Mist – Modad, Book Of Eldad And

Mist

('edh; achlus, homichie): Mist is caused by particles of water vapor filling the air until it is only partially transparent. Mist and haze produce much the same effect, the one being due to moisture in the atmosphere and the other to dust particles. Mist or fog is not common on the plains of Palestine and Syria at sea-level, but is of almost daily occurrence in the mountain valleys, coming up at night and disappearing with the morning sun (The Wisdom of Solomon 2:4). It is nothing else than a cloud touching the land. In the account of creation, "there went up a mist from the earth," giving a description of the warm humid atmosphere of the carboniferous ages which agrees remarkably with the teaching of modern science (Genesis 2:6). The word is used figuratively in Acts 13:11 to describe the shutting out of light. Those who bring confusion and uncertainty are compared to "mists driven by a storm" (2 Peter 2:17).

See VAPOR.

Alfred H. Joy

Mistress

mis'-tres (ba`alah, gebhereth): Is the translation of ba`alah, "lady," "owner" (1 Kings 17:17; Nahum 3:4); in 1 Samuel 28:7, "a woman that hath a familiar spirit" is literally, "the mistress of a familiar spirit"; of gebhereth (Genesis 16:4,Genesis 16:8,Genesis 16:9; 2 Kings 5:3; Psalms 123:2; Proverbs 30:23; Isaiah 24:2); in Isaiah 47:5,Isaiah 47:7, we have the King James Version and the English Revised Version "lady," the American Standard Revised Version "mistress."

Mite

mit (lepton): The smallest copper or bronze coin current among the Jews. They were first struck by the Maccabean princes with Hebrew legends, and afterward by the Herods and the Roman procurators with Greek legends. The "widow's mite" mentioned in Mark 12:42 and Luke 21:2 was probably of the first kind, since those with Greek legends were regarded as unlawful in the temple service. According to Mark, the lepton was only half a kodrantes (Latin quadrans), which would indicate a value of about one-fourth of a cent or half an English farthing.

See MONEY.

H. Porter

Mithkah

mith'-ka (mithqah "sweetness"; the King James Version Mithcah): Name given owing to sweetness of pasture or water. A desert camp of the Israelites between Terah and Hashmonah (Numbers 33:28 f).

See WANDERINGS OF ISRAEL.

Mithnite

mith'-nit (ha-mithni): Designation of Jehoshaphat, one of David's officers (1 Chronicles 11:43).

Mithradates

mith-ra-da'-tez (Codex Alexandrinus Mithradates; Codex Vaticanus Mithridates; the King James Version Mithridates):

(1) The treasurer of Cyrus to whom the king committed the vessels which had been taken from the temple and who delivered them to the governor, Sanabassar (1 Esdras 2:11 equals "Mithredath" of Ezra 1:8).

(2) Apparently another person of the same name--one of the commissioners stationed in Samaria who wrote a letter to Artaxerxes persuading him to put a stop to the rebuilding of Jerusalem (1 Esdras 2:16 equals "Mithredath" of Ezra 4:7).

S. Angus

Mithredath

mith'-re-dath (mithredhath; Persian equals "gift of Mithra" or "consecrated to Mithra"):

(1) The Persian treasurer through whom Cyrus restored the sacred vessels to the returning Jewish exiles (Ezra 1:8).

(2) A Persian, perhaps an official, who was associated with Bishlam and Tabeel in corresponding with Artaxerxes concerning the restoration of Jerusalem (Ezra 4:7). In 1 Esdras 2:11,16, the name is written MITHRADATES (which see).

Mitre

mi'-ter In the King James Version this word renders two Hebrew words, both of which, however, come from the same stem, namely, tsanaph, "to coil" or "to wrap round." In Exodus 28:1–43, a mitre (the Revised Version margin "turban") is enumerated among Aaron's articles of dress, which were to be made by tailors of recognized skill. On the forefront of the mitre was a "plate of pure gold" with the words "Holy to Yahweh" (i.e. consecrated to Yahweh) inscribed upon it. This gold plate was fastened to the mitre by a blue ribbon. The material of the mitre was fine linen or silk. The word for the headtire (the King James Version "bonnet") of the ordinary priest was a different word. Ezekiel uses the word in connection with Zedekiah (21:26); the prophet associated regal and priestly functions with the throne. It is possible, however, that the two sentences--"remove the mitre," and "take off the crown"--refer to the degradation of the priesthood and of the throne which the downfall of Jerusalem will involve. The Septuagint varies between kidaris and mitra, the former word being used in Sirach 45:12.

T. Lawns

Mitylene

mit-i-le'-ne, mit-i-lye'-nye (Mitulene, or Mutilene as usually on coins):

1. Importance and History:

In antiquity the most important city of the Asiatic Aeolians and of the island of Lesbos. It had 2 harbors and strong fortresses. The city was noted for its high culture and for its zeal for art and science from the earliest times. The island, under the leadership of Mitylene, revolted in 428 BC from the Athenian confederacy. The city was besieged by the Athenians and finally taken. The inhabitants of Mitylene were treated with great severity; the walls were dismantled, and the city was deprived of its power on the sea. In the time of Alexander the Great, Mitylene suffered most through the Persians, and later by the occupation of the Macedonians, but afterward regained its power and prosperity, and still later was favored by the Roman emperors, being made a free city by Pompey.

In the Middle Ages, the name Mitylene was applied to the whole island. The present capital, often called simply Castro, has a large castle built on the site of the ancient acropolis (in 1373). The city was conquered by the Turks in 1462. It contains 14 mosques, 7 churches, and has a population of about 15,000.

2. Paul's Visit:

On his third missionary journey, Paul traveled to the Hellespont from Philippi, thence through the Troad by land to Assos on the southern side--where extensive excavations were carried on in 1881 by an American archaeological expedition--thence by ship to Mitylene (Acts 20:14), where he spent the night. Leaving Lesbos, he sailed southward to a point opposite the island of Chios (Acts 20:15). There is no record that a Christian church had been established in Mitylene at this time.

LITERATURE.

Tozer, Islands of the Aegean, 121, 134 f, 136; Ramsay, Paul the Traveler, 291 ff.

J. E. Harry

Mixed, Multitude

mikst, mul'-ti-tud.

See MINGLED PEOPLE.

Mizar, The Hill

mi'-zar, (har mits`ar; oros mikros): The name of a mountain found only in Psalms 42:6; "I remember thee from the land of Jordan, and the Hermons, from the hill Mizar." The term may be taken as an appellative meaning "littleness" and the phrase mehar mits`ar would then mean "from the little mountain," i.e. the little mountain of Zion. Some scholars think that the "m" in mehar may have arisen from dittography, and that we should read, "from the land of Jordan, and the Hermons, O thou little mountain (of Zion)." G.A. Smith discusses the question in a note (HGHL, 477). He suggests that certain names found in the district (za`ura, wady za`arah, and Khirbet Mazara) may be a reminiscence of the name of a hill in the district called Mits`ar; and surly none other would have been put by the Psalmist in apposition to the Hermons. Cheyne says: "To me this appendage to Hermonim seems a poetic loss. Unless the little mountain has a symbolic meaning I could wish it away." I cannot see this: the symbolic meanings suggested for Hermonim and Mits`ar are all forced, and even if we got a natural one, it would be out of place after the literal land of Jordan. To employ all as proper names is suitable to a lyric. No identification is at present possible.

W. Ewing

Mizpah; Mizpeh

miz'-pa, miz'-pe: This name is pointed both ways in the Hebrew, and is found usually with the article. The meaning seems to be "outlook" or "watchtower." It is natural, therefore, to look for the places so named in high positions commanding wide prospects.

(1) (ha-mitspah (Genesis 31:49; Judges 11:11,Revelation 12:4), mitspah (Hosea 5:1), mitspeh ghil`adh (Judges 11:29); Massepha, ten skopian, and other forms): It seems probable that the same place is intended in all these passages, and that it is identical with Ramath-mizpeh of Joshua 13:26. It is the place where Jacob and Laban parted in Mt. Gilead; consequently it lay to the North of Mahanaim. Here was the home of Jephthah, to which he returned after the defeat of the Aremonites, only to realize how his rash vow had brought desolation to his house. It was taken by Judas Maccabeus, who destroyed the inhabitants and burned the city (1 Macc 5:35). Jerash, and Kal`at er-Rabad; but these seem all to lie South of any possible site for Mahanaim. A ruined site was discovered by Dr. Schumacher (M und NPDV, 1897, 86), with the name Macfa, which is just the Arabic equivalent of the Hebrew Mitspah. It lies some distance to the Northwest of Jerash and claims consideration in any attempt to fix the site of Mizpah.

(2) ('erets ha-mitspah (Joshua 11:3), biq`ath mitspeh (verse 8); Masseuman, Massephath, and other forms): The "land of Mizpah" and the "valley of Mizpah" may be taken as applying to the same district. It lay on the southwest slopes of Hermon Northeast of the Waters of Merom. The site must be looked for on one of the heights in the region indicated, from which a wide view is obtained. MuTallah, a Druze village standing on a hill to the North of `Abil and East of Nahr el-Chasbany, was suggested by Robinson. The present writer agrees with Buhl (GAP, 240) that the ancient castle above Banias, Kal`at ec-Cubeibeh, occupies a more likely position.

(3) (mitspeh; Maspha): A town in the Shephelah of Judah named with Dilan, Joktheel and Lachish (Tell el-Hesy). Eusebius, Onomasticon mentions a Macfa in the neighborhood of Eleutheropolis, to the North. The identification proposed by Van de Velde and Guerin would suit this description. They would locate Mizeph at Tell ec-Cafiyeh, about 7 1/2 miles Northwest of Beit Jibrin, "a conspicuous hill with a glittering white cliff rising like an isolated block above the adjacent country" (PEFS, 1903, 276). Many identify this site with Gath, but the name and character of the place point rather to identification with Mizpeh, the Blanche Guarde or Alba Specula of the Middle Ages.

(4) (ha-mitspah; Massema, Maspha): A town in the territory of Benjamin (Joshua 18:26). Hither came the men of Israel to deal with the Benjamites after the outrage on the Levite's concubine (Judges 20:1,Revelation 19:3; Revelation 20:1,Revelation 20:5,Revelation 20:8). At Mizpah, Samuel gathered his countrymen. While there crying to God in their distress, they were attacked by the Philistines, whom they defeated with great slaughter (1 Samuel 7:5, etc.). Here also Saul, the son of Kish, was chosen king, after which Samuel told the people the "manner of the kingdom" (10:17, etc.). Mizpah was fortified by Asa, king of Judah, with materials which Baasha, king of Israel, had used to fortify Ramah (1 Kings 15:22; 2 Chronicles 16:6). When Nebuchadnezzar captured Jerusalem and made Gedaliah, the son of Ahikam, governor of the remnant of the people left in the land of Judah, the governor's residence was fixed at Mizpah (2 Kings 25:23). Here he was joined by Jeremiah, whom Nebuzaradan, captain of the Babylonian guard, had set free. At Mizpah, Ishmael, son of Nathaiah, treacherously slew Gedaliah and many who were with him. Two days later he murdered a company of pilgrims, throwing their dead bodies into the great cistern which Asa had made when strengthening the place against possible attack by Baasha of Samaria. He then made prisoners of the people, including the king's daughters, and attempted to convey them away to the Ammonites, an attempt that was frustrated by Johanan, son of Kareah (Jeremiah 40:1–16; Jeremiah 41:1–18). Mizpah was the scene of memorable assembly in a day of sore anxiety for Judah, when Judas Maccabeus called the warriors of Judah together for counsel and prayer (1 Macc 3:46). From this passage we also learn that the place was an ancient sanctuary--"for in Mizpah there was a place of prayer aforetime for Israel."

It has been proposed to identify Mizpah with Tell Nasbeh, a site on the watershed South of Bireh. The Abbe Raboisson established the fact that Jerusalem can be seen from this point. In this respect it agrees with Maundeville's description. "It is a very fair and delicious place, and it is called Mt. Joy because it gives joy to pilgrims' hearts, for from that place men first see Jerusalem." But Jeremiah 41:10 may be taken as decisive against this identification. Ishmael departed to go east. From Tell Nasbeh this would never have brought him to the great waters that are in Gibeon (PEFS, 1898, 169, 251; 1903, 267). A more probable identification is with Neby Samwil, a village on high ground 4 1/2 miles Northwest of Jerusalem, the traditional burying-place of Samuel. It is 2,935 ft. above sea-level, and 500 ft. higher than the surrounding land. Here the pilgrims coming up by way of Beth-heron from Jaffa, the ancient route, first saw the Holy City. The mosque of the village was formerly a church, dating from Crusading times; and here the tomb of Samuel is shown. If this is the ancient Mizpah, a very slight detour to the North would bring Ishmael to the great waters that are in Gibeon, el-Jib (Gibeon) being only a mile and a quarter distant.

(5) (mitspeh mo'abh "Mizpeh of Moab"; Masepha): A town in Moab to which David took his parents for safety during Saul's pursuit of him (1 Samuel 22:3). It is possibly to be identified with Kir-moab, the modern Kerak, whither David would naturally go to interview the king. But there is no certainty. Possibly we should read "Mizpah" instead of "the hold" in 1 Samuel 22:5.

(6) In 2 Chronicles 20:24, probably we should read "Mizpah" instead of "watch-tower": ha-mitspeh la-midhbar would then point to a Mizpeh of the Wilderness to be sought in the district of Tekoa (20:20).

W. Ewing

Mizpar

miz'-par.

See MISPAR.

Mizraim

miz'-ra-im (mitsrayim):

(1) A son of Ham, and ancestor of various peoples, Ludim, Anamim, etc. (Genesis 10:6,Genesis 10:13; 1 Chronicles 1:8,1 Chronicles 1:11).

See TABLE OF NATIONS.

(2) The name of Egypt.

See EGYPT.

The land of Ham.--cham, was another name for the land of Egypt. It occurs only in Psalms 105:23,Psalms 105:17; Psalms 106:22; Psalms 78:51 probably refers to the land of Ham, though it may refer to the children of Ham. The origin and significance of this name are involved in much obscurity. Two improbable etymologies and one probable etymology for Ham as a name of Egypt have been proposed, and the improbable ones very much urged:

(1) Ham is often thought to be a Hebrew appropriation of the Egyptian name "Kemt," a name for the "black land" as distinguished from "desherr," the red land of the desert which surrounded it. This etymology is very attractive, but phonetically very improbable to say the least.

(2) Ham has sometimes been connected directly with cham, the second son of Noah whose descendants under the name Mitsraim occupied a part of Northeastern Africa. But as there is no trace of this name among the Egyptians and no use of it in the historical books of the Old Testament, this can hardly be said to be a probable derivation of the word.

(3) There is a third proposed etymology for Ham which connects it ultimately but indirectly with Ham, the second son of Noah. Some of the earliest sculptures yet found in Egypt represent the god Min (Menu; compare Koptos by Professor Petrie). This god seems also to have been called Khem, a very exact Egyptian equivalent for Cham, Ham, the second son of Noah and the ancestor of the Hamitic people of Egypt. That Ham the son of Noah should be deified in the Egyptian pantheon is not surprising. The sensuality of this god Min or Khem also accords well with the reputation for licentiousness borne by Ham the son of Noah. These facts suggest very strongly a trace in Egyptian mythology of the actual history of the movements of Hamitic people.

(4) While the preceding division (3) probably states the real explanation of the early name of Egypt, it still remains to be noted that the use of the name Ham by the Psalmist may be entirely poetic. Until it be found that the name Ham was applied to Egypt by other writers of that period it will ever be in some measure unlikely that the Psalmist was acquainted with the mythological use of the name Ham in Egypt, and so, in equal measure, probable that he meant nothing more than to speak of the land of the descendants of Ham the son of Noah.

See also HAM.

M. G. Kyle

Mizzah

miz'-a (mizzah, "strong," "firm"): Grandson of Esau, one of the "dukes" of Edom (Genesis 36:13,Genesis 36:17; 1 Chronicles 1:37).

Mnason

na'-son, m'-na'-son (Mnason): All that we know of Mnason is found in Acts 21:16.

(1) He accompanied Paul and his party from Caesarea on Paul's last visit to Jerusalem;

(2) he was a Cyprian;

(3) "an early disciple," an early convert to Christianity, and

(4) the one with whom Paul's company was to lodge.

The "Western" text of this passage is very interesting. Blass, following Codex Bezae (D), the Syriac, reads, for "bringing," etc., "And they brought us to those with whom one should lodge, and when we had come into a certain village we stayed with Mnason a Cyprian, an early disciple, and having departed thence we came to Jerusalem and the brethren," etc. Meyer-Wendt, Page and Rendell render the accepted text, "bringing us to the house of Mnason," etc. However, giving the imperfect transitive of anebainomen, "we were going up" to Jerusalem (21:15), we might understand that the company lodged with Mnason on the 1st night of their journey to Jerusalem, and not at the city itself. "Acts 21:15, they set about the journey; 21:16, they lodged with Mnason on the introduction of the Cesarean disciples; 21:17, they came to Jerus" (Expositor's Greek Testament, in the place cited.).

S. F. Hunter

Moab; Moabites

mo'-ab, mo'-ab-its (Moab, mo'abh, Moabite Stone, M-'-B; Greek (Septuagint) Moab, he Moabeitis, Moabitis; Moabite, mo'abhi; Moabites, bene mo'abh):

1. The Land:

Moab was the district East of the Dead Sea, extending from a point some distance North of it to its southern end. The eastern boundary was indefinite, being the border of the desert which is irregular. The length of the territory was about 50 miles and the average width about 30. It is a high tableland, averaging some 3,000 ft. above the level of the Mediterranean and 4,300 ft. above that of the Dead Sea. The aspect of the land, as one looks at it from the western side of the Dead Sea, is that of a range of mountains with a very precipitous frontage, but the elevation of this ridge above the interior is very slight. Deep chasms lead down from the tableland to the Dead Sea shore, the principal one being the gorge of the river Arnon, which is about 1,700 ft. deep and 2 or more miles in width at the level of the tableland, but very narrow at the bottom and with exceedingly precipitous banks. About 13 miles back from the mouth of the river the gorge divides, and farther back it subdivides, so that several valleys are formed of diminishing depth as they approach the desert border. These are referred to in Numbers 21:14 as the "valleys of the Arnon." The "valley of Zered" (Numbers 21:12), which was on the southern border, drops down to the southern end of the Dead Sea, and although not so long or deep as the Arnon, is of the same nature in its lower reaches, very difficult to cross, dividing into two branches, but at a point much nearer the sea. The stream is not so large as the Arnon, but is quite copious, even in summer. These gorges have such precipitous sides that it would be very difficult for an army to cross them, except in their upper courses near the desert where they become shallow. The Israelites passed them in that region, probably along the present Hajj road and the line of the Mecca Railway. The tableland is fertile but lacks water. The fountains and streams in the valleys and on the slopes toward the Dead Sea are abundant, but the uplands are almost destitute of flowing water. The inhabitants supply themselves by means of cisterns, many of which are ancient, but many of those used in ancient times are ruined. The population must have been far greater formerly than now. The rainfall is usually sufficient to mature the crops, although the rain falls in winter only. The fertility of the country in ancient times is indicated by the numerous towns and villages known to have existed there, mentioned in Scripture and on the Moabite Stone, the latter giving some not found elsewhere. The principal of these were: Ar (Numbers 21:15); Ataroth, Dibon, Jazer, Nimrah, Nebo (Numbers 32:3); Beth-peor (Deuteronomy 3:29); Beth-diblaim, Bozrah, Kerioth (Jeremiah 48:22–24); Kir (Isaiah 15:1); Medeba, Elealeh, Zoar (Isaiah 15:2,Isaiah 15:4,Isaiah 15:5); Kirheres (Isaiah 16:11); Sibmah (Joshua 13:19); in all, some 45 place-names in Moab are known, most of the towns being in ruins. Kir of Moab is represented in the modern Kerak, the most important of all and the government center of the district. Madeba now represents the ancient Medeba, and has become noted for the discovery of a medieval map of Palestine, in mosaic, of considerable archaeological value. Rabbath-moab and Heshbon (modern Rabba and Hesban) are miserable villages, and the country is subject to the raids of the Bedouin tribes of the neighboring desert, which discourages agriculture. But the land is still good pasture ground for cattle and sheep, as in ancient times (Numbers 32:3,Numbers 32:4).

2. The People:

The Moabites were of Semitic stock and of kin to the Hebrews, as is indicated by their descent from Lot, the nephew of Abraham (Genesis 19:30–37), and by their language which is practically the same as the Hebrew. This is clear from the inscription on the Moabite Stone, a monument of Mesha, king of Moab, erected about 850 BC, and discovered among the ruins of Dibon in 1868. It contains 34 lines of about 9 words each, written in the old Phoenician and Hebrew characters, corresponding to the Siloam inscription and those found in Phoenicia, showing that it is a dialect of the Semitic tongue prevailing in Palestine. The original inhabitants of Moab were the Emim (Deuteronomy 2:10), "a people great .... and tall, as the Anakim." When these were deposed by the Moabites we do not know. The latter are not mentioned in the Tell el-Amarna Letters and do not appear on the Egyptian monuments before the 14th century BC, when they seem to be referred to under the name of Ruten, or Luten or Lotan, i.e. Lot (Paton, Syria and Pal); Muab appears in a list of names on a monument of Rameses III of the XXth Dynasty. The country lay outside the line of march of the Egyptian armies, and this accounts for the silence of its monuments in regard to them.

3. Religion:

The chief deity of Moab was Chemosh (kemosh), frequently mentioned in the Old Testament and on the Moabite Stone, where King Mesha speaks of building a high place in his honor because he was saved by him from his enemies. He represents the oppression of Moab by Omri as the result of the anger of Chemosh, and Mesha made war against Israel by command of Chemosh. He was the national god of Moab, as Molech was of Ammon, and it is pretty certain that he was propitiated by human sacrifices (2 Kings 3:27). But he was not the only god of Moab, as is clear from the account in Numbers 25:1–18, where it is also clear that their idolatrous worship was corrupt. They had their Baalim like the nations around, as may be inferred from the place-names compounded with Baal, such as Bamoth-baal, Beth-baal-meon and Baal-peor.

4. History:

We know scarcely anything of the history of the Moabites after the account of their origin in Genesis 19:1–38 until the time of the exodus. It would seem, however, that they had suffered from the invasions of the Amorites, who, under their king Sihon, had subdued the northern part of Moab as far as the Arnon (Numbers 21:21–31). This conquest was no doubt a result of the movement of the Amorites southward, when they were pressed by the great wave of Hittite invasion that overran Northern Syria at the end of the 15th and the early part of the 14th centuries BC. The Amorites were forced to seek homes in Palestine, and it would seem that a portion of them crossed the Jordan and occupied Northern Moab, and here the Israelites found them as they approached the Promised Land. They did not at first disturb the Moabites in the South, but passed around on the eastern border (Deuteronomy 2:8,Deuteronomy 2:9) and came into conflict with the Amorites in the North (Numbers 21:21–26), defeating them and occupying the territory (Numbers 21:31–32). But when Balak son of Zippor, king of Moab, saw what a powerful people was settling on his border, he made alliance with the Midianites against them and called in the aid of Balaam, but as he could not induce the latter to curse them he refrained from attacking the Israelites (Numbers 22:1–41; Numbers 24:1–25). The latter, however, suffered disaster from the people of Moab through their intercourse with them (Numbers 25:1–18). Some time before the establishment of the kingdom in Israel the Midianites overran Moab, as would appear from the passage in Genesis 36:35, but the conquest was not permanent, for Moab recovered its lost territory and became strong enough to encroach upon Israel across the Jordan. Eglon of Moab oppressed Israel with the aid of Ammon and Amalek (Judges 3:13–14), but Eglon was assassinated by Ehud, and the Moabite yoke was cast off after 18 years. Saul smote Moab, but did not subdue it (1 Samuel 14:47), for we find David putting his father and mother under the protection of the king of Moab when persecuted by Saul (1 Samuel 22:3,1 Samuel 22:4). But this friendship between David and Moab did not continue. When David became king he made war upon Moab and completely subjugated it (2 Samuel 8:2). On the division of the kingdom between Rehoboam and Jeroboam the latter probably obtained possession of Moab (1 Kings 12:20), but it revolted and Omri had to reconquer it (M S), and it was tributary to Ahab (2 Kings 1:1). It revolted again in the reign of Ahaziah (2 Kings 1:1; 2 Kings 3:5), and Moab and Ammon made war on Jehoshaphat and Mt. Seir and destroyed the latter, but they afterward fell out among themselves and destroyed each other (2 Chronicles 20:1–37). Jehoshaphat and Jehoram together made an expedition into Moab and defeated the Moabites with great slaughter (2 Kings 3:1–27). But Mesha, king of Moab, was not subdued (2 Kings 3:27), and afterward completely freed his land from the dominion of Israel (M S). This was probably at the time when Israel and Judah were at war with Hazael of Damascus (2 Kings 8:28,2 Kings 8:29). Bands of Moabites ventured to raid the land of Israel when weakened by the conflict with Hazael (2 Kings 13:20), but Moab was probably subdued again by Jeroboam II (2 Kings 14:25), which may be the disaster to Moab recounted in Isaiah 15:1–9. After Mesha we find a king of the name of Salamanu and another called Chemosh-nadab, the latter being subject to Sargon of Assyria. He revolted against Sennacherib, in alliance with other kings of Syria and Palestine and Egypt, but was subdued by him, and another king, Mutsuri, was subject to Esarhaddon. These items come to us from the Assyrian monuments. When Babylon took the place of Assyria in the suzerainty, Moab joined other tribes in urging Judah to revolt but seems to have come to terms with Nebuchadnezzar before Jerusalem was taken, as we hear nothing of any expedition of that king against her. On the war described in Judith, in which Moab (1:12, etc.) plays a part.

See JUDITH.

At a later date Moab was overrun by the Nabathean Arabs who ruled in Petra and extended their authority on the east side of Jordan even as far as Damascus (Josephus, Ant, XIII, xv, 1,2). The Moabites lost their identity as a nation and were afterward confounded with the Arabs, as we see in the statement of Josephus (XIII, xiii, 5), where he says that Alexander (Janneus) overcame the Arabians, such as the Moabites and the Gileadites. Alexander built the famous stronghold of Macherus in Moab, on a hill overlooking the Dead Sea, which afterward became the scene of the imprisonment and tragical death of John the Baptist (Josephus, BJ, VII, vi, 2; Ant, XVIII, v, 2; Mark 6:21–28). It was afterward destroyed by the Romans. Kir became a fortress of the Crusaders under the name of Krak (Kerak), which held out against the Moslems until the time of Saladin, who captured it in 1188 AD.

LITERATURE.

Commentaries on the passages in the Old Testament relating to Moab, and histories of Israel; Paton, Early History of Syria and Palestine; Rawlinson, Ancient Monarchies, especially Assyria and Babylonia; Conder, Heth and Moab; G. A. Smith, HGHL; the Moabite Stone; Josephus.

H. Porter

Moabite Stone

A monument erected at Dibon (Dhiban) by Mesha, king of Moab (2 Kings 3:4,2 Kings 3:5), to commemorate his successful revolt from Israel and his conquest of Israelite territory. It was discovered, August 19, 1868, by a German missionary, V. Klein, who unfortunately took neither copy nor squeeze of it. It was 3 ft. 10 inches high and 2 ft. broad, with a semicircular top. The Berlin Museum entered into negotiations for the purchase of it, but while these were proceeding slowly, M. Clermont-Ganneau, then dragoman of the French consulate at Jerusalem, sent agents to take squeezes and tempt the Arabs to sell it for a large sum of money. This led to interference on the part of the Turkish officials, with the result that in 1869 the Arabs lighted a fire under the Stone, and by pouring cold water on it broke it into pieces which they carried away as charms. M. Clermont-Ganneau, however, succeeded in recovering a large proportion of these, and with the help of the squeezes was able to rewrite the greater part of the inscription. The last and most definitive edition of the text was published by Professors Smend and Socin in 1886 from a comparison of the fragments of the original (now in the Louvre) with the squeezes (in Paris and Bale) and photographs.

The following is (with some unimportant corrections) Dr. Neubauer's translation of the inscription, based upon Smend and Socin's text:

(1) I (am) Mesha, son of Chemosh-melech, king of Moab, the Dibonite.

(2) My father reigned over Moab 30 years and I reigned

(3) after my father. I have made this monument (or high place) for Chemosh at Qorchah, a monument of salvation,

(4) for he saved me from all invaders (or kings), and let me see my desire upon all my enemies. Omri

(5) was king of Israel, and he oppressed Moab many days, for Chemosh was angry with his

(6) land. His son (Ahab) followed him and he also said: I will oppress Moab. In my days (Chemosh) said:

(7) I will see (my desire) on him and his house, and Israel surely shall perish for ever. Omri took the land of

(8) Medeba (Numbers 21:30), and (Israel) dwelt in it during his days and half the days of his son, altogether 40 years. But Chemosh (gave) it back

(9) in my days. I built Baal-Meon (Joshua 13:17) and made therein the ditches (or wells); I built

(10) Kirjathaim (Numbers 32:37). The men of Gad dwelt in the land of Ataroth (Numbers 32:3) from of old, and the king of Israel built there

(11) (the city of) Ataroth; but I made war against the city and took it. And I slew all the (people of)

(12) the city, for the pleasure of Chemosh and of Moab, and I brought back from them the Arel ('-r-'-l of Dodah (d-w-d-h) and bore

(13) him before Chemosh in Qerioth (Jeremiah 48:24). And I placed therein the men of Sharon and the men

(14) of Mehereth. And Chemosh said unto me: Go, seize Nebo of Israel and

(15) I went in the night and fought against it from the break of dawn till noon; and I took

(16) it, slew all of them, 7,000 men and (boys?), women and (girls?),

(17) and female slaves, for to Ashtar-Chemosh I devoted them. And I took from thence the Arels ('-r-'-l-y)

(18) of Yahweh and bore them before Chemosh. Now the king of Israel had built

(19) Jahaz (Isaiah 15:4), and he dwelt in it while he waged war against me, but Chemosh drove him out from before me. And

(20) I took from Moab 200 men, all chiefs, and transported them to Jahaz which I took

(21) to add to Dibon. I built Qorchah, the Wall of the Forests and the Wall

(22) of the Ophel, and I built its gates and I built its towers. And

(23) I built the House of Moloch, and I made sluices for the water-ditches in the midst

(24) of the city. And there was no cistern within the city of Qorchah, and I said to all the people: Make for

(25) yourselves every man a cistern in his house. And I dug the canals (or conduits) for Qorchah by means of the prisoners

(26) from Israel. I built Aroer (Deuteronomy 2:36), and I made the road in Arnon. And

(27) I built Beth-Bamoth (Numbers 26:19) for it was destroyed. I built Bezer (Deuteronomy 4:43), for in ruins

(28) (it was. And all the chiefs?) of Dibon were 50, for all Dibon is loyal, and I

(29) placed 100 (chiefs?) in the cities which I added to the land; I built

(30) (Beth)-Mede(b)a (Numbers 21:30) and Beth-diblathaim (Jeremiah 48:22), and Beth-Baal-Meon (Jeremiah 48:23), and transported the shepherds (?)

(31) .... (with) the flock(s) of the land. Now in Choronaim (Isaiah 15:5) there dwelt (the children?) ....

(32) .... (and) Chemosh said unto me: Go down, make war upon Choronaim. So I went down (and made war

(33) upon the city, and took it, and) Chemosh dwelt in it during my days. And I went up (?) from thence; I made ....

(34) ... And I .... "

The Biblical character of the language of the inscription will be noticed as well as the use of "forty" to signify an indefinite period of time. As in Israel, no goddess seems to have been worshipped in Moab, since the goddess Ashtoreth is deprived of the feminine suffix, and is identified with the male Chemosh (Ashtar-Chemosh). Dodah appears to have been a female divinity worshipped by the side of Yahweh; the root of the name is the same as that of David and the Carthaginian Dido. The Arels were "the champions" of the deity (Assyrian qurart), translated "lion-like men" in the King James Version (2 Samuel 23:20; compare Isaiah 33:7). There was an Ophel in the Moabite capital as well as at Jerusalem.

The alphabet of the inscription is an early form of the Phoenician, and resembles that of the earliest Greek inscriptions. The words are divided from one another by dots, and the curved forms of some of the letters (b, k, l, margin, n) presuppose writing with ink upon papyrus, parchment or potsherds.

The revolt of Mesha took place after Ahab's death (2 Kings 3:5). At the battle of Qarqar in 854 BC, when the Syrian kings were defeated by Shalmaneser II, no mention is made of Moab, as it was included in Israel. It would seem from the inscription, however, that Medeba had already been restored to Mesha, perhaps in return for the regular payment of his tribute of 100,000 lambs and 100,000 rams with their wool (2 Kings 3:4).

LITERATURE.

Clermont-Ganneau, La stele de Mesa, 1870; Ginsburg, Moabite Stone, 1871; R. Sinend and A. Socin, Die Inschrift des Konigs Mesa von Moab, 1886; A. Neubauer in Records of the Past, 2nd series, II, 1889; Lidzbarski, Handbuch der nordsemitischen Epigraphik, 1898, 4-83, 415.

A. H. Sayce

Moabitess

mo'-ab-it-es, mo-ab-i'-tes (mo'abhiyah): A woman, or in plural women, of Moab. The term is applied to Ru (1:22; 2:2,6,21; 4:5,10); to some of Solomon's wives (1 Kings 11:1); and to Shimrith, whose son shared in the murder of King Joash (2 Chronicles 24:26).

See MOAB.

Moadiah

mo-a-di'-a.

See MAADIAH.

Mochmur, The Brook

mok'-mur, ho cheimarrhos Mochmour): The torrent bed in a valley on which stood Chusi, not far from Ekrebel (Judith 7:18). The latter may be identified with `Aqrabeh, East of Nablus. Wady Makhfuriyeh runs to the South of `Aqrabeh, and probably represents the ancient Mochmur.

Mock; Mocker; Mocking

mok, mok'er, mok'-ing (hathal, la`agh, empaizo): To mock is the translation of hathal, "to play upon," "mock," "deride" (Judges 16:10,Revelation 16:5,Revelation 16:7; 1 Kings 18:27, "Elijah mocked them"; Job 13:9 twice, the Revised Version (British and American) "deceiveth," "deceive," margin "mocketh," "mock"); of la`agh, "to stammer" or "babble in mimicry," "to mock" or "scorn" (2 Chronicles 30:10; Nehemiah 4:1; Job 11:3; Job 21:3; Proverbs 1:26; Proverbs 17:5; Proverbs 30:17; Jeremiah 20:7). Other words are tsachaq, "to laugh," etc. (Genesis 19:14; Genesis 21:9;, Genesis 39:14,Genesis 39:17); qalac, "to call out," or "cry after," "to scoff" or "mock at" (2 Kings 2:23; Ezekiel 22:5); sachaq, "to laugh," "mock" (Job 39:22; Lamentations 1:7); luts, "to scorn" (Proverbs 14:9); sechoq, "laughter," "derision" (Job 12:4); empaizo, "to treat as a child," "mock" (Matthew 2:16; Matthew 20:19; Matthew 27:29,Matthew 27:31,Matthew 27:41; Luke 14:29, etc.); diachleuazo, "to mock," "laugh," etc. (Acts 2:13; Acts 17:32); mukterizo, "to sneer at," "mock," literally, "to turn up the nose" (Galatians 6:7, "God is not mocked," "will not let himself be mocked"); epigelao, "laugh" (Job 2:8; /RAPC 1Ma 7:34; compare Genesis 8:17).

Mocker, hathulim, "deceivers," "mockers" (Job 17:2); luts (Proverbs 20:1; Isaiah 28:22 the King James Version); la`egh, "stammering," "mocking" (Psalms 35:16; compare Isaiah 28:11); sachaq (Jeremiah 15:17); empaiktes, "a mocker," "scoffer," literally, "sporting as children" (Jude 1:18; compare 2 Peter 3:3).

Mocking is the translation of qallacah "mocking," "derision" (Ezekiel 22:4); of empaigmos the Septuagint for qallacah) (Hebrews 11:36; /RAPC Wis 12:25; Ecclesiasticus 27:28, "mockery"; /RAPC 2Ma 7:7, "mocking-stock," the Revised Version (British and American) "the mocking"; 2 Macc 7:10, "made a mocking-stock" (empaizo)); of mokos (Ecclesiasticus 33:6).

For "mocked of" (Job 12:4) the Revised Version (British and American) has "a laughing-stock to"; for "mockers" (Isaiah 28:22), the English Revised Version "scorner," the American Standard Revised Version "scoffer"; for "the mockers" (Jeremiah 15:17), "them that made merry"; for "scorneth" (Proverbs 19:28), "mocketh at"; for "As one man mocketh another, do ye so mock him?" (Job 13:9), "As one deceiveth a man will ye deceive him?" (margin, "mocketh," "mock"); "mock" for "laugh" (Job 9:23); for "There shall come in the last days scoffers" (2 Peter 3:3), "In the last days (margin, "Greek in the last of the days") mockers shall come with mockery" (empaigmone empaiktai).

W. L. Walker

Modad, Book Of Eldad And

See ELDAD AND MODAD, BOOK OF.