100, in the third year of the emperor Trajan.
Herodians – a Jewish political
party who sympathized with (Mark 3:6; 12:13; Matt, 22:16;
Luke 20:20) the Herodian rulers in their general policy of
government, and in the social customs which they introduced
from Rome. They were at one with the Sadducees in holding
the duty of submission to Rome, and of supporting the
Herods on the throne. (Comp. Mark 8:15; Matt. 16:6.)
Herodias – (Matt. 14:3-11; Mark
6:17-28; Luke 3:19), the daughter of Aristobulus and
Bernice. While residing at Rome with her husband Herod
Philip I. and her daughter, Herod Antipas fell in with her
during one of his journeys to that city. She consented to
leave her husband and become his wife. Some time after,
Herod met John the Baptist, who boldly declared the
marriage to be unlawful. For this he was “cast into
prison,” in the castle probably of Machaerus (q.v.),
and was there subsequently beheaded.
Herodion – a Christian at Rome
whom Paul salutes and calls his “kinsman” (Rom.
16:11).
Herod Philip I. – (Mark 6:17),
the son of Herod the Great by Mariamne, the daughter of
Simon, the high priest. He is distinguished from another
Philip called “the tetrarch.” He lived at Rome as
a private person with his wife Herodias and his daughter
Salome.
Herod the Great and Cleopatra of Jerusalem. He was
“tetrarch” of Batanea, Iturea, Trachonitis, and
Auranitis. He rebuilt the city of Caesarea Philippi,
calling it by his own name to distinguish it from the
Caesarea on the sea-coast which was the seat of the Roman
government. He married Salome, the daughter of Herodias
(Matt. 16:13; Mark 8:27; Luke 3:1).
Herod the Great – (Matt. 2:1-22;
Luke 1:5; Acts 23:35), the son of Antipater, an Idumaean,
and Cypros, an Arabian of noble descent. In the year B.C.
47 Julius Caesar made Antipater, a “wily
Idumaean,” procurator of Judea, who divided his
territories between his four sons, Galilee falling to the
lot of Herod, who was afterwards appointed tetrarch of
Judea by Mark Antony (B.C. 40), and also king of Judea by
the Roman senate.
He was of a stern and cruel disposition. “He was
brutish and a stranger to all humanity.” Alarmed by
the tidings of one “born King of the Jews,” he
sent forth and “slew all the children that were in
Bethlehem, and in all the coasts thereof, from two years
old and under” (Matt. 2:16). He was fond of splendour,
and lavished great sums in rebuilding and adorning the
cities of his empire. He rebuilt the city of Caesarea
(q.v.) on the coast, and also the city of Samaria (q.v.),
which he called Sebaste, in honour of Augustus. He restored
the ruined temple of Jerusalem, a work which was begun B.C.
20, but was not finished till after Herod’s death,
probably not till about A.D. 50 (John 2:20). After a
troubled reign of thirty-seven years, he died at Jericho
amid great agonies both of body and mind, B.C. 4, i.e.,
according to the common chronology, in the year in which
Jesus was born.
After his death his kingdom was divided among three of his
sons. Of these, Philip had the land east of Jordan, between
Caesarea Philippi and Bethabara, Antipas had Galilee and
Peraea, while Archelaus had Judea and Samaria.
14:18), ranked among the unclean birds. The Hebrew name is
‘anaphah, and indicates that the bird so named
is remarkable for its angry disposition. “The herons
are wading-birds, peculiarly irritable, remarkable for
their voracity, frequenting marshes and oozy rivers, and
spread over the regions of the East.” The Ardea
russeta, or little golden egret, is the commonest species
in Asia.
Heshbon – intelligence, a city
ruled over by Sihon, king of the Amorites (Josh. 3:10;
13:17). It was taken by Moses (Num. 21:23-26), and became
afterwards a Levitical city (Josh. 21:39) in the tribe of
Reuben (Num. 32:37). After the Exile it was taken
possession of by the Moabites (Isa. 15:4; Jer. 48:2, 34,
45). The ruins of this town are still seen about 20 miles
east of Jordan from the north end of the Dead Sea. There
are reservoirs in this district, which are probably the
“fishpools” referred to in Cant. 7:4.
Heshmon – fatness, a town in the
south of Judah (Josh. 15:27).
Canaan, and the ancestor of the Hittites (Gen. 10:18; Deut.
7:1), who dwelt in the vicinity of Hebron (Gen. 23:3, 7).
The Hittites were a Hamitic race. They are called “the
sons of Heth” (Gen. 23:3, 5, 7, 10, 16, 18, 20).
Hethlon – wrapped up, a place on
the north border of Palestine. The “way of
Hethlon” (Ezek. 47:15; 48:1) is probably the pass at
the end of Lebanon from the Mediterranean to the great
plain of Hamath (q.v.), or the “entrance of
Hamath.”
strengthened. (1.) Son of Ahaz (2 Kings 18:1; 2 Chr. 29:1),
whom he succeeded on the throne of the kingdom of Judah. He
reigned twenty-nine years (B.C. 726-697). The history of
this king is contained in 2 Kings 18:20, Isa. 36-39, and 2
Chr. 29-32. He is spoken of as a great and good king. In
public life he followed the example of his great-granfather
Uzziah. He set himself to abolish idolatry from his
kingdom, and among other things which he did for this end,
he destroyed the “brazen serpent,” which had been
removed to Jerusalem, and had become an object of
idolatrous worship (Num. 21:9). A great reformation was
wrought in the kingdom of Judah in his day (2 Kings 18:4; 2
Chr. 29:3-36).
On the death of Sargon and the accession of his son
Sennacherib to the throne of Assyria, Hezekiah refused to
pay the tribute which his father had paid, and
“rebelled against the king of Assyria, and served him
not,” but entered into a league with Egypt (Isa. 30;
31; 36:6-9). This led to the invasion of Judah by
Sennacherib (2 Kings 18:13-16), who took forty cities, and
besieged Jerusalem with mounds. Hezekiah yielded to the
demands of the Assyrian king, and agreed to pay him three
hundred talents of silver and thirty of gold (18:14).
But Sennacherib dealt treacherously with Hezekiah (Isa.
33:1), and a second time within two years invaded his
kingdom (2 Kings 18:17; 2 Chr. 32:9; Isa. 36). This
invasion issued in the destruction of Sennacherib’s
army. Hezekiah prayed to God, and “that night the
angel of the Lord went out, and smote in the camp of the
Assyrians 185,000 men.” Sennacherib fled with the
shattered remnant of his forces to Nineveh, where,
seventeen years after, he was assassinated by his sons
Adrammelech and Sharezer (2 Kings 19:37).
The narrative of Hezekiah’s sickness and miraculous
recovery is found in 2 Kings 20:1, 2 Chr. 32:24, Isa. 38:1.
Various ambassadors came to congratulate him on his
recovery, and among them Merodach-baladan, the viceroy of
Babylon (2 Chr. 32:23; 2 Kings 20:12). He closed his days
in peace and prosperity, and was succeeded by his son
Manasseh. He was buried in the “chiefest of the
sepulchres of the sons of David” (2 Chr. 32:27-33). He
had “after him none like him among all the kings of
Judah, nor any that were before him” (2 Kings 18:5).
Hezion – vision, the father of
Tabrimon, and grandfather of Ben-hadad, king of Syria (1
Kings 15:18).
Hezir – swine or strong. (1.) The
head of the seventeenth course of the priests (1 Chr.
24:15). (2.) Neh. 10:20, one who sealed Nehemiah’s
covenant.
David’s warriors (1 Chr. 11:37).
Hezron – enclosed. (1.) One of
the sons of Reuben (Gen. 46:9; Ex. 6:14). (2.) The older of
the two sons of Pharez (Gen. 46:12). (3.) A plain in the
south of Judah, west of Kadesh-barnea (Josh. 15:3).
Hiddai – rejoicing of Jehovah,
one of David’s thirty-seven guards (2 Sam. 23:30).
Accadians id Idikla; i.e., “the river of Idikla”,
the third of the four rivers of Paradise (Gen. 2:14).
Gesenius interprets the word as meaning “the rapid
Tigris.” The Tigris rises in the mountains of Armenia,
15 miles south of the source of the Euphrates, which, after
pursuing a south-east course, it joins at Kurnah, about 50
miles above Bassorah. Its whole length is about 1,150
miles.
Hiel – life of (i.e., from) God,
a native of Bethel, who built (i.e., fortified) Jericho
some seven hundred years after its destruction by the
Israelites. There fell on him for such an act the
imprecation of Joshua (6:26). He laid the foundation in his
first-born, and set up the gates in his youngest son (1
Kings 16:34), i.e., during the progress of the work all his
children died.
Hierapolis – sacred city, a city
of Phrygia, where was a Christian church under the care of
Epaphras (Col. 4:12, 13). This church was founded at the
same time as that of Colosse. It now bears the name of
Pambuk-Kalek, i.e., “Cotton Castle”, from the
white appearance of the cliffs at the base of which the
ruins are found.
Higgaion – in Ps. 92:3 means the
murmuring tone of the harp. In Ps. 9:16 it is a musical
sign, denoting probably a pause in the instrumental
interlude. In Ps. 19:14 the word is rendered
“meditation;” and in Lam. 3:62,
“device” (R.V., “imagination”).
High place – an eminence, natural
or artificial, where worship by sacrifice or offerings was
made (1 Kings 13:32; 2 Kings 17:29). The first altar after
the Flood was built on a mountain (Gen. 8:20). Abraham also
built an altar on a mountain (12:7, 8). It was on a
mountain in Gilead that Laban and Jacob offered sacrifices
(31:54). After the Israelites entered the Promised Land
they were strictly enjoined to overthrow the high places of
the Canaanites (Ex. 34:13; Deut. 7:5; 12:2, 3), and they
were forbidden to worship the Lord on high places (Deut.
12:11-14), and were enjoined to use but one altar for
sacrifices (Lev. 17:3, 4; Deut. 12; 16:21). The injunction
against high places was, however, very imperfectly obeyed,
and we find again and again mention made of them (2 Kings
14:4; 15:4, 35:2 Chr. 15:17, etc.).
High priest – Aaron was the first
who was solemnly set apart to this office (Ex. 29:7; 30:23;
Lev. 8:12). He wore a peculiar dress, which on his death
passed to his successor in office (Ex. 29:29, 30). Besides
those garments which he wore in common with all priests,
there were four that were peculiar to himself as high
priest:
(1.) The “robe” of the ephod, all of blue, of
“woven work,” worn immediately under the ephod.
It was without seam or sleeves. The hem or skirt was
ornamented with pomegranates and golden bells, seventy-two
of each in alternate order. The sounding of the bells
intimated to the people in the outer court the time when
the high priest entered into the holy place to burn incense
before the Lord (Ex. 28).
(2.) The “ephod” consisted of two parts, one of
which covered the back and the other the breast, which were
united by the “curious girdle.” It was made of
fine twined linen, and ornamented with gold and purple.
Each of the shoulder-straps was adorned with a precious
stone, on which the names of the twelve tribes were
engraved. This was the high priest’s distinctive
vestment (1 Sam. 2:28; 14:3; 21:9; 23:6, 9; 30:7).
(3.) The “breastplate of judgment” (Ex. 28:6-12,
25-28; 39:2-7) of “cunning work.” It was a piece
of cloth doubled, of one span square. It bore twelve
precious stones, set in four rows of three in a row, which
constituted the Urim and Thummim (q.v.). These stones had
the names of the twelve tribes engraved on them. When the
high priest, clothed with the ephod and the breastplate,
inquired of the Lord, answers were given in some mysterious
way by the Urim and Thummim (1 Sam. 14:3, 18, 19; 23:2, 4,
9, 11,12; 28:6; 2 Sam. 5:23).
(4.) The “mitre,” or upper turban, a twisted band
of eight yards of fine linen coiled into a cap, with a gold
plate in front, engraved with “Holiness to the
Lord,” fastened to it by a ribbon of blue.
To the high priest alone it was permitted to enter the holy
of holies, which he did only once a year, on the great Day
of Atonement, for “the way into the holiest of all was
not yet made manifest” (Heb. 9; 10). Wearing his
gorgeous priestly vestments, he entered the temple before
all the people, and then, laying them aside and assuming
only his linen garments in secret, he entered the holy of
holies alone, and made expiation, sprinkling the blood of
the sin offering on the mercy seat, and offering up
incense. Then resuming his splendid robes, he reappeared
before the people (Lev. 16). Thus the wearing of these
robes came to be identified with the Day of Atonement.
The office, dress, and ministration of the high priest were
typical of the priesthood of our Lord (Heb. 4:14; 7:25;
9:12, etc.).
It is supposed that there were in all eighty-three high
priests, beginning with Aaron (B.C. 1657) and ending with
Phannias (A.D. 70). At its first institution the office of
high priest was held for life (but comp. 1 Kings 2:27), and
was hereditary in the family of Aaron (Num. 3:10). The
office continued in the line of Eleazar, Aaron’s eldest
son, for two hundred and ninety-six years, when it passed
to Eli, the first of the line of Ithamar, who was the
fourth son of Aaron. In this line it continued to Abiathar,
whom Solomon deposed, and appointed Zadok, of the family of
Eleazar, in his stead (1 Kings 2:35), in which it remained
till the time of the Captivity. After the Return, Joshua,
the son of Josedek, of the family of Eleazar, was appointed
to this office. After him the succession was changed from
time to time under priestly or political influences.
public use. Such roads were not found in Palestine; hence
the force of the language used to describe the return of
the captives and the advent of the Messiah (Isa. 11:16;
35:8; 40:3; 62:10) under the figure of the preparation of a
grand thoroughfare for their march.
During their possession of Palestine the Romans constructed
several important highways, as they did in all countries
which they ruled.
(1.) 1 Chr. 6:54. (2.) 1 Chr. 26:11. (3.) The father of
Eliakim (2 Kings 18:18, 26, 37). (4.) The father of
Gemariah (Jer. 29:3). (5.) The father of the prophet
Jeremiah (1:1).
(6.) The high priest in the reign of Josiah (1 Chr. 6:13;
Ezra 7:1). To him and his deputy (2 Kings 23:5), along with
the ordinary priests and the Levites who had charge of the
gates, was entrusted the purification of the temple in
Jerusalem. While this was in progress, he discovered in
some hidden corner of the building a book called the
“book of the law” (2 Kings 22:8) and the
“book of the covenant” (23:2). Some have supposed
that this “book” was nothing else than the
original autograph copy of the Pentateuch written by Moses
(Deut. 31:9-26). This remarkable discovery occurred in the
eighteenth year of Josiah’s reign (B.C. 624), a
discovery which permanently affected the whole subsequent
history of Israel. (See JOSIAH
(7.) Neh. 12:7. (8.) Neh. 8:4.
curved or rounded hill, such as are common to Palestine
(Ps. 65:12; 72:3; 114:4, 6).
(2.) Heb. har, properly a mountain range rather than an
individual eminence (Ex. 24:4, 12, 13, 18; Num. 14:40, 44,
45). In Deut. 1:7, Josh. 9:1; 10:40; 11:16, it denotes the
elevated district of Judah, Benjamin, and Ephraim, which
forms the watershed between the Mediterranean and the Dead
Sea.
(3.) Heb. ma’aleh in 1 Sam. 9:11. Authorized Version
“hill” is correctly rendered in the Revised
Version “ascent.”
(4.) In Luke 9:37 the “hill” is the Mount of
Transfiguration.
Hillel – praising, a Pirathonite,
father of the judge Abdon (Judg. 12:13, 15).
south of the Valley of Hinnom. It is so called from a
tradition that the house of the high priest Caiaphas, when
the rulers of the Jews resolved to put Christ to death,
stood here.
22:34; Ps. 18:33, etc.) and ‘ayeleth (Ps. 22, title),
the female of the hart or stag. It is referred to as an
emblem of activity (Gen. 49:21), gentleness (Prov. 5:19),
feminine modesty (Cant. 2:7; 3:5), earnest longing (Ps.
42:1), timidity (Ps. 29:9). In the title of Ps. 22, the
word probably refers to some tune bearing that name.
which a door revolves. “Doors in the East turn rather
on pivots than on what we term hinges. In Syria, and
especially in the Hauran, there are many ancient doors,
consisting of stone slabs with pivots carved out of the
same piece inserted in sockets above and below, and fixed
during the building of the house” (Prov. 26:14).
Hinnom – a deep, narrow ravine
separating Mount Zion from the so-called “Hill of Evil
Counsel.” It took its name from “some ancient
hero, the son of Hinnom.” It is first mentioned in
Josh. 15:8. It had been the place where the idolatrous Jews
burned their children alive to Moloch and Baal. A
particular part of the valley was called Tophet, or the
“fire-stove,” where the children were burned.
After the Exile, in order to show their abhorrence of the
locality, the Jews made this valley the receptacle of the
offal of the city, for the destruction of which a fire was,
as is supposed, kept constantly burning there.
The Jews associated with this valley these two ideas, (1)
that of the sufferings of the victims that had there been
sacrificed; and (2) that of filth and corruption. It became
thus to the popular mind a symbol of the abode of the
wicked hereafter. It came to signify hell as the place of
the wicked. “It might be shown by infinite examples
that the Jews expressed hell, or the place of the damned,
by this word. The word Gehenna [the Greek contraction of
Hinnom] was never used in the time of Christ in any other
sense than to denote the place of future punishment.”
About this fact there can be no question. In this sense the
word is used eleven times in our Lord’s discourses
(Matt. 23:33; Luke 12:5; Matt. 5:22, etc.).
Hiram – high-born. (1.) Generally
“Huram,” one of the sons of Bela (1 Chr.
8:5).
(2.) Also “Huram” and “Horam,” king of
Tyre. He entered into an alliance with David, and assisted
him in building his palace by sending him able workmen, and
also cedar-trees and fir-trees from Lebanon (2 Sam. 5:11; 1
Chr. 14:1). After the death of David he entered into a
similar alliance with Solomon, and assisted him greatly in
building the temple (1 Kings 5:1; 9:11; 2 Chr. 2:3). He
also took part in Solomon’s traffic to the Eastern Seas
(1 Kings 9:27; 10:11; 2 Chr. 8:18; 9:10).
(3.) The “master workman” whom Hiram sent to
Solomon. He was the son of a widow of Dan, and of a Tyrian
father. In 2 Chr. 2:13 “Huram my father” should
be Huram Abi, the word “Abi” (rendered here
“my father”) being regarded as a proper name, or
it may perhaps be a title of distinction given to Huram,
and equivalent to “master.” (Comp. 1 Kings 7:14;
2 Chr. 4:16.) He cast the magnificent brazen works for
Solomon’s temple in clay-beds in the valley of Jordan,
between Succoth and Zarthan.
Hireling – a labourer employed on
hire for a limited time (Job 7:1; 14:6; Mark 1:20). His
wages were paid as soon as his work was over (Lev. 19:13).
In the time of our Lord a day’s wage was a
“penny” (q.v.) i.e., a Roman denarius (Matt.
20:1-14).
Hiss – to express contempt (Job
27:23). The destruction of the temple is thus spoken of (1
Kings 9:8). Zechariah (10:8) speaks of the Lord gathering
the house of Judah as it were with a hiss: “I will
hiss for them.” This expression may be “derived
from the noise made to attract bees in hiving, or from the
sound naturally made to attract a person’s
attention.”
Hittites – Palestine and Syria
appear to have been originally inhabited by three different
tribes. (1.) The Semites, living on the east of the isthmus
of Suez. They were nomadic and pastoral tribes. (2.) The
Phoenicians, who were merchants and traders; and (3.) the
Hittites, who were the warlike element of this
confederation of tribes. They inhabited the whole region
between the Euphrates and Damascus, their chief cities
being Carchemish on the Euphrates, and Kadesh, now Tell
Neby Mendeh, in the Orontes valley, about six miles south
of the Lake of Homs. These Hittites seem to have risen to
great power as a nation, as for a long time they were
formidable rivals of the Egyptian and Assyrian empires. In
the book of Joshua they always appear as the dominant race
to the north of Galilee.
Somewhere about the twenty-third century B.C. the Syrian
confederation, led probably by the Hittites, arched against
Lower Egypt, which they took possession of, making Zoan
their capital. Their rulers were the Hyksos, or shepherd
kings. They were at length finally driven out of Egypt.
Rameses II. sought vengeance against the “vile
Kheta,” as he called them, and encountered and
defeated them in the great battle of Kadesh, four centuries
after Abraham.
They are first referred to in Scripture in the history of
Abraham, who bought from Ephron the Hittite the field and
the cave of Machpelah (Gen. 15:20: 23:3-18). They were then
settled at Kirjath-arba. From this tribe Esau took his
first two wives (26:34; 36:2).
They are afterwards mentioned in the usual way among the
inhabitants of the Promised Land (Ex. 23:28). They were
closely allied to the Amorites, and are frequently
mentioned along with them as inhabiting the mountains of
Palestine. When the spies entered the land they seem to
have occupied with the Amorites the mountain region of
Judah (Num. 13:29). They took part with the other
Canaanites against the Israelites (Josh. 9:1; 11:3).
After this there are few references to them in Scripture.
Mention is made of “Ahimelech the Hittite” (1
Sam. 26:6), and of “Uriah the Hittite,” one of
David’s chief officers (2 Sam. 23:39; 1 Chr. 11:41). In
the days of Solomon they were a powerful confederation in
the north of Syria, and were ruled by “kings.”
They are met with after the Exile still a distinct people
(Ezra 9:1; comp. Neh. 13:23-28).
The Hebrew merchants exported horses from Egypt not only
for the kings of Israel, but also for the Hittites (1 Kings
10:28, 29). From the Egyptian monuments we learn that
“the Hittites were a people with yellow skins and
‘Mongoloid’ features, whose receding foreheads,
oblique eyes, and protruding upper jaws are represented as
faithfully on their own monuments as they are on those of
Egypt, so that we cannot accuse the Egyptian artists of
caricaturing their enemies. The Amorites, on the contrary,
were a tall and handsome people. They are depicted with
white skins, blue eyes, and reddish hair, all the
characteristics, in fact, of the white race”
(Sayce’s The Hittites). The original seat of the
Hittite tribes was the mountain ranges of Taurus. They
belonged to Asia Minor, and not to Syria.
tribes scattered over Palestine, from Hermon to Gibeon in
the south. The name is interpreted as
“midlanders” or “villagers” (Gen.
10:17; 1 Chr. 1:15). They were probably a branch of the
Hittites. At the time of Jacob’s return to Canaan,
Hamor the Hivite was the “prince of the land”
(Gen. 24:2-28).
They are next mentioned during the Conquest (Josh. 9:7;
11:19). They principally inhabited the northern confines of
Western Palestine (Josh. 11:3; Judg. 3:3). A remnant of
them still existed in the time of Solomon (1 Kings 9:20).
prophet Zephaniah (1:1).
Hizkijah – (Neh. 10:17), one who
sealed the covenant.
Hobab – beloved, the Kenite, has
been usually identified with Jethro (q.v.), Ex. 18:5, 27;
comp. Num. 10:29, 30. In Judg. 4:11, the word rendered
“father-in-law” means properly any male relative
by marriage (comp. Gen. 19:14, “son-in-law,”
A.V.), and should be rendered “brother-in-law,”
as in the R.V. His descendants followed Israel to Canaan
(Num. 10:29), and at first pitched their tents near
Jericho, but afterwards settled in the south in the borders
of Arad (Judg. 1:8-11, 16).
Hobah – hiding-place, a place to
the north of Damascus, to which Abraham pursued
Chedorlaomer and his confederates (Gen. 14:15).
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