Siloam

(sent). Shiloach, (Isaiah 8:6) Siloah, (Nehemiah 3:15) Siloam, (John 9:11) Siloam is one of the few undisputed localities in the topography of Jerusalem; still retaining its old name (with Arabic modification, Silwan), while every other pool has lost its Bible designation. This is the more remarkable as it is a mere suburban tank of no great size, and for many an age not particularly good or plentiful in its waters, though Josephus tells us that in his day they were both "sweet and abundant." A little way below the Jewish burying-ground, but on the opposite side of the valley, where the Kedron turns slightly westward and widens itself considerable, is the fountain of the Virgin, or Um'ed'Deraj, near the beginning of that saddle-shaped projection of the temple hill supposed to be the Ophel of The Bible and the Ophlas of Josephus. At the back part of this fountain a subterraneous passage begins, through which the water flows, and through which a man may make his way, sometimes walking erect, sometimes stooping, sometimes kneeling, and sometime crawling, to Siloam. This conduit is 1708 feet long, 16 feet high at the entrance, but only 16 inches at its narrowest tributaries which sent their waters down from the city pools or temple wells to swell Siloam. It enters Siloam at the northwest angle; or rather enters a small rock-cut chamber which forms the vestibule of Siloam, about five or six feet broad. To this you descend by a few rude steps, under which the water pours itself into the main pool. This pool is oblong, about 52 feet long, 18 feet broad and 19 feet deep; but it is never filled, the water either passing directly through or being maintained at a depth of three or four feet. The present pool is a ruin, with no moss or ivy to make it romantic; its sides fallen in; its pillars broken; its stair a fragment; its walls giving way; the edge of every stone was round or sharp by time; in some parts mere debris, though around its edges wild flowers, and among other plants the caper trees, grow luxuriantly. The present pool is not the original building; it may be the work of crusaders, perhaps even improved by Saladin, whose affection for wells and pools led him to care for all these things. Yet the spot is the same. This pool, which we may call the second, seems anciently to have poured its waters into a third before it proceeded to water the royal gardens. This third is perhaps that which Josephus calls "Solomon's pool," and which nehemiah calls the "king's pool." (Nehemiah 2:14) The expression in (Isaiah 8:6) "waters of Shiloah that go softly," seems to point to the slender rivulet, flowing gently though once very profusely out of Siloam into the lower breadth of level where the king's gardens, or royal paradise, stood, and which is still the greenest spot about the holy city. Siloam is a mere spot even to the Moslem; much more to the Jew. It was to Siloam that the Levite was sent with the golden pitcher on the "last and great day of the feast" of Tabernacles; it was from Siloam that he brought the water which was then poured over the sacrifice, in memory of the water from the rock of Rephidim; and it was to this Siloam water that the Lord pointed when he stood in the temple on that day and cried, "If any man thirst let him come unto me and drink." The Lord sent the blind man to wash, not in, as our version has it, but at (eis), the pool of siloam; for it was the clay from his eyes that was to be washed off.


Siloam, Tower, In

(Luke 13:4) Of this we know nothing definitely beyond these words of the Lord. In connection with Ophel, there is mention made of "a tower that lieth out," (Nehemiah 3:26) and there is no unlikelihood in connecting this projecting tower with the tower in Siloam, while one may be almost excused for the conjecture that its projection was the cause of its ultimate fall.


Silver

In very early times silver was used for ornaments, (Genesis 24:53) and for vessels of various kinds. Images for idolatrous worship were made of silver or overlaid with it, (Exodus 20:23; Hosea 13:2); Habb 2:19 Bar. 6:39, and the manufacture of silver shrines for Diana was a trade in Ephesus. (Acts 19:24) But its chief use was as a medium of exchange, and throughout the Old Testament we find "silver" used for money, like the French argent . Silver was brought to Solomon from Arabia, (2 Chronicles 9:14) and from Tarshish, (2 Chronicles 9:21) which supplied the markets of Tyre. (Ezekiel 27:12) From Tarshish it came int he form of plates, (Jeremiah 10:9) like those on which the sacred books of the Singhalese are written to this day. Spain appears to have been the chief source whence silver was obtained by the ancients. Possibly the hills of Palestine may have afforded some supply of this metal. Silvers mixed with alloy is referred to in (Jeremiah 6:30) and a finer kind, either purer in itself or more thoroughly purified, is mentioned in (Proverbs 8:19)


Silverlings

a word used once only in the Authorized Version, (Isaiah 7:23) as a translation of the Hebrew word elsewhere rendered "silver" or "money."


Simeon

+ The second of Jacob's son by Leah. His birth is recorded in (Genesis 29:33) The first group of Jacob's children consists, besides Simeon, of the three other sons of Leah--Reuben, Levi, Judah. Besides the massacre of Shechem, (Genesis 34:25) the only personal incident related of Simeon is the fact of his being selected by Joseph as the hostage for the appearance of Benjamin. (Genesis 42:19,24,36; 43:23) The chief families of the tribe of Simeon are mentioned int he lists of (Genesis 46:10) At the census of Sinai Simeon numbered 59,300 fighting men. (Numbers 1:23) When the second census was taken, at Shittim, the numbers had fallen to 22,200, and it was the weakest of all the tribes. This was no doubt partly due to the recent mortality following the idolatry of Peor, but there must have been other causes which have escaped mention. To Simeon was allotted a portion of land out of the territory of Judah, on its southern frontier, which contained eighteen or nineteen cities, with their villages, spread round the venerable well of Beersheba. (Joshua 19:1-8; 1 Chronicles 4:28-33) Of these places, with the help of Judah, the Simeonites possessed themselves, (Judges 1:3,17) and there they were found, doubtless by Joab, residing in the reign of David. (1 Chronicles 4:31) What part of the tribe took at the time of the division of the kingdom we are not told. The only thing which can be interpreted into a trace of its having taken any part with the northern kingdom are the two casual notices of (2 Chronicles 15:9) and 2Chr 34:6 Which appear to imply the presence of Simeonites there in the reigns of Asa and Josiah. On the other hand the definite statement of (1 Chronicles 4:41-43) proves that at that time there were still some of them remaining in the original seat of the tribe, and actuated by all the warlike, lawless spirit of their progenitor. + A devout Jew, inspired by the Holy Ghost, who met the parents of our Lord in the temple, took him in his arms, and gave thanks for what he saw and knew of Jesus. (Luke 2:25-35) There was a Simeon who succeeded his father Hillel as president of the Sanhedrin about A.D. 13, and whose son Gamaliel was the Pharisee at whose feet St. Paul was brought up. (Acts 22:3) It has been conjectured that he may be the Simeon of St. Luke.


Simon

+ Son of Mattathias. [[1145]Maccabees] + Son of Onias the high priest, whose eulogy closes the "praise of famous men" in the book of Ecclesiasticus, ch. 4. (B.C. 302-293.) + A "governor of the temple" in the time of Seleucus Philopator, whose information as to the treasures of the temple led to the sacrilegious attach of Heliordorus. 2 Macc. 3:4, etc. (B.C. 175.) + Simon the brother of Jesus. The only undoubted notice of this Simon occurs in (Matthew 13:55; Mark 6:3) He has been identified by some writers with Simon the Canaanite, and still more generally with Symeon who became bishop of Jerusalem after the death of James, A.D. 62. The former of these opinions rests on no evidence whatever, nor is the later without its difficulties. + Simon the Canaanite, one of the twelve apostles, (Matthew 10:4; Mark 3:18) otherwise described as Simon Zelotes, (Luke 6:15; Acts 1:13) (A.D. 28.) The latter term, which is peculiar to Luke, is the Greek equivalent for the Chaldee term preserved by Matthew and Mark. [[1146]Canaanite, The] Each of these equally points out Simon as belonging to the faction of the Zealots, who were conspicuous for their fierce advocacy of the Mosaic ritual. + Simon of Cyrene, a Hellenistic Jew, born at Cyrene, on the north coast of Africa, who was present at Jerusalem at the time of the crucifixion of Jesus, either as an attendant at the feast, (Acts 2:10) or as one of the numerous settlers at Jerusalem from that place. (Acts 6:9) (A.D. 30.) Meeting the procession that conducted Jesus to Golgotha, as he was returning from the country, he was pressed into the service to bear the cross, (Matthew 27:32; Mark 15:21; Luke 23:26) when Jesus himself was unable to carry it any longer. Comp. (John 19:17) Mark describes him as the father of Alexander and Rufus, perhaps because this was the Rufus known to the Roman Christians, (Romans 16:13) for whom he more especially wrote. + Simon, a resident at Bethany, distinguished as "the leper." It is not improbable that he had been miraculously cured by Jesus. In his house Mary anointed Jesus preparatory to his death and burial. (Matthew 26:6) etc.; Mark 14:3 etc.; John 12:1 etc. + Simon Magus, a Samaritan living in the apostolic age, distinguished as a sorcerer or "magician," from his practice of magical arts. (Acts 8:9) According to ecclesiastical writers he was born at Gitton, a village of Samaria, and was probably educated at Alexandria in the tenets of the Gnostic school. He is first introduced to us as practicing magical arts in a city of Samaria, perhaps Sychar, (Acts 8:5) comp. John 4:5 And with such success that he was pronounced to be "the power of God which is called great." (Acts 8:10) The preaching and miracles of Philip having excited his observation, he became one of his disciples, and received baptism at his hands, A.D. 36,37. Subsequently he witnessed the effect produced by the imposition of hands, as practiced by the apostles Peter and John, and, being desirous of acquiring a similar power for himself, he offered a sum of money for it. His object evidently was to apply the power to the prosecution of magical arts. The motive and the means were equally to be reprobated; and his proposition met with a severe denunciation from Peter, followed by a petition on the part of Simon, the tenor of which bespeaks terror, but not penitence. (Acts 8:9-24) The memory of his peculiar guilt has been perpetuated in the word simony, as applied to all traffic in spiritual offices. Simon's history, subsequent to his meeting with Peter, is involved in difficulties. Early Church historians depict him as the pertinacious foe of the apostle Peter, whose movements he followed for the purpose of seeking encounters, in which he was signally defeated. He is said to have followed the apostle to Rome. His death is associated with this meeting. According to Hippolytus, the earliest authority on the subject, Simon was buried alive at his own request, in the confident assurance that he would rise on the third day. + Simon Peter. [[1147]Peter] + Simon, a Pharisee, in whose house a penitent woman anointed the head and feet of Jesus. (Luke 7:40) + Simon the tanner, a Christian convert living at Joppa, at whose house Peter lodged. (Acts 9:43) The house was near the seaside, (Acts 10:6,32) for the convenience of the water. (A.D. 37.) + Simon the father of Judas Iscariot. (John 6:71; 13:2,26)


Simri

(vigilant), properly Shimri, son of Hosah, a Merarite Levite in the reign of David. (1 Chronicles 26:10)


Sin

a city of Egypt, mentioned only by Ezekiel. (Ezekiel 30:15,16) The name is Hebrew, or at least Semitic, perhaps signifying clay . It is identified in the Vulgate with Pelusium, "the clayey or muddy" town. Its antiquity may perhaps be inferred from the mention of "the wilderness of Sin" in the journeys of the Israelites. (Exodus 16:1; Numbers 33:11) Ezekiel speaks of Sin as "Sin the strongholds of Egypt." (Ezekiel 30:15) This place was held by Egypt from that time until the period of the Romans. Herodotus relates that Sennacherib advanced against Pelusium, and that near Pelusium Cambyses defeated Psammenitus. In like manner the decisive battle in which Ochus defeated the last native king, Nectanebes, was fought near this city.


Sin Offering

The sin offering among the Jews was the sacrifice in which the ideas of propitiation and of atonement for sin were most distinctly marked. The ceremonial of the sin offering is described in Levi 4 and 6. The trespass offering is closely connected with the sin offering in Leviticus, but at the same time clearly distinguished from it, being in some cases offered with it as a distinct part of the same sacrifice; as, for example, in the cleansing of the leper. Levi 14. The distinction of ceremonial clearly indicates a difference in the idea of the two sacrifices. The nature of that difference is still a subject of great controversy. We find that the sin offerings were--

+ Regular . (a) For the whole people, at the New Moon, Passover, Pentecost, Feast of Trumpets and Feast of Tabernacles, (Numbers 28:15-29; 38:1) ... besides the solemn offering of the two goats on the Great Day of Atonement. Levi 16 (B) For the priests and Levites at their consecration, (Exodus 29:10-14,36) besides the yearly sin offering (a, bullock) for the high priest on the Great Day of Atonement. (Leviticus 16:2) Special . For any sin of "ignorance" and the like recorded in Levi 4 and 5. It is seen that in the law most of the sins which are not purely ceremonial are called sins of "ignorance," see (Hebrews 9:7) and in Numb 15:30 It is expressly said that while such sins call be atoned for by offerings, "the soul that doeth aught presumptuously " (Heb. with a high hand) "shall be cut off from among his people." "His iniquity shall he upon him." Comp. (Hebrews 10:20) But here are sufficient indications that the sins here called "of ignorance" are more strictly those of "negligence" or "frailty" repented of by the unpunished offender, as opposed to those of deliberate and unrepentant sin. It is clear that two classes of sacrifices, although distinct, touch closely upon each other. It is also evident that the sin offering was the only regular and general recognition of sin in the abstract and accordingly was for more solemn and symbolical in it's ceremonial; the trespass offering was confined to special cases, most of which related to the doing of some material damage, either to the holy things or to man. Josephus declares that the sin offering is presented by those "who fall into sin in ignorance." and the trespass offering by "one who has sinned and is conscious of his sin. But has no one to convict him thereof." Without attempting to decide so difficult and so controverted a question, we may draw the following conclusions. First, that the sin offering was for the more solemn and comprehensive of the two sacrifices. Secondly, that the sin offering looked more to the guilt of the sin done, irrespective of its consequences, while the trespass offering looked to the evil consequences of sin, either against the service of God or against man, and to the duty of atonement, as far as atonement was possible. Thirdly, that in the sin offering especially we find symbolized the acknowledgment of sinfulness as inherent in man, and of the need of expiation by sacrifice to renew the broken covenant between man and God. In considering this subject, it must he remembered that the sacrifices of the law had a temporal as well as a spiritual significance and effect. They restored sin offender to his place in the commonwealth of Israel; they were therefore an atonement to the King of Israel for the infringement of his low.


Sin, Wilderness Of

a tract of the wilderness which the Israelites reached after leaving the encampment by the Red Sea. (Numbers 33:11,23) Their next halting-place, (Exodus 16:1; 17:1) was Rephidim, probably the Wady Feiran [[1148]Rephidim]; on which supposition it would follow that Sin must lie between that way and the coast of the Gulf of Suez, and of course west of Sinai. In the wilderness of Sin the manna was first gathered, and those who adopt the supposition that this was merely the natural product of the tarfa bush find from the abundance of that shrub in Wady es-Sheikh, southeast of Wady Ghurundel, a proof of local identity.


Sina, Mount

the Greek form of the well-known name Sinai. (Acts 7:30,38)


Sinai, Or Sinai

(thorny). Nearly in the centre of the peninsula which stretches between the horns of the Red Sea lies a wedge of granite, grunstein and porphyry rocks rising to between 8000 and 9000 feet above the sea. Its shape resembles st scalene triangle. These mountains may be divided into two great masses-that of Jebel Serbal (8759 feet high), in the northwest above Wady Feiran, and the central group, roughly denoted by the general name of Sinai. This group rises abruptly from the Wady es-Sheikh at its north foot, first to the cliffs of the Ras Sufsafeh, behind which towers the pinnacle of Jebel Musa (the Mount of Moses), and farther back to the right of it the summit of Jebel Katerin (Mount St. Catherine, 8705 feet) all being backed up and. overtopped by Um Shamer (the mother of fennel, 9300 feet), which is the highest point of the whole peninsula.

+ Names .--These mountains are called Horeb, and sometimes Sinai. Some think that Horeb is the name of the whole range, and Sinai the name of a particular mountain; others, that Sinai is the range and Horeb the particular mountain; while Stanley suggests that the distinction is one of usage, and that both names are applied to the same place. + The mountain from which the law was given .--Modern investigators have generally come to the conclusion that of the claimants Jebel Serba, Jebel Musa and Ras Sufsafeh, the last the modern Horeb of the monks--viz. the northwest and lower face of the Jebel Musa, crowned with a range of magnificent cliffs, the highest point called Ras Sufsafeh, as overlooking the plain er Rahah--is the scene of the giving of the law, and that peak the mountain into which Moses ascended. (But Jebel Musa and Ras Sufsafeh are really peaks of the Same mountain, and Moses may have received the law on Jebel Musa, but it must have been proclaimed from Ras Sufsafeh. Jebel Musa is the traditional mount where Moses received the law from God. It is a mountain mass two miles long and one mile broad, The southern peak is 7363 feet high; the northern peak, Ras Sufsafeh is 6830 feet high. It is in full view of the plain er Rahah, where the children of Israel were encamped. This plain is a smooth camping-ground, surrounded by mountains. It is about two miles long by half a mile broad, embracing 400 acres of available standing round made into a natural amphitheatre by a low semicircular mount about 300 yards from the foot of the mountain. By actual measurement it contains over 2,000,000 square yards, and with its branches over 4,000,000 square yards, so that the whole people of Israel, two million in number, would find ample accommodations for seeing and hearing. In addition to this, the air is wonderfully clear, both for seeing and hearing. Dean Stanley says that "from the highest point of Ras Sufsafeh to its lower peak, a distance of about 60 feet, the page of a book distinctly but not loudly read was perfectly audible." It was the belief of the Arabs who conducted Niebuhr that they could make themselves heard across the Gulf of Akabah,--a belief fostered by the great distance to which the voice can actually be carried. There is no other place known among all these mountains so well adapted for the purpose of giving and receiving the law as this rocky pulpit of Ras Sufsafeh and the natural amphitheatre of er Rahah.


Sinim

a people noticed in (Isaiah 49:12) as living at the extremity of the known world. They may be identified with the classical Sinoe, the inhabitants of the southern part of China.


Sinite

a tribe of Canaanites, (Genesis 10:17; 1 Chronicles 1:15) whose position is to be sought for in the northern part of the Lebanon district.


Sion

+ One of the various names of Mount Hermon. (4:48) only. + The Greek form of the Hebrew name Zion, the famous mount of the temple. 1 Macc. 4:37,60; 5:54; 6:48,62; 7:33; 10:11; 14:27; (Hebrews 12:22; Revelation 14:1) [[1149]Jerusalem]


Siphmoth

(fruitful), one of the places in the south of Judah which David frequented during his freebooting life. (1 Samuel 30:28)


Sippai

(threshold), Saph, one of the sons of Rephaim, or "the giants," slain by Sibbechai at Gezer. (1 Chronicles 20:4) (B.C. about 1050.)


Sirach

the father of Jesus (Joshua), the writer of the Hebrew original of the book of Ecclesiasticus. (B.C. 310-220.)


Sirah

(the turning), The well of, from which Abner was recalled by Joab to his death at Hebron. (2 Samuel 3:26) only. It was apparently on the northern road from Hebron. There is a spring and reservoir on the western side of the ancient northern road, about one mile out of Hebron, which is called Ain Sara.


Sirion

(breastplate), one of the various names of Mount Hermon, that by which it was known to the Zidonians. (3:9) The use of the name in (Psalms 29:6) (slightly altered in the original--Shirion instead of Sirion) is remarkable.


Sisamai

a descendant of Sheshan in the line of Jerahmeel. (1 Chronicles 2:40) (B.C. about 1450.)


Sisera

+ Captain of the army of Jabin king of Canaan, who reigned in Hazor. He himself resided in Harosheth of the Gentiles. The particulars of the rout of Megiddo and of Sisera's flight and death are drawn out under the heads of [1150]Barak, [1151]Deborah, [1152]Jael, [1153]Kishon. (B.C. 1296.) + After a long interval the name appears in the lists of Nethinim who returned from the captivity with Zerubbabel. (Ezra 2:53; Nehemiah 7:55) It doubtless tells of Canaanite captives devoted to the lowest offices of the temple. (B.C. before 536.)


Sitnah

(strife), the second of the two wells dug by Isaac in the valley of Gerar, the possession of which the herdmen of the valley disputed with him. (Genesis 26:21)


Slave

The institution of slavery was recognized, though not established, by the Mosaic law with a view to mitigate its hardship and to secure to every man his ordinary rights. I. Hebrew slaves.--

+ The circumstances under which a Hebrew might be reduced to servitude were-- (1) poverty; (2) the commission of theft; and

(3) the exercise of paternal authority. In the first case, a man who had mortgaged his property, and was unable to support his family, might sell himself to another Hebrew, with a view both to obtain maintenance and perchance a surplus sufficient to redeem his property. (Leviticus 25:25,39) (2) The commission of theft rendered a person liable to servitude whenever restitution could not be made on the scale prescribed by the law. (Exodus 22:1,3) The thief was bound to work out the value of his restitution money in the service of him on whom the theft had been committed. (3) The exercise of paternal authority was limited to the sale of a daughter of tender age to be a maidservant, with the ulterior view of her becoming the concubine of the purchaser. (Exodus 21:7) + The servitude of a Hebrew might be terminated in three ways:

(1) by the satisfaction or the remission of all claims against him; (2) by the recurrence of the year of jubilee, (Leviticus 25:40) and (3) the expiration of six years from the time that his servitude commenced. (Exodus 21:2; 15:12) (4) To the above modes of obtaining liberty the rabbinists added, as a fourth, the death of the master without leaving a son, there being no power of claiming the salve on the part of any heir except a son. If a servant did not desire to avail himself of the opportunity of leaving his service, he was to signify his intention in a formal manner before the judges (or more exactly at the place of judgment), and then the master was to take him to the door-post, and to bore his ear through with an awl, (Exodus 21:6) driving the awl into or "unto the door," as stated in (15:17) and thus fixing the servant to it. A servant who had submitted to this operation remained, according to the words of the law, a servant "forever." (Exodus 21:6) These words are however, interpreted by Josephus and by the rabbinsts as meaning until the year of jubilee. + The condition of a Hebrew servant was by no means intolerable. His master was admonished to treat him, not "as a bond-servant, but as an hired servant and as a sojourner," and, again, "not to rule over him with rigor." (Leviticus 25:39,40,43) At the termination of his servitude the master was enjoined not to "let him go away empty," but to remunerate him liberally out of his flock, his floor and his wine-press. (15:13,14) In the event of a Hebrew becoming the servant of a "stranger," meaning a non-Hebrew, the servitude could be terminated only in two ways, viz. by the arrival of the year of jubilee, or by the repayment to the master of the purchase money paid for the servant, after deducting a sum for the value of his services proportioned to the length of his servitude. (Leviticus 25:47-55) A Hebrew woman might enter into voluntary servitude on the score of poverty, and in this case she was entitled to her freedom after six years service, together with her usual gratuity at leaving, just as in the case of a man. (15:12,13) Thus far we have seen little that is objectionable in the condition of Hebrew servants. In respect to marriage there were some peculiarities which, to our ideas, would be regarded as hardships. A master might, for instance, give a wife to a Hebrew servant for the time of his servitude, the wife being in this case, it must be remarked, not only a slave but a non-Hebrew. Should he leave when his term had expired, his wife and children would remain the absolute property of the master. (Exodus 21:4,5) Again, a father might sell his young daughter to a Hebrew, with a view either of marrying her himself or of giving her to his son. (Exodus 21:7-9) It diminishes the apparent harshness of this proceeding if we look on the purchase money as in the light of a dowry given, as was not unusual, to the parents of the bride; still more, if we accept the rabbinical view that the consent of the maid was required before the marriage could take place. The position of a maiden thus sold by her father was subject to the following regulations: (1) She could not "go out as the men-servants do," i.e. she could not leave at the termination of six years, or in the year of jubilee, if her master was willing to fulfill the object for which he had purchased her. (2) Should he not wish to marry her, he should call upon her friends to procure her release by the repayment of the purchase money. (3) If he betrothed her to his son, he was bound to make such provision for her as he would for one of his own daughters. (4) If either he or his son, having married her, took a second wife, it should not be to the prejudice of the first. (5) If neither of the three first specified alternatives took place, the maid was entitled to immediate and gratuitous liberty. (Exodus 21:7-11) The custom of reducing Hebrews to servitude appears to have fallen into disuse subsequent to the Babylonish captivity. Vast numbers of Hebrews were reduced to slavery as war-captives at different periods by the Phoenicians, (Joel 3:6) the Philistines, (Joel 3:6; Amos 1:6), the Syrians, 1 Macc. 3:42; 2 Macc. 8:11, the Egyptians, Joseph Ant. xii. 2,3, and above all by the Romans. Joseph. B.C. vi. 9,3. II. Non-Hebrew slaves.-- + The majority of non-Hebrew slaves were war-captives, either of the Canaanites who had survived the general extermination of their race under Joshua or such as were conquered from the other surrounding nations. (Numbers 31:26) ff. Besides these, many were obtained by purchase from foreign slave-dealers, (Leviticus 25:44,45) and others may have been resident foreigners who were reduced to this state by either poverty or crime. The children of slaves remained slaves, being the class described as "born in the house," (Genesis 14:14; 17:12; Ecclesiastes 2:7) and hence the number was likely to increase as time went on. The average value of a slave appears to have been thirty shekels. (Exodus 21:32) + That the slave might be manumitted appears from (Exodus 21:26,27; Leviticus 19:20) + The slave is described as the "possession" of his master, apparently with a special reference to the power which the latter had of disposing of him to his heirs, as he would any other article of personal property. (Leviticus 25:45,46) But, on the other hand, provision was made for the protection of his person. (Exodus 21:20; Leviticus 24:17,22) A minor personal injury, such as the loss of an eye or a tooth, was to be recompensed by giving the servant his liberty. (Exodus 21:26,27) The position of the slave in regard to religious privileges was favorable. He was to be circumcised, (Genesis 17:12) and hence was entitled to partake of the paschal sacrifice, (Exodus 12:44) as well as of the other religious festivals. (12:12,18; 16:11,14) The occupations of slaves were of a menial character, as implied in (Leviticus 25:39) consisting partly in the work of the house and partly in personal attendance on the master. It will be seen that the whole tendency of the Bible legislation was to mitigate slavery, making it little than hired service, and to abolish it, as indeed it was practically abolished among the Jews six hundred years before Christ.


Slime

translated bitumen in the Vulgate. The three instances in which it is mentioned in the Old Testament are illustrated by travellers and historians. It is first spoken of as used for cement by the builders in the plain of Shinar or Babylonia. (Genesis 11:3) The bitumen pits in the vale of Siddim are mentioned in the ancient fragment of Canaanitish history, (Genesis 14:10) and the ark of papyrus in which Moses was placed was made impervious to water by a coating of bitumen and pitch. (Exodus 2:3) Herodotus, i. 179, tells us of the bitumen found at Is, the modern Heet, a town of Babylonia, eight days journey from Babylon. (Bitumen, or asphalt, is "the product of the decomposition of vegetable and animal substances. It is usually found of a black or brownish-black color, externally not unlike coal, but it varies in a consistency from a bright, pitchy condition, with a conchoidal fracture, to thick, viscid masses of mineral tar."--Encyc. Brit. In this last state it is called in the Bible slime, and is of the same nature as our petroleum, but thicker, and hardens into asphalt. It is obtained in various places in Europe, and even now occasionally from the Dead Sea.--ED.)


Smyrna

(myrrh), a city of Asia Minor, situated on the AEgean Sea, 40 miles north of Ephesus. Allusion is made to it in (Revelation 2:8-11) It was founded by Alexander the Great, and was situated twenty shades (2 1/2 miles) from the city of the same name, which after a long series of wars with the Lydians had been finally taken and sacked by Halyattes. The ancient city was built by some piratical Greeks 1500 years before Christ. It seems not impossible that the message to the church in Smyrna contains allusions to the ritual of the pagan mysteries which prevailed in that city. In the time of Strabo the ruins of the old Smyrna still existed, and were partially inhabited, but the new city was one of the most beautiful in all Asia. The streets were laid out as near as might be at right angles. There was a large public library there, and also a handsome building surrounded with porticos which served as a museum. It was consecrated as a heroum to Homer, whom the Smyrnaeans claimed as a countryman. Olympian games were celebrated here, and excited great interest. (Smyrna is still a large city of 180,000 to 200,000 inhabitants, of which a larger proportion are Franks than in any other town in Turkey; 20,000 are Greeks, 9000 Jews, 8000 Armenians, 1000 Europeans, and the rest are Moslems.--ED.)


Snail

+ The Hebrew word shablul occurs only in (Psalms 58:8) The rendering of the Authorized Version is probably correct. The term would denote either a limax or a helix, which are particularly noticeable for the slimy track they leave behind them, by which they seem to waste themselves away. To this, or to the fact that many of them are shrivelled up among the rocks in the long heat of the summer, the psalmist refers. + The Hebrew word chomet occurs only as the name of some unclean animal in (Leviticus 11:30) Perhaps some kind of lizard may be intended.


Snow

This historical books of the Bible contain only two notices of snow actually falling-- (2 Samuel 23:20) 1Macc 13:22; but the allusions in the poetical books are so numerous that there can be no doubt as to its being an ordinary occurrence in the winter months. (Psalms 147:16; 148:8) The snow lies deep in the ravines of the highest ridge of Lebanon until the summer is far advanced and indeed never wholly disappears; the summit of Hermon also perpetually glistens with frozen snow. From these sources probably the Jews obtained their supplies of ice for the purpose of cooling their beverages in summer. (Proverbs 25:13) The liability to snow must of course vary considerably in a country of such varying altitude as Palestine. At Jerusalem snow often falls to the depth of a foot or more in january or February, but it seldom lies. At Nazareth it falls more frequently and deeply, and it has been observed to fall even in the maritime plain of Joppa and about Carmel.


So

"So, king of Egypt," is once mentioned in the Bible-- (2 Kings 17:4) So has been identified by different writers with the first and second kings of the Ethiopian twenty-fifth dynasty, called by Manetho, Sabakon (Shebek) and Sebichos (Shebetek).


Soap

The Hebrew term borith is a general term for any substance of cleansing qualities. As, however, it appears in (Jeremiah 2:22) in contradistinction to nether, which undoubtedly means "natron" or mineral alkali, it is fair to infer that borith refers to vegetable alkali, or some kind of potash, which forms one of the usual ingredients in our soap. Numerous plants capable of yielding alkalies exist in Palestine and the surrounding countries; we may notice one named hubeibeh (the Salsola kali of botanists) found near the Dead Sea, the ashes of which are called el-kuli, from their strong alkaline properties.


Socho

(bushy). (1 Chronicles 4:18) Probably one of the towns called Socoh, in Judah, though which of the two cannot be ascertained.


Sochoh

another form of the name which is more correctly given in the Authorized version as Socoh. The present one occurs in (1 Kings 4:10) and is therefore probably, though not certainly, Socoh, 1.


Socoh

the name of two towns in the tribe of Judah.

+ In the district of the Shefelah. (Joshua 15:35; 1 Samuel 17:1; 2 Chronicles 11:7; 8:18) In the time of Eusebius it bore the name of Socchoth, and lay between eight and nine Roman miles from Eleutheropolis, on the road to Jerusalem. It may be identified with esh-Shuweikeh, in the western part of the mountains of Judah. From this village probably came Antigonus of Soco, who lived about the commencement of the third century B.C. + Also a town of Judah, but in the mountain district. (Joshua 15:48) It has been discovered about 10 miles southwest of Hebron; bearing, like the other Socoh, the name of esh-Shuweikeh .


Sodi

(intimate), the father of Geddiel, the spy selected from the tribe of Zebulun. (Numbers 13:10) (B.C. 1490.)


Sodom

(burning), one of the most ancient cities of Syria. It is commonly mentioned in connection with Gomorrah, but also with Admah and Zeboim, and on one occasion-- (Genesis 14:1) ...--with Bela or Zoar. Sodom was evidently the chief town in the settlement. The four are first named in the ethnological records of (Genesis 10:19) as belonging to the Canaanites. The next mention of the name of Sodom, (Genesis 13:10-13) gives more certain indication of the position of the city. Abram and Lot are standing together between Bethel and Ai, ver. 3, taking a survey of the land around and below them. Eastward of them, and absolutely at their feet, lay the "circle of Jordan." The whole circle was one great oasis--"a garden of Jehovah." ver. 10. In the midst of the garden the four cities of Sodom, Gomorrah, Admah and Zeboim appear to have been situated. It is necessary to notice how absolutely the cities are identified with the district. In the subsequent account of their destruction, (Genesis 19:1) ... the topographical terms are employed with all the precision which is characteristic of such early times. The mention of the Jordan is conclusive as to the situation of the district, for the Jordan ceases where it enters the Dead Sea, and can have no existence south of that point. The catastrophe by which they were destroyed is described in (Genesis 19:1) ... as a shower of brimstone and fire from Jehovah. However we may interpret the words of the earliest narrative, one thing is certain--that the lake was not one of the agents in the catastrophe. From all these passages, though much is obscure, two things seem clear:

+ That Sodom and the rest of the cities of the plain of Jordan stood on the north of the Dead Sea; + That neither the cities nor the district were submerged by the lake, but that the cities were overthrown and the land spoiled, and that it may still be seen in its desolate condition. When, however, we turn to more modern views, we discover a remarkable variance from these conclusions. + The opinion long current that the five cities were submerged in the lake, and that their remains--walls, columns and capitals--might he still discerned below the water, hardly needs refutation after the distinct statement and the constant implication of Scripture. But, + A more serious departure from the terms of the ancient history is exhibited in the prevalent opinion that the cities stood at the south end of the lake. This appears to, have been the belief of Josephus and Jerome. It seems to have been universally held by the medieval historians and pilgrims, and it is adopted by modern topographers probably without exception. There are several grounds for this belief; but the main point on which Dr. Robinson rests his argument is the situation of Zoar. (a) "Lot," says he, "fled to Zoar, which was near to Sodom; and Zoar lay almost at the southern end of the present sea, probably in the month of Wady Kerak ." (b) Another consideration in favor of placing the cities at the southern end of the lake is the existence of similar names in that direction. (c) A third argument, and perhaps the weightiest of the three, is the existence of the salt mountain at the south of the lake, and its tendency to split off in columnar masses presenting a rude resemblance to the human form. But it is by no means certain that salt does not exist at other spots round the lake. (d) (A fourth and yet stronger argument is drawn from the fact that Abraham saw the smoke of the burning cities from Hebron. (e) A fifth argument is found in the numerous lime-pits found at that southern end of the Dead Sea. Robinson, Schaff, Baedeker, Lieutenant Lynch and others favor this view.--ED.) It thus appears that on the situation of Sodom no satisfactory conclusion can at present be readied: On the one hand, the narrative of Genesis seems to state positively that it lay at the northern end of the Dead Sea. On the other hand, long-continued tradition and the names of the existing spots seem to pronounce with almost equal positiveness that it was at its southern end. Of the catastrophe which destroyed the city and the district of Sodom we can hardly hope ever to form a satisfactory conception. Some catastrophe there undoubtedly was but what secondary agencies, besides fire, were employed in the accomplishment of the punishment cannot be safely determined in the almost total absence of exact scientific description of the natural features of the ground round the lake. We may suppose, however, that the actual agent in the ignition and destruction of the cities had been of the nature of a tremendous thunder-storm accompanied by a discharge of meteoric stones, (and that these set on fire the bitumen with which the soil was saturated, and which was used in building the city. And it may be that this burning out of the soil caused the plain to sink below the level of the Dead Sea, and the waters to flow over it--if indeed Sodom and its sister cities are really under the water.--ED.) The miserable fate of Sodom and Gomorrah is held up as a warning in numerous passages of the Old and New Testaments. (Mark 8:11; 2 Peter 2:6; Jude 1:4-7)


Sodoma

(Romans 2:29) In this place alone the Authorized Version has followed the Greek and Vulgate form of the well-known name Sodom.


Sodomites

This word does not denote the inhabitants of Sodom; but it is employed in the Authorized Version of the Old Testament for those who practiced as a religious rite the abominable and unnatural vice from which the inhabitants of Sodom and Gomorrah have derived their lasting infamy.


Solomon

(peaceful). I. Early life and occasion to the throne .--Solomon was the child of David's old age, the last born of all his sons. (1 Chronicles 3:5) The yearnings of the "man of war" led him to give to the new-horn infant the name of Solomon (Shelomoth, the peaceful one). Nathan, with a marked reference to the meaning of the king's own name (David, the darling, the beloved one), calls the infant Jedidiah (Jedid'yah), that is, the darling of the Lord. (2 Samuel 11:24,25) He was placed under the care of Nathan from his earliest infancy. At first, apparently, there was no distinct purpose to make him the heir. Absalom was still the king's favorite son, (2 Samuel 13:37; 18:33) and was looked on by the people as the destined successor. (2 Samuel 14:13; 15:1-6) The death of Absalom when Solomon was about ten years old left the place vacant, and David pledged his word in secret to Bath-sheba that he, and no other, should be the heir. (1 Kings 1:13) The words which were spoken somewhat later express, doubtless, the purpose which guided him throughout. (1 Chronicles 28:9; 20) His son's life should not he as his own had been, one of hardships and wars, dark crimes and passionate repentance, but, from first to last, be pure, blameless, peaceful, fulfilling the ideal of glory and of righteousness after which he himself had vainly striven. The glorious visions of (Psalms 72:1) ... may be looked on as the prophetic expansion of these hopes of his old age. So far, all was well. Apparently his influence over his son's character was one exclusively for good. Nothing that we know of Bath-sheba lends us to think of her as likely to mould her son's mind and heart to the higher forms of goodness. Under these influences the boy grew up. At the age of ten or eleven he must have passed through the revolt of Absalom, and shared his father's exile. (2 Samuel 15:16) He would be taught all that priests or Levites or prophets had to teach. When David was old and feeble, Adonijah, Solomon's older brother attempted to gain possession of the throne; but he was defeated, and Solomon went down to Gihon and was proclaimed and anointed king. A few months more and Solomon found himself, by his father's death, the sole occupant of the throne. The position to which he succeeded was unique. Never before, and never after, did the kingdom of Israel take its place among the great monarchies of the East. Large treasures, accumulated through many years, were at his disposal. II. Personal appearance .--Of Solomon's personal appearance we have no direct description, as we have of the earlier kings. There are, however, materials for filling up the gap. Whatever higher mystic meaning may be latent in (Psalms 45:1) ... or the Song of Songs, we are all but compelled to think of them us having had at least a historical starting-point. They tell of one who was, in the eyes of the men of his own time, "fairer than the children of men," the face "bright, and ruddy" as his father's, (Song of Solomon 5:10; 1 Samuel 17:42) bushy locks, dark as the raven's wing, yet not without a golden glow, the eyes soft as "the eyes of cloves," the "countenance as Lebanon excellent as the cedars," "the chiefest among ten thousand, the altogether lovely." (Song of Solomon 5:13-18) Add to this all gifts of a noble, far-reaching intellect large and ready sympathies, a playful and genial humor, the lips "full of grace," and the soul "anointed" as "with the oil of gladness," (Psalms 45:1) ... and we may form some notion of what the king was like in that dawn of his golden prime. III. Reign .--All the data for a continuous history that we have of Solomon's reign are-- (a) The duration of the reign, forty sears, B.C. 1015-975. (1 Kings 11:4) (b) The commencement of the temple in the fourth, its completion in the eleventh, year of his reign. (1 Kings 6:1,37,38) (c) The commencement of his own palace in the seventh, its completion in the twentieth, year. (1 Kings 7:1; 2 Chronicles 8:1) (d) The conquest of Hamath-zobah, and the consequent foundation of cities in the region of north Palestine after the twentieth year. (2 Chronicles 8:1-6) IV. Foreign policy .--

+ Egypt. The first act of the foreign policy of the new reign must have been to most Israelites a very startling one. He made affinity with Pharaoh, king of Egypt, by marrying his daughter (1 Kings 3:1) The immediate results were probably favorable enough. The new queen brought with her as a dowry the frontier city of Gezer. But the ultimate issue of alliance showed that it was hollow and impolitic. + Tyre. The alliance with the Phoenician king rested on a somewhat different footing. It had been a part of David's policy from the beginning of his reign. Hiram had been "ever a lover of David." As soon as he heard of Solomon's accession he sent ambassadors to salute him. A correspondence passed between the two kings, which ended in a treaty of commerce. The opening of Joppa as a port created a new coasting-trade, and the materials from Tyre were conveyed to that city on floats, and thence to Jerusalem. (2 Chronicles 2:16) In return for these exports, the Phoenicians were only too glad to receive the corn and oil of Solomon's territory. The results of the alliance did not end here. Now, for the first time in the history of the Jews, they entered on a career as a commercial people. + The foregoing were the two most important to Babylon alliances. The absence of any reference to Babylon and Assyria, and the fact that the Euphrates was recognized as the boundary of Solomon's kingdom, (2 Chronicles 9:26) suggests the inference that the Mesopotamian monarchies were at this time comparatively feeble. Other neighboring nations were content to pay annual tribute in the form of gifts. (2 Chronicles 9:28) + The survey of the influence exercised by Solomon on surrounding nations would be incomplete if we were to pass over that which was more directly personal the fame of his glory and his wisdom. Wherever the ships of Tarshish went, they carried with them the report, losing nothing in its passage, of what their crews had seen and heard. The journey of the queen of Sheba, though from its circumstances the most conspicuous, did not stand alone. V. Internal history .-- + The first prominent scene in Solomon's reign is one which presents his character in its noblest aspect. God in a vision having offered him the choice of good things he would have, he chose wisdom in preference to riches or honor or long life. The wisdom asked for was given in large measure, and took a varied range. The wide world of nature, animate and inanimate, the lives and characters of men, lay before him, and he took cognizance of all but the highest wisdom was that wanted for the highest work, for governing and guiding, and the historian hastens to give an illustration of it. The pattern-instance is, in all its circumstances, thoroughly Oriental. (1 Kings 3:16-28) + In reference to the king's finances, the first impression of the facts given us is that of abounding plenty. Large quantities of the precious metals were imported from Ophir and Tarshish. (1 Kings 9:28) All the kings and princes of the subject provinces paid tribute in the form of gifts, in money and in kind, "at a fixed rate year by year." (1 Kings 10:25) Monopolies of trade contributed to the king's treasury. (1 Kings 10:28,29) The total amount thus brought into the treasury in gold, exclusive of all payments in kind, amounted to 666 talents. (1 Kings 10:14) + It was hardly possible, however, that any financial system could bear the strain of the king's passion for magnificence. The cost of the temple was, it is true, provided for by David's savings and the offerings of the people; but even while that was building, yet more when it was finished one structure followed on another with ruinous rapidity. All the equipment of his court, the "apparel" of his servants was on the same scale. A body-guard attended him, "threescore valiant men," tallest and handsomest of the sons of Israel. Forty thousand stalls of horses for his chariots, and twelve thousand horsemen made up the measure of his magnificence. (1 Kings 4:26) As the treasury became empty, taxes multiplied and monopolies became more irksome. + A description of the temple erected by Solomon is given elsewhere. After seven years and the work was completed and the day came to which all Israelites looked back as the culminating glory of their nation. + We cannot ignore the fact that even now there were some darker shades in the picture. He reduced the "strangers" in the land, the remnant of the Canaanite races, to the state of helots, and made their life "bitter with all hard bondage." One hundred and fifty-three thousand, with wives and children in proportion, were torn from their homes and sent off to the quarries and the forests of Lebanon. (1 Kings 5:15; 2 Chronicles 2:17,18) And the king soon fell from the loftiest height of his religious life to the lowest depth. Before long the priests and prophets had to grieve over rival temples to Molech, Chemosh, Ashtaroth and forms of ritual not idolatrous only, but cruel, dark, impure. This evil came as the penalty of another. (1 Kings 11:1-8) He gave himself to "strange women." He found himself involved in a fascination which led to the worship of strange gods. Something there was perhaps in his very "largeness of heart," so far in advance of the traditional knowledge of his age, rising to higher and wider thoughts of God, which predisposed him to it. In recognizing what was true in other forms of faith, he might lose his horror at what was false. With this there may have mingled political motives. He may have hoped, by a policy of toleration, to conciliate neighboring princes, to attract larger traffic. But probably also there was another influence less commonly taken into account. The widespread belief of the East in the magic arts of Solomon is not, it is believed, without its foundation of truth. Disasters followed before long as the natural consequence of what was politically a blunder as well as religiously a sin. VI. His literary works.--little remains out of the songs, proverbs, treatises, of which the historian speaks. (1 Kings 4:32,33) Excerpts only are given from the three thousand proverbs. Of the thousand and five songs we know absolutely nothing. His books represent the three stages of his life. The Song of Songs brings before us the brightness of his -youth. Then comes in the book of Proverbs, the stage of practical, prudential thought. The poet has become the philosopher, the mystic has passed into the moralist; but the man passed through both stages without being permanently the better for either. They were to him but phases of his life which he had known and exhausted, (Ecclesiastes 1:1; Ecclesiastes 2:1) ... and therefore there came, its in the confessions of the preacher, the great retribution.


Solomon, Wisdom Of

[[1157]Wisdom, The, Of Solomon, BOOK OF]


Solomons Servants

([1160]Children OF). (Ezra 2:55,58; Nehemiah 7:57,60) The persons thus named appear in the lists of the exiles who returned from the captivity. They were the descendants of the Canaanites who were reduced by Solomon to the helot state, and compelled to labor in the king's stone-quarries and in building his palaces and cities. (1 Kings 5:13,14; 9:20,21; 2 Chronicles 8:7,8) They appear to have formed a distinct order, inheriting probably the same functions and the same skill as their ancestors.


Son

The term "son" is used in Scripture language to imply almost any kind of descent or succession, as ben shanah, "son of a year," i.e. a year old; ben kesheth, "son of a bow," i.e. an arrow. The word bar is often found in the New Testament in composition, as Bar-timaeus.


Sop

In eastern lands where our table utensils are unknown, the meat, with the broth, is brought upon the table in a large dish, and is eaten usually by means of pieces of bread clipped into the common dish. The bread so dipped is called. "It was such a piece of bread a sop dipped in broth that Jesus gave to Judas, (John 13:26) and again, in Matt 26:23 It is said "he that dippeth his hand with me in the dish," i.e. to make a sop by dipping a piece of bread into the central dish.


Sopater

(saviour of his father), son or Pyrrhus or Berea, was one of the companions of St. Paul on his return from Greece into Asia. (Acts 20:4) (A.D. 55.)


Sophereth

(writing). "The children of Sophereth" were a family who returned from Babylon with Zerubbabel among the descendants of Solomon's servants. (Ezra 2:55; Nehemiah 7:57) (B.C. before 536.)


Sorek

(red), The valley of, a wady in which lay the residence of Delilah. (Judges 16:4) It was possibly nearer Gaza than any other of the chief Philistine cities, since thither Samson was taken after his capture at Delilah's house.


Sosipater

(saviour of his father), kinsman or fellow tribesman of St. Paul, (Romans 16:21) is probably the same person as Sopater of Berea. (A.D. 54.)


Sosthenes

(saviour of his nation) was a Jew at Corinth who was seized and beaten in the presence of Gallio. See (Acts 18:12-17) (A.D. 49.)


Sotai

(changeful). The children of Sotai were a family of the descendants of Solomon's servants who returned with Zerubbabel. (Ezra 2:55; Nehemiah 7:57) (B.C. before 536.)


South Ramoth

[[1164]Ramath Of The South OF THE SOUTH]


Sower, Sowing

The operation of a sowing with the hand is one of so simple a character as to need little description. The Egyptian paintings furnish many illustrations of the mode in which it was conducted. The sower held the vessel or basket containing the seed in his left hand, while with his right he scattered the seed broadcast. The "drawing out" of the seed is noticed, as the most characteristic action of the sower, in (Psalms 126:6) (Authorized Version "precious") and (Amos 9:13) In wet soils the seed was trodden in by the feet of animals. (Isaiah 32:20) The sowing season began in October and continued to the end of February, wheat being put in before, and barley after, the beginning of January. The Mosaic law prohibited the sowing of mixed seed. (Leviticus 19:19; 22:9)


Spain

1 Macc. 8:3; (Romans 15:24,28) The local designation, Tarshish, representing the Tartessus of the Greeks, probably prevailed until the fame of the Roman wars in that country reached the East, when it was superseded by its classical name. The mere intention of St. Paul to visit Spain (whether he really did visit it is a disputed question.--ED.) implies two interesting facts, viz., the establishment of a Christian community in that country, and that this was done by Hellenistic Jews resident there. The early introduction of Christianity into that country is attested by Irenaeus and Tertullian.


Sparrow

(Heb. tzippor, from a root signifying to "chirp" or "twitter," which appears to be a phonetic representation of the call-note of any passerine (sparrow-like) bird). This Hebrew word occurs upwards of forty times in the Old Testament. In all passages except two it is rendered by the Authorized Version indifferently "bird" or "fowl." and denotes any small bird, both of the sparrow-like species and such as the starling, chaffinch, greenfinch, linnet, goldfinch, corn-bunting, pipits, blackbird, song-thrush, etc. In (Psalms 84:3) and Psal 102:7 It is rendered "sparrow." The Greek stauthion (Authorized Version "sparrow") occurs twice in the New Testament, (Matthew 10:29; Luke 12:6,7) (The birds above mentioned are found in great numbers in Palestine and are of very little value, selling for the merest trifle and are thus strikingly used by our Saviour, (Matthew 10:20) as an illustration of our Father's care for his children.--ED.) The blue thrush (Petrocossyphus cyaneus) is probably the bird to which the psalmist alludes in (Proverbs 102:7) as "the sparrow that sitteth alone upon the house-top." It is a solitary bird, eschewing the society of its own species, and rarely more than a pair are seen together. The English tree-sparrow (Passer montanus, Linn.) is also very common, and may be seen in numbers on Mount Olivet and also about the sacred enclosure of the mosque of Omar. This is perhaps the exact species referred to in (Psalms 84:3) Dr. Thompson, in speaking of the great numbers of the house-sparrows and field-sparrows in troublesome and impertinent generation, and nestle just where you do not want them. They stop your stove-- and water-pipes with their rubbish, build in the windows and under the beams of the roof, and would stuff your hat full of stubble in half a day if they found it hanging in a place to suit them."


Sparta

a celebrated city of Greece, between whose inhabitants and the Jews a relationship was believed to subsist. Between the two nations a correspondence ensued.--Whitney. The act of the Jews and Spartans, 2 Macc. 5:9 is an ethnological error, which it is difficult to trace to its origin.


Spearmen

(Acts 23:23) These were probably troops so lightly armed as to be able to keep pace on the march with mounted soldiers.


Spice, Spices

+ Heb. basam, besem or bosem . In (Song of Solomon 5:1) "I have gathered my myrrh with my spice," the word points apparently to some definite substance. In the other places, with the exception perhaps of (Song of Solomon 1:13; 6:2) the words refer more generally to sweet aromatic odors, the principal of which was that of the balsam or balm of Gilead; the tree which yields this substance is now generally admitted to be the Balsam-odendron opobalsamum . The balm of Gilead tree grows in some parts of Arabia and Africa, and is seldom more than fifteen feet high, with straggling branches and scanty foliage. The balsam is chiefly obtained from incisions in the bark, but is procured also from the green and ripe berries. + Necoth . (Genesis 37:25; 43:11) The most probable explanation is that which refers the word to the Arabic naku'at i.e. "the gum obtained from the tragacanth" (Astragalus). + Sammim, a general term to denote those aromatic substances which were used in the preparation of the anointing oil, the incense offerings, etc. The spices mentioned as being used by Nicodemus for the preparation of our Lord's body, (John 19:39,40) are "myrrh and aloes," by which latter word must be understood not the aloes of medicine, but the highly-scented wood of the Aquilaria agallochum .


Spider

The Hebrew word 'accabish in (Job 8:24; Isaiah 59:5) is correctly rendered "spider." Put semamith is wrongly translated "spider" in (Proverbs 30:28) it refers probably to some kind of lizard. (But "there are many species of spider in Palestine: some which spin webs, like the common garden spider; some which dig subterranean cells and make doors in them, like the well-known trap-door spider of southern Europe; and some which have no web, but chase their prey upon the ground, like the hunting-and the wolf-spider."--Wood's Bible Animals.)


Spikenard

(Heb. nerd) is mentioned twice in the Old Testament viz. in (Song of Solomon 1:12; 4:13,14) The ointment with which our Lord was anointed as he sat at meat in Simon's house at Bethany consisted of this precious substance, the costliness of which may be inferred from the indignant surprise manifested by some of the witnesses of the transaction. See (Mark 14:3-5; John 12:3,5) (Spikenard, from which the ointment was made, was an aromatic herb of the valerian family (Nardostachys jatamansi). It was imported from an early age from Arabia India and the Far East. The costliness of Mary's offering (300 pence=) may beat be seen from the fact that a penny (denarius, 15 to 17 cents) was in those days the day-wages of a laborer. (Matthew 20:2) In our day this would equal at least or .-ED.)


Spinning

The notices of spinning in the Bible are confined to (Exodus 35:25,26; Proverbs 31:19; Matthew 6:28) The latter passage implies (according to the Authorized Version) the use of the same instruments which have been in vogue for hand-spinning down to the present day, viz. the distaff and spindle. The distaff however, appears to have been dispensed with, and the term so rendered means the spindle itself, while that rendered "spindle" represents the whirl of the spindle, a button of circular rim which was affixed to it, and gave steadiness to its circular motion. The "whirl" of the Syrian women was made of amber in the time of Pliny. The spindle was held perpendicularly in the one hand, while the other was employed in drawing out the thread. Spinning was the business of women, both among the Jews and for the most part among the Egyptians.


Sponge

a soft, porous marine substance. Sponges were for a long time supposed to be plants, but are now considered by the best naturalists to belong to the animal kingdom. Sponge is mentioned only in the New Testament. (Matthew 27:48; Mark 15:36; John 19:29) The commercial value of the sponge was known from very early times; and although there appears to be no notice of it in the Old Testament, yet it is probable that it was used by the ancient Hebrews, who could readily have obtained it good from the Mediterranean, where it was principally found.


Stachys

a Christian at Rome, saluted by St. Paul in the Epistle to the Romans. (Romans 16:9) (A.D. 56.)


Stacte

(Heb. nataf) the name of one of the sweet spices which composed the holy incense. See (Exodus 30:34)--the only passage of Scripture in which the word occurs. Some identify the nataf with the gum of the storer tree (Styraz officinale), but all that is positively known is that it signifies an odorous distillation from some plant.


Standards

The Assyrian standards were emblematic of their religion, and were therefore the more valuable as instruments for leading and guiding men in the army. The forms were imitations of animals

(1), emblems of deities (2), and symbols of power and wisdom

(3). Many of them were crude, but others were highly artistic and of great cost. The Egyptian standards were designed in the same idea as those of the Romans, exhibiting some sacred emblem (5,6,8), or a god in the form of an animal (3,4), a group of victory (7), or the king's name or his portrait as (1), of lower, and (2) of upper, Egypt, or an emblematic sign, as No. 9.


Steel

In all cases were the word "steel" occurs in the Authorized Version the true rendering of the Hebrew is "copper." Whether the ancient Hebrews were acquainted with steel is not perfectly certain. It has been inferred from a passage in (Jeremiah 15:12) that the "iron from the north" there spoken of denoted a superior kind of metal, hardened in an unusual manner, like the steel obtained from the Chalybes of the Pontus, the iron smiths of the ancient world. The hardening of iron for cutting instruments was practiced in Pontus, Lydia and Laconia. There is, however, a word in hebrew, paldah, which occurs only in (Nahum 2:3) (4) and is there rendered "torches," but which most probably denotes steel or hardened iron, and refers to the flashing scythes of the Assyrian chariots. Steel appears to have been known to the Egyptians. The steel weapons in the tomb of Rameses III., says Wilkinson, are painted blue, the bronze red.


Stephanas

a Christian convert of Corinth whose household Paul baptized as the "first-fruits of Achaia." (1 Corinthians 1:16; 16:15) (A.D. 53.)


Stephen

the first Christian martyr, was the chief of the seven (commonly called Deacons) appointed to rectify the complaints in the early Church of Jerusalem, made by the Hellenistic against the hebrew Christians. His Greek name indicates his own Hellenistic origin. His importance is stamped on the narrative by a reiteration of emphatic, almost superlative, phrases: "full of faith and of the Holy Ghost," (Acts 6:5) "full of grace and power," ibid. (Acts 6:8) irresistible "spirit and wisdom," ibid (Acts 6:10) "full of the Holy Ghost." (Acts 7:55) He shot far ahead of his six companions, and far above his particular office. First, he arrests attention by the "great wonders and miracles that he did." Then begins a series of disputations with the Hellenistic Jews of north Africa, Alexandria and Asia Minor, his companions in race and birthplace. The subject of these disputations is not expressly mentioned; but from what follows it is obvious that he struck into a new vein of teaching, which evidently caused his martyrdom. Down to this time the apostles and the early Christian community had clung in their worship, not merely to the holy land and the holy city but to the holy place of the temple. This local worship, with the Jewish customs belonging to it, Stephen denounced. So we must infer from the accusations brought against him confirmed as they are by the tenor of his defence. He was arrested at the instigation of the Hellenistic Jews, and brought before the Sanhedrin. His speech in his defence, and his execution by stoning outside the gates of Jerusalem, are related at length in Acts 7. The frame work in which his defence is cast is a summary of the history of the Jewish Church. In the facts which he selects from his history he is guided by two principles. The first is the endeavor to prove that, even in the previous Jewish history, the presence and favor of God had not been confined to the holy land or the temple of Jerusalem. The second principle of selection is based on the at tempt to show that there was a tendency from the earliest times toward the same ungrateful and narrow spirit that had appeared in this last stage of their political existence. It would seem that, just at the close of his argument, Stephen saw a change in the aspect of his judges, as if for the first time they had caught the drift of his meaning. He broke off from his calm address, and tumult suddenly upon them in an impassioned attack, which shows that he saw what was in store for him. As he spoke they showed by their faces that their hearts "were being sawn asunder," and they kept gnashing their set teeth against him; but still, though with difficultly, restraining themselves. He, in this last crisis of his fate, turned his face upward to the; open sky, and as he gazed the vault of heaven seemed to him to part asunder; and the divine Glory appeared through the rending of the earthly veil--the divine Presence, seated on a throne, and on the right hand the human form of Jesus. Stephen spoke as if to himself, describing the glorious vision; and in so doing, alone of all the speakers and writers in the New Testament except, only Christ himself, uses the expressive phrase "the Son of man." As his judges heard the words, they would listen no longer. They broke into, a loud yell; they clapped their hands to their ears; they flew as with one impulse upon him, and dragged him out of the city to the place of execution. Those who took the lead in the execution were the persons wile had taken upon themselves the responsibility of denouncing him. (17:7) comp. John 8:7 In this instance they were the witnesses who had reported or misreported the words of Stephen. They, according to the custom, stripped themselves; and one, of the prominent leaders in the transaction was deputed by custom to signify his assent to the act by taking the clothes into his custody and standing over them while the bloody work went on. The person was officiated on this occasion was a young man from Tarsus, the future apostle of the Gentiles. [[1170]Paul] As the first volley of stones burst upon him, Stephen called upon the Master whose human form he had just seen in the heavens, and repeated almost the words with which he himself had given up his life on the cross, "O Lord Jesus receive my spirit." Another crash of stones brought him on his knees. One loud, piercing cry, answering to the shriek or yell with which his enemies had flown upon him, escaped his dying lips. Again clinging to the spirit of his Master's words, he cried "Lord, lay not this sin to their charge" and instantly sank upon the ground, and, in the touching language of the narrator who then uses for the first time the words afterward applied to the departure of all Christians, but here the more remarkable from the bloody scenes in the midst of which death took place, fell asleep . His mangled body was buried by the class of Hellenists and proselytes to which he belonged. The importance of Stephen's career may be briefly summed up under three heads:

+ He was the first great Christian ecclesiastic, "the Archdeacon," as he is called in the eastern Church. + He is the first martyr--the protomartyr. To him the name "martyr" is first applied. (Acts 23:20) + He is the forerunner of St. Paul. He was the anticipator, as, had he lived, he would have been the propagator, of the new phase of Christianity of which St. Paul became the main support.


Stocks

(An instrument of punishment, consisting of two beams, the upper one being movable, with two small openings between them, large enough for the ankles of the prisoner.--ED.) The term "stocks" is applied in the Authorized Version to two different articles one of which answers rather to our pillory, inasmuch as the body was placed in a bent position, by the confinement of the neck and arms as well as the legs while the other answers to our "stocks," the feet alone being confined in it. The prophet Jeremiah was confined in the first sort, (Jeremiah 20:2) which appears to have been a common mode of punishment in his day, (Jeremiah 29:26) as the prisons contained a chamber for the special purpose, termed "the house of the pillory." (2 Chronicles 16:10) (Authorized Version "prison-house"). The stocks, properly so called, are noticed in (Job 13:27; 33:11; Acts 16:24) The term used in (Proverbs 7:22) (Authorized Version "stocks") more properly means a fetter.


Stoics

The Stoics and Epicureans, who are mentioned together in (Acts 17:18) represent the two opposite schools of practical philosophy which survived the fall of higher speculation in Greece. The Stoic school was founded by Zeno of Citium (cir. B.C. 280) and derived its name from the painted "portico" (stoa) at Athens in which he taught. Zeno was followed by Cleanthes (cir. B.C. 260); Cleanthes by Chrysippus (cir. B.C. 240) who was regarded as the founder of the Stoic system. "They regarded God and the world as power and its manifestation matter being a passive ground in which dwells the divine energy. Their ethics were a protest against moral indifference, and to live in harmony with nature, conformably with reason and the demands of universal good, and in the utmost indifference to pleasure, pain and all external good or evil, was their fundamental maxim."--American Cyclopaedia. The ethical system of the Stoics has been commonly supposed to have a close connection with Christian morality; but the morality of stoicism is essentially based on pride, that of Christianity on humility; the one upholds individual independence, the other absolute faith in another; the one looks for consolation in the issue of fate, the other in Providence; the one is limited by Periods of cosmical ruin, the other is consummated in a personal resurrection. (Acts 17:18) But in spite of the fundamental error of stoicism, which lies in a supreme egotism, the teaching of this school gave a wide currency to the noble doctrines of the fatherhood of God, the common bonds of mankind, the sovereignty of the soul. Among their most prominent representatives were Zeno and Antipater of Tarsus, Seneca and Marcus Aurelius.


Stomacher

The Hebrew word so translated, (Isaiah 3:24) describes some article of female attire, the character of which is a mere matter of conjecture.


Stones

Besides the ordinary uses to which stones were applied, we may mention that large stones were set up to commemorate any remarkable event. (Genesis 28:18; 35:14; 31:45; Joshua 4:9; 1 Samuel 7:12) Such stones were occasionally consecrated By anointing. (Genesis 28:18) Heaps of stones were piled up on various occasions, as in token of a treaty, (Genesis 31:47) or over the grave of some notorious offender. (Joshua 7:26; 8:29; 2 Samuel 18:17) The "white stone" noticed in (Revelation 2:17) has been variously regarded as referring to the pebble of acquittal used in the Greek courts; to the lot cast in elections in Greece to both these combined; to the stones in the high priest's breastplate; to the tickets presented to the victor at the public games; or, lastly, to the custom of writing on stones. The notice in (Zechariah 12:3) of the "burdensome stone" is referred by Jerome to the custom of lifting stones as an exercise of strength, comp. Ecclus. 6:21; but it may equally well be explained of a large corner-stone as a symbol of strength. (Isaiah 28:16) Stones are used metaphorically to denote hardness or insensibility, (1 Samuel 25:37; Ezekiel 11:19; 36:26) as well as firmness or strength. (Genesis 49:24) The members of the Church are called "living stones," as contributing to rear that living temple in which Christ, himself "a living stone," is the chief or head of the corner. (Ephesians 2:20-22; 1 Peter 2:4-8)


Stones, Precious

Precious stones are frequently alluded to in Scriptures; they were known and very highly valued in the earliest times. The Tyrians traded in precious stones supplied by Syria. (Ezekiel 27:16) The merchants of Sheba and Raamah in south Arabia, and doubtless India and Ceylon supplied the markets of Tyre with various precious stones. The art of engraving on precious stones was known from the very earliest times. (Genesis 38:18) The twelve atones of the breastplate were engraved each one with the name of one of the tribes. (Exodus 28:17-21) It is an undecided question whether the diamond was known to the early nations of antiquity. The Authorized Version gives if as the rendering of the Heb. yahalom, but it is probable that the jasper is intended. Precious stones are used in Scripture in a figurative sense, to signify value, beauty durability, etc., in those objects with which they are compared. See (Song of Solomon 5:14; Isaiah 54:11,12; Lamentations 4:7; Revelation 4:3; 21:10,21)


Stork

(Heb. chasidah), a large bird of passage of the heron family. The of the largest and most conspicuous of land birds, standing nearly four feet high, the jet black of its wings and its bright red beak and legs contrasting finely with the pure white of its plumage. (Zechariah 6:9) In the neighborhood of man it devours readily all kinds of offal and garbage. For this reason, doubtless it is placed in the list of unclean birds by the Mosaic law. (Leviticus 11:19; 14:18) The range of the white stork extends over the whole of Europe, except the British isles, where it is now a rare visitant, and over northern Africa and Asia as far at least as Burmah. The black stork (Ciconia nigra, Linn.), though less abundant in places, is scarcely less widely distributed, but has a more easterly range than its congener. Both species are very numerous in Palestine. While the black stork is never found about buildings, but prefers marshy places in forests and breeds on the tops of the loftiest trees, the white stork attaches itself to man and for the service which it renders in the destruction of reptiles and the removal of offal has been repaid from the earliest times by protection and reverence, The derivation of chasidah (from chesed, "kindness") points to the paternal and filial attachment of which the stork seems to have been a type among the Hebrews no less than the Greeks and Romans. It was believed that the young repaid the care of their parents by attaching themselves to them for life, and tending them in old age. That the parental attachment of the stork is very strong has been proved on many occasions, Few migratory birds are more punctual to the time of their reappearance than the white stork. The stork has no note, and the only sound it emits is that caused by the sudden snapping of its long mandibles.


Strain At

(So translated in the Authorized Version, but in the Revised Version "strain out," (Matthew 23:24) which is undoubtedly the true reading.--ED.)


Stranger

A "stranger," in the technical sense of the term, may be defined to be a person of foreign, i.e. non-Israelitish, extraction resident within the limits of the promised land. He was distinct from the proper "foreigner," inasmuch as the latter still belonged to another country, and would only visit Palestine as a traveller: he was still more distinct from the "nations," or non-Israelite peoples. The term may be compared with our expression "naturalized foreigner." The terms applied to the "stranger" have special reference to the fact of residing in the land. The existence of such a class of persons among the Israelites is easily accounted for the "mixed multitude" that accompanied them out of Egypt, (Exodus 12:38) formed one element the Canaanitish Population, which was never wholly extirpated from their native soil, formed another and a still more important one captives taken in war formed a third; fugitives, hired servants, merchants, etc., formed a fourth. With the exception of the Moabites and Ammonites, (23:3) all nations were admissible to the rights of citizenship under certain conditions. The stranger appears to have been eligible to all civil offices, that of king excepted. (17:15) In regard to religion, it was absolutely necessary that the stranger should not infringe any of the fundamental laws of the Israelitish state. If he were a bondman, he was obliged to submit to circumcision, (Exodus 12:44) if he were independent, it was optional with him but if he remained uncircumcised, he was prohibited from partaking of the Passover, (Exodus 12:48) and could not be regarded as a full citizen. Liberty was also given to an uncircumcised stranger in regard to the use of prohibited food. Assuming, however, that the stranger was circumcised, no distinction existed in regard to legal rights ha between the stranger and the Israelite; to the Israelite is enjoined to treat him as a brother. (Leviticus 19:34; 10:19) It also appears that the "stranger" formed the class whence the hirelings were drawn; the terms being coupled together in (Exodus 12:45; Leviticus 22:10; 25:6,40) The liberal spirit of the Mosaic regulations respecting strangers presents a strong contrast to the rigid exclusiveness of the Jews at the commencement of the Christian era. The growth of this spirit dates from the time of the Babylonish captivity.


Straw

Both wheat and barley straw were used by the ancient Hebrews chiefly as fodder for the horses cattle and camels. (Genesis 24:25; 1 Kings 4:28; Isaiah 11:7; 66:25) There is no intimation that straw was used for litter. It was employed by the Egyptians for making bricks, (Exodus 5:7,16) being chopped up and mixed with the clay to make them more compact and to prevent their cracking. [See [1172]Brick] The ancient Egyptians reaped their corn close to the ear, and afterward cut the straw close to the ground and laid it by. This was the straw that Pharaoh refused to give to the Israelites who were therefore compelled to gather "stubble" instead--a matter of considerable difficulty, seeing that the straw itself had been cut off near to the ground.


Stream Of Egypt

occurs once in the Old Testament-- (Isaiah 27:12) [RIVER OF EGYPT] RIVER OF EGYPT - 3664


Street

The streets of a modern Oriental town present a great contrast to those with which we are familiar, being generally narrow, tortuous and gloomy, even in the best towns. Their character is mainly fixed by the climate and the style of architecture, the narrowness being due to the extreme heat, and the gloominess to the circumstance of the windows looking for the most part into the inner court. The street called "Straight," in Damascus, (Acts 9:11) was an exception to the rule of narrowness: it was a noble thoroughfare, one hundred feet wide. divided in the Roman age by colonnades into three avenues, the central one for foot passengers, the side passages for vehicles and horsemen going in different directions. The shops and warehouses were probably collected together into bazaars in ancient as in modern times. (Jeremiah 37:21) That streets occasionally had names appears from (Jeremiah 37:21; Acts 9:11) That they were generally unpaved may be inferred from the notices of the pavement laid by Herod the Great at Antioch, and by Herod Agrippa II. at Jerusalem. Hence pavement forms one of the peculiar features of the ideal Jerusalem. Tob. 13:17; (Revelation 21:21) Each street and bazaar in a modern town is locked up at night; the same custom appears to have prevailed in ancient times. (Song of Solomon 3:3)


Suah

(sweeping), son of Zophah an Asherite. (1 Chronicles 7:36) (B.C. about 1020.)


Succoth

+ An ancient town, first heard of in the account of the homeward journey of Jacob from Padan-aram. (Genesis 35:17) The name is derived from the fact of Jacob's having there put up "booths" (succoth) for his cattle as well as a house for himself. From the itinerary of Jacob's return it seems that Succoth lay between Peniel, near the ford of the torrent Jabbok and Shechem. Comp. (Genesis 32:30) and Genesis33:18 In accordance with this is the mention of Succoth in the narrative of Gideon's pursuit of Zebah and Zalluunna. (Judges 5:5-17) It would appear from this passage that it lay east of the Jordan, which is corroborated by the fact that it was allotted to the tribe of Gad. (Joshua 13:27) Succoth is named once again after this--in (1 Kings 7:46; 2 Chronicles 4:17)--as marking the spot at which the brass founderies were placed for casting the metal work of the temple. (Dr. Merrill identifies it with a site called Tell Darala, one mile north of the Jabbok.--ED.) + The first camping-place of the Israelites when they left Egypt. (Exodus 12:37; 13:20; Numbers 33:5,6) This place was apparently reached at the close of the first days march. Rameses, the starting-place, was probably near the western end of the Wadi-t-Tumeylat . The distance traversed in each day's journey was about fifteen miles.


Succothbenoth

Occurs only in (2 Kings 17:30) It has generally been supposed that this term is pure Hebrew, and signifies the tents of daughters; which some explain as "the booths in which the daughters of the Babylonians prostituted themselves in honor of their idol," others as "small tabernacles in which were contained images of female deities." Sir H. Rawlinson thinks that Succoth-benoth represents the Chaldaean goddess Zerbanit, the wife of Merodach, who was especially worshipped at Babylon.


Suchathites

one of the families of scribes at Jabez. (1 Chronicles 2:55)


Sukkiim

(booth-dwellers), a nation mentioned (2 Chronicles 12:3) with the Lubim and Cushim as supplying part of the army which came with Shishak out of Egypt when he invaded Judah. The Sukkiim may correspond to some one of the shepherd or wandering races mentioned on the Egyptian monuments.


Sun

In the history of "greater light," of the creation the sun is described as "greater light," in contradistinction to the moon, the "lesser light," in conjunction with which it was to serve "for signs and for seasons, and for days, and for years," while its special office was "to rule the day." (Genesis 1:14-16) The "signs" referred to were probably such extraordinary phenomena as eclipses, which were regarded as conveying premonitions of coming events. (Jeremiah 10:2; Matthew 24:29) with Luke 21:25 The joint influence assigned to the sun and moon in deciding the "seasons," both for agricultural operations and for religious festivals, and also in regulating the length and subdivisions of the years "correctly describes the combination of the lunar and solar year which prevailed at all events subsequent to the Mosaic period. Sunrise and sunset are the only defined points of time in the absence of artificial contrivances for telling the hour of the day. Between these two points the Jews recognized three periods, viz., when the sun became hot, about 9 A.M. (1 Samuel 11:9; Nehemiah 7:3) the double light, or noon. (Genesis 43:16; 2 Samuel 4:5) and "the cool of the day," shortly before sunset. (Genesis 3:8) The sun also served to fix the quarters of the hemisphere, east, west north and south, which were represented respectively by the rising sun, the setting sun, (Isaiah 45:6; Psalms 50:1) the dark quarter, (Genesis 13:14; Joel 2:20) and the brilliant quarter, (33:23; Job 37:17; Ezekiel 40:24) or otherwise by their position relative to a person facing the rising sun--before, behind, on the left hand and on the right hand. (Job 23:8,9) The worship of the sun, as the most prominent and powerful agent in the kingdom of nature, was widely diffused throughout the countries adjacent to Palestine. The Arabians appear to have paid direct worship to it without the intervention of any statue or symbol, (Job 31:26,27) and this simple style of worship was probably familiar to the ancestors of the Jews in Chaldaea and Mesopotamia. The Hebrews must have been well acquainted with the idolatrous worship of the sun during the captivity in Egypt, both from the contiguity of On, the chief seat of the worship of the sun, as implied in the name itself (On being the equivalent of the Hebrew Bethshemesh, "house of the sun") (Jeremiah 43:13) and also from the connection between Joseph and Potipherah("he who belongs to Ela") the priest of On, (Genesis 41:45) After their removal to Canaan, the Hebrews came in contact with various forms of idolatry which originated in the worship of the sun; such as the Baal of the Phoenicians, the Molech or Milcom of the Ammonites, and the Hadad of the Syrians. The importance attached to the worship of the sun by the Jewish kings may be inferred from the fact that the horses sacred to the sun were stalled within the precincts of the temple. (2 Kings 23:11) In the metaphorical language of Scripture the sun is emblematic of the law of God, (Psalms 19:7) of the cheering presence of God, (Psalms 84:11) of the person of the Saviour, (John 1:9; Malachi 4:2) and of the glory and purity of heavenly beings. (Revelation 1:16; 10:1)


Suretyship

In the entire absence of commerce the law laid down no rules on the subject of suretyship; but it is evident that in the time of Solomon commercial dealings had become so multiplied that suretyship in the commercial sense was common. (Proverbs 6:1; 11:15; 17:18; 20:16; 22:26; 27:13) But in older times the notion of one man becoming a surety for a service to be discharged by another was in full force. See (Genesis 44:32) The surety of course became liable for his client's debts in case of his failure.


Susanchites

is found once only--in (Ezra 4:9) There can be no doubt that it designates either the inhabitants of the city Susa or those of the country--Susis or Susiana. Perhaps the former explanation is preferable.


Susanna

+ The heroine of the story of the Judgment of Daniel. (The book which gives an account of her life is also called "The history of Susanna," and is one of the apocryphal books of the Bible.) + One of the women who ministered to the Lord. (Luke 8:3) (A.D. 28-30.)


Susi

the father of Gaddi the Manassite spy. (Numbers 13:11)


Swallow

Heb. deror in (Psalms 84:3; Proverbs 26:2) Heb. 'agur in (Isaiah 38:14; Jeremiah 8:7) but "crane" is more probably the true signification of 'agur [[1175]Crane]). The rendering of the Authorized Version for deror seems correct. The characters ascribed in the passages where the names occur are strictly applicable to the swallow, viz., its swiftness of flight, its meeting in the buildings of the temple, its mournful, garrulous note, and its regular migrations, shared indeed in common with several others. Many species of swallow occur in Palestine. All those common in England are found.


Swan

(Heb. tinshemeth), thus rendered by the Authorized Version in (Leviticus 11:18; 14:16) where it occurs in the list of unclean birds Rut either of the renderings "porphyrio" (purple water-hen) and "ibis" is more probable. Neither of these birds occurs elsewhere in the catalogue; both would be familiar to residents in Egypt, and the original seems to point to some water-fowl. The purple water-hen is allied to our corn-crake and water-hen, and is the largest and most beautiful of the family Rallidae . It frequents marshes and the sedge by the banks of rivers in all the countries bordering on the Mediterranean and is abundant in lower Egypt.


Sweat, Bloody

One of the physical phenomena attending our Lord's agony in the garden of Gethsemane is described by St. Luke, (Luke 22:44) "His sweat was as it were great drops (lit. clots) of blood falling down to the ground." Of this malady, known in medical science by the term diapedesis, there have been examples recorded in both ancient and modern times. The cause assigned is generally violent mental emotion.


Swine

(Heb. chazir). The flesh of swine was forbidden as food by the Levitical law, (Leviticus 11:7; 14:8) the abhorrence which the Jews as a nation had of it may be inferred from (Isaiah 65:4) and 2 Macc 6:18,19. No other reason for the command to abstain from swine's flesh is given in the law of Moses beyond the general one which forbade any of the mammalia as food which did not literally fulfill the terms of the definition of a clean animal" viz,, that it was to be a cloven-footed ruminant. It is, however, probable that dietetical considerations may have influenced Moses in his prohibition of swine's flesh: it is generally believed that its use in hot countries is liable to induce cutaneous disorders; hence in a people liable to leprosy the necessity for the observance of a strict rule. Although the Jews did not breed swine during the greater period of their existence as a nation there can be little doubt that the heathen nations of Palestine used the flesh as food. At the time of our Lord's ministry it would appear that the Jews occasionally violated the law of Moses with regard to swine's flesh. Whether "the herd of swine" into which the devils were allowed to enter, (Matthew 8:32; Mark 5:13) were the property of the Jewish or of the Gentile inhabitants of Gadara does not appear from the sacred narrative. The wild boar of the wood, (Psalms 80:13) is the common Sus scrofa which is frequently met with in the woody parts of Palestine, especially in Mount Tabor.


Sycamine Tree

is mentioned only in (Luke 17:6) There is no reason to doubt that the sycamine is distinct from the sycamore of the same evangelist. (Luke 19:4) The sycamine is the mulberry tree (Morus). Both black and white mulberry trees are common in Syria and Palestine.


Sycamore

(Heb. shikmah). Although it may be admitted that the sycamine is properly, and in (Luke 17:6) the mulberry, and the sycamore the mulberry, or sycamore-fig (Ficus sycomorus), yet the latter is the tree generally referred to in the Old Testament and called by the Septuagint sycamine, as (1 Kings 10:27; 1 Chronicles 27:28; Psalms 78:47; Amos 7:14) The Sycamore or fig-mulberry, is in Egypt and Palestine a tree of great importance and very extensive use. It attains the size of a walnut tree has wide-spreading branches and affords a delightful shade. On this account it is frequently planted by the waysides. Its leaves are heart-shaped, downy on the under side, and fragrant. The Fruit grows directly from the trunk itself on little sprigs, and in clusters like the grape. To make It eatable, each fruit, three or four days before gathering, must, it is said, be punctured with a sharp instrument or the finger-nail. This was the original employment of the prophet Amos, as he says. (Amos 7:14) So great was the value of these trees that David appointed for them in his kingdom a special overseer, as he did for the olives (1 Chronicles 27:28) and it is mentioned as one of the heaviest of Egypt's calamities that her sycamore were destroyed by hailstones.


Sychar

a place named only in (John 4:5) Sychar was either a name applied to the town of Shechem or it was an independent place. The first of these alternatives is now almost universally accepted. [[1178]Shechem]


Sychem

the Greek form of the word Shechem. It occurs in (Acts 7:16) only. [[1179]Shechem]


Syene

properly Seventh a town of Egypt, on the frontier of Cush or Ethiopia, (Ezekiel 29:10; 30:6) represented by the present Aruan or Es-Suan.


Symeon

(The Jewish form of the name Simon, used in the Revised Version of (Acts 15:14) and referring to Simon Peter.-ED.)