Chief of the three Chief priest Chiefs of Asia Child Chileab Chilion Chilmad Chimham Chinnereth Chios Chisleu Chittim Chiun Chloe Chor-ashan Chorazin Chosen Chozeba Christ Christian Christs, False Chronicles Chronicles, Books of Chronicles of king David Chronology Chrysoprasus Chub Chun Church Churl Chushan-rishathaim Cilicia Cinnamon Cinnereth Circuit Circumcision Cistern Citizenship City Clauda Claudia Claudius Clay Clean Clement Cleopas Cleophas Cloak Closet Cloud
a title given to Adino the Eznite, one of David's greatest
heroes (2 Sam. 23:8); also called Jashobeam (1 Chr. 11:11).
See PRIEST link
"Asiarchs," the title given to certain wealthy persons annually
appointed to preside over the religious festivals and games in
the various cities of proconsular Asia (Acts 19:31). Some of
these officials appear to have been Paul's friends.
This word has considerable latitude of meaning in Scripture.
Thus Joseph is called a child at the time when he was probably
about sixteen years of age (Gen. 37:3); and Benjamin is so
called when he was above thirty years (44:20). Solomon called
himself a little child when he came to the kingdom (1 Kings
3:7).
The descendants of a man, however remote, are called his
children; as, "the children of Edom," "the children of Moab,"
"the children of Israel."
In the earliest times mothers did not wean their children till
they were from thirty months to three years old; and the day on
which they were weaned was kept as a festival day (Gen. 21:8;
Ex. 2:7, 9; 1 Sam. 1:22-24; Matt. 21:16). At the age of five,
children began to learn the arts and duties of life under the
care of their fathers (Deut. 6:20-25; 11:19).
To have a numerous family was regarded as a mark of divine
favour (Gen. 11:30; 30:1; 1 Sam. 2:5; 2 Sam. 6:23; Ps. 127:3;
128:3).
Figuratively the name is used for those who are ignorant or
narrow-minded (Matt. 11:16; Luke 7:32; 1 Cor. 13:11). "When I
was a child, I spake as a child." "Brethren, be not children in
understanding" (1 Cor. 14:20). "That we henceforth be no more
children, tossed to and fro" (Eph. 4:14).
Children are also spoken of as representing simplicity and
humility (Matt. 19:13-15; Mark 10:13-16; Luke 18:15-17).
Believers are "children of light" (Luke 16:8; 1 Thess. 5:5) and
"children of obedience" (1 Pet. 1:14).
protected by the father, David's second son by Abigail (2 Sam.
3:3); called also Daniel (1 Chr. 3:1). He seems to have died
when young.
the pining one, the younger son of Elimelech and Naomi, and
husband of Orpah, Ruth's sister (Ruth 1:2; 4:9).
a place or country unknown which, along with Sheba and Asshur,
traded with Tyre (Ezek. 27:23).
pining, probably the youngest son of Barzillai the Gileadite (2
Sam. 19:37-40). The "habitation of Chimham" (Jer. 41:17) was
probably an inn or khan, which is the proper meaning of the
Hebrew _geruth_, rendered "habitation", established in later
times in his possession at Bethlehem, which David gave to him as
a reward for his loyalty in accompanying him to Jerusalem after
the defeat of Absalom (1 Kings 2:7). It has been supposed that,
considering the stationary character of Eastern institutions, it
was in the stable of this inn or caravanserai that our Saviour
was born (Luke 2:7).
lyre, the singular form of the word (Deut. 3:17; Josh. 19:35),
which is also used in the plural form, Chinneroth, the name of a
fenced city which stood near the shore of the lake of Galilee, a
little to the south of Tiberias. The town seems to have given
its name to a district, as appears from 1 Kings 15:20, where the
plural form of the word is used.
The Sea of Chinnereth (Num. 34:11; Josh. 13:27), or of
Chinneroth (Josh. 12: 3), was the "lake of Gennesaret" or "sea
of Tiberias" (Deut. 3:17; Josh. 11:2). Chinnereth was probably
an ancient Canaanitish name adopted by the Israelites into their
language.
mentioned in Acts 20:15, an island in the Aegean Sea, about 5
miles distant from the mainland, having a roadstead, in the
shelter of which Paul and his companions anchored for a night
when on his third missionary return journey. It is now called
Scio.
the name adopted from the Babylonians by the Jews after the
Captivity for the third civil, or ninth ecclesiastical, month
(Neh. 1:1; Zech. 7:1). It corresponds nearly with the moon in
November.
or Kittim, a plural form (Gen. 10:4), the name of a branch of
the descendants of Javan, the "son" of Japheth. Balaam foretold
(Num. 24:24) "that ships shall come from the coast of Chittim,
and afflict Eber." Daniel prophesied (11:30) that the ships of
Chittim would come against the king of the north. It probably
denotes Cyprus, whose ancient capital was called Kition by the
Greeks.
The references elsewhere made to Chittim (Isa. 23:1, 12; Jer.
2:10; Ezek. 27:6) are to be explained on the ground that while
the name originally designated the Phoenicians only, it came
latterly to be used of all the islands and various settlements
on the sea-coasts which they had occupied, and then of the
people who succeeded them when the Phoenician power decayed.
Hence it designates generally the islands and coasts of the
Mediterranean and the races that inhabit them.
occurs only in Amos 5:26 (R.V. marg., "shrine"). The LXX.
translated the word by Rhephan, which became corrupted into
Remphan, as used by Stephen (Acts 7:43; but R.V., "Rephan").
Probably the planet Saturn is intended by the name. Astrologers
represented this planet as baleful in its influences, and hence
the Phoenicians offered to it human sacrifices, especially
children.
verdure, a female Christian (1 Cor. 1:11), some of whose
household had informed Paul of the divided state of the
Corinthian church. Nothing is known of her.
smoking furnace, one of the places where "David himself and his
men were wont to haunt" (1 Sam. 30:30, 31). It is probably
identical with Ashan (Josh. 15:42; 19:7), a Simeonite city in
the Negeb, i.e., the south, belonging to Judah. The word ought,
according to another reading, to be "Bor-ashan."
named along with Bethsaida and Capernaum as one of the cities in
which our Lord's "mighty works" were done, and which was doomed
to woe because of signal privileges neglected (Matt. 11:21; Luke
10:13). It has been identified by general consent with the
modern Kerazeh, about 2 1/2 miles up the Wady Kerazeh from
Capernaum; i.e., Tell Hum.
spoken of warriors (Ex. 15:4; Judg. 20:16), of the Hebrew nation
(Ps. 105:43; Deut. 7:7), of Jerusalem as the seat of the temple
(1 Kings 11:13). Christ is the "chosen" of God (Isa. 42:1); and
the apostles are "chosen" for their work (Acts 10:41). It is
said with regard to those who do not profit by their
opportunities that "many are called, but few are chosen" (Matt.
20:16). (See ELECTION link )
(1 Chr. 4:22), the same as Chezib and Achzib, a place in the
lowlands of Judah (Gen. 38:5; Josh. 15:44).
anointed, the Greek translation of the Hebrew word rendered
"Messiah" (q.v.), the official title of our Lord, occurring five
hundred and fourteen times in the New Testament. It denotes that
he was anointed or consecrated to his great redemptive work as
Prophet, Priest, and King of his people. He is Jesus the Christ
(Acts 17:3; 18:5; Matt. 22:42), the Anointed One. He is thus
spoken of by Isaiah (61:1), and by Daniel (9:24-26), who styles
him "Messiah the Prince."
The Messiah is the same person as "the seed of the woman"
(Gen. 3:15), "the seed of Abraham" (Gen. 22:18), the "Prophet
like unto Moses" (Deut. 18:15), "the priest after the order of
Melchizedek" (Ps. 110:4), "the rod out of the stem of Jesse"
(Isa. 11:1, 10), the "Immanuel," the virgin's son (Isa. 7:14),
"the branch of Jehovah" (Isa. 4:2), and "the messenger of the
covenant" (Mal. 3:1). This is he "of whom Moses in the law and
the prophets did write." The Old Testament Scripture is full of
prophetic declarations regarding the Great Deliverer and the
work he was to accomplish. Jesus the Christ is Jesus the Great
Deliverer, the Anointed One, the Saviour of men. This name
denotes that Jesus was divinely appointed, commissioned, and
accredited as the Saviour of men (Heb. 5:4; Isa. 11:2-4; 49:6;
John 5:37; Acts 2:22).
To believe that "Jesus is the Christ" is to believe that he is
the Anointed, the Messiah of the prophets, the Saviour sent of
God, that he was, in a word, what he claimed to be. This is to
believe the gospel, by the faith of which alone men can be
brought unto God. That Jesus is the Christ is the testimony of
God, and the faith of this constitutes a Christian (1 Cor. 12:3;
1 John 5:1).
the name given by the Greeks or Romans, probably in reproach, to
the followers of Jesus. It was first used at Antioch. The names
by which the disciples were known among themselves were
"brethren," "the faithful," "elect," "saints," "believers." But
as distinguishing them from the multitude without, the name
"Christian" came into use, and was universally accepted. This
name occurs but three times in the New Testament (Acts 11:26;
26:28; 1 Pet. 4:16).
Our Lord warned his disciples that they would arise (Matt.
24:24). It is said that no fewer than twenty-four persons have
at different times appeared (the last in 1682) pretending to be
the Messiah of the prophets.
the words of the days, (1 Kings 14:19; 1 Chr. 27:24), the daily
or yearly records of the transactions of the kingdom; events
recorded in the order of time.
The two books were originally one. They bore the title in the
Massoretic Hebrew _Dibre hayyamim_, i.e., "Acts of the Days."
This title was rendered by Jerome in his Latin version
"Chronicon," and hence "Chronicles." In the Septuagint version
the book is divided into two, and bears the title Paraleipomena,
i.e., "things omitted," or "supplements", because containing
many things omitted in the Books of Kings.
The contents of these books are comprehended under four heads.
(1.) The first nine chapters of Book I. contain little more than
a list of genealogies in the line of Israel down to the time of
David. (2.) The remainder of the first book contains a history
of the reign of David. (3.) The first nine chapters of Book II.
contain the history of the reign of Solomon. (4.) The remaining
chapters of the second book contain the history of the separate
kingdom of Judah to the time of the return from Babylonian
Exile.
The time of the composition of the Chronicles was, there is
every ground to conclude, subsequent to the Babylonian Exile,
probably between 450 and 435 B.C. The contents of this twofold
book, both as to matter and form, correspond closely with this
idea. The close of the book records the proclamation of Cyrus
permitting the Jews to return to their own land, and this forms
the opening passage of the Book of Ezra, which must be viewed as
a continuation of the Chronicles. The peculiar form of the
language, being Aramaean in its general character, harmonizes
also with that of the books which were written after the Exile.
The author was certainly contemporary with Zerubbabel, details
of whose family history are given (1 Chr. 3:19).
The time of the composition being determined, the question of
the authorship may be more easily decided. According to Jewish
tradition, which was universally received down to the middle of
the seventeenth century, Ezra was regarded as the author of the
Chronicles. There are many points of resemblance and of contact
between the Chronicles and the Book of Ezra which seem to
confirm this opinion. The conclusion of the one and the
beginning of the other are almost identical in expression. In
their spirit and characteristics they are the same, showing thus
also an identity of authorship.
In their general scope and design these books are not so much
historical as didactic. The principal aim of the writer appears
to be to present moral and religious truth. He does not give
prominence to political occurences, as is done in Samuel and
Kings, but to ecclesiastical institutions. "The genealogies, so
uninteresting to most modern readers, were really an important
part of the public records of the Hebrew state. They were the
basis on which not only the land was distributed and held, but
the public services of the temple were arranged and conducted,
the Levites and their descendants alone, as is well known, being
entitled and first fruits set apart for that purpose." The
"Chronicles" are an epitome of the sacred history from the days
of Adam down to the return from Babylonian Exile, a period of
about 3,500 years. The writer gathers up "the threads of the old
national life broken by the Captivity."
The sources whence the chronicler compiled his work were
public records, registers, and genealogical tables belonging to
the Jews. These are referred to in the course of the book (1
Chr. 27:24; 29:29; 2 Chr. 9:29; 12:15; 13:22; 20:34; 24:27;
26:22; 32:32; 33:18, 19; 27:7; 35:25). There are in Chronicles,
and the books of Samuel and Kings, forty parallels, often
verbal, proving that the writer both knew and used these records
(1 Chr. 17:18; comp. 2 Sam. 7:18-20; 1 Chr. 19; comp. 2 Sam. 10,
etc.).
As compared with Samuel and Kings, the Book of Chronicles
omits many particulars there recorded (2 Sam. 6:20-23; 9; 11;
14-19, etc.), and includes many things peculiar to itself (1
Chr. 12; 22; 23-26; 27; 28; 29, etc.). Twenty whole chapters,
and twenty-four parts of chapters, are occupied with matter not
found elsewhere. It also records many things in fuller detail,
as (e.g.) the list of David's heroes (1 Chr. 12:1-37), the
removal of the ark from Kirjath-jearim to Mount Zion (1 Chr. 13;
15:2-24; 16:4-43; comp. 2 Sam. 6), Uzziah's leprosy and its
cause (2 Chr. 26:16-21; comp. 2 Kings 15:5), etc.
It has also been observed that another peculiarity of the book
is that it substitutes modern and more common expressions for
those that had then become unusual or obsolete. This is seen
particularly in the substitution of modern names of places, such
as were in use in the writer's day, for the old names; thus
Gezer (1 Chr. 20:4) is used instead of Gob (2 Sam. 21:18), etc.
The Books of Chronicles are ranked among the _khethubim_ or
hagiographa. They are alluded to, though not directly quoted, in
the New Testament (Heb. 5:4; Matt. 12:42; 23:35; Luke 1:5;
11:31, 51).
(1 Chr. 27:24) were statistical state records; one of the public
sources from which the compiler of the Books of Chronicles
derived information on various public matters.
is the arrangement of facts and events in the order of time. The
writers of the Bible themselves do not adopt any standard era
according to which they date events. Sometimes the years are
reckoned, e.g., from the time of the Exodus (Num. 1:1; 33:38; 1
Kings 6:1), and sometimes from the accession of kings (1 Kings
15:1, 9, 25, 33, etc.), and sometimes again from the return from
Exile (Ezra 3:8).
Hence in constructing a system of Biblecal chronology, the
plan has been adopted of reckoning the years from the ages of
the patriarchs before the birth of their first-born sons for the
period from the Creation to Abraham. After this period other
data are to be taken into account in determining the relative
sequence of events.
As to the patriarchal period, there are three principal
systems of chronology: (1) that of the Hebrew text, (2) that of
the Septuagint version, and (3) that of the Samaritan
Pentateuch, as seen in the scheme on the opposite page.
The Samaritan and the Septuagint have considerably modified
the Hebrew chronology. This modification some regard as having
been wilfully made, and to be rejected. The same system of
variations is observed in the chronology of the period between
the Flood and Abraham. Thus:
| Hebrew Septuigant Samaritan
| From the birth of
| Arphaxad, 2 years
| after the Flood, to
| the birth of Terah. 220 1000 870
| From the birth of
| Terah to the birth
| of Abraham. 130 70 72
The Septuagint fixes on seventy years as the age of Terah at
the birth of Abraham, from Gen. 11:26; but a comparison of Gen.
11:32 and Acts 7:4 with Gen. 12:4 shows that when Terah died, at
the age of two hundred and five years, Abraham was seventy-five
years, and hence Terah must have been one hundred and thirty
years when Abraham was born. Thus, including the two years from
the Flood to the birth of Arphaxad, the period from the Flood to
the birth of Abraham was three hundred and fifty-two years.
The next period is from the birth of Abraham to the Exodus.
This, according to the Hebrew, extends to five hundred and five
years. The difficulty here is as to the four hundred and thirty
years mentioned Ex. 12:40, 41; Gal. 3:17. These years are
regarded by some as dating from the covenant with Abraham (Gen.
15), which was entered into soon after his sojourn in Egypt;
others, with more probability, reckon these years from Jacob's
going down into Egypt. (See EXODUS link )
In modern times the systems of Biblical chronology that have
been adopted are chiefly those of Ussher and Hales. The former
follows the Hebrew, and the latter the Septuagint mainly.
Archbishop Ussher's (died 1656) system is called the short
chronology. It is that given on the margin of the Authorized
Version, but is really of no authority, and is quite uncertain.
| Ussher Hales
| B.C. B.C.
| Creation 4004 5411
| Flood 2348 3155
| Abram leaves Haran 1921 2078
| Exodus 1491 1648
| Destruction of the
| Temple 588 586
To show at a glance the different ideas of the date of the
creation, it may be interesting to note the following: From
Creation to 1894.
According to Ussher, 5,898; Hales, 7,305; Zunz (Hebrew
reckoning), 5,882; Septuagint (Perowne), 7,305; Rabbinical,
5,654; Panodorus, 7,387; Anianus, 7,395; Constantinopolitan,
7,403; Eusebius, 7,093; Scaliger, 5,844; Dionysius (from whom we
take our Christian era), 7,388; Maximus, 7,395; Syncellus and
Theophanes, 7,395; Julius Africanus, 7,395; Jackson, 7,320.
golden leek, a precious stone of the colour of leek's juice, a
greenish-golden colour (Rev. 21:20).
the name of a people in alliance with Egypt in the time of
Nebuchadnezzar. The word is found only in Ezek. 30:5. They were
probably a people of Northern Africa, or of the lands near Egypt
in the south.
one of the cities of Hadarezer, king of Syria. David procured
brass (i.e., bronze or copper) from it for the temple (1 Chr.
18:8). It is called Berothai in 2 Sam. 8:8; probably the same as
Berothah in Ezek. 47:16.
Derived probably from the Greek kuriakon (i.e., "the Lord's
house"), which was used by ancient authors for the place of
worship.
In the New Testament it is the translation of the Greek word
ecclesia, which is synonymous with the Hebrew _kahal_ of the Old
Testament, both words meaning simply an assembly, the character
of which can only be known from the connection in which the word
is found. There is no clear instance of its being used for a
place of meeting or of worship, although in post-apostolic times
it early received this meaning. Nor is this word ever used to
denote the inhabitants of a country united in the same
profession, as when we say the "Church of England," the "Church
of Scotland," etc.
We find the word ecclesia used in the following senses in the
New Testament: (1.) It is translated "assembly" in the ordinary
classical sense (Acts 19:32, 39, 41).
(2.) It denotes the whole body of the redeemed, all those whom
the Father has given to Christ, the invisible catholic church
(Eph. 5:23, 25, 27, 29; Heb. 12:23).
(3.) A few Christians associated together in observing the
ordinances of the gospel are an ecclesia (Rom. 16:5; Col. 4:15).
(4.) All the Christians in a particular city, whether they
assembled together in one place or in several places for
religious worship, were an ecclesia. Thus all the disciples in
Antioch, forming several congregations, were one church (Acts
13:1); so also we read of the "church of God at Corinth" (1 Cor.
1:2), "the church at Jerusalem" (Acts 8:1), "the church of
Ephesus" (Rev. 2:1), etc.
(5.) The whole body of professing Christians throughout the
world (1 Cor. 15:9; Gal. 1:13; Matt. 16:18) are the church of
Christ.
The church visible "consists of all those throughout the world
that profess the true religion, together with their children."
It is called "visible" because its members are known and its
assemblies are public. Here there is a mixture of "wheat and
chaff," of saints and sinners. "God has commanded his people to
organize themselves into distinct visible ecclesiastical
communities, with constitutions, laws, and officers, badges,
ordinances, and discipline, for the great purpose of giving
visibility to his kingdom, of making known the gospel of that
kingdom, and of gathering in all its elect subjects. Each one of
these distinct organized communities which is faithful to the
great King is an integral part of the visible church, and all
together constitute the catholic or universal visible church." A
credible profession of the true religion constitutes a person a
member of this church. This is "the kingdom of heaven," whose
character and progress are set forth in the parables recorded in
Matt. 13.
The children of all who thus profess the true religion are
members of the visible church along with their parents. Children
are included in every covenant God ever made with man. They go
along with their parents (Gen. 9:9-17; 12:1-3; 17:7; Ex. 20:5;
Deut. 29:10-13). Peter, on the day of Pentecost, at the
beginning of the New Testament dispensation, announces the same
great principle. "The promise [just as to Abraham and his seed
the promises were made] is unto you, and to your children" (Acts
2:38, 39). The children of believing parents are "holy", i.e.,
are "saints", a title which designates the members of the
Christian church (1 Cor. 7:14). (See BAPTISM link )
The church invisible "consists of the whole number of the
elect that have been, are, or shall be gathered into one under
Christ, the head thereof." This is a pure society, the church in
which Christ dwells. It is the body of Christ. it is called
"invisible" because the greater part of those who constitute it
are already in heaven or are yet unborn, and also because its
members still on earth cannot certainly be distinguished. The
qualifications of membership in it are internal and are hidden.
It is unseen except by Him who "searches the heart." "The Lord
knoweth them that are his" (2 Tim. 2:19).
The church to which the attributes, prerogatives, and promises
appertaining to Christ's kingdom belong, is a spiritual body
consisting of all true believers, i.e., the church invisible.
(1.) Its unity. God has ever had only one church on earth. We
sometimes speak of the Old Testament Church and of the New
Testament church, but they are one and the same. The Old
Testament church was not to be changed but enlarged (Isa.
49:13-23; 60:1-14). When the Jews are at length restored, they
will not enter a new church, but will be grafted again into
"their own olive tree" (Rom. 11:18-24; comp. Eph. 2:11-22). The
apostles did not set up a new organization. Under their ministry
disciples were "added" to the "church" already existing (Acts
2:47).
(2.) Its universality. It is the "catholic" church; not
confined to any particular country or outward organization, but
comprehending all believers throughout the whole world.
(3.) Its perpetuity. It will continue through all ages to the
end of the world. It can never be destroyed. It is an
"everlasting kindgdom."
in Isa. 32:5 (R.V. marg., "crafty"), means a deceiver. In 1 Sam.
25:3, the word churlish denotes a man that is coarse and
ill-natured, or, as the word literally means, "hard." The same
Greek word as used by the LXX. here is found in Matt. 25:24, and
there is rendered "hard."
Cush of double wickedness, or governor of two presidencies, the
king of Mesopotamia who oppressed Israel in the generation
immediately following Joshua (Judg. 3:8). We learn from the
Tell-el-Amarna tablets that Palestine had been invaded by the
forces of Aram-naharaim (A.V., "Mesopotamia") more than once,
long before the Exodus, and that at the time they were written
the king of Aram-naharaim was still intriguing in Canaan. It is
mentioned among the countries which took part in the attack upon
Egypt in the reign of Rameses III. (of the Twentieth Dynasty),
but as its king is not one of the princes stated to have been
conquered by the Pharaoh, it would seem that he did not actually
enter Egypt. As the reign of Rameses III. corresponds with the
Israelitish occupation of Canaan, it is probable that the
Egyptian monuments refer to the oppression of the Israelites by
Chushan-rishathaim. Canaan was still regarded as a province of
Egypt, so that, in attacking it Chushan-rishathaim would have
been considered to be attacking Egypt.
a maritime province in the south-east of Asia Minor. Tarsus, the
birth-place of Paul, was one of its chief towns, and the seat of
a celebrated school of philosophy. Its luxurious climate
attracted to it many Greek residents after its incorporation
with the Macedonian empire. It was formed into a Roman province,
B.C. 67. The Jews of Cilicia had a synagogue at Jerusalem (Acts
6:9). Paul visited it soon after his conversion (Gal. 1:21; Acts
9:30), and again, on his second missionary journey (15:41), "he
went through Syria and Cilicia, confirming the churches." It was
famous for its goat's-hair cloth, called cilicium. Paul learned
in his youth the trade of making tents of this cloth.
Heb. kinamon, the Cinnamomum zeylanicum of botanists, a tree of
the Laurel family, which grows only in India on the Malabar
coast, in Ceylon, and China. There is no trace of it in Egypt,
and it was unknown in Syria. The inner rind when dried and
rolled into cylinders forms the cinnamon of commerce. The fruit
and coarser pieces of bark when boiled yield a fragrant oil. It
was one of the principal ingredients in the holy anointing oil
(Ex. 30:23). It is mentioned elsewhere only in Prov. 7:17; Cant.
4:14; Rev. 18:13. The mention of it indicates a very early and
extensive commerce carried on between Palestine and the East.
a harp, one of the "fenced cities" of Naphtali (Josh. 19:35;
comp. Deut. 3:17). It also denotes, apparently, a district which
may have taken its name from the adjacent city or lake of
Gennesaret, anciently called "the sea of Chinnereth" (q.v.), and
was probably that enclosed district north of Tiberias afterwards
called "the plain of Gennesaret." Called Chinneroth (R.V.,
Chinnereth) Josh. 11:2. The phrase "all Cinneroth, with all the
land of Naphtali" in 1 Kings 15:20 is parallel to "the
store-houses of the cities of Naphtali" (R.V. marg.) in 2 Chr.
16:4.
the apparent diurnal revolution of the sun round the earth (Ps.
19:6), and the changes of the wind (Eccl. 1:6). In Job 22:14,
"in the circuit of heaven" (R.V. marg., "on the vault of
heaven") means the "arch of heaven," which seems to be bent over
our heads.
cutting around. This rite, practised before, as some think, by
divers races, was appointed by God to be the special badge of
his chosen people, an abiding sign of their consecration to him.
It was established as a national ordinance (Gen. 17:10, 11). In
compliance with the divine command, Abraham, though ninety-nine
years of age, was circumcised on the same day with Ishmael, who
was thirteen years old (17:24-27). Slaves, whether home-born or
purchased, were circumcised (17:12, 13); and all foreigners must
have their males circumcised before they could enjoy the
privileges of Jewish citizenship (Ex. 12:48). During the journey
through the wilderness, the practice of circumcision fell into
disuse, but was resumed by the command of Joshua before they
entered the Promised Land (Josh. 5:2-9). It was observed always
afterwards among the tribes of israel, although it is not
expressly mentioned from the time of the settlement in Canaan
till the time of Christ, about 1,450 years. The Jews prided
themselves in the possession of this covenant distinction (Judg.
14:3; 15:18; 1 Sam. 14:6; 17:26; 2 Sam. 1:20; Ezek. 31:18).
As a rite of the church it ceased when the New Testament times
began (Gal. 6:15; Col. 3:11). Some Jewish Christians sought to
impose it, however, on the Gentile converts; but this the
apostles resolutely resisted (Acts 15:1; Gal. 6:12). Our Lord
was circumcised, for it "became him to fulfil all
righteousness," as of the seed of Abraham, according to the
flesh; and Paul "took and circumcised" Timothy (Acts 16:3), to
avoid giving offence to the Jews. It would render Timothy's
labours more acceptable to the Jews. But Paul would by no means
consent to the demand that Titus should be circumcised (Gal.
2:3-5). The great point for which he contended was the free
admission of uncircumcised Gentiles into the church. He
contended successfully in behalf of Titus, even in Jerusalem.
In the Old Testament a spiritual idea is attached to
circumcision. It was the symbol of purity (Isa. 52:1). We read
of uncircumcised lips (Ex. 6:12, 30), ears (Jer. 6:10), hearts
(Lev. 26:41). The fruit of a tree that is unclean is spoken of
as uncircumcised (Lev. 19:23).
It was a sign and seal of the covenant of grace as well as of
the national covenant between God and the Hebrews. (1.) It
sealed the promises made to Abraham, which related to the
commonwealth of Israel, national promises. (2.) But the promises
made to Abraham included the promise of redemption (Gal. 3:14),
a promise which has come upon us. The covenant with Abraham was
a dispensation or a specific form of the covenant of grace, and
circumcision was a sign and seal of that covenant. It had a
spiritual meaning. It signified purification of the heart,
inward circumcision effected by the Spirit (Deut. 10:16; 30:6;
Ezek. 44:7; Acts 7:51; Rom. 2:28; Col. 2:11). Circumcision as a
symbol shadowing forth sanctification by the Holy Spirit has now
given way to the symbol of baptism (q.v.). But the truth
embodied in both ordinances is ever the same, the removal of
sin, the sanctifying effects of grace in the heart.
Under the Jewish dispensation, church and state were
identical. No one could be a member of the one without also
being a member of the other. Circumcision was a sign and seal of
membership in both. Every circumcised person bore thereby
evidence that he was one of the chosen people, a member of the
church of God as it then existed, and consequently also a member
of the Jewish commonwealth.
the rendering of a Hebrew word _bor_, which means a receptacle
for water conveyed to it; distinguished from _beer_, which
denotes a place where water rises on the spot (Jer. 2:13; Prov.
5:15; Isa. 36:16), a fountain. Cisterns are frequently mentioned
in Scripture. The scarcity of springs in Palestine made it
necessary to collect rain-water in reservoirs and cisterns (Num.
21:22). (See WELL link )
Empty cisterns were sometimes used as prisons (Jer. 38:6; Lam.
3:53; Ps. 40:2; 69:15). The "pit" into which Joseph was cast
(Gen. 37:24) was a _beer_ or dry well. There are numerous
remains of ancient cisterns in all parts of Palestine.
the rights and privileges of a citizen in distinction from a
foreigner (Luke 15:15; 19:14; Acts 21:39). Under the Mosaic law
non-Israelites, with the exception of the Moabites and the
Ammonites and others mentioned in Deut. 23:1-3, were admitted to
the general privileges of citizenship among the Jews (Ex. 12:19;
Lev. 24:22; Num. 15:15; 35:15; Deut. 10:18; 14:29; 16:10, 14).
The right of citizenship under the Roman government was
granted by the emperor to individuals, and sometimes to
provinces, as a favour or as a recompense for services rendered
to the state, or for a sum of money (Acts 22:28). This "freedom"
secured privileges equal to those enjoyed by natives of Rome.
Among the most notable of these was the provision that a man
could not be bound or imprisoned without a formal trial (Acts
22:25, 26), or scourged (16:37). All Roman citizens had the
right of appeal to Caesar (25:11).
The earliest mention of city-building is that of Enoch, which
was built by Cain (Gen. 4:17). After the confusion of tongues,
the descendants of Nimrod founded several cities (10:10-12).
Next, we have a record of the cities of the Canaanites, Sidon,
Gaza, Sodom, etc. (10:12, 19; 11:3, 9; 36:31-39). The earliest
description of a city is that of Sodom (19:1-22). Damascus is
said to be the oldest existing city in the world. Before the
time of Abraham there were cities in Egypt (Num. 13:22). The
Israelites in Egypt were employed in building the "treasure
cities" of Pithom and Raamses (Ex. 1:11); but it does not seem
that they had any cities of their own in Goshen (Gen. 46:34;
47:1-11). In the kingdom of Og in Bashan there were sixty "great
cities with walls," and twenty-three cities in Gilead partly
rebuilt by the tribes on the east of Jordan (Num. 21:21, 32, 33,
35; 32:1-3, 34-42; Deut. 3:4, 5, 14; 1 Kings 4:13). On the west
of Jordan were thirty-one "royal cities" (Josh. 12), besides
many others spoken of in the history of Israel.
A fenced city was a city surrounded by fortifications and high
walls, with watch-towers upon them (2 Chr. 11:11; Deut. 3:5).
There was also within the city generally a tower to which the
citizens might flee when danger threatened them (Judg. 9:46-52).
A city with suburbs was a city surrounded with open
pasture-grounds, such as the forty-eight cities which were given
to the Levites (Num. 35:2-7). There were six cities of refuge,
three on each side of Jordan, namely, Kadesh, Shechem, Hebron,
on the west of Jordan; and on the east, Bezer, Ramoth-gilead,
and Golan. The cities on each side of the river were nearly
opposite each other. The regulations concerning these cities are
given in Num. 35:9-34; Deut. 19:1-13; Ex. 21:12-14.
When David reduced the fortress of the Jebusites which stood
on Mount Zion, he built on the site of it a palace and a city,
which he called by his own name (1 Chr. 11:5), the city of
David. Bethlehem is also so called as being David's native town
(Luke 2:4).
Jerusalem is called the Holy City, the holiness of the temple
being regarded as extending in some measure over the whole city
(Neh. 11:1).
Pithom and Raamses, built by the Israelites as "treasure
cities," were not places where royal treasures were kept, but
were fortified towns where merchants might store their goods and
transact their business in safety, or cities in which munitions
of war were stored. (See PITHOM link )
a small island off the southwest coast of Crete, passed by Paul
on his voyage to Rome (Acts 27:16). It is about 7 miles long and
3 broad. It is now called Gozzo (R.V., "Cauda").
a female Christian mentioned in 2 Tim. 4:21. It is a conjecture
having some probability that she was a British maiden, the
daughter of king Cogidunus, who was an ally of Rome, and assumed
the name of the emperor, his patron, Tiberius Claudius, and that
she was the wife of Pudens.
lame. (1.) The fourth Roman emperor. He succeeded Caligula (A.D.
41). Though in general he treated the Jews, especially those in
Asia and Egypt, with great indulgence, yet about the middle of
his reign (A.D. 49) he banished them all from Rome (Acts 18:2).
In this edict the Christians were included, as being, as was
supposed, a sect of Jews. The Jews, however soon again returned
to Rome.
During the reign of this emperor, several persecutions of the
Christians by the Jews took place in the dominions of Herod
Agrippa, in one of which the apostle James was "killed" (12:2).
He died A.D. 54.
(2.) Claudius Lysias, a Greek who, having obtained by purchase
the privilege of Roman citizenship, took the name of Claudius
(Acts 21:31-40; 22:28; 23:26).
This word is used of sediment found in pits or in streets (Isa.
57:20; Jer. 38:60), of dust mixed with spittle (John 9:6), and
of potter's clay (Isa. 41:25; Nah. 3:14; Jer. 18:1-6; Rom.
9:21). Clay was used for sealing (Job 38:14; Jer. 32:14). Our
Lord's tomb may have been thus sealed (Matt. 27:66). The
practice of sealing doors with clay is still common in the East.
Clay was also in primitive times used for mortar (Gen. 11:3).
The "clay ground" in which the large vessels of the temple were
cast (1 Kings 7:46; 2 Chr. 4:17) was a compact loam fitted for
the purpose. The expression literally rendered is, "in the
thickness of the ground,", meaning, "in stiff ground" or in
clay.
The various forms of uncleanness according to the Mosaic law are
enumerated in Lev. 11-15; Num. 19. The division of animals into
clean and unclean was probably founded on the practice of
sacrifice. It existed before the Flood (Gen. 7:2). The
regulations regarding such animals are recorded in Lev. 11 and
Deut. 14:1-21.
The Hebrews were prohibited from using as food certain animal
substances, such as (1) blood; (2) the fat covering the
intestines, termed the caul; (3) the fat on the intestines,
called the mesentery; (4) the fat of the kidneys; and (5) the
fat tail of certain sheep (Ex. 29:13, 22; Lev. 3:4-9; 9:19;
17:10; 19:26).
The chief design of these regulations seems to have been to
establish a system of regimen which would distinguish the Jews
from all other nations. Regarding the design and the abolition
of these regulations the reader will find all the details in
Lev. 20:24-26; Acts 10:9-16; 11:1-10; Heb. 9:9-14.
mild, a Christian of Philippi, Paul's "fellow-labourer," whose
name he mentions as "in the book of life" (Phil. 4:3). It was an
opinion of ancient writers that he was the Clement of Rome whose
name is well known in church history, and that he was the author
of an Epistle to the Corinthians, the only known manuscript of
which is appended to the Alexandrian Codex, now in the British
Museum. It is of some historical interest, and has given rise to
much discussion among critics. It makes distinct reference to
Paul's First Epistle to the Corinthians.
(abbreviation of Cleopatros), one of the two disciples with whom
Jesus conversed on the way to Emmaus on the day of the
resurrection (Luke 24:18). We know nothing definitely regarding
him. It is not certain that he was the Clopas of John 19:25, or
the Alphaeus of Matt. 10:3, although he may have been so.
(in the spelling of this word _h_ is inserted by mistake from
Latin MSS.), rather Cleopas, which is the Greek form of the
word, while Clopas is the Aramaic form. In John 19:25 the
Authorized Version reads, "Mary, the wife of Clopas." The word
"wife" is conjecturally inserted here. If "wife" is rightly
inserted, then Mary was the mother of James the Less, and Clopas
is the same as Alphaeus (Matt. 10:3; 27:56).
an upper garment, "an exterior tunic, wide and long, reaching to
the ankles, but without sleeves" (Isa. 59:17). The word so
rendered is elsewhere rendered "robe" or "mantle." It was worn
by the high priest under the ephod (Ex. 28:31), by kings and
others of rank (1 Sam. 15:27; Job 1:20; 2:12), and by women (2
Sam. 13:18).
The word translated "cloke", i.e., outer garment, in Matt.
5:40 is in its plural form used of garments in general (Matt.
17:2; 26:65). The cloak mentioned here and in Luke 6:29 was the
Greek himation, Latin pallium, and consisted of a large square
piece of wollen cloth fastened round the shoulders, like the
abba of the Arabs. This could be taken by a creditor (Ex.
22:26,27), but the coat or tunic (Gr. chiton) mentioned in Matt.
5:40 could not.
The cloak which Paul "left at Troas" (2 Tim. 4:13) was the
Roman paenula, a thick upper garment used chiefly in travelling
as a protection from the weather. Some, however, have supposed
that what Paul meant was a travelling-bag. In the Syriac version
the word used means a bookcase. (See Dress link )
as used in the New Testament, signifies properly a storehouse
(Luke 12: 24), and hence a place of privacy and retirement
(Matt. 6:6; Luke 12:3).
The Hebrew so rendered means "a covering," because clouds cover
the sky. The word is used as a symbol of the Divine presence, as
indicating the splendour of that glory which it conceals (Ex.
16:10; 33:9; Num. 11:25; 12:5; Job 22:14; Ps. 18:11). A "cloud
without rain" is a proverbial saying, denoting a man who does
not keep his promise (Prov. 16:15; Isa. 18:4; 25:5; Jude 1:12).
A cloud is the figure of that which is transitory (Job 30:15;
Hos. 6:4). A bright cloud is the symbolical seat of the Divine
presence (Ex.29:42, 43; 1 Kings 8:10; 2 Chr. 5:14; Ezek. 43:4),
and was called the Shechinah (q.v.). Jehovah came down upon
Sinai in a cloud (Ex. 19:9); and the cloud filled the court
around the tabernacle in the wilderness so that Moses could not
enter it (Ex. 40:34, 35). At the dedication of the temple also
the cloud "filled the house of the Lord" (1 Kings 8:10). Thus in
like manner when Christ comes the second time he is described as
coming "in the clouds" (Matt. 17:5; 24:30; Acts 1:9, 11). False
teachers are likened unto clouds carried about with a tempest (2
Pet. 2:17). The infirmities of old age, which come one after
another, are compared by Solomon to "clouds returning after the
rain" (Eccl. 12:2). The blotting out of sins is like the sudden
disappearance of threatening clouds from the sky (Isa. 44:22).
Cloud, the pillar of, was the glory-cloud which indicated
God's presence leading the ransomed people through the
wilderness (Ex. 13:22; 33:9, 10). This pillar preceded the
people as they marched, resting on the ark (Ex. 13:21; 40:36).
By night it became a pillar of fire (Num. 9:17-23).
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