Watercourse – Well, Jacob's

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Watercourse

wo'-ter-kors:

(1) 'aphiq (; ; ; ; ; ,), the King James Version "river," elsewhere "stream," "channel," or "brook."

(2) pelegh (). "The king's heart is in the hand of Yahweh as the watercourses," the King James Version "rivers," elsewhere "streams" or "rivers."

(3) yabhal, yibheley mayim, "watercourses" (English Versions of the Bible) (); in , English Versions of the Bible has "streams of water"; compare yubhal, "rivers" (); yubhal, "Jubal" (); 'ubhal, "the river Ulai" (,,).

(4) te`alah, "channel," the King James Version "watercourse" (); elsewhere "conduit," "the conduit of the upper pool" (; ; ).

(5) tsinnor, "watercourse," the King James Version "gutter" ().

See BROOK; RIVER; STREAM; WATERFALL.

Alfred Ely Day

Waterfall

wo'-ter-fol (tsinnor; only in the American Standard Revised Version ()):

"Deep calleth unto deep at the

noise of thy waterfalls;

All thy waves and thy billows

are gone over me."

The King James Version and the English Revised Version have "waterspouts," the English Revised Version margin "cataracts." The etymology of the word is uncertain. It occurs also in , translated "watercourse," the King James Version "gutter." Compare (tsanteroth), "spouts" ().

Waterpot

wo'-ter-pot (hudria; compare hudor, "water"): An earthen vessel, or jar, for carrying or holding water (in the Septuagint for kadh, "jar," or "pitcher"). It was usually carried by women upon the head, or upon the shoulder (). Pots of larger size, holding eighteen or twenty gallons apiece, were used by the Jews for purposes of ceremonial purification ().

Waters

wo'-terz (mayim, plural of may, "water"; in the New Testament hudor, "water"; kindunois potamon (), the King James Version "perils of waters," is in the Revised Version (British and American) "perils of rivers"): In the New Testament there is frequent reference to the water of baptism. Pilate washes his hands with water to signify his guiltlessness. Jesus tells the Samaritan woman of the living water. The Lamb shall guide the redeemed unto fountains of waters of life.

The uses of mayim are well classified in BDB, especially the figurative references, as follows: a symbol of distress, "when thou passest through the waters" (); of force, "like the breach of waters" (); of that which is overwhelming, "a tempest of mighty waters overflowing" (); of fear, "The hearts of the people .... became as water" (); of transitoriness, "Thou shalt remember it as waters that are passed away" (); of refreshment, "as streams of water in a dry place" (); of peace, "He leadeth me beside still waters" (); of legitimate pleasures, "waters out of thine own cistern" (); of illegitimate pleasures, "Stolen waters are sweet" (); of that which is poured out abundantly, blood (), wrath (), justice (), groanings ().

Alfred Ely Day

Waters Of Merom

See MEROM, WATERS OF.

Waters Of Strife

strif.

See MERIBAH.

Waterspout

wo'-ter-spout:

(1) (tsinnor) (), the American Standard Revised Version "waterfalls," the King James Version and the English Revised Version "waterspouts," the English Revised Version margin "cataracts."

(2) (tannin) (), the American Standard Revised Version "sea-monsters," the King James Version and the English Revised Version "dragons," the English Revised Version margin, "sea-monsters" or "water-spouts."

"Praise Yahweh from the earth, Ye sea-monsters, and all deeps."

See DRAGON; SEA-MONSTER; WATERFALL.

Alfred Ely Day

Wave Offering

wav of'-er-ing.

See SACRIFICE.

Waw

waw "w": The sixth letter of the Hebrew alphabet; transliterated in this Encyclopedia "w" (or "v"). It came also to be used for the number 6. For name, etc., see ALPHABET.

Wax

waks:

(1) Noun (donagh): Used only in a simile of melting (; ; ; ).

See WRITING.

(2) A now archaic verb, meaning "to grow," used freely in English Versions of the Bible as a translation of various terms in Greek and Hebrew. The past participle in the King James Version and the English Revised Version is "waxen," except in . There (and throughout in the American Standard Revised Version) the form is "waxed."

Way

wa ('orach, orcha', 'erets, bo', derekh, halikhah, ma`galah, nathibh; hodos, parodos, poreia, tropos; "highway," mecillah, meclul; diexodoi ton hodon): The list just cited contains only a portion of the words translated "way" or "highway" in the King James Version. Most of them have the primary meaning of "road," "customary path," "course of travel" (; ; , etc.). By a very easy and natural figure "way" is applied to the course of human conduct, the manner of life which one lives (; ; ; ; , etc.; ; ; ). "The way of an eagle .... of a serpent .... of a ship .... and of a man" () agree in that they leave no trace behind them (compare The Wisdom of Solomon 5:10,11). In some cases the language may be such as to leave it indeterminate whether the way or course of conduct is good or bad (; ; ; ; ; ; ), though in most cases the Bible writers attach to every act an ethical evaluation. Sometimes this way of conduct is of purely human choice, without reference to either God or good (; ; ; ; ; ). Such a course is evil (; ; ,,; , etc.) and will obtain such punishment as its lack of merit warrants (,; ; ; ; ; ,; ). At the opposite extreme from this is the good way (; ; ; ; ), which is that course of conduct enjoined by God and exemplified in His perfect conduct (; ; ; ; ; ; , etc.). These two ways briefly but graphically described by the Lord (,; compare ) became the subject of extended catechetical instruction in the early church. See the Epistle of Barnabas, xviii, and the Didache i.1. Frequently the way in this metaphorical sense is characterized by that quality which is its outstanding feature, e.g. mention is made of the way of life (; ; ); of truth (; ); of peace (; ; ); of justice (; ); of righteousness (; ); of salvation (); of lying (), and of death (). Frequently God's purpose or His customary action is described as His way (; ; ; ). Since all of God's plans and purposes tend toward man's salvation, His provisions to this end are frequently spoken of as His Way, and inasmuch as all of the divine plans center in Christ He is preeminently the Way (). Out of this fact grew the title, "The Way," one of the earliest names applied to Christianity (; ,; ,; ; ).

The word highway is used to denote a prominent road, such a one for example as was in ancient times maintained for royal travel and by royal authority. It is always used in the literal sense except in ; , where it is a course of conduct.

Way, Covered

See COVERED WAY.

Way, Little

(kibhrah, "length," "a measure"): A technical measure of distance in the Hebrew; but it must be considered undefined (; the King James Version, the English Revised Version "some way," the American Standard Revised Version "some distance"; , the English Revised Version "some way," the American Revised Version margin "some distance"). The Hebrew term kibhrah is also found in Phoenician inscriptions as a measure of distance.

Wayfaring Man

wa'-far-ing, The translation in ; ; ; of ('oreach), the participle of 'arach, "to journey." In of `obher 'orach, "one passing on a path," and in of holekh derekh, "one walking on a road." "Traveler" is the meaning in all cases.

Waymark

wa'-mark (tsyun): In , "Set thee up waymarks," explained by the parallel, "Make thee guide-posts" (the King James Version "Make thee high heaps"). A sign or guiding mark on the highway.

Wealth, Wealthy

welth, wel'-thi (hon, chayil, nekhacim; euporia, "to possess riches," "to be in a position of ease" ()): The possession of wealth is not regarded as sinful, but, on the contrary, was looked upon as a sign of the blessing of God (; ). The doctrine of "blessed are the poor, and cursed are the rich" finds no countenance in the Scriptures, for , refers to concrete conditions (disciples and persecutors; note the "ye"). God is the maker of rich and poor alike (). But while it is not sinful to be rich it is very dangerous, and certainly perilous to one's salvation (). Of this fact the rich young ruler is a striking example (,). It is because of the danger of losing the soul through the possession of wealth that so many exhortations are found in the Scriptures aimed especially at those who have an abundance of this world's goods (; ,; , etc.). Certain parables are especially worthy of note in this same connection, e.g. the Rich Fool (), the Rich Man and Lazarus--if such can be called a parable--(). That it is not impossible for men of wealth to be saved, however, is apparent from the narratives, in the Gospels, of such rich men as Nicodemus, and Joseph of Arimathea (,; ), and Zaccheus (). It may fairly be inferred from the Gospel records that James and John, who were disciples of our Lord, were men of considerable means (,; ).

Wealth may be the result of industry (), or the result of the special blessing of God (,). We are warned to be careful lest at any time we should say "My power and the might of my hand hath gotten me this wealth. But thou shalt remember Yahweh thy God, for it is he that giveth thee power to get wealth" (,).

Those possessing wealth are liable to certain kinds of sins against which they are frequently warned, e.g., highmindedness (); oppression of the poor (); selfishness (Lu 12 and 16); dishonesty (); self-conceit (); self-trust ().

It is of interest to note that in the five places in the New Testament in which the word "lucre"--as applying to wealth--is used, it is prefaced by the word "filthy" ( (the King James Version),8; ,; ), and that in four of these five places it refers to the income of ministers of the gospel, as though they were particularly susceptible of being led away by the influences and power of money, and so needed special warning.

The Scriptures are not without instruction as to how we may use our wealth wisely and as well-pleasing to God. The parable of the Unjust Steward () exhorts us to "make .... friends by means of the mammon of unrighteousness," by which is meant that we should use the wealth which God has committed to us as stewards in order that we may win friends (souls) with it for Him and His kingdom, just as the unfaithful steward used the goods with which his master had entrusted him to make friends for himself. The parable of Dives and Lazarus gives us the sad picture of a selfish rich man who had abused his trust, who had failed to make friends with his money, and who, in the other world, would have given anything just for such a friend ().

Wean

wen: "To wean" in English Versions of the Bible is always the translation of (gamal), but gamal has a much wider force than merely "to wean," signifying "to deal fully with," as in , etc. Hence, as applied to a child, gamal covers the whole period of nursing and care until the weaning is complete (). This period in ancient Israel extended to about 3 years, and when it was finished the child was mature enough to be entrusted to strangers (). And, as the completion of the period marked the end of the most critical stage of the child's life, it was celebrated with a feast (), a custom still observed in the Orient. The weaned child, no longer fretting for the breast and satisfied with its mother's affection, is used in as a figure for Israel's contentment with God's care, despite the smallness of earthly possessions. In there is an ironical question, `Is God to teach you knowledge as if you were children? You should have learned His will long ago!'

Burton Scott Easton

Weapons

wep'-unz.

See ARMOR.

Weasel

(1) Choledh is found only in , where it stands first in the list of eight unclean "creeping things that creep upon the earth." the King James Version and the Revised Version (British and American) agree in rendering choledh by "weasel," and the Septuagint has gale, "weasel" or "marten." According to Gesenius, the Vulgate, Targum, and Talmud support the same rendering. In spite of this array of authorities, it is worth while to consider the claims of the mole-rat, Spalax typhlus, Arabic khuld. This is a very common rodent, similar in appearance and habits to the mole, which does not exist in Palestine. The fact that it burrows may be considered against it, in view of the words, "that creepeth upon the earth." The term "creeping thing" is, however, very applicable to it, and the objection seems like a quibble, especially in view of the fact that there is no category of subterranean animals. See MOLE.

(2) The weasel, Mustela vulgaris, has a wide range in Asia, Europe, and North America. It is from 8 to 10 inches long, including the short tail. It is brown above and white below. In the northern part of its range, its whole fur, except the tail, is white in winter. It is active and fearless, and preys upon all sorts of small mammals, birds and insects.

See LIZARD.

Alfred Ely Day

Weather

weth'-er (zahabh (), yom (), translated "day"; eudia, "clear sky," cheimon, "tempest"): In the East it is not customary to talk of the weather as in the West. There seems to be no word in the Hebrew corresponding to "weather." In the King James Version translates "Fair weather comes out of the north," but the Revised Version (British and American) translates more literally, "Out of the north cometh golden splendor." "As one that taketh off a garment in cold weather (or literally, "on a cold day"), .... so is he that singeth songs to a heavy heart" ().

Jesus rebukes the Pharisees for their lack of spiritual foresight when they took such interest in natural foresight. He said, "When it is evening, ye say, It will be fair weather: for the heaven is red. And in the morning, It will be foul weather to-day: for the heaven is red and lowering" (,). The general conditions of the weather in the different seasons are less variable in Palestine than in colder countries, but the precise weather for a given day is very hard to predict on account of the proximity of the mountains, the desert and the sea.

Alfred H. Joy

Weaving

we'-ving: Although weaving was one of the most important and best developed of the crafts of Bible times, yet we have but few Biblical references to enlighten us as to the processes used in those early days. A knowledge of the technique of weaving is necessary, however, if we are to understand some of the Biblical incidents. The principle of weaving in all ages is illustrated by the process of darning. The hole to be darned is laid over with parallel threads which correspond to the "warp" (shethi) of a woven fabric. Then, by means of a darning needle which takes the place of the shuttle in the loom, other threads are interlaced back and forth at right angles to the first set of strands. This second set corresponds to the woof (`erebh) or weft of woven cloth. The result is a web of threads across the hole. If the warp threads, instead of being attached to the edges of a fabric, are fastened to two beams which can be stretched either on a frame or on the ground, and the woof is interlaced exactly as in darning, the result will be a web of cloth. The process is then called weaving ('aragh), and the apparatus a loom. The most up-to-date loom of our modern mills differs from the above only in the devices for accelerating the process. The first of these improvements dates back some 5,000 years to the early Egyptians, who discovered what is technically known as shedding, i.e. dividing the warp into two sets of threads, every other thread being lifted so that the woof can run between, as is shown in the diagram of the Arabic loom.of considerable means (,; ).

The looms are still commonly used among the Bedouins. Supppose only eight threads are used for an illustration. In reality the eight strands are made by passing one continuous thread back and forth between the two poles which are held apart by stakes driven into the ground. The even strands run through loops of string attached to a rod, and from there under a beam to the pole. By placing the ends upon stones, or by suspending it on loops, the even threads are raised above the odd threads, thus forming a shed through which the weft can be passed. The separating of odds and evens is assisted by a flat board of wedge-shaped cross-section, which is turned at right angles to the odd threads. After the shuttle has been passed across, this same stick is used to beat up the weft.

The threads are removed from the stones or loops, and allowed to lie loosely on the warp; it is pulled forward toward the weaver and raised on the stones in the position previously occupied by it. The flat spreader is passed through the new shed in which the odd threads are now above and the even threads below. The weft is run through and is beaten into place with the thin edge of it. The shuttle commonly used is a straight tree branch on which the thread is loosely wound "kite-string" fashion.

The loom used by Delilah was no doubt like the one described above (,). It would have been an easy matter for her to run in Samson's locks as strands of the weft while he lay sleeping on the ground near the loom adjacent to rod under the beam. The passage might be transposed thus: "And he said unto her, If thou weavest the seven locks of my head into the web. And she passed in his locks and beat them up with the batten (yathedh), and said unto him, The Philistines are upon thee, Samson. And he awakened out of his sleep and as he jumped up he pulled away the pins of the loom."

The counterpart of the Bedouin loom is shown on the ancient tombs at Beni Chasan (see EB, 5279, or Wilkinson, I, 317). As Dr. Kennedy points out, the artist of that ancient picture has unwittingly reversed the order of the beams. The shedding beam, of the two, should be nearer the weaver. At what period the crude shedding device described above was replaced by a double set of loops worked by pedals is unknown. Some writers believe that the Jews were acquainted with it. The "flying shuttle" of the modern loom is probably a comparatively recent invention.

The products of the Bedouin looms are coarse in texture. Such passages as ; , and examples of ancient weaving, lead us to believe that in Bible times contemporaneous with the primitive loom were more highly developed machines, just as in the cities of Egypt and Palestine today, alongside of the crude Bedouin loom, are found the more intricate hand looms on which are produced the most delicate fabrics possible to the weaver's article. Examples of cloth comparing favorably with our best grades of muslin have been found among the Egyptian mummy wrappings.

Two other forms of looms have been used for weaving, in both of which the warp is upright. In one type the strands of the warp, singly or in bundles, are suspended from a beam and held taut by numerous small weights made of stones or pottery. Dr. Bliss found at Tel el-Chesy collections of weights, sometimes 60 or more together, individual examples of which showed marks where cords had been attached to them. These he assumed were weavers' weights (see A Mound of Many Cities). In this form the weaving was necessarily from top to bottom.

The second type of upright loom is still used in some parts of Syria, especially for weaving coarse goat's hair cloth. In this form the warp is attached to the lower beam and passes vertically upward over another beam and thence to a wall where it is gathered in a rope and tied to a peg, or it is held taut by heavy stone weights. The manipulation is much the same as in the primitive loom, except that the weft is beaten up with an iron comb. The web is wound up on the lower beam as it is woven (compare ).

Patterns are woven into the web

(1) by making the warp threads of different colors,

(2) by alternating colors in the weft,

(3) by a combination of (1) and (2); this produces checked work (shibbets, the Revised Version (British and American));

(4) by running special weft threads through only a portion of the warp. This requires much skill and is probably the kind of weaving referred to in ff; ; ;

(5) when metals are to be woven, they are rolled thin, cut into narrow strips, wound in spirals about threads of cotton or linen (compare ff; 39:3 ff). In all these kinds of weaving the Syrian weavers of today are very skillful. If a cylindrical web is referred to in , then Jesus' tunic must have been woven with two sets of warp threads on an upright loom so arranged that the weft could be passed first through one shed and then around to the other side and back through the shed of the second set.

Goliath's spear was compared in thickness to that of the weaver's beam, i.e. 2 inches to 2 1/2 inches in diameter (; ; ; ).

In , if "shuttle" is the right rendering for 'eregh, the reference is to the rapidity with which the thread of the shuttle is used up, as the second part of the verse indicates.

For a very full discussion of the terms employed see A. R. S. Kennedy in EB, IV, 5276-90.

James A. Patch

Web

See SPIDER; WEAVING.

Wedding

See MARRIAGE.

Wedge, Of Gold

wej, (lashon zahabh, literally, "tongue of gold"): A piece of gold in the form of a wedge found by Achan in the sack of Jericho. It was in one of the forms in which gold was used for money and was probably stamped or marked to indicate its weight, which was 50 shekels, i.e. one maneh, according to the Hebrew standard, or nearly two pounds troy. Its value would be 102 British pounds 10 shillings or $510.00 (in 1915). See MONEY; POUND. A wedge, or rather, oblong rectangular strip of gold, of similar weight has been found in the excavations of Gezer (Macalister, Bible Side-Lights, 121). Along with metal rings they were doubtless used as an early form of currency. In the King James Version, kethem, "pure gold" (so the Revised Version (British and American)), is translated as "golden wedge" on insufficient grounds.

H. Porter

Weeds

wedz (cuph, "a weed" ()).

See FLAG; COCKLE; RED SEA.

Week

wek (shebhua`, from shebha`, "seven"; sabbaton-ta, "from sabbath to sabbath"): The seven-day division of time common to the Hebrews and Babylonians (,; ). See ASTRONOMY; TIME. "Week" is used in the apocalyptic writings of Daniel for an unknown, prophetic period (). For the names of the days see ASTROLOGY, 12.

Weeks, Feast Of

See PENTECOST.

Weeks, Seventy

See SEVENTY WEEKS.

Weeping

wep'-ing.

See BURIAL, IV, 4, 5, 6.

Weight

wat (Measure of quantity) mishqal, (mishqol (), from shaqkal, "to weigh" 'ebhen, "a stone" used for weighing in the balance): Weights were commonly of stone or bronze (or of lead, ,). They were of various forms, such as the lion-shaped weights of Babylonia and Assyria, or in the form of birds and other animals. The Hebrew and Phoenician weights, when made of stone, were barrel-shaped or spindle-shaped, but in bronze they were often cubical or octagonal or with numerous faces (see illustration under WEIGHTS AND MEASURES). Hemispherical or dome-shaped stone weights have been found in Palestine (PEFS, 1902, p. 344; 1903, p. 117; 1904, p. 209).

Figurative: The phrase "without weight" () signifies a quantity too great to be estimated. "Weight of glory" (, baros) has a similar meaning, but with a spiritual reference. "Weighty," "weightier" (; , barus, baruteros), signify what is important. The Greek (ogkos) (), is used in the sense of burden, hindrance, as is also the Hebrew neTel ().

H. Porter

Weights And Measures

wats me'-zhur : The system of weights and measures in use among the Hebrews was derived from Babylonia and Egypt, especially from the former. The influence of these countries upon Palestine has long been recognized, but archaeological investigations in recent years have shown that the civilization of Babylonia impressed itself upon Syria and Palestine more profoundly in early times than did that of Egypt. The evidence of this has been most clearly shown by the discovery of the Tell el-Amarna Letters, which reveal the fact that the official correspondence between the Egyptian kings and their vassals in these lands was carried on in the language of Babylonia long after its political influence had been supplanted by that of Egypt. It is natural, then, that we should look to Babylonia for the origin of such important elements of civilization as a system of weights and measures.

1. Linear Measures:

It was quite natural that men should have found a standard for linear measures in the parts of the human body, and we find the cubit, originally the length of the forearm, taken as the standard, and the span, the palm and the digit, or finger-breadth, associated with it in linear measurement. They do not seem to have employed the foot, though it is represented in the two-thirds of the cubit, which was used by the Babylonians in the manufacture of building-brick.

This system, though adequate enough for man in the earliest times, was not so for an advanced stage of civilization, such as the Babylonians reached before the days of Abraham, and we find that they had introduced a far more accurate and scientific system (see CUBIT). They seem to have employed, however, two cubits, of different lengths, one for commercial purposes and one for building. We have no undoubted examples of either, but judging by the dimensions of their square building-bricks, which are regarded as being two-thirds of a cubit on a side, we judge the latter to have been of about 19 or 20 inches. Now we learn from investigations in Egypt that a similar cubit was employed there, being of from 20.6 to 20.77 inches, and it can hardly be doubted that the Hebrews were familiar with this cubit, but that in more common use was certainly shorter. We have no certain means of determining the length of the ordinary cubit among the Hebrews, but there are two ways by which we may approximate its value. The Siloam Inscription states that the tunnel in which it was found was 1,200 cubits long. The actual length has been found to be about 1,707 feet, which would give a cubit of about 17.1 in. (see PEFS, 1902, 179). Of course the given length may be a round number, but it gives a close approximation.

Again, the Mishna states that the height of a man is 4 cubits, which we may thus regard as the average stature of a Jew in former times. By reference to Jewish tombs we find that they were of a length to give a cubit of something over 17 inches, supposing the stature to be as above, which approximates very closely to the cubit of the Siloam tunnel. The consensus of opinion at the present day inclines toward a cubit of 17.6 inches for commercial purposes and one of about 20 inches for building. This custom of having two standards is illustrated by the practice in Syria today, where the builder's measure, or dra', is about 2 inches longer than the commercial.

Of multiples of the cubit we have the measuring-reed of 6 long cubits, which consisted of a cubit and a hand-breadth each (), or about 10 feet. Another measure was the Sabbath day's journey, which was reckoned at 2,000 cubits, or about 1,000 yards. The measuring-line was used also, but whether it had a fixed length we do not know.

See SABBATH DAY'S JOURNEY; MEASURING LINE.

In the New Testament we have the fathom (orguia), about 6 feet, and the furlong (stadion), 600 Greek feet or 606 3/4 English feet, which is somewhat less than one-eighth of a mile. The mile (milion) was 5,000 Roman feet, or 4,854 English feet, somewhat less than the English mile.

2. Measures of Capacity:

Regarding the absolute value of the measures of capacity among the Hebrews there is rather more uncertainty than there is concerning those of length and weight, since no examples of the former have come down to us; but their relative value is known. Sir Charles Warren considers them to have been derived from the measures of length by cubing the cubit and its divisions, as also in the case of weight. We learn from that the bath and ephah were equivalent, and he (Warren) estimates the capacity of these as that of 1/30 of the cubit cubed, or about 2,333.3 cubic inches, which would correspond to about 9 gallons English measure. Assuming this as the standard, we get the following tables for liquid and dry measure: Ce'ah and lethekh, in the above, occur in the Hebrew text, but only in the margin of the English. It will be noticed that the prevailing element in these tables is the duodecimal which corresponds to the sexagesimal of the Babylonian system, but it will be seen that in the case of weights there was a tendency on the part of the Hebrews to employ the decimal system, making the maneh 50 shekels instead of 60, and the talent 3,000 instead of 3,600, of the Babylonian, so here we see the same tendency in making the `omer the tenth of the 'ephah and the 'ephah the tenth of the chomer or kor.

3. Weights:

Weights were probably based by the ancients upon grains of wheat or barley, but the Egyptians and Babylonians early adopted a more scientific method. Sir Charles Warren thinks that they took the cubes of the measures of length and ascertained how many grains of barley corresponded to the quantity of water these cubes would contain. Thus, he infers that the Egyptians fixed the weight of a cubic inch of rain water at 220 grains, and the Babylonians at 222 2/9. Taking the cubic palm at 25,928 cubic inches, the weight of that quantity of water would be 5,760 ancient grains. The talent he regards as the weight of 2/3 of a cubit cubed, which would be equal to 101,6 cubic palms, but assumes that for convenience it was taken at 100, the weight being 576,000 grains, deriving from this the maneh (1/60 of the talent) of 9,600 grains, and a shekel (1/50 of the maneh) 192 grains. But we have evidence that the Hebrew shekel differed from this and that they used different shekels at different periods. The shekel derived from Babylonia had a double standard: the light of 160 grains, or 1/3600 of the talent; and the heavy of just double this, of 320 grains. The former seems to have been used before the captivity and the latter after. The Babylonian system was sexagesimal, i.e. 60 shekels went to the maneh and 60 manehs to the talent, but the Hebrews reckoned only 50 shekels to the maneh, as appears from ,, where it is stated that the amount of silver collected from 603,550 males was 100 talents and 1,775 shekels, and, as each contributed a half-shekel, the whole amount must have been 301,775. Deducting the 1,775 shekels mentioned besides the 100 talents, we have 300,000 or 3,000 to the talent, and, as there were 60 manehs in the talent, there were 50 shekels to each maneh. When the Hebrews adopted this system we do not know, but it was in vogue at a very early date.

The shekel was divided into gerahs, 20 to a shekel (). The gerah (gerah) is supposed to be some kind of seed, perhaps a bean or some such plant. The shekel of which it formed a part was probably the royal or commercial shekel of 160 grains, derived from Babylon. But the Hebrews certainly had another shekel, called the Phoenician from its being the standard of the Phoenician traders. This would be natural on account of the close connection of the two peoples ever since the days of David and Solomon, but we have certain evidence of it from the extant examples of the monetary shekels of the Jews, which are of this standard, or very nearly so, allowing some loss from abrasion. The Phoenician shekel was about 224 grains, varying somewhat in different localities, and the Jewish shekels now in existence vary from 212 to 220 grains. They were coined after the captivity (see COINS), but whether this standard was in use before we have no means of knowing.

Examples of ancient weights have been discovered in Palestine by archaeological research during recent years, among them one from Samaria, obtained by Dr. Chaplin, bearing the inscription, in Hebrew rebha` netseph. This is interpreted, by the help of the cognate Arabic, as meaning "quarter-half," i.e. of a shekel. The actual weight is 39.2 grains, which, allowing a slight loss, would correspond quite closely to a quarter-shekel of the light Babylonian standard of 160 grains, or the quarter of the half of the double standard. Another specimen discovered at Tell Zakariyeh weighs 154 grains, which would seem to belong to the same standard. The weights, of which illustrations are given in the table, are all in the collection of the Syrian Protestant College, at Beirut, and were obtained from Palestine and Phoenicia and are of the Phoenician standard, which was the common commercial standard of Palestine. The largest, of the spindle or barrel type, weighs 1,350 grains, or 87.46 grams, evidently intended for a 6-shekel weight, and the smaller ones of the same type are fractions of the Phoenician shekel. They were of the same standard, one a shekel and the other a two-shekel weight. They each have 12 faces, and the smaller has a lion stamped on each face save one, reminding us of the lion-weights discovered in Assyria and Babylonia. The spindle weights are of black stone, the others of bronze.

The above is the Phoenician standard. In the Babylonian the shekel would be 160 or 320 grains; the maneh 8,000 or 16,000, and the talent 480,000 or 960,000 grains, according as it was of the light or heavy standard.

H. Porter

Well

(1) (be'er; compare Arabic bi'r, "well" or "cistern"; usually artificial: "And Isaac's servants digged (dug) in the valley, and found there a well of springing (margin "living") water" (); some times covered: "Jacob .... rolled the stone from the well's mouth" (). Be'er may also be a pit: "The vale of Siddim was full of slime pits" (); "the pit of destruction" ().

(2) (bor), usually "pit": "Let us slay him, and cast him into one of the pits" (); may be "well": "drew water out of the well of Beth-lehem" ().

(3) (pege), usually "running water," "fount," or "source": "Doth the fountain send forth from the same opening sweet water and bitter?" (); may be "well"; compare "Jacob's well" ().

(4) (phrear), usually "pit": "the pit of the abyss" (); but "well"; compare "Jacob's well" (,): "Which of you shall have an ass or an ox fallen into a well" (the King James Version "pit") ().

(5) (krene), "wells" (Sirach 48:17), Latin, fons, "spring" (2 Esdras 2:32).

(6) ayin), compare Arabic `ain "fountain," "spring": "the fountain (English Versions of the Bible) which is in Jezreel" (); "In Elim were twelve springs (the King James Version "fountains"] of water" (); "She (Rebekah) went down to the fountain" (the King James Version "well") (); "the jackal's well" (the English Revised Version "the dragon's well," the King James Version "the dragon well") ().

(7) (ma`yan), same root as (6); "the fountain (the King James Version "well") of the waters of Nephtoah" (); "Passing through the valley of Weeping (the King James Version "Baca") they make it a place of springs" (the King James Version "well") (); "Ye shall draw water out of the wells of salvation" ().

(8) (maqor), usually figurative: "With thee is the fountain of life" (); "The mouth of the righteous is a fountain (the King James Version "well") of life" (); "make her (Babylon's) fountain (the King James Version "spring") dry" (); "a corrupted spring" ().

(9) (mabbu`), (nabha`, "to flow," "spring," "bubble up"; compare Arabic (nab`, manba`, yanbu`) "fountain": "or the pitcher is broken at the fountain" (); "the thirsty ground springs of water" ().

(10) (motsa'), "spring," (yatsa'), "to go out," "the dry land springs of water" (); "a dry land into watersprings" (); "the upper spring of the waters of Gihon" ().

(11) (nebhekh), root uncertain, reading doubtful; only in , "Hast thou entered into the springs of the sea?"

(12) (tehom), "deep," "abyss"; compare ; translated "springs," the King James Version "depths" ().

(13) (gal), (galal), "to roll"; compare Gilgal (); "a spring shut up" (Song of Songs 4:12).

(14) (gullah), "bowl," "basin," "pool," same root: "Give me also springs of water. And he gave her the upper sprigs and the nether springs" (); compare Arabic (kullat), pronounced gullat, "a marble," "a cannon-ball."

As is clear from references cited above, wells and springs were not sharply distinguished in name, though be'er, and phrear are used mainly of wells, and `ayin, ma`yan, motsa', mabbua` and (poetically) maqor are chiefly used of fountains. The Arabic bi'r, the equivalent of the Hebrew be'er, usually denotes a cistern for rain-water, though it may be qualified as bi'r jam`, "well of gathering," i.e. for rain-water, or as bi'r nab`, "well of springing water." A spring or natural fountain is called in Arabic `ain or nab` (compare Hebrew `ayin and mabbua`). These Arabic and Hebrew words for "well" and "spring" figure largely in place-names, modern and ancient: Beer (); Beer-elim (), etc.; `Ain

(a) on the northeast boundary of Palestine (),

(b) in the South of Judah, perhaps = En-rimmon (); Enaim (); Enam (), etc.

Modern Arabic names with `ain are very numerous, e.g. `Ainul-fashkhah, `Ain-ul-chajleh, `Ain-karim, etc.

See CISTERN; FOUNTAIN; PIT; POOL.

Alfred Ely Day

Well, Jacob's

See JACOB'S WELL.

The International Standard Bible Encyclopedia, ed. James Orr (1915). Public domain. Text from the CrossWire Bible Society.