Greece, Religion In Ancient (continued) – Grudge

Greece, Religion In Ancient (continued)

Yet during these three centuries Christianity had been waging a life-and-death struggle with the old religion. It is indeed impossible to believe that converts to Christianity should intentionally copy the forms of a worship which they had often at much cost to themselves rejected as false. The process must have been slow and quite unconscious. As the language of heathen philosophy was used in forming a Christian theology, so the conceptions and practices which had developed in Greek religion found their way into the developing Christian ritual. Much of this ritual which had no essential place in Christianity was later rejected; some still remains, the contribution of the religious life of Greece to the forms of worship in our world religion.

LITERATURE.

O. Gruppe, "Griechische Mythologie und Religionsgeschichte" in I. von Muller's Handbuch, 1897-1906; Preller-Robert, Griechische Mythologie, I, 1894; W. H. Roscher, Ausfuhrliches Lexikon der griechischen und romishen Mythologie, 1884-; L. R. Farnell, The Cults of the Greek States, 1896-1910; L. Campbell, Religion in Greek Literature, 1898; J. Adam, The Religious Teachers of Greece, 1908; P. Stengel, "Die griechischen Kultusaltertumer," in I. von Muller's Handbuch, 2nd edition, 1898; B.I. Wheeler, Dionysus and Immortality, 1899; E. Hatch, Greek Ideas and Usages, Their Influence upon the Christian Church, 1890; G. Anrich, Das antike Mysterienwesen in seinem Einfluss auf das Christentum, 1894; E. E. G., The Makers of Hellas: A Critical Inquiry into the Philosophy and Religion of Ancient Greece, 1903; E. Caird, Evolution of Theology in Greek Philosophers, 1904; E.A. Gardner, Religion and Art in Ancient Greece, 1910; A. Fairbanks, Handbook of Greek Religion, 1910.

Arthur Fairbanks

Greece, Sons Of

"I will stir up thy sons, O Zion, against thy sons, O Greece, and will make thee as the sword of a mighty man" (Zechariah 9:13). The passage doubtless refers to the captive Hebrews who are held by the Greeks. The exhortation is to insurrection against the Greeks. Although bearing a striking similarity to the passage in Joel 3:6, there is evidently no connection between the two. In the first, there was conflict between the nations; in the second, simply a reflection upon Tyre and Sidon for having sold into Greece certain Jewish captives. From a Jewish standpoint the Maccabean wars were really between Jews and Greeks.

See JAVAN; ASMONEANS.

Greece; Graecia

gres, gre'-sha;

1. Name:

In the earliest times there was no single name universally and exclusively in use either of the people or of the land of Greece. In Homer, three appellations, (Achaioi), (Danaoi), (Argeioi), were with no apparent discrimination applied to all the Greeks. By the Orientals they were called Ionians. See JAVAN. The name (Hellenes), which in historical times came into general use as a collective appellation, was applied in Homer to a small tribe in Thessaly. But the corresponding name (Hellas) was not primarily a geographical term, but designated the abode of the Hellenes wherever they had their own states or cities. In the 4th century BC many felt, as did Isocrates, that even "Hellene" stood not so much for a distinction in race, as for preeminence of culture, in contrast to the despised "Barbarian." Hence, there was much dispute as touching certain peoples, as, e.g. the Epirotes, Macedonians, and even the Thessalians, whether they should be accounted Hellenes and as included in Hellas. The word (Graikoi), Latin Graeci) occurs in Aristotle, who says that it was an older name for those who were later called Hellenes. The meaning and truth of this statement are alike in doubt; but he probably refers only to the tribe inhabiting the vicinity of Dodona, in Epirus. At any rate, Graeci and Graecia owed their introduction practically to the Romans after their contact with the Greeks in the war with Pyrrhus, and in consequence they included (what "Hellenes" and "Hellas" did not) Epirus and Macedonia.

2. Location and Area:

"Hellas," as the land of the Hellenes, is used in a broad sense to include not only Greece proper, but also the islands of the Ionian and Aegean seas, the seaboard of the Hellespont, of the Pontus, and of Asia Minor, the flourishing colonial regions of Magna Grecia and Sicily, Crete, and occasionally Cyprus, Cyrene, and the scattered colonies dotting the shore of the Mediterranean, almost to the Pillars of Hercules. "Grecia," however, was used in a more restricted sense as applying to "Continuous" (or continental) Greece, which forms the southern extremity of the Balkan peninsula. While the Romans included Macedonia and Epirus, it will be well for us to limit Greece to the territory lying roughly below 40 degrees, and extending almost to 36 degrees North latitude, and ranging between 17 degrees and 23 degrees East longitude. If, as is proper, we include the immediately adjacent islands, its greatest length, from Mt. Olympus in the North to Cythera in the South, is about 280 miles; its greatest breadth, from Cephallenia in the West to Euboea in the East, is about 240 miles. The area, however, owing to the great irregularity of its contour, is far less than one might expect, amounting to about 30,000 square miles. With an area, therefore, considerably less than that of Portugal, Greece has a coastline exceeding in length that of Spain and Portugal combined. In Greece the ratio of coastline to area is 1:3 1/4, whereas that of the Iberian peninsula is 1:25.

3. Mountain Structure:

The northern boundary of Greece is formed by an irregular series of mountain chains, beginning on the West with the Acroceraunian range and ending in Mt. Olympus (now, Elymbos, 9,790 ft.) on the East. Intersecting this line, the lofty Pindus range, forming the backbone of Northern Greece, extends southward to Mt. Tymphrestus (now, Velouchi, 7,610 ft.) in Aetolia, at which point spurs radiate through Central Greece. The highest peaks are Mt. Corax (now, Vardusia, 8,180 ft.) in Aetolia, Mt. Oeta (7,060 ft.), Parnassus (now, Lyakoura, 8,070 ft.), Helicon (now, Paleo Vouno, 5,740 ft.), Cithaeron (now, Elatias, 4,630 ft.), lying on the boundary between Boeotia and Attica, Mt. Geranea (now, Makri Plaghi, 4,500 ft.), North of the Isthmus, and, in Attica, Parnes (now, Ozea, 4,640 ft.), Pentelicon (now, Mendeli, 3,640 ft.) and Hymettus (now Trelovouni, 3,370 ft.). Along the eastern coast extends a broken range of mountains, the highest peaks of which are Ossa (now, Kissavos, 6,400 ft.), Pelion (now, Plessidi, 5,310 ft.); and, in Euboea, which virtually belongs to this range, Dirphys (now, Delphi, 5,730 ft.) and Ocha (now, Elias, 4,610 ft.). Southern Greece, or the Peloponnesus, is united to Central Greece only by a narrow isthmus (now cut by a canal 4 miles long), with a minimum altitude of about 250 ft. In the northern portion, a confused mass of mountains rises to great heights in Cyllene (now, Ziria, 7,790 ft.), Erymanthus (now, Olonos, 7,300 ft), Maenalus (now, Apano Chrepa, 6,500 ft.), all in Arcadia, Panachaicus (now, Voidia, 6,320 ft.), in Achaia; and, running southward through Laconia, the two important ranges called Taygetus (now, Pentedaktylo, 7,900 ft.) and Parnon (now, Malevo, 6,430 ft.). Minor ranges jut seaward in Argolis, Laconia and Messenia.

4. Rivers and Lakes:

The rainfall in Greece is not abundant and is confined largely to late autumn and winter. Whether the present rainfall differs much in amount from that of antiquity is a matter in dispute, although it seems reasonable to assume that the progressive denudation of the mountains since the 5th century AD has entailed a corresponding loss in humidity. Even in antiquity, however, the rivers of Greece were much like the arroyos of the Southwest portion of the U.S.A., which are in winter raging mountain torrents, and in summer dry channels. Owing to the proximity of the sea to all points in Greece, the rivers are short, and the scarcity of springs makes them dependent upon the direct and immediate rainfall. Among the more considerable rivers may be enumerated, in Northern Greece, the Peneius, with its tributaries, in Thessaly; Central Greece, the Achelous and the Evenus, in Aetolia; the Spercheius, flowing between Oeta and Othrys into the Maliac Gulf; the storied, but actually insignificant, Ilyssus and Cephissus, of the Attic plain; in Southern Greece, the Alpheius, rising in Arcadia and flowing westward through Elis, and the Eurotas, which drains Laconia. Eastern Greece consists of a series of somewhat considerable basins, which become lakes in winter and are pestilent marshes in summer, except where Nature or man has afforded an outlet. The former is the case with the Peneius, which has cut a channel through the celebrated Vale of Tempe. Lake Copais, in Boeotia, affords an example of man's activity. The Minyae, in prehistoric times, are credited with enlarging the natural outlets, and so draining the basin for a time; in recent times the same undertaking has again been brought to a successful issue. Similar basins occur at Lake Boebeis, in Thessaly, and at Lake Stymphalus, in Arcadia, besides others of less importance. Western Greece has relatively few such basins, as at Lake Pambotis, in Epirus, and at Lake Trichonis, in Aetolia. In many cases, where there is no surface outlet to these basins, subterranean channels (called by the Greeks Katavothrae) are formed in the calcareous rock, through which the waters are drained and occasionally again brought to the surface at a lower level.

5. Climate:

The climate of Greece was probably much the same in ancient times as it is today, except that it may have been more salubrious when the land was more thickly populated and better cultivated. Herodotus says that of all countries, Greece possessed the most happily tempered seasons; and Hippocrates and Aristotle commend it for the absence of extremes of heat and cold, as favorable for intelligence and energy. But owing to the inequalities of its surface, to the height of its mountains and the depth of its valleys, the climate varies greatly in different districts. In the highlands of the interior the winter is often cold and severe, the snow lying on the ground until late in the spring, while in the lowlands near the sea there is rarely any severe weather, and snow is almost unknown. The following data for Athens may be taken as a basis for comparison: humidity 41 per cent, rainfall 13,1 inches, distributed over 100 days; mean temperature, Jan. 48,2 degrees F., July 80,6 degrees F. Greece lies open to the northern winds which, during certain seasons, prevail and give a bracing quality to the air not always present in places of the same latitude.

6. Geology:

The western half of Greece, in which the mountain ranges run generally from North to South, consists of a formation of grayish and yellowish-white compact limestone, while the eastern half--Macedonia, Thessaly, Euboea, Cyllene, and the mountains from Artemision to Cape Malea and Taygetus--together with the greater part of Attica and of the Cyclades, consists of mica-schist and crystalline-granular limestone (marble) Tertiary formations occur in narrow strips on the North and Northwest slopes of the ranges in the Peloponnesus and in the valley of the Eurotas, in Boeotia and Euboea. Volcanic action is evidenced both in the parallel elevations of similar or contemporary formation, and in the earthquakes frequent in all ages, especially in Southern and Central Greece, and in the islands of the Aegean. Perennially active volcanoes are nowhere found in Greece, but new formations due to volcanic action are most clearly seen on the island of Them among the Cyclades, where they have occurred within the last half-century. The solfatara between Megara and Corinth, and the abundant hot springs at widely scattered points in Greece also bear witness to the volcanic character of the region. Many an ancient site, venerated for its sanctity in antiquity, like those of Delphi and Olympia, in their ruined temples offer mute testimony to the violence of the earthquakes; and history records repeated instances of cities engulfed by tidal waves of appalling height.

7. Topography:

Mention has already been made of the sinuous coastline of Greece, and the land has been spoken of as consisting of three divisions. Northern Greece, to which Epirus and Thessaly belong, is marked off from Central Greece by the deep indentations of the Ambracian Gulf on the West and the Maliac Gulf on the East. The Pegasean Gulf, virtually continued by Lake Boebeis, reaches far into Thessaly, and divides it from Magnesia, which lies to the eastward. The land of the Dolopians really belongs to Northern Greece. Central Greece consists of Acarnania and Aetolia on the West, and of Phocis, Boeotia and Attica (with the adjacent island of Euboea) on the East, separated by a group of lesser states, Aenis, Oetaea, Doris, Locris and Phocis. Southern Greece is separated from Central Greece by the Corinthian and Saronic Gulfs, which almost meet at the Isthmus of Corinth, and are now, after repeated efforts, dating from the time of Julius Caesar, united by a sea-level canal. Megaris, which, by its position, belongs to Central Greece, is here, in accordance with its political affinities and predilections, classed with Corinth, the keeper of the isthmus, as belonging to Southern Greece. Facing the Corinthian Gulf, Achaia forms the northern division of the Peloponnesus, touching Elis, Arcadia and Argolis, which belt the peninsula in this order from West to East Arcadia is the only political division which does not have access to the sea, occupying as it does the great central plateau intersected by lesser ranges of varying height. The southernmost divisions, Messenia and Laconia, are deeply indented by the Messeniac and Laconic Gulfs, and Laconia is separated from the peninsula of Argolis by the Argolic Gulf, all of which head somewhat West of North of the subjacent islands, which a reasonable view must include in the boundaries of Greece, Euboea has already been mentioned; but we should add the group of great islands lying in the Ionian Sea, namely, Corcyra (now, Corfu), Leukas, Ithaca, Cephallenia (now, Cephalonia), Zacynthus (now, Zante), and Cythera (now, Cerigo), at the mouth of the Laconic Gulf, as well as Salamis and Aegina in the Saronic Gulf.

Greece was never, in ancient times, a united state, but consisted of a large number of separate states. These were essentially of two types, (a) city-states, in which a city dominated the adjacent territory whose free population constituted its citizenship, or (b) confederacies, in which neighboring cities or districts combined into political organizations which we may call federal states. These matters cannot, however, be discussed except in connection with the history of Greece, for which the reader must consult the standard works. It may be advisable here, however, to name the principal cities of Greece. Northern Greece had no great cities which developed as commercial centers. Aegina was the first to attain to special importance, then Corinth and Athens; Chalcis and Eretria, in Euboea, were for a time rich and prosperous, and Megara, in Megarid, and Argos, in Argolis, became formidable rivals of Athens. Sparta, though never a commercial center, early won and long maintained the hegemony of Greece, for a while disputed by Athens, in virtue of her power as the home of the militant Dorian aristocracy, which was disastrously defeated by the Beotians under Epaminondas, when Thebes, for a time, assumed great importance. Megalopolis, in Arcadia, enjoyed a brief prominence at the time of the Achean League, and Corcyra flourished in the 5th and 4th centuries BC. We should also not fail to mention three great centers of Greek religion: Olympia, in Elis, as the chief sanctuary of Zeus; Delphi, in Phocis, as the oracular seat of Apollo; and Eleusis, in Attica, as the pilgrim-shrine to which all Greeks resorted who would be initiated in the mysteries of Demeter and Cora. Argos also possessed a far-famed shrine of Hera, and Thermopile and Calauria were the centers at which met the councils of influential amphictyonies. Epidaurus was famous for her sanctuary of Asclepius. Delos, a little island in mid-Aegean, celebrated as a sanctuary of Apollo and as the meeting-place of a most influential amphictyony, falls without the limits of Greece proper; but Dodona, in Southern Epirus, should be mentioned as the most ancient and venerable abode of the oracle of Zeus. The Greeks, incorrigibly particularistic in politics, because of the almost insuperable barriers erected by Nature between neighboring peoples in the lofty mountain ranges, were in a measure united by their religion which, like the sea, another element making for intercourse and union, touched them at nearly every point.

For Greece in the Old Testament, see JAVAN. In the New Testament "Greece" occurs but once--Acts 20:2--where it is distinguished from Macedonia.

William Arthur Heidel

Greek Language

See LANGUAGE OF THE NEW TESTAMENT.

Greek Versions

See SEPTUAGINT; VERSIONS.

Greeks

See GRECIANS.

Green; Greenish

gren.

See COLOR.

Greeting

gret'-ing (sha'-al; chairo, aspasmos, aspazomai):

(1) Sha'-al means "to ask," "to inquire of anyone respecting welfare," hence, "to greet." In the Old Testament the word "greet" occurs only once in the King James Version or the Revised Version (British and American), namely, in 1 Samuel 25:5, "Go to Nabal, and greet him in my name." But it is implied in other places where shalom ("well," "prosperity," "peace"), the common Hebrew greeting, is used; e.g. in Genesis 37:4, it is said of Joseph that "his brethren could not speak peaceably unto him," i.e. could not give him the common friendly greeting of "Peace!" "Peace be to thee!" So, in Genesis 43:27, the Revised Version (British and American) "He asked them of their welfare" (King James Version margin "peace"); Exodus 18:7, "They asked each other of their welfare"(King James Version, margin "peace"); 2 Samuel 11:7, "how Joab did, and how the people did" (the Revised Version (British and American) "fared," the King James Version margin "of the peace of"); Joab said to Amasa (2 Samuel 20:9), the Revised Version (British and American) "Is it well with thee, my brother?" (Hebrew "Art thou in peace, my brother?"); Boaz greeted his reapers with "Yahweh be with you," and they answered, "Yahweh bless thee" (Ruth 2:4; compare Psalms 129:8, "The blessing of Yahweh be upon you; we bless you in the name of Yahweh"). For the king, we have, the King James Version and the English Revised Version God save the king (m "Let the king live," the American Standard Revised Version "(Long) live the king") (1 Samuel 10:24, etc.); "Let my lord king David live for ever" (1 Kings 1:31; see also Nehemiah 2:3; Daniel 2:4, etc.). In Ecclesiasticus 6:5 it is said "a fair-speaking tongue will increase kind greetings," the Revised Version (British and American) "multiply courtesies" (euprosegora).

(2) When Jesus sent forth His disciples to proclaim the kingdom, they were to "salute" the house they came to (Matthew 10:12), saying (Luke 10:5), "Peace (eirene) be to this house!"; if it was not worthy, the blessing should return to themselves. After His resurrection He greeted His disciples saying, "Peace be unto you" (Luke 24:36; John 20:19,John 20:21,John 20:26); He left His "peace" with them as His parting blessing (John 14:27)--"not as the world giveth," in a formal way. A frequent form of greeting in the New Testament is chairo ("to rejoice," imperative and infinitive, chaire, chairete, "Joy to thee," "Joy to you," translated "Hail!" and "All hail!" Matthew 26:49; Matthew 27:29; Matthew 28:9; Mark 15:18; Luke 1:28; John 19:3), "Rejoice!" (Philippians 3:1; the English Revised Version, margin "farewell"). Another word for greeting is aspasmos, "greetings in the markets" (the King James Version Matthew 23:7; Mark 12:38, "salutations"; Luke 11:43, "greetings," Luke 20:46; also Luke 1:29,Luke 1:41,Luke 1:44; 1 Corinthians 16:21; Colossians 4:18; 2 Thessalonians 3:17; in all these places the Revised Version (British and American) has "salutation").

(3) Of epistolary greetings we have examples in Ezra 4:17, "Peace" (shelam), etc.; 5:7; Daniel 4:1; Daniel 6:25. These are frequent in the Apoc: 1 Esdras 6:7, "to King Darius greeting" (chairo); 8:9; 1 Macc 10:18, etc.; 2 Macc 1:10, "greeting, health," etc. We have the same form in Acts 15:23; Acts 23:26. In 3 John 1:14 it is, "Peace (be) unto thee. The friends salute thee." Paul opens most of his epistles with the special Christian greeting, "Grace to you and peace from God our Father and the Lord Jesus Christ" (Romans 1:7; 1 Corinthians 1:3, etc.). Also at the close, "The grace of the Lord Jesus Christ be with you" (1 Corinthians 16:23; 2 Corinthians 13:14, etc.). He directs greetings to be given to various persons, and sends greetings from those who are with him (Romans 16:5–23; 1 Corinthians 16:19; 2 Corinthians 13:13; Philippians 4:21; Colossians 4:10, etc.). In those cases the word is aspazomai, and the Revised Version (British and American) translates "salute," etc. (compare James 1:1; 1 Peter 1:2; 1 Peter 5:14; 2 Peter 1:2; 2 John 1:3,2 John 1:13; Jude 1:2).

See GODSPEED; KISS.

W. L. Walker

Greyhound

gra'-hound.

See DOG.

Grief; Grieve

gref, grev: There are some 20 Hebrew words translated in the King James Version by "grief," "grieve," "to be grieved," etc. Among the chief are chalah, choli, yaghon, ka`ac, atsabh. They differ, partly, in their physical origin, and partly, in the nature and cause of the feeling expressed. the Revised Version (British and American) in several instances gives effect to this.

(1) Chalah, choli express the sense of weakness, sickness, pain (e.g. Samson, in Judges 16:7,Revelation 16:3,Revelation 16:9, "Then shall I become weak (chalah), and be as another man"); Isaiah 17:11 the King James Version, "a heap in the day of grief"; Isaiah 53:3,Isaiah 53:1, "a man of sorrows, and acquainted with grief," "He hath borne our griefs" (choli), the Revised Version, margin Hebrew "sickness, sicknesses"; 53:10, "He hath put him to grief," the Revised Version, margin "made him sick" (chalah) (translated by Dillmann and others, "to crush him incurably"; compare Micah 6:13; Nahum 3:19); yaghon, perhaps from the pain and weariness of toil (Psalms 31:10), "For my life is spent with grief," the Revised Version (British and American) "sorrow"; "The Lord added grief to my sorrow," the Revised Version (British and American) "sorrow to my pain" (Jeremiah 45:3); ka`ac implies provocation, anger, irritation; thus Hannah said to Eli (the King James Version), "Out of the abundance of my complaint and my grief (the Revised Version (British and American) "provocation") have I spoken" (1 Samuel 1:16). Psalms 6:7; Psalms 31:9, "grief"; Proverbs 17:25, "A foolish son is a grief to his father" (i.e. source of provocation; the same word is rendered "wrath" in 12:16, the King James Version "a fool's wrath," the Revised Version (British and American) "vexation"; so also Proverbs 27:3); Job 6:2, "Oh that my grief were thoroughly weighed," the Revised Version (British and American) "Oh that my vexation were but weighed" (in 5:2 the King James Version the same word is translated "wrath," the Revised Version (British and American) "vexation"); ke'ebh, is "sorrow," "pain," properly "to hurt." It occurs in Job 2:13 "His grief (the Revised Version, margin "or pain") was very great"; also 16:6 the Revised Version (British and American), "grief"; makh'obh "sorrows," "pain," "suffering" (2 Chronicles 6:29, the Revised Version (British and American) "sorrow"; Psalms 69:26, the Revised Version, margin "or pain"; Isaiah 53:3, "a man of sorrows"; 53:4, "Surely he hath carried our sorrows"); marah and marar indicate "bitterness" (Genesis 26:35; Genesis 49:23; 1 Samuel 30:6; Ruth 1:13; Proverbs 14:10, "The heart knoweth its own bitterness, marah); puqah implies staggering, or stumbling, only in 1 Samuel 25:31, "This shall be no grief unto thee," the Revised Version, margin Hebrew "cause of staggering"; ra` (a common word for "evil") denotes an evil, a calamity, only once in the King James Version translated "grief," namely, of Jonah's gourd, "to deliver him from his grief," the Revised Version (British and American) "from his evil case" (Jonah 4:6); yara`, "to be evil," Deuteronomy 15:10, the Revised Version (British and American) "Thy heart shall not be grieved when thou givest unto him" (also 1 Samuel 1:8; Nehemiah 2:10; Nehemiah 13:8; several times translated "grievous"); charah, "to burn," "to be wroth" (e.g. Genesis 4:6, "Why art thou wroth?"), is translated "grieved" in Genesis 45:5, and 1 Samuel 15:11 the King James Version (the Revised Version (British and American) "Samuel was wroth"); the same word is often used of the kindling of anger; la'ah, "to be weary," "tired," "faint" (Proverbs 26:15), the King James Version "The slothful hideth his hand in his bosom, it grieveth him to bring it again to his mouth," the Revised Version (British and American) "wearieth"; also Job 4:2; atsabh, "to grieve," "to be vexed," occurs in Genesis 6:6; Genesis 34:7; Genesis 45:5, etc.; Psalms 78:40, "How oft did they .... grieve him in the desert." Of other words sometimes translated "grief" may be mentioned quT, "to weary of," "to loathe" (Psalms 95:10), "Forty long years was I grieved with that generation"; in 119:158; 139:21, the Revised Version, margin "loathe"; chamets, implying to be bitterly or violently moved, sour (often translated "leavened"), only in Psalms 73:21, the Revised Version (British and American) "For my soul was grieved," margin, Hebrew "was in a ferment."

(2) In the New Testament "grief," "grieve," etc., are infrequent. The commonest words are lupe (1 Peter 2:19), the Revised Version (British and American) "griefs," elsewhere translated "sorrow"; lupeo, "to grieve," "afflict" (Mark 10:22, the Revised Version (British and American) "sorrowful"; John 21:17 "Peter was grieved"; Romans 14:15; 2 Corinthians 2:4, the Revised Version (British and American) "made sorry"; 2:5, "caused sorrow"; Ephesians 4:30, "Grieve not the Holy Spirit of God"); diaponeomai, literally, "to labor through," "to grieve self" occurs twice (Acts 4:2; Acts 16:18 the Revised Version (British and American) "sore troubled"); stenazo, "to groan, or sigh," once only translated "grief" (Hebrews 13:17), the Revised Version, margin "groaning"; prosochthizo, "to be indignant," etc., twice (Hebrews 3:10,Hebrews 3:17, the Revised Version (British and American) "displeased"). The reference is to Psalms 95:10, where the Septuagint by this Greek word translates quT (see above).

The less frequency in the New Testament of words denoting "grief" is significant. Christ came "to comfort all that mourn--to give a garland for ashes, the oil of joy for mourning, the garment of praise for the spirit of heaviness." Christians, however, cannot but feel sorrow and be moved by grief, and it is to be noted that in both the Old Testament and New Testament, God Himself is said to be susceptible to grief.

W. L. Walker

Grievance

grev'-ans (`amal): Occurs only in the King James Version as a translation of Habakkuk 1:3, "Why dost thou show me iniquity, and cause me to behold grievance?" (the Revised Version (British and American) "look upon perverseness"); `amal is also translated "perverseness" by the King James Version and the Revised Version (British and American) in Numbers 23:21, "perverseness in Israel"; Isaiah 10:1, the King James Version "grievousness," the Revised Version (British and American) "perverseness." In Habakkuk 1:13, the King James Version translates the same word "iniquity" (margin "grievance"), "Thou art of purer eyes than to behold evil and canst not look on iniquity" (margin "grievance"), the Revised Version (British and American) "perverseness." The word means originally "toil," "labor" with sorrow, misery, etc., as the consequence, and is often so translated. It is the word in Isaiah 53:11, "He shall see of the travail of his soul, and shall be satisfied."

W. L. Walker

Grievous; Grievously; Greievousness

grev'-us; grev'-us-li; grev'-us-nes: In addition to several of the words mentioned under GRIEF (which see), we have kabhedh ("heavy") 8 t, e.g. Genesis 12:10, "The famine was grievous in the land," the Revised Version (British and American) "sore"; marats ("powerful"), "a grievous curse" (1 Kings 2:8); cur, "to turn aside" (Jeremiah 6:28), "grievous revolters"; qasheh, "to make sharp" (1 Kings 12:4; 2 Chronicles 10:4); tachalu'im (Jeremiah 16:4), "They shall die grievous deaths," the Revised Version, margin "deaths of sicknesses"; `athaq (Psalms 31:18), "which speak grievous things proudly," the Revised Version (British and American) "against the righteous insolently"; cheT, "sin" (Lamentations 1:8), "Jerus hath grievously sinned" (literally, "hath sinned a sin"); ma`al, "trespass" (Ezekiel 14:13), "trespassing grievously" (literally, "trespassing a trespass") the Revised Version (British and American) "committing a trespass"; kobhedh, "weight" (Isaiah 21:15), "grievousness"; barus, "heavy," "grievous wolves" (Acts 20:29), "grievous charges" (Acts 25:7), "His commandments are not grievous" (1 John 5:3); okneros, the Revised Version (British and American) "irksome" (Philippians 3:1); poneros, "evil" (Revelation 16:2), "a grievous sore"; dusbastaktos, "grievous to be borne" (Matthew 23:4; Luke 11:46); deinos, "greatly," "grievously tormented" (Matthew 8:6); kakos, "badly," "grievously vexed" (Matthew 15:22).

W. L. Walker

Grinder

grin'-der.

See MILL.

Grinding

grind'-ing.

See CRAFTS.

Grisled; Grizzled

griz'-'-ld.

See COLORS.

Groan

gron (na'aq, 'anaq; stenazo, embrimaomai): The English word, noun and verb, is an attempt to imitate the vocal sound which is expressive of severe pain or distress, physical or mental. It is cognate with the Scottish dialect word girn, and with grin in its original obsolete sense, as used in the Anglican Prayer-book version of Psalms 59:6,Psalms 59:14, "grin like a dog and go about the city"; here "grin" is a translation of hamah, and means the sound of the nightly howling of the pariah dogs in Jerusalem and other oriental cities. It is used in the Old Testament:

(1) To denote the expression accompanying physical suffering, as in the case of the Israelites in Egypt oppressed by Pharaoh's taskmasters (Exodus 2:24; Exodus 6:5), or in Palestine under the yoke of the Canaanites (Judges 2:18, neqaqah). It is also used in Job's description of the sufferings and wretchedness of the poor (Job 24:12) as well as in his complaint concerning his own suffering when smitten by the hand of God (Job 23:2). The Psalmist speaks of groaning when fever-stricken and remorseful, the King James Version and the Revised Version (British and American) "roaring all the day long" (Psalms 32:3; Psalms 38:9; Psalms 102:5; Psalms 22:1).

(2) The expression of suffering on the part of beasts, hungry and thirsty in drought (Joel 1:18).

(3) The manifestation of mental and spiritual distress as in Psalms 6:6; Psalms 102:20 (the Revised Version (British and American) "sighing").

(4) Metaphorically groaning is the despairing note of Egypt in the prophecy of her overthrow by Babylon, the sound being that uttered by a deadly wounded man (Ezekiel 30:24; similarly in the prophecy of the Persian conquest the misery of Babylon is thus represented by Jeremiah 51:52); and the misery of Tyre when taken by Babylon is similarly described (Ezekiel 26:15, the King James Version "cry").

The word for "sigh" ('anachah) is closely allied, and the meanings are sufficiently akin, so that the terms seem interchangeable. A sigh is physically a sign of respiratory distress due to depressed action of the heart; sighing is consequently the indication of physical weakness or mental disquietude, as Psalms 12:5; Psalms 31:10; Psalms 79:11; Isaiah 21:2; Isaiah 24:7; Isaiah 35:10; Jeremiah 45:3.

Na'aq is the crying of persons dying or starving, as in Ezekiel 30:24; Job 24:12. A somewhat similar word, haghah, means the complaining sound like that of the cooing of doves (Isaiah 59:11; Nahum 2:7). Nehi is the sound of lamentation of the dead (Jeremiah 9:10; Jeremiah 31:15; Amos 5:16).

In the New Testament "groaning" is used for the expression of mental distress. In John 11:33,John 11:15 the word used is part of the verb embrimaomai, which conveys the idea of deep and earnest emotion. The same word in two other passages is translated "strictly charged," and indicates the emphasis of the charge (Matthew 9:30; Mark 1:43). Elsewhere "sighing" and "groaning" are renderings of words derived from the verb stenazo, as in Romans 8:23; 2 Corinthians 5:2,2 Corinthians 5:4; Mark 7:34; Mark 8:12. Stephen calls the groaning of Israel in Egypt stenagmos (Acts 7:34), and the united wail of the travailing creation is expressed by Paul by the word sunstenazei (Romans 8:22). The sigh is a characteristic sign of woe in Isa 21:2; 24:7; Jer 45:3; La 14,8,11,12; Eze 9:4; 21:6 f.

Alexander Macalister

Gross

gros (`araphel): Used twice with "darkness" in Isaiah 60:2; Jeremiah 13:16. In the New Testament the verb pachuno, "to make fat," is applied twice to "making gross" the heart (Matthew 13:15; Acts 28:27).

See GREASE.

Ground; Grounded

ground, ground'-ed ('adhamah, 'erets; ge):

(1) "Ground" is in the King James Version the translation of 'adhamah, "the soil," the ground so called from its red color, frequently also translated "earth" and "land" (Genesis 2:5 f, etc.; Exodus 3:5; Exodus 8:21, etc.); it is more often the translation of 'erets, which means rather the earth, most often translated "earth" and "land" (Genesis 18:2; Psalms 74:7; Isaiah 3:26, etc.); other words are chelqah, "portion," "field" (2 Samuel 23:12, the Revised Version (British and American) "plot"); charish, "ploughing" (1 Samuel 8:12); sadheh, "a plain," "a field" (1 Chronicles 11:13, the Revised Version (British and American) "plot of ground"); for other special words see DRY; FALLOW; PARCHED.

(2) In the New Testament the common word for "ground" is ge, "earth," "soil," "land" (Matthew 13:8; Acts 7:33, "holy ground," etc.); other words are agros, "field" (Luke 14:18, "I have bought a piece of ground" the Revised Version (British and American) "field"); chorion, "spot," "place" (John 4:5, "parcel of ground").

(3) As past participle of "to grind," "ground" appears as the translation of riphoth, pounded grain (2 Samuel 17:19, the Revised Version (British and American) "bruised"); "ground" is also the translation of Tachan (Exodus 32:20; Numbers 11:8; Deuteronomy 9:21, the Revised Version (British and American) "grinding").

(4) "Ground," as the basis or foundation of anything, occurs in 1 Timothy 3:15 as the translation of hedraioma (from edaphos), "the pillar and ground of the truth," the Revised Version, margin "stay."

"Grounded" is used in the sense of founded, based, fixed in (Isaiah 30:32), "and in every place where the grounded staff shall pass, which the Lord shall lay upon him," the King James Version margin "Hebrew every passing of the rod founded," the Revised Version (British and American) "and every stroke (margin "Hebrew passing") of the appointed staff (margin "Or staff of doom (Hebrew foundation)"), which Yahweh shall lay upon him"; following, Isaiah 30:31, "with his rod will he (Yahweh) smite him"; Delitzsch, "every stroke of the rod of destiny which Yahweh causes to fall upon Asshur"; the word is mucadhah, from yacadh, "to place," "to found," "to appoint," "to ordain," hence, "appointed rod (of punishment)," seems the simplest rendering.

In Ephesians 3:17 we have "rooted and grounded in love," and in Colossians 1:23, "if ye continue in the faith, grounded and settled," the Revised Version (British and American) "steadfast," both themelioo, "to lay a foundation." In Ecclesiasticus 18:6 "ground" is used for the "bottom of things," but the Revised Version (British and American) has "to track them out" (exichneuo), "to trace out."

(5) Figurative uses of "ground" are as representing the heart in relation to its reception of words of truth and righteousness (Jeremiah 4:3; Hosea 10:12, "Break up your fallow ground"); to the word of the kingdom as preached by Christ (Matthew 13:8,Matthew 13:23); dry, parched, thirsty ground stands for a poor condition (Psalms 107:33,Psalms 107:15; Isaiah 35:7; Isaiah 44:3; Isaiah 53:2; Ezekiel 19:13).

W. L. Walker

Grove

grov:

(1) 'asherah.

See ASHERAH.

(2) 'eshel (Genesis 21:33 the King James Version, the Revised Version (British and American) "a tamarisk tree").

See TAMARISK.

Grudge

gruj (naTar; stenazo, goggusmos): "Grudge" (perhaps a mimetic word, compare Greek gru) is "to grumble" or "murmur" at any person or thing, to entertain an envious or covetous feeling, to do or give anything unwillingly, etc. It occurs in the King James Version as the translation of naTar, "to keep (anger)" (Leviticus 19:18, "Thou shalt not .... bear any grudge against the children of thy people"); in Psalms 59:15, as the translation, in text, of Hebrew lun or lin, "to pass the night," "to tarry," Niphal, "to show oneself obstinate," "to murmur or complain" (of the enemies who were hunting David like dogs), "Let them wander up and down for meat, and grudge if they be not satisfied," margin "If they be not satisfied then will they stay all night," the Revised Version (British and American) "And tarry all night if they be not satisfied"; but see Exodus 15:24; Exodus 16:2; Numbers 14:2; Joshua 9:18, etc., where the translation is "murmur"; may not the meaning be "and growl (or howl) if they be not satisfied"? "Grudge" formerly implied open expression of discontent, etc., e.g. Wyclif has in Luke 15:2, "The farisies and scribis grucchiden seiynge," etc.

In James 5:9, stenazo, "to groan," "to complain" (from affliction or from impatience or ill-humor), is translated "grudge," "Grudge not one against another, brethren," the Revised Version (British and American) "murmur not"; goggusmos, "a murmuring" (compare John 7:12 f; Acts 6:1), is rendered "grudging" (1 Peter 4:9), "Use hospitality one to another without grudging," the Revised Version (British and American) "murmuring"; compare Philippians 2:14; me ek lupes, "not out of grief," is "without grudging" (2 Corinthians 9:7, the Revised Version (British and American) "not grudging" margin, Greek "of sorrow"); in Ecclesiasticus 10:25 we have "will not grudge" (gogguzo), the Revised Version (British and American) "murmur."

"Grudge" was frequent in the earlier VSS, but is changed in the King James Version for the most part into "murmur"; the Revised Version (British and American) completes the change, except Leviticus 19:18, and text of 2 Corinthians 9:7.

W. L. Walker