The Westminster Bible dictionary ...

Introduction

The quickening of Bible study on the part of our Sabbath-school teachers and scholars at the present time, in connection with the remarkable additions recently made to our knowledge on topics related to Scripture interpretation, affords abundant reason for the issue of the Westminster Bible Dictionary. It will meet an existing call for a compact dictionary abreast of the times.

The work was entrusted by the Board of Publication to the Rev. Thomas J. Shepherd, D. D., who has devoted to it much study and patient as well as skillful labor. Free use has been made by Dr. Shepherd of all accessible authorities, and especially of Dr. William Smith's invaluable, though not perfect, Dictionary of the Bible, as well as of the Bible Dictionary prepared by the Rev. W. M. Engles, D. D., and previously published by the Board. The thanks of the author and of the publishers are also given to Professor Isaac H. Hall, by whom the sheets of the Dictionary were read, and who, from his stores of Oriental, linguistic and archaeological information, has rendered the work an important service.

Numerous engravings illustrating the articles are distributed through the volume, and valuable maps are given at its close.

In the preparation of this Dictionary the leading aims have been —

1. To make a Bible Dictionary, including only words in our Au-

INTRODUCTION.

thorized Version of the Scriptures needing explanation. A fewproper names, such as " Dead Sea " and " Esdraelon," not occurring in our English Bible, are given because of their common use and to assist reference to their scriptural designations. Occasionally, also, a word, such as " Games," has been admitted because of frequent allusions made thereto in the Bible.

2. To indicate the precise sense in which each word treated is used in the Scriptures. The root-ideas of the Hebrew and Greek originals, and the English equivalents of these ideas, are carefully stated.

3. To embody the results of such recent explorations in Bible lands, and of such study of the historic monuments of Egypt, Assyria, Babylonia and Persia, as have thrown light upon the text of Scripture.

4. To treat with entire freedom, and such fullness as the size of the volume permitted, the words underlying the faith and order of the Christian Church, as "Baptism," "Bishop," "Elder," "Election," "Predestination" and the like.

5. And, in all, to put the largest amount of information into the smallest space possible.

J. W. D.

THE WESTMINSTER BIBLE DICTIONARY.

A / a-ron [signification uncertain, probably enlightened], eldest son of Amram and Jochebed, both of the tribe of Levi, and elder brother of Moses. He was born b. c. 1574, according to the chronology of Usher, three years before Moses (Ex. 7:7), and probably one year before Pharaoh's decree of death to the sons of the enslaved Hebrews. His name occurs first (Ex. 4 : 14) when the anger of the Lord was kindled against Moses in Horeb because of his reluctance to carry God's message to the king of Egypt. The Lord said, " Is not Aaron, the Levite, thy brother ? I know that he can speak well. And also he cometh forth to meet thee. . . . He shall be thy spokesman unto the people ; he shall be to thee instead of a mouth, and thou shalt be to him instead of God." Aaron was then on his way, under a divine call (Ex. 4 : 27), to invite the return of Moses to Egypt. After a separation of forty years, and when Aaron was eighty-three years of age, they met in Horeb, and together returned to fulfill their commission to their brethren of the house of Israel and to Pharaoh.

From the first communication by Moses to Aaron of the honorable but perilous work to which God had called them, he stood unflinchingly by his brother. He introduced Moses to the elders of Israel, rehearsed to them the divine message, and then went with him into the presence of the proud king of Egypt. All through the interview with Pharaoh, Aaron stood at his great brother's side, sustaining him and acting as his spokesman. In the Sinai wilderness, when the Israelites were met and attacked by the Amalekites, we find Aaron and Hur with Moses on the hill from which he viewed the battle, upholding his weary hands, and thus securing success in the conflict (Ex. 17 : 8-13). When Moses ascended Mount Sinai to receive the law from God, Aaron and his sons, Nadab and Abihu, with seventy elders of Israel, were permitted, as a special token of the divine favor, to accompany him a part of the way, and to behold the symbol of God's presence (Ex. 24 : 9, 10). It was during his absence that Moses received directions for the organization of the ecclesiastical establishment, according to which Aaron was to be constituted high priest, and his sons and their descendants priests (Ex. 28). While Moses was absent in the mount, Aaron and Hur were entrusted with the direction and control of the Israelites. In the interval the people became impatient, and required Aaron to make them gods to go before them. Partly through timidity, partly from an imperfect conviction of the sin he was committing, he complied with their

AAEON.

wicked suggestions, and constructed a golden calf, in imitation of the Egyptian system of idolatry, by which he affixed an indelible stain on his own character and provoked the displeasure of the Almighty. He attempted in vain to excuse his conduct by transferring the guilt of it to those whose clamors had induced it. As a leader of the people he should have indignantly rejected the proposal (Ex. 32).

Having, however, repented of this sin, he was received into favor, and was consecrated with imposing ceremonials the high priest of the people (Lev. 8), and the office was confined to his family. Two of his sons, Nadab and Abihu, shortly after their consecration, probably under the influence of strong drink, were guilty of irreverence in their ministrations, and were destroyed by fire from the Lord (Lev. 10). Aaron, though deeply wounded, accepted the chastisement without a murmur.

When Miriam, through jealousy of Moses' wife, revolted against his authority, Aaron gave her his countenance (Num. 12). Miriam was stricken with leprosy. Aaron promptly confessed his fault, and was not similarly punished ; but, as he had thus questioned the authority of Moses, his own authority in after years was resisted by a conspiracy headed by Korah, Dathan and Abiram, who maintained that he was not entitled to any exclusive priestly rights. A fearful judgment from God arrested this conspiracy and miserably destroyed its chief actors. A rebellious spirit, however, had taken possession of the people, and now broke forth. The anger of the Lord was kindled, and a grievous plague destroyed upward of fourteen thousand of them, and was only stayed by Aaron's official intercession (Num. 16). This event afforded a striking attestation of Aaron's authority. That he and his family might be recognized by the people as undoubtedly invested with this priestly prerogative, the princes of the different tribes were required to bring to Moses each a rod inscribed with his name, Aaron's name being placed on the rod of Levi. These rods were deposited, by divine command, in the tabernacle. On the following day it was found that while the rods of the other tribes remained unchanged, that of Aaron had budded, blossomed and brought forth almonds. This rod was preserved as a memorial, and for a long series of years no instance of invasion of the priest's office was known (Num. 17).

At the waters of Meribah, Aaron was implicated with Moses in the distrust of God there evinced, and for this they were forbidden to enter into the promised land (Num. 20 : 8-13). Not many months after this the hosts of Israel came to Mount Hor, and Aaron, accompanied by Moses and by his son Eleazar, was directed to ascend to the top of the mountain, in view of the people. Having been divested of his priestly robes, which were transferred to Eleazar, he there expired, being one hundred and twenty-three years old. He was buried on the mountain (Num. 20 : 22-29; 33 : 38, 39), and the Israelites mourned for him thirty days. Mount Hor is a rocky peak in the mountains of Edom, and is still known as "Mount Aaron." The Arabs show what they claim to be the tomb of Aaron on its summit, and manifest great reverence for his memory. In Deut. 10 : 6, Aaron is said to have died at Mosera (plural, Moseroth, Num. 33 : 30), which appears to have been the name of a station near Mount Hor.

Aaron married Elisheba, sister of Naashon, a prince of the house of Judah. He had four sons, Nadab, Abihu, Eleazar and Ithamar (Ex. 6 : 23), of whom the first two died before him. The high priesthood passed to the descendants of the other two.

Aaron was a man of true godliness. The weak side of his character was a readiness to be unduly influenced by others. Whilst

AAKONITES— ABDON.

with Moses he was brave, steadfast, unflinching, but away from him he was apt to fall in with suggestions that he should have resisted. This is noticeable in the affairs of the golden calf and Miriam's revolt. Yet is he to be honored for his long and noble devotion to his work as a leader, for his willingness to stand second to his younger brother, for his submission to the rebukes of the Lord, and for the unhesitating faith with which he obeyed the commands of the God of Israel. He was eminently honored in receiving the high-priestly office, which typified the nobler priesthood of the Christ to come.

See Moses, Priest, Hoe.

A / a-ron-ites, descendants of Aaron, and therefore priests. Jehoiada led 3700 Aaronites in arms to the support of David at Hebron (1 Chron. 12 : 27); later, Zadok was their chief (1 Chron. 27 : 17).

Ab, the Hebrew word for father, which enters into the composition of many proper names, as Absalom, Abner, Abigail, A,bijah, Moab, etc.

Ab, the name given after the Babylonian captivity to one of the Jewish months, being the fifth of the sacred and the eleventh of the civil year reckoning. It corresponded with parts of July and August, and consisted of thirty days. See Month.

A-bad/don [destruction or the destroyer'] is the Hebrew equivalent of the Greek Apollyon, the title given in Eev. 9 : 11 to the angel of the bottomless pit or abyss. In the Old Testament the term Abaddon is applied to destruction (Job 31 : 12), and to the place of destruction (Job 26 : 6; Prov. 15 : 11). Apollyon in Eev. 9:11 may be either the idea of destruction personified or a personal destroyer, Satan, the angel of the bottomless pit.

Ab'a-na [in the margin Amana, still preserved in Arabic and Greek, meaning faithful, probably as continually flowing], a river of Damascus, Syria, mentioned in 2 Kings 5 : 12. Naaman, spurning the direction of Elisha to wash in Jordan for the cure of his leprosy, indignantly asks, "Are not Abana and Pharpar, rivers of Damascus, better than all the waters of Israel?" Its modern name is Barada. It rises in the mountains west of Damascus, some twenty-three miles from the city. After flowing through the plain and the city of Damascus, and carrying in its flow an extraordinary fertility and beauty, it loses itself in a marshy lake on the east. (See engraving on p. 11.)

Ab / a-rim [passages over fords], a range of highlands on the east of the Jordan, in Moab, facing Jericho and forming at that part the eastern wall of the Jordan valley. The range presents many distinct masses and elevations, commanding extensive and exquisite views of the country west of the river. From one of the highest of these, called Mount Nebo, Moses surveyed the Promised Land. From the manner in which the names Abarim, Nebo and Pisgah are associated in Deut. 32 : 49 and 34 : 1, it has been inferred that Abarim is the general name for the mountain-chain, Pisgah the specific name of a ridge, and Nebo the topmost peak of Pisgah. See Nebo and Pisgah.

Ab'ba [father], from the Hebrew word Ab, of which it is the Aramaic form, occurs in Mark 14 : 36 ; Bom. 8 : 15 ; Gal. 4 : 6, where it is translated father. It was used as a term of endearment by children in speaking to their father, like our "papa," and expresses trustful love. It is a title given to priests of Oriental churches; and the old English title of abbot, the head or father of a religious community, is derived from it, as is also pope (papa). When believers receive the Spirit of adoption, they are justified in addressing God as Abba, Father (Gal. 4:6).

AVdon [servile], the name of a judge and of a city.

1. The tenth judge of Israel, who seems to have enjoyed a peaceful government of

ABEDNEGO— ABEL-MIZKAIM.

eight years. He had forty sons and thirty j nephews who rode on young asses, an evidence of the influence of his family ( Judg. 12 : 13-15). The name was a common one, • as four other persons bearing it are mentioned (1 Chron. 8 : 23, 30; 9 : 36; 2 Chron. 34 : 20).

2. A city of the tribe of Asher, given to the Levites (Josh. 21 : 30).

A-bed/ne-go [servant of Nego or Nebo], the Chaldean name given to Azariah, one of the three captive princes who were companions, of Daniel at the court of Babylon (Dan. 1:7). He, with Shadrach and Meshach, was cast into a fiery furnace for refusing to worship the golden image which Nebuchadnezzar had set up in the plain of Dura, and was miraculously delivered (Dan. 3).

A / bel, Hebrew, Hebel [breath, vapor, transitoriness], the second son of Adam and Eve, born after their fall into sin and their expulsion from Eden. His story is told in Gen. 4. Abel, although inheriting the corrupt nature of his parents, was eminent for piety. Our Lord (Matt. 23 : 35) distinguishes him as the "righteous Abel." He was the first of the human family who endured the pains of death, the first martyr who sealed his testimony to the gospel with his blood. In obedience to God's command, he offered in sacrifice the firstlings of his flock, whilst his elder brother, Cain, refused to do so, and in the spirit of presumption and pride brought a bloodless offering of "fruit of the ground." By some visible sign — such, most likely, as the sending of fire from heaven to consume the victim — God attested the acceptance of Abel's offering and the rejection of Cain's. This so enraged Cain that he " rose up against Abel his brother and slew him " (Gen. 4 : 8). In Heb. 11 : 4 the superior excellence, and the consequent acceptance, of Abel's offering are referred to his " faith." Hence we infer that God had revealed with more or less clearness the grand doctrine of redemption, and had required bloody sacrifices as the significant types of the one great sacrifice. This revelation Abel received ; this requirement Abel met. Cain, however, rejected both, and was himself rejected.

A'bel signifies a meadow or grassy plain, and, with distinguishing additions, is associated with several towns in Palestine.

A'bel-Beth-Ma'a-chah [Abel of the house of MaachaK], a city in the north of Palestine, within the limits of the tribe of Naphtali, in the neighborhood of Dan. From its importance it is designated (2 Sam. 20 : 19) " a mother in Israel ;" that is, a metropolis. It was also called Abel- Maim, or "Abel on the waters." (Compare 2 Sam. 20 : 14, 15 and 2 Chron. 16 : 4.) It was besieged by Joab on account of its sheltering Sheba the son of Bichri, a Benjamite, who had rebelled against King David, but was saved from overthrow by the compliance of its inhabitants with the suggestion of a wise woman that the head of Sheba should be struck off and cast over the wall (2 Sam. 20 : 14- 22). It was afterward taken by Benhadad (1 Kings 15 : 20), and two hundred years after by Tiglath-pileser, who carried its inhabitants into captivity (2 Kings 15: 29).

A'bel-Ce-ra'mim [ plain of the vineyards]. It is referred to, by a translation of its name, in Judg. 11 : 33. It was a village of the Ammonites, east of Jordan.

A'bel-Me-ho'lah. [plain of the dance], in the north part of the Jordan valley, west of Jordan and ten miles south of Bethshean (1 Kings 4 : 12). It was the birthplace or residence of Elisha ( 1 Kings 19 : 16). The Midianites fled thither to reach the river when defeated by Gideon (Judg. 7 : 22).

A'bel-Miz'ra-im [the mourning of the Egyptians'], the name given to the threshing-floor of Atad, because there

ABEL-SHITTIM— ABIB.

Joseph and the funeral procession that accompanied him from Egypt " mourned with a great and very sore lamentation " over the patriarch Jacob (Gen. 50 : 11). Its position has been a question in dispute. We should look for it in the neighborhood of Hebron, where was the cave of Machpelah.

A / bel-Shit / tim [meadow of the acacias'], a town in the plains of Moab, on the east of Jordan, between which and Beth- Jesimoth the Israelites made their last encampments before the passage of Jordan (Num. 33 : 49). It is often called Shittim, as in Num. 25 : 1. From this place Joshua sent out spies to visit Jericho (Josh. 2:1). Here too the Israelites were seduced by the daughters of Moab into the obscene idolatries of Baal-peor, and were punished therefor by a plague (Num. 25 : 1-9).

A / bi, shortened form of Abijah, the mother of King Hezekiah. (Compare 2 Kings 18 : 2 with 2 Chron. 29 : 1.)

A-bi / a, the Greek form of the Hebrew Abijah (Matt. 1:7). In Luke 1 : 5, Zacharias the priest, and father of John the Baptist, is spoken of as pertaining to the "course of Abia." The priests were divided into twenty-four courses or classes, each in its turn to be engaged in the public ministrations (1 Chron. 24). The course of Abia or Abijah was the eighth in order.

A-bi / ab., a less correct English form of Abijah. It occurs four times in the Old Testament, notably as the name of the second son of the prophet Samuel, by whom he was appointed a judge over Israel, in connection with his brother Joel. Their administration, however, was so glaringly corrupt that the people became disgusted, and demanded a king (1 Sam. 8 : 2-5).

A-bi / a-thar [father of abundance, or liberal], the son of Ahimelech, high priest of Israel, and fourth in descent from Eli in the line of Ithamar. When his father, who was high priest, was slain by the command of Saul for his supposed friendship for David (1 Sam. 22), Abiathar escaped the massacre to which his family was doomed, and taking with him the ephod, a priestly garment, he repaired to David at the cave of Adullam. He became the priest of David's party, and inquired of the Lord for him in times of doubt and danger (1 Sam. 23 : 9 ; 30 : 7), adhering to him in all his trials.

On David's accession to the throne he seems to have recognized both Abiathar and Zadok as high priests (1 Kings 4 : 4). At the abdication of David in favor of Solomon, Abiathar wrongly favored the succession of Adonijah to the throne. For this, Solomon, on his accession, displaced him, and recognized Zadok as having exclusive possession of the office (1 Kings 2 : 26, 27). The deposition of Abiathar was in strict fulfilment of the doom pronounced by the Lord against the house of Eli, he being the last of the priests in that line (1 Sam. 2 : 30-36).

In Mark 2 : 26 there is a reference to David's eating the shew-bread in the house of God in the days of Abiathar the high priest, and in 1 Sam. 21 : 1-6 this is said to have occurred when Ahimelech was high priest. Abiathar was probably associated in service with his father at that time, and, afterward becoming high priest was spoken of as high priest in connection with that event — i. e. " in the days of Abiathar, afterward high priest." In 2 Sam. 8 : 17 ; 1 Chron. 18 : 16 ; 24 : 3, 6, 31, Ahimelech or Abimelech is spoken of as the son of Abiathar, or as high priest in the days of David. The two names seem to have been transposed by a copyist. The Syriac and Arabic versions have "Abiathar the son of Ahimelech" in these places (Kitto). See Zadok.

A / bib [heads or ears of grain, green ears], one of the Hebiw months (Ex.

ABIDE— ABIJAH.

13 : 4), afterward called Nisan (Neh. 2 : 1). As the month of newly-ripe grain, it indicates the season of spring, and is supposed to correspond with part of March and part of April. Because on its fifteenth day the Israelites made their exodus from Egypt, it was associated with the passover, and was reckoned the first month in the sacred year reckoning.

Abide, an old English word having the sense of await (Acts 20 : 23), and passing by easy transition to the sense of bear, endure (Num. 31 : 23; Joel 2 : 11).

Ab'i-el [my father is God], the father of Kish, and grandfather of Saul the first king of the Israelites (1 Sam. 9:1). Another of the same name was one of the thirty of the most distinguished men of David's army (1 Chron. 11 : 32).

A-bi-e / zer [my father is help, or helpful'], a native of Anathoth, one of David's thirty chief warriors (2 Sam. 23 : 27 ; 1 Chron. 11 : 28 ; 27 : 12). The military exploits of a family of the same name, descended from Manasseh (Josh. 17 : 2), and to which Gideon belonged ( Judg. 6 : 11), are referred to in Judg. 8 : 2.

Ab'i-gail [my father is joy, joyous], the name of two women.

1. David's sister, the wife of Jether or Ithra, an Ishmaelite, and the mother of Amasa (1 Chron. 2 : 17).

2. The wife of Nabal, a wealthy man with large possessions in Carmel of Judah, about ten miles south of Hebron. The dispositions of the two were in striking contrast. Nabal was churlish and selfish, while his wife was not only distinguished for her personal beauty, but for her discretion and kindness. When David was fleeing from the fury of Saul he came with his followers to the mountainous country where Nabal's flocks were fed, and his presence was the means of their protection. On representing this to Nabal, and asking for some return of kindness, he was treated with rudeness and insult. This so exasperated David that he would have visited Nabal with signal vengeance had not Abigail disarmed him by kindness and delicate liberality. David was so pleased with her beauty and discretion that he married her after the death of Nabal (1 Sam. 25). See Nabal.

A-bi-ha'il [my father is might, mighty], the second wife of Eehoboam, king of Judah. She is called the daughter of Eliab, David's elder brother; but as David began to reign more than eighty years before her marriage, and was thirty years old when he became king, we are no doubt to understand the expression as meaning that she was a descendant of Eliab, the term "daughter" often having this general sense (2 Chron. 11 : 18).

Several other persons bear the same name, as (1) Abihail, father of Zuriel, the father of the Levitical families of Merari (Num. 3 : 35) ; (2) the wife of Abishur (1 Chron. 2 : 29) ; (3) Abihail, one of the heads of families of the tribe of Gad (1 Chron. 5:14); and (4) Abihail, the father of Queen Esther and uncle of Mordecai (Esth. 2 : 15).

A-bi / hu [my father is He — i. e. God, meaning worshiper of God], the second of the sons of Aaron, who, with his three brothers, was consecrated to the priesthood (Ex. 28 : 1). The priests were required, in burning the daily incense, to use the perpetual fire which was kept burning on the great brazen altar. Nadab and Abihu used common, or, as it is called in Scripture, strange fire, and for this irreverence were destroyed by fire from heaven (Lev. 10 : 1-11). The prohibition of wine and strong drink to priests whose turn it should be to enter the tabernacle, which follows the narration of this judgment on Nadab and Abihu, leads to the belief that intoxication was the cause of their sin and punishment. Both died childless (Num. 3:4).

A-bi'jah. [my father is Jah — i. e. worshiper of Jehovah], a common Hebrew name, the same as Abia and Abiah (which see).

ABILENE— ABINADAB.

1. The son of Rehoboam and grandson of Solomon, second king of the separate kingdom of Judah. He began to reign b. c. 958, and reigned three years. On taking the throne he made an earnest attempt to bring back the ten tribes to their allegiance. Although he defeated the army of Israel led by Jeroboam, he failed to unite the ten tribes with Judah (2 Chron. 13). His speech to the army of Jeroboam shows that he recognized Jehovah as the sovereign God, but his life was not that of a child of God. "He walked in all the sins of his father, and was not perfect with the Lord" (1 Kings 15 : 3). In Kings he is called Abijam, perhaps because deemed unworthy of the title of a worshiper of Jehovah.

2. A little son of Jeroboam, the story of whose death is touchingly told in 1 Kings 14.

3. The daughter of Zechariah, mother of King Hezekiah and wife of Ahaz (2 Chron. 29 : 1), called Abi (2 Kings 18 : 2).

A-bi-le / ne, a tract of country the extent of which is not precisely known, but it is thought to have embraced the eastern declivities of Anti-Libanus and the fertile valleys at its base. In Luke 3 : 1, Lysanias is referred to as the tetrarch of Abilene, and Pococke mentions an inscription among the ruins of Abila (now Suk Wady Barada), the chief city of the province, containing the words " Lysanias Tetrarch."

A-bim/e-lech [my father is king'], the common title of the kings of Philistia, as Pharaoh was that of the kings of Egypt.

1. The first one of the name mentioned in Scripture was Abimelech, king of Gerar, who was contemporary with Abram. In Gen. 20 is a narrative connected with Abram's visit to Gerar. Abimelech, supposing Sarai to be the sister, and not the wife, of Abram, had her brought into his" harem, an act of violence quite in accordance with Oriental ideas. In obedience to a divine warning, Abimelech restored Sarai to her husband.

2. At a subsequent period Isaac was driven by stress of famine to visit the same place, which was then governed by another king of the same name, and, following his father's evil example, he was guilty of a similar deception in regard to his wife Rebekah (Gen. 26).

3. A son of Gideon, one of the judges of Israel. Gideon had seventy sons, among whom Abimelech was the most enterprising and unprincipled. Having insinuated himself into the favor of the Shechemites, he slew all his brothers except Jotham, the youngest, who escaped. After this barbarous massacre he was made king. Retributive justice awaited him. Many of his subjects revolted, and while he was attempting to reduce Thebez, which was engaged in the revolt, a woman threw down from the tower a piece of millstone, which fractured his skull. Finding himself mortally wounded, he commanded his armor-bearer to thrust him through the body, lest it should be said that he fell by a woman's hand (Judg. 9 : 54). For a warrior to be slain by a woman was regarded as a terribly ignominious death. Vainly, however, did Abimelech attempt to escape this disgrace, for the fact of his death by the hand of a woman was long after associated with his memory (2 Sam. 11 : 21).

A-bin / a-dab [my father is noble — noble\, the name of several men.

1. The Levite of Kirjath-jearim in whose house the ark was deposited after the Philistines had restored it to the Israelites. There it remained eighty years, until removed by David (1 Sam. 7 : 1 ; 2 Sam. 6 : 3, 4 ; 1 Chron. 13 : 7).

2. One of Saul's sons, who was slain with him at the battle of Gilboa (1 Sam. 31 : 2).

3. The second of the eight sons of Jesse, the father of David (1 Sam. 16 : 8; 17 : 13).

ABIRAM— ABOMINABLE.

4. The father of one of the twelve officers appointed by Solomon to provide for the royal household (1 Kings 4 : 11).

A-bi'ram [my father is exalted].

1. A chief of the tribe of Reuben, and one of the conspirators against Moses in the wilderness, for which crime he, with Korah and Dathan, was engulfed by the opening earth (Num. 16 : 1-33).

2. The eldest son of Hiel the Bethelite, who died prematurely in fulfillment of the curse pronounced against the man who should rebuild Jericho (Josh. 6 : 26 and 1 Kings 16 : 34).