Hebrews, Epistle to (continued) – Herodion

Hebrews, Epistle to (continued)

Two other interdependent ideas remain to be briefly considered. It has already been said that our author may be described as a theological evolutionist, and in no sphere of his thought is this more evident than in his ideas of salvation and of faith. Salvation is not so much the present realization of the redemptive value of Christ’s atoning work as a movement commencing here and now towards that realization in all its fulness. It is true that faith is for him the power to bring the unseen realities into touch with the present life (l l""-). At the same time, the dominant conception of salvation in the writer’s mind is the fruition of hopes originated and vitalized by the teaching and experiences of Jesus. Future dominion in a new world ordered and inhabited in perfect moral harmony (see Westcott, Ep. to Heb., on 2:5) awaits those who neglect not ‘so great salvation’(2’). The basis upon which this lordship rests is the actualized crowned Kingship of the Man Jesus, which is at once the guarantee and the rationale of the vision (2:9 ff.). Immediately following this view another conception arises dealing with the realization, in the future, of a dominion based upon conquest. Death and the author of death are the enemies which Jesus has ‘brought to nought’; and not only has He done this, but He delivers those who all their life were in bondage ‘through fear.’ The perfect humanity of Jesus is again the avenue along which this goal is reached . No other way is possible, and in Him all may find their servitude transmuted into freedom and dominion (cf. 2:14–18). Once more, arguing from the imperfect realization by the Israelites, under Joshua, of their hopes, the author points out that what they looked for in vain is a type of a higher thing which is now actually awaiting ‘the people of God.’ Salvation consists in entering into that eternal Sabbath-rest where Jesus has gone before, and where the presence of God is (cf. 4:9 ff.). The pivotal conception round which these ideas revolve is the unity of Christ and man, the likeness in all things, sin alone excepted, which was effected by the Incarnation.

Our author’s habit of looking on faith as an active force in men’s lives displays the same tendency to make the future rather than the present the field of his vision. At the same time, it would be a great mistake to imagine that the present is outside the scope of his thought. Obedience, however, is the word and thought preferred by him when he speaks of the present grounds of salvation(5»‘-, cf. 11:8). Faith is for him a force working towards ethical ideals, a power which enables men of every nation and class to live lives of noble self-denial for righteousness’ sake, ‘as seeing him who is invisible’ (cf. 11 4:2 6:12 10:39). Of this faith Jesus is ‘the author and perfecter’ (12:2), and Jiere, too, we get a glimpse of that quickening Divine humanity upon which the writer lays such constant stress, and which is the source of the effort demanded from his readers when he asks them to imitate their former rulers In a faith which issued in a glorious martyrdom. J. R. Willis.

Hebron

(‘association’). 1. The third son of Kohath, known to us only from P (Exodus 6:18, Numbers 3:19, 27) and the Chronicler (1 Ch &‘■ ‘s 15:9 23:12, 19). The Hebronites are mentioned at the census taken in the wilderness of Sinai (Numbers 3:27), and appear again at the later census in the plains of Moab (26:58) cf. also 1 Chronicles 15:9 23:19 26:23, 30 f.: 2. A son of Mareshah and father of Korah, Tappuah, Rekem, and Shema (1 Chronicles 2:42–43).

Hebroi

Hebroi f. — A very ancient city in Palestine, 20 miles S.S.W. from Jerusalem. It is in a basin on one of the highest points of the Judaeau ridge, being about 3040 ft. above sea-level. A note of its antiquity is given in Numbers 13:22, which states that it was ‘seven years older than Zoan in Egypt.’ Its original name seems to have been Kiriath-arba (i.e. probably TetrapoUs, or ‘Four Cities’), and it was a stronghold of the Anakim. In the time of Abraham, however (whose history is much bound up with this place), we read of Hittites here. From Ephron the Hittite he purchased the cave of Machpelah for the burial of Sarah his wife (Genesis 23). This allusion has given rise to much controversy. At the time of the entry of the Israelites it was held by three chieftains of great stature, Sheshai, Ahlman, and Talmai (Numbers 13:22). On the partition of the country it was allotted to the tribe of Judah, or rather to the Calebites (Joshua 4:12 15:14), who captured it for the Israelite immigrants. The city itself was allotted to the Kohathite Levites, and it was set apart as a city of refuge (Joshua 20:7). Here David reigned seven and a half years over Judah (2 Samuel 5:5). till his capture of Jerusalem from the Jebusites fixed there the capital of the country. It was here also that the rebellious Absalom established himself as king(2 15:7 ff.). It was fortified by Rehoboam (2 Chronicles 11:10). After the Captivity it was for a time in the hands of the Edomites (though from Nehemiah 11:25 it would appear to have been temporarily colonized by the returned Jews), but was re-captured by Judas Maccabaeus (1 Mac S«5). In the war under Vespasian it was burned. In 1167 it became the see of a Latin bishop; in 1187 it was captured for the Muslims by Saladin.

The modern town contains about 10,000 inhabitants. Its chief manufactures are glassware and leather water-skins. In the centre is the Haram or mosque, formerly a Crusaders’ church, built ove? the reputed cave of Machpelah. The modern name is Khalll er-Bahman, ‘the friend of the Merciful’ — the Muslim title of Abraham. ‘Abraham’s oak’ is shown near the city, but t»his is as apocryphal as the ascription of a cistern called ‘Sarah’s bath.’ There is a remarkable stone-built enclosure near by called Bdmat el-KhalU; it has been attempted to show this to be Samuel’s Ramah; probably, however, it is nothing more important than a MusUm khan, built out of earlier materials. R. A. S. Macalisteb.

Hedge

(1) mesukah, a thorn hedge (Isaiah 5:5). (2) gOdlr or gedlrah — probably a stone wall (Psalms 89:40). (3) phragmoa (Gr.), Matthew 21. Mark 12:1. Luke 14:23 a ‘partition’ of any kind. E. W. G. Masterman.

Hegai

Hegai or HEGE (Esther 2:8, 15 2:3). A eunuch of Ahasuerus, and keeper of the women, to whom the maidens were entrusted before they were brought in to the king.

Hegemonides

Hegemonides (2 Maccabees 13:24). An officer left in command of the district from Ptolemais to the Gerrenians, by Lysias when he was forced to return to Syria to oppose the chancellor Philip (B.C. 162).

Heifer

The heifer was used in agriculture (Judges 14:18. Jeremiah 50:11. Hosea 10:11), and in religious ritual (On 15, 1 Samuel 16. Numbers 19:2 f. etc.). Israel is compared to a heifer in Hosea 4:16, and so is Egypt in Jeremiah 46:20, and ChaldKa in Jeremiah 50:11. See also Ox, Red Heifer.

E. W. G. Masterman.

HEIR, — See Inheritance.

Helah

One of the wives of Ashhur the ‘father’ of Tekoa (1 Chronicles 43).

Helam

The Aramseans from beyond the river, whom Hadarezer summoned to his aid, came to Helam (2 Samuel 10:16) and were there met and defeated by David (v. 17 f.). So far as the form of the word is concerned, IMam in v. 16 might mean ‘their army.’ There can, however, be little doubt that the LXX, Pesh. and Targ. are right in taking it as a proper name. Upon the ground of the LXX some introduce Helam also in Ezekiel 47. In this case it must have lain on the border between Damascus and Hamath.

Helbah

A town of Asher (Judges 1). Its identity is quite uncertain.

Helbon

A place celebrated in old times for the excellence of its wines (Ezekiel 27:18). It is identified with Halbun, about 12 miles N. of Damascus. Grapes are still grown extensively on the surrounding slopes.

W. EWING.

Heldai

1. The captain of the military guard appointed for the twelfth monthly course of the Temple service (1 Chronicles 27:15). He is probably to be identified with ‘Heleb the son of Baanah the Netophathite,’ one of David’s thirty heroes (2 Samuel 23:29). In the parallel hst (1 Chronicles 11:30) the name is more correctly given as Heled. ■The form Hddai is supported by Zee 6:10. and should probably be restored in the other two passages. 2. According to Zee e’", one of a small band who brought gifts of gold and silver from Babylon to those of the exiles who had returned under Zerubbabei. From these gifts Zechariah was told to make a crown for Joshua the high priest, which was to be placed in the Temple as a memorial of Heldal and his companions. In V." Helem is clearly an error for Heldai.

Heleb

Heleb (2 Samuel 23:22). See Heldai, 1.

Heled

Heled (1 Chronicles 11:30). See Heldai, 1.

Helek

Son of Gilead the Manassite, Numbers 26:30, Joshua 17:2 (P). Patronymic, Helekites, Numbers 26:30.

Helem

1. A man of Asher (1 Chronicles 7:35). 2. See Heldai, 2.

Heleph

A town on the border of Naphtali (Jos IQ^s). Although mentioned in the Talmud (Megillah, 1. 1, Heleph has not been identified.

Helez

1. One of David’s thirty heroes (2 Samuel 23:26). He is described as ‘the Paltite,’ i.e. a native of Beth-pelet in the Negeb of Judah (cf. Joshua 15:27. Nehemiah 11:26). But in the two parallel lists (1 Chronicles 11:27 and 27:10) both the Hebrew text and the LXX read ‘the Pelonite.’ The former reading is further inconsistent with 1 Chronicles 27:10, where Helez is expressly designated as ‘of the children of Ephraim.’ He was in command of the military guard appointed for the seventh monthly course of the Temple service. See Pelonite. 2. A Judahite (1 Chronicles 2:39).

Heli

1. The father of Joseph, in the genealogy of Jesus (Luke 3:23). 2. An ancestor of Ezra (2 Esdras 1:2)) omitted in parallel passages, 1 Esdras 8:2, Ezra 7.

Heliodorus

The chancellor of Seleucus iv. Philopator. At the instigation of Apollonius he was sent by the king to plunder the private treasures kept in the Temple of Jerus. ; but was prevented from carrying out his design by an apparition (2 Maccabees 3:7 ff.). In B.C. 175, Hellodorus murdered Seleucus, and attempted to seize the Syrian crown; but he was driven out by Eumenes of Pergamus and his brother Attalus; and Antiochus Epiphanes, brother of Seleucus, ascended the throne. There is commonly supposed to be a reference to Heliodorus in Daniel 11:20. but the interpretation of the passage is doubtful. Further, he is frequently reckoned as one of the ten or the three kings of 7:7 f.

Helkai

A priest (Nehemiah 12:15).

Helkath

A Levitical city belonging to the tribe of Asher (Joshua 19:25 21:31). The site is uncertain. The same place, owing probably to a textual error, appears in 1 Chronicles 6:75 as Hukok.

Helkath-hazzurike

The name given to the spot at Gibeon where the fatal combat took place between the twelve champions chosen on either side from the men of Abner and Joab (2 Samuel 2:16). The name means ‘the field of sword edges.’

Helkias

1. The high priest Hilkiah in Josiah’s reign. He is mentioned in 1 Es l’=2 Ch 35’ as a governor of the Temple, subscribing handsomely to Josiah’s great Passover; in 1 Esdras 8:1 (cf. Ezra 7:1) as the great-grandfather of Ezra; and in Baruch 1:7 as father of Joakim, who was governor of the Temple in the reign of Zedekiah. 2. A distant ancestor of Baruch (Baruch 1:1.) 3. The father of Susanna (Sus !-").

Hell

See EscHATOLOQT, Gehenna, Hadeb. Sheol.

Hellenism

See Education, Greece.

Helmet

See Armour, § 2 (6).

Helon

Father of EUab, the prince of Zebulun at the first census, Numbers 1:9 2:7 7 10:16 (P).

Helps

Acts 27:17 ‘they used helps, undergirding the ships.’ The reference is to ‘cables passed round the hull of the ship, and tightly secured on deck, to prevent the timbers from starting, especially amidships, where in ancient vessels with one large mast the strain was very great. The technical English word is trapping, but the process has only been rarely employed since the early part of the century, owing to improvements in shipbuilding’ (Page’s Acts of the Apostles; see Smith’s Voyage and Shipwreck of St. Pavl, p. 105).

Helps

In 1 Corinthians 12:28 St. Paul, in order to show the diversity in unity found in the Church as the body of Christ, gives a list of services performed by various members of the churchly body. In the course of his enumeration he uses two Gr. nouns (antilimpseis and kyhernlseis) employed nowhere else in the NT, and rendered in EV ‘helps,’ ‘governments.’ ‘Helps’ may suggest a lowly kind of service, as of one who acts as assistant to a superior. The usage of the Gr. word, however, both in the LXX and in the papyri, points to succour given to the needy by those who are stronger; and this is borne out for the NT when the same word in its verbal form occurs in St. Paul’s exhortation to the elders of the Ephesian Church to ‘help the weak’ (Acts 20:35 RV). ‘Helps’ in this list of churchly gifts and services thus denotes such attentions to the poor and afSicted as were specially assigned at a later time to the office of the deacon; while ‘governments’ (RVm ‘wise counsels’) suggests that rule and guidance which afterwards fell to presbyters or bishops.

We are not to think, however, that there is any reference in this passage to deacons and bishops as Church officials. The fact that ‘helps’ are named before ‘governments,’ and especially that abstract terms are used instead of concrete and personal ones as in the earlier part of the list, shows that it is functions, not offices, of which the Apostle is thinking throughout. The analogy of Acts 20:35. moreover, where it is presbyters (v. 17 RVm) or bishops (v. 28 RV) that are exhorted to help the weak, is against the supposition that in an Ep. so early as 1 Cor. ‘helps’ and ‘governments’ corresponded to deacons and bishops. ‘Helps,’ as Hort says iChr. Ecdesia, p. 159), are ‘anything that could be done for poor or weak or outcast brethren, either by rich or powerful or influential brethren, or by the devotion of those who stood on no such eminence.’ ‘Governments,’ again, refers to ‘men who by wise counsels did for the community what the steersman or pilot does for the ship.’ J. C. Lambert.

Helve

Deuteronomy 19:5: a word nearly obsolete, equivalent to ‘handle.’

Hem

See Fringes.

Hemam

A Horite clan of Edom (Genesis 36:22). 1 Ch 139 lias Homam, but the LXX in both places Heman. Many scholars follow the LXX, others identify with Humaimeh south of Petra, or Hammam near Maon. George A. Barton.

Heman

There appear at first to be three different men of this name in the OT. 1. A legendary wise man whose wisdom Solomon excelled (1 K #‘). 2. A son (or clan) of Zerah of the tribe of Judah (1 Chronicles 2:6). probably also alluded to in the title of Psalms 88 as Heman the Ezrahite, Ezrah being another form of Zerah. 3. A Korahite singer of the time of David, said to be the son of Joel the son of Samuel (1 Chronicles 6:33; cf. also 15:17, 19 16:41 25). As Chronicles in a number of cases confuses the genealogy of Judah with that of Levi (cf., e.g., 1 Ch 2:42, 43 ^th 6:2). and as the wise men of 1 Kings 4:31 are legendary, it is probable that the three Hemans are the same legendary ancestor of a clan celebrated for its music and wisdom. This view finds some support in the fact that the title of Psalms 88 makes Heman both an Ezrahite (Judahite) and a Korahite (Levite).

George A. Barton.

Hemdan

See Hamran.

Hemlock

See Gall, Wormwood. HEV.— See Cock.

Hen

In Zee 6" ‘Hen the son of Zephaniah’ is mentioned amongst those whose memory was to be perpetuated by the crowns laid up in the Temple (so AV, RV). Some would substitute for ‘Hen’ the name ‘Joshua’ [Josiah] found in v.’°.

Hena

A word occurring in conjunction with Iwah (2 Kings 18:34 19:13. Isaiah 37:13). Both are probably place-names. Btisching has identified Hena with the modern Ana on the Euphrates; and Sachau supposes that Iwah is ‘Imm between Aleppo and Antioch. The Targum, however, takes the words as verb-forms, and reads’ he has driven away and overturned.’ Hommel regards them as divine star-names (cf. Arab, al-han’a and al- ‘awwct). Cheyne emends the text, striking out Hena, and reading Iwwah as ‘Azzah ( = Gaza). W. M. Nesbit.

Henadad

A Levite (Ezra 3:9, Nehemiah 3:18 10:9).

Henna

See Camphire.

Hepher

1. Son of Gllead the Manassite, and father of Zelophehad, Numbers 26:32 27:1. Joshua 17:2 f. (P). Patronymic, Hepherites (Numbers 26:32). 2. One of the tribe of Judah (1 Chronicles 4:6). 3. A Mecherathite, one of David’s heroes (1 Chronicles 11). 4. A Canaanite royal city, named immediately before Aphek (Joshua 12:17). The site is uncertain. The land of Hepher is mentioned in 1 Kings 4 along with Socoh.

Hefhzi-bah

(‘she in whom is my delight’). 1. The mother of Manasseh, king of Judah (2 Kings 21:1). 2. Symbolic name of the Zion of Messianic times (Isaiah 62:4).

Herald

The word occurs only in Daniel 3:4 as tr. of Aram, kardz (probably = Gr. Keryx). The herald is the mouthpiece of the king’s commands (cf. Genesis 41:43, Esther 6:9). It is found also in RVm of 1 Timothy 2:7. 2 Timothy 1:11. 2 Peter 2:5. of St. Paul and Noah as heralds of God. The cognate Gr. verb and noun are regularly used in NT of ‘preaching.’ ‘Crier’ occurs in Sirach 20:15. There is no instance in the Bible of the employment of ‘heralds’ in war.

C. W. Emmet.

Herb

(1) yarag, yereq, twice tr. ‘green thing’ (Ex 1015, Isaiah 15:6) gan ySrOq, ‘garden of herbs,’ Deuteronomy 11:10. 1 Kings 21:2. (2) ‘gse6, herbage in general, Genesis 1:11 (cf. Arab.’ ushb). See Grass. (3) deshe’ is six times tr. ‘herb’ (Deuteronomy 32:2. 2 Kings 19. Job 38:27, pg 37:2. jg 37 66). (4) ‘SrBth, 2 Kings 4:39’ herbs.’ This is explained to be the plant colewort, but may have been any eatable herbs that survived the drought. The expressions ‘dew of herbs’ (Isaiah 26:19 AV) and ‘upon herbs’ (Isaiah 18:4 aV) are obscure. In the NT we have the Gr. terms Jiotanl (Hebrews 6:7 ‘grass’) and lachanon=yereq (Matthew 13:32).

See also Bitter Herbs. E. W. G. Masterman.

Hercules

Hercules is mentioned by this name only in 2 Mac 419. 20. where Jason, the head of the Hellenizing party in Jerus. (B.C. 174), sent 300 silver drachmas (about £12, 10s.) to Tyre as an offering in honour of Hercules, the tutelary deity of that city. Hercules was worshipped at Tyre from very early times, and his temple in that place was, according to Herod, ii. 44, as old as the city itself, 2300 years before his own time. As a personification of the sun he afforded an example of the nature-worship so common among the Phoen., Egyp., and other nations of antiquity.

Herd

See Cattle, Ox, Sheep.

Hereafter

In Matthew 26:64 ‘Hereafter shall ye see the Son of Man sitting on the right hand of power, and coming in the clouds of heaven,’ the meaning of ‘hereafter’ is ‘from this time’ (RV ‘henceforth’). So Mark 11:14. Luke 22:69. John 14:30. Elsewhere the meaning is ‘at some time in the future,’ as John 13:7 ‘What I do thou knowest not now; but thou shalt know hereafter.’

HEREDITY, which may be defined as ‘the hereditary transmission of qualities, or even acquirements,’ so ;far as it is a scientific theory, is not anticipated in Holy Scripture. That men are ‘made of one’ (Acts 17:26 RV) is a fact of experience, which, in common with all literature, the Bible assumes. The unsophisticated are content to argue from like to like, that is, by analogy. But the modem doctrine of heredity, rooted as it is in the science of biology, involves the recognition of a principle or law according to which characters are transmitted from parents to offspring. Of this there is no trace in the Bible. Theology is therefore not directly interested in the differences between Weismaun and the older exponents of Evolution.

1. In the OT, which is the basis of the doctrine of the NT, there is no dogmatic purpose, and therefore no attempt to account for the fact that ‘all flesh’ has ‘corrupted his way upon the earth’ (Genesis 6:12), and that ‘there is none that doeth good’ (Psalms 14:1). A perfectly consistent point of view is not to be expected. Not a philosophical people, the Hebrews start from the obvious fact of the unity of the race in the possession of common flesh and blood (Job 14:1 15:14). the son being begotten after the image of the father (Genesis 5:3; of. Hebrews 2:14). This is more especially emphasized in the unity of the race of Abraham, that ‘Israel after the flesh’ (1 Corinthians 10:18). whose were the fathers and the promises (Romans 9). But the Bible never commits itself to a theory of the generation or procreation of the spirit, which is apparently given by God to each individual (Genesis 2:7 7:22, Job 33:4), constitutes the personality (‘life’ 2 Samuel 1:9, ‘soul’ Numbers 5:6). and is withdrawn at death (Ecclesiastes 12:7). This is the source of Ezekiel’s emphasis on individual responsibility (18), a criticism of the proverb concerning sour grapes (v. 2). which was made to rest on an admitted principle of the Mosaic covenant, the visitation upon the children of the fathers’ sins (Exodus 20:5). This principle involves corporate guilt; which, though sometimes reduced to a pardonable weakness inseparable from flesh (Psalms 78:39 103:14, Job 10:9), and therefore suggestive of heredity, yet, as involving Divine wrath and punishment, cannot be regarded as a palliation of transgression (Exodus 34:7, Psalms 7:11, Romans 1:18). Sin in the OT is disobedience, a breach of personal relations, needing from God forgiveness (Exodus 34:6, 7, Isaiah 43:25) and cannot therefore be explained on the principle of hereditary transmission. Moreover, the unity of Israel is as much one of external status as of physical nature, of the inheritance of the firstborn no less than of community in flesh and blood (Exodus 4:22; cf. Genesis 25:23 27:35). Similarly Adam is represented as degraded to a lower status by his sin, as cast out of the garden and begetting children in banishment from God’s presence.

2. Such are the materials from which NT theology works out its doctrine of original sin, not a transmitted tendency or bias towards evil, but a submission to the power of the devil which may be predicated of the whole race. [See art. Sin.] J. G. Simpson.

Heres

1. A mountain from which the Danites failed to expel the Amorites (Judges 1:34 f.). It is probably connected with Beth-shemesh (1 Kings 4:9, 2 Chronicles 28:18) or Ir-shemesh (Joshua 19:41), on the boundary between Judah and Dan. 2. In Judges 8:13 (RV) ‘the ascent of Heres’ is mentioned as the spot from which Gideon returned after the defeat of Zebah and Zalmunna. Both the topography and the text of the narrative are doubtful. See also Ib-ha-hgres, Timnath-hehes, Timnath-

Heresh

A Levite (1 Chronicles 9:15).

Heresy

The word ‘heresy’ (Gr. hairesis) is never used in the NT in the technical sense in which we find it by the first quarter of the 2nd cent., as a doctrinal departure from the true faith of the Church, implying a separation from its communion. The usual NT meaning of hairesis is simply a party, school, or sect; and sect is the word by which it is most frequently rendered. In Acts this is the invariable use. Thus it is apphed to the parties of the Pharisees and Sadducees (5" 15’ 26»), precisely as in Jos. (Ant. xiii. v. 9). Similarly it is used of the followers of Christ, though not by themselves (24S. H 28«). In 24" St. Paul substitutes ‘the Way’ for his accusers’ term ‘a sect.’ The reason may partly have been that in his own usage hairesis, while still bearing the general sense of ‘party,’ had come to convey a reproach as applied to Christians.

There was nothing that distressed St. Paul more than the presence of strife and party-feehng among his converts. The unity of the Church as the body of Christ was one of his ruling ideas (1 Corinthians 12:12 ff.; Romans 12:5, Ephesians 1:22 f. S^-, Colossians 1:18, 24 2:19) and the existence of factions, as fatal to the sense of unity, was strongly deprecated and condemned (Galatians 5:20, 1 Corinthians 11:19; cf. ‘heretic,’ Tit 3:10). ‘Heresy’ was division or schism (1 Corinthians 11:18, 19 shows that ‘heresy’ and ‘division’ [Gr. schisma] were practically synonymous); and ‘schism’ was a rending or cleaving of the body of Christ (.12?^- 2’). It was not doctrinal aberration from the truth, however, but practical breaches of the law of brotherly love that the Apostle condemned under the name of ‘heresy’ (see esp., as illustrating this, 1 Corinthians 11:19 ff.).

Outside of Acts and the Pauline Epp., hairesis is used in the NT only in 2 Peter 2:1. In this, probably the latest of the NT writings, we see a marked advance towards the subsequent ecclesiastical meaning of the word. The ‘damnable (RV’ destructive ‘) heresies’ here spoken of spring not merely from a selfish and factious spirit, but from false teaching. As yet, however, there seems to be no thought of the existence of heretical bodies outside of the general Christian communion. The heresies are false teachings (v. 1) leading to ‘licentious doings’ (v. 2), but they are ‘brought in,’ says the writer, ‘among you." J., c. Lambert.

Hereth

A forest which was one of the hidingplaces of David (1 Samuel 22:5). The reference may be to the wooded mountain E. of Adullam, where the village of Kharas now stands.

Hermas

A Christian at Rome, saluted in Romans 16:14. The name is a common one, especially among slaves. Origen identifies this Hermas with the celebrated author of The Shepherd, a book considered by many in the 2nd cent, to be on a level with Scripture. For the disputed date of the book, which professes to record visions seen in the episcopate of Clement (c. a.d. 90-100), but which is said in the Muratorian Fragment (c. 180-2007) to have been written in the episcopate of Pius (not before a.d. 139), see Salmon’s Introd. to the NT, Lect. xxvi. But Origen’s identification is very improbable, the dates being scarcely compatible, and the name so common.

A. J. Maclean.

Hermes

One of those greeted in Romans 16:14, possibly a slave in Caesar’s household. Hermes was a very common slave’s name (Lightfoot, Philipp. p. 176).

A. J. Maclean.

Hermogenes

A companion of St. Paul, who, vrith Pbygelus and ‘all that are in Asia,’ deserted him (2 Timothy 1:15). The defection may probably have occurred at a time long past when St. Paul wrote (note RV). The AV refers to a defection at Rome, perhaps of natives of the province Asia in the city; but the aorist is against this. A. J. Maclean.

Hermon

The highest mountain in Syria (9050 ft. high), a spur of the Anti-Lebanon. Its name means ‘apart’ or ‘sanctuary,’ and refers to its ancient sanctity (cf. Psalms 89:12; and the name ‘mount Baal-hermon,’ Jg 3:3). Meagre traces of ruins remain on its summit, probably connected, at least partly, with a former high place. According to Deuteronomy 3:9, it was called Sirion by the Sidonians and Senir (wh. see) by the Amorites. It may have been the scene of the Transfiguration (Mark 9:2). The summit has three peaks, that on the S.E. being the highest. Snow lies on the top throughout the year, except in the autumn of some years; but usually there is a certain amount in the ravines. The top is bare above the snow-line; below it is richly wooded and covered with vineyards. The Syrian bear can sometimes be seen here; seldom, if ever, anywhere else. The modern name is Jebel esh-Sheikh, ‘the Mountain of the Chief.’

R. A. S. Macalister.

Hermonites

A mistaken tr. in Psalms 42:6 AV, corrected in RV to Hermons, and referring to the three peaks of the summit of Hermon (wh. see).

Herod

The main interest attaching to the Herods is not concerned vrith their character as individual rulers. They acquire dignity when they are viewed as parts of a supremely dramatic situation in universal history. The fundamental elements in the situation are two. First, the course of world-power in antiquity, and the relation between it and the political principle in the constitution of the Chosen People. Second, the religious genius of Judaism, and its relation to the political elements in the experience of the Jews.

A glance at the map shows that Palestine is an organic part of the Mediterranean world. When, under the successors of Alexander, the centre of political gravity shifted from Persia to the shores of the Great Sea, the door was finally closed against the possibihty of political autonomy in the Holy Land. The kingdom of the Seleucids had a much larger stake in the internal affairs of the country than the Persian Empire thought of claiming. For one thing, the pohtical genius of the Greelcs demanded a more closely knit State than the Persian. For another, the fact that Palestine was the frontier towards Egypt made its political assimilation to Northern Syria a military necessity. The Maccabaeau War gave rise to the second Jewish State. But it was short-lived. Only during the disintegration of the house of Seleucus could it breathe freely. The moment Rome stretched out her hands to Syria its Imell was rung.

The Hasmonasan house was obliged to face a hopeless foreign situation. World-politics made a career impossible. In addition, it had to face an irreconcilable element in the constitution of Judaism. The rise of the Pharisees and the development of the Essenes plainly showed that the fortune of the Jews was not to be made in the political field. In truth, Judaism was vexed by an insoluble contradiction. The soul of this people longed for universal dominion. But efficient political methods for the attainment of dominion were disabled by their religion. The Hasmonaean house was caught between the upper and the nether millstone.

The foundations of the Herodian house were laid by Antipater, an Idumsean (Jos. Ant. xiv. i. 3). Apparently the Idumasans, converted by the sword, were never Jewish to the core. More than once the Pharisees flung the reproach ‘half-Jew’ in the teeth of Herod. Antipater was a man of undistinguished family, and fought his way up by strength and cunning. The decay of the Hasmonffian house favoured his career. Palestine needed the strong hand. The power of Syria and the power of Egypt were gone. Rome was passing through the decay of the Senatorial rfigime. The Empire had not appeared to gather up the loose ends of provincial government. Pompey’s capture of Jerusalem had shattered what little was left of Hasmonaean prestige. Yet Rome was not ready to assume direct control of Palestine.

1. Herod the Great. — Antipater’s son, Herod, had shown himself before his father’s death both masterful and merciless. His courage was high, his understanding capable of large conceptions, and his will able to adhere persistently to a distant end of action. His temperament was one of headlong passion; and when, in the later period of his life, the power and suspiciousness of the tyrant had sapped the real magnanimity of his nature, it converted him into a butcher, exercising his trade upon his own household as well as upon his opponents. His marriage with Mariamme, the heiress of the Hasmonaean house, and his league with Rome, indicate the story of his life. His marriage was one both of love and of policy. His league was a matter of clear insight into the situation. He was once driven out of Palestine by an alliance between the Hasmonaean house and the Parthians (Jos. Ant. xiv. xiii. 9, 10). But, backed by Rome, he returned with irresistible force. Mutual interest made the alliance close. Herod served the Empire well. And Augustus and his successors showed their appreciation. They stood by Herod and his descendants even when the task was not wholly pleasing.

Josephus calls Herod a man of extraordinary fortune. He was rather a man of extraordinary force and political discernment. He owed his good fortune largely to himself, manifesting powers which might have made him, in a less difficult field, fully deserving of his title ‘the Great.’ He enjoyed the life-long favour of Augustus and his minister Agrippa. He made life and property in Palestine safe from every foe but his own tyranny. And though he showed himself a brutal murderer of Mariamme and his own children, not to speak of the massacre of the Innocents (Matthew 2), it must be remembered that Jerusalem was a hot-bed of intrigue. This does not justify him, but it explains his apparently insensate blood-lust.

His sympathy with Hellenism was a matter of honest conviction. The Empire was slowly closing in on Palestine. An independent Jewish power was impossible. The man who ruled the country was bound to work in the interest of Rome. Hellenism in the Holy Land was the political order of the day. So Herod built cities and gave them imperial names. He built amphitheatres, patronized the Greek games and, so far as his temperament and opportunities permitted, Greek literature. At the same time, while he was but ‘half- Jew,’ he sincerely desired to do large things for Judaism. He was a stout defender of the rights of the Jews in the Diaspora. He rebuilt the Temple with great splendour. But his supreme gift to the Jews, a gift which they were not capable of appreciating, was a native Palestinian power, which, whatever its methods, was by profession Jewish. When he died, after a long reign (B.C. 37 to A.D. 4), and the Jews petitioned the Emperor for direct Roman rulg (Jos. Ant. xvii. ii. 2), they showed their incompetence to read the signs of the times. Roman rule was a very different thing from Persian rule. When it came, the iron entered into the soul of Judaism.

2. Archelaus. — After some delay Herod’s will was carried out. His sons were set up in power, — Archelaus over Judaea and Idumsea, Antipas over Galilee and Perasa, Philip over Batansea, Trachonitis, and Auranitis. To Archelaus had fallen the greatest prize, and at the same time the hardest task. Having maintained himself till the year 6 of our era, his misgovernment and weakness, co-operating with the impossible elements in Judaism, caused his downfall and exile. The Jews now had their own wish. Judaea came under direct Roman rule. A tax was levied. Judas of Gamala rose in rebellion. He was easily put down. But the significance of his little rebellion was immense. For now was born what Josephus calls ‘the fourth philosophical sect’ amongst the Jews (,Ant. xvri. i. 6). The Zealots dragged into the light the self-contradiction of Judaism. The Jews could not build a State themselves. Their principles made it impossible for them to keep the peace with their heathen’over-lord. Conflict was inevitable.

3. Herod Antipas, called ‘the tetrarch’ (Matthew 14:1. 3, Acts 13:1), had better fortune. Our Lord described him as a ‘fox’ (Luke 13). The name gives the clue to his nature. He was a man of craft rather than strength. But cunning served him well, and he kept his seat until the year 39. The corroding immorality of his race shows itself in his marriage with Herodias, his brother’s wife, and the wanton offence thereby given to Jewish sensibilities. (See John the Baptist.) His lust proved his undoing. Herodias, an ambitious woman, spurred him out of his caution. In rivalry with Herod Agrippa, he asked of Caligula the royal title. This exciting suspicion, his doings were looked into and he was banished.

4. Philip (Luke 3:1) seems to have been the best among the sons of Herod. And it was his good fortune to rule over an outlying country where the questions always rife in Jerusalem were not pressed. His character and his good fortune together gave him a long and peaceful rule (.d. A.D. 34).

5. Another Philip (son of Herod the Great and Mariamme) is mentioned in Matthew 14 Mark 6:17 as the first husband of Herodias.

6. In Herod Agrippa I. the Herodian house seemed at one time to have reached the highwater-mark of power. He had served a long apprenticeship in the Imperial Court, where immorality, adaptability, and flattery were the price of position. That he was not altogether unmanned is proved by his dissuading Caligula from his insane proposal to set up a statue of himself in the Temple; for, in setting himself against the tyrant’s whim, he staked life and fortune (Jos. Ant. XVIII. viii.). In high favour with Caligula’s successor, he came to Jerusalem in the year 39, and was welcomed

GENEALOGICAL TABLE OF THE FAMILY OF HEROD.

Antipater,

governor or

Idumsea.

Antipater, procurator of Judsea, d. B.C. 33; m. Cypres, an Arabian.

Herodians

The name of a political party among the Jews, which derived its name from the support it gave to the dynasty of Herod. Perhaps they hoped for the restoration of the national kingdom under one of the sons of Herod. The Herodians appear in the Gospels on two occasions (Mark 3:6. Matthew 22:16 Mark 12:13) as making common cause with the Pharisees against Jesus.

Herodias

See Herod, No. 3, and John the Baptist.

Herodion

A Christian mentioned in Romans 16:11. apparently a Jew, and perhaps a freedman of the Herods.