COMPACT BIBLE Dictionary

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The Baker COMPACT BIBLE Dictionary

Tremper Longman III General Editor Peter Enns Old Testament Editor Mark Strauss New Testament Editor C Tremper Longman III, Peter Enns, Mark Strauss, eds., The Baker Compact Bible Dictionary Baker Books, a division of Baker Publishing Group, © 2014. Used by permission.

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Condensed from e Baker Illustrated Bible Dictionary

Published by Baker Books a division of Baker Publishing Group P.O. Box 6287, Grand Rapids, MI 49516-6287 www.bakerbooks.com

Printed in the United States of America

All rights reserved. No part of this publication may be reproduced, stored in a retrieval system, or transmi!ed in any form or by any means—for example, electronic, photocopy, recording—without the prior wri!en permission of the publisher. "e only exception is brief quotations in printed reviews.

Library of Congress Cataloging-in-Publication Data "e Baker compact Bible dictionary / Tremper Longman III, general editor ; Peter Enns, Old Testament editor ; Mark Strauss, New Testament editor. pages cm Condensed from "e Baker illustrated Bible dictionary. ISBN 978-0-8010-1544-1 (paper) 1. Bible—Dictionaries. I. Longman, Tremper, editor of compilation. BS440.B255 2014 220.3—dc23 2013036470

Unless otherwise indicated, Scripture is taken from the Holy Bible, New International Version ®. NIV ®. Copyright © 1973, 1978, 1984, 2011 by Biblica, Inc.™ Used by permission of Zondervan. All rights reserved worldwide. www.zondervan.com

Scripture quotations labeled ESV are from "e Holy Bible, English Standard Version ® (ESV ®), copyright © 2001 by Crossway, a publishing ministry of Good News Publishers. Used by permission. All rights reserved. ESV Text Edition: 2007

Scripture quotations labeled NLT are from the Holy Bible , New Living Translation, copyright © 1996, 2004, 2007 by Tyndale House Foundation. Used by permission of Tyndale House Publishers, Inc., Carol Stream, Illinois 60188. All rights reserved.

Scripture quotations labeled NRSV are from the New Revised Standard Version of the Bible, copyright © 1989, by the Division of Christian Education of the National Council of the Churches of Christ in the United States of America. Used by permission. All rights reserved.

14 15 16 17 18 19 20 7 6 5 4 3 2 1 Tremper Longman III, Peter Enns, Mark Strauss, eds., The Baker Compact Bible Dictionary Baker Books, a division of Baker Publishing Group, © 2014. Used by permission.

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Longman_CompactDict_JK_djm.indd iv 5/22/14 7:41 AM Contents

Preface vii Contributors ix Abbreviations xiii

A 1 N 243 B 31 O 251 C 60 P 257 D 87 Q 278 E 95 R 279 F 113 S 298 G 126 T 329 H 146 U 341 I 168 V 344 J 180 W 347 K 203 X 361 L 209 Y 362 M 221 Z 363

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Longman_CompactDict_JK_djm.indd v 5/22/14 7:41 AM Tremper Longman III, Peter Enns, Mark Strauss, eds., The Baker Compact Bible Dictionary Baker Books, a division of Baker Publishing Group, © 2014. Used by permission.

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Longman_CompactDict_JK_djm.indd vi 5/22/14 7:41 AM Preface

Christians read the Bible because the triune that led to the Compact Dictionary . I served God has revealed himself to us through these as the general editor and made the choices of pages. We worship God, not the Bible, but we which articles to include in the Compact Dic- learn about who God is and what pleases him tionary and also helped make them, well, more through these divinely inspired words. We not compact. Mark Strauss and Peter Enns were the only learn about God, but also about ourselves New Testament and Old Testament editors of and, using the language of Jesus’ parable of the the BIBD respectively. Well over one hundred sower (Mark 4:1–20), the word of God, like contributors wrote the articles that compose a seed, if planted in the rich soil of a recep- both these reference works and I thank them tive heart and mind, will transform the lives heartily for their labors. of those who read it. I also want to express my appreciation to !e main message of the Bible is clear and Baker Publishing Group. Jack Kuhatschek, easy to understand. God created everything, my longtime friend, initiated the project by including us, but we rebelled against him. We inviting me to be editor. I also want to thank need a savior, and that savior is Jesus Christ. Brian Vos and James Korsmo for their work !at said, though the main message is clear, on this project. !e la"er in particular was ex- the Bible is not always easy to understand. We tremely helpful in his close reading of the text encounter many strange names, places, cus- that helped us avoid many mistakes. !at said, toms, and concepts. e Baker Compact Bible as general editor, any remaining errors are my Dictionary is a handy tool that can help the responsibility. interested reader gain the knowledge necessary My sincere prayer and hope is that this tool to read the Bible with clarity of understanding. will help you, its user, to read the Bible with !e Compact Bible Dictionary is a shorter understanding so that you may come to know version composed of the most important en- tries from the much larger Baker Illustrated God even be"er. Bible Dictionary . !us, the same team that pro- Tremper Longman III duced the BIBD is to be thanked for the work Editor

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Longman_CompactDict_JK_djm.indd vii 5/22/14 7:41 AM Tremper Longman III, Peter Enns, Mark Strauss, eds., The Baker Compact Bible Dictionary Baker Books, a division of Baker Publishing Group, © 2014. Used by permission.

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Longman_CompactDict_JK_djm.indd viii 5/22/14 7:41 AM Contributors

Stephen J. Andrews, PhD, Professor of Old John A. Davies, PhD, Principal Emeritus, Testament, Hebrew, and Archaeology, Presbyterian !eological Centre, Sydney, Midwestern Baptist !eological Seminary, Australia Kansas City, MO John C. DelHousaye, PhD, Associate Profes- Sarah-Jane Austin, !M from Westminster sor of New Testament, Phoenix Seminary, !eological Seminary, Glenside, PA Phoenix, AZ Karelynne Gerber Ayayo, !D, Assistant Dean Joseph R. Dodson, PhD, Assistant Professor of the School of Ministry and Associate of Biblical Studies, Ouachita Baptist Uni- Professor of Biblical Studies, Palm Beach versity, Arkadelphia, AR Atlantic University, West Palm Beach, FL Jason Driesbach, PhD student at Hebrew Uni- Deron Biles, PhD, Dean of Extension Educa- versity of Jerusalem, Israel tion and Associate Professor of Old Testa- Ben C. Dunson, PhD, Sessional Assistant ment, Southwestern Baptist !eological Professor of Religion and !eology, Re- Seminary, Fort Worth, TX deemer University College, Ancaster, On- Michael F. Bird, PhD, Lecturer in !eology tario, Canada and Bible, Crossway College, Queensland, J. Sco" Duvall, PhD, Professor of New Testa- Australia ment and J. C. and Mae Fuller Chair of Bib- Tony Bird, PhD, Lecturer in Biblical Studies, lical Studies, Ouachita Baptist University, Presbyterian !eological College, Mel- Arkadelphia, AR bourne, Australia Seth Ehorn, PhD candidate at University of Ed- Dave L. Bland, PhD, Professor of Homilet- inburgh, New College, Edinburgh, Scotland ics and DMin Director, Harding School of Peter Enns, PhD from Harvard University, !eology, Memphis, TN Cambridge, MA; Biblical Scholar and Au- Art Boulet, graduate student at Columbia Uni- thor, Lansdale, PA versity, New York, NY Paul S. Evans, PhD, Assistant Professor of Old Norah Caudill, PhD, Adjunct Assistant Profes- Testament, McMaster Divinity College, sor of Old Testament, Fuller !eological Hamilton, Ontario, Canada Seminary, Pasadena, CA, and Faculty As- Charles Farhadian, PhD, Associate Professor sociate of Old Testament, Bethel Seminary, of World Religions and Christian Mission, San Diego, CA Westmont College, Santa Barbara, CA Rosalind S. Clarke, PhD student at Highland Jerad File, M! student at Southwestern Bap- !eological College, Dingwall, Scotland tist !eological Seminary, Fort Worth, TX Bill Coe, MATS, Adjunct Professor of Music David Firth, PhD, Director of Extension Stud- at Southwestern College, Chula Vista, CA ies, St. Johns College, No"ingham, England Rob Dalrymple, PhD, Academic Dean, Koi- Daniel Fletcher, PhD from Westminster !eo- nonia Graduate School of !eology, Liver- logical Seminary, Glenside, PA; Instructor, more, CA Eastern University, St. Davids, PA Tremper Longman III, Peter Enns, Mark Strauss, eds., The Baker Compact Bible Dictionary Baker Books, a division of Baker Publishingix Group, © 2014. Used by permission.

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Longman_CompactDict_JK_djm.indd ix 5/22/14 7:41 AM Contributors

Douglas Geringer, PhD candidate, Associ- and Professor of Religion, William Carey ate Professor of New Testament Language University, Ha"iesburg, MS and Literature, Associate Dean of Talbot David Jackson, PhD, Head of Biblical Studies, School of !eology, Biola University, La William Carey Christian School, Prestons, Mirada, CA NSW, Australia, and Honorary Associate, Greg Goswell, PhD, Biblical Studies Lecturer, School of Historical and Philosophical Presbyterian !eological College, Mel- Inquiry, University of Sydney, Sydney, bourne, Australia Australia Sco" Gray, DMin student at Southwestern Sco" Jackson, PhD, Associate Professor of Baptist !eological Seminary, Fort Worth, Christian Ministries, Ouachita Baptist TX; Pastor, Sycamore Baptist Church, De- University, Arkadelphia, AR catur, TX Joshua T. James, PhD candidate at Fuller !eo- Brad Gregory, PhD, Assistant Professor of logical Seminary, Pasadena, CA Scripture, University of Scranton, Scran- ton, PA Stephen Janssen, PhD candidate, Adjunct Professor of Biblical Education, Cedarville David P. Gri#n, PhD student at University of University, Cedarville, OH Virginia, Charlo"esville, VA Joanne J. Jung, PhD, Associate Professor of Norris Grubbs, PhD, Associate Professor of Biblical Studies and !eology, Talbot School New Testament and Greek, Senior Associ- of !eology, La Mirada, CA ate Dean of Extension Center System, New Orleans Baptist !eological Seminary, New !omas Keene, PhD, Lecturer in New Testa- Orleans, LA ment, Westminster !eological Seminary, Glenside, PA Joel Hamme, PhD candidate, Fuller !eological Seminary, Pasadena, CA; Assistant Shane B. Kelly, BA from Westmont College, Professor at William Carey International Santa Barbara, CA University Dongsu Kim, PhD, Professor of Bible and Micah Haney, PhD candidate, Adjunct Profes- !eology, Nyack College, New York, NY sor of Old Testament, Azusa Paci$c Univer- JinKyu Kim, PhD, Professor of Old Testament, sity, Azusa, CA Baekseok University, Cheonan, South Korea Ma"hew S. Harmon, PhD, Professor of New Koowon Kim, PhD, Faculty, Reformed !eo- Testament Studies, Grace College and !eological Seminary, Seoul, South Korea logical Seminary, Winona Lake, IN Yoon-Hee Kim, PhD, Associate Professor of J. Daniel Hays, PhD, Professor of Biblical Stud- Old Testament, Torch Trinity Graduate ies and Dean of Pruet School of Christian School of !eology, Seoul, South Korea Studies, Ouachita Baptist University, Arka- John F. Klem, !D, Senior Pastor, Brookdale delphia, AR Baptist Church, Moorhead, MN N. Blake Hearson, PhD, Assistant Professor Sheri Klouda, PhD, Associate Professor of Bib- of Old Testament and Hebrew, Midwest- lical Studies, Taylor University, Upland, IN ern Baptist !eological Seminary, Kansas City, MO Will J. Kynes, PhD, Departmental Lecturer Tim Henderson, PhD candidate, Adjunct Pro- in Old Testament Studies, St. Peter’s Col- fessor of New Testament, Bethel Seminary, lege, Oxford St. Paul, MN Brian Labosier, PhD, Professor of Biblical Renate Viveen Hood, PhD, Associate Profes- Studies, Bethel Seminary, St. Paul, MN sor of Christian Studies, University of Mary David T. Lamb, DPhil, Associate Professor of Hardin-Baylor, Belton, TX Old Testament, Biblical Seminary, Hat$eld, Douglas S. Hu%man, PhD, Professor and As- PA sociate Dean of Biblical and !eological Bernon Lee, PhD, Professor of Hebrew Scrip- Studies, Talbot School of !eology, La tures, Bethel University, St. Paul, MN Mirada, CA Peter Y. Lee, PhD, Assistant Professor of Old Sco" Hummel, PhD, Vice President for Institu- Testament, Reformed !eological Sem- tional Advancement and Church Relations inary, Washington, DC Tremper Longman III, Peter Enns, Mark Strauss, eds., The Baker Compact Bible Dictionary Baker Books, a division of Baker Publishingx Group, © 2014. Used by permission.

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Longman_CompactDict_JK_djm.indd x 5/22/14 7:41 AM Contributors

Michelle Lee-Barnewall, PhD, Associate Pro- Je$rey Monk, PhD candidate and Teaching fessor of Biblical and !eological Studies, Fellow in Hermeneutics and Biblical Inter- Biola University, La Mirada, CA pretation, Westminster !eological Sem- !omas G. Lengyel, MDiv student at Bethel inary, Glenside, PA Seminary, San Diego, CA Erika Moore, PhD, Associate Professor of Old Stephen J. Lennox, PhD, Professor of Bible, Testament and Hebrew, Trinity School for Indiana Wesleyan University, Marion, IN Ministry, Ambridge, PA Kathleen Murray, !M student at Fuller !eo- Darian Locke", PhD, Associate Professor of logical Seminary, Pasadena, CA Biblical and !eological Studies, Talbot School of !eology, La Mirada, CA Neil Newman, MDiv from Westminster !eological Seminary, Glenside, PA Tremper Longman III, PhD, Robert H. Gun- dry Professor of Biblical Studies, Westmont Steven M. Ortiz, PhD, Associate Professor College, Santa Barbara, CA of Archaeology and Biblical Backgrounds and Director of the Tandy Archaeology Nathan Patrick Love, PhD, Associate Profes- Museum, Southwestern Baptist !eological sor of Old Testament, Ambrose Seminary, Seminary, Fort Worth, TX Calgary, Alberta, Canada Dukjoon Park, PhD candidate at Westminster Melinda G. Loyd, MA, Southwestern Baptist !eological Seminary, Glenside, PA !eological Seminary, Fort Worth, TX C. Marvin Pate, PhD, Chair of the Depart- Sun Myong Lyu, PhD, Senior Pastor, Korean ment of Christian !eology and Elma Cobb Presbyterian Church of Ann Arbor, Ann Professor of Christian !eology, Ouachita Arbor, MI Baptist University, Arkadelphia, AR Robert G. Maccini, PhD from the University Elaine Phillips, PhD, Professor of Biblical Stud- of Aberdeen, Aberdeen, Scotland ies, Gordon College, Wenham, MA !or Madsen, PhD, Dean of the College, Mid- Leong Cheng Michael Phua, PhD, Associate western Baptist College, Kansas City, MO Professor of Old Testament, Singapore Bible Steven !atcher Mann, PhD, Adjunct Profes- College, Singapore sor, Azusa Paci#c University, Azusa, CA Bill Pickut, PhD student at University of Chi- cago, Chicago, IL Steven Mason, PhD, Provost and Dean of Faculty for Academic A$airs and Associ- Timothy Pierce, PhD, Pastor, Woodland ate Professor of Biblical Studies, LeTourneau Heights Baptist Church, Bedford, TX, and University, Longview, TX Resident Fellow, B. H. Carroll !eological Institute, Arlington, TX Nathan Mastnjak, graduate student at Univer- Jesse Rainbow, PhD candidate at Harvard sity of Chicago, Chicago, IL University, Cambridge, MA Andrew Mbuvi, PhD, Associate Professor of Hulisani Ramantswana, PhD, Faculty, Hei- Biblical Studies and Hermeneutics, Shaw delberg !eological Seminary, Pretoria, University Divinity School, High Point, NC South Africa Walter McConnell, PhD, Pastor, Belfast Chi- Melissa D. Ramos, PhD candidate at Uni- nese Christian Church, Belfast, Ireland versity of California Los Angeles, Los Susan Michaelson, MDiv from Westminster Angeles, CA !eological Seminary, Glenside, PA; Ad- Cristian Rata, PhD, Assistant Professor of Old junct Professor of !eology, St. Joseph’s Testament, Torch Trinity Graduate School University, Philadelphia, PA of !eology, Seoul, South Korea Eric A. Mitchell, PhD, Associate Professor of Tiberius G. Rata, PhD, Professor of Old Testa- Old Testament and Archaeology, South- ment Studies and Chair of Department of western Baptist !eological Seminary, Fort Biblical Studies, Grace College and !eo- Worth, TX logical Seminary, Winona Lake, IN James Mohler (deceased), PhD, Former Asso- David Redelings, PhD, Faculty Associate, ciate Professor of Biblical Studies and Chair Bethel Seminary, San Diego, CA of Biblical and !eological Studies, Talbot Rodney Reeves, PhD, Professor of Biblical School of !eology, La Mirada, CA Studies and Dean of the Courts, Redford Tremper Longman III, Peter Enns, Mark Strauss, eds., The Baker Compact Bible Dictionary Baker Books, a division of Baker Publishingxi Group, © 2014. Used by permission.

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College of !eology and Ministry, South- W. Franklin !omason II, PhD student at west Baptist University, Bolivar, MO Southwestern Baptist !eological Sem- Randy Richards, PhD, Professor of Biblical inary, Fort Worth, TX; Adjunct Professor Studies and Dean of the School of Ministry, of History of Religion, Navarro College, Palm Beach Atlantic University, West Palm Corsicana, TX Beach, FL Karyn Traphagen, PhD student at University Andrew J. Schmutzer, PhD, Professor of Bible, of Stellenbosch, South Africa Moody Bible Institute, Chicago, IL Cephas Tushima, PhD, Adjunct Professor, George Schwab, PhD, Professor of Old Testa- Eastern University, St. Davids, PA, and ment, Erskine !eological Seminary, Due Lecturer, ECWA !eological Seminary, West, SC Jos, Plateau State, Nigeria Timothy Senapatiratne, PhD, Reference Li- Preben Vang, PhD, Professor of Biblical and brarian, Bethel Seminary, St. Paul, MN !eological Studies, Palm Beach Atlantic Boyd V. Seevers, PhD, Professor of Old Tes- University, West Palm Beach, FL tament Studies, Northwestern College, St. Andrew E. Walton, PhD student at Harvard Paul, MN University, Cambridge, MA Jerry Shepherd, PhD, Associate Professor of Daniel R. Watson, PhD, Associate Professor of Old Testament, Taylor Seminary, Edmon- Old Testament, Midwestern Baptist !eo- ton, Alberta, Canada logical Seminary, Kansas City, MO Martin Shields, PhD, Honorary Research Ken Way, PhD, Associate Professor of Bible Associate, Department of Hebrew, Biblical Exposition, Talbot School of !eology, La and Jewish Studies, University of Syndey, Mirada, CA Sydney, Australia Brian L. Webster, PhD, Associate Professor of Benjamin C. Shin, DMin, Associate Profes- Old Testament Studies, Dallas !eological sor of Bible Exposition, Talbot School of Seminary, Dallas, TX !eology, La Mirada, CA Paul D. Wegner, PhD, Professor of Old Testa- Ian Smith, PhD, Principal, Presbyterian !eo- ment, Phoenix Seminary, Phoenix, AZ logical Centre, Sydney, Australia Forrest Weiland, PhD, Adjunct Professor, Robert S. Snow, PhD, Assistant Professor in Bethel Seminary, San Diego, CA, and New Testament, Ambrose University Col- North American Coordinator, Zaporozhye lege, Calgary, Alberta, Canada Bible College and Seminary, Zaporozhye, Bradley J. Spencer, PhD candidate at Harvard Ukraine University, Cambridge, MA Joshua Williams, PhD, Assistant Professor of John Michael Stanley, MDiv from Phoenix Old Testament, Southwestern Baptist !eo- Seminary, Phoenix, AZ; Pastor, Grace logical Seminary, Fort Worth, TX Brethren Church, Columbus, OH Daniel Willson, student at Fuller !eological Mark L. Strauss, PhD, Professor of New Tes- Seminary, Pasadena, CA tament, Bethel Seminary, San Diego, CA Michael Woodcock, PhD, Pastor, First Baptist Brian Tabb, PhD candidate, Assistant Professor Church, North Hollywood, CA of Biblical Studies, Bethlehem College and Seminary, Minneapolis, MN Michael Yankoski, MCS from Regent College, Vancouver, Canada Dieudonne Tamfu, PhD student at South- ern Baptist !eological Seminary, Louis- Stephen Young, PhD candidate at Brown Uni- ville, KY; Associate Professor of Biblical versity, Providence, RI !eology, Cameroon Baptist !eological Jason Zan, MA candidate at Southwestern Bap- Seminary, Ndu, Cameroon tist !eological Seminary, Fort Worth, TX

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Longman_CompactDict_JK_djm.indd xii 5/22/14 7:41 AM Abbreviations

General Sir. Sirach Tob. Tobit // parallels Aram. Aramaic c. circa Old Testament Pseudepigrapha cf. confer Let. Aris. Le!er of Aristeas chap(s). chapter(s) Pss. Sol. Psalms of Solomon DSS Dead Sea Scrolls Sib. Or. Sybilline Oracles e.g. for example T. Levi Testament of Levi esp. especially Gk. Greek Dead Sea Scrolls Heb. Hebrew 11Q13 11QMelchizedek i.e. that is Lat. Latin Rabbinic Tractates lit. literally LXX Septuagint m. Mishnah mg. margin Roš. Haš. Rosh HaShanah MT Masoretic Text NT New Testament Apostolic Fathers OT Old Testament 1–2 Clem. 1–2 Clement par(s). parallel(s) Did. Didache r. reigned Mart. Pol. Martyrdom of Polycarp Bible Versions Greek and Latin Works ESV English Standard Version HCSB Holman Christian Standard Bible Herodotus KJV King James Version Hist. Historiae (Histories) MSG e Message NAB New American Bible Josephus NASB New American Standard Bible NET New English Translation Ant. Jewish Antiquities NIV New International Version J.W. Jewish War NJB New Jerusalem Bible NKJV New King James Version Ovid NLT New Living Translation Metam. Metamorphoses NRSV New Revised Standard Version REB Revised English Bible Philo RSV Revised Standard Version Embassy On the Embassy to Gaius Apocrypha and Septuagint Jdt. Judith Pliny the Elder 1–4 Macc. 1–4 Maccabees Nat. Naturalis historia (Natural History) Tremper Longman III, Peter Enns, Mark Strauss, eds., The Baker Compact Bible Dictionary Baker Books, a division of Baker Publishingxiii Group, © 2014. Used by permission.

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Longman_CompactDict_JK_djm.indd xiii 5/22/14 7:41 AM Tremper Longman III, Peter Enns, Mark Strauss, eds., The Baker Compact Bible Dictionary Baker Books, a division of Baker Publishing Group, © 2014. Used by permission.

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Longman_CompactDict_JK_djm.indd xiv 5/22/14 7:41 AM A

A –Aaron was Moses’ older brother and Both Moses and Aaron forfeited their his close associate during the days when God right to enter the land of promise when they used both of them to establish his people Israel usurped the Lord’s authority as they brought as a nation. Aaron’s particular importance came water from the rock in the wilderness (Num. when God selected him to be the !rst high 20:1–13). Sick and tired of the people’s com- priest of Israel. plaining, Moses wrongly ascribed the ability Aaron plays a supportive role in the Exodus to make water come from the rock to himself account of the plagues and the departure from and Aaron, and rather than speaking to the Egypt. He was at Moses’ side. As previously rock, he struck it twice. For this, God told arranged, Aaron was the spokesperson, acting them that they would die in the wilderness. as a prophet to Moses, who was “like God to Aaron’s death is reported soon a%er this oc- Pharaoh” (Exod. 7:1). casion (Num. 20:22–27). "e event of greatest signi!cance involving In the NT, the most signi!cant use of Aaron Aaron in the wilderness was his appointment is in comparison to Jesus Christ, the ultimate as high priest. "e divine mandate for his instal- high priest. Interestingly, the book of Hebrews lation is recorded in Exod. 28. Aaron did not argues that Jesus far surpassed the priestly au- fare well on the one occasion when he acted thority of Aaron by connecting his priesthood independently from Moses. While Moses was to Melchizedek, a mysterious non-Israelite on Mount Sinai receiving the two tablets of priest who blesses God and Abram in Gen. the law from the hand of God, Aaron gave in 14 (see Heb. 7:1–14). to the people’s request to make a calf idol out A’ R" –Aaron’s rod is his wooden of golden earrings that they gave him. walking stick, which had a signi!cant role in In spite of Aaron’s sin, God did not remove the accounts of the plagues of Egypt. In Moses him from his priestly responsibilities (thanks to and Aaron’s !rst confrontation with Pharaoh, the prayers of Moses [Deut. 9:20]), the height Aaron threw his rod to the ground, and it of which was to preside over the annual Day turned into a snake. Although the Egyptian of Atonement (Lev. 16). "e incident of the magicians could mimic this act, Aaron’s snake golden calf was not the only occasion when swallowed the snakes produced by their rods, Aaron tried God’s patience. According to Num. thus showing the superiority of Aaron’s God 12, Aaron and his sister, Miriam, contested over their false gods (Exod. 7:8–13). Aaron Moses’ leadership. Using his marriage to a used his rod by either extending it or striking Cushite woman as a pretext, Moses’ siblings the ground in order to initiate other plagues as asserted their equality. God, however, put them well. Interestingly, Aaron’s rod was featured in in their place, a#rming Moses’ primacy. the early plagues, whereas Moses used his rod Other tribal leaders questioned Aaron’s in some of the later and more powerful plagues priestly leadership, according to Num. 17. as well as in the crossing of the Red Sea, per- Moses told all the tribal leaders to place their haps showing Moses’ prominence (9:23 [hail], walking sta$s along with Aaron’s before God 10:13 [locusts], 14:16 [Red Sea]). at the tent of testimony. God showed his favor "e rod was not a magical wand but rather toward Aaron by causing his sta$ to bud. a symbol of the presence of God. It is best to Tremper Longman III, Peter Enns, Mark Strauss, eds., The Baker Compact Bible Dictionary Baker Books, a division of Baker Publishing1 Group, © 2014. Used by permission.

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understand the rod as related to a tree that Mark 2:26, where Jesus recounts when David stands for God’s presence. It is a portable tree. took the showbread to feed his men “in the A days of Abiathar the high priest.” A –A transliteration of the Hebrew word for “destruction,” signifying the grave or A#!#" –!e wife of Nabal, a wealthy man the underworld (Rev. 9:11). from Carmel (1 Sam. 25). While David was hiding from Saul in the desert, he sent a word A –A river in the region of Damascus of greeting to Nabal to ask for some food. !is mentioned by the Syrian general Naaman as would have been a gesture of good faith on surpassing the Jordan River (2 Kings 5:12). Nabal’s part, since his servants had been treated well by David and his men (vv. 7, 15–16). A –An Aramaic term for “father,” used Nabal treated David’s request and his ten mes- three times in the NT (Mark 14:36; Rom. sengers with disrespect, so David intended to 8:5; Gal. 4:6), always coupled with its Greek retaliate, even swearing that not a male would equivalent, patēr . A term of endearment used to be le& alive among Nabal’s people (vv. 21–22). refer to God, it demonstrates that the speaker !inking quickly, and without telling Nabal, has an intimate, loving relationship with God. Abigail prepared food and brought it to David. She pleaded with David not to shed any blood, A ! –!e Babylonian name given which would be to act like the foolish Nabal to Azariah, one of Daniel’s three friends, by (“Nabal” in Hebrew means “fool” [v. 25]). Nebuchadnezzar’s chief o"cial, Ashpenaz, as She asked for forgiveness on Nabal’s behalf, part of an a#empt to turn him into a Babylo- spoke of the Lord’s favor on David’s “lasting nian o"cial (Dan. 1:7). dynasty” (v. 28), and said that she wished to be remembered when David’s current status A " –!e name of Cain’s brother. As Adam was behind him and his rule was established and Eve’s second son, he is mentioned in Gen. (v. 31). David was persuaded by her words. 4:2–9 (also v. 25) as the murdered brother of Abigail then returned home and reported to Cain, who slew him out of anger at his being Nabal what she had done. Upon hearing the more favored by God for o$ering a be#er news, his heart failed and he became “like a sacri%ce. He is not mentioned again until the stone” for ten days, and then God struck him Gospels (Ma#. 23:35; Luke 11:51), where he dead (vv. 37–38). David rejoiced at hearing the is cast as the %rst representative of the “righ- news and then made Abigail his wife. teous blood” shed on earth. In Heb. 11:4 an explanation is given for why Abel’s sacri%ce A#%' –!e second of Aaron’s four sons was favored over Cain’s: it was o$ered in faith. (Exod. 6:23). He and his older brother, Nadab, In Heb. 12:24 Abel’s blood is contrasted with were allowed to approach the Lord on Mount Christ’s. !e nature of the contrast is not Sinai with Moses, Aaron, and the seventy el- made explicit, but the context suggests that ders (Exod. 24:1, 9). He and his three brothers whereas both Christ and Abel were innocent, (the younger two were Eleazar and Ithamar) it is Christ’s shed blood that is e"cacious to were made Israel’s %rst priests (Exod. 28:1). He mediate the new covenant. and Nadab “o$ered unauthorized %re before the L*+/, contrary to his command,” so they A#$%& –A high priest, son of Ahimelek, were consumed by %re (Lev. 10:1–2; cf. Num. %rst mentioned in 1 Sam. 22:20, when he es- 3:4; 26:61; 1 Chron. 24:2). caped Saul’s slaughter of the priests of Nob. He took refuge with David in the cave of Adullam A#(% –(1) Samuel’s second son, who, along and, having escaped with the ephod (1 Sam. with his older brother Joel, served as judge in 23:6–12), became the high priest a&er David’s Beersheba, but whose corruption drove Israel’s reign was established. When Absalom rebelled elders to ask Samuel to appoint a king (1 Sam. against David, Abiathar remained supportive 8:2–5). (2) Son of Jeroboam, the %rst king of the (2 Sam. 15). Later, however, he supported northern kingdom (930–909 BC). He died as Adonijah rather than Solomon as David’s a boy, in accordance with Ahijah’s prophecy, successor, which led to his banishment to his because of Jeroboam’s idolatry (1 Kings 14:1– hometown, Anathoth, by Solomon, thus ful%ll- 18). (3) Son of Rehoboam, called “Abijam” in ing Eli’s prophecy (1 Sam. 2:30–35; 1 Kings 1 Kings 15:1–8. He was the second king of the 2:26–27). He is mentioned once in the NT, southern kingdom (913–910 BC). Tremper Longman III, Peter Enns, Mark Strauss, eds., The Baker Compact Bible Dictionary Baker Books, a division of Baker Publishing2 Group, © 2014. Used by permission.

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Longman_CompactDict_JK_djm.indd 2 5/22/14 7:41 AM Abraham

A –See Abijah. A%&' –A young Shunammite woman brought to David’s bed in his old age to keep A !"! –A region in Syria named a!er its him warm (1 Kings 1:3, 15). A!er David’s A chief town, Abila, located about eighteen miles death, his son Adonijah asked to marry her northwest of Damascus. Luke reports that at (1 Kings 2:17), which was a declaration of the beginning of John the Baptist’s ministry his continued a$empt to secure the throne the region was governed by Lysanias II (Luke (see 1 Kings 1), for which Solomon put him 3:1) as one of four rulers in the Judea prov- to death (1 Kings 2:23–25). ince (with Pontius Pilate, Herod Antipas, and Philip). A%& –Son of Zeruiah, David’s sister, and brother of Joab, David’s general (1 Sam. 26:6; A! !# –(1) "e king of Gerar who took 1 Chron. 2:16), he was an accomplished sol- Sarah into his house, deceived by Abraham dier in David’s army. into thinking that she was Abraham’s sister. God warned Abimelek of this in a dream, so A"!( –Son of King Saul’s uncle, Ner (1 Sam. he released her and made restitution to Abra- 14:50–51). Abner was Saul’s military com- ham and Sarah. He is likely the same person mander. He maintained loyalty to the house mentioned in Gen. 21:22–24 as one who made of Saul during Saul’s struggle with David. a treaty with Abraham at Beersheba. Upon Saul’s death, Abner made Saul’s son Ish- (2) "e king of Gerar during Isaac’s lifetime Bosheth king over the northern kingdom. In (Gen. 26:1–35) and likely a son or grandson of ba$le with David’s forces, Abner killed Asahel, the Abimelek mentioned in 20:1–18. As in the the brother of David’s military commander, earlier incident with Abraham and Sarah, Isaac Joab (2 Sam. 2:17–23). Abner rallied support passed his wife, Rebekah, o# as his sister, caus- for David’s kingship a!er Ish-Bosheth accused ing Abimelek great concern when he found Abner of sleeping with Saul’s concubine out the truth. Abimelek ordered his people (2 Sam. 3:7–13). Joab later murdered Abner to cause no harm to the couple. to avenge his brother Asahel’s death (3:22–27). (3) Son of Gideon and his concubine (Judg. 8:31). A!er Gideon’s death he murdered his A)"*)", A)"*)" )- seventy brothers in an e#ort to consolidate D!%) *)" –Abomination is used of power under himself in Shechem. "e young- idols (e.g., 2 Kings 23:13, 24; Jer. 7:30; cf. est of the brothers, Jotham, escaped and spoke Ezek. 8:10), forbidden practices (e.g., 2 Kings a parable against the citizens of Shechem. "ree 23:24), and generally anything contrary to the years later they rebelled against Abimelek true worship of Israel’s God (e.g., 2 Chron. under Gaal, but Abimelek was successful in 15:8; Isa. 66:3; Jer. 4:1; cf. forbidden foods capturing Shechem and killing many of its [Lev. 11:10, 13, 42] and ceremonial de%le- residents. When he a$acked "ebez, he was ment [Lev. 7:21]). "e term also includes the killed by women who dropped a millstone on prohibition of idol worship (Deut. 7:25; 27:15; his head. "at incident is mentioned later in 32:16) but can more widely apply to immoral- 2 Sam. 11:21 by Joab as he is preparing his ity (e.g., Lev. 18:22, 26–27), prophecy that messenger for possible criticism by David for leads to paganism (Deut. 13:13–14), blem- his strategy in besieging Rabbah. ished animals o#ered in sacri%ce to Yahweh (4) "e man before whom David pretended (Deut. 17:1), and heathen divination (Deut. to be insane, according to the superscription 18:9, 12). to Ps. 34. If the incident of 1 Sam. 21:10–15 "e “abomination of desolation” (NIV: is in view, where Achish the king of Gath is “abomination that causes desolation”), or named, then it is possible that “Ahimelek” is “desolating sacri%ce,” refers to the desecration a title for Philistine kings. of the Jerusalem temple. "e description occurs or is alluded to in Dan. 8:11; 9:27; 11:31; A"$ –(1) "e man in whose house 12:11; Ma$. 24:15; Mark 13:14; Luke 21:20; the ark of the covenant rested for twenty 2 "ess. 2:4, as well as 1 Macc. 1:54–64. "ese years a!er it was returned by the Philistines texts seem to a$est to two or three stages of (1 Sam. 7:1; 1 Chron. 13:7). (2) Son of Jesse ful%llment of the prophecy. and older brother of David who was passed over by Samuel when choosing a king (1 Sam. A(& –Abram is a well-known bibli- 16:8; 17:13; see also 1 Chron. 2:13). cal character whose life is detailed in Gen. Tremper Longman III, Peter Enns, Mark Strauss, eds., The Baker Compact Bible Dictionary Baker Books, a division of Baker Publishing3 Group, © 2014. Used by permission.

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Longman_CompactDict_JK_djm.indd 3 5/22/14 7:41 AM Abram

11:25–25:11. Abram’s name (which means by his older half brother Amnon (13:1–19), “exalted father”) is changed in Gen. 17:5 to and two years later he ordered his men to A “Abraham,” meaning “father of many nations.” murder Amnon (13:23–33) before $eeing to !e narrative account in Genesis details one Geshur. Joab convinced David to restore him hundred years of Abraham’s life and moves (14:1–21). David snubbed him on his return, quickly through the "rst seventy-"ve years and he later rebelled against David, coming of events. In just a few verses (11:26–31) we close to toppling him before being killed by learn that Abram was the son of Terah, the Joab in the forest of Ephraim a#er his hair be- brother of Haran and Nahor, the husband of came caught in a tree (18:9–15). the barren Sarai (later Sarah), and the uncle of Lot, the son of Haran, who died in Ur of A# –In the NT, “abyss” refers to the world the Chaldees. !e plot line marks signi"cant of the dead (Rom. 10:7; KJV, NIV: “deep”) and events in Abraham’s life chronologically. He especially the subterranean prison of disobe- le# Harran at the age of 75 (12:4), was 86 dient spirits (fallen angels?; Luke 8:31; Rev. when Hagar gave birth to Ishmael (16:16), 9:1–2, 11; 11:7; 17:8; 20:1–3). 99 when the Lord appeared to him (17:17) and when he was circumcised (17:24), 100 A$%& –Achaia is a region along the north- when Sarah gave birth to Isaac (21:5), and 175 ern coast of the Peloponnesus, the southern when he died (25:7). In summary, the biblical peninsula of Greece. Paul’s le%ers to the Corin- narrator paces the reader quickly through the thians were sent to this region (1 Cor. 16:15; story in such a way as to highlight a twenty- 2 Cor. 1:1). In the NT, the term also has a "ve-year period of Abraham’s life between the broader meaning, so that the phrase “Mace- ages of 75 and 100. donia and Achaia” refers inclusively to all of !e NT features Abraham in several signi"- Greece (Acts 19:21; Rom. 15:26; 1 !ess. cant ways. !e intimate connection between 1:7–8). God and Abraham is noted in the identi"cation of God as “the God of Abraham” in Acts A$%' –A Judahite who disobeyed Joshua 7:32 (cf. Exod. 3:6). !e NT also celebrates and kept for himself some of the plunder from the character of Abraham as a man of faith who Jericho (Josh. 7:1, 21). Achan’s sin was discov- received the promise (Gal. 3:9; Heb. 6:15). ered a#er the Israelite army was defeated by Abraham is most importantly an example of the men of Ai (7:4–21). He was stoned and how one is justi"ed by faith (Rom. 4:1, 12) burned along with his family and possessions and an illustration of what it means to walk (7:25–26). !e place where he was killed by faith (James 2:21, 23). was known as the Valley of Achor, the valley !ose who exercise faith in the living God, of “trouble” (Josh. 7:26). as did Abraham, are referred to as “children of Abraham” (Gal. 3:7). Regarding the covenant A$%& % –A Philistine, king of Gath. When promises made to Abraham in the OT, the NT David sought sanctuary at Gath by pretending writers highlight the promises of seed and to be insane, Achish turned him away (1 Sam. blessing. Acco rding to Paul, the seed of Abra- 21:10–15). When Saul continued to persecute ham is ultimately ful"lled in Christ, and those David, David and his men allied themselves who believe in Christ are the seed of Abraham with Achish, who gave David the city of Ziklag (Gal. 3:16, 29). In a similar way, those who (27:1–6). have Abraham-like faith are blessed (3:9). !e blessing imparted to Abraham comes to the A$%" –A valley in northern Judea (Josh. Gentiles through the redemption of Christ 15:7). Achor was the place where judgment and is associated with the impartation of the was rendered to Achan a#er he stole plunder Spirit (3:14). from Jericho (Josh. 7:24–26). !e prophets envision the transformation of Achor into a A –See Abraham. verdant area (Isa. 65:10; Hos. 2:15). A !" –!e third of David’s sons, born in A$"("!& –An acropolis (lit., “high Hebron while David was king of Judah alone. city”) is the elevated portion of an ancient He plays a prominent role in the violence that city, typically containing temples, palaces, or overtook David following his murder of Uriah other public architecture. !e most famous (2 Sam. 11). Absalom’s sister Tamar was raped acropolis in the Greco-Roman world was Tremper Longman III, Peter Enns, Mark Strauss, eds., The Baker Compact Bible Dictionary Baker Books, a division of Baker Publishing4 Group, © 2014. Used by permission.

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Longman_CompactDict_JK_djm.indd 4 5/22/14 7:41 AM Acts of the Apostles

that of Athens, where the Parthenon stands. generosity and unity within the early church Paul preached within sight of the Athenian (4:32–37). acropolis, already ancient by his time, on the !e revival joy, however, is marred by the A nearby Areopagus during his visit to the city deceitful actions of Ananias and Sapphira, (Acts 17:19–34). who lie to the church and to the Holy Spirit and are judged by God with immediate death A A –!is book, com- (5:1–11). !is story proves that God will monly referred to simply as Acts, is the sequel go to extreme lengths to protect the unity of to the Gospel of Luke and records the exciting his church. Following more persecution and history of the "rst three decades of the early miracles, the disciples choose seven men to church. !e book begins with the ascension oversee distribution of food to Hellenistic wid- of Jesus, followed by his sending of the Holy ows who have been neglected in daily food Spirit, and ends with the gospel message being distributions (6:1–7). One of these leaders, proclaimed by Paul as a prisoner in the capi- Stephen, is arrested and brought before the tal city of the Roman Empire. In the pages in Sanhedrin. Stephen testi"es boldly before the between, the reader is introduced to the key Jewish leaders and is promptly executed by people, places, and events of this strategic and stoning (chap. 7). !is execution is endorsed crucial time of Christian history. by Saul, a zealous Pharisee who begins to lead In terms of authorship, the book technically "erce persecution against the church in Jeru- is anonymous; however, there are good reasons salem (8:1–3). for holding to church history’s traditional view Witnesses in Judea and Samaria (Acts 8:4– that its author is Luke.!e speci"c recipient of 12:25). Saul’s persecution forces many of the Acts is !eophilus (1:1). !eophilus could early church believers to leave Jerusalem. !ese be characterized as a relatively new believer believers sca$er throughout the surrounding of high social status, a person educated in Greco-Roman rhetoric and history, and one areas of Judea and Samaria. As they sca$er, who possessed the "nancial means to promote however, they continue to preach the gospel and publish Luke’s work (both the Gospel of (8:4). Philip preaches in Samaria and performs Luke and Acts). many miraculous signs, producing a spiritual Witnesses in Jerusalem (Acts 1:1–8:3). revival in the region. Hearing about this, the Immediately following his ascension, Jesus apostles send Peter and John to Samaria to tells his followers to return to Jerusalem and minister to the Samaritans (8:18–25), thus wait for the coming of the Holy Spirit. !ey con"rming the cross-cultural nature of the gos- promptly obey, and a#er ten days of waiting, pel (Samaritans traditionally were hated by the the disciples are dramatically "lled with the Jews). Next Luke tells of Philip’s evangelizing Holy Spirit and begin to share the gospel with of an Ethiopian eunuch (8:26–40). those around them. !is event occurs at the Following the Ethiopian’s belief in Jesus, the Jewish Pentecost festival, which was a$ended narrative tells of Saul’s dramatic conversion by Jews and Jewish proselytes from throughout while traveling to Damascus to persecute Chris- the Roman Empire. A#er the Spirit comes at tians there (9:1–19). Saul’s turnaround is met Pentecost, Peter boldly preaches to the crowds, with suspicion by the other disciples, but even- and over three thousand people respond with tually he is accepted by the believers with the saving faith (2:41). help of Barnabas (9:27–30). Next Peter travels Luke next provides a summary of the Spirit- to the Judean countryside and heals the para- led life within the early church. !is life is char- lytic Aeneas and raises Dorcas from the dead acterized by the early believers’ participation (9:32–42). !ese miracles produce a spiritual together in the sharing of worship activities, revival in the region. Following this, God gives material possessions, and spiritual blessings Peter a vision to go to the coastal city of Caesarea (2:42–47). !is summary is followed by sev- in order to minister to Cornelius, a Roman army eral dramatic healing miracles accomplished o%cer. Cornelius is a God-fearer, and through through Peter and the subsequent arrest of Peter’s witness he responds to the gospel mes- Christian leaders by Jewish religious authori- sage and receives the Holy Spirit (chap. 10). ties. Instead of squelching the Christian move- Peter explains his actions with Cornelius to his ment, however, these arrests only enhance the concerned Jewish companions and veri"es that spiritual revival and its accompanying mira- God has indeed included the Gentiles in his plan cles. !is revival is characterized by extreme of salvation (11:1–18). Tremper Longman III, Peter Enns, Mark Strauss, eds., The Baker Compact Bible Dictionary Baker Books, a division of Baker Publishing5 Group, © 2014. Used by permission.

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Longman_CompactDict_JK_djm.indd 5 5/22/14 7:41 AM Adam

is veri"cation is followed by the report of Following this meeting, Paul and Barnabas what is happening in the church at Antioch, decide to make a second missionary journey. A where Jews begin to share the gospel with Unfortunately, the two missionaries get into a larger groups of Gentiles (11:19–21). is dispute over whether to take John Mark with cross-cultural evangelism produces a spiri- them again. e argument is such that the mis- tual revival in Antioch, causing the Jerusalem sionaries decide to separate, and Paul chooses church to send Barnabas to the large Syrian city a new partner, Silas. ey travel by land back to investigate (11:22–30). Barnabas con"rms to Galatia. Barnabas takes John Mark and sails that God is indeed at work in Antioch and in- to Cyprus. Paul and Silas return to Derbe and vites Saul to come and help him disciple the Lystra and then make their way to Macedo- new Gentile believers (11:25–26). Next Luke nia and Greece. ey spend signi"cant time reports more persecution breaking out against in Philippi, essalonica, and Corinth before Christians in Jerusalem, resulting in the arrest returning to Caesarea and Antioch (chaps. of James and Peter by King Herod. James is 16–18). Following his return, Paul makes a executed, but Peter miraculously escapes from third missionary journey, revisiting churches prison with the help of an angel (12:1–19), and in Galatia and Phrygia and staying in Ephesus the church continues to increase, spreading for three years before visiting Macedonia and throughout the Roman Empire. Greece for a second time. Witnesses to the ends of the earth (Acts Paul concludes his third missionary journey 13:1–28:31). Starting with chapter 13, the with a trip to Jerusalem, where he is falsely narrative shi#s its focus from the ministry accused of bringing a Gentile into the temple. of Peter to that of Paul (formerly Saul). e is accusation creates a riot, and Paul is res- church at Antioch begins to take center stage cued by Roman soldiers, who arrest him and over the church at Jerusalem. is church com- transfer him to a prison in Caesarea, where he missions Paul and Barnabas and sends them spends two years awaiting trial under the rule o$ on their "rst missionary journey, accom- of Felix and Festus (23:34–25:22). Paul even- panied by Barnabas’s cousin John Mark. e tually exercises his right as a Roman citizen to missionaries "rst sail to Cyprus, where they have his case heard by the emperor. He is sent preach in synagogues and encounter a Jewish to Rome by boat and is shipwrecked on the sorcerer, Bar-Jesus. Next they sail to Pamphylia, island of Malta. Eventually he makes his way thus crossing into Asia Minor, and preach the to the capital city, where he is placed under gospel in Pisidian Antioch, Iconium, Lystra, house arrest. While in Rome, Paul maintains and Derbe (this area was known as part of the a rented house and is free to receive visitors region of Galatia). In these cities, God provides and write le%ers. In fact, it is thought that Paul numerous miracles, and the missionaries expe- penned his “prison le%ers” during this time of rience a great response to the gospel as well as house arrest (Ephesians, Philippians, Colos- much persecution because of the gospel. On sians, Philemon). e narrative of Acts ends one occasion, Paul is actually stoned and le# with Paul ministering boldly in Rome while for dead (14:19–20). awaiting his trial. Unfazed, Paul and his team boldly con- A –See Adam and Eve. tinue their mission. Eventually, they retrace their steps, strengthen the churches that they A, T!"# !$ –A town on the western have started, and sail back to Syrian Antioch, bank of the Jordan River near Zarethan, just where they give an exciting report to the church below where the Jabbok River empties into (14:26–28). Following this report, Luke tells of the Jordan. It was here that the waters of the an important meeting of church leaders in Je- Jordan stopped so that the Israelites under the rusalem (the Apostolic or Jerusalem Council). leadership of Joshua could cross into Canaan e subject of the meeting involves whether further to the south, opposite Jericho (Josh. or not the new Gentile Christians should be 3:14–17). required to follow the Jewish laws and customs. A#er debating the issue, the leaders side with A # E%& – e "rst human beings. Paul, determining that the Gentiles should not According to Gen. 2, God created Adam be burdened with Jewish laws and traditions, (whose name means “humanity” and is re- but simply must live moral lives and not eat lated to the word for “ground”) from the dust food that has been sacri"ced to idols (chap. 15). of the ground and his own breath, showing Tremper Longman III, Peter Enns, Mark Strauss, eds., The Baker Compact Bible Dictionary Baker Books, a division of Baker Publishing6 Group, © 2014. Used by permission.

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Longman_CompactDict_JK_djm.indd 6 5/22/14 7:41 AM Adoption

that humankind is a part of creation but has entry of sin and death into the world. Paul con- a special relationship with God. God placed trasts Adam with Christ. Whereas Adam’s act Adam in a garden in Eden (a name that means introduced sin and death, Christ’s act brought A “delight” or “abundance”). Even so, God, not- reconciliation with God and life. Paul makes ing that it was not good for Adam to be alone, essentially the same point in 1 Cor. 15 (see esp. created Eve (whose name means “living”), vv. 22, 45). Christians thus read Gen. 3 through his female counterpart. She was created from the commentary supplied by Paul and believe Adam’s side (or rib), signifying their equality. that it supports the notion of original sin, that She was to be his “helper,” a word that does not all humans are sinners from birth. denote subordination. Eve was Adam’s wife, Eve is mentioned twice in the NT. In 1 Tim. and God pronounced that future marriage 2:11–15 Paul argues that women should learn will be characterized by leaving one’s parents, quietly and not teach or have authority over being joined as a couple, and consummating men because Eve was created a#er Adam and the relationship with sexual intercourse (Gen. was the one deceived by the serpent. Debate 2:24). surrounds the issue whether Paul here ad- Adam and Eve were to tend the garden of dresses a local situation or is citing a universal Eden. !ey were permi"ed to eat the fruit of all principle. Paul again mentions the deception the trees of the garden except for the tree of the of Eve in 2 Cor. 11:3, but here he applies it to knowledge of good and evil. Eating the fruit men and women who are in danger of being of this tree, against God’s express prohibition, deceived by false teachers. would be an assertion of moral independence that would meet with God’s punishment. A-B –!e leader of Bezek who In Gen. 3 the serpent convinced Eve that it was defeated by men of the tribes of Judah would be good to eat the fruit of the forbid- and Simeon early in the conquest of Canaan. den tree. Adam was present with her as the serpent spoke, but he remained silent. A#er A !" –David’s fourth son, a rival to eating the fruit, Eve gave some to Adam, and Solomon for the succession to David’s throne. he ate without protest. Both Adam and Eve When David became old, Adonijah strength- were therefore guilty of the $rst sin. !e results ened his claim on the throne greatly by garner- were immediate, including the alienation of ing the support of Joab and Abiathar (1 Kings Adam and Eve, signaled by the fact that they 1:7), whose support Absalom had failed to win could no longer stand naked before each other in his earlier rebellion. When David heard of without shame. Adonijah’s actions, he instructed his leaders to Adam and Eve were punished for their rebel- install Solomon as king in Gihon, which they lion. Eve was punished in her most intimate did so loudly that Adonijah and his supporters relationships. She would now experience in- were able to hear the commotion at their own creased pain when giving birth, and her rela- feast (1:33–41). Solomon mercifully chose not tionship with her husband would become a to kill Adonijah for his treason (1:50–53). !e power struggle as her desire to control him peace between Solomon and Adonijah quickly would be met with his a"empt to dominate came to an end when Adonijah requested that her (Gen. 3:16). Adam felt the consequences Abishag the Shunammite, a virgin a"endant of of his action in his work, which now would be David, be given to him as a wife. Solomon then tinged with frustration (3:17–19). In addition, ordered Benaiah to kill Adonijah. although they did not die immediately, they were removed from the garden and access to A-Z –!e Amorite king of Jeru- the tree of life, so death would be their ulti- salem who organized a $ve-city coalition to mate end. a"ack the city of Gibeon a#er its capitulation A#er Adam and Eve departed from the gar- to Joshua ( Josh. 10:1–3). den, they had children. We know of Cain and Abel, whose con%ict is well known from Gen. 4. A#$ –!e voluntary process of grant- A#er the death of Abel, Eve gave birth to Seth. ing the rights, privileges, responsibilities, and In the NT, Adam is mentioned in the Lukan status of child or heir to an individual or group genealogy of Jesus (Luke 3:38) and in Rom. that was not originally born to the adopter. 5:12–21; 1 Cor. 15; 1 Tim. 2:13–14; Jude 14. While birth occurs naturally, adoption oc- In Romans, Paul associates Adam with the curs only through the exertion of will. Two Tremper Longman III, Peter Enns, Mark Strauss, eds., The Baker Compact Bible Dictionary Baker Books, a division of Baker Publishing7 Group, © 2014. Used by permission.

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Longman_CompactDict_JK_djm.indd 7 5/22/14 7:41 AM Adrammelek

signi cant gures in the OT were adopted, Jerusalem (Josh. 15:35). Prior to the conquest Moses (Exod. 2:10) and Esther (Esther 2:7). of Canaan, the patriarch Judah lived for some A Although adoption is fairly uncommon time in Adullam (Gen. 38:1–5). "e Israelites in the OT, God’s adoption of Israel is of the conquered the city several hundred years later utmost importance. It demonstrates God’s under Joshua (Josh. 12:15), and Rehoboam willingness to initiate relationship with hu- forti ed the city a$er the division of Israel mankind, a truth that later culminated in Jesus (2 Chron. 11:7). Adullam became a refuge for Christ. God chooses to adopt the nation of David both before and a$er his enthronement Israel as his child (Deut. 7:6; Isa. 1:2; Hos. (1 Sam. 22:1–2; 2 Sam. 23:13–17). 11:1) and more signi cantly as his rstborn Micah warned the people of Adullam and son (Exod. 4:22; Jer. 31:9). several nearby cities that disaster was immi- "e concept of adoption is more prevalent in nent (Mic. 1:10–15); this materialized when the NT, primarily in the apostle Paul’s writings. Sennacherib captured all the forti ed cities Based on the belief that Israel’s exclusive posi- of Judah (Isa. 36:1). "e Bible does not mention as the adopted rstborn son of God the tion Adullam again until Nehemiah’s returnees Father is no longer deserved, the NT includes from exile reestablish an Israelite presence in those who believe in Jesus Christ as adopted the city during the time of Artaxerxes (Neh. children of God’s eternal family (John 1:12; 11:30). 11:52; Gal. 4:5; Eph. 1:5; Phil. 2:15; 1 John 3:1). "e adopted children of God enjoy all A#$ –One of the sins forbidden in the rights of a natural-born child, including the Ten Commandments (Exod. 20:14; Deut. the opportunity to call God “Father,” as Jesus 5:18). Narrowly interpreted, the prohibition did (e.g., Ma#. 5:16; Luke 12:32). Paul in par- forbids extramarital relations with a married ticular uses adoption to describe the Christian’s woman (Lev. 20:10), but it is applied more new relationship with God through the aton- broadly in Lev. 20 and Deut. 22–24 to cover ing sacri ce of Jesus Christ (Rom. 8:15–16, a variety of sexual o%enses. 21–23; 9:25–26). A'( –A human or heavenly op- A –(1) A god of the people of ponent. Adversaries include David’s soldiers Sepharvaim. A$er the exile of the northern (2 Sam. 19:22), David (1 Sam. 29:4), and God kingdom, the king of Assyria transplanted (Num. 22:22). God both raises up (1 Kings people from all over his empire into the ter- 11:14) and delivers one from (Ps. 107:2) ad- ritory that he had taken from the Israelites. versaries. In Job, the adversary (Heb. satan ) Each of these people groups “made its own works for God (Job 1:7–12). gods in the several towns where they se#led” (2 Kings 17:29). "ose people who had been A')%$ –In John 14:16, 26; 15:26; 16:7 transplanted from Sepharvaim established the term paraklētos (lit., “called alongside” worship of Adrammelek and Anammelek in [NRSV, NIV: “Advocate”; RSV: “Counselor”]) former Israelite territory by sacri cing their refers to the Holy Spirit, sent as the Spirit of own children in re (2 Kings 17:31). truth. "e advocacy roles of the Spirit are to (2) One of the sons of the Assyrian emperor remain with God’s people; to teach, remind, Sennacherib who, along with his brother and testify about Jesus; to convict the world of Sharezer, assassinated his father in the temple guilt regarding sin; and to guide into all truth. of Nisrok and escaped to the land of Ararat. In 1 John 2:1 Jesus is the paraklētos who speaks in defense of his children. A !"# –See Asia Minor, Cities of. A*+#( –"e only church-era prophet whose A"$"% S –"e Adriatic Sea is a portion spoken words are recorded in Scripture. Aga- of the Mediterranean Sea that separates Italy bus was one of a company of prophets who from Greece. It was in these waters that Paul traveled from Jerusalem to the &edgling church found himself adri$ for fourteen days during at Antioch (Acts 11:27–28). his trip to Rome to plead his case before Caesar (Acts 27:27). A** –A title used for the king of the Amale- kites. When Balak king of Moab hired Balaam A# –A city in the western foothills of to curse the Israelites, Balaam blessed Israel in Judah, located about $een miles southwest of an oracle, including a prophecy that Israel’s Tremper Longman III, Peter Enns, Mark Strauss, eds., The Baker Compact Bible Dictionary Baker Books, a division of Baker Publishing8 Group, © 2014. Used by permission.

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Longman_CompactDict_JK_djm.indd 8 5/22/14 7:41 AM Ahava

king would “be greater than Agag” (Num. as a punishment from God. Ceremonial de!le- 24:7). ment was a possibility if proper methodology in sowing seeds was not followed (Lev. 19:19; A A –Haman, the opponent of Morde- Deut. 22:9). Similarly, Yahweh’s assessment of cai, is identi!ed as an Agagite (Esther 3:1, 10; Israel’s failure to uphold the covenant com- 8:3, 5; 9:24). Given Mordecai’s descent from mitments could lead to disease, locust a&acks, Kish, father of Saul (2:5), the term is intended crop failure, and total loss of the land (Deut. to recall the Amalekite king (Agag) whom Saul 28:40; Joel 1:4; Amos 7:1). Conversely, ag- spared (1 Sam. 15). See also Agag. ricultural bounty and blessings were also a A !"#" part of covenant stipulations. Indeed, many –For the biblical Israelites of the o%erings themselves were centered on and their ancestors, agriculture was one of the agriculture (Lev. 2; Num. 18:8–32). Even the primary expressions of subsistence in their Sabbath rest itself was extended to ma&ers of economy and life. "e priority of agricultural agriculture and care for the land (Lev. 25:1–7). pursuits for Israel’s worldview is indicated in Finally, the covenant saw some of the greatest the fact that it was among the !rst mandates bene!ts of life before Yahweh as being blessed given by God to man in the garden (Gen. through agricultural bounty (Deut. 28:22; 1:28–29). Amos 9:13). In a few cases, agricultural imag- "e primary produce of the biblical farmer ery cut both ways. For instance, the vine was included cereals (wheat, barley, millet), le- an image that could express judgment, care, gumes (beans, peas), olives, and grapes. Less and restoration in both Judaism and Chris- predominant crops included nuts (almonds, tianity (Isa. 5:1–8; John 15:1–11). Despite walnuts, pistachios), herbs (cumin, coriander, the link between agricultural realities and the sesame), and vegetables (cucumbers, onions, covenant, the Scriptures are very careful to greens). "e production of the various crops distinguish Israel from the fertility cults of was largely limited to certain geographic re- its Canaanite neighbors (1 Kings 18:17–40; gions of Israel (such as the coastal plain or the Hos. 2:8–9). "is distinction also seems to plains of Moab) because much of the land was have found expression in certain NT texts ill suited for agriculture, being rocky and arid. (1 Cor. 6:15–20). "e actual cra# of agriculture involved the three steps of sowing, reaping, and threshing/ A $$ –See Herod. production. "e !elds typically were plowed following the !rst autumn rains, and sowing A" –"e son of Jakeh whose oracle is re- lasted about two months. Harvest season corded in Prov. 30. Agur directs his oracle to lasted seven months in all. Cereal products Ithiel and Ukal (Prov. 30:1; see NIV mg.). went through the process of threshing, whereas fruits were immediately produced into wine A%& –(1) Son of Omri, king of Israel, whom or dried. "e practice of threshing the grains he succeeded, reigning for twenty-two years mostly took place on threshing $oors located (871–852 BC). "e summary of Ahab’s reign adjacent to the !elds. "e threshing $oors were in 1 Kings 16:29–33 serves as a prologue to designed as a circle, generally twenty-!ve to the Elijah narrative, identifying the issue that forty feet in diameter. Typically animals such Elijah addressed: Ahab’s patronage of Baal as donkeys or oxen were driven around the at the instigation of his foreign wife, Jezebel. $oor as the grains were fed into their paths and Ahab is condemned by the writer of 1 Kings subsequently crushed. "e resulting broken in superlative terms (16:33). husks were then thrown into the air, allowing (2) Son of Kolaiah, Ahab was a false prophet the wind to carry away the cha% and producing whom Jeremiah condemned in his le&er to the a separated grain that could then be cleaned exiles (Jer. 29:21–23). and processed for home use. Besides playing a signi!cant role in the prac- A%'" "' –See Xerxes. tical ma&ers of life, agricultural practices found numerous applications in the images and ide- A%( –A place in Babylonia to which a canal als of the biblical writers (Judg. 8:2; 9:8–15; $owed (Ezra 8:15). Ezra’s camp on the Ahava Ezek. 17:6–10). "e medium could be used to Canal served as the launching point for his express both blessings and curses. Several texts expedition to Jerusalem during the reign of the point to the cursing of agricultural endeavors Persian king Artaxerxes (Ezra 8:31). Tremper Longman III, Peter Enns, Mark Strauss, eds., The Baker Compact Bible Dictionary Baker Books, a division of Baker Publishing9 Group, © 2014. Used by permission.

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Longman_CompactDict_JK_djm.indd 9 5/22/14 7:41 AM Ahaz

A –Son of Jotham, king of Judah, and about the future of the kingdom of Judah in father of Hezekiah. His reign is described in light of its wickedness before the Lord (2 Kings A 2 Kings 16 and 2 Chron. 28, and his confronta- 22:12–14). Ahikam supported Jeremiah dur- tion by the prophet Isaiah in Isa. 7:1–17. Ahaz ing the reign of Jehoiakim; this support saved reigned for sixteen years (743–727 BC). He Jeremiah from being put to death by the people followed the syncretistic pagan practices of the of Judah (Jer. 26:24). Nebuchadnezzar ap- Israelite kings. When besieged by the Syrian pointed Ahikam’s son Gedaliah as governor and Israelite kings, with the aim of replacing over the remnant in Judah a#er the Babylonian him with a puppet ruler (734 BC), he sent deportation (Jer. 40:5). a massive tribute to elicit Assyrian protection (2 Kings 16:5–9). !is resulted in pro- A # –Son of Zadok the priest. As David Assyrian religious compromise (16:10–18). /ed from Jerusalem during his son Absalom’s !e goal of Isaiah’s embassy to the fearful conspiracy, he told Zadok and Abiathar, also Ahaz was to encourage a response of faith (Isa. a priest, to return with their sons to Jerusalem 7:9). !ough Isaiah o"ered him any sign of his and to bring him information about Absalom’s choosing, Ahaz masked his refusal in a facade military plans (2 Sam. 15:27–29). When of piety about not testing God (Isa. 7:10–12; Zadok and Abiathar learned of Absalom’s cf. Deut. 6:16). !e hypocritical Ahaz did not plans, they informed Ahimaaz and Abiathar’s want a sign because he had no intention of son Jonathan. Ahimaaz and Jonathan had trusting God in this national crisis. !e exas- to /ee to Bahurim and hide in a well when perated prophet responded by announcing the Absalom’s men learned of their presence in sign of Immanuel. nearby En Rogel. A#er their pursuers could not +nd them, the two men delivered the news A –(1) Ahaziah became the eighth to David (17:15–22). Ahimaaz was eager to king over the northern kingdom of Israel a#er inform David of his son Absalom’s defeat and his father, Ahab, died in ba$le (1 Kings 22:40). became the +rst to tell David of his victory He reigned for only two years (852–851 BC) by outrunning another messenger. However, and he served and worshiped Baal (22:51–53). Ahimaaz concealed the news of Absalom’s (2) Ahaziah the son of Jehoram became the death (18:19–33). sixth king of Judah around 843 BC. During his one-year reign he “did evil in the eyes of the A $%&'( –From the town of Giloh, he L%&*” (2 Kings 8:27). He became an ally of was originally King David’s most respected King Jehoram (Joram) of Israel against King and wise adviser (2 Sam. 15:12; 16:23). Hazael of Aram, but both were killed in Jehu’s Ahithophel allied himself with King David’s revolt (8:28–29; 9:16–29). son Absalom during Absalom’s rebellion. Ahithophel commi$ed suicide in Giloh, pre- A ! –!e prophet from Shiloh who sumably anticipating the defeat of Absalom superintended the division of Solomon’s and David’s reprisal for his treason (2 Sam. united kingdom (928 BC). He predicted to 17:23). Jeroboam that he would tear away ten tribes from the Davidic house (1 Kings 11:29–39). A –!e Hebrew term behind Ai means “the !is prediction was ful+lled a#er Solomon’s ruin.” Biblical Ai was situated east of Bethel death (1 Kings 12:15; 2 Chron. 10:15). Cer- in the highlands of Ephraim overlooking the tain events in Solomon’s reign were wri$en Jordan Valley. up in “the prophecy of Ahijah the Shilonite” In the Bible, Ai +rst appears as a landmark in (2 Chron. 9:29). Later, Jeroboam’s wife went Abram’s travels (Gen. 12:8; 13:3). In the book in disguise to Ahijah to inquire about her sick of Joshua, it +gures prominently as a lesser city son. Ahijah predicted the death of the child and in the initial conquest of Canaan (7:3; 10:2; the destruction of Jeroboam’s entire house as but see 8:25). Following Israel’s initial defeat a punishment for idolatry (1 Kings 14:1–16). (7:4–5), Joshua proscribes Ai according to Both predictions came true (1 Kings 14:17– Yahweh’s instruction (8:2), slaying its inhabi- 18; 15:29). tants and hanging its king, then reducing the se$lement to a ruin (8:25–28). !is strikes A "# –One of King Josiah’s royal advis- fear into the neighboring populations (9:3– ers, Ahikam was part of the delegation that 4; 10:1–2). !e disproportionate a$ention Josiah sent to the prophetess Huldah to inquire given to its capture sets the conquest within Tremper Longman III, Peter Enns, Mark Strauss, eds., The Baker Compact Bible Dictionary Baker Books, a division of Baker Publishing10 Group, © 2014. Used by permission.

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Longman_CompactDict_JK_djm.indd 10 5/22/14 7:41 AM Amalek, Amalekites

a theological framework: victory depends on the young warrior king. Alexander marched his obedience to Yahweh. armies as far eastward as the Hydaspes River in India and won a decisive ba"le there. Because A A –!e Aijalon Valley provided access his armies refused to go any further, however, from the northern Philistine Plain on the Medi- Alexander was forced to return to Persepolis terranean Sea through the foothills to the hill and then to Babylon. !ere he died in 323 BC country. !e city of Aijalon was near the eastern at the age of thirty-three. end of the valley. During Israel’s conquest of Canaan, a confederation of Canaanite cities A!&"' –Alexandria was a Greek city a"acked the Gibeonites, who had made an founded in Egypt in 331 BC by Alexander the alliance with the Israelites (Josh. 9–10). !e Great. It soon became the capital of Egypt. Israelites defeated the confederation forces at In the Bible, Alexandria is mentioned only in Gibeon and pursued them west through the the book of Acts: the home of some of the Aijalon Valley. Some centuries later, a#er Jona- Jews who opposed Stephen (6:9); the home than and his armor bearer a"acked the Philis- of Apollos (18:24); the source of ships that tine outpost at Mikmash in the hill country, the helped carry Paul to Rome (27:6; 28:11). Israelites struck them down from Mikmash to Aijalon in the valley (1 Sam. 14:31). A#$ –Provision for the extremely needy. Alms provide what is essential to human sur- A !"# –!e place where Judas Iscariot vival: food, clothing, and shelter (1 Tim. 6:8). met his demise a#er betraying Jesus. Accord- ing to the book of Acts, with the money he A*% " O#!+ –!e $rst and last let- received for betraying Jesus to the chief priests, ters of the Greek alphabet. !e book of Reve- he bought a $eld, where “he fell headlong, his lation uses “the Alpha and the Omega” for God body burst open and all his intestines spilled or Christ (1:8; 21:6; 22:13) and closely con- out”; the inhabitants of Jerusalem called the nects it with “First and Last” and “the Begin- $eld “Akeldama,” an Aramaic name meaning ning and the End” (1:17; 2:8; 21:6; 22:13) “$eld of blood” (Acts 1:18–19). According to to declare God’s sovereign control of history. Ma". 27:7–8, the $eld was purchased by the chief priests and subsequently used as a burial A)' –Altars were places of sacri$ce and place for foreigners. worship constructed of various materials. !ey could be either temporary or permanent. Some A $% –!e daughter of Caleb who was given altars were in the open air; others were set apart as a wife to Othniel when he captured the city in a holy place. !ey could symbolize either of Debir (Josh. 15:16–17; Judg. 1:12–13). God’s presence and protection or false worship that would lead to God’s judgment. A!&"!' )%! G'!) –Alexander, born in 356 BC, was the son of Philip, king of A#! , A#! )!$ –!e Amalekites Macedon. !e amazing, swi# conquests of Al- inhabited the Negev territory south of Judah exander are alluded to in Daniel. Daniel 8:5–8 ( Num. 13:29). !e OT represents the Amale- (cf. 2:40–43; 7:19–24) portrays Greece as the kites as descended from Esau and thus related “goat” from the west, with a notable horn be- to the Edomites (Gen. 36:12, 16). tween its eyes (representing Alexander), which !e history of relations between the Ama- defeats the ram (the Medo-Persian army). !is lekites and the Israelites is one of perpetual prophecy was ful$lled when Alexander led the hostility. !e Amalekites a"acked the Israelites Greek armies across the Hellespont into Asia shortly a#er the Red Sea crossing. !e out- Minor in 334 BC and defeated the Persian come of the ba"le included a declaration of forces at the river Granicus. Alexander again perpetual war between the Amalekites and the met and quickly defeated the Persians at Issus God of Israel (Exod. 17:8–16; Deut. 25:17– (“without touching the ground” [Dan. 8:5]). 19). !ere were several subsequent con%icts Alexander then turned south, moving down (Num. 14:45; Judg. 3:13; 6:3, 33; 7:12; 10:12), the Syrian coast and conquering Egypt without continuing in the campaigns of Saul (1 Sam. a blow. He then moved eastward, again defeat- 15:1–9) and David (1 Sam. 27:8; 30:16–20). ing Darius the Persian for the last time, east of !e $nal chapter in the historic struggle be- the Tigris River. Babylon, Susa, and Persepolis tween Israel and the Amalekites is Mordecai (the last two were capitals of Persia) all fell to and Esther’s confrontation with Haman, who Tremper Longman III, Peter Enns, Mark Strauss, eds., The Baker Compact Bible Dictionary Baker Books, a division of Baker Publishing11 Group, © 2014. Used by permission.

(Unpublished manuscript©right protected Baker Publishing Group)

Longman_CompactDict_JK_djm.indd 11 5/22/14 7:41 AM Amana

is identi!ed as an “Agagite”—that is, a descen- a%rmation (2:23) seem to make a powerful dant of Agag, the Amalekite king spared by statement about God’s judgment and also his A Saul (Esther 3:1; cf. 1 Sam. 15:8). restoration of his unfaithful people. A –A mountain mentioned in Song 4:8, A"$"% –"is word occurs only in Song associated with the more commonly known 6:12 (KJV). If it is a proper name (so LXX, Hermon. See Hermon, Mount. KJV), the identity of the person is unknown (NIV mg.: “Amminadab”). "e expression A –A relative of David (2 Sam. 19:13). seems to mean “my people is princely” or Absalom, during the rebellion against David something similar. English Bibles vary widely his father, appointed Amasa as the leader of in their translations, though most seem to take his army. Following Absalom’s defeat, which the expression as a reference to magni!cent included his death, David requested that chariots !t for a bridal party. A good transla- Amasa continue to serve as the military com- tion might be: “Before I knew it, my desire mander (2 Sam. 19:13). Upon his arrival in placed me (among) the noble chariots of my Jerusalem, David ordered Amasa to summon people” (cf. NIV). the men of Judah due to an uprising incited by the Benjamite Sheba and to return before the A&, A&"() –Ben-Ammi was the king within three days. Amasa arrived late; as a son of Abraham’s nephew Lot and the younger result, David sent men out under the command of Lot’s two daughters (Gen. 19:36–38). He is of Abishai to pursue Sheba. When Amasa !- represented as the ancestor of the Ammonites, nally met up with the men, he was greeted a Transjordanian people who were a peren- by Joab, who killed him with a dagger. Once nial threat to Israel from the wilderness period Amasa’s body was removed from the road, the through to David’s reign. men followed Joab in pursuit of Sheba (2 Sam. "e nation of Ammon was located east of the 20:1–13). Jordan, just north of the Dead Sea. Its capital was Rabbah, and it bordered Gad to the west, A!"# –(1) "e son of King Joash of Judah the half-tribe of Manasseh to the northwest, who succeeded him on the throne a#er the and Moab to the south (see also Deut. 3:16). murder of his father (2 Kings 12:21). His reign Much of the source of their contention was is narrated in 2 Kings 14:1–22; 2 Chron. 25. over the fertile land of Gilead, which encom- Amaziah was twenty-!ve years of age when he passed the Jordan River and bordered Ephraim, became king, and he reigned twenty-nine years the western tribe of Manasseh, Benjamin, and (798–769 BC). He was one of the be$er kings Judah. of Judah, though not measuring up to David’s high standard (2 Kings 14:3). A& –"e !rstborn son of King David (2) “"e priest of Bethel” (Amos 7:10), (2 Sam. 3:2). He became infatuated with the which may signal that Amaziah was head beauty of his half-sister Tamar. "en he listened priest of this northern shrine, a position also to counsel to deceive her and David. When she suggested by the authoritative way in which brought him a meal, he raped her. A#erward, he rebuked and tried to silence Amos. In in- he despised her. Tamar’s brother Absalom structing Amos not to prophesy, Amaziah di- cared for her and later deceived Amnon and rectly contradicted God’s words (7:15–16). David by inviting Amnon to a feast. "ere Ab- Amaziah’s opposition earned him an oracle salom had Amnon killed (2 Sam. 13). David is personally directed at him and his priestly fam- portrayed as an ine&ective leader throughout. ily (7:17), the only oracle of Amos against an individual. Amaziah would die “in an unclean A& –"e fourteenth king of Judah (641– country” (NIV mg.), preventing him from 640 BC) and the son of Manasseh, he contin- exercising priestly functions. ued unrepentant in idolatrous worship. He was assassinated by his o%cials in his second year as A" –"is name occurs only in Hosea as king (2 Kings 21:19–26; 2 Chron. 33:21–25; a symbolic name for one of Hosea’s children Zeph. 1:4; 3:4, 11). (see 2:1). It means “my people.” "e term is used particularly of Israel, especially to express A&*"() –One of the nations that occu- the covenant relationship between God and pied part of Canaan and the Transjordan (by his people. Its negation (1:9) and subsequent the Jordan River) before Israel’s conquest. "ey Tremper Longman III, Peter Enns, Mark Strauss, eds., The Baker Compact Bible Dictionary Baker Books, a division of Baker Publishing12 Group, © 2014. Used by permission.

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Longman_CompactDict_JK_djm.indd 12 5/22/14 7:41 AM Ancient of Days

appear in lists of the peoples occupying Canaan A#$%&'( –A member of a coalition of four (e.g., Gen. 15:21). According to the Table of kings who raided Canaan during Abraham’s Nations (Gen. 10), they are descendants of lifetime (Gen. 14:1, 9). !ey defeated %ve local A Canaan, one of the sons of Ham. !is territory kings, plundered the area, and kidnapped Lot was conquered by Abram and his forces (Gen. along with some other people. Abraham set out 14), and in fact Abram was living “near the and defeated these kings, recovered the plun- great trees of Mamre the Amorite” (14:13). der, and rescued Lot and the other captives. Later the Israelites remain enslaved for four Amraphel was king of Shinar (i.e., Babylon). generations because the sin of the Amorites has not reached its full measure (15:16). A)$!*+' –!e descendants of Anak, the !e Amorites were constantly in con"ict Anakites (NRSV: “Anakim”), known for their with the Israelites. !ey were to be driven out height (Deut. 2:10, 21; 9:2), inhabited the Ju- of Canaan, along with the other Canaanite peo- dean hill country when Israelite spies entered ples (Exod. 23:23; 33:2). In Num. 21:21 the the land (Num. 13:21–33; Deut. 1:28). !e Amorites are mentioned as one nation through spies viewed them as Nephilim (Num. 13:33; which Israel would need to go in order to reach cf. Gen. 6:4). Arba, a hero among the Anakites, Canaan. King Sihon refused, a war ensued, and gave his name to Kiriath Arba (Josh. 14:15), the Israelites were victorious and se#led in the later Hebron (Josh. 15:13–14; Judg. 1:20). land of the Amorites (Num. 21:31). A)$)*$ –(1) A member of the Jerusalem A –See Amos, Book of. church whose death was followed by that of his wife, Sapphira, as a result of holding A, B! " –Amos is largely con- back part of their possessions (Acts 5:1–11). cerned with judgment oracles against the na- (2) A disciple at Damascus who helped restore tions, particularly Judah and Israel. Saul’s eyesight and baptized him in accor- Amos has a message of divine judgment dance with the Lord’s direction in a vision against God’s people, particularly those in the (Acts 9). (3) A high priest in Jerusalem during northern kingdom. God is sovereign and will AD 47–58. He presided over the interrogation see to the appropriate punishment. God con- of Paul at the Sanhedrin of Jerusalem (Acts trols the nations, so he can raise up an enemy 23:1–10) and testi%ed against Paul before to bring destruction on Israel as well as other Felix (24:1). o$ending nations. Although the nations are the tool of his anger, there should be no mis- A)$+& –!e father of Shamgar the judge take that it is God himself who is behind their (Judg. 3:31; 5:6). !is name is also associated punishment (1:4; 3:2, 14; 9:4). with a Canaanite war goddess and with Egyp- !e punishment is for idolatry and ethical tian and Syrian goddesses as well. violations, particularly social injustice. God’s people worshiped false gods (2:8; 5:5, 26; A)$+&'$ –A transliterated Greek word 7:9–13; 8:14). Also, the wealthy classes in- meaning “curse.” See Blessing and Cursing. dulged in sins and oppressed the lower classes (2:7–8; 5:12; 8:6). A)$+&+& –Anathoth was just a few miles Amos is also well known as the %rst to use the northeast of Jerusalem in the tribal allotment language of the “day of the L&*+” (5:18–20). given to Benjamin. !is village was assigned to Although this appears to be the %rst mention the Levites (Josh. 21:18; 1 Chron. 6:60). !e of this day in Scripture, the way Amos refers city’s most famous resident was the prophet to it indicates that it was already known in his Jeremiah (Jer. 1:1). society. !e people thought that the day of the Lord would be good for them, but Amos says A)-*')+ " D$. –A title for the sovereign that because of their sins, it will be horrible. God seated on his heavenly throne in Daniel’s !e day of the Lord is the day of God’s coming vision of Dan. 7:9, 13, 22. A passage relevant to as a warrior to judge sinners. the Ancient of Days in Dan. 7 is Rev. 1:14–16, where John sees a heavenly %gure in whom is A#$ –Grandson of Levi, son of Kohath combined the features of the heavenly Son of (Exod. 6:16–18; 1 Chron. 6:1–2), and the Man and the Ancient of Days. Imagery char- father of Aaron, Moses, and Miriam (Exod. acterizing the la#er %gure (white hair, %ery 6:20; 1 Chron. 6:3). presence) is now applied to Jesus, indicating Tremper Longman III, Peter Enns, Mark Strauss, eds., The Baker Compact Bible Dictionary Baker Books, a division of Baker Publishing13 Group, © 2014. Used by permission.

(Unpublished manuscript/copyright protected Baker Publishing Group)

Longman_CompactDict_JK_djm.indd 13 5/22/14 7:41 AM Andrew

that the Son of Man is equal to the Ancient of Jesus was arrested (and before being sent to Days in glory and authority. Caiaphas), he was brought to Annas, who ques- A tioned him about his disciples and teaching. A –One of the twelve apostles and His name heads the list of important members brother of Peter. Andrew came from Bethsaida of the Sanhedrin when Peter and John were in Galilee (John 1:44), though he lived and arrested (Acts 4:6), suggesting that he was worked with Peter in Capernaum as a !sher- a dominant !gure of the high-priestly party. man (Ma". 4:18). At !rst a disciple of John the Baptist, he, with an unnamed disciple (possibly A%)', A%)' –See Messiah. John), transferred allegiance to Jesus (John 1:35–40). His !rst recorded act was to bring A')!*+)"# –#ese were the people his brother to Jesus (John 1:41–42). Subse- who lived before the worldwide %ood in Noah’s quently, he was called by Jesus to become a time. #ey were divided between two ancestral permanent follower (Ma". 4:19) and later was lines, those of Cain (Gen. 4:17–24) and Seth appointed as an apostle (Ma". 10:2). (Gen. 5). Although it is common to speak of the Cainites and Sethites, the second line is A ! –#e English word “angel” refers to depicted as starting with Adam, not Seth (5:3). nonhuman spirits, usually good. #e biblical words usually translated “angel” mean “mes- A'(%-%.%-()#. –A special type of senger” and can refer to one sent by God or !gure of speech that is quite common in the by human beings. A messenger must be u"erly Bible. Anthropomorphism is a !gure of speech loyal, reliable, and able to act con!dentially in which God is represented with human fea- (Prov. 13:17). #e messenger speaks and acts tures or human characteristics. Anthropomor- in the name of the sender (Gen. 24). phisms abound in Scripture. Isaiah 59:1, for Messengers sent by God are not always an- example, states: “Surely the arm of the L*+/ gels. Yahweh’s prophets were his messengers is not too short to save, nor his ear too dull to (Hag. 1:13), as were priests (Mal. 2:7). hear.” Likewise, note the colorful anthropo- morphic description of God in Ps. 104:2–3: A –See Wrath; Wrath of God. “#e L*+/ wraps himself in light as with a gar- ment; he stretches out the heavens like a tent A" –An elderly Jewish prophetess at the and lays the beams of his upper chambers on time of Jesus’ birth. Anna is the daughter of their waters. He makes the clouds his chariot Penuel, and she is from the tribe of Asher (Luke and rides on the wings of the wind.” 2:36). She was married for only seven years and then remained a widow for many years. A')/()#' –#e term “antichrist” is used Anna was present when the baby Jesus was only four times in the Bible (1 John 2:18, 22; dedicated, and she responded in worship of 4:3; 2 John 7). John de!nes the antichrist as God and spoke prophetically about the child the one who denies that God has come in the (2:38). %esh in the person of Jesus Christ (1 John 2:22; 4:3; 2 John 7). A"!# %& '( K) # –In 1–2 Kings there are eighteen references to the “book of A')%/( –Antioch of Pisidia. See Asia the annals of the kings of Israel” (e.g., 1 Kings Minor, Cities of (Pisidian Antioch). 14:19; 15:31) and !$een to the “book of the Antioch of Syria. #e most important An- annals of the kings of Judah” (e.g., 1 Kings tioch mentioned in the NT was the capital 14:29; 15:7). #ese (now lost) works may city of the Roman province of Syria. Syrian identify sources from which information was Antioch was an important political, economic, extracted or at least where further information and religious center during the Roman period. about a king may be obtained. Antioch’s diverse population made for a great diversity of religions connected to the A"# –An in%uential high priest who played city. Its suburb of Daphne was a major wor- a part in the trial and death of Jesus (John ship site for paganism, and the city main- 18:12–24). Annas served as high priest in AD tained a large Jewish population throughout 6–15 and continued as high priest emeritus its history. Additionally, it was to Antioch while his son-in-law Caiaphas held that posi- that many Jerusalem Christians %ed during tion in an o&cial capacity. Immediately a$er the early persecution of the church. Here, for Tremper Longman III, Peter Enns, Mark Strauss, eds., The Baker Compact Bible Dictionary Baker Books, a division of Baker Publishing14 Group, © 2014. Used by permission.

(Unpublished manuscript

Longman_CompactDict_JK_djm.indd 14 5/22/14 7:41 AM Apocrypha, Old Testament

the !rst time, the Jewish Christians began to destroyed during Titus’s siege of Jerusalem intentionally focus on sharing the gospel with in AD 70. Gentiles (Acts 11:19–21). "e result was a A large, multicultural, and vibrant church. "e A F!! –See Antonia, Tower church at Antioch was known for its ethnic of. and cultural diversity, its generosity (sending an o#ering to Jerusalem during a famine [see A$ –"e most signi!cant Aphek in the 11:27–30]), and its heart for missions (serving Bible is about seven miles east of Tel Aviv. Traf- as Paul’s headquarters for his three missionary !c on the international coastal route passing journeys). Not surprisingly, it was at Antioch through Israel was forced between the foothills that Christ followers were !rst called “Chris- to the east and the river, making this a strategic tians” (11:26). location. During the transition to the monarchy, the Philistines were at Aphek when the A (E) –Antio- Israelites a$acked them from Ebenezer (1 Sam. chus IV Epiphanes (r. 175–164 BC) was the 4:1) just east in the foothills. "e Philistines younger son of Antiochus III, ruler of the Se- won the ba$le, captured the ark, and continued leucid Empire. "e name “Epiphanes” means Philistine control of the international coastal “manifest,” implying “manifest as a god.” Dan- highway. At the end of Saul’s life, the Philistines iel 8:11; 9:27; 11:31; 12:11; 1 Macc. 1:54–64 mustered their troops at this northern “bound- speak of his desecration of the Jerusalem ary” of the Philistine plain before se$ing o# temple in 167 BC. to challenge Israel for control of the Jezreel Valley (1 Sam. 29:1). A –(1) One of the sons of Herod the Great who ruled as tetrarch (“ruler of a fourth A –A sacred bull worshiped in Egypt, ap- [part]”) of Galilee and Perea (Luke 3:1). He parently a representation of the Egyptian god was responsible for the imprisonment and Ptah. Jeremiah may mention the bull in his subsequent beheading of John the Baptist ridicule of the people’s idolatry in his taunt (Ma$. 14:1–12). He interviewed Jesus at “Why has Apis &ed?” (Jer. 46:15 NRSV). length following his arrest without ge$ing a response (Luke 23:6–12). ( See also Herod.) A%& –See Revelation, Book of. (2) A faithful witness to the gospel who was martyred at Pergamum during a period of in- A%& –"e word “apocalypse” tense persecution when believers in that city means “revelation.” Scholars have identi!ed were under pressure to renounce their faith those texts that resemble the form of the book in Christ (Rev. 2:13). of Revelation as “apocalyptic literature,” including the visions of Isaiah, Ezekiel, Daniel, A! –A city built by Herod the and Zechariah. Great to honor his father, Antipater, in 9 BC. "e city was built on the site of the ancient city A!&, N" T' –"e of Aphek. Roman soldiers took Paul to Antipa- word “apocrypha” is derived from a Greek tris from Jerusalem by night to avoid a plot on word meaning “secret” or “hidden” and refers his life, and cavalry took him on to Caesarea the to texts regarded by some Jews and Christians next day (Acts 23:31–33). "e city was forty as religiously valuable but not meeting the cri- miles from Jerusalem and twenty-!ve miles teria of canonicity. "e more speci!c title “New from Caesarea on the Via Maris. Testament Apocrypha” distinguishes certain writings from those commonly referred to as A, T"! # –"e primary mili- “the Apocrypha,” a collection of works wri$en tary forti!cation of Jerusalem near the Hero- by Jews (with later Christian editing in places) dian temple, also called the Antonia Fortress. between approximately 200 BC and AD 90, "e tower may have served as an o%cial recognized as Scripture by Roman Catholic residence for the Roman procurator. "us, and Orthodox Churches but generally rejected the tower’s courtyard has traditionally been by Protestants. considered the site of Jesus’ trial before Pilate (John 18:28; 19:13). However, Herod’s palace A!&, O%* T' –"e may have been used for the procurator and as Greek word apokrypha means “hidden” or a residence of the governor. "e fortress was “secret,” and later it came to refer to religious Tremper Longman III, Peter Enns, Mark Strauss, eds., The Baker Compact Bible Dictionary Baker Books, a division of Baker Publishing15 Group, © 2014. Used by permission.

(Unpublished manuscript*copyright protected Baker Publishing Group)

Longman_CompactDict_JK_djm.indd 15 5/22/14 7:41 AM Apollos

books considered to be of inferior quality to bo!omless pit. "e Hebrew form is “Abad- the OT and the NT. During the third century, don” (Rev. 9:11). "e name may derive from A several church fathers (e.g., Origen [d. 253], Apollo, an important Greek god. Irenaeus [d. 202], Tertullian [d. 220]) used this term to distinguish these works from canonical A"# –In the Bible this term is used works. Currently, the phrase “Old Testament speci$cally to describe rebellion against God. Apocrypha” refers to Jewish literary works While there is a sense in which every human wri!en between approximately 200 BC and being has consciously and deliberately sinned AD 90 that were included in the earliest Greek and fallen short of God’s standards (Rom. codices of the LXX. 3:23), apostasy is normally used only in ref- Since the time of Luther, Protestants have erence to those who have %agrantly and high- rejected the canonicity of the Apocrypha. handedly known the truth, turned their back However, the Roman Catholic Church has on it, and rejected God. argued that thirteen apocryphal works are part of their authoritative Scriptures (Wisdom of A"$ –See O&ces in the New Testament. Solomon, Sirach [or Ecclesiasticus], Tobit, Judith, 1 Esdras [or 3 Ezra], 1 Maccabees, A"%& C(!&% –See Acts of the 2 Maccabees, Baruch, Epistle of Jeremiah, Apostles. Additions to Esther, Susanna, Bel and the Dragon, and Prayer of Azariah and Song of A)#*#, G(+ + –See Red Sea, Reed the "ree Young Men). In the past, two other Sea. books have been included (2 Esdras [or 4 Ezra, Apocalypse of Ezra] and Prayer of Manasseh). A)($-(&" –A conduit used to transport "e Greek Orthodox Church includes two water from one place to another. It could be additional works (3 Maccabees; Psalm 151) either a trough cut into rock or soil, or pipes in its authoritative canon. made from stone or other materials. Aqueducts were used in OT times to transport water into A –Apollos was born in Alexandria cities from nearby springs. "e “aqueduct of (Acts 18:24) and probably educated there. He the Upper Pool” in Jerusalem is mentioned came to Ephesus, perhaps on business, a#er in 2 Kings 18:17; Isa. 7:3; 36:2. Its location is Paul had le# the city during his second mis- uncertain, though it is said to be “on the road sionary journey. In addition to his knowledge to the Washerman’s Field.” Hezekiah’s tunnel of the OT, Apollos had been instructed in the was an underground aqueduct that took water way of the Lord and was teaching accurately his from the Gihon spring to the Pool of Siloam knowledge of Jesus. He knew only the baptism (2 Kings 20:20). of John—that is, the baptism of repentance. When Priscilla and Aquila “explained to him A)(%# #!- P.%&%# –Aquila and the way of God more adequately” (18:26), this Priscilla were important coworkers with the probably entailed an explanation of the atoning apostle Paul in his missionary e*ort. "ey signi$cance of Jesus’ death, God’s vindication joined Paul in cooperative e*orts and also of Jesus in the resurrection, and the personal worked in relative independence. "ey were experience of the Holy Spirit for all believ- Christian workers in what came to be impor- ers. A#er ministering in Ephesus (18:24), he tant centers of early Christianity: Corinth, went to Corinth (19:1; cf. 1 Cor. 3), where he Ephesus, and Rome. Mentioned in the NT was able to overwhelm the Jews in argument as a pair (Acts 18:18, 19, 26; Rom. 16:3; that Jesus was the Christ (Acts 18:28). Apol- 1 Cor. 16:19; 2 Tim. 4:19), four of these list los returned to Ephesus sometime therea#er Priscilla $rst, probably indicating her wealth, and was present in that city when Paul wrote social status, or prominence in the Christian 1 Corinthians (1 Cor. 16:8). Apollos probably community. remained a faithful member of the Pauline missionary band, for he is mentioned later in Paul’s A.#*#/ –One of several major topographi- le!er to Titus and was probably a courier of cal features of Israel (Deut. 1:7; Josh. 11:16). that le!er with Zenas (Titus 3:13). "e Arabah corresponds to the Great Ri# Val- ley running north to south through the land. A ! –"e Greek name, meaning Situated within it is the Jordan River Valley, “destroyer,” for the angel of the Abyss, the which extends southward from the Sea of Tremper Longman III, Peter Enns, Mark Strauss, eds., The Baker Compact Bible Dictionary Baker Books, a division of Baker Publishing16 Group, © 2014. Used by permission.

(Unpublished manuscript+copyright protected Baker Publishing Group)

Longman_CompactDict_JK_djm.indd 16 5/22/14 7:41 AM Aram Naharaim

Galilee (Kinnereth) sixty-!ve miles to the for the land of the Kenites, the descendants Dead Sea (Sea of the Arabah). "e Dead Sea of Moses’ father-in-law (Judg. 1:16). and its surroundings are also part of it, as is the A desert region to the south, which extends 103 A!" –Aramaic comprises one of the miles to the Gulf of Aqaba. “"e way of the two main branches of the northwest Semitic Arabah” ( derek ha’arabah ) occurs !ve times, language group. "e language most closely re- once indicating a road leading from the Gulf lated to Aramaic is Hebrew, although Akkadian of Aqaba (Deut. 2:8), possibly the King’s High- and Arabic also show considerable similarities way (see Num. 20:17, 21). in terms of morphology, grammar, and lexical content. "ere is considerable extrabiblical A –A large peninsula lying between literature dating from around 1500 BC through the Red Sea on the west and the Persian Gulf the biblical period and beyond that is wri$en on the east. In the Bible the term is actually in Aramaic, some of which is important for the seldom used (2 Chron. 9:14; Isa. 21:13; Jer. study of the Bible. Also, considerable portions 25:24; Ezek. 27:21; 30:5; Gal. 1:17; 4:25), of the books of Ezra and Daniel are wri$en and when it is, it refers more to the general in Aramaic. area than to any speci!c group of people or geographic location. It seems to stand as a des- A!#$% –Descendants of Shem (Gen. ignation for that expanse of land that lies to the 10:22) and Nahor (Gen. 22:21) identi!ed south and east of Canaan and the Transjordan in the LXX and English translations as “Syr- peoples. On several occasions the term “Arabs” ians.” According to the patriarchal narratives is used to designate the people from those re- in Genesis, Arameans originated from Upper gions (2 Chron. 17:11; 21:16; 22:1; 26:7; Neh. Mesopotamia in the early second millennium. 4:7; Acts 2:11). Elsewhere they are referred to Abraham is referred to as a “wandering Ar- as “eastern peoples” (Gen. 29:1; Judg. 6:3, 33; amean” (Deut. 26:5), which suggests that the 7:12; 8:10) or “people of the East” (1 Kings Hebrews descended from Arameans. 4:30; Job 1:3; Jer. 49:28; Ezek. 25:4, 10). In "eir expansion to the west impacted an- Gen. 25:6 Arabia is referred to as the “land of cient Israel as early as the days of Saul (1 Sam. the east,” and in Isa. 2:6 simply as “the East” 14:47). David defeated the alliance of the Am- (although this may refer simply to Syria and monites with the Aramean king Hadadezer Mesopotamia). (2 Sam. 8:3–8; 10–12). King Asa of Judah In the NT, Arabs were among those present made a treaty with an Aramean king in his war at Pentecost (Acts 2:11). A#er his conversion against Baasha of Israel (1 Kings 15:16–22). Paul journeyed to Arabia (Gal. 1:17), by which King Ahab was defeated and killed in his ba$les is meant the Nabatean kingdom, stretching with the Arameans (1 Kings 22:1–38). Later, from the Transjordan southwest toward the God provided a “deliverer” (possibly an Assyr- Sinai Peninsula. Interestingly, Paul’s reference ian king or o%cer), which relieved Aramean to Mount Sinai as being in Arabia (Gal. 4:25) pressures upon Israel (2 Kings 13:3–5). "is may suggest a location other than the tradi- allowed Jehoash of Israel to defeat the Arame- tional one of the Sinai Peninsula—for example, ans and regain previously lost territories. In the across the Gulf of Aqaba (the eastern arm of eighth century BC the Aramean king Rezin, the Red Sea) in or near Midian (see Exod. in alliance with Israel and Tyre, a$empted to 2:11–3:3)—although there is no consensus force Ahaz of Judah into their league to oppose on this ma$er. the growing Assyrian threat (2 Kings 16:5–9; Isa. 7:1–9). By the end of the eighth century, A –A Canaanite city located in the Negev all Aramean territories had become provinces Desert, approximately eighteen miles northeast in the Assyrian Empire. of Beersheba. "is was the site of the defeat by the king of Arad when the Israelites a$empted A! N'! –Literally, “Aram of the a southern entrance into Canaan, the result of Two Rivers.” "is is a region of the northern which was the capture of several of their own Euphrates above the point where it is joined people (Num. 21:1; 33:40). Later, the king of by the River Harbor in the west of what is now Arad is listed among the conquered kings of Syria, and thus northwest of Mesopotamia Canaan (Josh. 12:14). "e city was destroyed proper. Associated with the patriarchs, its prox- and renamed “Hormah” (Num. 21:2–3). "e imity to Israel also made it a place from which area is also mentioned as a reference point opposition might come. Genesis 24:10 notes Tremper Longman III, Peter Enns, Mark Strauss, eds., The Baker Compact Bible Dictionary Baker Books, a division of Baker Publishing17 Group, © 2014. Used by permission.

Longman_CompactDict_JK_djm.indd 17 5/22/14 7:41 AM Aram Zobah

that it was here that Abraham’s servant came from 4 BC to AD 6. Archelaus is mentioned to the city of Nahor and met Rebekah at the once in the NT (Ma". 2:22). Joseph, warned A well, while Deut. 23:4 indicates that this was by an angel of the Lord, had taken Jesus and Balaam’s home region. Cushan-Rishathaim, Mary to Egypt to escape the murderous in- Israel’s !rst foreign oppressor in Judges, came tentions of Herod the Great. A#er the death from here (Judg. 3:8), while both 1 Chron. of Herod, Joseph was told to return to Israel, 19:6 and the title of Ps. 60 indicate that the but on arriving he discovered that Archelaus Ammonites hired mercenaries from the region now governed Judea. Being afraid of him and when engaged in war against David. warned in a dream, he se"led in Nazareth in the district of Galilee, an area ruled by another A Z –A minor state in the Anti- of Herod’s sons, Antipas. Lebanon among a group of Syrian states that a"acked Israel a#er David’s message of sym- A%$**") –A Christian whom Paul en- pathy to the Ammonites was misconstrued couraged to complete “the ministry you have (1 Chron. 19:6), but which he ultimately de- received in the Lord” (Col. 4:17). Paul defeated (2 Sam. 8:3; cf. Ps. 60:1). scribed him as a “fellow soldier” (Philem. 2), which probably indicates a position of leader- A! –Ararat refers to a mountainous re- ship. $e nature of the ministry received from gion in eastern Asia Minor. $e best-known the Lord that Paul refers to in Col. 4:17 is not reference to Ararat is as the location where speci!ed. Noah’s ark comes to rest a#er the %ood. Gen- esis 8:4 actually speaks of the “mountains of A'*&") –An ancient and prestigious Ararat,” not one particular mountain. In Gen. council of Athenians that met on Mars Hill 8:2–14 the perspective is of the rain stop- and in former days exercised judicial and leg- ping and the %oodwaters slowly receding in islative authority. Paul was invited to address an extended process during which the ark is the Areopagus and explain his teaching about deposited on the Ararat mountain range. Tradi- Jesus and the resurrection. Among the converts tion has favored Agri Dag, an extinct volcano from this occasion, two are named: Diony- rising 16,916 feet on the northeastern border sius, himself a council member, and Damaris, a of Turkey, as a viable site for Ararat. woman about whom nothing else is said (Acts 17:16–34). A"# –A Jebusite (called “Ornan” in Chronicles) who sold David a threshing %oor A'!) –$e name of several Arabian kings. on which the king constructed an altar (2 Sam. Paul mentions Aretas (2 Cor. 11:32), king of 24:16–25; 1 Chron. 21:15–27). $is story le- Arabia Petraea and father-in-law of Herod gitimized the locale for the construction of the Antipas, who divorced his daughter to marry Solomonic temple (1 Chron. 22:1; 2 Chron. Herodias, his brother’s wife (see Mark 6:17 3:1) by asserting that it was the place where pars.). $is led to war and the subsequent de- the sacri!ce of David averted the destroying struction of Antipas’s army, which the people angel of pestilence (2 Sam. 24:16, 25). blamed on his murder of John the Baptist (Jo- sephus, Ant. 8.116). Following the death of A –Arba was the leader of the Anakites, Emperor Tiberius (AD 37), Aretas apparently a tribe of giants (Deut. 2:10, 21; 9:2) that had gained control of Damascus, where Paul, lived near Hebron. $e town was originally being pursued by the king’s ethnarch, escaped called Kiriath Arba (“city of Arba”; Josh. 14:15; in a basket through a window in the wall (Acts 15:13; 21:11). 9:25; 2 Cor. 11:32–33). A$!! –See Mediator. A$!' –A town of Judea whose exact location is uncertain. It is mentioned in all four A%#&'( –A chief or !rst angel. See also Gospels, only in connection with Joseph, a rich Angel. man and member of the Sanhedrin, in whose tomb Jesus was laid (Ma". 27:57; Mark 15:43; A%'(") –$e son of Herod the Great Luke 23:51; John 19:38). who, following his father’s death and by permission from the Roman emperor Augustus, A$% –(1) $e king of Ellasar who joined ruled over Judea, Samaria, and Idumea (Edom) a coalition against !ve kings of the Dead Sea Tremper Longman III, Peter Enns, Mark Strauss, eds., The Baker Compact Bible Dictionary Baker Books, a division of Baker Publishing18 Group, © 2014. Used by permission.

Longman_CompactDict_JK_djm.indd 18 5/22/14 7:41 AM Army

region (Gen. 14:1, 9). Abram was swept up twenty-seven inches high (Exod. 25:10), and in this con!ict because his nephew Lot was it was transported by means of two poles in- captured in Sodom (14:12). (2) "e captain serted on either side of the ark. "e most im- A of the guard in the court of Nebuchadnezzar portant aspects of the ark were the cover and who was commanded to kill the wise men of the cherubim a#ached to the ark cover. Blood Babylon, including Daniel (Dan. 2:14–15). was ritually sprinkled on the cover, which was Arioch protected Daniel by warning him of the the designated place of atonement. In the king’s order and then securing an audience for earliest accounts, the ark became the place of Daniel with the king (2:24–25). atonement, meeting, and revelation between God and Israel. A –A native of "essalonica who was a close companion of Paul. Associated A)*&++ ( –Commonly believed to with Paul’s Gentile mission, he and Gaius were be the place of the $nal, cataclysmic ba#le seized by a mob and brought to the theater in that climaxes in the visible return of Christ Ephesus (Acts 19:29). Later he journeyed to (Rev. 16:16). "e literal rendering “mount Jerusalem (possibly as one of the delegates of of Megiddo” is somewhat problematic, for the Macedonian churches) accompanying the there is no Mount of Megiddo. "e apoca- collection for poor relief (Acts 20:4). When lyptic indications relate Zech. 12:11 (the only Paul appealed for his case to be heard by Cae- apocalyptic reference to Megiddo, although sar, Aristarchus sailed with him to Rome (Acts there it is the “plain of Megiddo”) with Ezek. 27:2). Writing from prison in Rome, Paul com- 38–39 (where the $nal ba#le in history takes mends him as a Jewish coworker (along with place on the “mountains of Israel”). At the Mark and Justus) and fellow prisoner (Col. least, Armageddon represents the place where 4:10, 11; Philem. 24). the kings of the world will gather for the $nal ba#le before God judges the world. "e choice A !" –"e head of a household of Megiddo may result from the fact that it greeted by Paul (Rom. 16:10). According to was the place where the righteous Israelites church tradition, he was the brother of Bar- repeatedly fought o% a#acks by wicked nations nabas and one of the seventy disciples, who (cf. 2 Kings 23:29). eventually became a missionary to Britain. Others have suggested that he was the son of A), –"e army of Israel was primarily Aristobulus, grandson of Herod the Great and a volunteer military force directed by God brother of Agrippa I. and his word. Deuteronomy 20 establishes the guidelines for warfare, Num. 1 describes A# –God announced to Noah that he was organization, and Num. 2:17 highlights God’s going to destroy all the inhabitants of the earth strategic position as commander in the sa- and commanded him to build an “ark” (Heb. cred event of war. Israelite warriors were men tebah ; Gen. 6:14–16). Apart from the Gen- twenty years and older from the nation’s tribes, esis !ood narrative, Exod. 2:3–5 is the only clans, and families. "e Levites were appointed other passage in the Bible where this word is tabernacle caretakers and not counted in the used, there for the ark of bulrushes in which census for military duties. "e priest was re- the infant Moses was placed. Both arks were sponsible for addressing the nation prior to a made waterproof by a coating of pitch (tar). ba#le and then leading the ba#le procession An ark is something built to save people from in connection with the ark of the covenant. drowning. It is not the name of a kind of boat as "e Israelite army structure is not overly such (e.g., yacht), but rather a geometric box- developed in the biblical material. Under God like shape. "e ark was without rudder, sail, or as commander in chief was the king, who then any navigational aid. "e NT refers to Noah’s worked in connection with his commanders construction of the ark (Heb. 11:7; 1 Pet. 3:20) and o&cers to execute God’s will by means of and his entering it (Ma#. 24:38; Luke 17:27). a tribal confederation. Prior to the monarchy, God worked through Moses and Joshua to rally A# % & C '&(( –A sacred cultic the men for ba#le. Samuel warned the nation object, in the shape of a box, that represented that the king would abuse the volunteerism of the presence of God among the Israelites. "e the army and take their sons and make them ark, constructed in wood, measured forty-$ve render military service with his chariots and inches long, twenty-seven inches wide, and horses (1 Sam. 8:11–12). "is warning was Tremper Longman III, Peter Enns, Mark Strauss, eds., The Baker Compact Bible Dictionary Baker Books, a division of Baker Publishing19 Group, © 2014. Used by permission.

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Longman_CompactDict_JK_djm.indd 19 5/22/14 7:41 AM Arnon

realized under the leadership of Solomon A!"# # $ –Artaxerxes I was the fourth and Rehoboam. Army divisions included a king of the Persian Empire (464–424 BC). A list of family heads, commanders of thousands, It was an appeal by provincial o!cials to commanders of hundreds, and their o!cers. Artaxerxes at the beginning of his reign that In addition, a period of their service was noted brought a halt to an early a"empt to repair (1 Chron. 27). the walls of Jerusalem (Ezra 4:7–23). Ezra Army size was not a ma"er of importance went up to Jerusalem in the seventh year of for success in ba"le. God as divine warrior his reign (458 BC; Ezra 7:7). #e appear- led the nation in ba"le and determined the ance of bene$cence in Artaxerxes’ decree outcome in keeping with his sovereign pur- (7:11–26) was spoiled by the revelation of poses. Only a few Israelites were necessary to the self-serving political motivation behind defeat thousands (Lev. 26:8; Deut. 32:8). #e its apparent generosity (7:23). Ezra’s nonuse defeat of Pharaoh and his army in the exodus of the sweeping powers given to him by Ar- and the conquest provides the most dramatic taxerxes further suggests that Persian royal premonarchy illustrations of God’s de$ance assistance might not be the kind of help really of the numbers. During the monarchy, God needed by God’s people. Nehemiah returned orchestrated the defeat of the vast Aramean to Jerusalem in the twentieth year of Artax- army with a smaller Israelite army (1 Kings erxes’ reign (445 BC; Neh. 1:1). #e positive 20:27). On the other hand, when the Israelites impression made on the reader by Artaxerxes’ were disobedient to the covenant, they would personal favoritism toward Nehemiah, allow- be put to %ight (Josh. 7). ing him to return to rebuild the walls of his native city, Jerusalem (2:3, 5), is undercut by A –#e wadi and gorge that runs into the Nehemiah’s disparagement of his royal mas- east side of the Dead Sea opposite En Gedi. It ter (1:11: “this man”). Nehemiah’s second formed the northern boundary of Moab (Num. mission took place sometime later than the 22:36; Judg. 11:18) and southern boundary of thirty-second year of Artaxerxes’ reign (5:14; the kingdom of Sihon the Amorite (Deut. 2:24, 13:6) but before the king’s death. 36). Its $rst mention in the OT is as a campsite of the migrating Israelites (Num. 21:13–36). A! %&$ –#e goddess Artemis was known #e Israelites captured all the territory of the as the protector, nurturer, and overseer of Transjordan north of the Arnon River (Deut. Ephesus. #e only mention of Artemis in the 3:8–17; 4:48; Josh. 12:1–2). In the days of Bible is in Acts 19:23–41, the incident of the Jeph thah, the Ammonite king a"empted un- Ephesian riot and demonstration in the amphi- successfully to regain the territory from the theater. #is was instigated by Demetrius the Arnon to the Jabbok Rivers (Judg. 11). During silversmith over his concerns that Paul’s min- Jehu’s reign, the Syrian king Hazael captured istry was creating an economic hazard for him from Israel the Transjordan territory as far and his tradesmen, who made silver shrines south as the Arnon Gorge (2 Kings 10:32–33). of Artemis. #ey also feared that the temple and Artemis herself would su&er a decline in A –A se"lement on the northern rim stature. #e intercession of the city clerk even- of a deep gorge along the Arnon River, east tually quieted the mob, but not until they had of the Dead Sea. Because the gorge served as spent two hours chanting, “Great is Artemis a natural border for surrounding territories, of the Ephesians!” Aroer was a strategically a"ractive stronghold. Aroer was controlled by Sihon the Amorite A$" –#e third king of Judah (1 Kings until Moses defeated him (Deut. 2:36; 4:48; 15:8–24; 2 Chron. 14:1–16:14), succeeding Josh. 12:2) and incorporated the se"lement his father, Abijah, and reigning for forty-one within Reuben’s territory (Deut. 3:12; Josh. years (908–867 BC). Early in his life, Asa was 13:9, 16), although Gad was involved in re- a good king, obeying God and removing the building it (Num. 32:34). Later, the se"lement worship of foreign gods from the land. He likely marked the starting point for David’s even removed an idolatrous object that his census (2 Sam. 24:5). Still later, Hazael of Syria own grandmother Maakah had set up and gained dominance over the Transjordan as far removed her from leadership in the land. As south as Aroer (2 Kings 10:33; cf. Isa. 17:2). a result, God blessed him, even providing a By Jeremiah’s time, Aroer had once again come tremendous military victory over Zerah, an under Moab’s control (Jer. 48:19). Ethiopian leader who had a"acked Judah with Tremper Longman III, Peter Enns, Mark Strauss, eds., The Baker Compact Bible Dictionary Baker Books, a division of Baker Publishing20 Group, © 2014. Used by permission.

(Unpublished manuscript+copyright protected Baker Publishing Group)

Longman_CompactDict_JK_djm.indd 20 5/22/14 7:41 AM Asenath

a million-man army (2 Chron. 14:9–15). Later %ey re$ect his prophetic ministry by includ- in life, however, he showed a lack of con!dence ing sections of prophecy or of God speaking. in God when he enlisted the king of Aram to God’s covenant and justice are frequent topics A help him against the encroachment of Baasha, of these psalms. the king of Israel, even paying him with gold and silver objects from the temple. Although A!"#$" –%e visible and bodily ascent Baasha withdrew, Asa’s actions caught up with of Jesus from earth to heaven concluding him when he developed a serious foot disease, his earthly ministry, which then continued from which he died. through the promised Holy Spirit, given at Pentecost. A –One of the three sons of Zeruiah. A detailed historical account of the ascen- He and his brothers, Joab and Abishai, were sion is given only by Luke (Luke 24:51; Acts nephews of David who served prominently 1:4–11 [cf. Mark 16:19, in the longer end- in his army. Asahel was noted as a swi" run- ing to Mark’s Gospel]). %e event, however, ner (2 Sam. 2:18). His speed and persistence was anticipated in John’s Gospel (John 6:62; cost him his life at the hands of Abner and led 20:17). to a division between David and Joab. Abner %e ascension is frequently implied through- had been King Saul’s general. A"er Saul was out the NT by reference to the complex of killed by the Philistines, Abner sided with events that began with the death of Jesus and Saul’s son Ish-Bosheth for two years. Most of ended with his session at the right hand of Israel followed Ish-Bosheth, while Judah fol- God in glory. Paul writes of the divine-human lowed David. In one ba#le, Abner and the men Christ’s ascent to the heavenly realms as the be- of Israel were put to $ight (2:17). %e swi" ginning of his supreme cosmic reign in power Asahel decided to chase Abner down. Abner (Eph. 1:20–23) and as the basis for holy living warned him o&, but Asahel refused to relent, so (Col. 3:1–4; 1 Tim. 3:16). In Hebrews, the when he caught up, Abner killed him. When a ascension is a crucial stage that marks o& the ri" developed between Ish-Bosheth and Abner, completed work of Jesus on earth, in which Abner determined to bring the loyalty of Israel he o&ered himself as the perfect and !nal sac- over to David. He met peaceably with David ri!ce for sin (9:24–26), from his continuing toward that end. But when Joab heard, he was work in heaven as our great high priest, which upset. He tricked Abner into a meeting without is described in terms of sympathy (4:14–16) David’s knowledge and killed him in revenge and intercession (7:25). Peter makes the most for Asahel’s death. direct reference to the ascension, explaining that Jesus, who su&ered, is resurrected and “has A –One of the Levites appointed by gone into heaven” (1 Pet. 3:22). %erefore, just David to lead in worship. Asaph was part of as Jesus, the righteous su&erer, was vindicated the procession to bring the ark of the covenant by God, so too will his people, who su&er for to Jerusalem. Along with Heman and Ethan, doing good. also mentioned in the Psalter, he was appointed by the Levites to the bronze cymbals (1 Chron. A!"%, S$"' $( –%e titles, or super- 15:19). Subsequently, David assigned Asaph scriptions, of !"een psalms include the desig- continuing duties (16:7, 37). He served fur- nation “a song of ascents,” also called “a song ther under Solomon at the dedication of the of degrees.” %e notion of ascending, or going temple (2 Chron. 5:11–14). Asaph is de- up, has in$uenced the understanding of these scribed as singer (1 Chron. 15:17), the chief psalms. %e “going up” has been seen as going (15:19), who played cymbals (15:19), gave up to Jerusalem for a holy day, going up to Je- thanks to God (16:7), ministered before the rusalem as part of the return from the exile, ark (16:37), prophesied under direction of going up the !"een steps at the courts of the the king (25:2); and gave direction to his sons temple (a Jewish tradition in the Mishnah), or (25:2). %e sons of Asaph served under his dian aspect of their poetic style. %ese psalms rection (25:2); prophesied and sang with lyres, occur together as a group, Pss. 120–34. harps, and cymbals (25:1, 6); and served as gatekeepers (26:1). %e descendants of Asaph A"% –%e daughter of Potiphera, priest continued these duties a"er the exile (Ezra of On in Egypt, she was given as wife to Jo- 2:41; 3:10; Neh. 11:22; 12:46). Twelve psalms seph and became the mother of Manasseh and are associated with Asaph (Pss. 50; 73–83). Ephraim (Gen. 41:45, 50–52; 46:20). Tremper Longman III, Peter Enns, Mark Strauss, eds., The Baker Compact Bible Dictionary Baker Books, a division of Baker Publishing21 Group, © 2014. Used by permission.

(Unpublished manuscript*copyright protected Baker Publishing Group)

Longman_CompactDict_JK_djm.indd 21 5/22/14 7:41 AM Ashdod

A –One of !ve principal cities of the Anna, the prophetess who blessed the infant Philistines (Josh. 13:3). Ashdod was situated Jesus (Luke 2:36–38). Asher is also included A in the coastal plane of Canaan, roughly two and among Revelation’s listing of the tribes sealed one-half miles inland from the Mediterranean for protection (Rev. 7:6). Sea, near the main coastal route sometimes called the “Way of the Philistines.” A !& –A cult object as well as a goddess Ashdod is mentioned in relation to both a"ested throughout the Levant. the overall success of the Israelite conquest In the OT, Asherah refers primarily to a of Canaan (Josh. 11:22; the feared Anakim wooden cult object (see Deut. 16:21). #at remained only in Philistine territory [see these were objects and not trees is evident from Num. 13:28]) and its un!nished nature descriptions of their (NIV: “Asherah poles”) (Josh. 13:3). Joshua 15:46–47 lists Ashdod being “made” (1 Kings 14:15) and “set up” in the territory allo"ed to Judah. #at this (14:23). territory remained largely unconquered by #e Israelites were instructed to destroy the Israel features prominently in the narrative Asherah poles upon entering Canaan (Exod. of Judges and Samuel. 34:13; also Deut. 7:5; 12:3). Instead, they fash- When the ark of the covenant was captured ioned their own (1 Kings 14:15, 23), assimi- by the Philistines (1 Sam. 4), it was taken to lating them into worship of Yahweh (2 Kings Dagon’s temple at Ashdod (5:1–2). Excavation 23:6). Later e%orts at removing the poles were of Tel Ashdod has yet to identify this cult site, sporadic and temporary (cf. 2 Kings 18:4 with although an incense stand portraying a proces- 21:3, 7). Despite the apparent pervasiveness sion of musicians may pertain to Dagon’s cult of these cult objects, archaeologists have yet (see 1 Sam. 10:5). First Macc. 10:84 reports to retrieve one. Jonathan’s burning of Azotus (Ashdod) and In a handful of instances, “Asherah” denotes destruction of Dagon’s temple during the Hel- a deity. In Judg. 3:7 “the Asherahs” (here indi- lenistic period. cating “goddesses”) is grammatically parallel Among the prophets, oracles portend the to “the Baals”; likewise “Asherah” corresponds destruction of Ashdod and the other Philistine to Baal and “the starry hosts,” designating a cities (Amos 1:6–8; Zeph. 2:4; Zech. 9:5–6). speci!c deity (2 Kings 23:4). In 1 Kings 18:19 Jeremiah 25:20 mentions “the people le$ at Elijah speaks of the “prophets of Asherah,” who Ashdod,” possibly alluding to Psamtik I’s de- presumably spoke in the goddess’s name. struction of the city. Conspicuously absent is any mention of Gath, which by this time had A' () –One of !ve principal cities of been subjugated or destroyed (1 Chron. 1:18; the Philistines (Josh. 13:3). It was situated ap- 2 Chron. 26:6; also 2 Kings 12:17). proximately midway between Ashdod (north) and Gaza (south) on the shore of the Mediter- A ! –#e name of a person (the eighth ranean Sea. son of Jacob [Gen. 30:12–13]), a tribe of Is- Ashkelon was listed among the territory rael ( see Asher, Tribe of), and possibly a city still to be conquered at the end of Joshua’s life (Josh. 17:7). (Josh. 13:3). Judah took the city but ultimately was unable to keep it (Judg. 1:18–19). #e OT A !, T!#$ % –One of the twelve subsequently reckoned Ashkelon as part of tribes, descended from the eighth son of Philistine territory, beginning with Judg. 14:19, Jacob, born to Jacob by Zilpah, Leah’s hand- which recounts one of Samson’s exploits. maid (Gen. 30:12–13). #e tribe of Asher is Ashkelon shared in the a&iction visited on speci!cally recorded as participating in the the Philistines for taking the ark of the cov- enslavement in Egypt (Exod. 1:4), the rescue enant, which they a"empted to forestall by from Egypt and the failure to enter the land of reparations or “sympathetic magic” (1 Sam. promise (Num. 1:40–41; 13:13; 26:44–47), 6:17 [the “gold tumors” were likely meant to the conquest of the land (Josh. 19:24–31), bear away the source of the Philistines’ suf- and the failure to drive out the Canaanites as fering]). Ashkelon and Gath represent the God had commanded (Judg. 1:31–32). #e Philistines overall as David anticipates their re- tribal allotment a%orded Asher included the sponse to news of Saul’s and Jonathan’s deaths western hills of Galilee and the Phoenician (2 Sam. 1:20). coast north of the Carmel range and south of #e remaining references occur in the Sidon. In the NT, Asher is listed as the tribe of prophets, who portended the destruction of Tremper Longman III, Peter Enns, Mark Strauss, eds., The Baker Compact Bible Dictionary Baker Books, a division of Baker Publishing22 Group, © 2014. Used by permission.

(Unpublished manuscript*copyright protected Baker Publishing Group)

Longman_CompactDict_JK_djm.indd 22 5/22/14 7:41 AM Asia Minor, Cities of

Ashkelon and the other Philistine cities at the Medes, which helped pave the way for the various times (Jer. 25:20; 47:5, 7; Amos 1:8; rise of the Persians. He may be the king who Zeph. 2:4, 7; Zech. 9:5). Notably, Zeph. 2:7 captured Manasseh (2 Chron. 33:11–12). A expected that Judah would !nally take posses- sion of Ashkelon. A% –A Roman province in western Asia Minor, not to be confused with the modern A –"e chief eunuch in the court designation for the larger continent. "e exact of King Nebuchadnezzar (Dan. 1:3), whom boundaries are di%cult to determine, but the the king charged with the task of bringing in region, formed in 133–130 BC, and since the and training some young Israelite men to serve time of Augustus ruled by proconsuls, included in his court. Ashpenaz changed the names of the older kingdoms of Mysia, Lydia, Caria, and Daniel and his three friends to Babylonian part of Phrygia, as well as several islands. Paul names. Following the king’s orders, he refused and his companions enjoyed an especially suc- to let the four young men follow a strict diet of cessful mission in Asia (Acts 19:10, 22, 26–27; vegetables and water, but Daniel found a way Rom. 16:5). He later wrote le#ers to Christians to avoid the diet required by Nebuchadnezzar. in Colossae and Ephesus (Ephesians; 1 Timo- thy). Inscriptions a#est to the wealth of many A !" –(1) A goddess a#ested in Ephesians. "rough Timothy, Paul warns those Syro-Phoenicia, Palestine, and Egypt. In pursuing wealth in the city (1 Tim. 6:9–10; cf. the Bible, “Ashtaroth” is generally regarded Rev. 3:17). "e apostle John eventually se#led as the plural form of the deity’s name (NIV: in Ephesus and later was exiled to the island of “the Ashtoreths”; NRSV: “the Astartes”; NET: Patmos, where he wrote to the seven churches “the Ashtars”). It occurs all but once in con- of Asia (Rev. 1:4–3:22). junction with other deities, most o$en Baal or “the Baals” (Judg. 2:13; 1 Sam. 12:10), A% M%"!, C% % "( –Asia Minor, the but also with the gods of neighboring peoples land area of modern-day Turkey, was initially (Judg. 10:6) or “foreign gods” (1 Sam. 7:3). se#led by the Ha#i people between 2500 and “Ashtaroth” broadly designates goddesses 2000 BC. Toward the end of that period, the whom Israel pursued rather than the true Indo-European Hi#ites, drawn to the mild God, Yahweh. In 1 Sam. 31:10 is mentioned climate, began a slow se#lement alongside a Philistine temple devoted to “the Ashtoreths.” the indigenous Ha#is, mixing peaceably with See also Asherah. them. By 1750 BC, the Hi#ites had become (2) A city associated with Og, king of Bashan the dominant people group. (Deut. 1:4). “Ashtaroth” designates an Amorite In the twel$h century BC the Hi#ites fell city captured by the Israelites en route to the to the Sea Peoples. "ey developed coastal plains of Moab (Num. 21:33–35). "e region cities along the Aegean, which by the eighth was allo#ed to the half-tribe of Manasseh century were conquered by the Greeks. (Josh. 12:30–31), and the city to the Levites "e Lydian king Croesus came to power in (1 Chron. 6:71). 560 BC in Sardis and subdued the Greeks, only to fall in 546 BC to Cyrus of Persia. In A#!$%& –In 668 BC Ashurbani- 334–333 BC Alexander the Great defeated pal (Osnapper [Asnapper] is the Aramaic the Persians in two key ba#les and won Asia equivalent; Ezra 4:10) succeeded his father, Minor. A$er Alexander’s death, one of his Esarhaddon, in Assyria, while his brother generals, Seleucus, took over. "en, in 190 Shamash-shum-ukin became the ruler of Bab- BC the Romans defeated the Seleucids and ylon. Esarhaddon had made his vassals swear assumed control. "is inaugurated an ex- loyalty to the two sons before his death. "ey tended period of peace, during which time were able to rule peacefully alongside each Jewish communities of the Diaspora se#led other for seventeen years, with Ashurbanipal throughout the region. as the superior. "en a civil war broke out be- "e missionary journeys of the apostle Paul tween them in 651 BC, which Ashurbanipal (Saul of Tarsus) took him into and around won, though at great cost. Less is known of much of Asia Minor, and directly or indirectly him a$er this victory, and perhaps the decline he was responsible for the establishment of of Assyria begins at that point. most of the !rst-century churches there. "e Early in his reign he conquered Egypt as far following cities of Asia Minor are mentioned south as "ebes, while to the east he defeated in the NT. Tremper Longman III, Peter Enns, Mark Strauss, eds., The Baker Compact Bible Dictionary Baker Books, a division of Baker Publishing23 Group, © 2014. Used by permission.

Longman_CompactDict_JK_djm.indd 23 5/22/14 7:41 AM Asia Minor, Cities of Eastern Mediterranean nearly the entire city came out to listen to them. Tarsus. !e birthplace of the apostle Paul Jealous Jewish leaders incited a persecution, A (Acts 9:11; 21:39; 22:3), Tarsus is located on causing Paul and Barnabas to reorient their the Mediterranean coast, nine miles north- ministry to Gentiles and then leave the region east of modern-day Mersin. Tarsus became the for Iconium (13:26–51). !ey returned on capital of the Roman province of Cilicia in 67 their way back to Antioch to strengthen the BC. Cleopatra and Mark Antony met and built disciples and appoint elders (14:21–23). their "eet in this grand city. When his life was Iconium. Iconium, today called Konya, is threatened a#er his conversion, Paul was sent about sixty-$ve miles southeast of Pisidian An- to Tarsus from Jerusalem (9:30). tioch. It is one of the most ancient se%lements Antioch. Antioch (Antakya) is located just of the region, dating to the third millennium inland from the Mediterranean coast, on the BC. Paul and Barnabas preached in the syna- east bank of the Orontes River. Jewish and gogue here on their $rst missionary journey, initially winning Jewish and Gentile converts Gentile believers who "ed Jerusalem a#er the but angering other Jews. Paul and Barnabas death of Stephen planted a church here, where eventually feared for their safety and escaped followers of Jesus were $rst called “Christians.” to Lystra and Derbe (Acts 14:1–6). However, Barnabas brought Saul from Tarsus to Antioch, they came back on the return trip to Antioch where they labored together for a year, teaching (14:21–23). the church, prior to se%ing o& on their $rst Lystra. Frequently mentioned with Derbe missionary journey (Acts 11:19–30). Paul (Acts 14:6; 16:1), Lystra (modern Hatunsa- later returned, along with Silas, bearing the ray) is nineteen miles south of Iconium. Paul requirements for Gentile believers from the and Barnabas "ed here from Iconium and Jerusalem council (15:22–35). preached. Paul healed a lame man, and as a Southern Ports result he and Barnabas were presumed by the enthusiastic crowd to be Zeus and Hermes. At Seleucia. Known today as Samandağ, Seleu- the instigation of Paul’s Jewish opponents, the cia was Antioch’s port, the place from which crowd’s sentiments turned, and Paul was nearly Saul, Barnabas, and John Mark embarked on stoned to death. He and Barnabas le# for Derbe their $rst missionary journey in AD 47 (Acts the following day (14:6–20), but they came 13:4). back on their return trip (14:21–23). Paul Perga in Pamphylia. Perga is just east of returned on his second missionary journey, Antalya on the southern Mediterranean coast. where he met his protégé, Timothy (16:1–2). Archimedes’ student Apollonius the mathema- Derbe. About $#y miles southeast of Lystra tician lived here in the late third century BC. and slightly north of present-day Karaman is On their $rst missionary journey, Paul and Derbe. Paul and Barnabas "ed here a#er Paul’s Barnabas disembarked in Perga for destina- stoning in Lystra on their $rst missionary jour- tions in southwestern Asia Minor, while John ney, preached the gospel, made many disciples, Mark le# them to return to Jerusalem (Acts and appointed elders (Acts 14:21–23). Among 13:13–14). On their return trip of the same the disciples likely was Gaius, who later ac- journey, Paul and Barnabas stopped in Perga companied Paul during his third missionary again, this time preaching before heading to journey (20:4). A%alia (14:25). Western Aegean Ports Galatia Troas. Troas was a major northwest seaport !e following cities became part of the located about twelve miles southwest of Troy. politically de$ned Roman province of Galatia On his second missionary journey, Paul, trav- in 25 BC. !ey are to be distinguished from eling with Silas and Timothy, was prevented ethnic Galatia, which is a region farther north, from entering Bithynia by the Spirit of Christ around modern-day Ankara. and went instead to Troas. Here he had a vi- Pisidian Antioch. Modern Yalvaç, or Pisid- sion beckoning him to Macedonia, which he ian Antioch, is northeast of Isparta in the lake promptly obeyed (Acts 16:6–11). Because this region. On their $rst missionary journey, Paul is the $rst of the so-called “we” passages in Acts, and Barnabas preached in the synagogue here Luke may have joined the group here (16:10). and generated enormous interest in the gos- Paul also stopped at Troas on the return to pel (Acts 13:14–43). !e following Sabbath, Jerusalem from his third missionary journey. Tremper Longman III, Peter Enns, Mark Strauss, eds., The Baker Compact Bible Dictionary Baker Books, a division of Baker Publishing24 Group, © 2014. Used by permission.

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ere he raised Eutychus a"er the la#er’s trau- above sea level. e port included two harbors matic fall (20:4–12). Troas is mentioned twice and four theaters but was most famous for its more, suggesting that Paul spent time here in fourth-century BC statue of Aphrodite, carved A addition to the above visits (2 Cor. 2:12–13; by the Athenian sculptor Praxiteles. Around 2 Tim. 4:13). AD 60 the ship carrying Paul to Rome stopped Adramyium. A few miles south of Troas here because of slow winds and changed course was the port of Adramy#ium. It was the origin (Acts 27:7). of the ship that transported Paul from Caesarea to Myra around AD 60 en route to Rome (Acts Seven Churches of Revelation; Lycus 27:2). Valley Assos. Assos is an acropolis si#ing 774 feet e seven churches of Rev. 1–3 lay along above sea level, up from the village of Beh- a north-south elliptical route in western Asia ramkale. It overlooks the Bay of Edremit and Minor. Laodicea, the seventh, forms a tight has a splendid view of Lesbos. Doric columns geographic triangle with Hierapolis and Colos- from the seventh-century BC temple of Athena sae in the Lycus Valley. are prominent at the site. According to Acts Ephesus. Known today as Selçuk, ancient 20:13–14, on his return from his third mission- Ephesus is located on the Aegean coast of Asia ary journey, Paul went overland from Troas to Minor at the mouth of the Cayster River. It Assos, and there he joined his traveling com- was founded in the eleventh century BC by panions on their ship. From here on the way the Ionians and later ruled successively by the to Miletus, they made several nearby island Athenians, Spartans, Persians, and Greeks. stops o$ the coast of Asia Minor: Mitylene on Roman governance began in 190 BC. Later, Lesbos, Chios, and Samos (20:14–16). Ephesus became the capital of the province of Miletus. Located about twenty miles south Asia, as well as its most important commercial of Ephesus, at the point where the Meander center. During the NT era, the Artemision ( see River met the Gulf of Latmus (now silted over), Artemis) was an important pilgrimage site. was the important southwestern seaport of Paul stopped in Ephesus brie&y on his sec- Miletus. e city was signi%cant in the NT era ond missionary journey, leaving Priscilla and for its four harbors. A center for commerce, Aquila. ey later encountered and mentored scholarship, geometry, and science, it was also Apollos there (Acts 18:19–26). On his third the prototype for principles of city planning journey, Paul remained in Ephesus for three later applied throughout the Roman Empire. years, teaching, performing miracles, and heal- On his third missionary journey, Paul’s farewell ing the sick (19:1–22) until the riot incited by to the Ephesian elders took place here (Acts Demetrius the silversmith (20:1). He wrote 20:15–38). Later he le" the ill Trophimus in 1 Corinthians in Ephesus (1 Cor. 16:8) and Miletus (2 Tim. 4:20). later wrote to the Ephesians from his Roman prison cell (Eph. 3:1) as well as to Timothy in Southwestern Ports Ephesus (1 Tim. 1:3). Patara. Si#ing on the Mediterranean coast In Rev. 2:1–7 the Ephesian church is com- at the mouth of the Xanthus River, about forty mended for its perseverance but chastised for miles west of present-day Demre, Patara was having lost its %rst love. a &ourishing harbor and commercial center Smyrna. Smyrna (modern İzmir) is located in antiquity. Paul changed ships here as he re- about thirty-%ve miles north along the coast turned to Jerusalem from his third missionary from Ephesus. In 195 BC it became the %rst journey, a"er island stops in Kos and Rhodes city in Asia Minor to erect a temple for the (Acts 21:1–2). imperial cult, and by the next century it was Myra. Myra is a coastal ruin due south of known as “the ornament of Asia.” In its le#er, present-day Demre. In the NT era, the seaport which mentions no negatives, the church is featured a Roman theater, Roman baths, and encouraged to be faithful in its su$ering (Rev. two rock-cut necropolises. Here, Paul changed 2:8–11). ships around AD 60 on his way to Rome while Pergamum. About seventy miles north of in the custody of a centurion (Acts 27:5). Smyrna is Pergamum (modern Bergama). Cnidus. At the tip of the long, narrow Datca e dazzling acropolis sits one thousand feet peninsula on the extreme southwestern corner high and about sixteen miles inland from the of Asia Minor lies Cnidus. Founded around Aegean. e A#alids, who ruled 263–133 360 BC, the acropolis rises one thousand feet BC, allied Pergamum with Rome and built it Tremper Longman III, Peter Enns, Mark Strauss, eds., The Baker Compact Bible Dictionary Baker Books, a division of Baker Publishing25 Group, © 2014. Used by permission.

(Unpublished manuscript/copyright protected Baker Publishing Group)

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into a major religious and intellectual center, employs all of this background in its harsh mes- constructing the great altar to Zeus Soter, the sage to the church, which it describes as tepid, A temple to Athena Nicephorus, and the large poor, blind, and naked (Rev. 3:14–22). complex dedicated to Asclepius Soter. !ey Hierapolis. Eight miles to the north of La- also established a ruler cult and built a library odicea, Hierapolis sits atop dramatic white containing two hundred thousand volumes, cli&s created by its hot springs (Col. 4:13). which at its peak was second only to the library !e city was home to the reputed entrance to at Alexandria. the underworld, the Plutonium, and had an !e le"er to the church (Rev. 2:12–17) ref- enormous necropolis. erences Satan’s throne, which many believe to Colossae. Colossae, ten miles east of Laodi- be a reference to the altar to Zeus. !e church cea, was a center for dyed red wool. Although is commended for its faithfulness and yet is wealthy in the late fourth century BC, it was admonished for tolerating those advocating later eclipsed by Laodicea. pagan practices within the community. !e churches in Laodicea, Hierapolis, and yatira. !yatira (now called Akhisar) is Colossae (the oldest of the three cities) were about thirty-#ve miles southeast of Pergamum. begun by Epaphras and shared le"ers, includ- It was mainly noted as having a signi#cant con- ing Paul’s le"er to the Colossians (Col. 4:13– centration of trade guilds, especially those con- 16). !e slave Onesimus carried it, along with nected with textiles. Lydia, Paul’s disciple and the Le"er to Philemon, to Colossae, where host in Philippi, was a dealer in purple cloth Philemon hosted the house church (Col. 4:9; from !yatira (Acts 16:14). !e church is Philem. 10–12). commended for its good deeds but criticized A for tolerating the false teacher Jezebel (Rev. –See Jewish Parties (Zealots). 2:18–29). A ! –!e geographic center of Assyria Sardis. Forty-#ve miles east of Smyrna, consisted of a triangle between the Kurdish on the banks of the Pactolus, is Sardis, where mountains, the Tigris River, and the Upper Croesus, the sixth-century BC Lydian king, Zab River (which *ows into the Tigris). !is was said to have panned for gold. He also built triangle sits within the modern-day country of an impressive Ionic temple to Artemis here. Iraq and for the most part contained the four !e le"er to Sardis is a stern warning to wake most important cities in the history of ancient up, highlighting the church’s incomplete deeds Assyria: Ashur, Nineveh, Arbela, and Calah. At and impurity (Rev. 3:1–6). the height of its power, the Assyrian Empire Philadelphia. Philadelphia (modern stretched far beyond this geographical region, Alaşehir) is twenty-six miles southwest of Sar- but this heartland served as the political and dis on the Cogamis River. !e city was noted social base throughout its history. for its wine production, and it was nicknamed !ough Assyria had a signi#cant history “Li"le Athens” during the Roman era. Its let- beforehand, this survey begins with the neo- ter is thoroughly positive; the church is com- Assyrian period since that is when interaction mended for its deeds and faithfulness (Rev. with Israel and the biblical record begins. 3:7–13). A%er the death of Tiglath-pileser, Assyria Laodicea. Laodicea is located about a hun- entered another period of decline due to the dred miles east of Ephesus, in a valley where absence of a su+cient administrative structure the Lycus River joins the Meander; Hierapolis to rule the enormous territory of the empire is just to the north, and Colossae just to the as well as the increasing pressure by the Ar- east. Laodicea was founded in the third cen- ameans. However, Assyria again gained sta- tury BC by the Seleucid king Antiochus II, bility under Ashur-dan II (c. 934–912 BC). who named it a%er his wife. Cicero served as He began to renew military campaigns to proconsul there in 51 BC. recover lands previously held and forti#ed Laodicea was a prosperous city, a center for the capital city of Ashur. His two successors, banking, eye salve (“Phrygian powder”), and Adad-nirari II (911–891 BC) and Tukulti- wool production. Its water was supplied via Ninurta II (890–884 BC), continued the aqueducts from Hierapolis’s hot springs, but successful military campaigns and ambitious it arrived lukewarm and heavy with mineral building projects. !is revival of the Assyrian impurities—no match for either its hot source Empire under Ashur-dan II marks the begin- or Colossae’s cold springs. !e Laodicean le"er ning of what historians call the Neo-Assyrian Tremper Longman III, Peter Enns, Mark Strauss, eds., The Baker Compact Bible Dictionary Baker Books, a division of Baker Publishing26 Group, © 2014. Used by permission.

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Empire, an era of power that would last for Judah to join them, he appealed to Tiglath- three hundred years and grow to supersede the pileser for help in exchange for fealty, against accomplishments of all prior Assyrian reigns. the counsel of Isaiah (see 2 Kings 16; 2 Chron. A In 883 BC Ashurnasirpal II came to power. 28; Isa. 7). In 734 BC Tiglath-pileser crushed Under him the Assyrian army became be!er the coalition, captured Gaza, and developed organized and thus more e"cient and engaged it into a trade center between Assyria and in military campaigns regularly instead of spo- Egypt. In addition to improving the military radically. #ere was also an increase in the bru- and restructuring the administration of the tality exercised by the Assyrian army in order empire, Tiglath-pileser instituted the policy to dissuade smaller states from a!empting to of deporting and exiling subjects who rebelled resist Assyria’s expansion. Ashurnasirpal II also against him, a policy that his successors would built the small town of Calah into a major city continue. and relocated the capital of Assyria there. #e next king over Assyria, Shalmaneser V, Shortly a$er inheriting the Assyrian empire ruled for only about four years (726–722 BC). in 858 BC, Ashurnasirpal II’s son Shalmane- His chief importance is that he conquered Sa- ser III turned his a!ention to the north and maria, the capital of the northern kingdom the west and began moving to assert Assyrian of Israel (see 2 Kings 17–18), though he was control over those territories. In 853 BC he killed around the same time. #e next king, dismantled a northern alliance and then pro- Sargon II (721–705 BC), exiled the north- ceeded southward. At Qarqar Shalmaneser’s ern Israelites and se!led in their place peoples forces clashed with the Damascus coalition, from Syria and Babylonia. Sargon also built an which consisted of a number of nations, includ- entirely new capital, Dur-Sharrukin, just a few ing Israel under King Ahab, that had banded miles north of Nineveh. together to resist the Assyrian encroachment. In 704 BC Sargon’s son Sennacherib came to #is ba!le is not mentioned in the Bible, but the throne and established the Assyrian capi- the lopsided nature of the victory claimed by tal at Nineveh. #e kingdom of Judah and its the Assyrians seems overstated, since Shalma- capital, Jerusalem, became a top priority for neser continued to %ght against the Damascus Sennacherib because Judah was not only re- coalition over the next decade. By 841 BC, fusing submission to Assyria but also allying Israel (under King Jehu), Tyre, and Sidon had itself with Egypt and Ethiopia against Assyria. voluntarily submi!ed to Assyrian control. As In 701 BC Sennacherib invaded Palestine, and Shalmaneser grew old, he delegated more and at Eltekeh the Assyrian forces clashed with a more authority to those under him, creating coalition of Egyptian and Ethiopian forces that friction among his subordinates and sons over had come to the aid of Hezekiah, king of Judah. the direction of the monarchy. Even though A$er defeating these forces, Sennacherib Shalmaneser’s son Shamshi-Adad V (823–811 marched toward Jerusalem. Along the way he BC) emerged as the monarch a$er his father’s laid waste to the Judean countryside and exiled death, instability within the kingdom and the the inhabitants. #e brunt of the damage was rapidly increasing external threat of the Urar- done in the Shephelah region, especially the tian Empire to the north resulted in a weak- city of Lachish. Although Sennacherib is not ening of the Assyrian Empire that would last named explicitly, these are the circumstances for almost a century until the rise of Tiglath- that seem to be re&ected in Mic. 1:8–16. When pileser III in 744 BC. Sennacherib’s army reached Jerusalem, it laid With the ascension of Tiglath-pileser III siege to the capital city. Although Sennacherib (744–727 BC) to the throne, the empire en- had gone to Libnah, he sent his Rabshakeh (a tered a hundred-year period that would be the senior o"cial in the Assyrian army) to press golden age of Assyrian rule in the ancient Near his claims. #e account of the ensuing stando* East. In addition to reclaiming lands lost in the between Hezekiah and the Rabshakeh is given previous century to Urartu, he reasserted As- in three places in the Bible: 2 Kings 18–19; syrian control over Damascus, Hamath, Byb- 2 Chron. 32; and Isa. 36–37. According to the los, Tyre, and Samaria. Shortly a$erward, King Bible, the angel of the Lord slaughtered much Pekah of Israel and King Rezin of Damascus of the Assyrian army, forcing the survivors to banded together to resist Assyrian hegemony retreat and thus delivering Jerusalem. Variant in what is called the “Syro-Ephraimite coali- accounts are given by Josephus ( Ant . 10.1.4–5) tion.” When they tried to force King Ahaz of and Herodotus ( Hist. 2.141). Tremper Longman III, Peter Enns, Mark Strauss, eds., The Baker Compact Bible Dictionary Baker Books, a division of Baker Publishing27 Group, © 2014. Used by permission.

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A er the death of Sennacherib in 681 BC, land (2 Kings 11). Only Joash, the infant son his son Esarhaddon took control of the As- of Ahaziah, escaped the purge and remained A syrian Empire until 669 BC. During his reign hidden for six years. In the seventh year of her Assyria gained super"cial control of Egypt. reign (836 BC) Jehoiada the priest brought Before his death he appointed Ashurbanipal Joash out of hiding and organized a palace coup as his heir over Assyria (668–612 BC), but against Athaliah, and she was executed. #e he made Shamash-shuma-ukin the king over destruction of the paraphernalia of Baal wor- Babylonia. #is fateful move eventually led ship and slaying of the priest of Baal followed to the downfall of Assyria because it resulted immediately on her death. in civil war. With its resources already de- pleted by the vast empire, Assyria crumbled A #– Athens is located "ve miles north- in the late seventh century BC to a coalition east of the port of Piraeus on the Saronic Gulf. of Babylonian, Median, and Scythian forces. It was the chief city of the ancient Greek prov- #e end came quickly, and in 612 BC Nineveh ince of A%ica (2 Macc. 9:15; Acts 17:15–18; was sacked (see the book of Nahum) and the 18:1; 1 #ess. 3:1) and is the capital of modern Neo-Babylonian Empire was born. Greece. Paul visited this city on his second mis- A –A person who studies the sionary journey. His debate with the Greek stars and their supposed e$ect on human per- philosophers in the agora (the marketplace) sonality and history. Such individuals were brought him before the city council of Athens, well known in both Mesopotamia and Egypt, the Areopagus, where religious ma%ers were though the former is more represented in the se%led (Acts 17:16–34). Traditionally, the biblical texts. In several places the OT prophets either site is identi"ed as Mars Hill, located on the ridicule or a%ack astrologers and their prac- west side of the Acropolis. Interestingly, Paul tice (Isa. 47:13; Dan. 2:27; 4:7; 5:7, 11; Amos founded no church in Athens. 5:26), and the practice is strictly forbidden in A# $ # –#e English word “atone- the law codes (Deut. 4:19). Although there ment” comes from an Anglo-Saxon word, are several texts that may apply to astrology in the NT, the only explicit mentions of the prac- “onement,” with the preposition “at”; thus tice are in connection with the magi (Ma%. 2) “at-onement,” or “at unity.” In some ways this and Simon, Bar-jesus, and Elymas (Acts 8:9; word has more in common with the idea of 13:6, 8). However, in light of admonitions reconciliation than our modern concept of against astrology and the fact that it is an af- atonement, which, while having “oneness” as front to faith in God, the birth narrative of its result, emphasizes rather the idea of how Jesus should not be read as an approval of the that unity is achieved, by someone “atone-ing” practice but rather as an extraordinary event for a wrong or wrongs done. Atonement, in in which the heavens themselves proclaim the Christian theology, concerns how Christ coming of the one born “king of the Jews” achieved this “onement” between God and (Ma%. 2:2). sinful humanity. #e need for atonement comes from the A !"! –Daughter of Ahab and Jezebel, separation that has come about between God later the wife of the Judean king Jehoram and and humanity because of sin. In both Testa- the mother of the succeeding short-lived king, ments there is the understanding that God has Ahaziah (2 Kings 8:25–27; 2 Chron. 22:2). distanced himself from his creatures on ac- On "rst introduction to the Bible reader, she count of their rebellion. Isaiah tells the people is ominously described as “a granddaughter of of Judah, “Your iniquities have separated you Omri king of Israel,” a dynasty that profoundly from your God” (59:2). And Paul talks about damaged the spiritual life of the northern king- how we were “God’s enemies” (Rom. 5:10). So dom. #rough her, this infection entered the atonement is the means provided by God to ef- southern kingdom. She encouraged her son fect reconciliation. #e atonement is required Ahaziah to follow “the ways of the house of on account of God’s holiness and justice. Ahab,” promoting the false worship of Baal in Jerusalem (2 Chron. 22:3). On the death of A# $ #, D!& ' –See Festivals. her son at the hands of Jehu, she exterminated the royal family of Judah and reigned over the A# $ # C( –See Mercy Seat. Tremper Longman III, Peter Enns, Mark Strauss, eds., The Baker Compact Bible Dictionary Baker Books, a division of Baker Publishing28 Group, © 2014. Used by permission.

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A C –An auxiliary unit the death was accidental or intentional. If the in the Roman army made up of non-Roman accused le$ the city of refuge, the avenger of citizens who could gain citizenship through blood could take his life (Num. 35:27). !is A their service. !is particular unit was stationed held true until the death of the high priest, at in Syria and held some level of favor as related which time the accused could leave the city to its association with the famed emperor. !e without fear of reprisal. !e primary purpose centurions of this cohort escorted Paul on his of the laws related to the avenger of blood was journey from Caesarea to Rome (Acts 27:1 to provide consistent justice and so reduce [NIV: “Imperial Regiment”]). blood feuds and continued cycles of retalia- tion and revenge. A –See Rome, Roman Empire. A#"$-M%& –!e son and successor A!"" –!e term “avenger” occurs six- of Nebuchadnezzar of Babylon. In Hebrew teen times in the NIV, usually in the phrase tradition, he is known by the name “Evil-Mero- “avenger of blood.” !e Hebrew word may be dach.” Reigning in the years 562/561–560 BC, translated “redeemer,” “avenger,” or “near rela- he pardoned King Jehoiachin of Judah, who tive” and referred to a kinsman who acted on had been imprisoned by Nebuchadnezzar. behalf of a close relative. !e term was used !erea$er, Jehoiachin dined at the king’s table of one who avenged (repaid) the death of a (2 Kings 25:27–30; Jer. 52:31–34; con"rmed murdered relative (Num. 35:12), received res- by Babylonian records). titution for crimes against a deceased relative (Num. 5:7–8), bought back family property A'( –See Uzziah. that had been sold (Lev. 25:25), purchased a relative who had been sold into slavery (Lev. A''"$ –Azazel appears only in Lev. 16 25:48–49), or married a relative’s widow in (NIV: “scapegoat”), instructions for the Day order to raise up heirs for her deceased hus- of Atonement, on which lots were cast over two band (levirate marriage) (Deut. 25:5–10). goats, one for God and the other for Azazel. !e “avenger of blood” refers speci"cally to A$er sacri"cing the "rst goat, the high priest the "rst of these functions, a murder victim’s confessed the Israelites’ wickedness over the near relative who would exact justice by ex- second goat and sent it into the desert. ecuting the murderer. !is was in line with !ere are multiple interpretations of the the OT principle of “eye for an eye” and “tooth Hebrew word ’aza’zel , one of which is “the for a tooth” (Exod. 21:24; Lev. 24:20; Deut. goat [ ’ez ] of removal.” !e term “scapegoat” 19:21). Punishment was to be in proportion to (originally “escapegoat”) comes from this in- the degree and severity of a crime. In the NT, terpretation. Nevertheless, a goat “for the goat this role of justice is assigned to government of escape” is redundant. Instead, “Azazel” is authorities (Rom. 13:4). likely the name of a demon of the wilderness. !is procedure for justice for the avenger of blood is found in Num. 35:9–27; Deut. A'"& –Between the protected hill country 19:11–13; Josh. 20. If a person was found guilty of Judah and the open coastal plain lies a range of intentional murder on the testimony of two of low rolling hills cut through by signi"cant or three witnesses (Deut. 17:6; 19:15), the valleys. Toward the western end of the Elah avenger of blood served as executioner. Valley, Azekah stands guard. Because of its stra- In cases of accidental manslaughter, the ac- tegic location, it played an important role in cused could #ee to one of six cities of refuge, critical con#icts between Israel and its enemies. where the city assembly would judge the case As Joshua and the Israelites routed the Jeru- and provide protection from the avenger of salem confederation (Josh. 10), the enemies blood (Num. 35:6–34; Deut. 4:41–43; 19:1– of Israel #ed westward from the central Ben- 14; Josh. 20:1–9). Numbers 35:12 designates jamin plateau, through the Aijalon Valley, and that “they will be places of refuge from the south beyond Azekah. Some centuries later, avenger, so that anyone accused of murder the major threat to Israel was the Philistine may not die before they stand trial before presence on the coast. !e Philistines sought the assembly” (cf. Josh. 20:9). Deuteronomy to expand their control into the hill country 19:4–7 explains the necessity of this protec- and camped on the south side of the Elah Val- tion: the avenger may be "lled with rage and ley between Sokoh and Azekah; the Israelites take revenge without concern for whether were on the opposite side of the valley. David Tremper Longman III, Peter Enns, Mark Strauss, eds., The Baker Compact Bible Dictionary Baker Books, a division of Baker Publishing29 Group, © 2014. Used by permission.

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challenged and killed the Philistine cham- Judean monarchy, the Babylonians a$acked pion, Goliath, and the Philistines !ed west Jerusalem and the other cities that were still A past Azekah toward Ekron, one of their own holding out. Lachish and Azekah were the only cities (1 Sam. 17). forti#ed cities le" in Judah (Jer. 34:6–7). A A"er Solomon’s death, Rehoboam forti#ed a poignant le$er discovered in the gate area ring of cities to protect the southern kingdom. of Lachish reads, “We were watching for the Among them was Azekah (2 Chron. 11:5–12), smoke signals of Lachish . . . because we do southwest of Jerusalem. At the end of the not see Azekah” (Lachish Le$er 4).

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