Hi-Hy

    

HIDDAI (הדי, shouting) One of David’s Thirty mighty men from the hill country

        of Ephraim (II Samuel 23).

HIDDEKEL (הדקל, sharp, swift) The Hebrew name of the Tigris River (Gene-

        sis 2; Dan 10).

HIEL (היאל, God lives) A Bethelite who lost his sons Abiram & Segub during  

        the rebuilding of Jericho in Ahab’s day. That loss was interpreted as ful-

        filling Joshua’s ancient curse. These deaths could have been natural 

        causes or part of a foundation human sacrifice (I Kings).

HIERAPOLIS (‘IerapoliV, holy city) A town in the southwestern part of Asia, 

        9.6 km north of Laodicea and 16 km west of Colossae.  It is one of the

        important Greek and Roman cities in the Lycus Valley in the extreme     

        southwest of the Phrygia region, known for its hot mineral springs. 

                   (See also the entry in the Old Testament Apocrypha / Influences 

        Outside the Bible section of the Appendix.
                   The most interesting aspect of the religious history of Hierapolis is

        the transformation of the old and primitive cult site into the center of Christi-

        anity. The ruins of Hierapolis have been explored but not excavated. Most 

        noticeable are the ruins of Romans baths combined with the gymnasium, 

        in which some of the vaults are still standing. A large building with arches 

        stands east of the baths next to the main street, and a similar one stands 

        to the north of the northern gate. These two buildings do not seem to have

        been designed as churches, although the southern one may have been 

        converted into one.

                   The preservation of the theater is good & its location spectacular, 

        overlooking the city & the Lycus Valley. Much information about Hierapolis’ 

        inhabitants has been gathered from some 1,200 sarcophagi, ranging from 

        the very simple to prominent mausoleums serving as family graves.

HIEROGLYPHS (ierosglufh, sacred carving) The Pictographic symbols used 

        in the ancient Egyptian system of writing, either on stone, or sometimes  

        written with a pen on papyrus. A different system of hieroglyphic script was

        developed by the Hittites to write one of their languages.

HIGH PLACES, SANCTUARY (במה (ba mah); קדש (kaw doshe); מקדש

        mik ked doshe); naoV (nah os); oikoV (oy kos) About twenty different 

        terms or expressions are translated as sanctuary).

                   The religious place of sacrifice, worship, and festival. High places

        were essentially Canaanite from as early as the second half of the 2000s

        and then Israelite sanctuaries, situated on high hills and associated with

        green trees & leafy oaks. Equipped with altars of sacrifice, incense, stone

        pillars, trees and/or poles, and water, they were the objects of Yahweh’s

        wrath. 

                   They were removed by Hezekiah and Josiah. Many were built by

        Solomon and many kings of Northern Israel. They are said not to have

        been removed by no fewer than 6 kings. The editors of Kings displayed

        a certain whitewashing tendency when they associated  Solomon with

        the high place at Gibeon. I-II Kings especially show that they were cen-

        ters of very great activity for private devotion, official ceremonies, and 

        annual festivals.

                   “Sanctuary” on the other hand, represents places of mainly Israe-

        lite and Yahwistic worship, like Gilgal near Jericho, Bethel, Shechem, 

        Beersheba, and Gibeon. The sanctuary or temple is the constant and 

        central feature of most of the Old Testament (OT) and is implied in most 

        New Testament (NT) parts.

                   They often originate by divine designation through dream or di-

        vine visitation. Otherwise they are founded by the patriarchs or heroes 

        of Israel, and there is a presumption that the earthly sanctuary is a copy 

        of the heavenly sanctuary. This theory of the sanctuary's cosmic signi-

        ficance must be understood in the light of the Egyptian and Syrian struc-

        tures which are partly the prototypes of Solomon‘s temple. The taber-

        nacle serves to convey a historical dimension to the sanctuary's and 

        cult's purposes in Israel.

                   The narrative and prophetic works of the Old Testament show the 

        sanctuary's importance, as do the laws. The first positive law following 

        the Decalogue is a law of the altar, which presupposes a sanctuary. 

        Exodus 25-31 begins with the offering for the building of the sanctuary. 

        The Code of Holiness (Leviticus 17-26) begins with a law to establish         

        the uniqueness of the one sanctuary. The laws clearly show the priority 

        of the sanctuary for Israel. Sanctuaries mean  prosperity because they

        are the centers of blessing.

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                   There is a very close connection between the Israelite sanctuary &

        the divine name. Sanctuaries were places of pilgrimage. The larger and

        more important shrines would attract greater crowds. They included ora-

        cles, sacrifices, incense, and manifold activities.  It is inevitable that in 

        Canaan the sanctuaries should show signs of foreign features. And geo- 

        graphical centrality of the sacred place is overshadowed by the personal 

        centrality which belongs to the great figures of the Bible. 

                   Yet, geographical and personal centrality become one in the figure 

        of God as the sanctuary or asylum of Israel. Under divinity, sanctuaries of

        all kinds are thus thus temporary, in themselves plots of ground with buil-

        dings witnessing to the divine claim that  the earth is the Lord’s, and poin-

        ting to the day when  earth like heaven will acknowledge the divine sove- 

        reignty. In that day sanctuaries will be no more, for all space, like time, pro-

        perty, and life, will be God’s. 

HIGHEST HEAVEN(S) (שמי השמים (shaw mah ee ha shaw mah yim), hea-  

        ven of the heavens) Since the word shamayim was also used by the He-

        brews in the narrower sense of “ceiling of the earth,” the “highest heaven”

        denoted the canopy believed to be in turn suspended over that expanse. 

        Later, the sky was conceived as consisting of several layers. The “highest 

        heaven” might also mean the uppermost of these.

HIGHWAY (מסלה (mes il lah), a built up road) In addition to its literal usage, 

        the term “highway” is occasionally used figuratively, e.g. to designate the 

        road of the returning exiles.

HILEN (הילן, sandy) A village in the hill country of Judah, assigned to Leviti-

        cal family of Kohath.

HILKIAH (הלקיה, portion of the Lord)   1. A Merarite before King David's time 

        (I Chronicles 6).      2. Another Merarite Levite from King David's time        

        (I Chronicles 26).      3. The father of Eliakim, officer over King Hezekiah’s 

        household (II Kings 18; Is. 22).      4. The father of Jeremiah the prophet 

        (Jeremiah 1). 

                   5. The father of Gemariah, an ambassador to Nebuchadnezzar 

        (Jeremiah 29)      6. High priest in King Josiah's reign; he aided latter’s 

        religious reforms (II Kings 22).      7. A chief of the priests among the 

        returned exiles; also a priestly house mentioned from the post exilic 

        period (Nehemiah 12).      8. One of those who stood beside Ezra at 

        the public reading of the law (Nehemiah 8).

                   (See also the entry in the OT Apocrypha/Influences Outside the

        Bible section of the Appendix.).

HILL, HILL COUNTRY (גביה (ghib baw), little hill; הר (har), mountain) A 

        land elevation such as those in the central ridge of Palestine. In many 

        passages where the King James Version renders har as mountain, most

        modern English translations use “hill country.” In view of the fact the ele-

        vations in the Palestine and eastern Jordan seldom rise above 900 

        meters, it is preferable to refer to them as “hills” or “hill country.”

HIN (הין) A liquid measure of about an American gallon or one sixth of a bath

        (See Weights and Measures).

HIND (אילה (ah yaw law)) The adult female Red Deer, especially after the

        third year. The Old Testament references to the hind allude to her cal-

        ving.  The hind’s grace and seeming gentleness explain the metaphor  

        for one’s wife in Proverbs 5. (For the use of “hind” in the oath in Song of 

        Songs (Solomon) 2 & 3, see Gazelle).

HIND OF THE DAWN. See Music.

HINGE (ציר (tseer)) Probably a metal pole piece or pivot attached to a door    

        and fitted into a socket.

HINNOM, VALLEY OF THE SON OF (גיא בן הנם (gah ee ben hin nom)) A

        deep valley south of Jerusalem, which marked the limit between the tribes

        of Benjamin and Judah. It most likely runs north-south beneath the wes-

        tern walls of the Old City, and then turns sharply to the east in the direc-

        tion of the Kidron.

                   The books of Kings, Chronicles & Jeremiah mention repeatedly the

        cults of Baal and Molech who offered child sacrifices at the junction of the 

        valley with the Kidron at Topheth.  The Hinnom Valley was so notorious 

        that Jeremiah didn't have to say the valley’s name when he condemned it, 

        saying that it would be called “Valley of Slaughter” in the Day of Venge-

        ance.  The Hinnom Valley is given as the northern limit of postexilic settle-

        ments.  Jewish and early Christian tombs are still visible on the steep 

        southern cliffs.

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HIPPOPOTAMUS (בהמות (beh heem oth), wild beast) A large, thick-skinned 

        amphibious mammal, with an enormous head, a bulky, hairless body, and 

        short legs; now found only in the rivers of Africa.

                   The animal in Job 40 was identified as several different animals, 

        but the view that it is a hippopotamus is less open to objection than any 

        alternative. Job’s only serious error in his description of a hippopotamus is

        his reference to the tail.  He may have been familiar with a Palestinian 

        species, as there's now evidence of hippopotamus remains on the coastal 

        plains of Palestine dating from the 1100s to the 300s B.C.

HIRAH (הירה, nobility) Judah’s Adullamite associate (Genesis 38).

HIRAM (הירם, free-born, noble)     1. King of Tyre (986-935 B.C.); a contem-

        porary of David and Solomon.
                   In the 900s there seems to have been a tremendous expansion of 

        the Phoenician commercial empire.  Hiram’s friendship with David & Solo- 

        mon was probably based on a mutual need.  Israel lacked the technical 

        skills necessary for the advancement of her material culture; Phoenicia 

        was deficient in agricultural production. Hiram’s first contact was the sup-

        plying of workers and raw material for the palace of David, and took place 

        shortly after the capture of Jerusalem, before Hiram became king. It is 

        likely that the Old Testament has placed the contact with Hiram too early.

                   Hiram likewise made a treaty with Solomon. Again Hiram supplied

        the Israelites with cedar & skilled labor for their building program. Official 

        buildings dating from this period how many signs of Phoenician influence

        Hiram also supplied ships and seamen for the merchant fleet which ope-

        rated out of the port of Ezion-Geber on the Red Sea. No doubt, Hiram

       received a share of the profits. In II Chronicles 9, the term “ships of Tar-

        shish” is misunderstood. “Tarshish” refers to the class of the ships, not to

        a destination. (See Ships and Sailing). When Solomon’s ambitious buil-

        ding program proved too great a strain on his treasury, he was forced to

        sell to Hiram 20 cities between Carmel and Phoenicia, including the port

        of Acco.

HIRELING.  A servant or other worker paid wages.

HISS (שרק (shaw rak)) A sound made by forcing the breath between the 

        tongue and teeth; used to express astonishment or derision.

HISTORY (See History and the Bible entry in the Introduction).

HISTORY OF ABIDAS, APOSTOLIC (See Abdias, Apostolic History of, entry

        in the New Testament Apocrypha section of the Appendix.)

HISTORY OF JOSEPH THE CARPENTER (See Joseph the Carpenter, 

        History of, entry in the New Testament Apocrypha section of the

        Appendix.)

HITTITES (התית (terror)) A people of the ancient Near East.

                   The original Hittites were a people who lived in central Anatolia.   

        With the invasion of Indo-European elements after 2000 B.C., the original 

        Hittite state expanded into an empire covering vast territories in Anatolia

        & Syria. By 1600, it extended as far southeast as Babylon, & as far south-

        west as Palestine.  Around 1200 B.C., the Hittite Empire fell apart under 

        the impact of the invasions of various peoples from across the Aegean. 

        For a few centuries the history of Anatolia is covered by an almost total 

        darkness. Only small kingdoms and principalities arose in place of the Hit-

        tite empire. These in turn fell prey to Assyria's expanding power, the last 

        one falling in 717 B.C.

                   One of the chief languages of the Hittite Empire was cuneiform Hit-

        tite, which is an Indo-European language and was the official language of 

        the empire. We have evidence of the language existing from 1600-1200 

        B.C. The second most important language of the Hittite Empire was hiero-

        glyphic, Indo-European, and spoken throughout the Hittite Empire from

        around 1600 to 700 B.C.

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                   The term “Hittite can stand for: the native non-Indo European Hit-

        tites, called “Hattians” who originated in central Anatolia; the so called 

        “cuneiform Hittites” who used an Indo-European language preserved in 

        Mesopotamian cuneiform writing; and the so-called “hieroglyphic Hittites,” 

        who were originally at home in the southern parts of the empire and used 

        another Indo-European language, preserved in hieroglyphic form.  For 

        Assyrians and Hebrews, the term “Hittites” covered all the above groups.

                   In the period before 1200 B.C., the Hittite Empire extended as far 

        south as Syria. In the periods after 1200, small Hittite kingdoms & prin-

        cipalities covered vast areas in Anatolia and Syria. The mention of Hit-

        tites in the Old Testament (OT) is a historical enigma. Several names with

        a Hittite background appear in the Bible. Ephron the Hittite sells a burial 

        ground to Abraham. Judith, daughter of Beeri, & Basemath, daughter of 

        Elon, are Hittites married to Esau. The custom of taking Hittite women as 

        wives, discouraged by Rebekah and Isaac, was followed in later times by 

        Solomon. All the names of the Hittites listed above are Semitic, indicating 

        that Palestinian Hittites were fully assimilated into the surrounding Semitic 

        population.

                   The only exact indication concerning the geographical location of 

        the Hittites in Palestine come from the stories of Abraham and Esau.  

        Judges 1 also possibly confirms the Hittites' localization in southern Pale-

        stine.  Nothing constructive on the Hittites' localization in Palestine can be 

        obtained from the 22 references to Hittites, which list them as one of the 

        original inhabitants of Palestine before the Israelites. 

                   The 7 main  peoples listed are: Canaanites, Hittites, Amorites, 

        Perizzites, Hivites, Jebusites, and Girgashites.  Hittites are mentioned six 

        times in the first place and nine times in the second. The table of nations 

        lists Heth, or Hittites, along with Sidon, the Jebusites, the Amorites, the

        Girgashites, the Hivites, the Arkites, the Sinites, Arvadites, the Zemarites, 

        and the Hamathites, as the sons of Canaan the son of Ham.

                   The remaining references to Hittites in the OT all pertain to areas

        outside Palestine proper. The OT has two references to the kings of the 

        Hittites, neither of which can be placed within an exact geographical

        frame.  In summary, the OT sources mentioning the Hittites can be divi-

        ded into those referring to the non-Palestinian Hittites and those refer-

        ring to the Hittites living in Palestine.

                   The OT sources in which the non-Palestinian Hittites are mentioned

        are only 5 at the most, & they all refer to the land of the Hittites and their 

        kings as somewhere north of Palestine. The term “Hittite,” used for the var-

        ious Syrian states, goes back to a period before 1200 B.C. All other OT 

        sources mention Hittites as living peacefully in Palestine in the midst of the 

        native populations, be they Hebrew or not.  As far as the sources show, the

        Hittites seem to be living in Judah's hill country & bearing Semitic names.

                   The Hittites' presence in Palestine is a historical problem, for which

        several interpretation can be offered. One possibility is that the Hittites of 

        Palestine are leftovers from a period when the Hittites controlled Palestine. 

        This does not agree with Assyrian sources, which locate the states called 

        “Hittite” in an area situated north of Palestine.  The one tablet which is an 

        exception contains a reference to Hittites living in the “land of Misri,” which 

        may indicate the territories under Egyptian control, including Palestine.

                   Another interpretation of the presence of Palestinian Hittites in the 

        OT might be suggested if we replaced “Hittites” with “Horites,” which in He-

        brew requires changing only one letter. By doing this, we may include a 

        nation which, although they played an important role in Syria & Palestine, 

        received scant mention in the OT. Also, we may obtain a picture which is 

        fully compatible with our knowledge of Hurrian history.

HIVITE (הוי, villager) The Hivites were one of the nations prominent in Ca-

        naan before the Israelite settlement. The term appears usually in the 

        stereotyped list of nations expelled by the Israelites. Genesis 34 applies

        the term to Hamor, Shechem's father. Gibeon's inhabitants are Hivites.  

        Hivite cities are found between Sidon and Beer-sheba. The many passa-

        ges about them would seem to argue for the Hivites playing a significant 

        role in Palestine. Yet there is not a trace of such a people in any extra-

        biblical source.

                   It could be that there was some confusion in copying the text. There 

        is, in Hebrew, only one letter difference between “Hivite” and “Horite.” The 

        Horites would readily account for the prominence and the location that the 

        Masoretic Text assigns to the Hivites; Hurrian (Horite) names are found in 

        Shechem. Also, the Hivites are mentioned usually before the Jebusites, 

        whose Hurrian affiliations are well known. Since the Hivites are located in

        Palestine precisely where the Hurrians were established, it could be that 

        the designation “Hivites” came to be used for a particular group of Horites.

HIZKI (הזקי, strong)    A descendant of Benjamin (I Chronicles 8).

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HOBAB (הבב, beloved) Father-in-law of Moses. Conflicting traditions as to 

        the name of Moses’ father-in-law are preserved. Jethro, priest of Midian 

        and Reuel are also named as Moses’ father-in-law. Hobab may have 

        once been used in conjunction with Reuel, which would then be a clan 

        name.  Moses urged Hobab to accompany the Israelites as guide.  Jud-

        ges 1 suggests that he did guide them.

HOBAH (הובה, hiding place) A country, the capital of which was Damascus. 

        According to Genesis 14, Hobah was situated north of Damascus. The

        mound Tell el-Salihiye, east of Damascus, is the largest mound to be 

        found in the region, and shows that there was a settlement there since 

        prehistoric times. Hobah was probably the name of this place; it later lost 

        its importance when Damascus became the territory’s capital.

HOD (הוד, majesty) The ancestor and origin of the name for a family in the 

        tribe of Asher (I Chronicles 7).

HODAVIAH (הודויה, the Lord is his glory)   1. A descendant of King David 

        (I Chronicles 3).    2. One of the heads of the half-tribe of Manasseh 

        (I Chronicles 5).     3. A Benjaminite(I Chronicles 9).     4. Ancestor of a

        family of Levites among the returned exiles (Ezra 2; Nehemiah 7).

HODESH (הדש, new moon) Shaharaim's wife, a Benjaminite (I Chron. 8).

HODIAH (הודיה, majesty of the Lord)   1. Husband of a woman of Judah 

        (I Chron. 4).     2. A Levite who interpreted the law to the people when 

        Ezra read it publicly (Neh. 8).      3. Another Levite, a signatory to Ezra’s 

        covenant (Neh. 10).     4. A chief of the people, signatory to Ezra’s 

        covenant (Neh. 10).

HOE (מעדר (mah dare), rake) The hoe was used for loosening soil & cutting

        out weeds around trees (Isaiah 7).

HOGLAH (הגלה, partridge) One of the five daughters of Zelophehad of 

        Manasseh. It is probable that the names of the five daughters were origi-

        nally the names of Canaanite towns (Numbers 26, 27, 36; Joshua 17).

HOHAM (הוהם, lord of multitude) King of Hebron. He was 1 of 5 confederate

        kings in the Amorite coalition which attempted to halt Joshua’s invasion

        southwest of Jerusalem.

HOLIDAY (יום טוב (yom tov), a good day) A happy or festal day. It was a time

        of feasting and drinking, and of showing charity to the poor.  The biblical  

        reference was to Purim, a secular holiday in the Jewish calendar; it ex-

        presses the lighter side of life.  It celebrates deliverance from Israel’s ene-

        mies (Esther 8, 9).

HOLINESS (קדש (ko desh), separate; agioV, separate) The distinctive mark 

        & signature of the divine, the essential nature of the “sacred,” the inner-

        most reality to which all other are related.

                 List of Topics—1. Introduction;     2. Etymology of Kodesh;            3. Associations of Holiness & Human Response;      4. God's                  Ways, Greatness, and Life;     5. Conclusion;     6. Holiness                     Historically Revealed: Early Prophets;     7. Later Prophets;

         8. Priests' and People's Association with Holiness;       9. In the             NT:  Gospels;       10. Early Church.

       

                  1.  Introduction—All of the attributes & activities of “the holy” can't

        be listed, for in the experience of “the holy,” there is always “something 

        more,” which resists definition. It is an  awareness of an undefined and     

        uncanny energy, outside and beyond, yet at the same time near & “fasci-

        nating,.” Holiness extends into every area of existence.

                  In the Bible, “holiness” is related to the world of nature and of history,

        to the realm of human experience and conduct, to the election-covenant 

        life of Israel, to the psychophysical life of the individual, where it is the re-   

        velation of the holy presence & the impulse to worship. It is even part of 

        the destiny of nations. Wherever God’s presence is felt, there humans 

        encounter the wonder and mystery of holiness. 

                   2. Etymology of Kodesh—The root from which the Hebrew kodesh

        comes is found in several Semitic languages. The first of two theories

        about its origin relates kadesh to an early primitive root which may have 

        existed, namely qad. According to this view, the root kadesh, “separate,”

        is related to khadesh, a “fresh, new thing.” The meaning suits the major

        associations of the word both in the Old Testament (OT) and the New

        Testament (NT).

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                   The second theory connects the root with the Akkadian qadashu,

        "to be bright” or “to shine.” Nevertheless, the more elemental meaning 

        seems to lie with “separation.” Where holiness is treated as though it 

        belonged to the sphere of the secular or common, there it is profaned. 

        Another related term is kherem, set apart. Yahweh claims what belongs

        to him.

                  3. Associations of Holiness & Human Response—Most striking is

        the frequent association of holiness and fire. It is in fire that Yahweh mani-

        fests most characteristically; the divine manifestation in judgment, too is

        in fire. Fire imagery is often found in the OT where holiness is directly men-

        tioned: “light,” “heat,” “smoke,” “flame,” and “coals” among others.  The NT

        perpetuates the same usage, in the language of judgment.

                   Yahweh is a jealous God. It belongs to Yahweh’s nature to maintain

        the uniqueness and integrity of Yahweh’s deity.  The power & force of Yah- 

        weh’s holy jealousy is great, so much so that it seems at times almost 

        identical with holiness itself. Yahweh’s unpredictable passion is intimately 

        involved with Yahweh’s jealousy. Yahweh’s “hate” is to be seen in relation 

        to “jealousy.” Yahweh cannot tolerate worship, that is the human response 

        to Yahweh’s holiness, which is in defiance of Yahweh’s essential and 

        innermost nature.

                   Closely connected with jealousy is Yahweh’s manifestation of holy 

        wrath. Considering the major role that divine judgment plays in the Bible, it 

        isn't surprising that terminology is rich. In all the passages where Yahweh’s 

        wrath is mentioned we have a holy manifestation, even when the word 

        “holy” is not mentioned. In Ezekiel, the imagery of wrath and holiness is 

        portrayed with great vividness.

                   The basic biblical understanding of holiness includes the large and

        diversified sphere of dread, terror, awe, reverence, and fear.  This re-

        sponse to the holy is compounded of numerous and varied feelings.  The

        word “terrible” often appears with “great” in referring to God. “Terrible” is 

        used in the sense of majesty, sublimity, awe, and reverence.  Awareness 

        of the radical cleavage between human & divine is rooted in taboo and 

        herem.  The holy is unapproachable; humans must not “come near” 

        places like Mount Sinai, when Yahweh descends upon it.  No man may 

        see God & live; Israel's piety is pervaded throughout by this sense of dis-

        tance from the holy.

                  The contrast between “holy” and “profane” is sometimes paralleled

        by the contrast between “clean” & “unclean.” The relation between the

        two pairs is so intimate as to seem synonymous. Nevertheless, the two

        are not synonymous; purity or cleanness is only an aspect of holiness. 

        Another group of terms is related to the quality & character of holiness: 

        “majesty,” “splendor,” “honor,” “beauty,” “glory,” etc. Each of these when

        they are used seem to imply the presence of the others, the sense in 

        which they are used include “graciousness,” “goodness;” “pleasantness,” 

        “awe,” “reverence,” and "power."

                   Another aspect of God is that God is unsearchable, incomprehen-

        sible, and incomparable. The deep things of God no man can fathom. 

        God’s ways are beyond all human wit. God’s knowledge is too wonderful

        for the psalmist. Yahweh’s uniqueness is the uniqueness of Yahweh’s 

        holiness; therefore all comparisons are futile. Finding an adequate image

        for God would somehow diminish God.

                    4.  God's Ways, Greatness, and Life—The ways of God are not

        human ways. God can appear when & how people least expect God to

        appear; surprise is an important part of God’s appearance to people. Nor

        must one inquire after God’s name, because it is “Wonderful.” Before 

        Yahweh performs wonders in Israel, the people must sanctify themselves

        to Yahweh. And Israel will never cease to proclaim his wonderful deeds.

                   The adjective “great” has connotations of extraordinary power; the 

        frequent association of “great” and “terrible” were discussed a short time 

        earlier. Yahweh’s “greatness” is illustrated by the large number of passa-

        ges where “great” precedes the acts of God or the things that belong to 

        God. Because of God’s greatness, the Holy One of Israel is “high and lif-

        ted up.” God is called Elyon, “Most High.”  Yahweh is exalted in many 

        Psalms (7, 9, 21, 47, 50, 57, 91) and in Isaiah. Many of these contexts ap-

        pear in the cult's liturgies & celebrations, in outbursts of adoration.

                   The “life” of Yahweh and Yahweh’s holiness are closely joined.  

        The living God is a holy God; God’s “life” is holy life. To “hear” the words

        of God and to “see” God should mean certain death, and yet humans still 

        live by God’s grace. Holiness means judgment and death, yet the Holy 

        One consecrates people to service, equips them with holy power, remem-

        bers mercy, & calls people to life in God’s presence. In summary: Holi-

        ness cannot be simply equated with perfection or righteousness.

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                   5.  Conclusion—The various ascriptions associated with holiness  

        must be read in their total context.  Almost throughout, the symbolism of

        fire is employed, both in the contexts of fire imagery where holiness is 

        not mentioned and in holiness contexts where fire isn't mentioned.  The

        foregoing discussion of terminology is by no means exhaustive.  The 

        force of holiness is actually felt in every sphere of existence.

                   There is considerable theological diversity in the biblical understan-

        ding of holiness.  The old understanding sometimes belongs to the ideo-

        logy of holiness among other peoples.  The new understanding belongs

        entirely to Yahweh as Yahweh reveals the divine self in the election-cove-

        nant events.

                   6. Holiness Historically Revealed: Early Prophets—Definitions & 

        descriptions are in themselves inadequate ways of portraying the reality 

        of divine holiness in the OT & the NT. We fully encounter its effects only by

        what it produces with those who experience its presence in history. In the 

        sources provided by the Yahwistic Writer and Elohistic Writer, the word 

        “holy” is nowhere to be found, but there are several contexts where its 

        reality is felt. At Sodom and Gomorrah, Abram is overcome with the awe-

        some mystery of Yahweh. Jacob feels the dread & darkness of holiness 

        when he awakens from his divine dream.

                   In the early Yahwistic & Elohistic accounts of revelations to Moses, 

        holiness assumes a place of central importance. Moses may not approach

        the bush because the land about it is kadesh.  It is a concrete historical 

        experience with a personal holy God.  Similarly, in Yahweh’s revelation to

        Israel at the Mount, the holy God speaks to the people out of the fire; the 

        Decalogue is the result of this divine appearance. Yahweh’s entrance into 

        a holy compact with a people at Sinai is the foundation and origin of the 

        holy people's life. This concept continued into the New Testament, where 

        it was remembered and given a new perspective.

                   Joshua repeats many Mosaic motifs, including the episode of the  

        holy ground, & in the covenant at Shechem the emphasis upon Yahweh 

        as a holy and jealous God is preserved. And while the book of Judges 

        kadesh appears only once, we have vivid accounts of charismatic endow-

        ment in connection with the holy war. War is a holy undertaking, and the 

        participants are therefore holy. The stories of the ark illustrate its super-

        natural powers, but whatever primitive aspects these stories possess, we

        need to remember its role as the throne on which Yahweh was seated 

        invisibly as Israel’s king.

                  7. Later Prophets— Israel's prophets were heirs of a holy tradition

        reaching back to the time of Moses, in which Yahweh’s holy will and pur-

        pose were determinative for the existence & destiny of the holy people.

        The cultic songs and liturgies exercised a strong influence upon the pro-

        phets. Hosea accentuates the ancient motif of the holy presence “in your 

        midst,” and gives it a depth of meaning transcending the covenant bond.

        The  personal inwardness of the holy relation give him a place in Israel’s 

        holiness theology surpassed by no other.

                   With Isaiah of Jerusalem the absoluteness of the divine holiness is 

        carried to unprecedented heights: Yahweh is the “Holy One of Israel.”  

        What really gives substance to Isaiah’s theology of holiness is the way in 

        which the traditional motifs associated with holiness receive fresh and 

        powerful reformulation. The writer of the second part of Isaiah was just as 

        radical in his reformulation of the contexts & dynamic qualities of the holy

        as Isaiah. The Holy One is simply holy; his holiness is redemptive.

                   To summarize, Israel’s prophets have oriented holiness to the major 

        stream of biblical faith.  Yet holiness has also been deepened and trans-

        formed by a more exclusive emphasis upon the personal & is active in the 

        whole realm of history.  To understand Isaiah’s conception of Yahweh’s 

        holiness, we must view them in their historical contexts. The distance be-

        tween the holy & the profane appears in the contrast between human sin 

        and God’s utter perfection. The holiness of God is now understood more 

        clearly as active, less as a condition or state of being or even supernatural 

        energy and more as an expression of God’s will and purpose.

                   Notable, too, is the divine self-manifestation. In the sight of all the 

        nations, God manifests God’s holiness. Ezekiel’s awareness of divine 

        holiness is more awesome, more sublime & majestic, more cosmic and

        “tremendous,” than that of his prophetic predecessors, precisely because

        he knows the horror of profanation. For him sin is, above all, a profaning 

        of what is holy. From all this it can be seen that holiness isn’t confined 

        solely to the cult's sphere, but extends itself to the peoples of the world &

        to world history. Holiness & glory are closely related. Both have associa-

        tions with fire, holiness stressing heat, power & danger, & glory stressing

        light, radiance and glow. Together they form an impressive and central 

        theology of divine revelation.

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                  8. Priests' and  People's Association with Holiness—In conside-

        ring the place of holiness in priestly life and practice, it is essential to re- 

        cognize that the relatively late sources, the Holiness and Priestly codes, 

        often reflect attitudes which are contemporary with the preaching minis-

        tries of the earlier prophets. The modern tendency to exalt prophetic reli-

        gion has often had the effect of obscuring a major and important part of 

        Israel’s religious life. Prophet & priest actually had much more in com-

        mon than we accustomed to think.  Both belonged to the same cult & 

        both were therefore dedicated to the common life & work of holiness.

                    True Israelites must know what is holy and what is not, in order

        that they may worship their God properly & that they may protect them-

        selves from harm & defilement. As the emphasis upon the cult grew, 

        there was the development of elaborate procedures in regards to distinc-

        tions between the holy & the profane. Moreover, the conceptions of the

        holy tended to be increasingly limited to the cult's realm of the & objects.

        Holy times were also rigorously observed, either as holy days or holy 

        seasons. The Priestly historian brings his account of creation to a culmi-

        nation in the words: “God blessed the seventh day and hallowed it.”

                   Yet all this must not be construed to imply the exclusion of the ethi-

        cal stress of the prophets.  Isaiah 33 & 56 describe the kind of Israelite 

        who may enter into Yahweh’s presence. Leviticus is a superb example of 

        the meaning of holiness in the life of the faithful son of the covenant. “You 

        shall be holy; for I am holy. Yahweh, your God.” These words are now ap-

        plied to every facet of Israel’s existence, but wherever people are involved

        with each other holiness means love. Holiness as the personal nature of 

        Yahweh finds expression in the worship and theology of the Name. Not a 

        spatial image but a spoken word is central; God acts “for his name’s  

        sake.”  The Holiness and Priestly codes employ the term “God’s name” 

        frequently.

                   9. In the NT: Gospels—Outside of the NT, the Greek word agios

        was the least frequently used. In the early days of Greek influences, gios 

        was used in place of a god’s name.  But in biblical usage it is precisely

        this word which is used more than any other. It was used by the transla-

        tors of the OT, but they gave to it a latitude & depth for which the Greeks 

        possessed nothing remotely similar.  In the apocryphal literature, the au-

        thor or translators of these works render kadesh in essentially the same 

        manner. The Scriptures are regarded as holy, the Torah above all, & those 

        who obey it are sometimes called holy.

                   The OT forms the firm basis upon which the NT understanding of 

        holiness is built. This understanding differs from the OT’s in its variation

        in the meaning of holiness and in its radical reorientation because of the

        faith that the Messiah had come in Jesus. What most distinguishes the 

        NT is its linking holiness so strongly to God’s Spirit. The OT employs the 

        expression Spirit” 3 times, whereas the NT has it about 90 times.

                   In the Lord’s Prayer the first petition, “Hallowed be thy name,” 

        matches contemporary Jewish usage and ethics, where God’s name is

        God’s person. It is notable that in the OT & NT the theme of holiness is 

        expressed with lyrical adoration. It is in praise, holy calling, and prayer 

        that the holiness of God is celebrated by the early Christians as it was 

        also in the worship of the children of the old covenant.

                   Calling Jesus holy appears only infrequently in the NT. One rea-

        son for this may be the large place assumed by the Holy Spirit's activity. 

        When Jesus is called “the Holy One,”  it is generally a messianic title. In 

        Luke the holiness of Jesus is already related to his birth. The Gospel of 

        John transforms Peter’s Confession into a solemn declaration of faith: 

        “We have believed that you are the Holy one of God.” The use of “holy 

        one” in Revelation 3 adds a new variation in meaning: “The words of the 

        holy one, the true one, who has the key of David.” 

                   The book of Acts follows its own course by identifying the Holy One 

        with the Servant of the Lord written about by the 2nd part of Isaiah’s writer. 

        In Acts, Peter & John rejoice in the signs & wonders performed “through  

        the name of thy holy servant Jesus.”  The Letter to the Hebrews’ writer, 

        while not calling Jesus “Holy One”, has much to say of his sanctifying 

        office as mediator of a new covenant. The writer’s solid background in OT 

        tradition is apparent in his description of Jesus as mediator.

                   10. Early Church—The NT church is successor to the old cove-

        nant's worshiping community.  In its appropriation of Israel's sacred wri-

        tings, it possessed categories & symbols out of which the new age was to

        be interpreted.  Where it did not appropriate the old forms and images, it     

        looked to see what new form, if any, they might take. Thus the idea of the 

        holy people continued in the early Christian worshipping community.

                  Once, the gentiles were “separated” from Israel, but now they are 

        “brought near” in the blood of Christ, who has reconciled them to God in 

        the one body through the Cross.  If the vocabulary of holiness is not attri-

        buted to God and Christ as often as we should expect, it nevertheless per-

        meates the whole NT as it does the OT, by the activity of the Holy Spirit, 

        by the life and conduct of “the saints,” and by its constant dependence 

        upon the OT scriptures.

HOLINESS CODE. See Pentateuch.

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HOLM TREE (תרזה (tir za), hard tree) A tree used both for firewood and for

        idol manufacture.  The translation “holm tree” in Isaiah 44 is confusing,

        since the true holm is a holly. The root rawzeh (to be lean) might support 

        the identification with the slender cypress. The context implies either a 

        conifer or an oak.

HOLON (הלון, sandy)   1. A village of Judah in the hill-country district of Debir,

        although it is identified with a site northwest of Hebron in the province of 

        Beth-zur; it was designated a Kohathite Levitcal city.     

        2. A town in the tableland of Moab. Its site is unknown.

HOLY ARRAY. See Array, Holy.

HOLY GHOST. See Holy Spirit.

HOLY OF HOLIES (Agia ’Agiwn  (ag ee ah ag ee on)) The innermost sanc- 

        tuary of the temple. See Tabernacle; Temple.

HOLY ONE, THE (קדוש (ka doshe); o agioV (oh ag ee os)) In the Old Tes-

        tament, the title of Yahweh, Israel’s God, especially in the prophecy of 

        Isaiah. In the New Testament the title is applied to the Messiah.

HOLY PLACE (מקום קדש (mah kome kaw deshe)) The tabernacle or tent of 

        meeting; the temple and its precincts. See Tabernacle; Temple.

HOLY SEPULCHRE (tafoV (ta fos); mnhma (meneh ma); mnhmeion (meneh

        may ee on)) The Jerusalem cave where Jesus of Nazareth was entombed.

        In the New Testament there are three different Greek words for this term. 

        The “holy sepulchre” refers to the tomb of Jesus, although it is nowhere de-

        scribed as “holy.” The account of John casually notes that there was a gar-

        den there with a new tomb in it.

                   There is no record from the first three Christian centuries that any 

        place had been marked as the holy sepulchre. Emperor Constantine 

        directed Bishop Macarius to ascertain this site. Constantine then erected 

        over this tomb the Church of the Anastasis. The site thus chosen for the

        holy sepulchre is the one now marked by the Aedicule within the domed 

        rotunda of the later & larger Church of the Holy Sepulchre. One other 

        site has been accepted by many as the holy sepulchre. It is a short 

        distance north of the Damascus  Gate and near Golgotha, but actually,

        this rock-cut tomb is one of many in the area.      

HOLY SPIRIT (רוח קדש (ru ak ka desh); pneuma agion (new ma  ag ee 

        on))  The mysterious power of God, conceived in the first place as the 

        mode of God’s activity, especially in supernatural revelation to selected 

        individuals. It was a force which gave marvelous strength, courage, wis-

        dom, & the knowledge of God’s will. In the New Testament (NT) it was 

        understood as the mode of God’s operation in the church, made possi-

        ble through Christ, and mediating the glorified Christ to his people and 

        the church to its exalted Head.

                   List of Topics—1. Old Testament (OT) Conceptions of the

        Spirit;       2. Holy Spirit in Prophecy;      3. NT Teachings: John the

        Baptist and Jesus Christ;     4.  Matthew and Mark;      5. Luke;

        6. Acts;       7. The Apostle Paul;      8. Relationship to Law, Flesh,

        and Love;      9. Other Letters;     10. John’s Gospel and Letters. 

                   1. Old Testament (OT) Conceptions of the Spirit—In the OT, the 

        Spirit of the Lord is regarded as the source of the endowment of Israel’s-

        heroes with extraordinary physical strength. It is a supernatural and unpre-

        dictable power which takes possession of a man, and controls his action

        like a tremendous inner force; the divine Spirit animates the human perso-

        nality. The action of the Spirit in taking possession of a person can be 

        dramatically described as “clothing itself” with the human being.
                   The Spirit is principally thought of as the source of mental and     

        spiritual perception and abilities in specially favored individuals, which so 

        heightens their natural powers as to bestow upon them those qualities 

        which they need in order to fulfill their calling. It is by the action of the 

        Spirit that kings and rulers receive the gifts necessary for leadership. The 

        judges, in particular, are represented as Spirit-possessed men. Saul was 

        similarly empowered to lead Israel. And as the divinely chosen king of 

        Israel, David was a Spirit-filled ruler. It is significant that after his anoin-  

        ting that the Spirit of the Lord departed from Saul.

                   The expectations associated with the house of David point to the

        hope of a ruler endowed with the Spirit of God. This inward anointing with

        the Spirit is evidently thought of as having an outward counterpart in the 

        external rite of anointing. The linking of anointing and Spirit possession is 

        repeated in Isaiah 42 and 61. The primitive church’s conception of the 

        messiahship of Jesus owes much to the two last-named passages.

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                   In the OT the conception of a messianic bearer of the Spirit plays

        little part. It appears more explicitly in the apocryphal literature. The idea

        that the future Messiah would be the bearer of the Spirit became fused

        with the expectation of an out-pouring of the Spirit at the present age's

        end. The NT sees the hope of a Spirit-possessed Messiah fulfilled in its 

        coming upon Jesus at his baptism.

                   1.  Holy Spirit in Prophecy—The Spirit is sometimes transferred 

        from one Spirit-possessed individual to another when the first person 

        commissions someone as his representative or alter ego. The primary 

        manifestation of the activity of the Spirit in the OT is prophecy. It is by 

        the Spirit that God sent his warnings to Israel through the prophets. Joel 

        pictures the outpouring of the Spirit on all flesh, so that prophesying, 

        dreams and visions will no longer be restricted to a few specially chosen  

        individuals. 

                   The outward manifestation of the spirit of prophecy is primarily to

        be seen in ecstatic phenomena. The 70 elders of Israel who become 

        assistants to Moses are Spirit-possessed. When Saul encounters the 

        band of prophets descending from a high place with their music, he is 

        immediately infected by their ecstatic enthusiasm, and at one point 

        “stripped off his clothes, and he too prophesied before Samuel, and lay

        naked all that day and night.”

                   The Spirit-possessed prophet may move unexpectedly & mysteri-

        ously from place to place under the compelling power of divine energy. 

        It is the Spirit which enables him to see what is taking place at a great 

        distance. In the case of the Hebrew prophets, however,  the inspiration

        of the Spirit is a temporary and passing phenomenon. Only in the grea-

        test figures can it be said that the Spirit comes to possess a man perma-

        nently, such as Moses, Elijah, and Elisha.

                   Ecstasy is not the most important effect of Spirit-possession, nor

        are they a necessary proof of it. The Spirit is the source of all intellectual

        & spiritual gifts. It is the inspiration of the people of wisdom. The effects

        of the Spirit are not merely in the ecstatic ravings, but in the permanent 

        establishment of justice and righteousness among the people of God.  

        Above all, the Spirit is the activity of God in sanctification.

                   The divine Spirit is the mode of God’s judgment on his people &

        is thus associated by Isaiah with Jerusalem's cleansing. Through the 

        Spirit’s action God’s justice and righteousness are to be established in 

        Israel. The Spirit is “holy,” as being the active mode of the operation on 

        earth of the transcendent God. As the personal power of God, effective 

        in the moral and spiritual transformation of God’s people, the Spirit will 

        be the inner principle of the life of the restored community, a renewal of

        the covenant relationship between God and Israel. Through the divine 

        Spirit there will be a transformation of the human character, so that a 

        “heart of flesh” replaces the “heart of stone.”

                   The prophetic hope of the coming of God’s Spirit is one aspect of 

        the blessedness of the age of fulfillment. The Spirit-possession of Israel 

        is associated with divine judgment and with the renewal of Israel as the

        people of the covenant. The metaphor of the new life brought about by 

        the creative Spirit was to exert a powerful influence on the development

        of Christian imagery. The Spirit is re-enacting a part already assigned to

        it in the creation of all things. The ruach or “breath,” “wind,” or “Spirit” of

        God is the creative power which brings life to the formless chaos; it is the 

        “inbreathing” by God of the life principle. This life principle isn't to be iden-

        tified with the actual Spirit of God, but rather an effect of its operation.

                   The OT’s thought is interested in God’s activity rather than in the  

        metaphysical problem of God’s being; God’s Spirit is seen in its operation.

        It is occasionally implied that God’s Spirit is identical either with God’s 

        being, or God’s personality. Isaiah sets in parallel the “mouth” & the  

        “Spirit;” the spirit is God’s person, God’s personal presence in God’s

        relation to humans. There are few developments in the intertestamental

        period which radically affect the NT conception of the nature & work of

        the Holy Spirit. The Spirit continues to be the spirit of prophecy, & since

        all prophecy was believed to have ended with the OT, the spirit of prophe-

        cy was believed to lie dormant. The expectation persisted of a future 

        outpouring of Spirit on Israel.

                   3. NT Teachings: John the Baptist and Jesus Christ—The long-

        awaited fulfillment of a general renewal of the prophetic Spirit was seen by 

        John the Baptist to be approaching. Elizabeth & Zechariah, John’s parents, 

        are “filled with the Holy Spirit.” Simeon is likewise inspired to recognize the 

        Christ in Jesus. This emphasis on a renewal of the Spirit of prophecy as 

        the prelude to the gospel is peculiar to Luke; but the synoptic tradition 

        agrees in seeing John himself as a Spirit-possessed prophet. His mission

        was to prepare a faithful remnant of Israel, and his baptism recalled the 

        language of the OT prophets, which likened the action of the Spirit to that

        of water in the desert.

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                   John’s baptism was not in itself an effective sign of the fulfillment of

        the ancient hope of a general outpouring of the Spirit. The promised out-

        pouring of the Spirit waited until the saving work of the Messiah should 

        have been completed. The baptism with the Holy Spirit of which he had 

        spoken actually took place when Jesus came to be baptized by him. The

        great turning point in the biblical history is Jesus' Baptism. The baptism is 

        therefore the first of the gospel events. 

                   Whereas the people as a whole had been baptized by John as a

        remnant elected to await the dawning of the age of fulfillment, Jesus

        received in his own person the promised  outpouring of the Spirit. It wasn't

        a mere possession by an impersonal force, but rather a state of personal

        union with God the Father. The descent of the Spirit “like a dove” asserts

        the completeness of this Spirit-possession which is identical with sonship.

        The actual symbolism of the dove is obscure.

                   4. Matthew and Mark—The Synoptic gospels contain few referen-

        ces to the Holy Spirit. Mark explains that it was under the Spirit's compul-

        sion that Jesus retreated to the desert to grapple with the temptation by

        the devil. Mark doesn’t tell us explicitly that the Spirit was the divine prin-

        ciple & energy of Jesus' ministry, but this is implicit in the Markan saying

        about the blasphemy against the Holy Spirit. The direct & total opposition

        to Jesus’ mission was blasphemy against the Holy Spirit.

                   Mark’s allusion to the Spirit in the context of confessing Christ 

        while being persecuted represents an exception to his general rule of not 

        alluding to the Spirit, which is a post-resurrection event. In the Little Apo-

        calypse, Mark can properly lay emphasis on the inspiration of the Spirit 

        which would be experienced by faithful confessors being persecuted.

                   Matthew, working from Mark, takes the statement about Jesus 

        going into the wilderness, and transforms it into a leading rather than a 

        “compulsion.” Matthew makes explicit the fact implied in Mark that it is by

        the operation of the Spirit in his ministry that Jesus performs the mighty

        works which are the sign of the approach of the Kingdom of God in his own

        person. The works of Jesus betoken the present operation of the Spirit,  

        bringing about an anticipation in Jesus' ministry of the promised times of 

        the end.  Matthew uses the statement from Isaiah 42 about the Servant

        of the Lord, with Jesus being the Servant possessed of the Spirit of God 

        for the execution of his saving mission.

                   Looking forward from Jesus’ ministry, Matthew reproduces the 

        Markan promise of a direct inspiration of the Spirit. In this gospel there 

        occurs the command of the risen Lord to his disciples to “make disciples

        of all nations, baptizing them in the name of the Father and of the Son &

        of the Holy Spirit.” Although the baptismal practice of the early apostolic

        church does not appear to have used the Trinity, it may well be that in   

        certain quarters it was already so employed by 80 or 90 A.D. The Holy 

        Spirit’s association with “God” and “the Lord Jesus Christ” is already attes-

        ted by Paul’s concluding prayer in II Corinthian 13. The later liturgical for-

        mula in Matthew represents only a somewhat more theological expression 

        of the same belief.

                   5. Gospel of Luke—In Luke’s writings, although he also uses Mark,

        there is considerably more emphasis on the Spirit's operation. Luke adds  

        an emphasis of his own to the relatively meager sayings about the Spirit 

        which he found in Mark and Quelle (Source other than Mark). Luke sees 

        the Spirit as active before the birth of John, & in the Spirit’s power Jesus     

        carries out his mighty works. After the death, resurrection, and ascension 

        of Jesus, the same Spirit which rested upon him is bestowed upon the      

        community of his followers.

                   Just as the Spirit was God's creative agency in the world's forma-

        tion, so the Spirit came upon Mary & enabled her to become miraculous-

        ly the mother of the promised Messiah. In Luke, the nature of the Spirit’s 

        activity is more explicitly described: the Spirit is equated with the “power

        of the Most High.” It is said to “come upon” Mary & “overshadow” her. 

        The use of the word “overshadow” is intended to point to the “overshado-

        wing” of the cloud at the Transfiguration, when the sonship of Jesus is 

        announced. 

                 The opening of Jesus' ministry is in Luke’s account characterized by 

        the Spirit's working in him, after its descent at the Jordan. Like Matthew,

        Luke takes the statement in Mark about Jesus going into the wilderness,

        and transforms it into a leading rather than a “compulsion.” Luke 11:20 

        makes explicit the fact implied in Mark that it is by the Spirit's operation

        in his ministry that Jesus performs the mighty works which are the sign

        of the approach of the Kingdom of God in his own person.

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                   The opposition of the scribes to Jesus’ ministry was deliberate &   

        conscious, an ultimate rejection of the saving activity of God in the person

        of Jesus.   Luke 12:10 contrasts this blasphemy against the Holy Spirit 

        specifically with “speaking a word against the Son of man.” With this same 

        verse & the one before it, the blasphemy against the Spirit has thus been 

        transferred in thought from the context of Christ’s ministry to that of the     

        situation of the missionary church.  The added emphasis on the Spirit’s 

        role in the earthly ministry of Jesus and its role in the early church is cha-

        racteristic of Luke’s editorial insertions & additional notes.

                   One of the most important passages which exemplify such addi-

        tions is the proclamation by Jesus of the purpose of his mission in the 

        synagogue at Nazareth. Here Jesus declares himself to be the prophet 

        announced in Isaiah 61. He is the ideally Spirit-possessed prophet. This

        is the key to the Lukan picture of Jesus and of the church, which was to

        carry on the same mission, after his death and resurrection had made it

        possible for the Spirit to be bestowed on his people in their turn. 

                   It is important to notice that the profound & exultant expression of 

        complete personal union between Jesus & the Father was a moment of 

        rejoicing “in the Holy Spirit.” It is a relationship to God in which the disci-

        ples of Jesus will be enabled to share a little.   Hence, for Luke the  

        supreme object of Christian prayer is the gift of the Holy Spirit (Luke 

        :13). A similar saying in Matthew contains no reference to the Holy Spirit.

                   The Gospel of Luke ends with the announcement by the risen Lord

        that the divine promise is about to be fulfilled, when the disciples will be 

        “clothed with power from on high.” The second volume of Luke’s work, the 

        Book of the Acts of the Apostle, describes how this came about and pre-

        sents a ministry of the church in the power of the Spirit, parallel with that 

        of Jesus.

                   6. Acts—In Acts, the fulfillment of the divine promise is completed  

        at Jesus’ ascension. Thereafter the Lord himself is in heaven. He is no

        longer with his disciples, but the Spirit is the link between the ascended 

        Lord and those to whom he has covenanted to administer it. The Spirit is

        the same as that which rested upon Jesus, and it can even be called the 

        “Spirit of Jesus.”

                   The Spirit supplies the personal link which makes it possible for the 

        works of Jesus to be continued. In the second verse of this book it was 

        “through the Holy Spirit” that the risen Lord gave his final commandment

        to his apostles. It is conceived by Luke in terms of the Spirit of prophecy, 

        which is now the power and motive principle of the church’s missionary 

        witness to Christ throughout the world. Since the Spirit is the inspiration

        dynamic principle of the missionary enterprise, it is appropriate that he 

        should depict the Pentecostal event as an onrush of divine power, like the

        wind or the ruach of the OT. The purpose of the Spirit’s onrush is to bestow

        upon them the gifts most needed for the mission to the whole world.       

                   And the gift isn't something confined to the original witnesses. “The 

        promise is to you and to your children and to all that are far off.” The vitally 

        important difference between John’s baptism & the Christian baptism is  

        that the latter is “in the name of Jesus Messiah.” The people of Christ now 

        receive the fulfillment of what in John’s preaching could only be a promise

        for the future. Spirit-possession is also the mark of the apostolic witness 

        who confesses Christ. This inspiration of the Christian missionaries is con-

        tinuous with the inspiration of the OT. Pentecost is confirmed in the new 

        situation of danger & persecution.

                   Certain outstanding leaders of the mission are described as being 

        possessed by the Holy Spirit, such as the apostle Stephen. Paul is similar-

        ly “filled with the Holy Spirit.” Other leaders are also specially marked out

        as being Spirit-possessed: the Seven; Barnabas; & after his conversion. 

        There is no necessary contradiction between this special endowment and 

        the general impression that the whole church was the Spirit-possessed 

        community of the new covenant. Christian belief held that the inspired pro-

        phets of the OT were in harmony with the Spirit-guided and spirit-empo-

        wered mission of the prophetic Christian preachers. The Old Israel’s resis-

        tance, described as resisting the Holy Spirit was foreshadowed by the pro-

        phecy of Isaiah.

                   Luke concentrates his attention upon the specifically missionary 

        gifts of the Spirit. On the other hand, the Spirit is also the life principle of

        the community as a whole, where its manifestations are to be seen rather

        in the common life, brotherhood & joy. When the church in a particular area

         is at peace and is being consolidated, it is “walking in the fear of the Lord 

        and in the comfort of the Holy Spirit.” 

                   Above all, in Luke’s picture of the primitive church’s life, the Spirit

        is the worldwide mission’s guiding & controlling power.  The Spirit instructs

        Philip to join the Ethiopian eunuch, and it directs the church at Antioch to 

        send out Barnabas & Silas as their missionaries to the Gentiles countries. 

        The Council of Jerusalem makes its decisions in the confidence that they 

        come from the Spirit’s direct guidance.  On the second missionary journey 

        the Spirit dictates to Paul & Silas how the mission is to be pursued.  It is 

        in connection with the missionary preachers' guidance that the Spirit is  

        specifically described as the “Spirit of Jesus.”

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                   Though the relationship between the entire community’s experience

        of the Spirit and special prophetic endowment is never really expressed, it 

        is clear that he implies a distinction between them.  And the question of 

        how Luke conceives that the Spirit had been received by ordinary mem-

        bers is very difficult to answer.  

                    It is a central theme of Luke’s theology that the age of fulfillment 

        has dawned and that its characteristic mark is the Spirit's outpouring; the 

        Spirit is now the possession of the community as a whole.  Pentecost inau-

        gurates the age of the church and its worldwide mission.  The gift of the 

        Spirit will now be available to all who repent and are baptized in the name 

        of Jesus Christ. It would appear that the rite of baptism has become for the 

        Christian, the effective sign of the reception of the Spirit.

                   The conversion of Cornelius and his household would seem to be

        a contradiction of this. The Spirit “fell on” the converts as they were liste-

        ning to Peter’s preaching, & then their baptism followed. Another contra-

        diction is the Samaritan converts who were baptized by Philip but whose 

        reception of the Spirit was delayed until Peter and John had come from 

        Jerusalem. When Peter and John give them a token of “solidarity,” they 

        begin to manifest their possession by the Spirit. It is unlikely that Luke

        intends this story to be regarded as typical of the church’s normal mission-

        ary work.

                   7. The Apostle Paul—In Paul’s case it isn’t clear whether recep-

        tion of the Spirit was from his baptism or whether it preceded it.  The

        imposition of hands on Paul was for healing; the promised gift of the 

        Spirit came when he “rose and was baptized.”  Paul’s decision to pass 

        through Macedonia is his own idea; but it is arrived at in awareness of the 

        leading of a divine power that had a purpose in mind for him. The elders

        of the Ephesian congregation were made “guardians” or “overseers” in the

        church by the Spirit. In the course of Paul’s last journey to Jerusalem, the 

        prophetic Spirit is also active in warning him of the dangers & difficulties

        which await him. 

                   At Ephesus Paul met disciples who had been baptized by Apollos 

        only with “John’s baptism. They had accordingly not received the Holy 

        Spirit. Most likely they were converts made by Apollo, who had a different 

        belief as to how Jesus was to be understood & accepted. They were bap-

        tized by Paul “in the name of the Lord Jesus,” & “when Paul had laid his 

        hand upon them, the Holy Spirit came on them.” 

                   Also regarding Apollos, he is described as “being fervent in spirit,” 

        although he “knew only the baptism of John.”  A possible explanation is 

        that “spirit” here means his own spirit, not the Spirit of God. Yet the bold-

        ness of speech which is ascribed to him is usually a mark of the Spirit.     

        Perhaps he shared in an unusual manner of the Spirit.  His case warns 

        us not to try to use Luke’s writing as a basis for working out any rigid  

        formulations.

                   “Holy Spirit” is used both with a definite article (20 times) and with-

        out (18). No rigid  distinction can be made between the two usages. Luke 

        shares the general NT theology of the Spirit as manifested in the baptism

        of Jesus, but he adds his own peculiar insistence on the Spirit as the guide 

        and dynamic power of the worldwide mission.

                   Paul says little about the relation of the Spirit to Jesus during his   

        earthly life. The Spirit of holiness or Holy Spirit is almost equivalent to the 

        divine principle in Jesus. For Paul, the Spirit is the mode of Christ’s pre-

        sence among his people. Christ dwells in the believer and in the commu-

        nity; the believer is “in Christ,” and the community is the “body of Christ."

                   The new life which Christians share through grace, responded to 

        by faith is being “in the Spirit.” It includes the Christian life's whole con-

        tent. It this state, the Spirit of God dwells in the believers. The “Spirit of 

        God” is now recognized as the “Spirit of Christ.” The Spirit isn't identical

        with Christ; but the Spirit mediates Christ to the church. Hence the Spirit

        and Christ may be spoken of interchangeably as the principle of the new 

        life and the sphere of man’s access by grace and faith to God the Father.

        There can be no revelation of the Spirit which contradicts the basic Chris-

        tian faith in Christ as Lord.

                   Since the Spirit is the Christian’s way of experiencing the risen       

        Christ, it is possible for Paul to set together “the Lord Jesus Christ,” “God,” 

        and “the Holy Spirit.”  Yet Paul’s identification of the Spirit of God with

        the operation of the risen Christ in and among his people does not lead 

        him to make a substantial identification of the Spirit as a divine “person” 

        with Christ as a divine “person.” 

                   Paul has been contrasting the dispensation of the Spirit with that 

        of the law. This leads him to consider the blindness of the Jews for not 

        discerning the true meaning of the OT.  Yet, just as Moses laid aside the 

        veil that covered his face, when he went in to commune with God, so 

        when the Jews turn to the Lord, they will understand. In their case, the 

        phrase “the Lord” means “the Spirit,” the principle of the new life in Christ.

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                   8. Relationship to Law, Flesh, and Love—As the principle of the  

        new life, the Spirit stands in sharp contrast to the Law. The new covenant

        is a relationship to God consisting in and depending upon the indwelling

        of God’s Spirit, and not a legal relationship embodied in a written code. 

        Release from the law and its condemnation means a discharge from servi-

        tude and an entry into the new life in which the Spirit is the motive and 

        principle of life in Christ.

                   The “law of the Spirit of life in Christ Jesus” is of a totally different

        kind. It is given only through “hearing” the gospel “with faith.” Paul con-

        trasts the 2 laws in his letter to the Galatians, who were being led back 

        to legalism: “Did you receive the Spirit by works of the law, or by hearing

        with faith?” To abandon the gospel of grace & revert to legalism would 

        be to exchange life in the Spirit for life “in the flesh,” i.e. human nature in

        its unredeemed state, as alienated from God. It is in itself incapable of 

        responding to the Spirit.  

                   Those who are walking by the Spirit must contend against the hos-

        tile principle of the flesh. Life in the flesh results in corruption; life in the 

        Spirit is eternal life. By the Spirit they put to death the deeds of the body. 

        The Spirit's promise was thus reserved for those who receive it through 

        faith, not legal works.  Through Spirit, Christians are enabled to address 

        God as Father. The Christian has access to the Father and communion 

        with him. In the Spirit humans can speak to God. And the community as a 

        whole is a temple in which God’s Spirit dwells.

                   The church collectively is a structure in which its members are built 

        together as a “dwelling place of God in the Spirit.” The one Spirit is the 

        ground of the church’s unity as the one body of Christ. Present possession

        of the Spirit is a guarantee & the 1st part of the redemption which is to be 

        entered into hereafter. The supreme manifestation of the working of the 

        Spirit is love. God’s love is poured into the hearts of Christians; it is the 

        source of the love which binds the Christian body. Joy is also associated

        with the Spirit’s presence.

                   All Christians are thus partakers of the Spirit, who should “be filled  

        with the Spirit.” At the same time, the Spirit is manifested in certain special

        endowments for particular purposes. The Spirit characterizes Paul’s labors 

        and enables him to present his ministry to the Gentiles. The Spirit remains 

        the Spirit of prophecy manifested in prophesying, tongues, and ecstatic      

        utterances. While Paul allows the value of prophetic and ecstatic gifts, he 

        insists that not only these, but all forms of service in the church are equally 

        the work of the Spirit. He also prefers prophecy to “tongues.”

                   9. Other Letters—The Pastoral letters & the Letter to the Hebrews

        add little to the teaching of the acknowledged Pauline letters. Hebrews 

        states that the Spirit speaks through the scriptures, & that it was through

        the Spirit that Christ carried out his self-offering. I Peter mentions the pro-

        phets’ inspiration to speak of Christ: they were possessed by Christ’s

        Spirit even under the old covenant. The letter of Jude contrasts those 

        causing a schism, who were devoid of Spirit, with those who continue to

        pray in the Spirit.

                   10. John’s Gospel and Letters—The Johannine literature is far 

        richer in its Spirit doctrine. Christ is uniquely possessed of the Spirit. The 

        Christian is one who experiences a new birth of the Spirit. The new birth

        in the Spirit is not available until Christ’s work is accomplished and he is 

        glorified. Christ’s disciples are instructed about the coming of the Spirit,

        who is now spoken of as the “Counselor” or “Paraclete” who is to dwell 

        with and in them, as the Spirit of truth. The Spirit is to be the guide into all 

        truth, for he will mediate Christ to believers.

                   When the Resurrection has taken place, the gift of the Spirit is be- 

        stowed on Christ’s followers by his creative inbreathing. All Christians are 

        anointed with the Holy Spirit. The Spirit witnesses to the reality of Christ’s 

        incarnation, with the water and the blood of his death and of the Christian 

        sacraments. In Revelation the Spirit is once again the inspiration of the 

        prophet.

               

HOMAM (הומם, defeat) A Horite in Edom. (I Chronicles 1).

HOMER (המר) A dry measure equal to ten ephahs. Various estimates put its

        volume between 3.8 and 6.6 bushels.

HOMICIDE. See Crime and Punishments.

HOMOSEXUALITY. Biblical records show that homosexual practices were wide-

        spread in the ancient Near East. Sodom is notorious for its citizens’ attemp-

        ted homosexual assault on Lot‘s guests. In the legal codes homosexual     

        relations are forbidden. Male prostitution in connection with foreign cults 

        may have been one factor in strong biblical repudiation of homosexuality. 

        Homosexuals are condemned by Paul. 

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HONEY (דבש (deb ash), syrup; נפת (no pheth), meli (meh lee)) The honey

        of the Bible was of 3 kinds: thick grape syrup; wild honey; & honey from 

        domesticated bees. Honey is often mentioned in lists of good things of 

        the land (e.g. “a land flowing with milk and honey,”). Sweetness of honey

        is often used as a metaphor.

HONOR (כבוד (kaw bode), glory) High respect, esteem, or reverence shown 

        to, received from, or felt in regard to another person. Particularly in the 

        Old Testament, however, the term refers to a possession of a person, 

        closely connected with his position in the community. Honor and glory are 

        closely connected in the Bible in a theological sense.  By far the majority 

        of occurrences refer to man's honor, which is clearly understood to be

        a gift of God His honor may be lost through misfortune or through disobe-

        dience to God. A man’s honor must be employed in the maintenance of 

        wholeness or shalom within the community's life. Thus honor is closely 

        connected with justice, and righteousness.

                   The New Testament also uses “honor” primarily in reference to man.

        It contains numerous admonitions, however, against a person’s seeking 

        honor for himself. Should he be required to suffer dishonor, this need not 

        indicate faithlessness or infidelity to God. On the contrary, it may be a mark

        of his discipleship. All glory & honor & dominion are to be conferred upon 

        God, because he is worthy of honor, and because he is the source of all 

        honor.  To withhold the honor due to God or to his Son is sin.

                 
HOOK ( a.) וו (vav), pin; b.) חח (khawkh), ring; c.) צנה (tsin naw), fishhook;

        d.) שפתים (she pheh theme), stalls; ‘agkistron  (ag kis tron))
                   a.) A gold or silver hook attached to the pillars of the tabernacle 

        (Exodus 26 or 27)     b.) A ring inserted in the nose or jaw (II Kings 19;

        Ezekiel 29).     c.) (Isaiah 19; Habakkuk 1; Job 40)     d.) Word of doubtful 

        meaning (Ezekiel 40)      e.) Greek for fishhook (Matthew 17).

HOOPOE (דוכיפת (doo kie fath)) Any of a family of Old World birds, having a 

        head crest of erectable plumes and a long, slender curved bill. The 

        hoopoe’s search for grubs & small insects in such places as dung hills

        may account for its being classed among Israel’s unclean birds.

HOPE (בטח (baw takh), trust, rely on; תקוה (tik vaw), expectation; יחל (yaw 

        khal), wait; תוחלת (to kheh leth), expectation; elpiV (el pece), expecta-

        tion) In the Old Testament (OT) “hope” is the translation of many Hebrew 

        words, each with its own diverse associations. In both OT and New Testa-

        ment (NT), the word “hope,” whether as noun or as verb, points to ranges

        of experience and truth with are often missed in casual reading. The exis-

        tence of hope springs from the covenants made by God with his people.

        Hope is intricately involved in the total pattern of divine action and human 

        response.

                   The basic question isn't whether they are good or bad, but whether

        they are futile or valid.  And what humankind can base its ultimate confi-

        dence in is therefore the chief issue facing them. Hope is defined, not so

        much by the distinct shape of specific desires and expectations, as by the

        fact that it springs from God’s creative and sustaining power and that it 

        moves toward a good which is congruent with that power. 

                   People respond to this God with four attitudes which together con-

        stitute hope as a response. People trust in God. They show a ready eager-

        ness to take refuge in God from one’s foes. They have the confident expec-

        tation of good & future gladness. They are waiting in patience & courage 

        for the Lord to bring salvation. Hope as a living, present bond between the 

        God of hope and the hoping Israel thus becomes a major definition of the  

        righteous community's life. Based on God, it isn't immediately destroyed 

        by unexpected shifts in human fortunes. It gives to man’s existence a 

        future-orientation without investing all reliance on a specific historical goal. 

                   “Hope” is a primary term in the NT vocabulary, appearing in all the

        major books, rarely in the gospels & not at all in Revelation. In fewer than

        of its occurrences in the NT, “hope” describes a human situation quite 

        apart from any religious content. The farmer desires & expects a harvest;

        the lender desires & expects a return. Hope stands or falls with the depen-

        dability of the expectation. The basis of expectation thus becomes the 

        decisive element of hope. It is with this basis that the theological use of the 

        word primarily deals.

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                   In the theological contexts, “hope” involves all facets of the mani-    

        fold relationships of God & God’s people. God is the author & source of 

        hope, its sustaining power, and its unseen yet certain object. Because

        hope is God-grounded, hope is a reality within which humans may dwell.

      . Hope is simultaneously the response among God’s people to his activity 

        among them. As a description of this response, hope is expectation ex- 

        pressed in faith, confidence, patience, endurance, and eagerness. 

                   To Paul, God is the source and ground of hope, the “God of hope.”

        The hope which constitutes the ground of faith’s expectancy is so objec-

        tively certain that it is virtually synonymous with the destiny promised by

        God. The power to hope is conveyed from God to men through the Holy 

        Spirit. Just as the new life of believers is constituted simultaneously by 

        their living in Christ and by Christ’s living in them, so too their hope is in

        Christ, and their hope is Christ active in them.

                  The object hoped for in Paul’s thought is the continuation & comple-

        tion of this work of Father, Son, and Spirit. As a human response to God’s 

        activity, hope is for Paul closely associated with unshakable confidence. 

        Faith exhibits a confidence which is strengthened not weakened, by the 

        apparent impossibility of the promise. In hope, the church participates in

        the futility & bondage of the whole creation, where God's sons are con-

        spicuous by their weakness as well as by their patience. It should be noted 

        that hope is at once corporate& personal both in its source in God & in its 

        manifestation in humankind. The hope of  Abraham has archetypal validi-

        ty for all Abraham’s true descendants. In Christ as the new Adam, the “one 

        man,” God offers “acquittal and life” to all. Those who share the life of this 

        new Man are bound together into one hope.

                 Luke uses “hope” in its theological context less frequently. Hope is  

        simply the expectation of a Messiah who will redeem Israel. Although the 

        Cross seemed to frustrate this hope’s, the risen Lord brought the certainty

        of its fulfillment. For Luke, the ultimate ground of hope is God, whose pro-

        mise to the fathers is fulfilled in Jesus Christ’s resurrection. It is through 

        the Resurrection and the Ascension that the Holy Spirit is given, and this

        Spirit enables men to see what prophets & kings had long hoped to see.

        The opposition between the apostles and the Jews developed over the

        resurrection of Jesus in fulfillment of the “hope of Israel.”

                   It is characteristic of the Letter to the Hebrews to use the phrase  

        “the hope.” Also stressed is the conviction that because Jesus is its sure-

        ty, this is a better promise & a better covenant with a better hope, because

        the Day is drawing near & now we can draw near to God. This faith is 

        variously described and fully illustrated: a confident, obedient heart, the 

        opposite of hard hearts; courageous & patient endurance; & the unwave-

        ring & the untiring confession. It is because Jesus is the promise’s surety

        that he is also pioneer & perfecter of faith. Because of Christ’s entrance as 

        priest into the Holy of holies, our hope is located where he is.

                        In I Peter, “hope” is a key word in what has rightly been called the

             letter of hope. Hope is a mark of rebirth through God’s mercy. Birth into

             hope is birth into an inheritance which comprises both the coming salva-

             tion and the present status as heirs. The Christians’ hope not only marks

             the boundary between their former and their new life; it also marks the

             boundary with the world. Hope is that expectation of the coming grace

             which is manifested by sober obedience and holiness.

                        As in the OT, so in the NT, no single word is sufficient for expres-

             sing the reality of hope. Although the word elpis is rarely used, God’s pro-

             mise and gift of God’s kingdom is assumed to be the ground and object 

             of human expectation. Everywhere Jesus commands his disciples to seek

             first God’s kingdom, surrendering all other desires and claims. So, too, in

             the book of Revelation, the relationship of the Messiah to his people is full

             of hope, even though the word is absent. Throughout the Bible, the thought

             of hope fuses together the reality of God as the source and goal of expec-

             tation and the totality of faith’s response: trust, eagerness, patient endu-

             rance, and joyful assurance.

HOPHNI AND PHINEHAS (הפני (hof nee), fighter; פינהס (fin ee as), mouth

        of brass) The 2 sons of Eli who with him were priests of Yahweh at Shiloh 

        and were worthless, utterly depraved. They ignored Eli’s rebuke, and Eli

        didn’t reform them. Because of their unchecked sin the doom of Eli’s 

        house was declared. Hophni & Phineas accompanied the Ark of the Cove-

        nant to the battlefield at Aphek and were slain in the disastrous battle with 

        the Philistines. The genealogy in I Samuel 14, which makes Phinehas the

        grandfather of the Ahijah who accompanied the ark in Saul's reign, is in-

        trusive & most likely is an interpolation designed to place all the priests of

        this period under the rejection of the house of Eli in favor of the Zadokites.  

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HOPHRA (הפרע, Ra endures) A pharaoh (588-569 B.C.) of the 26th Dynasty, 

        Hophra succeeded his father. Early in his reign he invaded Palestine & 

        Phoenicia; he incited Zedekiah to revolt against Babylon. After this revolt 

        failed, Hophra received a few Jewish refugees into Tahpanhes, a Delta

        town. A young relative, Amasis, was proclaimed king in opposition to 

        Hophra in 569 B.C. Hophra lost to Amasis in 566 & was killed.  

HOR (הר, mountain)   1. A mountain on the border of Edom where, according

        to one tradition in Numbers, Aaron died and was buried (another tradition 

        states that he died and was buried at Moserah).

                   The Jewish historian Josephus identifies Mount Hor with one of the 

        mountains near Petra. Tradition has localized it on Jebel Harun, a 1,450 

        meter twin topped sandstone mountain. This tradition, which places Hor in 

        the midst of Edom is open to serious doubts. Israel couldn't have reached 

        Jebel Harun without crossing Edom, which Edom denied them permis-

        sion to do. Jebel Madurah, about 24 km from Kadesh has been suggested 

        as the most likely sight for Hor, but the data are insufficient to make a cer-

        tain identification. 

                   2. Another mountain peak called Hor, marking the northern limit of 

        Israel’s inheritance. Both Mount Hermon & Jebel Akkar, a northeast spur

        of Lebanon, have been suggested as the location for this mountain.  

   

HORAM (הרם, mountaineer) Gezer’s king, defeated & slain when he tried to 

        relieve Joshua’s siege of Lachish.  

HOREB, MOUNT See Sinai, Mount  

HOREM (חרם, sacred, devoted) A fortified town in the territory of Naphtali; it

        was in the hill country of northern Galilee, but the exact site is unknown. 

HORESH (הרש, forest) A place in the Wilderness of Ziph at which David hid

        from Saul for a time and the scene of a compact between David & Jona-

        than, most likely about 9 km south of Hebron.

HOR-HAGGIDGAD (גדגדהר ה, cavern of the cleft) A stopping place of the 

        Israelites in the wilderness. It has been proposed that the site might be 

        identified with the modern-day Wadi Ghadaghed near the Arabah, but it

        isn't likely that “Hor-Haggidgad” became “Ghadaghed” over the passage

        of time.  

HORITES (הרים (hor yeem), cavern dwellers)   1. In the Jewish Masoretic Text

        of the Old Testament (OT), a name specialized for the early population 

        of Seir, the country later occupied by Edomites. 

                   2. The primary Greek OT reads “Horites” for “Hivites” in Genesis

        34 & Joshua 9. The land involved in these passages is Central Palestine

        The “western Horites” and Hivites are not to be confused with the pre-

        Edomite or “eastern” Horites. Such western Horites have to be connected

        with the extra-biblical Hurrians, while the eastern Horites must be exclu- 

        ded, because their personal names do not fit Hurrian patterns, & because 

        there is no archaeological evidence whatever for Hurrian settlements in

        Edom. The need for maintaining a distinction between the 2 led to gra-

        dual switch from Horite in its “western” sense, to “Hivite.” 

HORMAH (הרמה, devoted to destruction) A city of Simeon in the south of 

        Judah near Ziklag.

    `              In one story, the Israelites made a desperate & futile attempt to 

        invade the hill country & were beaten back as far as Hormah. In another 

        account, the Israelites, annoyed by the attacks of Arad's king, turned & 

        devastated the region & called it Hormah (see meaning of Hebrew word). 

        A 3rd version has the tribes of Judah and Simeon joining to destroy the 

        city of Zephat, which they renamed Hormah. It was one of the cities to 

        which David sent some of the spoil from the defeat of the Amalekites. 

        Opinions as to the location of Hormah vary with assumptions as to where 

        the Israelites attacked from. If from the south the location could be about 

        10 km east of Beer-sheba. If from the southwest, it could be about 19 km 

        from esh-Sheri’ah.

HORN. See Musical Instruments.

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HORNET (צרעה (tsir ‘aw), smiting, defeat) An insect, actually a wasp, but    

        larger and more dangerous. The species most common in Palestine is 

        the large, yellow, red-brown wasp. The hornet is a social insect and the 

        honeybee’s most important enemy; they ambushed worker bees, invaded

        and destroyed beehives.  A colony lives in a many-celled nest, made of 

        paper manufactured from bits of wood rasped off by the workers.  The 

        biblical passages which contain tsir’ ah all refer to a divine intervention 

        on Israel’s behalf in driving out the inhabitants of Canaan. The fierce 

        nature of this insect is well suited to the context.  Yahweh’s preparatory 

        onslaught would so numb the Canaanites that they would be helpless.

HORONAIM (הרונים, (2 caverns)) A town of Moab, mentioned with other 

        Moabite cities in the oracles against Moab; its exact location is uncertain.

        In II Samuel 13 the Revised Standard Version translates “from the Horo-

        naim road.” The reference is probably to Upper and Lower Beth-Horon, 

        “Horonaim” being understood as a dual form of Horon. (See also Beth-

        Horon).

HORONITE (הרני) Citizen of Horonaim, or more probably of Beth-Horon (See 

        preceding entry).

HORSE (סוס (soos); פרש (paw rawsh), horseman;אביר (aw beer), mighty

        ones; רכש (reh kesh), swift horse; בני הרמכים (ben eye  ha ram maw 

        keem), the young of swift mares; ippoV, (ip pos)) The horse was probably 

        first domesticated in the steppes of southern Russia and Central Asia. Hor-

        ses are not included among the animals of the Hebrew patriarchs shortly 

        after 2000 B.C. The Aryan Mitanni introduced the two-wheeled battle chari-

        ot with war horses into northern Mesopotamia in the 1700s B.C. About the 

        same time the Kassites, using horses & chariots gained control of Babylo-

        nia. Cavalry, introduced by the Medes and Cimmerians, was employed in 

        the Mesopotamia from the 1100s B.C. onward. 

                   In the ancient Near East the horse was used for war, for transporta-

        tion and hunting by the wealthy, but not for agriculture and very little for 

        bearing or pulling burdens.  The Bible refers to the war horses with chariots

        of the Egyptians, Canaanites, Syrians, Assyrians, Chaldeans, and Medes. 

        There was considerable opposition to the horse in Israel as a symbol of pa-

        gan luxury and dependence on physical power for defense.  Thus, as a 

        sign of the peacefulness of the messianic kingdom, the king comes riding 

        on an ass, not a horse.

                   In the face of this opposition, it is not surprising that the introduction

        of the war horse in Israel was gradual. Solomon is reported to have had 

        either 40,000 or 4,000 stalls for his horses. The horse furnished transporta-

        tion for royalty, nobility, & the wealthy in the ancient Near East. The impor-

        tant place of the horse in Persian society is illustrated by Mordecai’s honor

        of riding the royal horse. 

                 The only biblical mention of hunting by horse is Job 39. The eating of 

        horse meat was forbidden by Mosaic law.  Isaiah 28 refers to the use of 

        horses in threshing grain, but the text and interpretation of the verses are 

        uncertain. Among the reforms of Josiah was the removal of the horses and

        chariots which his predecessors had dedicated to the Babylonian sun god  

        Shamash. These may have been used in religious processions. 

                  Joseph gave the people of Egypt grain in exchange for their horses; 

        Solomon sold horses from Egypt. He also kept horses in stalls. In Megiddo 

        there have been found stalls and feeding troughs from Solomon’s time suf-

        ficient for about 450 horses.  Some of the characteristics of the horses no-

        ted in the Bible are: swiftness; strength; and neighing when aroused.  The 

        most detailed description of a horse is Job 39. 

                   The horse was used for figurative references in poetical & prophetic 

        books of the Bible. Evil men of Jerusalem lust for their neighbors’ wives

        like neighing stallions. The stallions’ sexuality is a picture of the evils of 

        Egyptian idolatry. The supernatural locusts of judgment are like horses in 

        appearances and in sound. Elijah is taken up to heaven by a chariot and 

        horses of fire. In a vision Zechariah sees angelic horsemen on horses of 

        different colors. In the New Testament’s Revelation, the colors of the four 

        horses are symbolic of the judgments inflicted by their riders: white = 

        conquest; red = slaughter; black = famine; pale = death.

HORSE GATE (שער הסוסים (shah ar  ha sus yeem)) A gate of Jerusalem, 

        leading to the Kidron, toward the southeast angle of the temple area, in the 

        vicinity of the palace; it was restored by Nehemiah.

HORSEMAN (פרש (paw rawsh); רכב (raw kab), rider) One who rides a 

        horse, usually in battle.

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HOSAH (הסה, confiding)   1. A Levite of the family of Merari; one of the gate- 

        keepers of the tent David pitched for the ark. He and his 13 sons were 

        included in the expanded organization of the gatekeepers.      2. A border

        town in Asher’s allotted territory near Tyre, but no certain identification 

        can be made (Joshua 19). 

HOSANNA (הושיעה־נא (ho sha ya ‘ah nah), save us we beseech thee) In

        Psalm 118, a pilgrim who was rejected is now recognized to be a righ-

        teous man. In verse 25 he ask God for more help and greater success.

        This verse was sung in the liturgy of the Feast of Tabernacles, with the 

        congregation waving their lulab (branches of myrtle, willow and palm).

        The lulab was sometimes called “hosanna.” In Jewish post-biblical texts 

        “Hosanna” is connected with messianic hopes. The combination of the 

        lulab and the “hosanna,” would best explain the situation at Jesus’ entry

        into Jerusalem, what Christians call “Palm Sunday.”  

HOSEA (MAN AND BOOK) (הושע, deliverance) The name of the first book

        of the twelve prophets in the Old Testament (OT) canon—second, how-

        ever, to Amos, who prophesized around 760.  Hosea’s ministry took place

        sometime around 750 B.C. In Hebrew it was also the name of the last king 

        of Israel, & the original name of Joshua. Hosea occupies a unique place

        among the prophets of the OT as the only one of the writing prophets who 

        had his home in the northern kingdom of Israel While there were still other 

        prophets, they were of such a degenerate type that Amos scorned to be 

        counted among them. Hosea was to accuse prophets & priests alike of 

        complete irresponsibility in their office. 

                  So different is Hosea from Amos in character, outlook, and style that

        that it is difficult to find any sure trace of Amos’ influence in his writings; yet 

        it is likely that there is a relation between Amos’ brief but powerful ministry 

        in the north and Hosea’s appearance not more than ten years later. The 

        followers of Hosea, in gathering together both his oracles & certain biogra-

        phical matter concerning him, were thus continuing a recently established  

        tradition. Both books received editing in Judah, & both prophets found 

        themselves in bitter and irreconcilable conflict with the official priests and 

        prophets. 

                   The interpretation of Hosea has been made extremely difficult by   

        uncertainty about the meaning of certain references to the prophet’s family

        life in chapters 1-3, and particularly his personal experience in marriage &

        his relation with his wife. This has led to wide variations in interpretation at

        this one point, and widely different conceptions of the prophet.  

                  There are 3 natural divisions in Hosea; chapters 1-3 have already 

        been mentioned previously. Chapters 4-13 consist of brief oracles which 

        expose the corruption of the nation, the irresponsibility of priests and pro-

        phets, and other conditions which make it impossible for Israel to continue 

        much longer as a nation. Then in Chapter 14 the darkness lifts and gain 

        the note of hope is sounded. One of the basic questions is whether the

        passages expressing hope are original to Hosea or have been added by

        a later editor as in other prophetic books. 

                   The acceptance of chapters 4-13 as basic in understanding Hosea 

        makes impossible the kind of erratic judgments concerning him which 

        have been only too common, especially those which make him the prophet

        phet of God‘s love as opposed to Amos’ God of wrath. For Hosea as for

        Amos, the wages of sin is death. And where hope is expressed in chapters

        1-3 and 14, it is not hope that the judgment may not come, but hope for a

        new beginning beyond the judgment. 

                   Chapters 1 and 3 contain biographical material; chapter 2 contains

        a sermon to Israel. All three use the marriage relationship as a likeness to 

        God’s relation to Israel. It has seemed to dishonor God and to impeach his 

        holiness to take literally the statement of 1:2 that God commanded Hosea

        to marry a harlot & then to reunite with the same harlot after she disgraced

        his home.  

                   Jewish interpreters in medieval times insisted that no such marriage 

        ever actually took place. The whole was a prophetic dream. Others under-

        stand Hosea’s marriage as a prophetic story to symbolize something else 

        entirely. Thus chapters 1 and 3 would be read as symbolic in the same 

        fashion as chapter 2, but the impression of biographical & autobiographical 

        content is too strong to be completely suppressed.  

                   At the opposite extreme is what may be termed the realistic interpre-

        tation: chapters 1 and 3 are to be taken literally. Gomer must be seen as al-

        ready being a harlot at the time God commanded Hosea to marry her. His 

        marriage, the birth of his children, the disruption of his home, and the resto-

        ration of Gomer to the home were acts performed in obedience to God in 

        order to make his marriage the medium by which God might speak to Isra-

        el. It is unlikely that Hosea would deliberately enter such a marriage, & the 

        beginning of his marriage doesn't symbolically match his concept of Isra-

        el’s early relationship with God.  

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                   Perhaps the most popular interpretation in recent years has been 

        the romantic one which applies a considerable measure of imagination:  

        redemptive love in his own marriage led him to God’s redemptive love for

        Israel. Thus Amos is seen as discovering ethical monotheism and Hosea

        as the discoverer of the divine love. Recent scholarship has revised the 

        picture of Israelite religion in which the covenant relation between God &

        Israel was central and there was an understanding of God that prepared

        The way for Amos and Hosea.

                   The marriage experience of Hosea has been reconstructed as fol-

        lows: Hosea entered upon marriage with Gomer with no suspicion of trou-

        ble and named his 1st child Jezreel as a warning to the royal house that 

        soon God’s judgment must fall upon it for the butchery of Jezreel.  Upon 

        the birth of 2nd child, a girl, Hosea named the child “Not pitied.” A 3rd child 

        he disowned entirely, naming him “Not my people.”

                  The story skips ahead to Gomer being sold at the slave market, lea-

        ving the reader to assume that Gomer had left the home and became a

        common harlot. Hosea sought her out, bought her back, and after a period

        of discipline, restored her to the home. At some point later, Hosea recog-

        nized the parallel between his own marriage and that of God with Israel 

        & leaped to the conclusion that there was in God’s heart a love for Israel 

        like his own passionate and persistent love for Gomer.

                   This theory is subject to serious criticisms. Far from discovering

        God’s love for Israel through his marriage experience, Hosea declared

        God’s love to have been evident from the very beginning of the nation’s

        life, and also declared that his own conduct was a human reproduction & 

        representation of the divine reality. A second difficulty is that each act of

        Hosea is the prophetic act of a prophet with the purpose of conveying a   

        specific message to the nation. 

                   There are many other theories regarding Hosea and his marriage. 

        All of these theories should make us exercise great restraint in imagina-

        tive reconstructions.  The most that can be safely said is that Hosea seems

        seems to have been tragically unfortunate in his marriage, & that he some-

        how saw in his marriage a parable of God’s redemptive love for Israel.

                   The period of Hosea’s ministry is described in the first verse of the

        book in somewhat of a puzzling fashion. A southern (Judean) editor names 

        4 Judean kings & 1 Israelite king. The prophecy of the fall of Jehu's house

        through the death of Jeroboam’s son, Zechariah, in 746, makes it likely

        that Hosea began his ministry in 747; the length of Hosea’s ministry is 

        uncertain.

                   The development of Hosea’s ministry and the process by which his 

        book came into its present form are closely related problems. The names

        of his children strike the same note of doom that is conveyed by the ora-

        cles in chapters 4-13. Behind this sense of doom is the plaintive note of 

        God’s heartbrokenness at the sin & ruin of God’s people. Some scholars 

        believe that only these oracles of doom are original to Hosea. But they 

        must reckon with chapter 3, which comes from the hand of Hosea himself.

                   The 1st sign of a hand other than Hosea’s at work upon the book  

        is in chapter 1, where the writer writes of Hosea in the 3rd person. He 

        makes his Judean nationality evident  through his preference for Judean

        kings, his concern for the deliverance of Judah, & his concern that Judah 

        should be united with Israel in the future day of redemption. To the pro-

        phets the 2 kingdoms made up one people of God, so it was natural for

        Hosea to include Judah in his judgment oracles. 

                   It is, then, an oversimplification to see all of the frequent references

        to Judah as later additions. The words of warning and praise directed to 

        Judah, or the words of hope for a united Davidic kingdom are clearly the

        hand of a later Judean editor. Other scholars assume that only those parts

        of Hosea are genuine that proclaim doom and that all suggestions of hope

        come from later editors. Hosea‘s character as a prophet of doom may be 

        maintained without omitting references to hope.

                   Text, Style, and Theology—Hosea’s text confronts the interpreter

        with great & often impossible obstacles because of its confused & corrupt 

        state. In style Hosea differs greatly from Amos. His oracles are brief and 

        pointed and employ none of Amos’ cumulative devices. Where Amos thun-

        ders, Hosea pleads. Hosea sounds like a man who is torn and bleeding

        within. His oracles are the brief outcries of a tortured soul.

                   In Hosea's theology, he sets little emphasis upon God’s sovereignty, 

        and he has nothing to say about God’s care or concern for other nations. 

        Where Amos is shocked by the absence of common justice, Hosea sees

        the same evils, but sees them as signs of a deeper evil, the repudiation 

        by Israel of its covenant relation with God. Sin isn’t defined in any legalis-

        tic way by Hosea. 

                   2 key words in his theology are khesed (faithful love) & a’ot elohim

        (knowledge of God). The same khesed which has determined God’s dea-

        lings with them as a nation is meant to determine their dealings with one 

        another. By knowledge of God he very clearly has something in mind far 

        beyond intellectual understanding. To know God is to respond to God in 

        faithful love and to have the whole of life determined by the understanding

        of oneself and one’s fellow human beings that becomes possible in this 

        relation. 

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                  Hosea sees the election of Israel in its entire history as a nation. He 

        looks back to the Exodus as the idyllic honeymoon in the marriage of Yah-

        weh with Israel. God was Israel’s king and husband and father. But from 

        the earliest days of settlement in Palestine the covenant was broken. Peo-

        ple became fixed upon kings & armies & foreign alliances.  For Hosea, the 

        covenant, while it binds Israel to God, doesn't bind God to Israel in such a 

        way as to encourage any false confidence or self-righteousness. The rela- 

        tion is a personal one, which can be maintained only when there is faith-

        fulness in both partners. 

                   Hosea interprets God’s judgment upon sin and unfaithfulness as 

        consequences which issue from the nature of sin itself. The disruption of

        covenant results in a vanishing of all knowledge of God and all faithful

        love. Without knowledge of God, men are without the understanding 

        which makes possible healthy relations with one another. Perhaps it was

        in his own marriage situation that Hosea clearly saw the fearful dilemma

        of man’s evil. 

                   Sin brings blindness, callousness, and despair, which lead to yet 

        more violent sin. Someone, with love for the sinner in spite of sin, must 

        break in upon the deadly process and by sheer grace create for the priso-

        ner of sin and death the possibility of a new beginning. Israel by her sin 

        might bring herself to self-destruction, but God would not give her up God 

        would intervene and open the way for restoration of the covenant & a new

        future.  

HOSEN (פטיש (pat tesh), tunic) An archaic term used in the King James 

        Version for “hose,” “leggings.” The Revised Standard Version uses “tunic” 

        instead. 

HOSHAIAH (הושעיה, whom the Lord delivers)   1. One of Judah's princes,  

        who participated in the processional at the time of the dedication of Jeru- 

        salem's rebuilt walls.      2. The father of Azariah and a Maacathite, who

        was a leader among Jews after the fall of Jerusalem.  

HOSHAMA (הושמע) One of the seven sons of Jehoiachin (I Chronicles 3).  

HOSHEA (הושע, deliverance)   1. The original name of Joshua the son of Nun;

        his name was changed by Moses.      2. One of David’s officers set over

        the Ephraimites.      3. The Hebrew name of the prophet known in English 

        Bibles as Hosea. 

                   4. The last king of Israel (732-724 B.C.), son of Elah, murderer and 

        successor of Pekah. “He did what was evil in the sight of the Lord, yet not

        as the kings of Israel who were before him.” He continued to pay tribute to

        the Assyrian Tiglath-pileser, but the burden became intolerable, and he 

        revolted, probably at Tiglath-pileser’s death, & had the promise of support 

        from Egypt. Shalmaneser V marched against Hoshea, besieging Samaria

        along the way; Hoshea was taken captive by Shalmaneser. 

                   Samaria was subdued by Sargon II, Shalmaneser’s successor;

        captive Israelites were deported. The precise figure given by Sargon of 

        27,290 prisoners contrasts sharply with II Kings 17, which said “none was

        left but the tribe of Judah only. The captive Israelites were resettled in 

        “Halah” . . . & in the cities of the Medes.” Sargon imported colonists "from 

        Babylon, Cuthah, Avva, Hamath, & Sepharvaim . . . into Samaria.”  

HOSPITALITY (filoxenia (fil ox en ee ah)) Entertainment of a stranger  

        (sojourner) as a guest; recognized as a sacred duty, more heartily kept     

        than many a written law. 

                   Among the Hebrews, the main practices stem from nomadic life,

        when public inns were a rarity and every stranger a potential enemy. Hos-

        pitality was discharged more from fear and for protection than from gene-

        rosity. The guest was treated with respect and honor. He enjoyed protec-

        tion for 3 days and 36 hours after eating with the host. Hospitality was to

        the Bedouin an expression of righteousness. A traveler entering a city 

        would come to the open place and someone would invite him to his home.  

                   The New Testament describes Jesus as dependent on hospitality. 

        Christians, in their travels, would seek out Christians, partly for protection

        but mainly to share fellowship and worship. Hospitality was the chief bond 

        which brought the churches a sense of unity. The Roman Church came to 

        supremacy partly through concern for Christians everywhere. To avoid abu-

        ses, precautions were taken to test the genuineness of a Christian traveler 

        and to forestall his becoming a burden to the Christian community. 

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HOSTAGES (בני ﬨﬠﬧבוﬨ (beh nie tah ‘ah roo both), sons of pledgings) Per-

        sons held as security against revolt or aggression. The Greek Old Testa-

        ment misunderstood the root of this word & translated the phrase as “sons 

        of commingling.” When Israel’s (northern kingdom) Jehoash was victorious 

        over Judah’s (Southern Kingdom) Amaziah, part of Jerusalem's wall was  

        broken down, & hostages were taken to ensure the future good behavior 

        of the Judean king.  

HOSTS, HOSTS OF HEAVEN (צבאות (tsaw beh ‘oth), צבא השמים (tsaw

        baw shaw ma yeem)) In the Old Testament (OT) the God of Israel is fre-

        quently called “Yahweh [God] of hosts.” This phrase expresses Yahweh’s 

        sovereign might & majesty in history, but the precise meaning of  “hosts”

        is uncertain. 

                   Basically, tsaba is a military term for a body of men organized for

        war; it may also mean the act of war. It may designate hard service, and

        in late priestly literature it is sometimes used of the service of the Levites. 

        Since the realms of earth & heaven were closely related in ancient thought,

        it was believed that the same organized military array was found in the 

        heavenly sphere. Sun, moon, & stars were an army, “the heavenly host.”

        In astrological cults the celestial bodies were a living army which controlled 

        human destiny.

                   Israel’s temptation to worship them proved to be irresistible especi-

        ally under Assyrian & Babylonian cultural influence. This paganism was 

        effectively answered by Israel’s doctrine of creation, in which the heavenly 

        hosts are God’s creatures, marshaled at God’s command. Included in the 

        conception of the heavenly hosts is the idea of the angels or messengers. 

        Israel conceived of Yahweh as a king who presides over God’s heavenly 

        council of angelic servants or “sons of God.” From time to time, divine 

        messengers were sent forth from the council to accomplish Yahweh’s pur-

        pose. Tradition from outside of the Bible relates that Joshua was met by

        an angel. When Jacob was met by a band of angels, he exclaimed: “This

        is God’s army!” 

                   All these ideas were associated with the phrase “Yahweh of host.”

        The phrase does not occur at all in the first five books of the OT or Joshua

        or Judges. It first appears in the Israelite tradition in connection with the

        tribal sanctuary of Shiloh, where the “ark of the covenant of Yahweh of  

        hosts” resided as a symbol of war which gave assurance that Yahweh was 

        the one conducting Israel’s battles. 

                  David inherited the holy war concept that was inherent in this phrase

        and transferred the central sanctuary from the defunct Shiloh to his capital  

        city of Jerusalem. Although the holy war concept was soon superseded by

        a new nationalistic ideology, the phrase became associated with Jerusa- 

        lem. The military meaning of “hosts” is set forth in I Samuel 17, where 

        David is represented as saying that he fights in the name of Yahweh of 

        hosts. Elsewhere Israel’s troops are designated as tsaboth (hosts) whom 

        Yahweh leads to victory. 

                   Believing that the powers of heaven and earth are under Yahweh’s 

        lordship, the Song of Deborah's author sensed no contradiction between 

        Yahweh’s summons of Israel to holy war and the idea that the heavenly

        host were marshaled to fight for Israel. The meaning of “Yahweh of hosts” 

        inevitably shifted when the tribal confederacy began to vanish & religious 

        traditions were seen in terms of the new nationalism. The surviving belief

        that Yahweh was on Israel’s side is war was repudiated by a line of pro-

        phets, beginning with Amos, who insisted the Day of Yahweh would be a

        day of darkness and defeat for Israel. 

                   The phrase “Yahweh of hosts” occurs mostly in the prophetic lite-

        rature, some 247 times. In their vocabulary “hosts” wasn’t synonymous

        with Israel’s armies. The prophets insisted Yahweh was turning foreign

        armies against Yahweh’s people in order to judge them. Yahweh of hosts

        acts in the historical arena to accomplish Yahweh’s purpose. Yahweh of 

        hosts brings redemption which transcends all nationalistic hopes.  

                   In reinterpreting Yahweh’s power, the prophets had at their disposal

        the conception of the heavenly council. Micaiah’s vision of Yahweh en-   

        throned in majesty & surrounded by the host of heaven is echoed in the 

        account of Isaiah’s inaugural vision. Yahweh’s prophets spoke with the 

        authoritative “Thus saith the Lord” because they had been drawn into 

        Yahweh’s council, which posed both a danger and an opportunity for Isra-

        el’s faith. 

                   The danger was in allowing pagan deities into the council & having 

        them venerated along with Yahweh.  The opportunity was for Israel to 

        understand Yahweh’s power and majesty in concrete and vivid terms. 

        Pagan deities were given the subordinate status of messengers or ser-

        vants of Yahweh. Thus the phrase “Yahweh of hosts” sums up the Israe-

        lite faith that Yahweh alone is Lord in heaven and on earth. 

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HOTHAM (הותם, seal, signet ring)    1. A member of the tribe of Asher (I Chro-

        nicles 7).      2.  An Aroerite, father of two of David’s Mighty Men 

       ( I Chronicles 11).

HOTHIR (הותיר, to cause to abound) One of the sons of Hemas who assisted

        in the instrumental music in the worship in the house of Yahweh (I Chro-

        nicle 25). Some scholars, however believe that the end of verse 4 after 

        “Hananiah” to the end of the verse, is a misplaced fragmentary psalm of 

        lamentation.

HOUR (שעה (shaw ‘aw), moment of time;  wra (oh ra))    1. The King James 

        Version translation of the Aramaic word in the phrase “the same hour” 

        (Daniel 3, 4, 5). The Old Testament  knows no system of equal hours for 

        dividing the day.      2. The New Testament designation of a definite period.

        By New Testament times the Jews were counting twelve hours each in day 

        and night. Sundials and water clocks were used for marking hours.

HOUSE (בית (bay ith); oikia  (oy kee ah)) A word used some 2,000 times 

        throughout the Bible referring to an abode, anything from the a peasant’s 

        simple home to a palace. In Egypt, Mesopotamia, & the lowlands of Syria 

        and Palestine, house builders used mud or sun-dried brick, while in Pale-

        stine’s hills they used mostly stone, which was abundant. Wood was used

        for roofing and superstructure; in Egypt, stone was quarried. 

                   Some consider bayith as coming from a root meaning “go in,” 

        “spend the night,” with the implication that the house was principally a re-

        fuge from  nocturnal dangers and bad weather. But excavation at Ai dis-

        closed  impressive houses with thick walls from the Early Bronze Age 

        (3000-2100 B.C.). In biblical times most houses were in cities, towns, or 

        villages. During the time of David, cities became more congested, houses 

        were smaller, walls thinner, and planning less careful.

                   In every biblical period there was a variety of dwellings. The house 

        of a free man or an official would face a street and adjoin other houses. It 

        might be part of the city wall with a window opening to the outside. The 

        door would be of wood with a wooden beam as the lintel & 2 upright posts 

        as jambs, a room for domestic animals, sleeping quarters, and a central 

        room with a hearth. The ceiling would be of wooden beams plastered over 

        with clay. Steps would lead to the roof, where there would be a guest     

        room.  The roof's surface would be of clay, which regularly had to be reple- 

        nished and rolled. Both Hebrew and Greek words for “house,” as in Eng-

        lish, many times refer to the family.

                  
HOUSE OF THE FOREST OF LEBANON (בית יער הלבנון (bet  yah ‘ar  ha

        leh bah non)) A part of Solomon’s palace in Jerusalem, named for its cedar 

        pillars & wall boards imported from Mount Lebanon. 

                   It is a rectangular building divided by 3 rows of pillars, with an upper 

        story of chambers distributed in (3) rows of 15 each. It was connected with 

        the palace’s other public rooms, namely the Hall of Pillars or “Waiting Hall,” 

        the Hall of the Throne, as well as with the private apartments of the king. 

                   The palace compound was located to the south of Solomon’s temple

        courtyard, combining God’s house & the house of the king, his representa-

        tive on earth. The exact location and layout of the palace remains highly     

        hypothetical.

HOUSEHOLD (oikoV qeou (oy kos thay oo)) The community of believers, the 

        members of the household which constitutes the church (I Timothy 3). See 

        Church, Idea of.

HOUSEHOLDER (oikdespothV (oy ko des po tes), master of the household)

        house steward or master of the house. The Greek word occurs 12 times in

        the Synoptic gospels, & nowhere else in the New Testament. Jesus makes

        the point that God deals with humankind as the householder deals with his 

        laborers.

HOWLING CREATURES (אח (oh akh)) The context suggests some wild

        creatures not normally to be found in houses (Isaiah 13).

HOZAI (הוזי, seer) Author of some “sayings” in which the record of Manasseh’s

        life was preserved. Some take it as a reference to an otherwise unknown    

        prophet. One Hebrew manuscript and the Greek Old Testament reads “the 

        seers” rather than a proper name, which is how the New Revised Standard 

        Version translates it.  A third alternative is to rearrange the consonants to 

        mean “his (Manasseh’s) seers.”

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HUKKOK (הוקק, trench) A border town in the territory of Naphtali, approximate-

        ly 4.8 km west of Chinneroth (The Sea of Galilee) overlooking the plain.

HUL (הול, pain) The second son of Aram, and a grandson of Shem. In I Chro-

        nicles 1 he is the 7th son of Shem.

HULDAH (הלדה, mole) A prophetess; wife of Shallum ,”keeper of the ward-

        robe.” King Josiah sent to “inquire of the Lord.” She prophesied God’s 

        judgment upon the nation, but peace for Josiah because of his repen-

        tance.  Huldah’s prophecy is of interest in connection with the question of 

        fulfillment of prophecy (Josiah was later killed), and also for the unusual 

        example of a woman acting in this capacity. 

HUMANS, ETHNIC DIVISIONS OF (עם (awm), people). The Old Testament  

        (OT) deals often with relations between Israel and her neighbors. The OT 

        offers a lot of information on ethnic groups. But the material is uneven in 

        regard to sources, date, and emphasis, is often confusing, and at times

        is self-contradictory.

                  The Table of Nations (Genesis 10) and Other Lists—The Table

        employs the Hebrew word awm repeatedly. Although language is duly 

        stressed, & peoples can be distinguished by their vocabulary, it is recog-

        nized that a mastery of more than one language was possible.  There are 

        some otherwise prominent distinctions that the Table of Nations ignores. 

        On the other hand circumcision was customary with many other peoples. 

        Skin color could loom large in some contexts, but the principal criteria for 

        classifying the subdivisions of humankind were nation and country.

                  In the Table of Nations the world’s people are divided according to 

        stated principles of classification. It operates in a very large area, exten-

        ding from Transcaucasia to Ethiopia, but the coverage is concentric and

        fades out on the peripheries. The Table is by no means self-consistent. 

        Parts of it come from the Yahwist & Priestly documents, with the ultimate 

        compiler making additions & rearranging it. Not even the later entries can

        be put after the 600s B.C. The Table traces the world’s nations to Noah’s

        three sons. In the original use, geography was more important than lingui-

        stics. The Japhethite branch includes Cimmerians, Medes, Ionians, Scy-

        thians, & Cypriotes, all of whom penetrated the Fertile Crescent from the

        north or from the west.

                   The main subdivisions of the Hamites branch are the peoples of 

        the southern shores of the Red Sea (Cush), Egypt, Canaan, and Put. 

        Cush’s case was complicated by the fact that there were originally 2 inde-

        pendent bearers of this name. The Jahwist author was surely aware that 

        no ethnic or linguistic bonds linked the Egyptians and the Philistines; the 

        main reason had to be geographic. 

                   Most difficult of all is the placing of Canaan within this branch.  

        Sidon’s brothers became Hittites, Jebusites, Amorites, and Hivites. The 

        authors know that Phoenician was very close to Hebrew, but quite diffe-

        rent from Egyptian. The basic principle of classification was once again 

        neither ethnic nor linguistic alone, but ethno-geographic. The biblical 

        Hamites extended from Phoenicia down through western Palestine and 

        from there into Africa.

                  The Shemite branch is given special prominence because it com-

        prised, among other groups, “all children of Eber,” i.e., the Hebrews in the 

        broader sense, including the Assyrians and Arameans.  The Assyrians'  

        eastern neighbor, the Elamites, was also included in this group. Strangely 

        though, the Israelites, along with their immediate neighbors & relatives, are

        not listed under Peleg in Genesis 10. His detailed genealogy is given in  

        the next chapter. The Jahwist document of chapter 10 had originally dealt 

        more with Peleg, but details were later left out in favor of the Priestly Wri-

        ters statement in chapter 11. The Table of Nations, for all its reshuffling &

        dislocations, remains remarkable for its wide scope & analytical approach.

                  There are 22 lists of pre-Israelite nations, ranging in number from

        2 to 10. The lists commonly center on the Amorites, Canaanites, Hittites, 

        Perizzites, Hivites, Jebusites, & Girgashites. Usually only 6 are listed at a 

        time. Of the 7, the first 5 may be used as general terms for larger ethnic 

        blocks.  Either Canaanites or the Amorites may stand for all of Palestine. 

                   The Jahwist document favors the Canaanites as the term covering

        the whole region, whereas the Elohwist uses the Amorites; yet the Eloh-

        wist doesn't hesitate to employ the term “Canaan” as a land name.  One 

        may have as a hypothesis that “Canaan” actually started out as a geogra-

        phic name, but took on extra duty for ethnic and even linguistic purposes. 

        “Amorites” was always used as an ethnic term.  his conclusion is suppor-

        ted by the evidence of the extra-biblical sources.

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                  Besides the lists, there are in the OT various passages in which    

        ethnic elements are linked to particular places or events. Amorites are 

        located in Hebron, the “Amalekites dwell in the land of Negeb; the Hit-

        tites, the Jebusites, the Amorites dwell in the hill country; and the Canaa-

        nites dwell by the sea, and along the Jordan.” Biblical literature abounds,

        of course, in descriptive and poetic references to nations near and far.

                  The Modern People and Language Picture of Bible Lands: 

        Egyptians; Akkadians; Amorites—Whereas the OT refers only to such

        nations or tribes as were part of its own historical experience, modern 

        scholarship reconstructs the ethnic picture of the biblical age from many 

        different sources. Skeletal remains, ancient paintings, and written docu-

        ments furnish a vast amount of information. Of all these and other similar 

        sources, it is the linguistic material alone that is fully dependable. There-

        fore, it is necessary to match a given people with the language which that 

        group commonly employed. The modern grouping of “Canaanites” in an

        ethno-linguistic sense  corresponds only in part with the ethno-geographic 

        Canaanites of the OT. But it will be seen that the differences between the 

        biblical and the modern groupings are less drastic than one might expect.

                  Modern research leaves no doubt that the Semitic languages,    

        Egyptian, & the Hamitic languages had a common ancestry in North

        Africa. The principal historic speakers of the language called “Akkadian”

        were Babylonians & Assyrians. Its main difference from all its sister lan-

        guages consists in a distinctive verbal system. Akkadian texts often 

        mention a land Amurru. Because Amorites were the nearest historic 

        neighbors to the west of Akkadian Mesopotamia, the Akkadian term for

        “west” became amurru. Western Semitic personal names appear in Meso-

        potamia shortly before 2000 B.C., and their numbers increase appreciably 

        after 2000. The First Dynasty of Babylon, whose best-known ruler was   

        Hammurabi, was the Dynasty of Amurru.

                   Later in the 1000s, the Amarna Letters cite the Amorites repeated-

        ly as invading or threatening various places in Phoenicia. The exact loca-

        tion of Amurru is difficult to establish, possibly because its boundaries 

        were fluid and its people widely scattered outside their own homeland. 

        When political conditions favored their expansion, Amorite holdings might 

        impinge on the Mesopotamian. Some of the Asiatic names in the Egyptian

        execration texts of the patriarchal age appear to be Amorite.

                  Canaanites; Arameans; Hittite—Whereas the Amorites are cited 

        early, the Canaanites are not alluded to before the 1500s B.C.  There is 

        good reason for assuming that the primary connotation was geographic, 

        the areas being Phoenicia and Palestine. Both usage & distribution im-

        pose a sharp distinction between Canaanites & Amorites. On geographi-

        cal grounds, Ugaritic should be classed with Canaanite. And if Canaan 

        was originally the geographical name for Phoenicia & the nearby districts 

        of Palestine, then anyone in those areas could have been called Canaa-

        nite.  There is evidence that the term actually had a geographical & lingui-

        stic application.

                  The Arameans pose no problems in the present context, because

        the OT & modern terminology agree. Aram was a descendant of Shem,

        & the speech of that people is a long-recognized member of the Semitic

        family. They harassed Assyria for centuries, and were an even more 

        serious threat to Israel. The Aramaic language was to show unprece-

        dented vitality long after the political decline of the Arameans.

                   Current terminology employs different forms of the word “Arab” for 

        geographical, ethnic, and linguistic purposes. The term “South Arabic” is

        more a geographical grouping of languages, more properly known as 

        Southeast Semitic. This group includes Sabaean, Minaean, & Ethiopic. 

        Southeast Semitic proves to be a very old member of the family. Con-

        tacts with actual North Arabians are rare, and they are signified both in

        the cuneiform sources and in the OT by explicit use of the term “Arab.”

                   Within the larger Semito-Hamitic family, both Egyptian & Cushitic

        depart markedly from Semitic proper. Egyptian is represented in the OT

        by certain proper names and a small number of foreign words. Cushitic

        shows a tie with certain forms of Akkadian. Indo-European elements are 

        reflected in Bible lands & in the OT in various periods & circumstances. 

        Some languages in this group include: Greek, Italo-Celtic, Germanic, 

        Indo-Aryan & Balto-Slavic. The Philistines also show some indication of

        an Indo-European background.

                   The name “Hittite” carries several conflicting connotations. There

        is the ancient Anatolian land name Hatti, which is evidently the source of

        the Biblical Heth. The Hattic language was neither Semitic nor Indo-Euro-

        pean. When Hatti was conquered, the conquerors retained the old geo-

        graphic names, but imposed their own language, which has proven to be

        Indo-European. This Indo-European Hittite is now known to have had

        several relatives in the area. The biblical occurrences of the term pose a 

        difficult problem, namely, which group of “Hittite” does the term refer to?

        Is it the ancient, original Anatolian Hittites, or is it those conquerors from

        the east? Or does the Bible alternate between the two groups?

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                    Philistines; Mesopotamians; Syrians; Elamites; Hurrians—  

        Toward the middle of the 1000s B.C. much of the Near East was devasta-

        ted by eastern Indo-Europeans. Aryan kings ruled the new state of Mitanni, 

        and Aryan princes were found in various cities of Syria and Palestine. The 

        success of the invaders was facilitated apparently by their large-scale em-

        ployment of horses. Before long, however, the newcomers were absorbed

        by the local elements.

                   Philistines are an offshoot of the Sea Peoples deposited in Pale-

        stine shortly after 1200 B.C. The appearance of this ethnic term in earlier

        OT contexts would seem to indicate an extension of the names to prior, &

        perhaps related settlers. What little information can be gathered from the 

        few original personal names is consistent with the assumption that the lan-

        guage was a dialect of Indo-European.

                   By the 600s, Mesopotamia and Syria had long been in contact with 

        many other groups of Indo-Europeans from Ionia, Scythia, Cimmeria.  A 

        few decades later, the Persians extended their empire over the entire Near

        East. The Semitic-Hamitic and Indo-European families were not the only 

        stocks in the ancient Near East.  There were small, scattered ethnic ele-

        ments that proved to be exceptionally important culturally and historically.

        Immensely important though they were culturally & historically, the Sume-

        rians remain linguistically isolated.  Most of the evidence would seem to 

        point to their arrival in Lower Mesopotamia late in the pre-historic period. 

        The Sumerian’s far-reaching influence is found in their words that are used 

        in the OT.

                   The Elamites were a people settled in southwest Iran since early    

        prehistoric times, & continued to be a significant local factor down to the 

        Persian period. The Elamite language has no demonstrable relatives. 

        Lullu, Gaul, & Elamite were related to one another; all 3 might be ances-

        tors of some of the languages of modern Caucasic. The Kassite were a 

        people originally from western Iran who made themselves Babylonia’s 

        masters after the 1st Dynasty's fall. The people had their own distinctive 

        language, which remains isolated thus far. 

                   Hurrians were a people widely diffused throughout the Near East,

        the Hurrians had intimate relations with Mesopotamia, Anatolia, Syria, & 

        Palestine. The OT appears to have known them locally as Hivites; Jebu-

        sites, & Perizzites. Linguistic witnesses of the Hurrian diffusion are now

        known from many Near Eastern areas. Of the various ethnic groups that

        were settled in Anatolia, the most important is Hattians. The above is 

        only a sketch of the ethnic horizons of the ancient Near East as found in

        extra-biblical sources.

                   Biblical and Extra-biblical Data Compared—A comparison of  

        biblical and extra-biblical data bears out the assumption that they differ 

        not so much in content as in methodology. The biblical criterion was a 

        combination of ethnic and geographic, whereas the extra-biblical data

        was grouped according to a combination of ethnic and language factors. 

        Philistines, Hurrians, and Elamites were included in the Semitic and 

        Hamitic category in the past, but they must now be excluded from it.

        And the largely maritime nations which the OT combines under Japhe-

        thites must now be classified as Indo-European or some other way.

                   The terms “Canaanites” and “Amorites” had separate and inde-

        pendent meanings in non-biblical sources. “Canaanite” goes back to a 

        geographic concept applied to the Phoenician coast & the neighboring

        districts of Palestine. “Amorite” covers a much larger area. Its use is 

        more ethnic than geographical. During the Amarna age & immediately 

        thereafter, there would thus be a pre-dominance of Canaanites in Pale-

        stine. But Palestine was also inhabited by Hurrians & Aryans. Anyone

        from that time using a local Semitic dialect could readily tell the diffe-

        rence between a fellow Semite and a non-Semite.

                   As a geographic designation, the established name for Palestine

        was Canaan; anyone living there would be a “Canaanite.” If someone 

        wanted to be more specific, one would specify Canaanites, Amorites, 

        Hittites, Hivites, & others. In ethnic summaries, we would speak today of

        Semites and non-Semites. The OT offers instead “Canaanites and Periz-

        zites” or “Amorites and Hivites.” The Table of Nations subdivides Canaan 

        into Sidon and Heth. Both “Canaanites” and “Amorites” could designate 

        the entire Semitic population of the area, but each term had its own speci-

        alized and more precise meaning.

                   In early biblical application, “Hittite” should refer to the Hattians, the

        original inhabitants of Anatolia. Indo-European Hittites couldn't be expec-

        ted in Phoenicia and Palestine prior to the Amarna Age.  “Hittites” could be 

        used for: Hattians; Indo-European Hittites; Anatolians in general; or non-

        Semites as opposed to Semites in the land of Canaan.

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                   There is ample evidence outside of the Bible that Hurrians were set-

        tled in Palestine from 1500 B.C. on. Yet the Masoretic Text fails to record 

        them. Apparently, Hebrew tradition had come to refer to Hurrians under 

        some other name. Both the Hivites and the Jebusites may safely be linked 

        with Hurrians, and the term “Perizzites” would seem to suggest non-Semi-

        tic origin. There is thus the possibility that the Perizzites were originally yet 

        another local group of Hurrians.  Among ethnic groups that are witnessed 

        in Palestine outside the Bible during the Amarna Age are also the Indo-

        Aryans. It is likely that, because of small numbers, they did not keep their 

        ethnic identity long enough to find a permanent place in biblical tradition.

HUMAN NATURE IN OLD TESTAMENT (OT) (איש (eesh), man;גבר (geh 

        ber), man, warrior; זכר (tsaw kawr), to be born a male) The OT knows

        nothing about autonomous people. Human nature is determined entirely

        by a human’s relation to God. The belief that humans are created in the

        divine image means that they are called to unique fellowship with God, 

        which involves obedience to the will of God. 

                   Since God is transcendent to nature, a human’s duty cannot be de-

        fined in terms of any mystical identification with nature. There is in humans 

        no immortal part which can survive death on its own account. Humans 

        have worth, though not in their own right; humans are in a state of anxiety 

        and sin. This reveals itself especially in self-assertion & arrogance. Israel's

        special privilege & responsibility is God’s choice & not any racial superio-

        rity. Israel was called to be representative of humans.

                  There are 2 distinct accounts in Genesis of the creation of humans.

        The first is attributed to the Priestly source; in it Man is represented as the

        climax of creation. What interests the author is primarily human nature

        when summoned into being by God.  The creation of humans is signaled

        by “Let us make man in our image (tselem) after our likeness (demuth).” 

        Perhaps the use of these 2 Hebrew words suggests the effort to express 

        a difficult idea or to guard against misunderstanding. Humans are given

        the charter of civilization. They are to have authority over the lower crea-

        tures & use the world to satisfy their legitimate needs.

                   The second account of the creation of humans is attributed to the 

        Jahwist source.  We are told that God created man as the center of crea-

        tion. In this account God forms man—the word used is that which de- 

        scribes the activity of the potter. The creation of the woman as partner

        of the man is preceded by the creation of the animals and birds. The man 

        names them, thus asserting authority.

                   The 2nd account of Creation both tells how God formed man, and

        makes a classic statement on the human constitution. The expression 

        “living being” (nephesh khayah) is unique. The human’s uniqueness is

        also implied by God’s direct action in giving the breath of life.  The He-

        brew saw humans as an animated body, not as incarnated souls. Nephesh 

        isn’t the soul that is able to exist separate from the flesh. It is not pre-

        existent, & it can’t survive the body. Humans are psycho-physical orga-

        nisms made up of many parts forming a unity. 

                   Hebrew has no word meaning “body” apart from several words   

        which properly signify  “corpse.” Hebrew makes do with the word “flesh.”

        The Hebrew didn’t think of the soul as having a body but as being a body 

        which was alive. Humans are constituted as an individual by the responsi-

        bility to which he is summoned by God. It is a natural extension of ne- 

        phesh's meaning to make it the subject of the emotional life. One gets the 

        impression that the Hebrews were emotionally unstable; they would swing

        from one extreme to another. 

                   It was noticed that some people exhibited an excess of life and   

        power or ruach. This power was thought of as invasive and normally as 

        coming from God. The OT does not speak of human genius; it prefers to

        think of the spirit's endowments. Spirit is essentially power & can express 

        aspects of human character; when thus used, it signifies the human, not

        the divine spirit. Hebrew can express a remarkable number of psycholo-

        gical shades by the use of terms denoting a body part. 

                   The Hebrews had no knowledge of the nervous, muscular, respira-

        tory system, the circulation of the blood, or the nervous system. The word

        “heart” (lab) plays a very large part in descriptions of a person’s inner life;

        Hebrews used heart where we would speak of the mind. To express emo-

        tion, the word “bowels” (meiyim) is employed. The head and certain of its

        parts, the limbs and their parts, serve to express a variety of psychological

        shades of meaning. 

                   The OT doesn’t credit people with any worth in their own right. Yet,

        as creation's crown or center, people have worth as God’s gift to them. 

        The most notable expression of the worth of people tells how God conde-

        scends to people and grants them royal honors (Psalm 8).  On the other 

        hand, people’s frailty shows itself in their tendency to get sick and in the 

        fact that such strength as they possess diminishes with age. 

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                    Though the OT does not theorize about sin, it tells much of human    

        sinfulness, but sinfulness isn't part of the definition of people. People sin 

        because they vainly wish to assert their autonomy over against God.  Adam

        and Eve, Cain, Lamech, & the builders of the Tower of Babel are examples 

        of this. It was, above all, the prophets who brought home the fact of sin to 

        the conscience of Israel, and in whose words is found a searching analysis 

        of the nature of sin as estrangement from and rebellion against God.  A 

        human’s creaturely weakness, though not itself the cause of sin, might 

        tempt him to lack of faith in God and to self-assertion and arrogance. It is 

        characteristic of Isaiah that he denounces in God’s name all human pride.

                   In spite of Israel’s belief in its election by God, which it often arro-

        gantly interpreted as election to special privilege instead of to special ser-

        vice, the OT is clear that humanity is one.  It may well have been in the     

        spacious days of the United Monarchy that Israel reached this broad, hu-

        man outlook on the world. The international outlook finds its finest ex-

        pression in the picture of the Servant of the Lord (Isaiah 42), who is to be

        to be a “light to the nations.” Israel was unaware of the kind of distinction 

        which for the Greeks divided humankind into Greeks and barbarians.  One

        One of the merits of the OT is that it depicts for us the Hebrew as repre-

        sentative of all people; what God demands of Hebrews, God demands of

        all people.

                    Humans and Society—The word “society” does not appear in the 

        English version of the Bible and is applicable to many human groups and 

        relationships. The societies at the focus of attention in the OT, being religi-

        ously grounded, felt both their differences from and their responsibilities 

        toward other societies. It is assumed that no one by themselves can live 

        a complete life. In the early nomadic period especially, the solidarity of 

        family, clan,& tribe was of necessity such that the individual could scarcely 

        hope to survive outside his kinship group. 

                   It is true that Jeremiah and Ezekiel voiced the first definitive state-

        ment of individuals; it is equally true that individual leadership and respon-

        ibility were recognized long before this. The prophets were conspicuous

        for their urging one’s responsibility for their neighbors’ welfare. The pro-

        phets discerned within the community of Israel a faithful group which 

        should be a means of salvation, even though disaster might overtake

        others (See Remnant).

                  The law was also on the side of social justice and responsibility (See

        Law in the OT).  The Book of the Covenant calls for obedience to the divine

        will as expressed in the law and as the basis of moral and social conduct. 

        Even the rights of Hebrew slaves were recognized. There are suggestions 

        in both the legal and prophetic books that in the ideal society all people are

        equal in the sight of God. 

                  It is an OT characteristic that humans are represented as a being

        responsible to God, who have made God’s will known & expects it to be 

        obeyed. While individualism is no late phenomenon in history, it is true

        that the Hebrew had a strong sense of the corporate personality’s impor-

        tance. Yet Hebrew leaders still sought to impress upon the people their

        individual responsibility. Humans are summoned by God to worship God

        & to practice righteousness. They are to understand themselves as being 

        responsible to the Lord of history.

                    As history had its beginning, so it will have its end. By and large

        the OT has a sense of moving towards the end of this age. That individuals 

        had a destiny on the other side of death was little more than a wild guess. 

        What the OT does teach, is the possibility of a faith in God’s care and for-

        giveness and of fellowship, without which a more positive view of human 

        destiny would scarcely have been possible. 

HUMAN NATURE IN THE NEW TESTAMENT (NT) (antrwpoV (an thro

        pos), human being, individual;  mhdeiV (meh dice), no one; oudeis (oo

        dice), no one) The views of Jesus about the nature of people are derived 

        mainly from the Synoptic gospels. The most  general impression derived 

        from passages in the Synoptic gospels about the nature of humans is that 

        his views are those of the Old Testament (OT). 

                   It is characteristic of Jesus to think of personality as a unity. In Mat-

        thew 6 (“The eye is the lamp of the body”), “eye” is a metaphor for “mind.” 

        In Mark 8 (“Whoever would save his life will  lose it”) a pun is involved. For 

        here “psyche” means not only “life,” but also “soul,” in the sense of “eternal 

        life.”  Jesus means that in the effort to save temporal life you may lose it 

        eternally. In Mark 14 (“My soul is very sorrowful, even to death”) shows

        that “psyche” or “soul” is used in the sense of the first-person pronoun “I.”

                   Pneuma, “spirit,” is used of the Holy Spirit, or it can refer to the 

        spirit of an individual person. It occurs with great frequency in the Synop-

        tic gospels. The appearance of evil spirits is far more frequent in the gos-

        pels, and also the theology is different. In the OT the evil spirits are under 

        God’s control, while in the gospels they are subject to Satan. Jesus as-

        sumes that a spirit has an objective existence of its own; it can either ex-

        pel or dominate the human spirit and take up residence in the body.  This 

        phenomenon of possession and exorcism was an ancient way of diagno-

        sing and treating what we call mental illness.

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                    The most basic element in Jesus’ view of the nature of humans is

        his assumption that humans have intelligence, free will, and emotions    

        which require discipline.   Jesus assumes that all acts of the moral life 

        spring from the autonomy of the self. Jesus knows that the inner self of 

        humans is capable of good things as well as bad. In the eyes of Jesus, sin

        is a deliberate, willful, evil deed.  This shows that the truly moral and spiri-

        tual life is based squarely on the individual autonomy of decision.

                   The same view of personality is reflected in the parables. The story 

        of the sower illustrates four types of persons. Jesus assumes as a matter 

        of course that a person is responsible for the sort of soil he is.  In the story 

        of the prodigal son, the son returns only after he has freely made up his 

        mind that it is best for him to go back.  In the Last Judgment of Matthew 

        25, the Son of man pronounces his blessing on those who have freely 

        shown compassion on needy persons. 

                   Although his principles are those of the OT, no prophet before him 

        had seen so clearly what it means to be created in God's image.  The idea

        of life after death has little place in the OT; this view was finally replaced 

        by such writers as that of Daniel 12 and the apocryphal Wisdom of Solo-

        mon. Jesus was the heir of this faith. For him it was a fundamental faith. 

        There is hardly a word in his teaching which does not presuppose that 

        eternal life for humans.

    `             Although the general exposition of salvation in Paul’s letters is stated

        in terms of the supernatural, his understanding of faith, nevertheless, is 

        based on a solid foundation of natural religion. God is revealed to human

        intelligence of s by God’s work of creation. It is possible for humans from

        a study of the natural world itself to arrive at belief in the existence of God

        and in divine law. Paul goes on to say that humans have not lived up to 

        their opportunity and obligation in this respect.

                   Paul recognizes that among Gentiles who have never heard the law 

        of Moses there are good people who obey God. God has written his law on

        their hearts.  Their consciences are divinely equipped to direct them in 

        moral life. This sympathetic view of the Gentile world extends to all human-

        kind what Jeremiah had said before about Israel. Paul takes his insight & 

        makes it universal.  Paul’s views of the God-given religious capacity of 

        human beings agrees with the OT idea that humans are created in God's 

        image. 

                   The failure of Gentiles to live by natural revelation led Paul into a 

        searching analysis of human nature. The school of psychology has been 

        powerfully influenced by his insights. But Paul was neither a psychologist

        nor a philosopher in a technical sense. The first step that one must take in 

        understanding is to recognize the figurative nature of his vocabulary; he

        uses colorful metaphors, metonyms, and puns.

                   Paul doesn’t limit himself to one word to express desire. Desire was

        the most determinative idea in his vocabulary of personality. He moved far

        away from his classical Hebrew heritage & speaks more like a man of the 

        Far East when he blames the human condition on desire. Paul associates

        desire very closely with the flesh when he says “For what the flesh desires 

        is opposed to the Spirit . . . But if you are led by the Spirit you aren’t sub-

        ject to the law.” 

                   In such passages one must distinguish between passions and de-

        sires and the “flesh,” which is the seat of them all. Paul also uses “body” 

        in the same sense: “We know that our old self was crucified so that the 

        sinful body might be destroyed, and we might no longer in these contexts,

        and they be enslaved to sin.” Paul can use “flesh,” body,” and “sin” inter-

        changeably mean essentially the same thing.

                   In line with his tendency to avoid abstract terms, Paul rarely men-  

        tions reason or mind. The word “reason” itself appears in certain key pas-

        sages. A notable example of this occurs in I Corinthians 14: “I would rather 

        speak 5 words with my mind in order to instruct others than 10,000 words 

        in a tongue.” But Paul’s most relevant use of “reason” for our purpose oc-

        curs in Romans 7: “I delight in the law of God, in my inmost self, but I see 

        in my members another law at war with the law of my mind and making me 

        captive to the law of sin which dwells in my members.”

                   Nor do we find “will” dealt with by Paul in abstract, technical terms.

        Yet some statements in his exposition of human nature are clarified if we 

        realize that here is a description of will struggling with alien forces which 

        hold it in bondage. In Romans 7, the human self is constructed with three 

        levels: reason apprehends the law of God & knows well what human duty

        is; the conscious “I” is aware of both the upward challenge of duty to God’s

        law and the downward pull of desire; & the flesh’s overriding desire blocks 

        the performance of duty. The “I” can, and does switch back and forth be-

        tween the views of “mind” and “flesh.” Paul concludes: “I of myself serve 

        the law of God with my mind, but with my flesh I serve the law of sin.”

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                   In Paul’s understanding human destiny is shaped by decrees of the

         divine will. Paul knows that no man holds his own destiny entirely in his

        own hands. There's no predestination of punishment in Paul’s mind. Nor

        does he say that God ever invades human autonomy or coerces their 

        will. Humans find true freedom only when they bring their will into har-

        mony with God's will. Paul’s study of human nature shows that without 

        aid from beyond or above oneself, humans are lost. Humans have good 

        inclinations; they apprehend the truth; but desire has paralyzed their will,

        and holds them in bondage.  

                   Humans and Society—The word “society” doesn't appear in the 

        English versions of the Bible and is applicable to many human groups 

        and relationships. But the societies at the focus of attention in the NT, 

        being religiously grounded, felt both their differences from and their 

        responsibilities toward other societies in the world. Many of the concepts

        in this category in the NT are rooted in the OT, yet with significant differ-

        ences and extensions. 

                   In the OT Israel felt itself to be a unique creation, so in the NT the 

        “new Israel” was felt to be a separate and radically different kind of society. 

        Jesus can hardly be called a social reformer.  He did enunciate many ethi-

        cal and social principles, and regarded himself as a teacher in the prophe-

        tic tradition. In his teaching on the moral duty of the individual man, Jesus 

        gave greater weight to the inward motive than to the external command or 

        the overt act.

                   The Kingdom of God was in one sense the envisioning of a new 

        kind of society. But in a larger sense it was an expectation of the end of 

        the age which had already begun to show itself. There was as yet no 

        thought of Jesus’ followers’ breaking with Judaism to form an independent 

        society. They constituted a community based on the end of the age with

        Judaism. But it wasn’t long before the movement reached out beyond 

        Judaism. 

                   With Paul’s mission to the Gentiles, the separation became more 

        fully marked. When people entered this society, they ceased to be Jews or 

        Gentiles, slaves or free. They were “one body in Christ.” Yet despite its 

        sense of separateness from the world, the Christian community didn't re- 

        main aloof from the world.  It couldn’t do so & sought to win as many as 

        possible from the world before the end of the age. 

                   In the NT’s later books the Christians are shown more aware than

        ever of their differences from other societies. They are advised to keep 

        themselves “unstained from the world.” The Christians must expect per-

        secution from evil men. But they mustn’t allow this deter them from living 

        exemplary lives among themselves. The Christians were still the commu-

        nity for the age’s end. The church is, indeed, the “1st fruits of his crea-

        tures,” a society in the world but not of it, yet a society responsible to the

        world for the salvation of all.

                  
HUMANITY OF CHRIST. The idea found in the New Testament that Jesus 

        Christ was truly human in every respect, despite the emphasis on his 

        divinity. The Gospel of Mark appears to teach that Jesus’ knowledge was

        limited; Matthew doesn’t mention this concept. Luke affirms that Jesus

        grew “in wisdom & in stature, & in favor with God & the people.” Jesus 

        was regarded by most of his contemporaries as a teacher and prophet. 

        The Gospel of John pictures Jesus as fatigued & thirsting. The Pauline

        letters emphasize Jesus’ origin from a Jewish family and the human limi-

        tations under which he lived. The Letter of the Hebrews teaches that 

        Christ is a high priest who can have compassion for human weakness,

        since he was tempted in every way, shared human flesh and blood, and

        cried out to God and learned obedience through what he suffered.

HUMILITY (ענוה (‘an aw vaw); tapeinofrosunh (tap i nof ros oo nay)) A    

        situation of lowliness of affliction, & a characteristic way of acting toward

        God and people; opposite to pride, arrogance, and violence.

                   The great emphasis upon humility in both Judaism & Christianity

        must be traced back to the beginnings of Israel, which were tied up with 

        rejection of aristocratic stratification of society. Acutely aware of their 

        lowly origins as slaves, they could never regard Yahweh as the upholder

        of a social system built on pride & wealth. The Old Testament concept 

        of humility is almost exclusively tied up with human beings who are in 

        affliction, poverty, and suffering. Yahweh himself humbles humankind, 

        whether it be Pharaoh or Israel.

                   The Deuteronomists warn against pride in power on the grounds

        that Yahweh’s choice of Israel was based, not on human achievements,

        but on divine love and promise to the fathers. The poor were evidently 

        increasingly preyed upon by the wealthy and powerful who are equated 

        with the enemies of Yahweh in all the pre-exilic prophets. This horror of 

        violence against the helpless was constant from the Moses on. On the

        other hand, in the Psalms particularly the afflicted is almost a technical 

        term for the God-fearing pious.

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                   In the New Testament (NT), only rarely does humility in the NT have

        the objective aspect of poverty. It's in connection with Jesus that humility

        and affliction occurs most frequently. In Matthew the emphasis is upon 

        peace and nonviolence. Certainly, this humility of the sovereign is, at any

        rate, not a new motif in the NT. Humility appears in many catalogues of 

        Christian virtues in the letters. Christianity humility means a lack of con-

        cern for one’s own prestige.

                   It is clear that humility is regarded as a most important trait of early 

        Christian life.  Humility does away with self-pride, arrogance, & violence,

        and furnishes the possibility of peace and harmony. It also withdrew the 

        normal foundations of authority in human society. This conflict between 

        humility & prestige is dealt with by Paul in Philippians 2. The resolution  

        of the religious need for humility & authority is to be found in the Cross &

        the Resurrection. For early Christians, the two are to be harmonized in 

        the act of God, not in exempting religious authorities from humility, nor in 

        reducing humility to ritual acts or false self-denigration.

                  
HUMOR AND WIT. The caption “humor & wit” is perhaps the most appropriate 

        description of humor in the Bible. The Bible is basically serious. However,

        the Bible has its lighter moments especially its quick perception of the 

        incongruous. There is a classic description of the 2: “Wit is abrupt, dar-

        ting, scornful, and tosses its analogies in your face; humor is slow and 

        shy, insinuating its fun into your heart.” 

                   Also, we need to remember that the Bible was written in two very 

        ancient languages that were very foreign to the understanding of most 

        Westerners. Because of the verbal and intellectual subtlety of humor, it 

        is the literary quality most easily lost in translation. Some of the Bible’s 

        humor is already fairly well recognized, & more of it can be pointed out 

        or explained, the most common being the pun. One scholar lists some

        500 wordplays from the Old Testament (OT) while another lists at least

        200 from the New Testament (NT). Not all of these could be called humo-

        rous in the modern sense, but certainly they are all witty.

                   Genesis provides some of the best plays on words, especially in  

        connection with proper names. The Garden of Eden story has a lightness

        of touch that has long been recognized, especially in the indecent haste

        with which the guilty pair clothe themselves & hide. There is also a sad 

        sort of humor when the man blames the woman and the woman blames

        the serpent. The earthy nature of humankind is summed up in the pun at 

        the beginning of this story: “Then the Lord God formed man [adham] 

        from the dust of the ground [adhama].” The formation of woman from 

        the man’s rib uses a pun which isn't lost in English: “This at last is bone

        of my bones & flesh of my flesh; she will be called Woman [ishsha], for

        she was taken out of Man [ish].

                   The famous story of the Tower of Babel is in similar vein. The lan-  

        guage barrier is a tragic problem, but it also has its comic aspects in the 

        apparent “babbling” of 2 people speaking different languages. The names

        of the Patriarchs give fruitful occasion for punning. Abram and Abraham 

        suggest “father”; Isaac suggests the verb “to laugh”; and Jacob suggests

        both “heel-holder [at birth]” & “supplanter [of Esau’s birthright].”

                   The prophets also use puns, often with ironical, sarcastic, or satiri-

        cal force. As a result, their humor is of a somewhat grimmer sort than that 

        found in Genesis. Amos, Hosea, Isaiah, Jeremiah, and Zechariah are well-

        known for their use of wordplay in the Hebrew language (e.g. Amos 8:1-2; 

        Hosea 8:7; Isaiah 5:7; Jeremiah 1:11-12; Zechariah 9:5). The verse in 

        Zechariah makes use of the similarity of the forms of the Hebrew verbs 

        meaning “to see” & “to fear”; there are about 15 plays on these 2 words in

        the OT. The Wisdom literature naturally makes use of wordplays & other

        forms of wit. The Apocrypha may have made use of puns, but since they

        are, for the most part translated works, many of their wordplays are lost.

                   There are problems in translating wordplays from Aramaic to Greek

        in the NT. Yet much of the NT is not translation; in some cases wordplays

        are preserved, & in other cases the Greek itself is occasion for new word-

        plays. Matthew 1:21 has puns on an Aramaic proper name: “She will bear

        a son, & you shall call his name Jesus [Aramaic yeshua] for he will save 

        [Aramiaic yasha] his people from their sins.” The idea presented is basic

        to NT  thought—namely, that Jesus is savior; the pun is not preserved in 

        English. There is also Matt. 6:16: “They disfigure [aphanizousin] their 

        faces that they may figure [phanosin] in public as fasting.” 

                   Probably the most famous Greek wordplay in the NT is that in 

        Matthew 16:18, fairly well preserved in Greek, but lost in English: “You 

        are Peter [Greek petros; Aramaic kepha], and on this rock [Greek petra; 

        Aramaic kepha] I will build my church.” In II Corinthians 1:21 occurs a 

        significant wordplay on the root meaning of the word “Christ”: “It is God 

        who establishes us with you in Christ [the ‘Anointed’ One], and has com-

        missioned [chrisas, ‘anointed’ or ‘christened’] us.”

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                   Outstanding among the OT stories is the story of Samson (Judges

        13-16). The hero lacks the refinement of Joseph or an Achilles, but pos-

        sesses traits dear to simple & healthy rural folk. He excels in muscular 

        strength but is no match for feminine wiles. And under the rough exterior

        there is a witty if untutored mind, quick at repartee, an instinctive devotion

        to his people, and a dogged determination in avenging wrongs, which 

        ends with a self-inflicted heroic death. Judges 15:16 (presented here as

        a combination of the Moffat & Revised Standard Version translation) is an

        excellent example of the flavor of the entire narrative: “With the jawbone

        of an ass, I have piled them in a mass! With the jawbone of an ass, I 

        have slain a thousand men!”

                   Other OT passages to be noted are: Abraham’s bargaining with 

        the Lord (Genesis 18; Jacob’s clever trickery (Genesis 25-32); the at-

        tempts of the angel to impede the progress of Balaam (Numbers 22); 

        the slaying of Goliath (I Samuel 17); Elijah’s ridiculing the prophets of 

        Baal on Mount Carmel (I Kings 18); the extravagant actions of Ezra and 

        Nehemiah (Ezra 9; Nehemiah 13); Job’s bitter irony (Job 12); several 

        verses in Proverbs (chapters 6, 21, 23, & 26) & Jonah’s absurd sulking

        (Jonah 4). In the NT: the mote and the beam (Matthew 7; Luke 6); the 

        outwitting of the Pharisees (Matthew 22; Mark 12); and the “straining out

        a gnat and swallowing a camel” (Matthew 23:24).

HUMTAH (המטה, place of lizards) A village of Judah in the hill-country district

        of Hebron. The present location is unknown. (Joshua 15).

HUNCHBACK (גבנ (gib bane)) A type of person cited in the Holiness Code 

        (Leviticus 20) as unfit for priestly service. The priest was a sacred person

        and was to have no blemish, spiritual or physical.

HUNDRED, TOWER OF THE (מגדל המאה (mig dal  ham may ha)) A tower

        of the northern rampart of Jerusalem restored by Nehemiah. (Neh. 3;12).

HUNDREDWEIGHT (talantaia (tal an tay ee ah), talent (weight mea-

        surement)) The King James Version translates it as “about the weight of

        a talent,” the Revised Standard Version interprets the talent as about 

        100 pounds. (Revelation 16).

HUNTING (צוד (tsood); ציד (tsah yid)) Although the purely hunting phase 

        of human culture was long past before the biblical period began, the hunt

        must still have provided an important supplementary source of food. 

        Hunting with dogs was attested to in the pre-Israelite period in Palestine

        by the Egyptians. Two hunters mentioned in early Biblical times were 

        Nimrod and Esau.

                   With the coming of city life and trade, the economic importance of 

        hunting declined. Deuteronomy 14 includes wild game among the 

        animals permitted as food, but many common game animals, such as 

        the hare and wild pig, were prohibited by the dietary laws. A rather low

        opinion of hunting as a profession seems to have prevailed in Israel, for

        Esau the hunter is regarded as uncivilized by contrast with Jacob the 

        herdsman.

                   The hunting weapons are the bow and arrow. In hunting wild 

        animals for protection or to rid the community of a dangerous beast or  

        pest, the more military weapons were used. In communities where the

        chase is a substantial source of food, the villagers would form a cordon,

        and beat forward over the ground, driving the game before them into a 

        blind canyon, a corral of nets, or a prepared pit, where it is easily killed.

                   Hunting for pleasure was the privilege of kings and nobles. Such

        royal sport is not referred to in the Old Testament (OT), either because

        of Palestine’s mountainous terrain or because OT writers had too little 

        interest in such matters to record them. Herod enjoyed hunting on horse-

        back, a practice introduced by the Persians. The patience required of 

        the hunter and the deadly intent of the hunt provided a suitable metaphor

        for the persistent and unrelenting pursuit with intent to destroy.

                  
HUPHAM (הופם, coverings) The name of an ancestor and the origin of a

        family name. He is listed as a son of Benjamin (I Chronicles 7; 8)

HUPPAH (הפה, covering) A priest of the same era as King David. 

        (I Chronicles 24)

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HUR (הור, hole)    1. The ancestor whose name was the origin of a family 

        name. He was a descendant of Judah, the son of Caleb and Ephrath; 

        he is also listed as a son of Judah. Possibly he is to be identified with 

        the Ashhur who was the son of Caleb and Ephrathah. It is important to

        note that this Hebrew word is related to the one for Horite or Hurrians.

                   2. Moses’ assistant, who with Aaron supported Moses’ upraised 

        hands during the battle with Amalek, & who, along with Aaron presided

        over the government of the people during Moses’ absence. (Exodus 17)

                   3. One of the five kings of Midian slain by the Israelites under

        Moses (Numbers 31; Joshua 13).     4. Father or family name of Solo-

        mon’s purveyor in Ephraim's hill country (I Kings 4).      5. Father or 

        family name of a certain Rephaiah, who helped repair Jerusalem's wall 

        (Nehemiah 3).

HURAM (הורם, free-born, noble)    1. A Benjaminite. Probably his name should

        be read Hupham (Numbers 26).      2. Same as Hiram #1.      3. Chief 

        architect of Solomon’s temple, the son of a man of Tyre and a woman of 

        Naphtali or Dan.

HURI (הורי, linen-weaver) A Gadite (I Chronicles 5).

HURRIANS. The name of a people widely diffused throughout most of the 

        ancient Near East; referred to in the Bible as Horites. The Hurrian lan-

        guage left its mark on the development of the sounds used in Hebrew & 

        Northwest Semitic languages.

                   The Hurrians were spread more widely in the ancient Near East 

        than any other people before the Arameans. Although their original home

        has to be sought in the general region of Armenia, The Hurrians were 

        settled in historical times in Anatolia, Syria, what is now Kirkuk, & Central 

        Palestine. The ties between biblical Horites, the Kingdom of Mitanni, and 

        Mesopotamia were by no means apparent at first glance. 

                   The necessary key was provided by the Hittite archives from Bog-

        hazkoy. This language proved to be the same as the speech of Mitanni & 

        Hurrian personal names had been discovered in Central Palestine. The 

        Hurrian language was unrelated to any of the linguistic stocks previously 

        established, having generic affinities only with Urartian of ancient Armenia.

                   The Hurrians flourished from 2500-1000 B.C. Their greatest politi-

        cal accomplishment was the Mitanni Empire around 1500 B.C., when 

        they dominated Assyria. The cultural role of the Hurrians outstripped by

        far their political authority. They had religious compositions in their own 

        language included in the local archives at Mari. The Amarna Letters 

        furthermore, contain numerous Hurrian technical terms. Having borrowed

        extensively from Mesopotamian culture, the Hurrians were that much 

        better equipped to serve as teachers to their Hittite neighbors. Although

        deeply indebted to Mesopotamia, the Hurrians have left ample evidence

        of their independent cultural achievements, notably in the fields of art 

        literature, and social practices. 

                   Because of great distance from their main centers, the Hurrians   

        were less influential in Palestine than in Syria and Anatolia. Their impact

        can be traced to Central Mesopotamia, the patriarchs’ home, and to 

        Canaan, where Hurrians were an important component of the pre-Isra-

        elite population. The Hurrians influenced Hebrew language by changing

        the "b g d k p t" sounds to those in the Hurrian language. This change 

        took place during the Hurrian’s maximum expansion, when Hurrian prac- 

        tices were copied by West-Semitic languages.

                   The presence of Hurrians in Jerusalem is indicated in the Amarna 

        Letters by the Hurrian name for a Goddess applied to Jerusalem's ruler,

         “the Servant of Hepa.” There is also evidence of Hurrian names else-

        where in Palestine. “Jebusite” & “Hivite” also have Hurrian connections. 

        Besides Jerusalem, Shechem, Gibeon and settlements around Mount 

        Lebanon and Hermon are known both for their Hivite & Hurrian connec-

        tions. It follows that the term “Hivites” somehow came to refer to Hurrians.

                   The Shechemite agitation against Abimelech, who had usurped the 

        throne at Shechem can be explained by the Hurrian connection. The citi-

        zens of Shechem were reminded that their ruler was a son of Jerubbaal,

        an Israelite, rather than Hamor, a Hivite or Hurrian; also Hamorites were 

        uncircumcised. The bitterness of the war against Abimelech can scarcely

        be ascribed to political or clannish differences alone. It is better explained

        by the deeper cleavage between the separate societies of Hurrians and 

        Israelites. In summary, there is more Hurrian matter in the Bible than is 

        generally realized.

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HURRICANE (סופה (so faw), whirlwind) The translation used in Psalm 83.    

HUSBAND AND WIFE. See Family; Marriage

HUSBANDRY. (אכר (ik kawr), ploughman; gewrgoV  (gheh ore gos)) The 

        tilling of the soil. This term is used in the King James Version (KJV) but 

        isn’t employed in the recent translations. The Revised Standard Version

        uses “plowman” & “farmer.” In the New Testament, the KJV “husbandman”

        has become “householder.”

HUSHAH (הושה, haste) A village in Judah’s hill country, & home of one of 

        David’s Mighty Men.

HUSHAI (הושי, hastening) An Archite who served the exiled David as a spy

        in Jerusalem during the rebellion of Absalom. Hushai would have joined

        David's company. At the instance of the king, he returned to the capital 

        & was received as a royal adviser. The plan to attack the forces of David 

        without delay was successfully opposed by Hushai, who thus gave David

        time to escape. The espionage of Hushai was supported by Abiathar & 

        Zadok, whose sons acted as couriers to David. Absalom’s discovery of 

        this treasonable activity & the subsequent silence suggest an ominous 

        end of the “friend of David.” He is probably the father of Baana (#2) one

        of the prefects of Solomon.

HUSHAM (הושם, haste) A Temanite, 3rd king in Edom “before any king 

        reigned over Israel.” (I Chronicles 1).

HUSHIM (הושים, hastening)    1. Son of Dan.      2. Son of Aher, a Benjami-

        nite (I Chronicles 7).     3. A wife of Sha-haraim, a Benjaminite, & mother

        of Ahitub & Elpaal (I Chronicles 8).

HUSK (זג (zawg), skin of grape; צקלן (tsik lone), bag; keration (keh rah

        tee on), pod) King James Version translation of the Hebrew words zag

        and tsiklon and the Greek word keration. The Revised Standard Version

        uses the translations given at the beginning of this entry.

HUT. (מלונה (mel oo naw), lodge, hovel) In Isaiah 24, the catastrophic 

        outburst of terror will cause the earth to “sway like a hut.”

HUZZAB (הצב, hewn stones) King James Version translation of huzzab. The

        New Revised Standard Version translates it as “decreed.” Alternative 

        suggestions include: Nineveh, the Assyrian queen or a goddess; as a 

        verb, either “be decreed” or “be brought forth.” All nouns proposed are 

        guesses, while any verb would leave the sentences without a proper 

        subject.

HYENA. (אי (ee), howler) Any of certain stockily built carnivorous animals.  

        Usually feeding on carrion, the hyena is regarded as cowardly & cruel.

        In the 1800s, Tristam described the striped hyena as the most common 

        Palestinian beast of prey, next to the jackal; the Bible contains few allu-

        sions to hyenas. Whether ee means “hyena” in Isa. 13, 34, & Jer. 50 is

        uncertain; ee here is an animal occupying deserted human habitations.

HYKSOS. A term applied originally by the priest-historian Manetho (280 B.C.)

        to the rulers of Egypt assigned to the 15th and 16th Dynasties. Modern 

        scholars use it to designate the group which dominated Egypt & most 

        of the Syro-Palestinian area during the Middle Bronze II period (1800-

        1550 B.C.). Manetho’s translation of “Hyksos” as “shepherd kings” is 

        only partially correct; the word is simply a rendering of the Egyptian 

        phrase meaning “rulers of foreign countries.” It appears that their inva-

        sion of the Nile Valley from the northeast took place during the period 

        of anarchy and political dissolution after the end of the powerful Twelfth 

        Dynasty (ending 1792 B.C.). The first Hyksos dynasty was established

        in the Delta with its capital at Avaris around 1730 B.C. It is probable 

        that the ruling powers at Thebes were vassals to Hyksos, but there is 

        no clear evidence that the Hyksos actually controlled the territory of 

        Thebes in southern Egypt.

                   Kamose, the last Egyptian ruler of the 17th Dynasty, succeeded in

        driving them from Middle Egypt. The Hyksos’ expulsion from Egypt was 

        done by Ahmose (1570-1545 B.C.). It is certain that the Hyksos were not

        an ethnic unity. The linguistic evidence for affiliations with other ethnic 

        groups consists primarily of personal names, which include Semitic, pos-

        sibly Hurrian and Indo-European elements. Archaeological remains of 

        Hyksos sites in Palestine are known for their beaten earth fortifications. 

        Also associated with the Hyksos’ invasion is the use of chariots in warfare, 

        more use of bronze, and special skills in numerous crafts.

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HYMENAEUS (UmenaioV) Mentioned with Alexander & Philetus in I Timothy 1

        & II Timothy 2 respectively as Christians. In I Timothy, Hymenaeus is said 

        to have rejected his conscience or right beliefs, so Paul had delivered him

        & Alexander to Satan, i.e. put them out of the church. The hope was that 

        Hymenaeus would “learn not to blaspheme.” Timothy is told to avoid “pro-

        fane jargon” used by men like Hymenaeus & Philetus. Hymenaeus denied 

        the resurrection of the body by affirming that the resurrection had already 

        taken place. In what way Hymenaeus believed the resurrection had al-

        ready happened isn’t said; he probably taught that the resurrection took 

        place at baptism. Closely related to this view is the view that resurrection

        takes place when one becomes acquainted with the truth, which was most 

        often seen as happening at baptism.

HYMNS. The earliest Christians received from Judaism the use of psalms and 

        religious songs both in public worship & in private. The production of

        psalms did not end with the Psalms’ completion as we have them in the

        Bible, but continued uninterrupted. The hymns found in Romans 3, Reve-

        lation 15 & Luke 1 and 2 (the Gloria in Excelsis, the Magnificat, the Bene- 

        dictus, and the Nunc Dimittis) are part of the same tradition.

                   The “hymn” sung by Jesus at the conclusion of the Last Supper

        was probably the Hallel (Psalms 113-118). The church’s adoptions of the

        Old Testament psalms in its own worship was inevitable, if only because

        Jesus used them. There is greater evidence for the use of the Psalter by

        the church in the first 2 centuries as a prophetic book than as a liturgical 

        hymnal. Reference to song in the church’s worship are abundant, but are

        so general in character that one cannot say that it was drawn exclusively

        from the biblical Psalms. Attempts of commentators to use the terms 

        “psalms,” “hymns,” and “spiritual songs” to distinguish between to Old 

        Testament psalms and Christian compositions cannot be rigidly applied.

                   The New Testament does contain a few fragments of early Christian 

        hymnody, in addition to the psalms of Luke 1 and 2; a baptismal hymn is 

        probably cited in Ephesians 5. Hymns of a doxology character are to be 

        found in I Timothy 6 and in Revelation 4, 5, 7, 11, and 19. The inspiration

        of these doxologies was most likely the similar acclamations in the Greek-

        speaking synagogues. The Prologue of John’s Gospel’s, Philippians 2, 

        Colossians 1 and Romans 9 have been held by some critics to be based

        on hymns. Hymnal forms were valuable for evangelistic and didactic pur-

        poses no less than for worship.

                   Only one collection of Christian hymns has come down to us—

        the 42 baptismal hymns of the Syrian church known as the Odes of Solo-

        mon. Especially favored were hymns in honor of Christ. The Gnostic and

        other heretical groups made much use of metrical hymns, finding them,

        no doubt, an effective medium for their peculiar theological views. This 

        would explain the reaction in the orthodox circles of the 200s A.D. against

        the use in the liturgy of all non-biblical psalms & hymns for over 100 years.

                  
HYPOCRISY, HYPOCRITE (חנף (khaw nafe), profaneness, wickedness 

        upokrisiV (up oh kree sis); upokrithV (up oh kree tes)) Originally,

        in the context of Greek drama, the act of playing a part. The terms were

        also used to signify the action of feigning to be what one is not. Greek-

        speaking Jews came to understand the Greek word to mean something 

        other than its usual Greek meaning.

                   The Greek meaning of upokrisis was as alien to the Aramaic of    

        the New Testament period as it was to Hebrew. Given this, it is unlikely 

        that Jesus was attacking the Pharisees for simulating goodness. Jesus 

        does not attack the Pharisees for insincerity. Rather, it is because they 

        are so self-righteously convinced of their goodness that he castigates 

        them. Their blindness sets them in opposition to God. They are com-

        pared to unmarked graves, which by their uncleanness contaminate 

        those who walk upon them.

                   This Greek word is also used by Paul to describe the actions of    

        Christian Jews, including Peter and Barnabas. Paul is condemning their 

        irresponsible breach of good faith in renouncing an original agreement, 

        rather than any pretense. The only passage in the New Testament which

        uses the word in the popular Greek sense is Luke 20:20. Other than this,

        the occurrences of “hypocrisy” & “hypocrite” in the New Testament must

        be understood against the background of its meaning in Jewish thought 

        and the Old Testament.

HYSSOP. (אזוב (‘ay tsob), from the root meaning “dwarf“; usswpoV  (hus so  

        pos)) A small, bushy plant, probably the Syrian marjoram. The use of a

        “bunch of hyssop” for daubing the lintels of the Hebrew homes with 

        blood from the sacrificed lamb at the first Passover began its use in  

        Hebrew rituals. The Levitical laws for the cleansing of leprosy and the 

        rite of the Red Heifer involved the use of ezob.  In the Levitical laws the

        hyssop, together with the cedar wood and the scarlet stuff, is dipped in 

        the blood of a sacrificed bird and sprinkled seven times on the person or

        the house to be cleansed of leprosy.

                 In the New Testament, hyssop was used to administer vinegar to  

        Jesus on the cross (John 19), while Matthew 27 and Mark 15 mention a

        reed. Could it be that the variation from the Synoptics was intentional, 

        and that John used ussopos with a symbolic meaning? Another sugges-

        tion is that hyssop and the sponge were put on a reed, thus adding to 

        the cooling effect of the hyssop leaves.

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