Watt – Weeping

Watt

Spo Plagdeb of Egypt.

Wafer

See Bread, end.

Wages

Under the conditions of life in Palestine in OT times, work on the land, at all times the chief occupation, was done for the most part by the peasant and his family, assisted, in the case of the well-to-do, by a few slaves. The ‘hired servants’ were never numerous, and mainly aliens. We have no information as to the wages of such field-labourers. Deuteronomy 15:18 seems to say that a hireling cost the farmer twice as much as a slave, and since the latter received only his keep and his few clothes, it follows that the former will have earned the equivalent thereof, over and above, in wages. The first definite engagement — disregarding the special case of Jacob and Laban — with stipulated wages is that of the Levite whom Micah hired as his domestic chaplain for 10 shekels a year, with ‘a suit of apparel’ and his ‘victuals’ (Judges 17:10). The next instance is Tobit’s engagement of the angel Raphael as his son’s travelling-companion for a drachm a day and all found (Tobit 5:14). This amount — in Tobit’s day nearly a shilling — would probably be equal in purchasing power to three shillings at the present day. From the NT we have the familiar case of the labourers in the vineyard who received a denarius for their day’s labour (Matthew 20:1 ff.; see Monet, §§ 6. 7 (6)).

Information is now available as to the wages of different classes of ‘hirelings,’ from doctors to tailors, in Babylonia c. B.C. 2000, from the Code of Hammurabi (see Hastings’ DB, Ext. Vol. 592 f., 606 f.; S. A. Cook, The Laws of Moses and the Code of Hammurabi, 171 ff.), but it is perilous to compare too closely the highly developed social conditions of Babylonia, even at this early period, with the simpler forms of Hebrew life, say under the monarchy. A still better reflexion of the actual conditions of labour in the valley of the Euphrates is found in the numerous written contracts that have been deciphered in recent years, a specimen of which will be given below (see esp. Johns, BaJ). and Assyr. Laws, ch. XXV. ‘Wages of Hired Labourers’; Meissner, A«s d. altbab. Recht, 13 f.). The Code of Hammurabi (§ 273) enacts that a field labourer shall receive from the beginning of the year (April) to the fifth month — the period of longer days and harvest operations — 6 she (180 she= l shekel) per day; and from the sixth month to the end, 5 she. At best this is only a shekel a month; but, according to Meissner, this early introduction of a ‘standard wage’ did not lead to a rise of wages, for only on very rare occasions do these exceed 6 shekels a year in addition to food and clothing. It was customary to give a sum, probably a shekel, as earnest-money, the remainder being paid at stipulated intervals, daily or monthly, or in a lump sum at the expiry of the engagement.

Brickmakers and tailors are to receive 5 she a day (§ 274), and herdsmen — the name nd0d is the Baby- Ionian form of that denoting the occupation of Amos, the prophet — 8 gur of corn a year, the gur being worth probably about a shekel. In other cases as well. It was customary to pay in grain. Frequently, as has ■ been said, a written contract was drawn up, specifying the wages and the period of engagement. An example may be given from Meissner (op. cit. 14): —

‘Asir-Ramman, the son of Libit Urra, has hired Shamash’ bel-ili from the priestess of the sun, Achatani, the daughter of Sharaash-khazir, for one year. He will pay 3i shekels as yearly wages. He will find his own clothes. He will begin work on the 4th of the month Dur-Ramman, and will finish and leave in the month Mamitu.’

In OT times we hear also of yearly engagements (Leviticus 25:53). but the Deuteronomic Law enjoins daily payment of wages, in cases of poverty at least (Deuteronomy 24:15. cf. Leviticus 19:13). Details of the conditions of hire and the mutual obligations of master and servant at a much later period are to be found in the Mishna (see esp. Baba meeia, vi. and vii.). A. R. S. Kennedy.

Waggon

See Cart, Agriculture, § 3.

Wailing

See Mourning Customs.

Wallet

See Bag.

Walls

In Palestine the principal cities were protected by surrounding walls, sometimes of great size. That of Gezer, for instance, was fourteen feet thick. These walls were built of stones, set in mud, or else of brick. The walls of houses were generally ill-built structures of the same materials. The choice of material varied with the locality: Lachish (Tell el- Hesy), for example, was almost entirely a brick town; in Gezer brick is the exception. See also artt. City; FoBTiFiCATioN, 1; HousE, 4. For the walls of Jerusalem, which may be taken as typical of a city wall, see Jerusalem. R. a. S. Macalister.

War

1. In the days before the monarchy the wars of the Hebrew tribes must have resembled those of early Greece, when ‘the two armies started out, marched till they met, had a fight and went home.’ Rarely, as in the case of the campaign against Sisera (Judges 4), was it necessary to summon a larger army from several tribes. From the days of Saul and David, with their long struggle against the Philistines, war became the affair of the whole nation, leading, also, to the establishment of a standing army, or at least of the nucleus of one (see Army). In the reign of Solomon we hear of a complete organization of the kingdom, which undoubtedly served a more serious purpose than the providing of ‘victuals for the king and his household’ (1 Kings 4:7).

Early spring, after the winter rains had ceased, was ‘the time when kings go out to battle’ (2 Samuel 11:1). The war-horn (EV ‘trumpet’), sounded from village to village on their hilltops, was in all periods the call to arms (Judges 6:34. 1 Samuel 13:3, 2 Samuel 20:1). How far the exemptions from military service specified in Deuteronomy 20:5–8 were in force under the kings is unknown; the first express attestation is 1 Maccabees 3.

2. War, from the Hebrew point of view, was essentially a religious duty, begun and carried through under the highest sanctions of religion. Israel’s wars of old were ‘the wars of J"‘(Numbers 21:14), and was not Jahweh Tseba’Bth, especially’ the God of Israel’s battle-array’ (1 Samuel 17:45). His presence with the host was secured by ‘the ark of J"‘accompanying the army in the field (2 Samuel 11:11, cf. 1 Samuel 4). As an indispensable preliminary, therefore, of every campaign, the soldiers’ sanctified’ themselves (Joshua 3:5) by ablutions and other observances preparatory to offering the usual sacrifices (1 Samuel 7:9 13:9). The men thus became God’s ‘consecrated ones’ (Isaiah 13:3 RV), and to open a campaign is in Heb. phrase ‘to consecrate war’ (Joel 3:9, Jeremiah 6:4 etc.). Isaiah 21:5 ‘anoint the shield’ (cf. 2 Samuel 1:21) is commonly taken to allude to a practice of smearing shields with oil, that hostile weapons might more readily glance off (see, for another explanation, Marti or Duhm, Jesaia, ad loc.).

To ascertain the propitious moment for the start, and indeed throughout the campaign, it was usual to ‘enquire of the Lord’ by means of the sacred lot (Judges 1:1, 1 Samuel 23:2 and oft.), and in an age of more advanced religious thought, by the mouth of a prophet (1 Kings 22:5 ff.). Still later a campaign was opened with prayer and fasting (1 Maccabees 3:47 ff.).

As regards the conunissariat, it was probably usual, as in Greece, to start with three days’ provisions, the soldiers, for the rest, helping themselves from friends (cf. however, the voluntary gifts, 2 Samuel 17:27 ff.) and foes. The arrangement by which ‘ten men out of every hundred’ were told off ‘to fetch victual for the people’ (Judges 20), is first met with in a late document.

3. As the army advanced, scouts were sent out to ascertain the enemy’s position and strength (Judges 1:24 [AV ‘spies,’ RV ‘watchers’], 1 Samuel 26:4, 1 Maccabees 5). Where the element of secrecy enters, we may call them spies (so Joshua 2:1 RV, 2 Samuel 15, 1 Maccabees 12:26) cf . Gideon’s exploit, Judges 7:11 ff.).

Little is known of the camps of the Heb. armies. The men were sheltered in tents and booths (2 Samuel 11:11) this reference, however, is to a lengthy siege). The general commanding probably had a more elaborate ‘pavilion’ (1 Kings 20:12, 16, see Tent). The obscure term rendered by RV ‘place of the wagons’ (1 Samuel 17:20 26:5, 7) is derived from a root which justifies us in supposing that the Hebrew camps were round, rather than square. Of the 20 Assyrian camps represented on the bronze plates of the gates of Balawat, 4 are circular, 14 almost square, and 2 have their long sides straight and their short sides curved outwards. Two gates are represented at opposite ends, between which a broad road divides the camp into two almost equal parts (Billerbeck u. Delitzsch, Die PalasttoreSalmanassars, II. [1908], 104). The Hebrews divided the night into three watches (Judges 7:19. 1 Samuel 11:11).

4. The tactics of the Hebrew generals were as simple as their strategy. Usually the ‘battle was set in array’ by the opposing forces being drawn up in line facing each other. At a given signal, each side raised its battle-cry (Judges 7:21, Amos 1:14. Jeremiah 4) as it rushed to the fray; for the wild slogan of former days, the Ironsides of the Jewish Cromwell, Judas the Maccabee, substituted prayer (1 Maccabees 5:33) and the singing of Psalms (2 2:37). It was a common practice for a general to divide his forces into three divisions (Judges 7:16, 1 Samuel 11:11, 2 Samuel 18:2, 1 Maccabees 5:33). A favourite piece of tactics was to pretend flight, and by leaving a body of men in ambush, to fall upon the unwary pursuers in front and rear (Joshua 8:15, Judges 20:36). As examples of more elaborate tactics may be cited Joab’s handling of his troops before Rabbath-ammon (2 Samuel 10:9–11). and Benhadad’s massing of his chariots at the battle of Ramoth-gilead (1 Kings 22) the campaigns of Judas Maccabseus would repay a special study from this point of view. The recall was sounded on the war-horn (2 Samuel 2:28 18:16 20:22).

5. The tender mercies of the victors in those days were cruel, although the treatment which the Hebrews meted out to their enemies was, with few exceptions (e.g. 2 Kings 15:16), not to be compared to what Benzinger only too aptly describes as ‘the Assyrian devilries.’ It is one of the greatest blots on our RV that 2 Samuel 12:31 should still read as it does, instead of as in the margin (see Cent. Bible, in loc). The Hebrew wars, as has been said, were the wars of J", and to J" of right belonged the population of a conquered city (see Ban). Even the humane Deuteronomic Code spares only the women and children (Deuteronomy 20). The captives were mostly sold as slaves. A heavy war indemnity or a yearly tribute was imposed on the conquered people (2 Kings 3:4).

The booty fell to the victorious soldiery, the leaders receiving a special share (Judges 8:24 ff.; 1 Samuel 30:26 ff.). The men ‘that tarried by the stuff’ — in other words, who were left behind as a camp-guard — shared equally with their comrades ‘who went down to the battle ‘(I S 30:24 f.; a law first introduced by David, but afterwards characteristically assigned to Moses, Numbers 31:27). The returning warriors were welcomed home by the women with dance and song (Exodus 15:20 ff.: Judges 11, 1 Samuel 18 etc.). The piety of the Maccabffian age found a more fitting expression in a service of thanksgiving (1 Mac See also Army, AEMorni Abms, Fohtification and SrEOE- CHAFT. A. R. S. Kennedy.

Wars of the Lord, Book of the

A work quoted in Numbers 21:14 f. to settle a point with regard to the boundary of Moab and Ammon. The quotations in vv.. B’-M are probably from the same original. This is the only mention of the book in the OT. It is not likely that the work is identical with the Book of Jashar. It probably consisted of a collection of songs celebrating the victories of Israel over their neighbours. The song in Exodus 15:1–19 describing the Lord as ‘a man of war’ has been thought to be derived from it. The date of the work is unknown. As it deals with the heroic age, it likely originated in the period immediately following, and it has been dated in the reign of Omri (Stade), and by others as early as the time of David or Solomon. If Numbers 21 refer to the wars of Omri, we must regard the work as a product of the N. kingdom.

W. F. Boyd.

Washpot

Only Psalms 60:8 = 108:9, as a figure of contempt. The ‘pot’ (sir) was also used for boiling (see House, 9).

Watch

See Time.

Watchman

See City.

Watch Tower

See Vine.

Water

The scarcity of water in the East lends it a special value. Its presence in some form is essential to life. The f ruitf ulness of the land depends on the quantity available for watering. The Jordan, with its great springs, is too low for the irrigation of anything but the valley. There are many fountains in Palestine, but most fail in summer. The average annual rainfall approaches 30 inches. But this is confined to the months from April till October; and the water would rush down the slopes to the sea, were it not caught and stored for future use. The limestone formation, with its many caves, made easy the construction of cisterns and reservoirs to collect the rain water: thence supplies were drawn as required during the dry months. Wherever water is found, there is greenery and beauty all through the year.

In the Maritime Plain plentiful supplies of water are found on digging (Genesis 26:15 ff.). To fill up the wells would make the district uninhabitable. Invading armies were at times reduced to sore straits by the stopping of wells (2 Kings 3:19, 25), or diversion and concealment of the stream from a fountain (2 Chronicles 32:3 f.).

The earliest use of water was doubtless to allay the thirst of man and beast. Refusal of drink to a thirsty man would be universally condemned (Genesis 24:17 f.; John 4:7). It is held a meritorious act to set a vessel of water by the wayside for the refreshment of the wayfarer. The same right does not extend to flocks (Genesis 24:19 f.), for which water must often be purchased. Use and wont have established certain regulations for the watering of animals, infringement of which frequently causes strife (Genesis 29:2 ff.; Exodus 2:16 ff.; cf. Genesis 26:20 etc.). The art of irrigation(wh. see) was employed in ancient days (Psalms 1:3 65:10, Ezekiel 17:7 etc.), and reached its fullest development in the Roman period. To this time also belong many ruins of massive aqueducts, leading water to the cities from distant sources.

Cisterns and springs are not common property. Every considerable house has a cistern for rain water from roof and adjoining areas. Importance is attached to plunging in the buckets by which the water is drawn up, this preventing stagnation. The springs, and cisterns made in the open country, are the property of the local family or tribe, from whom water, if required in any quantity, must be bought. The mouth of the well is usually covered with a great stone. Drawing of water for domestic purposes is almost exclusively the work of women (Genesis 24:11, John 4:7 etc.). In crossing the desert, water Is carried in ‘bottles’ of skin (Genesis 21:14).

The ‘living,’ i.e. ‘flowing’ water of the spring is greatly preferred to the ‘dead’ water of the cistern, and it stands frequently for the vitalizing influences of God’s grace (Jeremiah 2:13. Zee 14:8, John 4:10 etc.). Many Scripture references show how the cool, refreshing, fertilizing qualities of water are prized In a thirsty land (Proverbs 25:25. Isaiah 44:14, Jeremiah 17:8, Luke 16:24 etc.). Water is furnished to wash the feet and hands of a guest (Luke 7:44). Tobit 9 water on the hands is the office of a servant (2 Kings 3:11). The sudden spates of the rainy season are the symbol of danger (Psalms 18:16 32:6. Isaiah 28:17 etc.), and their swift passing symbolizes life’s transiency (Job 11, Psalms 58:7). Water is also the symbol of weakness and instability (Genesis 49:4, Ezekiel 21:7 etc.). Cf. City; Jertjsalem, I. 4. For ‘Water-gate’ see Nethinim, p. 654". W. Ewinq.

Water of Bitterness

See Jealousy.

Water of Separation

See Red Eeifeb.

Waterpots

See HonsE, § 9.

Waterspouts

Only Psalms 42:7 ‘Deep calleth unto deep at the noise of thy waterspouts’ (RVm ‘cataracts ‘) . The reference is prob. to the numerous noisy waterfalls in a stream swollen by the melting of the snow.

Wave-breast, Wave-offering

See SacriricE, § 2 (13), 12.

Wax

See Education, p. 205«; Writing, 6.

WAY.^1. OT usage. — (o) Of a road or journey (1 Samuel 6:9, 12. 2 Kings 3:20, Jeremiah 2:18). (6) Figuratively, of a course of conduct or character (Job 17:9 Psalms 91:11), either in a good sense as approved by God (Deuteronomy 31:29. Psalms 50. Isaiah 30:21). _ or in a bad sense of man’s own choosing (Psalms 139:24, Isaiah 65:2. Jeremiah 18:11). (c) Of the way of Jehovah, His creative power (Job 26:14), His moral rule and commandments(Job 21:14. Psalms 18:30, Proverbs 8:32).

2. NT usage.— (o) In the literal sense (Matthew 4 10:5, Acts 8:26). (6) Figuratively, as in OT of human conduct, or (jod’a purpose for man (Matthew 21:32, Acts 14:16. Romans 11, 1 Corinthians 4:17, James 5:20). But the gospel greatly enriched the ethical and religious import of the word. Though Jesus was addressed as one who taught ‘the way of God in truth’ (Matthew 22:16), He Himself claimed to show the way to the Father because He is ‘the Way, the Truth, and the Life’ (John 14) By Him ‘the two worlds were united’ (Westcott). This is equivalent to the Apostolic doctrine that Christ is the gospel (Mark 1:1, Romans 15:19). In Hebrews 9:8 IO20 there is the similar thought that Jesus by His life, death, and exaltation has opened a way whereby men may enter into the holy presence of God, and enables them also to walk therein. In Acts ‘the Way’ is used with the distinctive meaning of the Christian faith and manner of life, which is the only ‘way’ that leads to salvation (9:2 19 24). This is the ‘way of the Lord’ so often referred to in the OT, of which Jesus became the final and perfect revealer. The development of the conception may be traced in Acts 16:17 18:25, 26. R. A. Falconer.

Waymark

In Jeremiah 31:21 (20) ‘the virgin of Israel’ is called on to set up waymarks and make guide-posts to mark the way for the returning exiles. The Heb. word tr. ‘waymark’ apparently means a small stone pillar, similar to our milestones, with an indication of routes and distances.

Wealth

This word is used in Scripture occasionally in the Elizabethan and primary sense of ‘well-being’ (e.fif. 1 Samuel 2:32, Esther 10:3 etc.), but generally in the more usual sense of affluent possessions (e.g. Genesis 34:29, Deuteronomy 8:17, 18. Acts 19 etc.).

1. Palestine is described in Deuteronomy 8:7–9 as rich not only in cereal but also in mineral wealth; but this may be a description more poetic than literal. It is, however, frequently spoken of as ‘flowing with milk and honey’ (Exodus 3:8, etc. etc.) — products which were in ancient times considered the marks of fertile lands. The wealth of Israel increased as the country developed; and under the monarchy it reached its height. The increased prosperity did not, however, lead to increased righteousness. If in the times of Isaiah the land was ‘full of silver and gold,’ it was also ‘full of idols’ (Isaiah 2:7, 8) the ruling classes oppressed the poor (5:8. Micah 2:2), drunkenness (Isaiah 5:11. Micah 2:11) and audacity of sin (Isaiah 5:18) were rampant. The national poverty that followed upon the Exile had been removed before the birth of our Lord, as exemplified by the magnificent buildings of Herod. Throughout the OT and NT many instances of wealthy individuals occur: e.g. Abram (Genesis 3:2), Nabal (1 Samuel 25:2). Barzillai (2 Samuel 19:32), Zacchffius (Luke 19:2), Joseph of Arimathsea (Matthew 27:57).

2. In the OT the possession of wealth is generally regarded as evidence of God’s blessing, and so of righteousness(Ps V- etc.). But the stubborn facts of the godly being called upon sometimes to suffer, and of the wicked sometimes flourishing, led to a deeper view; and the limited power and transitoriness of wealth were realized (Psalms 49; cf. 37. 73. Job 21, Jeremiah 12 etc.). In the NT the problem does not present itself so keenly; as, in the full belief of a future life, the diSiculty resolved itself. But the general conduciveness of virtue to earthly prosperity is inculcated; and we are taught that godliness is profitable for this life as well as for that which is to come (1 Timothy 4:8; cf. Matthew 6:33, Mark 10:30).

3. Out Lord’s position regarding wealth must be deduced from His practice and teaching. As regards His practice, it is clear that, until He commenced His ministry. He obtained His livelihood by labour, toiling as a carpenter in Nazareth (Mark 6:3). During His ministry, He and the Twelve formed a family with a common purse. This store, composed, no doubt, of the personal property of those of their number who originally had wealth, was replenished by gifts of attached disciples (Luke 8:3). From it necessary food was purchased and the poor were relieved (John 4:8 13:29). Christ and His Apostles as a band, therefore, owned private property. When our Lord dispatched the Twelve on a special tour for preaching and healing, and when He sent the Seventy on a similar errand. He commanded them to take with them neither money nor food (Matthew 10:10, Luke 10:4)) but these were special instructions on special occasions, and doubtless on their return to Him the former system of a common purse was reverted to (cf. Luke 22:36).

As regards Christ’s teaching, it is important to balance those sayings which appear to be hostile to any possession of wealth, with those which point in the other direction. On the one hand, we find Him bidding a rich young man sell his all and give to the poor (Mark 10:21), and then telling His disciples that it is easier tor a camel to go through a needle’s eye than for a rich man to enter the Kingdom of God. He pictures a possessor of increasing wealth hearing God say, ‘Thou foolish one, this night is thy soul required of thee’ (Luke 12:20) ; He follows beyond the grave the histories of a rich man and a beggar, placing the rich man in a ‘place of torment’ and the poor man in Abraham’s bosom (Luke 16:19 f.). But there is the other side; for we find that He sympathized deeply with those enduring poverty, assuring them of their Father’s care (Matthew 6:32) preaching especially to them the gospel (Matthew 11:5). and pronouncing upon them in their sorrows a special benediction (Luke 6:20). He showed that He desired that all should have a sufficiency, by bidding all, rich and poor alike, pray for ‘daily bread.’ If He taught that riches were indee.d an obstacle to entrance Into the Kingdom of God, He also taught that it was the ‘few’ (whether rich or poor) that succeeded in entering it (Matthew 7:14). If He told one young man to sell all that he had, clearly He did not intend this counsel to be applicable to all, for He assured of ‘salvation’ Zacchseus, who gave but the half of his goods to the poor (Luke 19:8, 9). If the builder of larger barns is termed the ‘foolish one,’ his folly is shown not to have been mere acquisition of wealth, but that acquisition apart from riches ‘toward God’ (Luke 12) ; and if Dives is In Hades, it is evident that he is not there merely because of his riches, for Lazarus lies in the bosom of Abraham, the typical rich Jew. Further, in the parables of the Pounds and the Talents (Luke 19:12. Matthew 25:14) He teaches, under the symbolism of money, that men are not owners but stewards of all they possess; while in the parable of the Unjust Steward He points out one of the true uses of wealth — namely, to relieve the poor, and so to insure a welcome from them when the eternal tabernacles are entered (Luke 16:9).

From the foregoing we may conclude that, while our Lord realized that poverty brought sorrow, He also realized that wealth contained an intense peril to spiritual life. He came to raise the world from the material to the spiritual; and wealth, as the very token of the material and temporal, was blinding men to the spiritual and eternal. He therefore urged those to whom it was a special hindrance, to resign it altogether; and charged all to regard it as something for the use of which they would be held accountable.

4. In the Apostolic Church, in its earliest days, we find her members having ‘all things common,’ and the richer selling their possessions to supply the wants of their poorer brethren (Acts 2:44, 45 4:34–37). But this active enthusiasm does not necessarily show that the Church thought the personal possession of wealth, in itself, unlawful or undesirable; for the case of Ananias clearly indicates that the right to the possession of private property was not questioned (Acts 5:4). Later in the history of the Church we find St. James inveighing against the proud and heartless rich (James 2:1–8 5:1–5). and St. Paul warning men of the spiritual dangers incident to the procuring or possessing of wealth (1 Timothy 6:9, 10 "-"; cf. Revelation 3:17). Chakleb T. P. Gkiehson.

Weapons

See Akmodb Arms.

Weasel

(chBled, Leviticus 11:29). An ‘unclean’ animal- Since the Heb. root chMad means ‘to dig,’ and the Arab, klvuld is the ‘mole-rat,’ it is practically certain that this latter is the correct translation of cMled. Ct. Mole. E. W. G. Mastebman.

Weavd

Weavd fG. — See Spinning and Weaving.

Weddinc

Weddinc r. — See Marriage.

Wedge

(of gold). See Money, p. 628’‘.

Weeds

1. sUph, Jonah 2:6. referring to sea-weeds (cf. the designation yam suph ‘sea of weeds,’ applied to the Red Sea [wh. see]). 2. Gr. ehortos, Sirach 40:16. used In the same indefinite sense as Eng. ‘weeds.’

Week

See Time.

Weeks, Feast of

See Pentecost.

Weeping

See Mourning Customs.