A day set apart by God for rest from regular labors; the Sabbath was given by Jehovah as a sign between him and the sons of Israel. (Ex 31:16, 17) The Hebrew expression yohm hash·shab·bathʹ is drawn from the verb sha·vathʹ, meaning “rest, cease.” (Ge 2:2; 8:22) In Greek, he he·meʹra tou sab·baʹtou means “sabbath day.”

The history of a weekly 24-hour sabbath observance begins with the nation of Israel in the wilderness in the second month after their Exodus from Egypt in 1513 B.C.E. (Ex 16:1) Jehovah had told Moses that the miraculous provision of the manna would be double on the sixth day. When this proved true, the chieftains of the assembly reported the matter to Moses and then the arrangement for the weekly Sabbath was announced. (Ex 16:22, 23) That Israel was obligated from that time forward is shown by Jehovah’s words at Exodus 16:28, 29.

The weekly Sabbath was made an integral part of a system of sabbaths when the Law covenant was formally inaugurated at Mount Sinai a short time later. (Ex 19:1; 20:8-10; 24:5-8) This sabbatical system was composed of many types of sabbaths: the 7th day, the 7th year, the 50th year (Jubilee year), Nisan 14 (Passover), Nisan 15, Nisan 21, Sivan 6 (Pentecost), Ethanim 1, Ethanim 10 (Atonement Day), Ethanim 15, and Ethanim 22.

That the Sabbath was not enjoined upon any of God’s servants until after the Exodus is evident from the testimony of Deuteronomy 5:2, 3 and Exodus 31:16, 17: “It was not with our forefathers that Jehovah concluded this covenant, but with us.” “The sons of Israel must keep the sabbath . . . during their generations. . . . Between me and the sons of Israel it is a sign to time indefinite.” If Israel had already been observing the Sabbath, it could not have served as a reminder of their deliverance from Egypt by Jehovah, as shown at Deuteronomy 5:15. The fact that some of the Israelites went out to pick up manna on the seventh day, in spite of direct instruction to the contrary, indicates that Sabbath observance was something new. (Ex 16:11-30) That there was uncertainty in handling the case of the first recorded Sabbath breaker after the Law had been given at Sinai also shows that the Sabbath had only recently been instituted. (Nu 15:32-36) While in Egypt the Israelites, being slaves, could not have kept the Sabbath even if they had been under such law at the time. Pharaoh complained that Moses was interfering even when he asked for a three-day period to make a sacrifice to God. How much more so if the Israelites had tried to rest one day out of every seven. (Ex 5:1-5) While it is true that the patriarchs apparently measured time in a week of seven days, there is no evidence that any distinction was made as to the seventh day. Seven was prominent, however, as a number that often denoted completeness. (Ge 4:15, 23, 24; 21:28-32) The Hebrew word “swear” (sha·vaʽʹ) is evidently from the same root as the word meaning “seven.”

The Sabbath was celebrated as a sacred day (De 5:12), a day of rest and rejoicing for all​—Israelites, servants, alien residents, and animals—​ceasing from all labors. (Isa 58:13, 14; Ho 2:11; Ex 20:10; 34:21; De 5:12-15; Jer 17:21, 24) A special burnt offering, along with grain and drink offerings, was made, in addition to the regular daily “constant burnt offering.” (Nu 28:9, 10) The showbread was renewed in the sanctuary, and a new division of priests took up their duties. (Le 24:5-9; 1Ch 9:32; 2Ch 23:4) Priestly duties were not curtailed on the Sabbath (Mt 12:5), and infants were even circumcised on the Sabbath if that happened to be their eighth day of life. In later times the Jews had a saying, “There is no sabbath in the sanctuary,” meaning that the priestly duties went right on.​—Joh 7:22; Le 12:2, 3; The Temple, by A. Edersheim, 1874, p. 152.

According to rabbinic sources, in the time when Jesus was on earth three trumpet blasts at about the ninth hour, or three o’clock, on Friday afternoon announced the Sabbath day’s approach. At this, all work and business were to cease, the Sabbath lamp was lit, and festive garments were put on. Then three more blasts indicated that Sabbath had actually begun. The outgoing division of priests offered the morning sacrifice on the Sabbath and the incoming division offered the evening sacrifice, both spending Sabbath in the sanctuary. Each one of the divisions would give to the high priest half of its portion of the bread. It was eaten during the Sabbath in the temple itself by the priests who were in a state of cleanness. The heads of the families of the incoming division determined by lot which of the families were to serve on each special day of their week of ministry and who were to discharge the priestly functions on the Sabbath.​—Le 24:8, 9; Mr 2:26, 27; The Temple, pp. 151, 152, 156-158.

There was a distinction in requirements for the regular weekly Sabbath and the Sabbaths or “holy conventions” that were connected with the festivals. (Le 23:2) Generally speaking, the weekly Sabbath was more restrictive; no work, laborious or otherwise, could be done (except in the sanctuary). Even gathering wood or lighting a fire was prohibited. (Nu 15:32-36; Ex 35:3) Travel was also restricted, this apparently being based on Exodus 16:29. The Day of Atonement was likewise a time of rest from all sorts of work. (Le 16:29-31; 23:28-31) However, on the holy convention days of the festivals no laborious work, trade, or business activities could be engaged in, but cooking, festival preparations, and so forth, were allowed.​—Ex 12:16; Le 23:7, 8, 21, 35, 36.

Sometimes two legal Sabbaths would fall on the same 24-hour period, and this was called a “great” Sabbath, such as when Nisan 15 (a sabbath day) coincided with the regular Sabbath.​—Joh 19:31.

Benefits and Importance of the Sabbath. The desisting from all labor and observing other God-given Sabbath requirements not only gave rest to the body but, more important, provided opportunity for the individual to demonstrate his faith and obedience through Sabbath observance. It gave parents the opportunity to inculcate God’s laws and commandments in the minds and hearts of their children. (De 6:4-9) The Sabbath was customarily occupied with taking in knowledge of God and attending to spiritual needs, as is indicated by the reply of the Shunammite woman’s husband when she requested permission to go to see Elisha, the man of God: “Why are you going to him today? It is not a new moon nor a sabbath.” (2Ki 4:22, 23) And the Levites who were scattered throughout the land doubtless took advantage of the Sabbath to teach the Law to the people of Israel.​—De 33:8, 10; Le 10:11.

It was important for individual Israelites to remember to keep the Sabbath because violation was regarded as rebellion against Jehovah and was punished by death. (Ex 31:14, 15; Nu 15:32-36) The same principle applied to the nation. Their observing the entire sabbath system, days and years, in a wholehearted way was a vital factor to their continued existence as a nation on their God-given land. Their failure to honor the Sabbath laws contributed largely to their downfall and the desolation of the land of Judah for 70 years to make up for the Sabbaths violated.​—Le 26:31-35; 2Ch 36:20, 21.

Rabbinic Sabbath Restrictions. The Sabbath was originally intended to be a joyous, spiritually upbuilding time. But in their zeal to distinguish themselves from the Gentiles as much as possible, the Jewish religious leaders, especially after the return from Babylonian exile, gradually made it a burdensome thing by greatly increasing the Sabbath restrictions to 39, with innumerable lesser restrictions. These, when compiled, filled two large volumes. For example, catching a flea was forbidden as hunting. A sufferer could not be given relief unless death threatened. A bone could not be set, nor a sprain bandaged. The true purpose of the Sabbath was made void by these Jewish religious leaders, for they made the people slaves to tradition, instead of having the Sabbath serve men to the honor of God. (Mt 15:3, 6; 23:2-4; Mr 2:27) When Jesus’ disciples picked grain and rubbed it in their hands to eat, they evidently were accused on two counts, namely, harvesting and threshing on the Sabbath. (Lu 6:1, 2) The rabbis had a saying: “The sins of everyone who strictly observes every law of the Sabbath, though he be an idol worshiper, are forgiven.”

Not Enjoined on Christians. Jesus, being a Jew under the Law, observed the Sabbath as God’s Word (not the Pharisees) directed. He knew it was lawful to do fine things on the Sabbath. (Mt 12:12) However, the inspired Christian writings state that “Christ is the end of the Law” (Ro 10:4), which results in Christians’ being “discharged from the Law.” (Ro 7:6) Neither Jesus nor his disciples made any distinction between so-called moral and ceremonial laws. They quoted from the other parts of the Law as well as from the Ten Commandments and considered all of it equally binding on those under the Law. (Mt 5:21-48; 22:37-40; Ro 13:8-10; Jas 2:10, 11) The Scriptures plainly state that Christ’s sacrifice “abolished . . . the Law of commandments consisting in decrees” and that God “blotted out the handwritten document against us, which consisted of decrees . . . and He has taken it out of the way by nailing it to the torture stake.” It was the complete Mosaic Law that was “abolished,” “blotted out,” taken “out of the way.” (Eph 2:13-15; Col 2:13, 14) Consequently, the whole system of Sabbaths, be they days or years, was brought to its end with the rest of the Law by the sacrifice of Christ Jesus. This explains why Christians can esteem “one day as all others,” whether it be a sabbath or any other day, with no fear of judgment by another. (Ro 14:4-6; Col 2:16) Paul made the following expression concerning those scrupulously observing “days and months and seasons and years”: “I fear for you, that somehow I have toiled to no purpose respecting you.”​—Ga 4:10, 11.

After Jesus’ death, his apostles at no time commanded Sabbath observance. The Sabbath was not included as a Christian requirement at Acts 15:28, 29, or later. Nor did they institute a new sabbath, a “day of the Lord.” Even though Jesus was resurrected on the day now called Sunday, nowhere does the Bible indicate that this day of his resurrection should be commemorated as a “new” sabbath or in any other way. First Corinthians 16:2 and Acts 20:7 have been appealed to by some as a basis for observing Sunday as a sabbath. However, the former text merely indicates that Paul instructed Christians to lay aside in their homes for their needy brothers at Jerusalem a certain amount each first day of the week. The money was not to be turned in at their place of meeting but was to be retained until Paul’s arrival. As for the latter text, it was only logical that Paul would meet with the brothers in Troas on the first day of the week, since he was leaving the very next day.

From the foregoing it is clear that literal observance of Sabbath days and years was not a part of first-century Christianity. It was not until 321 C.E. that Constantine decreed Sunday (Latin: dies Solis, an old title associated with astrology and sun worship, not Sabbatum [Sabbath] or dies Domini [Lord’s day]) to be a day of rest for all but the farmers.

Entering Into God’s Rest. According to Genesis 2:2, 3, following the sixth creative day, or period, God “proceeded to rest on the seventh day,” desisting from creative works with respect to the earth, as described in Genesis chapter 1.

The apostle Paul shows in Hebrews, chapters 3 and 4, that the Jews in the wilderness failed to enter into God’s rest, or sabbath, because of disobedience and lack of faith. (Heb 3:18, 19; Ps 95:7-11; Nu 14:28-35) Those who did enter the Promised Land under Joshua experienced a rest, but not the full rest to be enjoyed under the Messiah. It was only typical, or a shadow of the reality. (Jos 21:44; Heb 4:8; 10:1) However, Paul explains, “there remains a sabbath resting for the people of God.” (Heb 4:9) Those who are obedient and exercise faith in Christ thereby enjoy “a sabbath resting” from their “own works,” works by means of which they formerly sought to prove themselves righteous. (Compare Ro 10:3.) Thus Paul shows that God’s sabbath, or rest, was still continuing in his day and Christians were entering into it, indicating that God’s rest day is thousands of years long.​—Heb 4:3, 6, 10.

“Lord of the Sabbath.” While on earth, Jesus Christ referred to himself as “Lord of the sabbath.” (Mt 12:8) The literal Sabbath day, which was meant to bring the Israelites relief from their labors, was “a shadow of the things to come, but the reality belongs to the Christ.” (Col 2:16, 17) In connection with those “things to come,” there is a sabbath of which Jesus is to be the Lord. As Lord of lords, Christ will rule all the earth for a thousand years. (Re 19:16; 20:6) During his earthly ministry, Jesus performed some of his most outstanding miraculous works on the Sabbath. (Lu 13:10-13; Joh 5:5-9; 9:1-14) This evidently shows the kind of relief that he will bring as he raises mankind to spiritual and physical perfection during his coming Millennial Rule, which thus will be like a period of sabbath rest for the earth and mankind.​—Re 21:1-4.

See JOURNEY.

The seventh in each cycle of seven years; during this year, in ancient Israel the land was allowed to rest, lying uncultivated, and fellow Hebrews were not pressed for payment of debts.

Counting from 1473 B.C.E., the year that Israel entered the Promised Land, a sabbath year was to be celebrated “at the end of every seven years,” actually on every seventh year. (De 15:1, 2, 12; compare De 14:28.) The Sabbath year evidently began with the trumpet blast on Ethanim (Tishri) 10, the Day of Atonement. However, some hold that, while the Jubilee year started with the Day of Atonement, the Sabbath year started with Tishri 1.

There was to be no cultivating of the land, sowing, or pruning, nor any gathering in of the crops grown, but what grew of itself was left in the field, open to the owner of the field as well as to his slaves, the hired laborers, and the alien residents to eat. This was a merciful provision for the poor and, additionally, for the domestic animals and wild beasts, as these would also have access to the produce of the land during the Sabbath year.​—Le 25:1-7.

The Sabbath year was called “the year of the release [hash·shemit·tahʹ].” (De 15:9; 31:10) During that year the land enjoyed a complete rest, or release, lying uncultivated. (Ex 23:11) There was also to be a rest, or a release, on debts incurred. It was “a release to Jehovah,” in honor of him. Though others view it differently, some commentators hold that the debts were not actually canceled, but, rather, that a creditor was not to press a fellow Hebrew for payment of a debt, for there would be no income for the farmer during that year; though the lender could press a foreigner for payment. (De 15:1-3) Some rabbis hold the view that debts for loans of charity to help a poor brother were canceled, but that debts incurred in business dealings were in a different category. It is said by them that, in the first century of the Common Era, Hillel instituted a procedure whereby the lender could go before the court and secure his debt against forfeiture by making a certain declaration.​—The Pentateuch and Haftorahs, edited by J. Hertz, London, 1972, pp. 811, 812.

This year of release, or rest from being pressed for payment of debts, did not apply to the release of slaves, many of whom would be in slavery because of indebtedness. Rather, the Hebrew slave was released in the seventh year of his servitude or on the Jubilee, whichever came first.​—De 15:12; Le 25:10, 54.

It required faith to keep the Sabbath years as part of Jehovah’s covenant with Israel, but observing the covenant fully would result in great blessings. (Le 26:3-13) God promised to provide enough during the sixth year’s harvest to supply food for parts of three years, from the sixth until the harvest in the eighth year. Because no crops could be sown in the seventh year, no harvest could be gathered until the eighth year. (Compare Le 25:20-22.) When Israel entered the Promised Land under Joshua, six years were occupied in subduing the nations in Canaan and allotting land inheritances. Of course, during that time Israel could sow few, if any, crops, but there was some food from Canaanite crops. (De 6:10, 11) The seventh year was a sabbath, so that they had to demonstrate faith and obedience by waiting until the harvest of the eighth year, and by God’s blessing they survived.

Every year of release, during the Festival of Booths, all the people were to assemble, men and women, little ones and the alien residents, to hear the Law read.​—De 31:10-13.

The land would have enjoyed 121 Sabbath years besides 17 Jubilee years prior to the exile if Israel had kept the Law properly. But the Sabbath years were only partially kept. When the people went into exile in Babylon, the land remained desolate for 70 years “until the land had paid off its sabbaths.” (2Ch 36:20, 21; Le 26:34, 35, 43) Nowhere do the Scriptures state that the Jews had failed to keep exactly 70 Sabbath years; but Jehovah let 70 years of enforced desolation of the land make up for all the Sabbath years that had not been kept.

(Sa·beʹans).

1. The designation of a band of raiders who attacked the property of Job of the land of Uz. These Sabeans took Job’s cattle and she-asses and slaughtered his attendants. (Job 1:14, 15) Job also mentions “the traveling company of Sabeans,” at Job 6:19.

It is difficult to identify with certainty these Sabeans, since they might have been descendants of a number of different men named Sheba. Abraham’s son Jokshan had a son named Sheba (Ge 25:1-3), and the possibility of the Sabean raiders’ being from this line cannot be ruled out. However, scholars more commonly suggest that the Sabeans came through the Sheba who descended from Ham through Cush (Ge 10:6, 7) or Sheba the son of Joktan in Shem’s line.​—Ge 10:21-29.

2. A tall people linked in Isaiah 45:14 with laborers of Egypt and merchants of Ethiopia as ones who would recognize Jehovah and his people. Isaiah 43:3 also associates Egypt and Ethiopia but, instead of “Sabeans,” uses “Seba,” indicating that the men of Seba were called Sabeans.​—See SEBA No. 2.

3. The descendants of Sheba (whether of the line of Shem or of Ham is uncertain) who evidently formed a kingdom near the tip of the Arabian Peninsula. Likely the queen of Sheba who visited Solomon was from this land. (1Ki 10:1) Secular sources often refer to this kingdom as Sabean, and the Bible may do likewise.​—See SHEBA No. 6.

Certain translations read “Sabeans” at Ezekiel 23:42 (KJ, Yg, Da), so interpreting the marginal reading in the Hebrew Bible. However, the main text reads “drunkards,” and that is how modern translations frequently render the verse.​—Ro, NW, AS, RS.

(Sabʹtah).

A son of Cush and brother of Nimrod; progenitor of one of the 70 post-Flood families. (Ge 10:7, 8, 32; 1Ch 1:9, 10) Sabtah’s descendants apparently settled in southern Arabia, perhaps in one of the places later bearing a name similar to his. Sabota, the ancient capital of Hadhramaut, has been suggested, and Ptolemy mentions a town called Saptha near the Persian Gulf, but any connection of these places with Sabtah remains uncertain.

(Sabʹte·ca).

Fifth-named son of Cush and father of one of the 70 post-Flood families. (Ge 10:7, 32; 1Ch 1:9) His descendants likely settled in southern Arabia or perhaps Ethiopia, the exact location being unknown.

(Saʹcar) [Wages].

1. Hararite father of David’s warrior Ahiam. (1Ch 11:26, 35) Sacar is called Sharar at 2 Samuel 23:33.

2. The fourth son of Obed-edom and one of the gatekeepers during David’s reign.​—1Ch 26:1, 4.

(Sa·chiʹa).

The head of a paternal house in the tribe of Benjamin; son of Shaharaim by his wife Hodesh.​—1Ch 8:1, 8-10.

See BAG.

A coarse cloth used in making sacks, or bags, such as those for containing grain. It was usually woven from goat’s hair of a dark color. (Re 6:12; Isa 50:3) The Hebrew word for sackcloth (saq) is used also to designate the bags made from it.​—Ge 42:25; Jos 9:4.

It was the traditional garment of mourning, and we first read of its use when Jacob mourned over the supposed death of his son Joseph, girding sackcloth upon his hips. (Ge 37:34; 2Sa 3:31) In some cases the mourners used it as a seat or used it to sleep on. (2Sa 21:10; Isa 58:5; Joe 1:13) The servants of Ben-hadad, in pleading for the life of their king before Ahab, went with sackcloth on their loins and ropes on their heads. (1Ki 20:31, 32) It was worn next to the skin at times, with other clothing on top (Job 16:15; Isa 32:11; 1Ki 21:27; 2Ki 6:30), while in other cases it may possibly have been simply “girded on” over undergarments.​—Eze 7:18; Joe 1:8.

As a result of Jonah’s preaching, the king of Nineveh issued a decree that not only all the people of the city should follow his example of putting on sackcloth but even the ‘domestic animals’ should be covered with it.​—Jon 3:6-8.

The Hebrew prophets were occasionally wearers of sackcloth. They did this in harmony with the warning messages and calls to repentance they were commissioned to deliver, or when they prayed with expressions of repentance in behalf of the people. (Isa 20:2; Da 9:3; compare Re 11:3.) It was worn by the king and the people in times of great crisis or upon receiving calamitous news.​—2Ki 19:1; Isa 15:3; 22:12.

The Hebrew term so translated basically refers to something set up or stationed. It was evidently a phallic symbol of Baal or, at times, of other false gods. (Ex 23:24; 2Ki 3:2; 10:27) At various sites in the Middle East, upright stone pillars with no apparent structural function have been found. Their being discovered along with artifacts of a religious nature suggests that they were sacred pillars. Some of these are unhewn and measure 1.8 m (6 ft) or more in height.

Before entering the Promised Land, the Israelites were commanded not to erect any sacred pillars and were instructed to break down or shatter the already existing sacred pillars of the Canaanites. (Ex 34:13; Le 26:1; De 12:3; 16:22) The manner in which these were to be destroyed indicates that they were probably made of stone. At 2 Kings 10:26, however, mention is made of burning sacred pillars, suggesting that some were made of wood. In this case, though, the reference may be to the sacred pole, or Asherah.​—See SACRED POLE.

Israel disregarded God’s clear warnings given through Moses. The territory of the kingdom of Judah and that of the ten-tribe kingdom became filled with sacred pillars. (1Ki 14:22, 23; 2Ki 17:10) However, faithful Judean kings, like Asa, Hezekiah, and Josiah, broke the sacred pillars (2Ki 18:4; 23:14; 2Ch 14:3), and when Jehu eradicated Baal worship from the ten-tribe kingdom, the sacred pillar of Baal was pulled down.​—2Ki 10:27, 28.

The Hebrew word ʼashe·rahʹ (pl., ʼashe·rimʹ) is thought to refer to (1) a sacred pole representing Asherah, a Canaanite goddess of fertility (Jg 6:25, 26), and (2) the goddess Asherah herself. (2Ki 13:6, ftn) However, it is not always possible to determine whether a particular scripture is to be understood as referring to the idolatrous object or to the goddess. A number of modern Bible translations, though, have rendered the original-language word as “sacred pole(s) [or post]” but transliterated it when the reference is apparently to the goddess. (AT, JB) Others have not endeavored to make a distinction but have simply transliterated the Hebrew word (RS) or have consistently translated it “sacred pole(s).” (NW) In the older translations of the Bible, the Hebrew word has usually been rendered as “grove(s).” (KJ, Le) But this rendering is inappropriate in such texts as Judges 3:7 and 2 Kings 23:6 (KJ), which speak of serving “groves” and bringing out the “grove” from the temple at Jerusalem.

The Sacred Poles. The sacred poles apparently stood upright and were made of wood, or at least contained wood, the Israelites being commanded to cut them down and to burn them. (Ex 34:13; De 12:3) They may have simply been uncarved poles, perhaps even trees in some instances, for God’s people were instructed: “You must not plant for yourself any sort of tree as a sacred pole.”​—De 16:21.

Both Israel and Judah disregarded God’s express command not to set up sacred pillars and sacred poles; they placed them upon “every high hill and under every luxuriant tree” alongside the altars used for sacrifice. It has been suggested that the poles represented the female principle, whereas the pillars represented the male principle. These appendages of idolatry, likely phallic symbols, were associated with grossly immoral sex orgies, as is indicated by the reference to male prostitutes being in the land as early as Rehoboam’s reign. (1Ki 14:22-24; 2Ki 17:10) Only seldom did kings such as Hezekiah (and Josiah) come along, who “removed the high places and broke the sacred pillars to pieces and cut down the sacred pole.”​—2Ki 18:4; 2Ch 34:7.

Asherah. The Ras Shamra texts identify this goddess as the wife of the god El, the “Creator of Creatures,” and refer to her as “Lady Asherah of the Sea” and “Progenitress of the Gods,” this also making her the mother of Baal. However, there apparently was considerable overlapping in the roles of the three prominent goddesses of Baalism (Anath, Asherah, and Ashtoreth), as may be observed in extra-Biblical sources as well as in the Scriptural record. While Ashtoreth appears to have figured as the wife of Baal, Asherah may also have been so viewed.

During the period of the Judges, it is noted that the apostate Israelites “went serving the Baals and the sacred poles [the Asherim].” (Jg 3:7, ftn; compare 2:13.) The mention of these deities in the plural may indicate that each locality had its Baal and Asherah. (Jg 6:25) Jezebel, the Sidonian wife of Ahab the king of Israel, entertained at her table 450 prophets of Baal and 400 prophets of the sacred pole, or Asherah.​—1Ki 18:19.

The degraded worship of Asherah came to be practiced in the very temple of Jehovah. King Manasseh even placed there a carved image of the sacred pole, evidently a representation of the goddess Asherah. (2Ki 21:7) Manasseh was disciplined by being taken captive to Babylon and, upon his returning to Jerusalem, showed he had profited from that discipline and cleansed Jehovah’s house of idolatrous appendages. However, his son Amon resumed the degrading worship of Baal and Asherah, with its accompanying ceremonial prostitution. (2Ch 33:11-13, 15, 21-23) This made it necessary for righteous King Josiah, who succeeded Amon to the throne, to pull down “the houses of the male temple prostitutes that were in the house of Jehovah, where the women were weaving tent shrines for the sacred pole.”​—2Ki 23:4-7.

This expression occurs only four times in the Christian Greek Scriptures, and it translates the Greek word loʹgi·on (meaning “little word”), a diminutive of loʹgos (word). Originally loʹgi·on meant only a brief sacred utterance, but in time it came to signify any divine communication or oracle. Certain English versions render loʹgi·on simply as ‘oracle.’ (AS, KJ, RS) Wuest’s translation uses “divine utterances” at Acts 7:38 and Romans 3:2.

Stephen spoke of the Law given to Moses on Mount Sinai as “living sacred pronouncements.” (Ac 7:38) The apostle Paul referred to the entire Hebrew Scriptures and evidently also to all the inspired Christian Scriptures written up to that time, saying: “What, then, is the superiority of the Jew, or what is the benefit of the circumcision? A great deal in every way. First of all, because they were entrusted with the sacred pronouncements of God.” (Ro 3:1, 2) Therefore, the writing of this body of inspired Scriptures was committed to Jews, writing “as they were borne along by holy spirit.”​—2Pe 1:20, 21.

In the letter to the Hebrews the apostle Paul includes as “sacred pronouncements” the teachings delivered to mankind by the Lord Jesus Christ, his apostles, and other inspired Christian writers. (Heb 5:12; compare Heb 6:1, 2.) Peter also reflects this broad scope in speaking to the followers of Christ, at 1 Peter 4:11: “If anyone speaks, let him speak as it were the sacred pronouncements of God.” He also classifies writings of the apostle Paul as of equal authority with “the rest of the Scriptures.”​—2Pe 3:15, 16.

The Greek Septuagint frequently uses the word loʹgi·on, as in translating Psalm 12:6 (11:6, LXX): “The sayings of Jehovah are pure sayings.” Bagster’s English translation of the Septuagint reads, at this verse: “The oracles of the Lord are pure oracles.”

Something that originates with God, is withheld until his own time, and is revealed only to those to whom he chooses to make it known.

The Greek word my·steʹri·on, translated “sacred secret,” has reference primarily to that which is known by those who are initiated. In the ancient mystery religions that flourished in the time of the early Christian congregation, those who wished to take part in the mystery celebrations had to undergo initiation; the uninitiated were denied both access to the so-called sacred actions and to knowledge of them. Those initiated into them were bound by a vow of silence, not to reveal the secrets. However, there was also a secular, “everyday” use of the word, such as for a private secret, a secret between friends, family secrets. The apostle Paul uses the passive of my·eʹo in this latter sense when he says: “I have learned the secret [literally, I have been initiated into secrets] of both how to be full and how to hunger, both how to have an abundance and how to suffer want.”​—Php 4:12.

Different From Mystery Religions. Concerning the Greek my·steʹri·on, Vine’s Expository Dictionary of Old and New Testament Words explains: “In the [New Testament] it denotes, not the mysterious (as with the Eng. word), but that which, being outside the range of unassisted natural apprehension, can be made known only by Divine revelation, and is made known in a manner and at a time appointed by God, and to those only who are illumined by His Spirit. In the ordinary sense a mystery implies knowledge withheld; its Scriptural significance is truth revealed. Hence the terms especially associated with the subject are ‘made known,’ ‘manifested,’ ‘revealed,’ ‘preached,’ ‘understand,’ ‘dispensation.’”​—1981, Vol. 3, p. 97.

The sacred secrets of God and other “mysteries” of the Bible, such as that of Babylon the Great, are therefore things, not to be kept secret forever, but to be revealed by Jehovah God in his own time to those who look to him and to whom he chooses to reveal them. The apostle Paul discusses this aspect of matters at 1 Corinthians 2:6-16. There he speaks of the “sacred secret” of God as “hidden wisdom,” revealed through God’s spirit to his Christian servants. It is something that the spirit of the world or the human wisdom of physical men cannot fathom but that is spoken and understood by those ‘combining spiritual matters with spiritual words.’ Jesus Christ earlier pointed out to his disciples: “To you the sacred secret [Gr., my·steʹri·on] of the kingdom of God has been given, but to those outside all things occur in illustrations, in order that, though looking, they may look and yet not see, and, though hearing, they may hear and yet not get the sense of it, nor ever turn back and forgiveness be given them.”​—Mr 4:11, 12; Mt 13:11-13; Lu 8:10.

The great difference between the sacred secret of God and the secrets of mystery religions is, first of all, in content: God’s secret is good news and is not a lie or man-made deception. (Joh 8:31, 32, 44; Col 1:5; 1Jo 2:27) Second, those who are chosen to understand the sacred secret of God are bound, not to keep it secret, but to give it the widest possible proclamation and publication. This is revealed, as noted in the foregoing, by the Bible use of terms such as “preached,” “made known,” “manifested,” and also “declaring,” ‘speaking,’ in connection with “the sacred secret of the good news.” True Christians exercised the greatest vigor in telling this good news containing the understanding of the sacred secret to “all creation that is under heaven.” (1Co 2:1; Eph 6:19; Col 1:23; 4:3, 4) God determines who are not deserving and withholds understanding from such ones. God is not partial when he does this; it is because of “the insensibility of their hearts” that God does not open up to them the understanding of his sacred secret.​—Eph 4:17, 18.

Centers Around Christ. Since “the bearing witness to Jesus is what inspires prophesying,” “the sacred secret of God” must center around Christ. (Re 19:10; Col 2:2) All “the sacred secrets” of God have to do with his Messianic Kingdom. (Mt 13:11) The apostle Paul writes to fellow Christians: “Carefully concealed in him are all the treasures of wisdom and of knowledge,” and “it is in him that all the fullness of the divine quality dwells bodily.”​—Col 2:2, 3, 9.

Paul spoke of himself as having a stewardship of “sacred secrets of God.” (1Co 4:1) He speaks of the comprehension he has “in the sacred secret of the Christ.” (Eph 3:1-4) He explains that this sacred secret is hidden wisdom foreordained by God before the systems of things. (1Co 2:7) The declaration of the mystery, or “the sacred secret of God,” began with Jehovah’s own prophecy at Genesis 3:15. For centuries men of faith looked forward to the “seed” of promise to deliver mankind from sin and death, but it was not clearly understood just who the “seed” would be and just how this “seed” would come and bring deliverance. It was not until Christ came and “shed light upon life and incorruption through the good news” that this was made clear. (2Ti 1:10) Then the knowledge of the mystery of the ‘seed of the woman’ began to be understood.

The Messianic Kingdom. In Paul’s writings he gives a full view of the revelation of the sacred secret of the Christ. At Ephesians 1:9-11 he speaks of God’s making known “the sacred secret” of his will, and says: “It is according to his good pleasure which he purposed in himself for an administration at the full limit of the appointed times, namely, to gather all things together again in the Christ, the things in the heavens and the things on the earth. Yes, in him, in union with whom we were also assigned as heirs, in that we were foreordained according to the purpose of him who operates all things according to the way his will counsels.” This “sacred secret” involves a government, the Messianic Kingdom of God. “The things in the heavens,” to which Paul refers, are the prospective heirs of that heavenly Kingdom with Christ. “The things on the earth” will be its earthly subjects. Jesus pointed out to his disciples that the sacred secret had to do with the Kingdom when he said to them: “To you the sacred secret of the kingdom of God has been given.”​—Mr 4:11.

Includes the Congregation. There are many features in the knowledge of the sacred secret. The apostle gave further details when he explained that the sacred secret includes the congregation, of which Christ is Head. (Eph 5:32; Col 1:18; Re 1:20) These are his joint heirs, with whom he shares the Kingdom. (Lu 22:29, 30) They are taken from among both Jews and Gentiles. (Ro 11:25; Eph 3:3-6; Col 1:26, 27) This feature of “the sacred secret” could not be made clearly known until Peter was directed to visit the Gentile Cornelius and saw this Gentile household receive the gifts of the holy spirit, in 36 C.E. (Ac 10:34, 44-48) In writing to Gentile Christians, Paul told them: “You were . . . without Christ, . . . strangers to the covenants of the promise, and you had no hope and were without God in the world. But now in union with Christ Jesus you who were once far off have come to be near by the blood of the Christ.” (Eph 2:11-13) Through God’s dealings with the congregation, “the governments and the authorities in the heavenly places” would come to know “the greatly diversified wisdom of God.”​—Eph 3:10.

This congregation is shown in vision in the Revelation to John to be composed of 144,000 persons “bought from among mankind as firstfruits to God and to the Lamb.” They are standing with the Lamb, Jesus Christ, on Mount Zion, the place where the “city of the living God, heavenly Jerusalem,” is located. In ancient earthly Jerusalem was situated “Jehovah’s throne,” with kings of the line of David seated on it; also the temple of Jehovah was there. In heavenly Jerusalem Jesus Christ is enthroned, and his loyal spirit-anointed followers share his Kingdom rule. (Re 14:1, 4; Heb 12:22; 1Ch 29:23; 1Pe 2:4-6) The resurrection of such ones to immortality and incorruption during the time of Christ’s presence is one of the features of God’s dealings with the congregation, “a sacred secret” in itself.​—1Co 15:51-54.

The Sacred Secret of Godly Devotion. Paul wrote to Timothy: “I am writing you these things, . . . that you may know how you ought to conduct yourself in God’s household, which is the congregation of the living God, a pillar and support of the truth. Indeed, the sacred secret of this godly devotion is admittedly great: ‘He [Jesus Christ] was made manifest in flesh, was declared righteous in spirit, appeared to angels, was preached about among nations, was believed upon in the world, was received up in glory.’”​—1Ti 3:14-16.

“The congregation of the living God” had the truth, and it knew accurately the mystery, or “the sacred secret,” of true godly devotion, and the congregation had not only the form but also the power of such godly devotion. (Contrast 2Ti 3:5.) Hence, it could be the “pillar and support of the truth” in the midst of a world of error and false religion, the ‘mysteries’ sacred to Satan and those he has blinded. (2Co 4:4) Jesus Christ himself is the One whose godly devotion was foretold and described in the inspired Hebrew Scriptures. For centuries, ever since the challenge was launched against God’s sovereignty, with the integrity of man being brought into question, it was a mystery, or “sacred secret,” whether complete, unswerving, unblemished godly devotion could be fully maintained by anyone upon whom the Devil would bring pressure. Who, if anyone, would be able to hold up under the test and come through wholly clean, without sin, and untarnished in exclusive devotion to Jehovah? Related to this was the question concerning who would be the ‘seed of the woman’ that would bruise the Serpent’s head. This would be fully revealed when Christ “was made manifest in flesh, was declared righteous in spirit, appeared to angels, was preached about among nations, was believed upon in the world, was received up in glory.” (1Ti 3:16; 6:16) This was admittedly a great thing. The great question of godly devotion centered around the one person, Jesus Christ. What greatness there was to Christ’s course of godly devotion! How it benefits mankind and exalts Jehovah’s name!​—See GODLY DEVOTION.

Comes to a Finish. In the apostle John’s vision, he was told: “In the days of the sounding of the seventh angel, when he is about to blow his trumpet, the sacred secret of God according to the good news which he declared to his own slaves the prophets is indeed brought to a finish.” (Re 10:7) This finishing of the sacred secret is closely connected with the seventh angel’s blowing of his trumpet, upon the blowing of which the announcement is made in heaven: “The kingdom of the world did become the kingdom of our Lord and of his Christ, and he will rule as king forever and ever.” (Re 11:15) Accordingly, the sacred secret of God is finished at the time that Jehovah begins his Kingdom by means of his Messiah, or Christ. Jesus Christ spoke much to his disciples, God’s “slaves,” about the Kingdom of God and said that the “good news of the kingdom” would continue to be preached right up to the end (Gr., teʹlos) of “the system of things.” After ‘the sacred secret of God is brought to a finish,’ the “good news” to be preached would therefore include what the voices in heaven announced: “The kingdom of the world did become the kingdom of our Lord and of his Christ.”​—Mt 24:3, 14.

For the ‘mystery of lawlessness’ (2Th 2:7), see MAN OF LAWLESSNESS. For “Mystery: ‘Babylon the Great’” (Re 17:5), see BABYLON THE GREAT.

Ministry, or work, that is sacred, being directly related to one’s worship of God.

The Hebrew term ʽa·vadhʹ basically means “serve” (Ge 14:4; 15:13; 29:15) or “labor” (Ex 34:21) and is also rendered “cultivate.” (Ge 4:12; De 28:39) When used with reference to service rendered to Jehovah or to false deities, ʽa·vadhʹ implies worship, or sacred service. (Ex 10:26; De 11:16) Similarly, the Greek verb la·treuʹo denotes serving. It is used in regard to serving God (Mt 4:10; Lu 1:74; 2:37; 4:8; Ac 7:7; Ro 1:9; Php 3:3; 2Ti 1:3; Heb 9:14; 12:28; Re 7:15; 22:3), as was done at the sanctuary or temple (Heb 8:5; 9:9; 10:2; 13:10), and also in connection with false worship, rendering service to created things. (Ac 7:42; Ro 1:25) In the Christian Greek Scriptures the noun la·treiʹa appears solely with reference to serving God. (Joh 16:2; Ro 9:4; 12:1; Heb 9:1, 6) It differs from the Greek di·a·ko·niʹa, which also means “ministry, service,” but which is used in connection with common, ordinary, mundane things​—things that are not sacred.

The only One to whom worship, or sacred service, can be rightly directed is Jehovah God. (Mt 4:10; Lu 4:8) On account of their special covenant relationship with Jehovah God, the privilege of rendering sacred service as spirit-begotten sons of God and members of “a royal priesthood” should have gone to the Jews. But the majority lost out because of their failure to exercise faith in Christ Jesus. (Ro 9:3-5, 30-33; 1Pe 2:4-10) Many, like the Pharisee Saul before his becoming a Christian, imagined that they were actually rendering sacred service to God by persecuting Christ’s followers.​—Joh 16:2; Ac 26:9-11; Ga 1:13, 14.

See OFFERINGS; RANSOM.

A seat fastened across the back of an animal for a rider. Numerous Biblical references mention saddling asses (Ge 22:3; Nu 22:21; 2Sa 17:23; 19:26; 1Ki 2:40; 13:13, 27; 2Ki 4:24), but no description is provided of the saddles. From the evidence of ancient monuments, it appears that early saddles for horses were little more than a cloth or leather padding. The Hebrew verb “saddle” basically means “bind,” indicating that the saddles were strapped to the animal. One ancient relief depicts a boxlike saddle strapped to the back of a one-humped camel. Nothing definite can be said about “the woman’s saddle basket of the camel” mentioned at Genesis 31:34. The Hebrew expression kar hag·ga·malʹ has been variously rendered “camel-bag” (NE), “camel’s litter” (JB), and “camel’s saddle” (AT).

Under the Law, anyone touching a saddle upon which one with a running discharge had been riding became unclean, as did a person touching an article on which a menstruating woman had been sitting.​—Le 15:9, 19-23.

(Sadʹdu·cees).

A prominent religious sect of Judaism associated with the priesthood. (Ac 5:17) They did not believe in either resurrection or angels.​—Ac 23:8.

The precise time for the emergence of the Sadducees as a religious sect is not known. First historical mention of them by name appears in the writings of Josephus, which indicate that they opposed the Pharisees in the latter half of the second century B.C.E. (Jewish Antiquities, XIII, 293 [x, 6]) Josephus also provides information about their teachings. However, there is a question as to whether his presentation is completely factual. Unlike the Pharisees, says Josephus, the Sadducees denied the workings of fate, maintaining that an individual, by his own actions, was solely responsible for what befell him. (Jewish Antiquities, XIII, 172, 173 [v, 9]) They rejected the many oral traditions observed by the Pharisees and also Pharisaic belief in the immortality of the soul and in punishments or rewards after death. In their dealings with one another, the Sadducees were somewhat rough. They were said to be disputatious. According to Josephus, their teachings appealed to the wealthy.​—Jewish Antiquities, XIII, 298 (x, 6); XVIII, 16, 17 (i, 4); The Jewish War, II, 162-166 (viii, 14).

As pointed out by John the Baptizer, the Sadducees needed to produce fruits befitting repentance. This was because they, like the Pharisees, had failed to keep God’s law. (Mt 3:7, 8) Christ Jesus himself compared their corrupting teaching to leaven.​—Mt 16:6, 11, 12.

With reference to their religious beliefs, Acts 23:8 states: “Sadducees say there is neither resurrection nor angel nor spirit, but the Pharisees publicly declare them all.” It was in connection with the resurrection and brother-in-law marriage that a group of Sadducees attempted to stump Christ Jesus. But he silenced them. By referring to the writings of Moses, which the Sadducees professed to accept, Jesus disproved their contention that there is no resurrection. (Mt 22:23-34; Mr 12:18-27; Lu 20:27-40) Later, the apostle Paul, when before the Sanhedrin, divided that highest Jewish court by playing the Pharisees against the Sadducees. This was possible because of the religious differences existing between them.​—Ac 23:6-10.

Although religiously divided, Sadducees joined Pharisees in trying to tempt Jesus by asking him for a sign (Mt 16:1), and both groups were united in their opposition to him. Biblical evidence indicates that the Sadducees took a leading part in seeking Jesus’ death. Sadducees were members of the Sanhedrin, which court plotted against Jesus and, later, condemned him to death. Included in the court were Caiaphas, the Sadducee and high priest, and evidently also other prominent priests. (Mt 26:59-66; Joh 11:47-53; Ac 5:17, 21) Therefore, whenever the Christian Greek Scriptures speak of certain action as being taken by the chief priests, Sadducees were evidently involved. (Mt 21:45, 46; 26:3, 4, 62-64; 28:11, 12; Joh 7:32) Sadducees appear to have taken the lead in trying to stop the spread of Christianity after Jesus’ death and resurrection.​—Ac 4:1-23; 5:17-42; 9:14.

[Heb., kar·komʹ].

The Hebrew word, appearing only in The Song of Solomon (4:14), has usually been identified with the saffron-yielding crocus (Crocus sativus), a fall-blooming bulbous plant with grasslike leaves and purple flowers that is much like the common spring crocus. To produce just 28 g (1 oz) of saffron, a deep orange-colored substance composed of the dried styles and stigmas of the flowers, about 4,000 blossoms are needed. When the flowers open, or shortly thereafter, the stigma and upper part of the style are removed and then dried. Saffron is used in coloring and flavoring foods and was formerly employed more extensively than now for dyeing cloth a yellow hue. It was also used medicinally and as a perfume.

The Hebrew term chavats·tseʹleth, variously rendered “crocus,” “lily,” “rose,” and “saffron” (compare AT, KJ, Le, NW, Yg), likely refers to a bulbous plant. (Ca 2:1, ftn; Isa 35:1, ftn) According to the Hebrew lexicographer Gesenius, chavats·tseʹleth probably contains a root meaning “bulb,” and he considered “meadow saffron” to be the more exact equivalent of the original-language word. (A Hebrew and English Lexicon of the Old Testament, translated by E. Robinson, 1836, p. 317) A Hebrew and Aramaic lexicon by Koehler and Baumgartner associates the word chavats·tseʹleth with an Akkadian term meaning “stalk” and defines it as “asphodel,” a plant of the lily family.​—Hebräisches und Aramäisches Lexikon zum Alten Testament, Leiden, 1967, p. 275.

(Sakʹkuth).

Possibly an astral deity, as suggested by the fact that “Sakkuth” is put in a parallelism with the phrase “the star of your god.” (Am 5:26) This name was purposely vocalized in the Hebrew Masoretic text to correspond to shiq·qutsʹ, meaning “disgusting thing.” Perhaps Sakkuth is to be identified with “Sakkut,” this being the Babylonian designation for Saturn (a star-god). However, in the Greek Septuagint the expression “Sakkuth your king” reads “the tent of Moloch,” and Stephen, who probably quoted the Septuagint, also used the words “the tent of Moloch.” (Ac 7:43) This suggests that “Sakkuth” may have been a portable shrine, a tent or booth, in which the idol image of Moloch was housed.​—See ASTROLOGERS (Molech and Astrology in Israel).

(Salʹa·mis).

An important city of Cyprus. Paul, Barnabas, and John Mark ‘published the word of God’ there near the start of Paul’s first missionary tour in about 47 C.E. How long they stayed in the city is not stated. Apparently there was a large Jewish population in Salamis, as it had more than one synagogue.​—Ac 13:2-5.

Salamis is usually identified with the ruins found some 5 km (3 mi) N of the modern city of Famagusta. This would place it at the E end of a large fertile plain, just N of the river Pedias (Pediaeus). Salamis would thus be some 200 km (120 mi) WSW across the Mediterranean Sea from Seleucia, where Paul had left Syria. Though the Bible does not specifically say that the ship on which Paul traveled anchored in a harbor at Salamis, the city once had a good harbor that is now silted up.

It appears that Salamis was connected by at least one road with Paphos, at the other end of the island. This could have facilitated travel for Paul and his associates as they preached through “the whole island as far as Paphos.”​—Ac 13:4-6.

Barnabas and John Mark likely visited Salamis again in about 49 C.E.​—Ac 15:36-39.

(Salʹe·cah).

A city at the eastern limit of Bashan, and part of the domain of Og. Taken by Israel under Moses, Salecah came to be inhabited by Gadites. (De 3:8, 10; Jos 12:4, 5; 13:8, 11; 1Ch 5:11) It is usually identified with Salkhad, situated on a southern extension of Jebel ed Druz (Jebel Hauran), some 100 km (60 mi) ESE of the southern end of the Sea of Galilee.

(Saʹlem) [Peace].

An ancient city where Melchizedek was king and priest. (Ge 14:18) The Hebrew spelling of “Salem,” as incorporated in the name Jerusalem, suggests a dual form and, therefore, the word may be defined as “Twofold Peace.” That the name means “Peace” is confirmed by the inspired words of Hebrews 7:2.

Ancient Jewish tradition identifies Salem with Jerusalem, and Scriptural evidence supports this. Abraham met the king of Sodom and Melchizedek in “the king’s Low Plain.” Since King David’s son Absalom centuries later erected a monument there, this low plain must have been near Jerusalem, the capital of the kingdom. (Ge 14:17, 18; 2Sa 18:18) The word “Salem” is, in fact, incorporated in the name “Jerusalem,” and the psalmist used it in parallel with “Zion.” (Ps 76:2) Also, it would have been fitting for Melchizedek to be king and priest in the very place where later the kings of the Davidic line and the Levitical priesthood served and where Jesus Christ, the one chosen to be a king and priest “according to the manner of Melchizedek,” was offered in sacrifice.​—Heb 3:1; 7:1-3, 15-17.

(Saʹlim).

A place mentioned at John 3:23 to help locate Aenon, where John the Baptizer immersed persons. Hence, Salim must have been well known at the time. Today its situation is uncertain, but Tell Ridgha (Tel Shalem), about 12 km (7 mi) S of Beth-shean, has been suggested as a possible identification.​—See AENON.

(Sal·laʹi).

1. A name in the list of Benjamites who lived in Jerusalem following the Babylonian exile.​—Ne 11:4, 7, 8.

2. A priestly paternal house in the days of High Priest Jeshua’s successor Joiakim. (Ne 12:12, 20) Presumably the name is spelled Sallu in Nehemiah 12:7.

(Salʹlu).

1. A postexilic Benjamite resident of Jerusalem; son of Meshullam.​—1Ch 9:3, 7; Ne 11:7.

2. A priestly family head who returned to Jerusalem with Zerubbabel. (Ne 12:1, 7) At Nehemiah 12:20, in the list of later paternal houses, the name Sallai appears at the corresponding place.

(Salʹma).

1. Descendant of Judah and ancestor of David. (1Ch 2:3-5, 9-15) He is also called Salmon.​—Ru 4:12, 18-22; Lu 3:32; see SALMON.

2. Forefather of those who settled in places such as Bethlehem, Netophah, and Atroth-beth-joab. (1Ch 2:51, 54) Salma was a son of Hur in the Calebite branch of Judah’s genealogy.​—1Ch 2:4, 5, 9, 18, 19, 50, 51.

(Salʹmai).

One of the Nethinim whose descendants returned to Jerusalem in 537 B.C.E.​—Ezr 2:1, 2, 43, 46; Ne 7:48.

(Salʹmon).

The son of Judah’s chieftain Nahshon, likely born during the 40-year wilderness trek. Salmon married Rahab of Jericho, by whom he fathered Boaz. He was, therefore, a link in the genealogical line leading to David and Jesus. (Nu 2:3; Ru 4:20-22; Mt 1:4, 5; Lu 3:32) In 1 Chronicles 2:11 he is called Salma. However, this descendant of Ram, Salmon, whose progeny lived in Bethlehem, should not be confused with the Salma mentioned in 1 Chronicles 2:51, 54 as “the father” or builder of Bethlehem, for the latter was a descendant of Ram’s brother Caleb.​—Compare 1Ch 2:9, 18.

(Sal·moʹne).

A promontory of Crete, generally identified with Cape Sidero at the E end of the island. Paul sailed past Salmone in about 58 C.E. on his way to Rome for trial. However, strong winds apparently did not permit the vessel, en route from Cnidus, to sail N of Crete past the southern tip of Greece and on to Rome. Forced southward, the craft passed Salmone and thereafter had some protection from the wind while sailing along Crete’s southern shores.​—Ac 27:7.

(Sa·loʹme) [probably from a Heb. root meaning “peace”].

1. A comparison of Matthew 27:56 with Mark 15:40 may indicate that Salome was the mother of the sons of Zebedee​—James and John, who were apostles of Jesus Christ. The former text names two of the Marys, namely, Mary Magdalene and Mary the mother of James (the Less) and of Joses; and with these it also mentions the mother of the sons of Zebedee as being present at Jesus’ impalement; while the latter text names the woman with the two Marys as Salome.

It is conjectured on similar grounds that Salome was also the fleshly sister of Mary, the mother of Jesus. This has been suggested because the scripture at John 19:25 names the same two Marys, Mary Magdalene and “the wife of Clopas” (generally understood to be the mother of James the Less and of Joses), and also says: “By the torture stake of Jesus, however, there were standing his mother and the sister of his mother.” If this text (aside from mentioning Jesus’ mother) is speaking of the same three persons mentioned by Matthew and Mark, it would indicate that Salome was the sister of Jesus’ mother. On the other hand, Matthew 27:55 and Mark 15:40, 41 state that there were many other women present who had accompanied Jesus, and therefore Salome may have been among them.

Salome was a disciple of the Lord Jesus Christ, among the women accompanying him and ministering to him from their belongings, as Matthew, Mark, and Luke (8:3) imply.

If her identification as the mother of Zebedee’s sons is accurate, she was the one who approached Jesus with the request that her sons be granted seats on the right and the left of Jesus in his Kingdom. Matthew depicts the mother as making the request, while Mark shows James and John doing the asking. Apparently the boys had the desire and induced their mother to make the request. This is supported by Matthew’s report that, on hearing about the request, the other disciples became indignant, not at the mother, but at the two brothers.​—Mt 20:20-24; Mr 10:35-41.

At the break of dawn on the third day after Jesus’ death, Salome was among the women who went to Jesus’ tomb to rub his body with spices, only to find the stone rolled away and, inside the tomb, an angel who announced to them: “He was raised up, he is not here. See! The place where they laid him.”​—Mr 16:1-8.

2. A daughter of Herod Philip and only child of her mother Herodias. In time Herod Antipas married Salome’s mother, having adulterously taken her from his half brother Philip. Shortly before Passover 32 C.E., Antipas held an evening meal in Tiberias in celebration of his birthday. He invited the princess Salome, now his stepdaughter, to dance before the group, which consisted of “his top-ranking men and the military commanders and the foremost ones of Galilee.” So delighted was Herod at Salome’s performance that he promised her anything she requested​—up to half his kingdom. Upon her wicked mother’s advice, Salome asked for the head of John the Baptizer. Herod, though grieved, “out of regard for his oaths and for those reclining with him commanded it to be given; and he sent and had John beheaded in the prison. And his head was brought on a platter and given to the maiden, and she brought it to her mother.”​—Mt 14:1-11; Mr 6:17-28.

Though her name is not given in the Scriptures, it is preserved in the writings of Josephus. He also tells of her childless marriage to the district ruler Philip, another half brother of Herod Antipas. After Philip’s death, Josephus’ account says, she married her cousin Aristobulus and bore him three sons.

The white crystalline compound of sodium chloride (NaCl), known as common salt. There are in the earth vast underground deposits of rock salt, some hundreds of meters thick. The oceans of the world contain about 3.5 percent salts, mostly sodium chloride. This may seem to be very little, yet a cubic kilometer of seawater holds nearly 27 million metric tons of salt. The Dead Sea (Salt Sea) in Palestine is about nine times as salty. (Ge 14:3) Salt was readily available to the Israelites. Evaporation of the Dead Sea waters furnished an ample supply, although of poor quality. There were salt-bearing hills near the southern end of the Dead Sea, not far from where Lot’s wife became a pillar of salt. (Ge 19:26; Zep 2:9) Supplies of salt in northern Palestine may have come, at least partly, from the Phoenicians, who, it is said, obtained it by evaporation from the Mediterranean.

Notwithstanding such virtually inexhaustible supplies, salt has not always been readily available to man. Wars and revolutions have been fought for it. In ancient China salt was second to gold in value. Wives and children have been sold into slavery just for common salt. Caesar’s soldiers received money to buy salt, the sum being called a salarium, from which comes the English word “salary.”​—Compare Ezr 4:14.

The Bible takes note of salt as an essential part of man’s diet, as a seasoning for food. (Job 6:6) Under the Mosaic Law anything offered on the altar to Jehovah had to be salted, not because of flavor, but doubtless because salt represented freedom from corruption or decay. (Le 2:11, 13; Eze 43:24) Large quantities of salt evidently were stored on the temple grounds for this purpose. Ezra saw to it that plenty was on hand for the sacrifices. (Ezr 6:9; 7:21, 22) It is reported that Antiochus III (c. 198 B.C.E.) gave 375 medimni (c. 20 kl; 562 bu) of salt to the temple service.

Certain healing, medicinal, and antiseptic values are attributed to salt. Newborn babies were sometimes rubbed with salt at birth. (Eze 16:4) In limited quantities salt is beneficial on certain acid soils or when mixed with manure, but if allowed to accumulate in the soil, it kills vegetation and the land becomes barren and unfruitful, as was the case with the once-fertile Euphrates Valley. A city condemned to total destruction was sometimes deliberately sown with salt, this act expressing the desire that the place be perpetually barren and sterile.​—De 29:22, 23; Jg 9:45; Job 39:5, 6; Jer 17:6.

Figurative Use. Salt is often used in the Bible figuratively. Jesus told his disciples: “You are the salt of the earth,” a preserving influence on others, preventing spiritual putrefaction and moral decay. The good news they carried would preserve life. However, he went on to say to them: “But if the salt loses its strength, how will its saltness be restored? It is no longer usable for anything but to be thrown outside to be trampled on by men.” (Mt 5:13; Mr 9:50; Lu 14:34, 35) One Bible commentator remarks on Matthew 5:13: “The salt used in this country [United States] is a chemical compound​—muriate of soda—​and if the saltness were lost, or it were to lose its savour, there would be nothing remaining. It enters into the very nature of the substance. In eastern countries, however, the salt used was impure, mingled with vegetable and earthy substances; so that it might lose the whole of its saltness, and a considerable quantity of earthy matter remain. This was good for nothing, except that it was used, as it is said, to place in paths, or walks, as we use gravel. This kind of salt is common still in that country. It is found in the earth in veins or layers, and when exposed to the sun and rain, loses its saltness entirely.”​—Barnes’ Notes on the New Testament, 1974.

Because salt prevented decay, it became a symbol of stability and permanence. Often when covenants were made, the parties ate together​—eating salt together—​denoting perpetual loyalty and fidelity to one another in the covenant relationship. “A covenant of salt” therefore was considered very binding. (Nu 18:19) Accordingly, Judean King Abijah’s statement that Jehovah had made “a covenant of salt” with David and his sons meant that the covenant with David’s line for the kingship would stand forever. Jesus Christ the “son of David” and “the root of David” proves to be the one holding the Kingdom and administering its affairs forever.​—2Ch 13:4, 5; Ps 18:50; Mt 1:1; Re 5:5; Isa 9:6, 7.

Jesus said: “For everyone must be salted with fire.” The context here points to a salting with the fire of Gehenna in the case of all who stumble into a life of sin or who are responsible for so stumbling others.​—Mr 9:42-49.

Using the term to convey a different sense, Jesus thereafter said: “Have salt in yourselves, and keep peace between one another.” (Mr 9:50) The apostle Paul used it in a similar way, saying: “Let your utterance be always with graciousness, seasoned with salt, so as to know how you ought to give an answer to each one.” (Col 4:6) One’s conduct and speech should always be in good taste, considerate, wholesome, and tend toward preserving the lives of others.

A Judean city in the wilderness. (Jos 15:61, 62) It is identified with Khirbet Qumran (Horvat Qumeran), about 20 km (13 mi) E of Jerusalem, by the NW shore of the Dead Sea.

A valley where, on two occasions, the Israelites defeated the Edomites. (2Sa 8:13; 2Ki 14:7) Its precise location is uncertain, but scholars have generally recommended either of two locations, one near Beer-sheba and the other to the S of the Salt Sea.

East from Beer-sheba in the Negeb is a valley the Arabic name of which (Wadi el-Milh) means Valley of Salt. The location is one where Judeans from the N and Edomites coming from the SE might conceivably meet in combat. However, some scholars, preferring a location in Edom’s territory, identify the Scriptural Valley of Salt with a plain SSW of the Salt Sea. At present, the lowland S of the Salt Sea is quite marshy and hardly a location that would be chosen for a battle. But, since the level of the Salt Sea has risen, the plain may have been more firm at the time the battles occurred, or the fighting could have begun in a portion of the valley where the ground was not marshy. After the second conflict, 10,000 Edomites were hurled to their deaths from a crag, but the location of that crag is not stated.​—2Ch 25:11, 12.

In the first battle, David and Joab (evidently with Abishai in charge of at least some of the troops) struck down 18,000 Edomites in the Valley of Salt. (2Sa 8:13; 1Ki 11:15; 1Ch 18:12; Ps 60:Sup) Later, King Amaziah (858-830 B.C.E.) attacked and slaughtered 10,000 Edomites in the same valley, following this with the execution of 10,000 Edomites who were captured, as well as the seizing of the Edomite stronghold Sela.​—2Ki 14:7; 2Ch 25:11, 12; see EDOM, EDOMITES.

[Heb., mal·luʹach].

This term is mentioned only once in Scripture as a food eaten by those of little account. (Job 30:4) The original-language word is considered to be derived from a root meaning “salt,” and it has also been translated “salt-wort” (AS, AT, Da), “cress” (Fn), “grass” (Dy), and “mallow(s)” (KJ, Le, RS). The rendering “mallows” appears to have resulted from the similarity between the Hebrew word mal·luʹach and the Greek word mo·loʹkhe, which is believed to be related to the English designation “mallow.” However, at Job 30:4 the translators of the Greek Septuagint did not use mo·loʹkhe but haʹli·ma (“salt herbs,” LXX, Bagster), and haʹli·ma, like mal·luʹach, is thought to refer either to the salty taste of the plant or to the region where it grows.

The plant most frequently suggested as corresponding to the mal·luʹach of the Bible is sea purslane or shrubby orache (Atriplex halimus). Ordinarily this bushy shrub grows 1 to 2 m (3 to 6.5 ft) high. The plant has small, thick, sour-tasting leaves, and in the spring, it bears tiny purple flowers. It grows in saline soil.

One of the Biblical designations for the large lake or sea now generally known as the Dead Sea. The Salt Sea (Yam ha-Melah) forms the southern termination of the Jordan River.

Name. The first and most frequent designation of this sea in the Bible, “Salt Sea,” is quite appropriate, since it is one of the saltiest bodies of water on the earth. (Ge 14:3; Nu 34:3, 12; Jos 15:2, 5) It is also called the sea of the Arabah (De 4:49; 2Ki 14:25), being in the huge rift of which the Arabah is a part. Sometimes, though, the name “Salt Sea” is added after “sea of the Arabah” as if to explain exactly which body of water is meant by the later name. (De 3:17; Jos 3:16; 12:3) The Salt Sea was on the E boundary of the Promised Land and was termed “the eastern sea,” thus distinguishing it from “the western [Mediterranean] sea.” (Eze 47:18; Joe 2:20; Zec 14:8) Josephus, who was aware that large pieces of bitumen, or asphalt, occasionally surface in this sea, called it Lake Asphaltitis. (The Jewish War, I, 657 [xxxiii, 5]; IV, 479 [viii, 4]) Evidently it was not until the second century C.E. that it came to be called the Dead Sea. The Arabic name is Bahr Lut, “Sea of Lot.”

Physical Description. The Salt Sea is oblong, about 15 km (9 mi) wide and about 75 km (47 mi) long, the length varying somewhat according to the season. Its outline is interrupted by a large peninsula called the Lisan (the tongue) reaching out from the SE side. This peninsula now divides the sea into two sections, although a channel is maintained between the two parts. The portion embayed S of the Lisan is quite shallow, while the main part of the sea in the N reaches a depth of about 400 m (1,300 ft). The surface of the water is about 400 m (1,300 ft) below the level of the Mediterranean Sea, making it the lowest spot on earth.

The E shore (N of the Lisan) consists mainly of sandstone cliffs that rise steeply to the plateau of Moab. Several gorges, the most prominent being the Arnon, cut through these barren hills and empty water into the sea. To the E and S of the peninsula lies a plain that is well watered with streams. The S end of the sea is a flat salt marsh. On the W side of the sea the limestone cliffs are not as precipitous as those on the E. These Judean hills are more terraced and receding, but very desolate, since no permanent streams cut through to the sea. The beach and slopes near the shore allow travel along the W side. On a high mesa opposite the Lisan is Masada, the fortress that Herod strengthened and where, in 73 C.E., the Romans defeated the last of the Jews who were holding out against the Roman army. Farther N is the oasis En-gedi. At the N end, the Jordan empties into the sea, mixing its fresh water with the extremely salty water of the sea.

Water. The water of the sea is unique in that it is about nine times as salty as the oceans. The Salt Sea has no outlet, so most of the water coming into it evaporates in the intense heat, leaving behind more mineral salts. The salt concentration is such that no fish, even saltwater varieties, are able to live; the few fish in the brackish water where fresh water mixes with the salt water are killed if they are swept into the sea proper. This adds meaning to Ezekiel’s description of a torrent flowing from Jehovah’s temple into “the eastern sea” and healing the upper portion so that it abounded in fish like the Mediterranean Sea and could support a flourishing fishing industry. (Eze 47:8-10, 18) The high density of the water causes objects to float easily, and it contributes to a smooth surface because the water is not ruffled by light breezes.

Sodom and Gomorrah. It is generally believed that Sodom and Gomorrah were located near the southern end of the Salt Sea. The kings of these cities were among those who battled in “the Low Plain of Siddim, that is, the Salt Sea,” and the way this is phrased suggests that the Low Plain of Siddim came to be covered by the Salt Sea. (Ge 14:3) The region of Sodom and Gomorrah where Lot settled was ‘well watered, like the garden of Jehovah.’ (Ge 13:10-12) Even today, in the plain along the SE shore, vegetation is abundant, and wheat, barley, dates, and vines can be grown there. The large amounts of bitumen and salt, especially in this southern section, also match the Biblical account of Sodom and Gomorrah.​—Ge 14:10; 19:24-26.

(Saʹlu).

A Simeonite whose son Zimri was executed for immorality on the Plains of Moab.​—Nu 25:14.

See RANSOM; SAVIOR.

(Sa·marʹi·a) [Belonging to the Clan Shemer].

1. The city that King Omri began to build about the middle of the tenth century B.C.E.; it served as the capital of the northern kingdom of Israel for more than 200 years. Omri purchased the mountain, on top of which this city was built, from Shemer, for two talents of silver, a price equal to $13,212. (1Ki 16:23, 24) The mountain as well as the city continued to be called after the name of this former owner.​—Am 4:1; 6:1.

Location. Samaria is identified with ruins called Shomeron adjacent to the Arab village Sabastiya, about 55 km (34 mi) N of Jerusalem, and 11 km (7 mi) NW of Shechem. It was in Manasseh’s territory. When Samaria was described as “the head” of Ephraim, the reference was to its position as the capital of the ten-tribe kingdom, Ephraim being the dominant tribe of that kingdom. (Isa 7:9) Samaria was near to, if not the same location as, “Shamir in the mountainous region of Ephraim,” the home of Judge Tola, who served during the period of the Judges.​—Jg 10:1, 2.

The rather flat top of the Samarian hill, about 2 km (1 mi) across from E to W, was an ideal location for a city. The abrupt rise of about 90 m (300 ft) from the plain below made the location easy to defend. The view too was magnificent, for to the N, E, and S were higher peaks, while to the W the land gently sloped down from an altitude of 463 m (1,519 ft) to the blue Mediterranean, 34 km (21 mi) away.

Much of Samaria’s history is bound up with the wayward record of the 14 kings of Israel from Omri to Hoshea.​—1Ki 16:28, 29; 22:51, 52; 2Ki 3:1, 2; 10:35, 36; 13:1, 10; 14:23; 15:8, 13, 14, 17, 23, 25, 27; 17:1.

During Time of Ahab. After the death of Omri, his son Ahab continued the city’s building program during his 22-year reign. This included the construction of a Baal temple, the setting up a Baal altar, and the erection of “the sacred pole” of worship​—all evidence, in this newly created city, of the Canaanite religion sponsored by Ahab’s Phoenician wife Jezebel. (1Ki 16:28-33; 18:18, 19; 2Ki 13:6) Ahab also embellished Samaria with a beautiful “house of ivory” that was possibly furnished with “couches of ivory” similar to those referred to by the prophet Amos a hundred years later. (1Ki 22:39; Am 3:12, 15; 6:1, 4) Archaeologists have found more than 500 fragments of ivory, many artistically carved, in the ruins of Samaria.

During the latter part of Ahab’s reign, the Syrian king Ben-hadad II laid siege to Samaria, vowing he would strip it so completely that there would not be sufficient dust to fill the hands of those in his army. However, the Israelites were given the victory in order that Ahab should know that Jehovah is God Almighty. (1Ki 20:1-21) In a second encounter less than a year later, when Ben-hadad was forced to surrender, Ahab let him go on the promise that cities would be returned to Israel and ‘streets in Damascus would be assigned’ to Ahab the same as Ben-hadad’s father had assigned himself streets in Samaria. (1Ki 20:26-34) These “streets” evidently had been for the establishment of bazaars, or markets, to promote the commercial interests of Ben-hadad’s father. Nevertheless, Ahab returned to Samaria sad and dejected, for, since he had spared Ben-hadad’s life, Jehovah told him he would forfeit his own.​—1Ki 20:35-43.

This forfeiture came about in the third year after that when Ahab invited Judean King Jehoshaphat to help him recover Ramoth-gilead from Syria. The two kings formally held court at the entrance of Samaria and, after ignoring Jehovah’s prophet and listening to the deceptive counsel of false prophets, set out for the battle. (1Ki 22:1-28; 2Ch 18:2, 9) Ahab disguised himself, but he was struck by an arrow, though the enemy archer had not recognized him as the king. Ahab bled to death in his chariot. He was returned to his capital for burial, and the chariot was washed out alongside the pool of Samaria. (1Ki 22:29-38) This pool may be the rather shallow but large rectangular one discovered there by archaeologists.

The final accounting with the house of Ahab was at the hands of Jehu, whom Jehovah anointed for this work of execution. (2Ki 9:6-10) After killing Ahab’s son Jehoram, Ahab’s grandson Ahaziah, and Ahab’s widow Jezebel (2Ki 9:22-37), Jehu next, in an exchange of letters with the princes and older men residing at Samaria, arranged for the beheading of Ahab’s 70 remaining sons. “Know, then,” Jehu declared, “that nothing of Jehovah’s word will fall unfulfilled to the earth that Jehovah has spoken against the house of Ahab; and Jehovah himself has done what he spoke by means of his servant Elijah.”​—2Ki 10:1-12, 17.

Other pronouncements of Jehovah by his prophets Elijah and Elisha, and the events connected with them, occurred in Samaria and its vicinity. For example, Ahab’s son Ahaziah fell through the grating in his palace roof chamber in Samaria (2Ki 1:2-17), the Syrian leper Naaman came to Samaria seeking a cure (2Ki 5:1-14), and the Syrian military force, sent out to capture Elisha, was mentally blinded and led to Samaria, where the men were fed and sent home (2Ki 6:13-23). During the reign of Ahab’s son Jehoram, the Syrians besieged Samaria, causing such a famine that some persons ate their own children. But then, in fulfillment of Elisha’s prophecy, the famine was broken in one night when Jehovah caused the Syrians to flee in panic and leave behind their foodstuffs.​—2Ki 6:24-29; 7:1-20.

Rival of Jerusalem. From time to time the rivalry and animosity between Samaria and Jerusalem, the respective capitals of the northern and southern kingdoms, burst into open warfare. On one occasion the king of Judah, when about to attack Edom, sent 100,000 mercenaries of Israel back home on orders from Jehovah. And even though paid 100 silver talents ($660,600), these Israelites were so enraged that they raided and plundered Judean towns “from Samaria clear to Beth-horon.” (2Ch 25:5-13) The king of Judah, flushed with victory over Edom, then picked a quarrel with the king of Samaria, a quarrel that was not settled until all the gold and silver from the house of Jehovah and the king’s treasury in Jerusalem had been carried off to Samaria. (2Ki 14:8-14; 2Ch 25:17-24) Years later, however, after a defeat of King Ahaz of Judah, in order to escape Jehovah’s anger, the men of Israel returned certain captives and booty that had been taken to Samaria.​—2Ch 28:5-15.

The city of Samaria was eventually destroyed for its idolatry, moral corruption, and continued disregard for God’s laws and principles. (2Ki 17:7-18) Repeatedly Jehovah warned her rulers and their subjects by the mouths of such prophets as Isaiah (8:4; 9:9), Hosea (7:1; 8:5, 6; 10:5, 7; 13:16), Amos (3:9; 8:14), Micah (1:1, 5, 6), and others (1Ki 20:13, 28, 35-42; 22:8) as well as Elijah and Elisha. Later on, after her destruction, other prophets referred to Samaria as a warning example to those who would reject Jehovah’s instructions.​—2Ki 21:10-13; Jer 23:13; Eze 16:46, 51, 53, 55; 23:4, 33.

Later History. In 742 B.C.E. Shalmaneser V, king of Assyria, laid siege to Samaria, but the city was able to hold out for nearly three years. When it finally fell in 740 B.C.E., many of the leading inhabitants were deported into exile and settled in Mesopotamia and Media. Whether credit for the ultimate capture of the city goes to Shalmaneser V or to his successor Sargon II is still not a settled question.​—2Ki 17:1-6, 22, 23; 18:9-12; see SARGON.

With the fall of Samaria to the Assyrians, the Bible’s detailed history of the city ends. Thereafter, mention of the city is often, though not always (2Ki 23:18; Ac 8:5), made by way of a reminder of what becomes of those who rebel against Jehovah. (2Ki 18:34; 21:13; Isa 10:9-11; 36:19) The Bible relates that after the destruction of Jerusalem and the subsequent assassination of Gedaliah, 80 men from Shechem, Shiloh, and Samaria came down toward Mizpah and encountered Ishmael the assassin. Ishmael slaughtered many of these men, sparing some of them who promised to show him where they had treasures of wheat, barley, oil, and honey hidden.​—Jer 41:1-9.

Secular records relate some of Samaria’s history from and after the days of Alexander the Great. In Roman times its splendor was due to the building program of Herod the Great, who renamed the city Sebaste (a feminine Greek form for the Latin name Augustus), in honor of Augustus, the first emperor. Today the Arabic name Sabastiya preserves the name Herod gave it. It is therefore not surprising that excavations at this site have uncovered the remains of a number of different periods in its history; some of these remains are from the days of Israel’s kings.

2. The territory of the ten-tribe northern kingdom of Israel. The name of its capital city, Samaria, was sometimes applied to this entire area. For example, when Ahab was called “the king of Samaria,” it was not with the restricted meaning of being king of the city only, but in the broader sense as king of the ten tribes. (1Ki 21:1) So, too, “the cities of Samaria” referred to those scattered throughout the ten tribes, not to towns clustered around the capital. (2Ki 23:19; this same expression recorded at 1Ki 13:32 as if used before the city Samaria was built, if not prophetic, may have been introduced by the compiler of the Kings account.) The famine “in Samaria” in the days of Ahab was extensive throughout the whole kingdom of Samaria and, in fact, even took in Phoenicia, extending at least from the torrent valley of Cherith, E of the Jordan, to Zarephath on the Mediterranean. (1Ki 17:1-12; 18:2, 5, 6) Similarly, the restoration promise regarding “the mountains of Samaria” must have embraced the whole of the realm of Samaria.​—Jer 31:5.

Tiglath-pileser III seems to have been the first to uproot Israelites from Samaria’s territory, some prominent Reubenites, Gadites, and Manassites from E of the Jordan being among those moved to Assyria. (1Ch 5:6, 26) When the northern kingdom finally fell, more were taken into exile. (2Ki 17:6) But this time the king of Assyria replaced these Israelites with people from other parts of his realm, a transplanting policy continued by Esar-haddon and Asenappar (Ashurbanipal).​—2Ki 17:24; Ezr 4:2, 10.

Lions began to multiply in the land, probably because the land, or a large part of it, had lain waste for a time. (Compare Ex 23:29.) The settlers doubtless felt, superstitiously, that it was because they did not understand how to worship the god of the land. Therefore the king of Assyria sent back a calf-worshiping Israelite priest from exile. He taught the settlers about Jehovah, but in the same manner as Jeroboam had done, so that they learned something about Jehovah but actually continued to worship their own false gods.​—2Ki 17:24-41.

3. The district through which Jesus occasionally traveled and into which the apostles later brought the message of Christianity. Its boundaries are not definitely known today, but, generally, it lay between Galilee in the N and Judea in the S, and it extended W from the Jordan to the coastal plains of the Mediterranean. For the most part the district embraced the territories once belonging to the tribe of Ephraim and half the tribe of Manasseh (W of the Jordan).

From time to time, on his way to and from Jerusalem, Jesus passed through Samaria, situated as it was between the districts of Judea and Galilee. (Lu 17:11; Joh 4:3-6) But for the most part he refrained from preaching in this territory, even telling the 12 whom he sent out to avoid Samaritan cities and, instead, to “go continually to the lost sheep of the house of Israel,” that is, the Jews.​—Mt 10:5, 6.

However, this restriction covered only a limited time, for just before his ascension to heaven, Jesus told his disciples they should carry the good news not only to Samaria but to the most distant part of the earth. (Ac 1:8, 9) So it was that when persecution broke out in Jerusalem the disciples, Philip in particular, took up the ministry in Samaria. Peter and John were later sent there, resulting in further expansion of Christianity.​—Ac 8:1-17, 25; 9:31; 15:3.

(Sa·marʹi·tan) [probably, Of (Belonging to) Samaria].

The term “Samaritans” first appeared in Scripture after the conquest of the ten-tribe kingdom of Samaria in 740 B.C.E.; it was applied to those who lived in the northern kingdom before that conquest as distinct from the foreigners later brought in from other parts of the Assyrian Empire. (2Ki 17:29) It appears that the Assyrians did not remove all the Israelite inhabitants, for the account at 2 Chronicles 34:6-9 (compare 2Ki 23:19, 20) implies that during King Josiah’s reign there were Israelites still in the land. In time, “Samaritans” came to mean the descendants of those left in Samaria and those brought in by the Assyrians. Therefore some were undoubtedly the products of mixed marriages. At a still later period, the name carried more of a religious, rather than a racial or political, connotation. “Samaritan” referred to one who belonged to the religious sect that flourished in the vicinity of ancient Shechem and Samaria and who held to certain tenets distinctly different from Judaism.​—Joh 4:9.

The Samaritan Religion. The development of the Samaritan religion was due to a number of factors, not the least of which stemmed from Jeroboam’s efforts at alienating the ten tribes from Jehovah’s worship as centered in Jerusalem. For about 250 years after the nation had split into two kingdoms, the God-ordained Levitical priests were replaced by a man-appointed priesthood, which, in turn, led the kingdom of Israel in the practice of demoralizing idolatry. (1Ki 12:28-33; 2Ki 17:7-17; 2Ch 11:13-15; 13:8, 9) Then came the fall of the northern kingdom. The pagan immigrants brought in from Babylon, Cuthah, Avva, Hamath, and Sepharvaim were worshipers of many deities​—Succoth-benoth, Nergal, Ashima, Nibhaz, Tartak, Adrammelech, and Anammelech. Although they learned something about Jehovah through instruction by a priest of the Jeroboam priesthood, yet, as Samaria had done with the golden calves, they continued to worship their false gods, generation after generation. (2Ki 17:24-41) Josiah’s extensive efforts to rid these northern communities of their idol worship, nearly a hundred years after Samaria fell, had no more lasting effect than similar reforms made by him in the southern kingdom of Judah.​—2Ki 23:4-20; 2Ch 34:6, 7.

In 537 B.C.E. a remnant of the 12 tribes returned from Babylonian exile prepared to rebuild Jehovah’s temple in Jerusalem. (Ezr 1:3; 2:1, 70) It was then that the “Samaritans,” who were already in the land when the Israelites arrived and who were described as “adversaries of Judah and Benjamin,” approached Zerubbabel and the older men, saying, “Let us build along with you; for, just like you, we search for your God and to him we are sacrificing since the days of Esar-haddon the king of Assyria, who brought us up here.” (Ezr 4:1, 2) This claim of devotion to Jehovah, however, proved to be only lip service, for when Zerubbabel declined their offer, the Samaritans did everything they could to prevent the building of the temple. After all their concerted efforts at harassment and intimidation had failed, they then made false accusations in a letter to the Persian emperor and succeeded in getting a government decree issued that put a stop to the construction for a number of years.​—Ezr 4:3-24.

In the middle of the fifth century B.C.E., when Nehemiah began repairing Jerusalem’s walls, Sanballat (governor of Samaria, according to one of the Elephantine Papyri) made several strenuous but unsuccessful efforts to stop the project. (Ne 2:19, 20; 4:1-12; 6:1-15) Later, after an extended absence, Nehemiah returned to Jerusalem to find that the grandson of High Priest Eliashib had married Sanballat’s daughter. Immediately, Nehemiah “chased him away.”​—Ne 13:6, 7, 28.

The erection of the Samaritan temple on Mount Gerizim, perhaps in the fourth century B.C.E., in competition to the one in Jerusalem is considered by some to mark the final separation of the Jews and Samaritans, although some think the severance in relations came more than a century later. When Jesus began his ministry, the breach between the two had not been healed, although the Gerizim temple had been destroyed about a century and a half earlier. (Joh 4:9) The Samaritans were still worshiping on Mount Gerizim (Joh 4:20-23), and the Jews had little respect for them. (Joh 8:48) This existing scornful attitude permitted Jesus to make a strong point in his illustration of the neighborly Samaritan.​—Lu 10:29-37.

Samaritan Pentateuch. From early times, the Scriptures of the Samaritans have consisted of only the first five books of the Bible, and these only in their own recension, written in their own characters and known as the Samaritan Pentateuch. The rest of the Hebrew Scriptures, with the possible exception of the book of Joshua, they rejected. The Samaritan Pentateuch differs from the Masoretic text in some 6,000 instances, most of which are minor. However, some are major, as, for example, the reading of Deuteronomy 27:4, where Gerizim is substituted for Ebal, the place where the laws of Moses were to be inscribed on whitewashed stones. (De 27:8) The obvious reason for this change was to give credence to their belief that Gerizim is the holy mountain of God.

But their acceptance of the Pentateuch, by and large, gave the Samaritans the basis for believing that a prophet greater than Moses would come. (De 18:18, 19) In the first century Samaritans were looking for the coming of Christ the Messiah, and some of them recognized him; others rejected him. (Lu 17:16-19; Joh 4:9-43; Lu 9:52-56) Later, through the preaching of the early Christians, many Samaritans gladly embraced Christianity.​—Ac 8:1-17, 25; 9:31; 15:3.

[ס] (saʹmekh).

The 15th letter of the Hebrew alphabet. Saʹmekh represents the sound that the Ephraimites used when endeavoring to pronounce the word “shibboleth,” which begins with the letter shin (ׁש) rather than with saʹmekh. (Jg 12:6; see also SIN, SHIN.) In the Hebrew, saʹmekh is the initial letter in each of the eight verses of Psalm 119:113-120.

(Samʹgar-neʹbo).

The name or title of one of the Babylonian princes who entered Jerusalem right after a breach was made in its walls in the summer of 607 B.C.E.​—Jer 39:3.

(Samʹlah).

The fifth-named king of Edom who reigned before a king ruled Israel. Samlah was from Masrekah.​—Ge 36:31-37; 1Ch 1:47, 48.

(Saʹmos) [Height].

An island in the Aegean Sea near the W coast of Asia Minor. Paul apparently stopped briefly at Samos on the return from his third missionary tour.​—Ac 20:15.

A strait about 1.5 km (1 mi) long separates this mountainous island from the Asian promontory named Samsun Dagi. Samos was SW of Ephesus and NW of Miletus. It is about 43 km (27 mi) in length and 23 km (14 mi) in width. At the time of Paul’s missionary journeys, it was a free state. Its major city and port was also named Samos. The island was celebrated for the cult of Hera (Juno, the Roman goddess of marriage and childbirth) and had a temple to her that vied in splendor and celebrity with the temple of Artemis at Ephesus.

According to the Scriptural account, the ship Paul was on when returning to Jerusalem stopped opposite Chios, sailed some 105 km (65 mi) down the coast of Asia Minor and ‘touched at Samos, and on the following day arrived at Miletus.’ (Ac 20:15) Certain manuscripts add an expression that leads to the rendering “we touched at Samos and, after stopping at Trogyllium, made Miletus the next day.” (JB) This has been understood to mean that the ship did not remain in port at Samos but, instead, crossed the strait and anchored in the protection of the high promontory. However, the oldest and most reliable manuscripts omit the expression about “Trogyllium,” and it was rejected by Westcott and Hort as well as Nestle and Aland in preparing their master texts. The ship Paul was on evidently docked briefly at Samos and then traveled on to Miletus.

(Samʹo·thrace) [possibly, Samos of Thrace].

A mountainous island located in the NE Aegean Sea, having a city of the same name on its N side. Likely in the spring of 50 C.E., during Paul’s second missionary journey, the ship on which he was traveling came “with a straight run” to the island of Samothrace from Troas in NW Asia Minor. There is, however, no indication that he went ashore. (Ac 16:11) The modern-day island (Samothraki) lacks a good harbor, though it offers a number of places for safe anchorage.

(Samʹson) [from a root meaning “sun”].

One of Israel’s outstanding judges; son of Manoah, a Danite from Zorah. Prior to Samson’s birth an angel appeared to his mother and announced that she would bear a son who was to be a Nazirite from birth and “take the lead in saving Israel out of the hand of the Philistines.” (Jg 13:1-5, 24; 16:17) As future leader in the fight against the Philistines, Samson would have to come near the dead bodies of persons slain in battle. Therefore, the very nature of his commission showed that he did not come under the law prescribing that Nazirites not touch dead bodies. (Nu 6:2-9) It should also be noted that this law applied to persons who voluntarily took a vow of Naziriteship; but in Samson’s case, the requirements that applied were those specifically stated to his mother by Jehovah’s angel.

When old enough to marry, Samson requested that his parents get a certain Philistine woman from Timnah for him as a wife. This was in harmony with the direction of God’s spirit, as it was to provide occasion for Samson to fight against the Philistines. (Jg 13:25–14:4) Subsequently, near Timnah, a maned young lion confronted Samson. Empowered by God’s spirit, he tore the animal in two with his bare hands. He then continued on his way to Timnah and there spoke with the Philistine woman whom he wanted as a wife.​—Jg 14:5-7.

Sometime later Samson, accompanied by his parents, went to Timnah to bring his betrothed home. On the way there he turned aside from the road to look at the corpse of the lion that he had killed earlier and found a swarm of bees and honey inside. Samson ate some of the honey and, upon rejoining his parents, offered honey to them. At the wedding banquet he made this incident an object of a riddle and propounded it to 30 Philistine groomsmen. Further developments centering around this riddle provided the occasion for Samson to kill 30 Philistines at Ashkelon.​—Jg 14:8-19.

When the father of his betrothed gave her to another man and did not permit Samson to see her, Samson was furnished with yet another opportunity to act against the Philistines. Using 300 foxes, he set the grainfields, vineyards, and olive groves of the Philistines on fire. The enraged Philistines therefore burned Samson’s betrothed and her father, because the Philistines’ loss had resulted from his treatment of Samson. By this act the Philistines once more gave Samson reason for avenging himself upon them. He slew many of them, “piling legs upon thighs.”​—Jg 14:20–15:8.

Seeking revenge against Samson, the Philistines came to Lehi. Three thousand fearful men of Judah then prevailed upon Samson at the crag Etam to surrender, thereafter binding him with two new ropes and leading him to the Philistines. Exultantly, the Philistines prepared to receive Samson. But “Jehovah’s spirit became operative upon him, and the ropes that were upon his arms came to be like linen threads that have been scorched with fire, so that his fetters melted off his hands.” Taking the moist jawbone of a male ass, Samson struck down a thousand men, after which he ascribed this victory to Jehovah. On that occasion Jehovah, in answer to Samson’s request, miraculously provided water to relieve his thirst.​—Jg 15:9-19.

Another time Samson went to the home of a prostitute in the Philistine city of Gaza. Hearing of this, the Philistines laid in wait for him, intending to kill him in the morning. But at midnight Samson got up and ripped the city gate and its side posts and bar from the wall of Gaza, and he carried them “up to the top of the mountain that is in front of Hebron.” (Jg 16:1-3; see GAZA No. 1.) This was a great humiliation for the Philistines, as it left Gaza weak and unprotected from intruders. The fact that Samson was able to accomplish this amazing feat indicates that he still had God’s spirit. This would argue against his having gone to the house of the prostitute for immoral purposes. In Lange’s Commentary on the Holy Scriptures (Jg 16:1, p. 212), commentator Paulus Cassel says on this point: “Samson did not come to Gaza for the purpose of visiting a harlot: for it is said that ‘he went, thither, and saw there a [prostitute].’ But when he wished to remain there [at Gaza] over night, there was nothing for him, the national enemy, but to abide with the [prostitute]. . . . His stay is spoken of in language not different from that employed with reference to the abode of the spies in the house of Rahab. The words, ‘he saw her,’ only indicate that when he saw a woman of her class, he knew where he could find shelter for the night.” (Translated and edited by P. Schaff, 1976) It should also be noted that the account reads “Samson kept lying till midnight” and not ‘Samson kept lying with her till midnight.’

By going into enemy territory, Samson demonstrated his fearlessness. It may well be that he went to Gaza to ‘look for an opportunity against the Philistines,’ as had been the case earlier when he sought a wife among them. (Jg 14:4) If so, Samson apparently intended to turn any effort directed against him into an occasion for inflicting injury upon the Philistines.

Betrayed by Delilah. It was after this that Samson fell in love with Delilah. (See DELILAH.) For material gain she sought to learn the secret of Samson’s strength. Three times he gave her misleading answers. But, because of her persistent pestering, he finally gave in and revealed to her that his strength lay in his being a Nazirite from birth. She then got in touch with the Philistines to get the reward for turning him over to them. While Samson was sleeping on her knees, Delilah had his hair shaved off. Upon awakening, he no longer had Jehovah’s spirit, for he had allowed himself to get into a position that led to the termination of his Naziriteship. Not the hair itself, but what it stood for, that is, Samson’s special relationship with Jehovah as a Nazirite, was the source of his strength. With the end of that relationship, Samson was no different from any other man. Therefore, the Philistines were able to blind him, bind him with copper fetters, and put him to work as a grinder in the prison house.​—Jg 16:4-21.

While Samson languished in prison, the Philistines arranged for a great sacrifice to their god Dagon, to whom they attributed their success in having captured Samson. Great throngs, including all the axis lords, were assembled in the house used for Dagon worship. On the roof alone there were 3,000 men and women. The merry Philistines had Samson, whose hair had meanwhile grown luxuriantly, brought out of prison to provide amusement for them. Upon his arrival, Samson asked the boy who was leading him to let him feel the pillars that supported the structure. He then prayed to Jehovah: “Remember me, please, and strengthen me, please, just this once, O you the true God, and let me avenge myself upon the Philistines with vengeance for one of my two eyes.” (Jg 16:22-28) It may be that he prayed to avenge himself for only one of his eyes because of recognizing that the loss of them had come about partly through his own failure. Or, it may be that he felt it would be impossible to avenge himself completely as Jehovah’s representative.

Samson braced himself against the two supporting pillars and “bent himself with power,” causing the house to collapse. This resulted in his own death and that of more Philistines than he had killed in his entire lifetime. Relatives buried him “between Zorah and Eshtaol in the burial place of Manoah his father.” Thus Samson died faithful to Jehovah after having judged Israel for 20 years. Therefore his name rightly appears among men who, through faith, were made powerful.​—Jg 15:20; 16:29-31; Heb 11:32-34.

(Samʹu·el) [Name of God].

A prominent prophet (Ac 3:24; 13:20), traditionally credited with the writership of the Bible books of Judges, Ruth, and part of First Samuel. (Compare 1Sa 10:25; 1Ch 29:29.) His father Elkanah was a Levite of the nonpriestly Kohathites. (1Ch 6:27, 28, 33-38) Samuel came to have three full brothers and two full sisters.​—1Sa 2:21.

Promised to the service of Jehovah as a Nazirite by his mother Hannah before conception (1Sa 1:11), Samuel was taken to the tabernacle at Shiloh upon being weaned (perhaps at the age of at least three years; compare 2Ch 31:16) and was left there in the charge of High Priest Eli. (1Sa 1:24-28) Thus Samuel, having a linen ephod girded on, ‘ministered to Jehovah’ as a boy. Annually his mother visited him and brought him a new sleeveless coat. (1Sa 2:18, 19) As he grew, Samuel became “more likable both from Jehovah’s standpoint and from that of men.”​—1Sa 2:26.

Becomes Prophet at an Early Age. At night Samuel slept in “the temple of Jehovah, where the ark of God was,” and his first assignment in the morning appears to have been to open “the doors of Jehovah’s house.” (1Sa 3:3, 15) Evidently the words “where the ark of God was” apply to the tabernacle area and are not to be understood as signifying that Samuel slept in the Most Holy. As a nonpriestly Kohathite Levite he was not entitled to see the Ark or any of the other sacred furnishings inside the sanctuary. (Nu 4:17-20) The only part of the house of Jehovah to which Samuel had access was the tabernacle courtyard. Therefore, he must have opened the doors leading into the courtyard, and it must have been there that he slept. During the period that the tabernacle was permanently located at Shiloh, various structures were likely erected, and one of these could have served as Samuel’s sleeping place.

One night, after having retired, Samuel heard a voice calling him by name. Imagining the speaker to be High Priest Eli, he ran to see him. After this occurred three times, Eli discerned that Jehovah was calling Samuel and Eli instructed him accordingly. Jehovah then made known to Samuel his judgment against Eli’s house. Fearful, Samuel did not volunteer any information concerning the word of Jehovah until requested to do so by Eli. Thus began Samuel’s prophetic work, and all Israel eventually became aware that he was indeed Jehovah’s prophet.​—1Sa 3:2-21.

Leads Israel in True Worship. Over 20 years later, at Samuel’s exhortation, the Israelites abandoned idolatrous worship and began serving Jehovah alone. Subsequently, Samuel had the Israelites assemble at Mizpah. Taking advantage of the situation, the Philistines invaded. Becoming fearful, the sons of Israel requested that Samuel call to Jehovah for aid. He did so and also offered up a sucking lamb in sacrifice. (1Sa 7:2-9) Of course, as a nonpriestly Kohathite Levite, Samuel was not authorized to officiate at the sanctuary altar (Nu 18:2, 3, 6, 7), and there is no record that he ever did so. However, as Jehovah’s representative and prophet, he could sacrifice at other places in compliance with divine direction, as did Gideon (Jg 6:25-28) and Elijah. (1Ki 18:36-38) Jehovah answered Samuel’s prayer, throwing the Philistines into confusion and thereby enabling the Israelites to gain a decisive victory. To commemorate this, Samuel set up a stone between Mizpah and Jeshanah and called it Ebenezer (meaning “Stone of Help”). (1Sa 7:10-12) Doubtless from the spoils of this and other wars, Samuel set aside things as holy to maintain the tabernacle.​—1Ch 26:27, 28.

The days of Samuel brought additional reverses for the Philistines (1Sa 7:13, 14) and proved to be a period marked by outstanding Passover celebrations. (2Ch 35:18) Samuel also seems to have worked out some arrangement for the Levite gatekeepers, and his arrangement may have served as a basis for the organization put into operation by David. (1Ch 9:22) From his home at Ramah in the mountainous region of Ephraim, Samuel annually made a circuit of Bethel, Gilgal, and Mizpah, judging Israel at all these places. (1Sa 7:15-17) Never did he abuse his position. His record was without blame. (1Sa 12:2-5) But his sons, Joel and Abijah, perverted justice.​—1Sa 8:2, 3.

Anoints Saul as King. The unfaithfulness of Samuel’s sons, coupled with the threat of warfare with the Ammonites, prompted the older men of Israel to request that Samuel appoint a king over them. (1Sa 8:4, 5; 12:12) Jehovah’s answer to Samuel’s prayer concerning this was that, though the request of the people showed lack of faith in Jehovah’s kingship, nevertheless, the prophet should accede to it and advise them what the rightful due of the king involved. Though informed by Samuel that the monarchy would result in the loss of certain liberties, the people still insisted on having a king. After Samuel dismissed the men of Israel, Jehovah directed matters so that Samuel anointed the Benjamite Saul as king. (1Sa 8:6–10:1) Thereafter Samuel arranged for the Israelites to assemble at Mizpah, and there Saul was designated by lot as king. (1Sa 10:17-24) Again Samuel spoke about the rightful due of the kingship, and he also made a written record of it.​—1Sa 10:25.

Following Saul’s victory over the Ammonites, Samuel directed that the Israelites come to Gilgal to confirm the kingship anew. On that occasion Samuel reviewed his own record, as well as Israel’s past history, and showed that obedience to Jehovah by the king and the people was needed to maintain divine approval. To impress upon them the seriousness of having rejected Jehovah as King, Samuel prayed for an unseasonal thunderstorm. Jehovah’s answering that petition motivated the people to acknowledge their serious transgression.​—1Sa 11:14–12:25.

On two occasions thereafter Samuel had to censure Saul for disobedience to divine direction. In the first instance, Samuel announced that Saul’s kingship would not last because he had presumptuously gone ahead in making a sacrifice instead of waiting as he had been commanded. (1Sa 13:10-14) Rejection by Jehovah of Saul himself as king was the second condemnatory message that Samuel delivered to Saul for disobediently preserving alive King Agag and the best of the Amalekite flock and herd. In response to Saul’s plea, Samuel appeared with him before the older men of Israel and the people. After that Samuel commanded that Agag be brought to him and then “went hacking [him] to pieces before Jehovah in Gilgal.”​—1Sa 15:10-33.

Anoints David. When the two men parted, they had no further association. Samuel, however, went into mourning for Saul. But Jehovah God interrupted his mourning, commissioning him to go to Bethlehem to anoint one of the sons of Jesse as Israel’s future king. To avoid any suspicion on Saul’s part that might result in Samuel’s death, Jehovah directed that Samuel take along a cow for sacrifice. Perhaps fearing that Samuel had come to reprove or punish some wrongdoing, the older men of Bethlehem trembled. But he assured them that his coming meant peace and then arranged for Jesse and his sons to share in a sacrificial meal. Impressed by the appearance of Jesse’s firstborn Eliab, Samuel reasoned that this son must surely be Jehovah’s choice for the kingship. But neither Eliab nor any of the other six sons of Jesse present had been chosen by Jehovah. Therefore, at Samuel’s insistence, the youngest son, David, was called from pasturing the sheep, and then at Jehovah’s direction Samuel anointed David in the midst of his brothers.​—1Sa 15:34–16:13.

Later, after King Saul had made several attempts on his life, David fled to Samuel at Ramah. The two men then went to Naioth, and David remained there until Saul personally came to look for him. (1Sa 19:18–20:1) During the time David was still under restriction because of Saul, “Samuel died; and all Israel proceeded to collect together and bewail him and bury him at his house in Ramah.” (1Sa 25:1) Thus Samuel died as an approved servant of Jehovah God after a lifetime of faithful service. (Ps 99:6; Jer 15:1; Heb 11:32) He had demonstrated persistence in fulfilling his commission (1Sa 16:6, 11), devotion to true worship (1Sa 7:3-6), honesty in his dealings (1Sa 12:3), and courage and firmness in announcing and upholding Jehovah’s judgments and decisions (1Sa 10:24; 13:13; 15:32, 33).

Regarding the account of Saul’s request for the spirit medium at En-dor to bring up Samuel for him, see SAUL No. 1.

Two books of the Hebrew Scriptures that apparently were not divided in the original Hebrew canon. Indicative of this is a note in the Masora showing that words in First Samuel, chapter 28 (one of the concluding chapters of First Samuel), were in the middle of the book.

Writers and Time Covered. Ancient Jewish tradition credits Samuel with the writership of the first part of the book, and Nathan and Gad with the remaining portion. That these three prophets did write is confirmed at 1 Chronicles 29:29. The book itself reports: “Samuel spoke to the people about the rightful due of the kingship and wrote it in a book and deposited it before Jehovah.” (1Sa 10:25) However, on the basis of 1 Samuel 27:6, where there is reference to “the kings of Judah,” numerous scholars place the final compiling of the books of Samuel sometime after the ten-tribe kingdom of Israel came into existence. If the expression “the kings of Judah” denotes only Judean kings of the two-tribe kingdom, this would show that the writings of Samuel, Nathan, and Gad must have been put into final form by someone else. On the other hand, if “the kings of Judah” simply means kings from the tribe of Judah, these words could have been recorded by Nathan, since he lived under the rulership of two Judean kings, David and Solomon.​—1Ki 1:32-34; 2Ch 9:29.

The fact that Hannah and an unnamed “man of God” used the expressions “king” and “anointed one” years before a king actually ruled over Israel does not support the argument of some that these passages date from a period later than indicated in the book. (1Sa 2:10, 35) The idea of a future king was by no means foreign to the Hebrews. God’s promise concerning Sarah, the ancestress of the Israelites, was that “kings of peoples” would come from her. (Ge 17:16) Also, Jacob’s deathbed prophecy (Ge 49:10), the prophetic words of Balaam (Nu 24:17), and the Mosaic Law (De 17:14-18) pointed to the time when the Israelites would have a king.

The historical narrative contained in the two books of Samuel commences with the time of High Priest Eli and concludes with events from David’s reign. It therefore covers a period of approximately 140 years (c. 1180-c. 1040 B.C.E.). As David’s death is not mentioned in the record, the account (possibly with the exception of editorial additions) was probably completed about 1040 B.C.E.

Authenticity. The authenticity of the account contained in the books of Samuel is well established. Christ Jesus himself, when refuting an objection raised by the Pharisees, cited the incident recorded at 1 Samuel 21:3-6 about David’s receiving showbread from Ahimelech the priest. (Mt 12:1-4) In the synagogue of Antioch in Pisidia, the apostle Paul quoted from 1 Samuel 13:14 as he briefly reviewed events from Israel’s history. (Ac 13:20-22) This apostle, in his letter to the Romans, used words from David’s psalm, which passage is found at both 2 Samuel 22:50 and Psalm 18:49, to prove that Christ’s ministry to the Jews verified God’s promises and gave a basis for non-Jews to “glorify God for his mercy.” (Ro 15:8, 9) Jehovah’s words to David at 2 Samuel 7:14 are quoted and applied to Christ Jesus at Hebrews 1:5.

Outstanding, too, is the candor of the record. It exposes the wrongs of the priestly house of Eli (1Sa 2:12-17, 22-25), the corruption of Samuel’s sons (1Sa 8:1-3), and the sins and family difficulties of King David (2Sa 11:2-15; 13:1-22; 15:13, 14; 24:10).

Another evidence of the authenticity of the account is the fulfillment of prophecies. These relate to Israel’s request for a king (De 17:14; 1Sa 8:5), Jehovah’s rejection of Eli’s house (1Sa 2:31; 3:12-14; 1Ki 2:27), and the continuance of the kingship in David’s line (2Sa 7:16; Jer 33:17; Eze 21:25-27; Mt 1:1; Lu 1:32, 33).

The record is in complete harmony with the rest of the Scriptures. This is especially noticeable when examining the psalms, many of which are illuminated by what is contained in the books of Samuel. King Saul’s sending messengers to watch David’s house in order to kill him provides the background for Psalm 59. (1Sa 19:11) David’s experiences at Gath, where he disguised his sanity to escape death, are alluded to in Psalms 34 and 56. (1Sa 21:10-15; evidently the name Abimelech appearing in the superscription of Psalm 34 is to be viewed as a title for King Achish.) Psalm 142 may reflect David’s thoughts while hiding from Saul in the cave of Adullam (1Sa 22:1) or in the cave in the Wilderness of En-gedi. (1Sa 24:1, 3) This is perhaps also the case with Psalm 57. However, a comparison of Psalm 57:6 with 1 Samuel 24:2-4 seems to favor the cave in the Wilderness of En-gedi, for there Saul, as it were, fell into the pit he had excavated for David. Psalm 52 pertains to Doeg’s informing Saul about David’s dealings with Ahimelech. (1Sa 22:9, 10) The action of the Ziphites in revealing David’s whereabouts to King Saul furnished the basis for Psalm 54. (1Sa 23:19) Psalm 2 seems to allude to the attempts made by the Philistines to unseat David as king after his capture of the stronghold of Zion. (2Sa 5:17-25) Trouble with the Edomites during the war with Hadadezer is the setting for Psalm 60. (2Sa 8:3, 13, 14) Psalm 51 is a prayer of David, beseeching forgiveness for his sin with Bath-sheba. (2Sa 11:2-15; 12:1-14) David’s flight from Absalom provides the basis for Psalm 3. (2Sa 15:12-17, 30) Possibly Psalm 7 finds its historical setting in Shimei’s cursing David. (2Sa 16:5-8) Psalm 30 may allude to events in connection with David’s erection of an altar on the threshing floor of Araunah. (2Sa 24:15-25) Psalm 18 parallels 2 Samuel 22 and pertains to Jehovah’s delivering David from Saul and other enemies.

Sections Missing in the Greek “Septuagint.” First Samuel 17:12-31, 55–18:6a does not appear in the Greek Septuagint as contained in Vatican Manuscript No. 1209. Numerous scholars have, therefore, concluded that the omissions are later additions to the Hebrew text. Arguing against this view, C. F. Keil and F. Delitzsch comment: “The notion, that the sections in question are interpolations that have crept into the text, cannot be sustained on the mere authority of the Septuagint version; since the arbitrary manner in which the translators of this version made omissions or additions at pleasure is obvious to any one.”​—Commentary on the Old Testament, 1973, Vol. II, 1 Samuel, p. 177, ftn.

If it could be definitely established that actual discrepancies exist between the omitted sections and the rest of the book, the authenticity of 1 Samuel 17:12-31, 55–18:6a would reasonably be in question. A comparison of 1 Samuel 16:18-23 and 1 Samuel 17:55-58 reveals what appears to be a contradiction, for in the latter passage Saul is depicted as asking about the identity of his own court musician and armor-bearer, David. However, it should be noted that David’s earlier being described as “a valiant, mighty man and a man of war” could have been based on his courageous acts in single-handedly killing a lion and a bear to rescue his father’s sheep. (1Sa 16:18; 17:34-36) Also, the Scriptures do not state that David actually served in battle as Saul’s armor-bearer before he killed Goliath. Saul’s request to Jesse was: “Let David, please, keep attending upon me, for he has found favor in my eyes.” (1Sa 16:22) This request does not preclude the possibility that Saul later permitted David to return to Bethlehem so that, when war broke out with the Philistines, David was then shepherding his father’s flock.

Regarding Saul’s question, “Whose son is the boy, Abner?” the aforementioned commentary observes (p. 178, ftn.): “Even if Abner had not troubled himself about the lineage of Saul’s harpist, Saul himself could not well have forgotten that David was a son of the Bethlehemite Jesse. But there was much more implied in Saul’s question. It was not the name of David’s father alone that he wanted to discover, but what kind of man the father of a youth who possessed the courage to accomplish so marvellous a heroic deed really was; and the question was put not merely in order that he might grant him an exemption of his house from taxes as the reward promised for the conquest of Goliath (ver. 25), but also in all probability that he might attach such a man to his court, since he inferred from the courage and bravery of the son the existence of similar qualities in the father. It is true that David merely replied, ‘The son of thy servant Jesse of Bethlehem;’ but it is very evident from the expression in ch. xviii. 1, ‘when he had made an end of speaking unto Saul,’ that Saul conversed with him still further about his family affairs, since the very words imply a lengthened conversation.” (For other instances where “who” involves more than mere knowledge of a person’s name, see Ex 5:2; 1Sa 25:10.)

So there is sound reason for viewing 1 Samuel 17:12-31, 55–18:6a as part of the original text.

[Box on page 852]

HIGHLIGHTS OF FIRST SAMUEL

Record of the beginning of kingship in Israel, emphasizing obedience to Jehovah

Written by Samuel, Nathan, and Gad; First Samuel covers the time from the birth of Samuel to the death of Israel’s first king, Saul

Jehovah raises up Samuel as prophet in Israel (1:1–7:17)

Samuel is born as an answer to his mother Hannah’s prayer; after he is weaned, he is presented for sanctuary service in fulfillment of Hannah’s vow

Jehovah speaks to Samuel, pronouncing judgment against Eli’s house because his sons Hophni and Phinehas act wickedly and Eli does not rebuke them

As Samuel grows up he is recognized as Jehovah’s prophet

Jehovah’s word against Eli begins to be fulfilled: Philistines capture the Ark and slay Eli’s sons; Eli dies on hearing the news

Years later, Samuel urges the Israelites to abandon idolatry and serve Jehovah alone; Jehovah gives them victory over the Philistines

Saul becomes Israel’s first king (8:1–15:35)

The Israelite elders approach aged Samuel, requesting a human king; Jehovah tells him to listen to their voice

Jehovah directs Samuel to anoint Saul, a Benjaminite, as king

Samuel presents Saul to an assembly of Israelites at Mizpah; not everyone accepts him

Saul defeats the Ammonites; his kingship is reconfirmed at Gilgal; Samuel admonishes the people to remain obedient to Jehovah

Faced with Philistine aggression, Saul fails to obey Jehovah and wait for Samuel’s arrival, offering sacrifices himself; Samuel tells him that because of this his kingdom will not last

Saul defeats the Amalekites, but he disobediently preserves alive King Agag and the best of the animals; Samuel tells Saul he is rejected by Jehovah as king and that obedience is more important than sacrifice

David comes to prominence, and this angers Saul (16:1–20:42)

Samuel anoints David, and Jehovah’s spirit leaves Saul; David becomes a harpist for Saul to soothe him when disturbed

David kills the Philistine champion Goliath, and a deep friendship develops between David and Saul’s son Jonathan

Placed over Saul’s warriors, David gains repeated victories and is celebrated in song more than Saul; Saul becomes jealous

Twice Saul’s attempts to kill David fail, as does his scheme to have David die at the hands of the Philistines while procuring the bride-price for Saul’s daughter Michal

Despite his promise to Jonathan, Saul for a third time tries to kill David, and David flees to Samuel at Ramah

Jonathan unsuccessfully tries to intercede for David with his father; he warns David, and he and David make a covenant

David’s life as a fugitive (21:1–27:12)

At Nob, High Priest Ahimelech gives David food and Goliath’s sword; David then flees to Gath, where he escapes harm by acting insane

He takes refuge in the cave of Adullam and then in the forest of Hereth; Saul has Ahimelech and everyone in Nob killed; Ahimelech’s son Abiathar survives and comes to David

David saves Keilah from Philistines, but afterward he leaves the city to avoid being surrendered to Saul

The men of Ziph reveal David’s whereabouts; he narrowly escapes capture

David has the opportunity to kill Saul but spares his life

Samuel dies

Abigail’s wise intervention prevents David from shedding blood in the heat of anger

David spares Saul’s life a second time and takes refuge in Philistine territory

The end of Saul’s reign (28:1–31:13)

Saul assembles an army against Philistine invaders

Jehovah will not answer Saul’s inquiries because of his disobedience, so Saul consults a spirit medium at En-dor

In battle with Philistines, Saul is severely wounded and commits suicide; his sons Jonathan, Abinadab, and Malchi-shua are slain

[Box on page 854]

HIGHLIGHTS OF SECOND SAMUEL

Record of David’s kingship​—the blessings he experienced, as well as the discipline he received when he sinned

Originally part of one scroll with First Samuel; the portion in Second Samuel was completed by Gad and Nathan by the end of David’s life in about 1040 B.C.E.

David becomes king and rules from Hebron (1:1–4:12)

David mourns the death of Saul and Jonathan; he takes up residence at Hebron and is anointed king by the men of Judah

Abner makes Saul’s son Ish-bosheth king over the rest of Israel; fighting breaks out between the rival kingdoms

Abner defects to David but is killed by Joab

Ish-bosheth is murdered; David orders the execution of the assassins

David rules as king over all the tribes of Israel (5:1–10:19)

David is anointed as king over all Israel; he captures the stronghold of Zion and makes Jerusalem his capital city

The Philistines invade twice but are defeated each time

David attempts to bring the Ark to Jerusalem; the attempt is abandoned when Uzzah dies trying to steady it from falling

His second attempt succeeds when the Ark is transported in the proper way

David expresses to Nathan his desire to build a temple for Jehovah; Jehovah concludes a covenant with him for a kingdom

David sins with Bath-sheba; calamity comes on him out of his own house (11:1–20:26)

The Israelites go to war against Ammon; David commits adultery with Bath-sheba, whose husband Uriah is serving in the army; when efforts to conceal his sin fail, David arranges for Uriah to die in battle and marries the widowed Bath-sheba

With skillful use of an illustration, Nathan reproves David for his sin and announces Jehovah’s judgment: Calamity will come out of his own house, his own wives will be violated, the son from Bath-sheba will die

The child dies; Bath-sheba, pregnant again, gives birth to Solomon

David’s son Amnon rapes his half sister Tamar; David’s son Absalom, Tamar’s full brother, avenges her by having Amnon killed; then he flees to Geshur

Absalom, having gained David’s full pardon, starts scheming against his father; finally he has himself proclaimed king at Hebron

David and his supporters flee Jerusalem to escape from Absalom and his partisans; in Jerusalem, Absalom has relations with ten of David’s concubines; Absalom’s forces pursue David and suffer defeat; Absalom himself is killed contrary to David’s specific orders

David is restored as king; the Benjaminite Sheba revolts, and David gives command of the army to Amasa to put down the rebellion; Joab kills Amasa and takes charge; Sheba is killed

Closing events of David’s reign (21:1–24:25)

David hands over seven sons of Saul to Gibeonites for execution so that the bloodguilt of Saul’s house toward them can be avenged

David composes songs of praise to Jehovah, acknowledging him as the source of inspiration

David sins in ordering a census, resulting in death for 70,000 from pestilence

David buys the threshing floor of Araunah the Jebusite as the site of an altar for Jehovah

(San·balʹlat) [from Akkadian, meaning “Sin [the moon-god] Has Saved”].

A Horonite (meaning a resident of Beth-horon or of Horonaim) who opposed Nehemiah’s efforts to repair the wall of Jerusalem. (Ne 2:10) He is thought to be the Sanballat mentioned in a papyrus found at Elephantine, Egypt, which identifies a man of that name as the governor of Samaria and the father of Delaiah and Shelemiah.

Sanballat, along with Tobiah and Geshem, derided the Jews and accused them of rebelling against the king of Persia. (Ne 2:19; 4:1) As the repair work progressed, he and other opposers conspired to fight against Jerusalem. But whatever efforts they made in this regard were ineffective, for the Jews relied on Jehovah and kept a guard posted. (Ne 4:7-9) After the gaps in the wall of Jerusalem were filled, Sanballat and others repeatedly tried to lure Nehemiah away from the city. When this failed, he and Tobiah hired a Jew to frighten Nehemiah into wrongfully hiding in the temple. But they did not succeed.​—Ne 6:1-14.

Later, upon his return after an absence from Jerusalem, Nehemiah found that a grandson of High Priest Eliashib had become a son-in-law of Sanballat. Nehemiah therefore chased this grandson away.​—Ne 13:6, 7, 28.

The act or process of making holy, separating, or setting apart for the service or use of Jehovah God; the state of being holy, sanctified, or purified. “Sanctification” draws attention to the action whereby holiness is produced, made manifest, or maintained. (See HOLINESS.) Words drawn from the Hebrew verb qa·dhashʹ and words related to the Greek adjective haʹgi·os are rendered “holy,” “sanctified,” “made sacred,” and “set apart.”

A better understanding of the subject can be gained by a consideration of the usage of the words in the original languages. They are applied in the Scriptures to (1) Jehovah God, (2) Jesus Christ, (3) angels, (4) men and animals, (5) things, (6) periods of time or occasions, and (7) land possessions. Sometimes the Hebrew word for “sanctify” was used in the sense of preparing or making oneself ready or in fit condition. Jehovah commanded Moses to say to the complaining Israelites: “Sanctify yourselves for tomorrow, as you will certainly eat meat.” (Nu 11:18) Before Israel crossed the Jordan River, Joshua ordered: “Sanctify yourselves, for tomorrow Jehovah will do wonderful things in your midst.” (Jos 3:5) In all cases the term has a religious, spiritual, and moral sense. It can denote the getting away from anything that displeases Jehovah or appears bad in his eyes, including physical uncleanness. God said to Moses: “Go to the people, and you must sanctify them today and tomorrow, and they must wash their mantles. . . . because on the third day Jehovah will come down before the eyes of all the people upon Mount Sinai.” (Ex 19:10, 11) The word is used to mean purifying or cleansing, as at 2 Samuel 11:4, which reads: “She was sanctifying herself from her uncleanness.”

Jehovah told Israel that they should be separate from the nations of the world and clean from their practices; he gave Israel laws to keep them set apart, including the laws defining what was clean and what was unclean for eating. Then he gave them the reason: “For I am Jehovah your God; and you must sanctify yourselves and you must prove yourselves holy, because I am holy.”​—Le 11:44.

Jehovah God. Jehovah God is holy and absolutely clean. As the Creator and Universal Sovereign, he has the right to the exclusive worship of all of his creatures. Therefore he says that he will demonstrate his holiness, acting to sanctify himself and his name before the eyes of all creation: “I shall certainly magnify myself and sanctify myself and make myself known before the eyes of many nations; and they will have to know that I am Jehovah.” (Eze 38:23) Those who desire his favor, and life, must “sanctify” him and his name, that is, they must hold that name in its proper place as separate from and higher than all others. (Le 22:32; Isa 8:13; 29:23) Jesus taught his followers to pray as the foremost thing: “Our Father in the heavens, let your name be sanctified [or, “be held sacred; be treated as holy”].”​—Mt 6:9, ftn.

Jesus Christ. Jehovah God selected his only-begotten Son and sent him to earth to do a special work in behalf of God’s name and to give his life as a ransom for humankind. But he was not received and respected by the Jewish nation as that sent one; rather, they denied his sonship and his position with his Father. He replied to them: “Do you say to me whom the Father sanctified and dispatched into the world, ‘You blaspheme,’ because I said, I am God’s Son?”​—Joh 10:36.

The apostle Peter writes to Christians, telling them to “sanctify the Christ as Lord in your hearts.” He shows that one who does this will stay away from what is bad and will do good. The people of the nations hold in their hearts an awe and a fear of men and of other things. But the Christian should set Christ in the right place in his affections and motivations. This would mean recognizing Christ’s position as God’s Chief Agent of life, the Messianic King, God’s High Priest, and the one who gave his life as a ransom. He should also keep Christ’s example of good conduct before him and hold a good conscience in connection with his own conduct as a Christian. If a person, even a ruler, should harshly demand a reason for his hope, the Christian who thus sanctifies Christ in his heart will make a good defense, yet with a mild temper and deep respect.​—1Pe 3:10-16.

Angels. The angels of God are called by Jesus “holy” angels, sanctified, set apart for Jehovah’s holy use. (Mr 8:38; Lu 9:26; compare Ps 103:20.) They appear in the sacred presence of Jehovah, beholding his face.​—Mt 18:10; Lu 1:19.

Men and Animals. In times past God has chosen certain persons whom he desired to use for his exclusive service, and he sanctified them. When he determined to use the males of the tribe of Levi to take care of the sacred tabernacle and its services, he said to Moses: “As for me, look! I do take the Levites from among the sons of Israel in place of all the firstborn opening the womb of the sons of Israel; and the Levites must become mine. For every firstborn is mine. In the day that I struck every firstborn in the land of Egypt I sanctified to myself every firstborn in Israel from man to beast. They should become mine. I am Jehovah.” In order to release the firstborn of the other 11 tribes, the Israelites were required to give in exchange all the males of the tribe of Levi. Then they had to give five shekels ($11) to the sanctuary for every male firstborn above the total number of male Levites. This released the firstborn ones from being set apart for Jehovah’s exclusive service.​—Nu 3:12, 13, 46-48.

After this, all male firstborn ones opening the womb were considered to be sanctified but were presented at the temple and redeemed by a payment of five shekels ($11). (Ex 13:2; Le 12:1-4; Nu 18:15, 16) Those under Nazirite vows were sanctified for the period of their vow. (Nu 6:1-8) The firstborn of domestic animals were also sanctified, to be sacrificed or, in some cases, to be redeemed.​—De 15:19; see FIRSTBORN, FIRSTLING.

The priesthood. Jehovah also purposed to set aside an exclusive family within the tribe of Levi to serve as his priests of sacrifice, namely, Aaron and his sons and their male descendants. (Ex 28:1-3, 41) They were then sanctified with fitting sacrifices in a symbolic series of acts described in Exodus chapter 29. Jehovah’s everlasting High Priest, Jesus Christ, and his fellow priests, or underpriests, namely those who follow Christ’s footsteps and whom God anoints to be members of Christ’s body, are also sanctified.​—2Th 2:13; Re 1:6; 5:10.

The Process of Sanctification. There is a certain process or procedure that the one to be sanctified as a footstep follower of Christ must undergo. Using the word sanctify in the sense of purify or cleanse from sin in God’s sight, the apostle Paul wrote: “For if the blood of goats and of bulls and the ashes of a heifer sprinkled on those who have been defiled sanctifies to the extent of cleanness of the flesh, how much more will the blood of the Christ, who through an everlasting spirit offered himself without blemish to God, cleanse our consciences from dead works that we may render sacred service to the living God?”​—Heb 9:13, 14.

“The blood of the Christ” signifies the value of his perfect human life; and it is this that washes away the guilt of sin of the person believing in him. Hence it really (not just typically [compare Heb 10:1-4]) sanctifies to the purifying of the believer’s flesh, from God’s standpoint, so that the believer has a clean conscience. Also, God declares such believer righteous and makes him suitable to be one of the underpriests of Jesus Christ. (Ro 8:1, 30) Such ones are called haʹgi·oi, “holy ones,” “saints” (KJ), or persons sanctified to God.​—Eph 2:19; Col 1:12; compare Ac 20:32, which refers to “sanctified ones [tois he·gi·a·smeʹnois].”

So the procedure for those who are to become joint heirs with Christ is, first, that they are drawn by Jehovah God to Jesus Christ by faith in the truth of God’s Word. (Joh 6:44; 17:17; 2Th 2:13) Accepted by Jehovah, they are “washed clean, . . . sanctified, . . . declared righteous in the name of our Lord Jesus Christ and with the spirit of our God.” (1Co 6:11) Christ thus becomes to them ‘wisdom, righteousness, and sanctification and release by ransom.’ (1Co 1:30) Of these, the apostle Paul said: “For both he [Christ] who is sanctifying and those who are being sanctified all stem from one, and for this cause he is not ashamed to call them ‘brothers.’” (Heb 2:11) They become ‘sons of God’ and “brothers” of God’s Chief Son by spirit begetting.​—Ro 8:14-17; Joh 3:5, 8.

Must be maintained. The process of sanctification is not all on one side. Sanctification must be maintained, and in this the believer has a part. He can lose his sanctification or he can hold on to it.

Christ Jesus has set the pattern for those who are sanctified. (Joh 13:15) He said in prayer to God: “I am sanctifying myself in their behalf, that they also may be sanctified by means of truth.” (Joh 17:19) Jesus kept himself blameless and maintained his status of being set apart for the purpose of sanctifying his followers. They must maintain their sanctification down to the end of their earthly course. To do this, they must keep clear of dishonorable things and of persons who practice dishonorable things, so as to be “a vessel for an honorable purpose, sanctified, useful to his owner, prepared for every good work.” (2Ti 2:20, 21) They must realize that it is with Christ’s own blood that they are bought, and that it is by God’s will that they “have been sanctified through the offering of the body of Jesus Christ once for all time.” (Heb 10:10) They are counseled to “pursue . . . the sanctification without which no man will see the Lord.”​—Heb 12:14.

Though they are still in the imperfect flesh, which tends toward sin, the sanctified ones can be successful. In warning of the danger of losing one’s sanctification, Paul reminds the sanctified ones that it was “the blood of the [new] covenant by which [they were] sanctified.” (Heb 10:29; Lu 22:20) As Mediator of the new covenant, Christ assists them to carry out the terms of the covenant by obedience and clean behavior so that they keep their sanctification. “It is by one sacrificial offering that he has made those who are being sanctified perfect perpetually.” (Heb 10:14) As Mediator and High Priest, Christ “is able also to save completely those who are approaching God through him.” (Heb 7:25) But if they return to a practice of sin, there is not a second sacrifice, only the expectation of judgment and destruction.​—Heb 10:26, 27.

Accordingly, the sanctified ones are not called so they can continue as they did before being sanctified, or so they can go back to such a course. The apostle exhorts: “For this is what God wills, the sanctifying of you, that you abstain from fornication; that each one of you should know how to get possession of his own vessel in sanctification and honor.” “For God called us, not with allowance for uncleanness, but in connection with sanctification.”​—1Th 4:3, 4, 7.

God’s Word and spirit. God’s Word plays a great part in sanctification, and it must be followed closely for sanctification to be maintained. (Ac 20:32) To the believer and sanctified one, God also sends his holy spirit, which is a strong force working in him for cleanness. It helps the sanctified one to be obedient, keeping him in a clean way of life. (1Pe 1:2) Guidance by God’s spirit makes it possible for the offering of such ones to be sanctified, clean, acceptable to God. (Ro 15:16) Any uncleanness is a disregarding of God’s spirit and tends to ‘grieve’ it. (Eph 4:30; 1Th 4:8; 5:19) It can go so far as to lead to blasphemy against the holy spirit, which will not be forgiven.​—Mt 12:31, 32; Lu 12:8-10.

Sanctification of Places. The place where Jehovah dwells or any place where he dwells representatively is a sanctified or holy place, a sanctuary. The tabernacle in the wilderness and the temples later built by Solomon and Zerubbabel (and rebuilt and enlarged by Herod the Great) were designated as miq·dashʹ or qoʹdhesh, ‘set apart’ or ‘holy’ places. Being located in the midst of a sinful people, these places had to be purified (in a typical, or pictorial, way) of defilement periodically by sprinkling with the blood of sacrificial animals.​—Le 16:16.

Jerusalem. Likewise Jerusalem, the city of the grand King (Ps 48:1, 2; 135:21), and the site on which it stood were considered sanctified. (Isa 48:1, 2; 52:1; Ne 11:1; Da 9:24) Correspondingly, New Jerusalem, the heavenly city, is a sanctuary into which only sanctified persons, and none who practice any form of uncleanness (such as spiritism, fornication, murder, idolatry, and lying) are allowed to enter.​—Re 21:2; 22:14, 15, 19.

The garden of Eden, a sanctuary. Jehovah appeared, representatively, in the garden of Eden to converse with and instruct Adam and Eve; it was a clean, sinless, perfect place, where man was at peace with God. (Ge 1:28; 2:8, 9; 3:8, 9; De 32:4) Therefore Adam and Eve were driven out of it when they rebelled. This paradise was a place set apart or sanctified by God for clean, righteous persons to occupy. Now that Adam and Eve were sinners, they were driven out so that they could not partake of the tree of life and thus, despite being sinners, live forever.​—Ge 3:22-24.

The burning bush and Mount Sinai. When Jehovah commissioned Moses to go back down into Egypt to deliver His people from slavery, sending Moses in His own memorial name Jehovah (Ex 3:15, 16), God dispatched his angel, who appeared to Moses in a burning bush. When Moses approached, the angel, appearing representatively for Jehovah, commanded Moses to remove his sandals because, he said, “the place where you are standing is holy [qoʹdhesh] ground.”​—Ex 3:1-5.

Later, when the people were gathered at the foot of Mount Sinai, at the time the Law covenant was given, Jehovah gave Moses the command: “Set bounds for the mountain and make it sacred,” because Jehovah was there, representatively by his angels. (Ex 19:23; Ga 3:19) Anyone who went beyond the boundaries would be put to death, for no unauthorized persons can approach Jehovah’s presence. (Ex 19:12, 13) However, Moses as God’s appointed mediator could draw nearer. In this, Moses prophetically foreshadowed Jesus Christ, the great Mediator for anointed Christians, as they approach heavenly Mount Zion.​—Heb 12:22-24.

Cities of refuge and army camps. Certain cities in Israel were set aside for the special purpose of providing a place of refuge for the unintentional manslayer. They were sanctified, or given “sacred status.”​—Jos 20:7-9.

The army camps of Israel were places that were sanctified, for God ‘walked about within the camp.’ Therefore moral, spiritual, and physical cleanness had to be maintained.​—De 23:9-14; 2Sa 11:6-11.

Sanctification of Things. Since the tabernacle and the temple were sanctified buildings, the things in them likewise had to be holy, sanctified. The ark of the covenant, the altar of incense, the table of showbread, the lampstand, the altar of burnt offering, the basin, all the utensils, the incense and the anointing oil, even the priests’ garments, were sanctified items. They were to be handled and transported only by sanctified persons​—the priests and Levites. (Ex 30:25, 32, 35; 40:10, 11; Le 8:10, 11, 15, 30; Nu 4:1-33; 7:1) The priests serving at the tabernacle rendered “sacred service in a typical representation and a shadow of the heavenly things; just as Moses, when about to make the tent in completion, was given the divine command: For says he: ‘See that you make all things after their pattern that was shown to you in the mountain.’”​—Heb 8:4, 5.

Sacrifices and food. The sacrifices and offerings were sanctified by reason of being offered upon the sanctified altar in the manner prescribed. (Mt 23:19) The portion that the priests received was holy and could not be eaten by those outside the priestly households, and even the priests could not eat such things while in an “unclean” state. (Le 2:3; 7:6, 32-34; 22:1-13) The showbread was likewise holy, sanctified.​—1Sa 21:4; Mr 2:26.

Just as the food provided by Jehovah for his priesthood was sanctified, so the food provided by him for his Christian servants is likewise sanctified, as all things partaken of or engaged in by his sanctified servants should be. The apostle Paul warns against conscienceless men who put on a display of sanctification that is false, “forbidding to marry, commanding to abstain from foods which God created to be partaken of with thanksgiving by those who have faith and accurately know the truth. The reason for this is that every creation of God is fine, and nothing is to be rejected if it is received with thanksgiving, for it is sanctified through God’s word and prayer over it.” (1Ti 4:1-5) If God’s Word declares a thing clean, it is clean, and the Christian, by giving thanks for it in prayer, accepts it as sanctified, and God counts him clean in eating.

Tithes. The tithe of the grain, fruit, and flocks that the Israelites set aside was considered sanctified and could be used for no other purpose. (Le 27:30, 32) Accordingly no one can misuse a sanctified thing or harm or speak evil against any of God’s sanctified persons, including the anointed brothers of Christ, and be guiltless before God. Jesus showed the Jews this when they accused him of blasphemy. (Joh 10:36) The apostle Peter warned of destruction that is to come upon wicked men whom he describes as “daring, self-willed, [who] do not tremble at glorious ones [whom Jehovah has sanctified] but speak abusively.”​—2Pe 2:9-12; compare Jude 8.

Periods of Time or Occasions. The Bible record tells us what God did when he completed his creative work toward the earth: “By the seventh day God came to the completion of his work . . . , and he proceeded to rest . . . And God proceeded to bless the seventh day and make it sacred.” (Ge 2:2, 3) This “day” was therefore to be employed by men as a “day” of sacred service and obedience to Jehovah. It was not to be defiled by self-works on the part of man. Adam and Eve therefore violated that “day” when they set out on a program of self-determination, to do as they pleased in the earth, independent of their Sovereign, Jehovah. God’s ‘rest day’ still continues, according to the record at Hebrews 3:11, 13; 4:1-11. Since God sanctified the “day,” setting it aside to his purpose, this “day” will see that purpose toward the earth fully accomplished in righteousness.​—Compare Isa 55:10, 11.

Sabbath days and special feast days were sanctified, as were other periods, such as the Jubilee year.​—Ex 31:14; Le 23:3, 7, 8, 21, 24, 27, 35, 36; 25:10.

Sanctifying of Land. In Israel, a man might sanctify a part of his inheritance to God. He would do this by setting it aside so that the produce of the land would go to the sanctuary, or he could pay over to the sanctuary the value of the land (that is, its crops) according to the estimation of the priest. If he decided to buy it back, he was required to add one fifth to the valuation of the field (governed by the number of crops until the Jubilee year) as estimated by the priest. Of course, the field would be returned to its owner at the Jubilee.​—Le 27:16-19.

The next verses apparently speak of the owner who does not repurchase the field but sells it to another man, and the law is that the field then becomes the permanent possession of the sanctuary at the time of the Jubilee. Concerning this law, at Leviticus 27:20, 21, Cook’s Commentary says: “[The words] may refer to a case in which a man might have fraudulently sold his interest in a field and appropriated the price after having vowed it to the Sanctuary.” Or they may refer to a case in which a man retained the use of the field and fulfilled his vow for a while by paying as a yearly rent a due proportion of the redemption money but then later parted with his interest to another for the sake of acquiring some ready money. Such a field was considered “devoted,” because he treated that which was sanctified to the sanctuary as his own, disrespecting its sanctity by making merchandise of it.

The principle may have been similar to the law at Deuteronomy 22:9: “You must not sow your vineyard with two sorts of seed, for fear that the full produce of the seed that you might sow and the product of the vineyard may be forfeited to the sanctuary.” Such forfeit would result from the violation of the law stated earlier at Leviticus 19:19.

The distinction between things “sanctified” and things “devoted” was that the “devoted” thing could not be redeemed. (See BAN.) Houses were handled in the same manner. (Le 27:14, 15) However, if a man sanctified a field that he had bought from someone else’s hereditary possession, the field returned at Jubilee to the original owner.​—Le 27:22-24.

In Marriage. The apostle Paul tells the married Christian: “The unbelieving husband is sanctified in relation to his wife, and the unbelieving wife is sanctified in relation to the brother; otherwise, your children would really be unclean, but now they are holy.” Through Jehovah’s regard for the Christian, his (or her) marriage relationship with his unbelieving mate is not considered to be defiling. The cleanness of the sanctified one does not sanctify the mate as one of God’s holy ones, but the relationship is clean, honorable. The unbelieving mate has a fine opportunity to receive benefits from observing the Christian course of the believer and may himself be saved. (1Co 7:14-17) Because of the ‘merit’ of the believer, the young children of the union are considered holy, under divine care and protection​—not unclean as are children who do not have even one believing parent.​—See HOLINESS (Holiness Blessed by Jehovah).

A place set apart for the worship of God or of gods, a holy place; a divine habitation. (1Ch 22:19; Isa 16:12; Eze 28:18; Am 7:9, 13) A “sanctuary” need not necessarily be a special building, for the one at Shechem referred to at Joshua 24:25, 26 may simply have been the site where Abraham had centuries earlier erected an altar. (Ge 12:6, 7) However, frequently the expression “sanctuary” designates either the tabernacle (Ex 25:8, 9) or the temple at Jerusalem. (1Ch 28:10; 2Ch 36:17; Eze 24:21) As applied to the tabernacle, “sanctuary” could mean the entire tent and its courtyard (Ex 25:8, 9; Le 21:12, 23), the furniture and utensils of the sanctuary (Nu 10:21; compare Nu 3:30, 31), or it could refer to the Most Holy (Le 16:16, 17, 20, 33).

As a holy place, God’s sanctuary was to be kept undefiled. (Nu 19:20; Eze 5:11) The Israelites should, therefore, “stand in awe” of that special place where God dwelt representatively. (Le 19:30; 26:2) When they were removed from the Promised Land into exile, they no longer had a material sanctuary. But Jehovah promised that he himself would, as it were, become “a sanctuary” for them.​—Eze 11:16.

The Greek term na·osʹ is used in a broad sense to stand for the entire temple complex (Joh 2:20) or for the central edifice, with its Holy and Most Holy compartments separated by the curtain. (Mt 27:51) When Zechariah, for instance, went “into the sanctuary” to offer incense, he entered the Holy, for it was there that the altar of incense was located.​—Lu 1:9-11.

God’s dwelling place in the heavens is a sanctuary, or a holy place. It is in this heavenly sanctuary that the apostle John, in vision, saw the ark of the covenant after the blowing of the ‘seventh trumpet.’ (Re 11:15, 19) Thereafter he observed angels emerging from this sanctuary and, in connection with the outpouring of “the seven bowls” of God’s anger, heard a “loud voice” issuing forth from it.​—Re 14:15, 17; 15:5, 6, 8; 16:1, 17.

Regarding the earthly courtyard of God’s great spiritual temple, the apostle John was told in vision: “Get up and measure the temple sanctuary of God and the altar and those worshiping in it. But as for the courtyard that is outside the temple sanctuary, cast it clear out and do not measure it, because it has been given to the nations, and they will trample the holy city underfoot for forty-two months.” (Re 11:1, 2) The temple here referred to could not be the one at Jerusalem, for that structure had been destroyed nearly three decades earlier. Being earthly, the nations could only be “given” a courtyard that was likewise on earth. So it must represent a condition enjoyed by Jesus’ anointed followers while here on earth. Whereas it would be impossible for the nations to trample upon a location in the heavens, they could treat disgracefully those persons who had been begotten by God’s spirit to be his sons and who were in line to receive a heavenly inheritance with Christ. (Re 3:12) Similarly, Daniel’s prophecy regarding the throwing down of “the established place of his sanctuary” (Da 8:11) and the profaning of the sanctuary (Da 11:31) appears to point to events in connection with those serving as underpriests in God’s great spiritual temple.

The members of the Christian congregation, Christ’s body, constitute a temple, or sanctuary, that God inhabits by spirit.​—1Co 3:17; Eph 2:21, 22; 1Pe 2:5, 9; see TEMPLE (Anointed Christians​—A Spiritual Temple).

A loose granular material that consists of particles smaller than gravel but coarser than silt. Jehovah God, in his great wisdom, has “set the sand as the boundary for the sea, an indefinitely lasting regulation that it cannot pass over.” (Jer 5:22) Unlike solid rock, sand yields and thus absorbs the impact of the waves that pound against it. The force of the raging waves is diffused and dissipated, so that the sea is kept in check.

In blessing the tribes of Zebulun and Issachar, Moses said that they would “suck the abounding wealth of the seas and the hidden hoards of the sand.” (De 33:18, 19) This may mean that they would be blessed with the riches of sea and land.

Time and again the “sand of the sea” is used in the Bible to designate innumerableness or great abundance. (Ge 22:17; 32:12; 41:49; Jos 11:4; Ps 78:27; 139:17, 18; Jer 15:8; Heb 11:12) But the number in question is not astronomically great in each case. To the beholder, however, the number of persons or things involved is so great that it cannot be ascertained. For example, one part of the Philistine forces that came against Israel in the days of King Saul is described as “people like the grains of sand that are upon the seashore for multitude.” (1Sa 13:5) The number of those that would be misled by Satan following his release from the abyss, as seen by John in vision, was said to be “as the sand of the sea,” that is, the number was great enough that John could not determine how many there would be.​—Re 20:8.

Describing the magnitude of his vexation, faithful Job declared: “It is heavier even than the sands of the seas.” (Job 6:3) On the average, just 1 cu m (1.3 cu yd) of wet sand weighs 1,900 kg (4,200 lb). Though a load of sand is a heavy burden, the vexation of a foolish person is even heavier to the one having to bear it. This is alluded to at Proverbs 27:3: “The heaviness of a stone and a load of sand​—but the vexation by someone foolish is heavier than both of them.”

A flat sole of leather, wood, or other fibrous material strapped to the foot by laces that are usually leather thongs passing between the big toe and second toe, around the heel, and over the top of the foot. In some cases the strap may have gone as high as around the ankle.

Egyptian sandals usually turned up at the toe. Some Assyrian sandals consisted only of a casement for the heel and side of the foot, fastened over the foot by thongs and having no sole for the front part of the foot. The Romans wore sandals and are said also to have worn shoes similar to modern ones. The aristocracy and royalty of the Assyrians, Romans, and others wore more elaborate sandals or bootlike shoes. Some Bedouin around Mount Sinai wear sandals made of a species of dugong (a seallike sea animal). Jehovah speaks figuratively of shoeing Jerusalem with “sealskin” (Heb., taʹchash).​—Eze 16:10.

The priests in Israel are said to have served at the tabernacle and the temple barefoot. (Compare Ex 3:5; Jos 5:15; Ac 7:33.) But to go about outdoors barefoot was a sign of grief or humiliation.​—2Sa 15:30; Isa 20:2-5; contrast the command to Ezekiel (24:17, 23).

On a long journey it was a custom to carry an extra pair of sandals, as the soles might become worn out or the laces broken. Jesus, in sending out the apostles, and also 70 disciples, commanded them not to take two pairs but to rely on the hospitality of those who accepted the good news.​—Mt 10:5, 9, 10; Mr 6:7-9; Lu 10:1, 4.

Figurative Use. Under the Law a widow took the sandal off one who refused to perform brother-in-law marriage with her, and his name was called, reproachfully, “The house of the one who had his sandal drawn off.” (De 25:9, 10) The transfer of property or of right of repurchase was represented by handing one’s sandal to another.​—Ru 4:7-10; see BROTHER-IN-LAW MARRIAGE.

By the expression “over Edom I shall throw my sandal” (Ps 60:8; 108:9) Jehovah may have meant that Edom would be brought under subjection. It possibly had reference to the custom of indicating the taking of possession by throwing one’s sandal on a piece of land. Or, it could have indicated contempt for Edom, since Moab is called “my washing pot” in the same text. In the Middle East today, throwing the sandal is a gesture of contempt.

David instructed Solomon to punish Joab, who had “put the blood of war . . . in his sandals” during peacetime​—a figurative statement representing Joab’s bloodguilt for killing Generals Abner and Amasa. (1Ki 2:5, 6) This, together with the fact that one putting on his sandals was about to undertake some business away from his house (or wherever he was staying; compare Ac 12:8), illuminates the apostle Paul’s admonition to Christians that they have their feet “shod with the equipment of the good news of peace.”​—Eph 6:14, 15.

To untie another’s sandal laces or to carry his sandals was considered a menial task such as was often done by slaves. John used this simile to denote his inferiority to Christ.​—Mt 3:11; Mr 1:7.

[Heb., choʹmet].

There is some uncertainty about the unclean ‘swarming creature’ designated by the Hebrew term choʹmet. (Le 11:30, 31) The renderings of the Greek Septuagint and the Latin Vulgate point to a kind of lizard, and the word has been variously translated “sand lizard” (AS, JP, NW, RS), “chameleon” (AT), and “snail” (KJ). It is possibly a skink.​—See LIZARD.

See COURT, JUDICIAL.

(San·sanʹnah) [possibly, Fruit Stalk of Dates].

A town in the southern portion of the territory of the tribe of Judah. (Jos 15:21, 31) It is identified with Khirbet esh-Shamsaniyat (Horvat Sansanna), about 12 km (7.5 mi) NNE of Beer-sheba. A comparison of Joshua 15:31 with parallel lists of cities at Joshua 19:5 and 1 Chronicles 4:31 indicates that it may be the same as Hazar-susah (or Hazar-susim).​—See HAZAR-SUSAH.

One of four giantlike Rephaim who fought with the Philistines against Israel, only to be put to death by David’s mighty men. Saph, or Sippai, was slain by Sibbecai.​—2Sa 21:18, 22; 1Ch 20:4.

(Sap·phiʹra) [from Aramaic, and meaning “Beautiful”].

The wife of Ananias. With her husband she entered a conspiracy that resulted in their death. They sold a field of their possession and hypocritically pretended to bring the full value obtained to the apostles, as other Christians in Jerusalem were doing to meet the emergency that developed after Pentecost of 33 C.E.

The sin of Ananias and Sapphira was, not that they did not give the entire amount of the price of the possession sold, but that they lyingly claimed to do so, evidently to receive plaudits of men rather than to honor God and do good toward his congregation. Their deception was exposed by Peter, under the inspiration of holy spirit. He said: “Ananias, why has Satan emboldened you to play false to the holy spirit and to hold back secretly some of the price of the field? As long as it remained with you did it not remain yours, and after it was sold did it not continue in your control? Why was it that you purposed such a deed as this in your heart? You have played false, not to men, but to God.” On hearing Peter’s words, Ananias fell down and expired.

After about three hours Sapphira came in and repeated the lie. Peter then asked her: “Why was it agreed upon between you two to make a test of the spirit of Jehovah?” Sapphira likewise fell down and expired. This incident served as discipline for the congregation, causing them to have great fear, and doubtless great respect and appreciation for the fact that Jehovah indeed dwelt in the congregation by spirit.​—Ac 4:34, 35; 5:1-11; 1Co 3:16, 17; Eph 2:22; compare 1Ti 1:20.

A transparent or translucent precious stone; a variety of corundum. Although sapphires occur in many colors, the deep-blue shades are most highly esteemed. The sapphires referred to in the Bible were apparently blue.

A sapphire was one of the stones in the high priest’s “breastpiece of judgment.”​—Ex 28:15-18; 39:11.

Job, who lived in about the 17th century B.C.E., described the efforts of men in digging deep into the earth to mine gold and precious jewels, and he mentions the sapphire as being among the rare stones so located. But, says Job, valuable as sapphire is and difficult as it is to obtain, wisdom is far superior and cannot be paid for with such stones.​—Job 28:4-6, 12, 16.

Figurative Use. The lustrous beauty, as well as the pleasurable, captivating, and enthralling effect caused by viewing precious gems, was used figuratively in connection with visions of God’s glory. After the Law covenant was instituted, Moses, Aaron, Nadab, Abihu, and 70 of the older men of Israel received a vision of Jehovah, and beneath his feet “there was what seemed like a work of sapphire flagstones and like the very heavens for purity.” (Ex 24:8-11) In visions of the glory of Jehovah, Ezekiel twice beheld “the likeness of a throne” that was “like sapphire stone.”​—Eze 1:1, 26-28; 10:1-4.

When Jehovah, as Zion’s husbandly Owner, spoke of her restoration and beautification, he said: “I will lay your foundation with sapphires.” (Isa 54:5, 11) Similarly, the apostle John’s vision of the heavenly New Jerusalem revealed that sapphire was part of its foundations.​—Re 21:2, 19.

(Sarʹah) [Princess], Sarai (Sarʹai) [possibly, Contentious].

Half sister and wife of Abraham and mother of Isaac. (Ge 11:29; 20:12; Isa 51:2) Her original name was Sarai. (Ge 17:15) She was ten years younger than Abraham (Ge 17:17) and married him while they were living in the Chaldean city of Ur. (Ge 11:28, 29) She continued barren until her reproductive powers were miraculously revived after she had already stopped menstruating.​—Ge 18:11; Ro 4:19; Heb 11:11.

Sarah may have been in her 60’s when she left Ur with Abraham and took up residence in Haran. At the age of 65 she accompanied her husband from Haran to the land of Canaan. (Ge 12:4, 5) There they spent time at Shechem and in the mountainous region E of Bethel, as well as in various other places, before famine forced them to go to Egypt.​—Ge 12:6-10.

Though advanced in years, Sarah was very beautiful in appearance. Therefore, Abraham had earlier requested that, whenever necessary in the course of their travels, Sarah identify him as her brother, lest others kill him and then take her. (Ge 20:13) In Egypt this resulted in Sarah’s being taken into the household of Pharaoh on the recommendation of his princes. But divine intervention prevented Pharaoh from violating her. Thereafter he returned Sarah to Abraham, requesting that they leave the land. He also provided safe conduct for Abraham and his possessions.​—Ge 12:11-20.

It is noteworthy that an ancient papyrus tells of a Pharaoh who commissioned armed men to seize an attractive woman and kill her husband. Thus Abraham’s fear that he might be killed on account of Sarah was not unfounded. Instead of endangering his life in an unsuccessful attempt to save the honor of his wife in an alien land, Abraham followed what appeared to him to be the safest course. It should be remembered that Abraham was the owner of his wife. Sarah was happy to serve Jehovah and Abraham in this way. Never do the Scriptures censure Abraham for having done this.

Ten years after having originally entered Canaan, 75-year-old Sarah requested that Abraham have relations with her Egyptian maidservant Hagar in order to have children from her. (Ge 16:1-3) The resultant difficulties made it apparent that this was not Jehovah’s way of fulfilling the promise previously made to Abraham concerning the “seed.” (Ge 15:1-16) Becoming aware of her pregnancy, Hagar began despising her mistress. When Sarah voiced complaint, Abraham granted his wife full authority to deal with Hagar as her maidservant. Humiliated by Sarah, Hagar ran away from her mistress but returned in obedience to divine direction, after which she gave birth to Ishmael.​—Ge 16:4-16.

About 13 years after Ishmael’s birth, on the occasion of Abraham’s being divinely commanded to circumcise all the males of his household, Abraham was also instructed to call his wife, no longer by the name “Sarai,” but “Sarah,” meaning “Princess.” Regarding Sarah, God said: “I will bless her and also give you a son from her; and I will bless her and she shall become nations; kings of peoples will come from her.” (Ge 17:9-27) Not long thereafter, at Mamre, one of three angelic visitors reaffirmed that Sarah would give birth to a son. Overhearing this, “Sarah began to laugh inside herself, saying: ‘After I am worn out, shall I really have pleasure, my lord being old besides?’” Reproved for laughing, Sarah fearfully denied having done so. (Ge 18:1-15; Ro 9:9) Since Sarah is cited at Hebrews 11:11 as an example of faith, evidently her laughter was not an expression of complete unbelief but merely indicated that the thought of having a son in her old age apparently struck her as somewhat humorous. Sarah’s acknowledgment (inside herself) of Abraham as her lord was indicative of her obedience and subjection to her husbandly head, and her example is recommended to Christian wives.​—1Pe 3:5, 6.

Sarah and her husband began residing at Gerar. As previously, Abraham referred to his wife as his sister. The king of Gerar, Abimelech, then took Sarah. Again Jehovah’s intervention saved her from being violated. Upon returning Sarah to Abraham, Abimelech gave livestock and male and female servants to Abraham, perhaps in compensation for having temporarily deprived him of his wife. Additionally he gave Abraham a thousand pieces of silver (c. $2,200). These silver pieces were to serve as evidence that Sarah was cleared of all reproach against her as a moral woman.​—Ge 20.

At the age of 90, Sarah had the joy of giving birth to Isaac. She then exclaimed: “God has prepared laughter for me: everybody hearing of it will laugh at me.” Such laughter would evidently be prompted by delight and amazement over the birth of the child. Sarah nursed her son for about five years. When Isaac was finally weaned, Abraham spread a big feast. On that occasion Sarah observed Hagar’s son Ishmael, now about 19 years old, “poking fun,” or playing with Isaac in a mocking way. Apparently fearing for the future of her son Isaac, Sarah requested that Abraham dismiss Hagar and Ishmael. Abraham did so, subsequent to his receiving divine approval for this action.​—Ge 21:1-14.

About 32 years later Sarah died, at the age of 127 years, and Abraham buried her “in the cave of the field of Machpelah.”​—Ge 23:1, 19, 20.

Figures in a Symbolic Drama. In writing to the Galatians, the apostle Paul showed that Abraham’s wife Sarah represented “the Jerusalem above,” the mother of spirit-anointed Christians, the spiritual “seed” of Abraham. Like Sarah, “the Jerusalem above,” God’s symbolic woman, has never been in slavery, and therefore, her children are also free. For an individual to become a free child of “the Jerusalem above,” having “her freedom,” he must be emancipated from the bondage of sin by the Son of God. (Ga 4:22-31; 5:1, ftn) As Christ Jesus told the natural descendants of Abraham: “Most truly I say to you, Every doer of sin is a slave of sin. Moreover, the slave does not remain in the household forever; the son remains forever. Therefore if the Son sets you free, you will be actually free.”​—Joh 8:34-36; see FREE WOMAN; HAGAR.

(Saʹraph) [from a root meaning “burn”].

A descendant of Shelah of the tribe of Judah, one who took a Moabite wife (or wives) for himself. (JB, NW) Perhaps, according to alternate readings, Saraph ruled in (or for) Moab.​—1Ch 4:21, 22, AS, AT, KJ, Mo, Ro, RS.

(Sarʹdis).

The ancient capital of Lydia (in western Asia Minor) and a center of the worship of an Asiatic goddess, linked either with Artemis or with Cybele. Situated S of the Gediz (formerly Hermus) River, Sardis lay about 50 km (30 mi) S of Thyatira (now Akhisar) and about 75 km (47 mi) E of Smyrna (now Izmir). The acropolis of the city occupied an almost inaccessible rocky crag. Although a mountain range limited communication with areas in the S, Sardis commanded the E-W trade route. Its commercial activity and trade, the great fertility of surrounding land, and the manufacture of woolen cloth and carpets contributed much toward making Sardis wealthy and important. At one time Sardis may have had a population of about 50,000 persons.

In the sixth century B.C.E., Cyrus the Great defeated the last Lydian king, Croesus, and for over 200 years thereafter Sardis served as the capital for the western part of the Persian Empire. In 334 B.C.E. the city surrendered without resistance to Alexander the Great. Later it came under the rule of Pergamum and then Rome. A great earthquake nearly leveled Sardis in 17 C.E., but the city was rebuilt with generous aid from Rome.

The Jewish historian Josephus indicates that in the first century B.C.E. there was a large Jewish community in Sardis. (Jewish Antiquities, XIV, 259 [x, 24]) By the latter part of the first century C.E., the Christian congregation that had been established at Sardis needed to “wake up” spiritually. However, there were also persons associated with this congregation who had not ‘defiled their outer garments.’​—Re 3:1-6.

Prominent ruins at the ancient site of Sardis include those of the temple of the Ephesian Artemis (or Cybele), a Roman theater and stadium, and an ancient synagogue.​—PICTURE, Vol. 2, p. 946.

(sarʹdi·us).

A translucent, reddish-brown variety of the mineral chalcedony used as a gemstone. According to Pliny the Elder, it was named after the city of Sardis in Lydia, where it was first introduced to that part of the world. However, it has been suggested that the name originated with the Persian word sered, meaning “yellowish-red,” and accompanied the stone from its source in Persia. Sardius has also been called “sard,” “sardine,” and “sardoine.” Its beauty, its toughness, the ease with which it can be engraved, and the fact that it can be highly polished made it a most popular stone among artisans. The Hebrews possibly obtained their sardius stones from the Arabian Peninsula.

The sardius is referred to at Revelation 4:3, where the One seated upon his heavenly throne of splendor “is, in appearance, like . . . a precious red-colored stone [“a sardius,” ftn].” “The holy city, New Jerusalem,” is described as having a wall with foundations that “were adorned with every sort of precious stone,” the sixth being sardius.​—Re 21:2, 19, 20.

(sarʹdo·nyx).

An ornamental stone that is a variety of agate, a kind of chalcedony. It is an onyx composed of two or more layers of milk-white chalcedony and transparent red sard. However, the contrasting layer is sometimes golden or brown. The red layer showing through the white one appeared much like the color of a fingernail to the Greeks, which was probably why they applied to it the Greek word oʹnyx (meaning “fingernail”). Sardonyx is found in various places, including Palestine and Arabia.

The stone is mentioned once in the Bible, at Revelation 21:2, 19, 20, where the fifth foundation stone of “the holy city, New Jerusalem,” is a sardonyx stone.

(Sarʹgon) [from Akkadian, meaning “The King Is Legitimate”].

The successor of Shalmaneser V as king of Assyria. Historians refer to him as Sargon II. An earlier king, not of Assyria, but of Babylon is designated as Sargon I.

Sargon is mentioned by name but once in the Bible record. (Isa 20:1) In the early 1800’s the Biblical reference to him was often discounted by critics as of no historical value. However, from 1843 onward archaeological excavations uncovered the ruins of his palace at Khorsabad and the inscribed records of his royal annals.​—PICTURE, Vol. 1, pp. 955, 960.

In his annals Sargon made the claim: “I besieged and conquered Samaria (Sa-me-ri-na).” (Ancient Near Eastern Texts, edited by James B. Pritchard, 1974, p. 284) However, that appears to be simply a boastful claim by Sargon or those who sought to glorify him, in which the accomplishment of the preceding ruler was claimed for the new monarch. A Babylonian chronicle, which may be more neutral, states concerning Shalmaneser V: “He ravaged Samaria.” (Assyrian and Babylonian Chronicles, by A. K. Grayson, 1975, p. 73) The Bible, at 2 Kings 18:9, 10, states simply that Shalmaneser ‘laid siege’ to Samaria and that “they got to capture it.” Compare 2 Kings 17:1-6, which says that Shalmaneser the king of Assyria imposed tribute on Hoshea, the king of Samaria, and then states that later “the king of Assyria captured Samaria.”

Inscriptions relating to Sargon illustrate the folly of placing great confidence in the ancient secular records, even to the point of equating them in value with the Biblical record. Following Sargon’s accession to the throne, the Babylonians under Merodach-baladan revolted, with the support of Elam. Sargon warred against them at Der but was evidently unable to smash the revolt. Sargon’s inscriptions show him claiming a complete victory in the battle, yet the Babylonian Chronicle states that the Elamites defeated the Assyrians, and a text of Merodach-baladan boasts that he ‘overthrew the Assyrian hosts and smashed their weapons.’ The book Ancient Iraq observes: “Amusing detail: Merodach-Baladan’s inscription was found at Nimrud, where Sargon had taken it from Uruk . . . , replacing it in that city with a clay cylinder bearing his own and, of course, radically different version of the event. This shows that political propaganda and ‘cold war’ methods are not the privilege of our epoch.”​—By G. Roux, 1964, p. 258.

Sargon was more successful against a coalition formed by the kings of Hamath and Damascus and other allies, gaining the victory over them in a battle at Karkar on the Orontes River. Second Kings 17:24, 30 lists people from Hamath among those whom “the king of Assyria” settled in the cities of Samaria in place of the exiled Israelites.

According to Sargon’s records, in his fifth year he attacked and conquered Carchemish, a city of commercial and military importance on the upper Euphrates River. The standard Assyrian procedure of deportation of the city’s inhabitants and of their replacement by foreign elements followed. In Isaiah’s warning concerning the Assyrian menace (Isa 10:5-11), Carchemish, along with Hamath and other cities, is cited as an example of the crushing power of Assyria. Later, Sargon reports settling Arab tribes as colonists in Samaria.​—Ancient Near Eastern Texts, pp. 285, 286.

Assyrian records relate that the king of Ashdod, Azuri, engaged in rebellious conspiracy against the Assyrian yoke and that Sargon removed him, putting Azuri’s younger brother in his place. Another revolt followed, and Sargon launched an attack against Philistia and “besieged and conquered the cities Ashdod, Gath . . . (and) Asdudimmu.” (Ancient Near Eastern Texts, p. 286) It is apparently at this point that the Bible record mentions Sargon directly by name at Isaiah 20:1.

Following this, Sargon forced Merodach-baladan out of Babylon and conquered the city. Sargon’s name is listed on an inscription as king of Babylon for a period of five years.

Sargon’s aggressive reign brought the Assyrian Empire to a new peak of power and produced the last great Assyrian dynasty. Historians would credit Sargon with a rule of 17 years. Since he is supposed to have begun his rule at or shortly after the fall of Samaria in Hezekiah’s sixth year (2Ki 18:10), and since his son and successor to the throne, Sennacherib, invaded Judah in Hezekiah’s 14th year (2Ki 18:13), a 17-year rule for Sargon could be possible only if Sennacherib were a coregent at the time of his attacking Judah. It seems equally likely that the historians’ figure is in error. They certainly cannot rely on the eponym lists to establish these reigns, as is shown in the article CHRONOLOGY. The general unreliability of the Assyrian scribes and their practice of “adjusting” the different editions of the annals to suit the ruler’s ego are also discussed there.

During his reign Sargon erected a new capital city about 20 km (12 mi) NE of Nineveh, near the present-day village of Khorsabad. On a virgin site he laid out the city called Dur Sharrukin (what might be called Sargonsburg) and built a 200-room royal palace on a raised platform that was 7.5 m (25 ft) high and that covered an area of nearly 10 ha (25 acres). Colossal human-headed, winged bulls guarded the palace entrance, one pair being about 5 m (16 ft) high. The walls were adorned with frescoes as well as carved reliefs depicting his campaigns and feats, the total wall space occupied by these reliefs equaling an overall distance of about 2.5 km (1.5 mi). In one of his inscriptions Sargon says: “For me, Sargon, who dwells in this palace, may he [that is, the god Asshur] decree as my destiny long life, health of body, joy of heart, brightness of soul.” (Ancient Iraq, p. 262) Yet the records indicate that a year or so after the palace inauguration Sargon was killed, the manner of his death not being certain. His son Sennacherib replaced him.

(Saʹrid).

A city on the border of Zebulun. (Jos 19:10, 12) It is identified with Tell Shadud, some 10 km (6 mi) NNE of Megiddo.

(Sarʹse·chim) [possibly, Chief of the Slaves].

A Babylonian prince who was among the first to enter Jerusalem after the army broke through the walls in the summer of 607 B.C.E. (Jer 39:2, 3) His position and duties are not stated, though “Sarsechim” may have been a title, and its meaning may indicate his work.

[Resister].

In many places in the Hebrew Scriptures, the word sa·tanʹ appears without the definite article. Used in this way, it applies in its first appearance to the angel that stood in the road to resist Balaam as he set out with the objective of cursing the Israelites. (Nu 22:22, 32) In other instances it refers to individuals as resisters of other men. (1Sa 29:4; 2Sa 19:21, 22; 1Ki 5:4; 11:14, 23, 25) But it is used with the definite article ha to refer to Satan the Devil, the chief Adversary of God. (Job 1:6, ftn; 2:1-7; Zec 3:1, 2) In the Greek Scriptures the word sa·ta·nasʹ applies to Satan the Devil in nearly all of its occurrences and is usually accompanied by the definite article ho.

Origin. The Scriptures indicate that the creature known as Satan did not always have that name. Rather, this descriptive name was given to him because of his taking a course of opposition and resistance to God. The name he had before this is not given. God is the only Creator, and ‘his activity is perfect,’ with no injustice or unrighteousness. (De 32:4) Therefore, the one becoming Satan was, when created, a perfect, righteous creature of God. He is a spirit person, for he appeared in heaven in the presence of God. (Job chaps 1, 2; Re 12:9) Jesus Christ said of him: “That one was a manslayer when he began, and he did not stand fast in the truth, because truth is not in him.” (Joh 8:44; 1Jo 3:8) Jesus here shows that Satan was once in the truth, but forsook it. Beginning with his first overt act in turning Adam and Eve away from God, he was a manslayer, for he thereby brought about the death of Adam and Eve, which, in turn, brought sin and death to their offspring. (Ro 5:12) Throughout the Scriptures the qualities and actions attributed to him could be attributed only to a person, not to an abstract principle of evil. It is clear that the Jews, and Jesus and his disciples, knew that Satan existed as a person.

So, from a righteous, perfect start, this spirit person deviated into sin and degradation. The process bringing this about is described by James when he writes: “Each one is tried by being drawn out and enticed by his own desire. Then the desire, when it has become fertile, gives birth to sin; in turn, sin, when it has been accomplished, brings forth death.” (Jas 1:14, 15) In the course that Satan took, there seems to be, in some respects, a parallel with that of the king of Tyre as described in Ezekiel 28:11-19.​—See PERFECTION (The first sinner and the king of Tyre).

The Scriptural account, therefore, makes it plain that it was Satan who spoke through the medium of a serpent, seducing Eve into disobedience to God’s command. In turn, Eve induced Adam to take the same rebellious course. (Ge 3:1-7; 2Co 11:3) As a consequence of Satan’s use of the serpent, the Bible gives Satan the title “Serpent,” which came to signify “deceiver”; he also became “the Tempter” (Mt 4:3) and a liar, “the father of the lie.”​—Joh 8:44; Re 12:9.

Issue of Sovereignty Raised. When Satan approached Eve (through the speech of the serpent), he actually challenged the rightfulness and righteousness of Jehovah’s sovereignty. He intimated that God was unrightfully withholding something from the woman; he also declared that God was a liar in saying that she would die if she ate the forbidden fruit. Additionally, Satan made her believe she would be free and independent of God, becoming like God. By this means this wicked spirit creature raised himself higher than God in Eve’s eyes, and Satan became her god, even though Eve, at the time, apparently did not know the identity of the one misleading her. By his action he brought man and woman under his leadership and control, standing up as a rival god in opposition to Jehovah.​—Ge 3:1-7.

The Bible, in lifting the veil to give a glimpse into heavenly affairs, reveals that Satan later as a rival god appeared before Jehovah in heaven, challenging Jehovah to His face, saying that he could turn God’s servant Job, and by implication any servant of God, away from Him. He charged God, in effect, with unrighteously giving Job everything, along with full protection, so that he, Satan, could not test Job and show what was really in his heart, which, Satan intimated, was bad. He implied that Job served God primarily for selfish considerations. Satan made this point of his argument clear when he said: “Skin in behalf of skin, and everything that a man has he will give in behalf of his soul. For a change, thrust out your hand, please, and touch as far as his bone and his flesh and see whether he will not curse you to your very face.”​—Job 1:6-12; 2:1-7; see SOVEREIGNTY.

In this special case, Jehovah allowed Satan to bring calamity upon Job by not interfering when Satan brought about a raid from Sabean marauders as well as destruction of flocks and shepherds by what Job’s messenger called “the very fire of God” from the heavens; whether this was lightning or other fire is not stated. Satan also brought a raid by three bands of Chaldeans, as well as a windstorm. These things caused the death of all of Job’s children and destroyed his property. Finally, Satan inflicted a loathsome disease upon Job himself.​—Job 1:13-19; 2:7, 8.

These things reveal the might and power of the spirit creature Satan, as well as his vicious, murderous attitude.

It is important to note, however, that Satan recognized his impotence in the face of God’s express command, for he did not challenge God’s power and authority when God restricted him from taking Job’s life.​—Job 2:6.

Continued Opposition to God. By his challenge of God and his charging God’s servants with lack of integrity, Satan lived up to his title “Devil,” meaning “Slanderer,” which title he deserved for having slandered Jehovah God in the garden of Eden.

Joined by other wicked demons. Before the Flood of Noah’s day, it appears that other angels of God left their proper habitation in the heavens, as well as their assigned positions there. Materializing human bodies, they came to dwell on earth, marrying women and producing offspring called Nephilim. (Ge 6:1-4; 1Pe 3:19, 20; 2Pe 2:4; Jude 6; see NEPHILIM; SON[S] OF GOD.) These angels, having left God’s service, came under the control of Satan. Hence Satan is called “the ruler of the demons.” In one instance, when Jesus expelled demons from a man, the Pharisees accused him of doing so by the power of “Beelzebub, the ruler of the demons.” That they had reference to Satan is shown by Jesus’ answer: “If Satan expels Satan, he has become divided against himself.”​—Mt 12:22-27.

The apostle Paul associates Satan with “the wicked spirit forces in the heavenly places,” and he speaks of them as “the world rulers of this darkness.” (Eph 6:11, 12) As a governing force in the invisible realm immediately about the earth, Satan is “the ruler of the authority of the air.” (Eph 2:2) In Revelation he is shown to be the one “misleading the entire inhabited earth.” (Re 12:9) The apostle John said that “the whole world is lying in the power of the wicked one.” (1Jo 5:19) He is therefore “the ruler of this world.” (Joh 12:31) That is why James wrote that “the friendship with the world is enmity with God.”​—Jas 4:4.

His Fight to Destroy the “Seed.” Satan made early efforts to block the promise of the “seed” to come through Abraham. (Ge 12:7) He evidently tried to get Sarah contaminated so that she would be unfit to bear the seed; but God protected her. (Ge 20:1-18) He did everything possible to destroy the ones whom God chose as Abraham’s seed, the nation of Israel, by inducing them to sin and by bringing other nations against them, as Bible history shows throughout. A high point in Satan’s ambitious attempts in his fight against God, and what appeared to Satan to be success, was reached when the king of the Third World Power of Bible history, Babylon, took Jerusalem, overturning the rulership of King Zedekiah of the line of David, and destroyed the temple of Jehovah, desolating Jerusalem and Judah.​—Eze 21:25-27.

As an instrument of Satan, the ruling dynasty of Babylon, initially headed by Nebuchadnezzar, held Israel in exile for 68 years, until Babylon’s overthrow. Babylon had no intention of ever releasing its captives and so reflected Satan’s own boastful, ambitious attempts as a rival god opposed to the Universal Sovereign Jehovah. The Babylonian kings, worshiping their idol god Marduk, the goddess Ishtar, and a host of others, were actually worshipers of the demons and, as part of the world alienated from Jehovah, were under Satan’s domination.​—Ps 96:5; 1Co 10:20; Eph 2:12; Col 1:21.

Satan filled the king of Babylon with the ambition to have complete domination over the earth, even over “Jehovah’s throne” (1Ch 29:23) and “the stars of God,” the kings of the line of David sitting on the throne at Mount Moriah (by extension, Zion). This “king,” that is, the dynasty of Babylon, ‘lifted himself up’ in his own heart and was in his own eyes and in the eyes of his admirers a “shining one,” a “son of the dawn.” (In some translations the Latin Vulgate term “Lucifer” is retained. It is, however, merely the translation of the Hebrew word heh·lelʹ, “shining one.” Heh·lelʹ is not a name or a title but, rather, a term describing the boastful position taken by Babylon’s dynasty of kings of the line of Nebuchadnezzar.) (Isa 14:4-21) Since Babylon was a tool of Satan, its “king” reflected Satan’s own ambitious desire. Again, Jehovah came to the salvation of his people by restoring them to their land, until the real Seed of promise should come.​—Ezr 1:1-6.

Efforts to cause Jesus to stumble. Satan, no doubt identifying Jesus as the Son of God and the one who was prophesied to bruise him in the head (Ge 3:15), did everything he could to destroy Jesus. But, when announcing the conception of Jesus to Mary, the angel Gabriel told her: “Holy spirit will come upon you, and power of the Most High will overshadow you. For that reason also what is born will be called holy, God’s Son.” (Lu 1:35) Jehovah safeguarded his Son. The efforts to destroy Jesus when an infant were unsuccessful. (Mt 2:1-15) God continued to protect Jesus during his youth. After his baptism, Satan approached Jesus in the wilderness with three different strong temptations, thoroughly testing him on the issue of devotion to Jehovah. In one of his appeals Satan showed Jesus all the kingdoms of the world, claiming them to be his own. Jesus did not contradict this claim. Nonetheless, Jesus refused to contemplate even for the briefest instant of time any “shortcut” to kingship, nor did he consider for an instant the doing of anything merely to please himself. His immediate reply to Satan was, “Go away, Satan! For it is written, ‘It is Jehovah your God you must worship, and it is to him alone you must render sacred service.’” At this, “the Devil . . . retired from him until another convenient time.” (Mt 4:1-11; Lu 4:13) This illustrates the truth of James’ words later written: “Oppose the Devil, and he will flee from you.”​—Jas 4:7.

Jesus was ever alert to the danger of Satan’s machinations and to the fact that Satan desired to cause his destruction by getting him to entertain a thought contrary to Jehovah’s will. This was demonstrated when Peter, on one occasion, though with good intentions, was actually throwing temptation in his way. Jesus had spoken of the suffering and death he was to undergo. “At this Peter took him aside and commenced rebuking him, saying: ‘Be kind to yourself, Lord; you will not have this destiny at all.’ But, turning his back, he said to Peter: ‘Get behind me, Satan! You are a stumbling block to me, because you think, not God’s thoughts, but those of men.’”​—Mt 16:21-23.

Throughout Jesus’ ministry he was in danger; Satan used human agents to oppose Jesus, trying either to cause him to stumble or to kill him. At one time the people were about to seize Jesus to make him king. But he would not consider such a thing; he would accept kingship only in God’s time and way. (Joh 6:15) On another occasion those of his own hometown attempted to kill him. (Lu 4:22-30) He was constantly harassed by those whom Satan used to try to trap him. (Mt 22:15) But in all of Satan’s efforts, he failed to cause Jesus to sin in the slightest thought or deed. Satan was thoroughly proved to be a liar, and he failed in his challenge of God’s sovereignty and the integrity of God’s servants. As Jesus said, shortly before his death: “Now there is a judging of this world; now the ruler of this world will be cast out”​—completely discredited. (Joh 12:31) Satan had a grip on all mankind through sin. But, knowing that Satan would soon bring about his death, Jesus, after celebrating his last Passover with his disciples, could say: “The ruler of the world is coming. And he has no hold on me.”​—Joh 14:30.

A few hours later, Satan succeeded in having Jesus put to death, first getting control of one of Jesus’ apostles, then using the Jewish leaders and the Roman World Power to execute Jesus in a painful and ignominious manner. (Lu 22:3; Joh 13:26, 27; chaps 18, 19) Here Satan acted as “the one having the means to cause death, that is, the Devil.” (Heb 2:14; Lu 22:53) But in this Satan failed to promote his cause; he only unwillingly fulfilled prophecy, which required that Jesus die as a sacrifice. The death of Jesus in blamelessness provided the ransom price for humankind, and by his death (and subsequent resurrection by God) Jesus could now help sinful humankind to escape from the grip of Satan, for, as it is written, Jesus became blood and flesh “that through his death he might bring to nothing the one having the means to cause death, that is, the Devil; and that he might emancipate all those who for fear of death were subject to slavery all through their lives.”​—Heb 2:14, 15.

Continues to fight Christians. After Jesus’ death and resurrection, Satan continued to wage a bitter fight against Christ’s followers. The accounts in the book of Acts and in the letters of the Christian Greek Scriptures furnish numerous proofs of this. Paul said that he had been given “a thorn in the flesh, an angel of Satan, to keep slapping” him. (2Co 12:7) And as in the case with Eve, Satan disguised his real nature and purposes by “transforming himself into an angel of light,” and he had agents, ministers who “also keep transforming themselves into ministers of righteousness.” (2Co 11:14, 15) Examples of these were the false apostles who fought against Paul (2Co 11:13) and those in Smyrna ‘who said they themselves were Jews, and yet they were not but were a synagogue of Satan.’ (Re 2:9) Satan never ceased in making accusations “day and night” against Christians, challenging their integrity, as he did Job’s. (Re 12:10; Lu 22:31) But Christians have “a helper with the Father, Jesus Christ, a righteous one,” who appears before the person of God in their behalf.​—1Jo 2:1.

His Abyssing and Final Destruction. At the time of Satan’s act in causing Eve and then Adam to rebel against God, God said to the serpent (actually speaking to Satan, since a mere beast could not understand the issues involved): “Dust is what you will eat all the days of your life. And I shall put enmity between you and the woman and between your seed and her seed. He will bruise you in the head and you will bruise him in the heel.” (Ge 3:14, 15) Here God made it known that Satan, cast outside God’s holy organization, would have no life-sustaining hope but would ‘eat dust,’ as it were, until he died. The “seed” eventually was to bruise him in the head, which would signify a death wound. When Christ was on earth, the demons identified him as the One who was to hurl them into the “abyss,” evidently a condition of restraint that in the parallel account is spoken of as “torment.”​—Mt 8:29; Lu 8:30, 31; see TORMENT.

In the book of Revelation, we find described the last days of Satan and his end. Revelation reports that at the time of Christ’s taking Kingdom power, Satan is hurled down out of heaven to the earth, no longer having access to the heavens, as he did in the days of Job and for centuries thereafter. (Re 12:7-12) After this defeat Satan has only a “short period of time,” during which he makes war with “the remaining ones of [the woman’s] seed, who observe the commandments of God and have the work of bearing witness to Jesus.” In his efforts to devour the remaining ones of the woman’s seed, he is called “the dragon,” a swallower or crusher. (Re 12:16, 17; compare Jer 51:34, where Jeremiah speaks for Jerusalem and Judah, saying: “Nebuchadrezzar the king of Babylon . . . has swallowed me down like a big snake [or, “a dragon,” ftn].”) In the earlier description of his fight against the woman and his efforts to devour her man child, he is pictured as “a great fiery-colored dragon.”​—Re 12:3.

Revelation’s 20th chapter describes Satan’s being bound and abyssed for a thousand years, at the hands of a great angel​—doubtless Jesus Christ, who has the key of the abyss and who is the “seed” to bruise Satan’s head.​—Compare Re 1:18; see ABYSS.

Satan’s final effort culminates in permanent defeat. The prophecy says that he is to be let loose for “a little while” as soon as Christ’s Thousand Year Reign is ended and that he will lead rebellious persons in another attack upon God’s sovereignty; but he is hurled (along with his demons) into the lake of fire and sulfur, everlasting destruction.​—Re 20:1-3, 7-10; compare Mt 25:41; see LAKE OF FIRE.

What is meant by ‘handing a person over to Satan for destruction of the flesh’?

In instructing the congregation at Corinth as to the action to take toward a member of the congregation who had wickedly been committing incest with the wife of his father, the apostle Paul wrote: “Hand such a man over to Satan for the destruction of the flesh.” (1Co 5:5) This was a command to expel the man from the congregation, cutting off all fellowship with him. (1Co 5:13) Turning him over to Satan would put him out of the congregation and into the world over which Satan is the god and ruler. Like “a little leaven” in “the whole lump” of dough, this man was “the flesh,” or fleshly element inside the congregation; and by removing this incestuous man, the spiritually minded congregation would destroy “the flesh” from the midst of it. (1Co 5:6, 7) Similarly, Paul handed Hymenaeus and Alexander over to Satan, because they had thrust aside faith and a good conscience and had experienced shipwreck concerning their faith.​—1Ti 1:20.

Later, the incestuous man in Corinth apparently repented from his wrongdoing and cleaned up, prompting the apostle Paul to recommend his being received back into the congregation. In exhorting them to forgiveness, he gave as one of the reasons, “that we may not be overreached by Satan, for we are not ignorant of his designs.” (2Co 2:11) In the first instance, Satan had brought the congregation into a bad condition in which they had to be reproved by the apostle, for they were too lenient, in fact, were letting the wicked man carry on his practice without regard for the reproach it brought, being “puffed up” in allowing it. (1Co 5:2) But on the other hand, if they now swung to the other extreme and refused forgiveness to the repentant one, Satan would be overreaching them in another direction, namely, that he could take advantage of their becoming hard and unforgiving. Through God’s Word, Christians are enlightened to realize Satan’s existence, his power, his designs and purposes, and his manner of operation, so that they can fight this spiritual foe with the spiritual weapons God provides.​—Eph 6:13-17.

(saʹtrap).

A viceroy, or governor of a province, in the Babylonian and Persian empires appointed by the king as a chief ruler of a jurisdictional district. Daniel mentioned satraps as serving under Nebuchadnezzar in the Babylonian Empire. (Da 3:1-3) After the Medes and Persians conquered Babylon, Darius the Mede set up 120 satraps over his entire kingdom. (Da 6:1) Ezra had dealings with satraps in the time of King Artaxerxes of Persia. (Ezr 8:36) In the days of Esther and Mordecai, the satraps supervised 127 jurisdictional districts under the Persian king Ahasuerus. (Es 1:1) Being the king’s official representatives, they were responsible to him and had quite free access to his presence. Consequently, they wielded considerable influence and power as civil and political chiefs. They collected taxes and remitted to the royal court the stipulated tribute.

Daniel, as one of the three high officials under Darius over the 120 satraps, distinguished himself above all of them to the point that the king was intending to elevate him over all the kingdom. Because they were envious, the officials and the satraps schemed to get Daniel thrown into a lions’ pit. The Bible does not state how many of the satraps personally appeared before the king with the accusation. But Jehovah proved to be with Daniel, sending his angel to shut the mouths of the lions. Then Darius had these official slanderers of Daniel, with their wives and their sons, thrown into the pit to be killed by the lions.​—Da 6:1-24.

The book History of the Persian Empire says of the satrapal organization under Cyrus the Persian: “Each [province] was ruled by a satrap whose title meant literally ‘protector of the Kingdom.’ As successor to a former king, ruling a truly enormous territory, he was in point of fact himself a monarch and was surrounded by a miniature court. Not only did he carry on the civil administration but he was also commander of the satrapal levies. When his office became hereditary, the threat to the central authority could not be ignored. To meet this threat, certain checks were instituted; his secretary, his chief financial official, and the general in charge of the garrison stationed in the citadel of each of the satrapal capitals were under the direct orders of, and reported directly to, the great king in person. Still more effective control was exercised by the ‘king’s eye’ (or ‘king’s ear’ or ‘king’s messenger’), [an official] who every year made a careful inspection of each province.”​—By A. T. Olmstead, 1948, p. 59.

[Asked [of God]; Inquired [of God]].

1. A Benjamite descended from Jeiel (presumably also called Abiel) through Ner and Kish (1Ch 8:29-33; 9:35-39; see ABIEL No. 1); the first divinely selected king of Israel. (1Sa 9:15, 16; 10:1) Saul came from a wealthy family. A handsome man, standing head and shoulders taller than all others of his nation, he possessed great physical strength and agility. (1Sa 9:1, 2; 2Sa 1:23) The name of his wife was Ahinoam. Saul fathered at least seven sons, Jonathan, Ishvi, Malchi-shua, Abinadab, Ish-bosheth (Eshbaal), Armoni, and Mephibosheth, as well as two daughters, Merab and Michal. Abner, evidently King Saul’s uncle (see ABNER), served as chief of the Israelite army.​—1Sa 14:49, 50; 2Sa 2:8; 21:8; 1Ch 8:33.

The young man Saul lived during a turbulent time of Israel’s history. Philistine oppression had reduced the nation to a helpless state militarily (1Sa 9:16; 13:19, 20), and the Ammonites under King Nahash threatened aggression. (1Sa 12:12) Whereas Samuel had faithfully judged Israel, his sons were perverters of justice. (1Sa 8:1-3) Viewing the situation from a human standpoint and, therefore, losing sight of Jehovah’s ability to protect his people, the older men of Israel approached Samuel with the request that he appoint a king over them.​—1Sa 8:4, 5.

Anointed as King. Thereafter Jehovah guided matters to provide the occasion for anointing Saul as king. With his attendant, Saul looked for the lost she-asses of his father. Since the search proved to be fruitless, he decided to return home. But his attendant suggested that they seek the assistance of the “man of God” known to be in a nearby city. This led to Saul’s meeting Samuel. (1Sa 9:3-19) In his first conversation with Samuel, Saul showed himself to be a modest man. (1Sa 9:20, 21) After eating a sacrificial meal with Saul, Samuel continued speaking with him. The next morning Samuel anointed Saul as king. To confirm that God was with Saul, Samuel gave him three prophetic signs, all of which were fulfilled that day.​—1Sa 9:22–10:16.

Later, at Mizpah, when chosen as king by lot (1Sa 10:20, 21, JB; NE), Saul bashfully hid among the luggage. Found, he was presented as king, and the people approvingly shouted: “Let the king live!” Escorted by valiant men, Saul returned to Gibeah. Though good-for-nothing men spoke disparagingly of him and despised him, Saul remained silent.​—1Sa 10:17-27.

Early Victories. About a month later (according to the reading of the Greek Septuagint and Dead Sea Scroll 4QSam^a in 1Sa 11:1) Ammonite King Nahash demanded the surrender of Jabesh in Gilead. (See NAHASH No. 1.) When messengers brought news of this to Saul, God’s spirit became operative upon him. He quickly rallied an army of 330,000 men and led it to victory. This resulted in a strengthening of Saul’s position as king, the people even requesting that those who had spoken against him be put to death. But Saul, appreciating that Jehovah had granted the victory, did not consent to this. Subsequently, at Gilgal, Saul’s kingship was confirmed anew.​—1Sa 11:1-15.

Next Saul undertook steps to break the power of the Philistines over Israel. He chose 3,000 Israelites, placing 2,000 under himself and the remainder under his son Jonathan. Evidently acting at his father’s direction, “Jonathan struck down the garrison of the Philistines that was in Geba.” In retaliation, the Philistines assembled a mighty force and began camping at Michmash.​—1Sa 13:3, 5.

Sins Presumptuously. Meanwhile Saul had withdrawn from Michmash to Gilgal in the Jordan Valley. There he waited seven days for Samuel. But Samuel did not come at the appointed time. Fearing that the enemy would sweep down upon him when he had not secured Jehovah’s help and that further delay would result in losing his army, Saul ‘compelled himself’ to offer up the burnt sacrifice. Samuel, on arriving, condemned Saul’s ‘foolish act’ as sinful. Evidently, Saul’s sin consisted of his presumptuously going ahead with the sacrifice and not obeying Jehovah’s commandment, which had been given through his representative Samuel, to wait for Samuel to offer up the sacrifice. (Compare 1Sa 10:8.) As a consequence of this act, Saul’s kingdom was not to last.​—1Sa 13:1-14.

In the progress of the campaign against the Philistines, Saul pronounced a curse upon anyone partaking of food before vengeance was executed on the enemy. This rash oath led to adverse consequences. The Israelites tired, and though they triumphed over the Philistines, their victory was not as great as it might have been. Famished, they did not take time to drain the blood from the animals they afterward slaughtered, thereby violating God’s law concerning the sanctity of blood. Not having heard his father’s oath, Jonathan ate some honey. Saul, therefore, pronounced the death sentence upon him. But the people redeemed Jonathan, for he had been instrumental in Israel’s gaining the victory.​—1Sa 14:1-45.

Rejected by God. Throughout Saul’s reign there were repeated battles against the Philistines and other peoples, including the Moabites, Ammonites, Edomites, and Amalekites. (1Sa 14:47, 48, 52) In the war against the Amalekites, Saul transgressed Jehovah’s command by sparing the best of their flock and herd as well as their king, Agag. When asked why he had not obeyed Jehovah’s voice, Saul disclaimed guilt and shifted the blame onto the people. Only after Samuel emphasized the serious nature of the sin and said that, because of it, Jehovah was rejecting him as king did Saul acknowledge that his error was the result of his fearing the people. After Saul pleaded with Samuel to honor him in front of the older men and in front of Israel by accompanying him, Samuel did appear with him before them. Then Samuel himself proceeded to put Agag to death. After that, Samuel parted from Saul and they had no further association.​—1Sa 15:1-35.

It was after this and after the anointing of David as Israel’s future king that Jehovah’s spirit left Saul. From then on “a bad spirit from Jehovah terrorized him.” Having withdrawn his spirit from Saul, Jehovah made it possible for a bad spirit to gain possession of him, depriving Saul of his peace of mind and stirring up his feelings, thoughts, and imaginations in a wrong way. Saul’s failure to obey Jehovah indicated a bad inclination of mind and heart, against which God’s spirit offered Saul no protection or resistive force. However, since Jehovah had permitted the “bad spirit” to replace his spirit and terrorize Saul, it could be termed a “bad spirit from Jehovah,” so that Saul’s servants spoke of it as “God’s bad spirit.” On the recommendation of one of his attendants, Saul requested that David be his court musician to calm him when he was troubled by the “bad spirit.”​—1Sa 16:14-23; 17:15.

Relationships With David. Thereafter the Philistines threatened Israel’s security. While they were camped on one side of the Low Plain of Elah and King Saul’s forces were camped on the opposite side, Goliath, morning and evening, for 40 days, emerged from the Philistine camp, challenging Israel to furnish a man to fight him in single combat. King Saul promised to enrich and to form a marriage alliance with any Israelite who might strike down Goliath. Also, the house of the victor’s father was to be “set free,” probably from the payment of taxes and compulsory service. (Compare 1Sa 8:11-17.) When David arrived on the scene with food supplies for his brothers and certain portions for the chief of the thousand (possibly the commander under whom David’s brothers served), his questionings apparently suggested his willingness to answer the challenge. This led to his being brought to Saul and to his subsequent victory over Goliath.​—1Sa 17:1-58.

Develops enmity for David. Saul thereafter placed David over the men of war. This eventually resulted in David’s being celebrated in song more than the king himself. Saul, therefore, came to view David with suspicion and envious hatred. On one occasion, as David was playing on the harp, Saul ‘began behaving like a prophet.’ Not that Saul began to utter prophecies, but he evidently manifested extraordinary feeling and a physical disturbance like that of a prophet just prior to prophesying or when prophesying. While in that unusual, disturbed state, Saul twice hurled a spear at David. Failing in his attempts to pin David to the wall, Saul later agreed to give his daughter Michal in marriage to David upon the presentation of a hundred foreskins of the Philistines. Saul’s intent in making this offer was that David would die at their hands. The scheme failed, David presenting, not 100, but 200 foreskins to form a marriage alliance with Saul. The king’s fear of and hatred for David therefore intensified. To his son Jonathan and to all of his servants, Saul spoke about his desire to put David to death. When Jonathan interceded, Saul promised not to kill David. Nevertheless, David was forced to flee for his life, as Saul hurled a spear at him for the third time. Saul even had messengers watch David’s house and commanded that he be put to death in the morning.​—1Sa 18:1–19:11.

That night David made his escape through a window of his house and ran to Ramah, where Samuel resided. With Samuel he then took up dwelling in Naioth. When news of this reached Saul, he sent messengers to seize David. But, upon arriving, they “began behaving like prophets.” Evidently God’s spirit operated upon them in such a way that they completely forgot the purpose of their mission. When this also happened to two other groups of messengers dispatched by him, Saul personally went to Ramah. He likewise came under the control of God’s spirit, and that for a prolonged period, this evidently providing David sufficient time to flee.​—1Sa 19:12–20:1; see PROPHET (Means of Appointment and Inspiration).

David spares Saul’s life as God’s anointed. After these unsuccessful attempts on David’s life, Jonathan, for a second time, spoke out in behalf of David. But Saul became so enraged that he hurled a spear at his own son. (1Sa 20:1-33) From that time onward Saul relentlessly pursued David. Learning that High Priest Ahimelech had assisted David, Saul ordered that he and his associate priests be executed. (1Sa 22:6-19) Later, he planned to attack the Judean city of Keilah because David was residing there but abandoned the plan when David escaped. Saul continued the chase, hunting for him in wilderness regions. A Philistine raid, however, brought his pursuit to a temporary halt and enabled David to seek refuge in the Wilderness of En-gedi. On two occasions thereafter Saul came into a position that would have allowed David to kill him. But David refused to put out his hand against Jehovah’s anointed one. The second time Saul, learning of David’s restraint, even promised not to do injury to David. But this was an insincere expression, for it was only when he learned that David had run away to the Philistine city of Gath that he abandoned the chase.​—1Sa 23:10–24:22; 26:1–27:1, 4.

Saul turns to spiritism. About a year or two later (1Sa 29:3), the Philistines came against Saul. Without Jehovah’s spirit and guidance, and abandoned to a disapproved mental state, he turned to spiritism, a transgression worthy of death. (Le 20:6) Disguised, Saul went to see a spirit medium at En-dor, requesting that she bring up the dead Samuel for him. From her description of what she saw, Saul concluded that it was Samuel. However, it should be noted that Jehovah had not answered Saul’s inquiries and obviously did not do so by means of a practice condemned by His law as warranting the death penalty. (Le 20:27) Therefore, what the woman said must have been of demonic origin. The message gave no comfort to Saul but filled him with fear.​—1Sa 28:4-25; see SPIRITISM.

Saul’s death. In the ensuing conflict with the Philistines, Saul was severely wounded at Mount Gilboa and three of his sons were slain. As his armor-bearer refused to put him to death, Saul fell upon his own sword. (1Sa 31:1-7) About three days later a young Amalekite came to David, boasting that he had put the wounded king to death. This was evidently a lie, designed to gain David’s favor. David, however, commanded that the man be executed on the basis of the claim, because Saul had been Jehovah’s anointed one.​—2Sa 1:1-15.

Meanwhile the Philistines had fastened the corpses of Saul and his three sons on the wall of Beth-shan. Courageous men of Jabesh-gilead, however, retrieved the bodies, burned them, and then buried the bones.​—1Sa 31:8-13.

Years later, during David’s reign, the bloodguilt that had been incurred by Saul and his house in connection with the Gibeonites was avenged when seven of his descendants were slain.​—2Sa 21:1-9.

2. A Benjamite of the city of Tarsus in Asia Minor who persecuted Christ’s followers but later became an apostle of Jesus Christ. (Ac 9:1, 4, 17; 11:25; 21:39; Php 3:5) In all of his letters he referred to himself by his Latin name Paul.​—See PAUL.

One who preserves or delivers from danger or destruction. Jehovah is identified as the principal Savior, the only Source of deliverance. (Isa 43:11; 45:21) He was the Savior and Deliverer of Israel, time and again. (Ps 106:8, 10, 21; Isa 43:3; 45:15; Jer 14:8) He saved not only the nation but also individuals who served him. (2Sa 22:1-3) Often his salvation was through men raised up by him as saviors. (Ne 9:27) During the period of the Judges, these special saviors were divinely selected and empowered to deliver Israel from foreign oppression. (Jg 2:16; 3:9, 15) While the judge lived, he served to keep Israel in the right way, and this brought them relief from their enemies. (Jg 2:18) When Jesus was on earth, Jehovah was his Savior, supporting and strengthening him to maintain integrity through his strenuous trials.​—Heb 5:7; Ps 28:8.

Along with his role as Savior, Jehovah is also the “Repurchaser.” (Isa 49:26; 60:16) In the past he redeemed his people Israel from captivity. In delivering Christians from sin’s bondage, he does the repurchasing through his Son Jesus Christ (1Jo 4:14), Jehovah’s provision for salvation, who is therefore exalted as “Chief Agent and Savior.” (Ac 5:31) Accordingly, Jesus Christ can rightly be called “our Savior,” even though he performs the salvation as the agent of Jehovah. (Tit 1:4; 2Pe 1:11) The name Jesus, given to God’s Son by angelic direction, means “Jehovah Is Salvation,” for, said the angel, “he will save his people from their sins.” (Mt 1:21; Lu 1:31) This name points out that Jehovah is the Source of salvation, accomplished through Jesus. For this reason we find the Father and the Son spoken of together in connection with salvation.​—Tit 2:11-13; 3:4-6.

Salvation is provided by Jehovah through Jesus Christ for “all sorts of men.” (1Ti 4:10) He saves them from sin and death (Ro 8:2), from Babylon the Great (Re 18:2, 4), from this world under Satan’s control (Joh 17:16; Col 1:13), and from destruction and everlasting death (Re 7:14-17; 21:3, 4). “A great crowd” is shown at Revelation 7:9, 10 attributing salvation to God and to the Lamb.

The ransom sacrifice is the basis for salvation, and as King and everlasting High Priest, Christ Jesus has the authority and power “to save completely those who are approaching God through him.” (Heb 7:23-25; Re 19:16) He is “a savior of this body,” the congregation of his anointed followers, and also of all who exercise faith in him.​—Eph 5:23; 1Jo 4:14; Joh 3:16, 17.

A cutting tool with a notched or toothed blade and one or two handles. Early saws did not cut in both directions; some were designed to cut when pulled toward the user; others, when pushed away. Egyptian saws were generally made of bronze and usually had teeth that slanted in the direction of the handle. Such a saw would cut when drawn toward the person using it. The blade was either inserted in the handle or fastened to it by means of thongs. Two-handled saws having iron blades were in use among the Assyrians. Hebrew carpenters employed the saw to cut wood, and their masons used saws capable of cutting stone.​—Isa 10:15; 1Ki 7:9.

David put captive Ammonites to work at such tasks as sawing stones. (2Sa 12:29-31) Their tools included “axes,” or, literally, “stone saws,” according to the Masoretic text at 1 Chronicles 20:3. In some cases it appears that copper-bladed saws with stone teeth were used to cut stone. But apparently an abrasive such as emery powder was sometimes put under the cutting edge of a saw having a copper or a bronze blade so as to facilitate the cutting of stone.

Persecution of faithful pre-Christian witnesses of Jehovah was so severe at times that some were killed by being “sawn asunder.” (Heb 11:37, 38) According to tradition, wicked King Manasseh had Isaiah put to death in that extremely painful manner, though the Scriptures do not say so.

A number of Hebrew and Greek words are appropriately rendered “scales”; the expression has various meanings.

Animal Scales. Flattened, rigid plates forming part of the outer body covering of many fishes and reptiles. The Law ruled as ceremonially clean for food “everything that has fins and scales in the waters.” Water animals lacking such could not be eaten; they were “a loathsome thing.” (Le 11:9, 10, 12; De 14:9, 10) Thus scales (Heb., qas·qas·simʹ, plural of qas·qeʹseth) were one of the easily recognizable signs as to whether a certain fish could be eaten. Though there are four types of fish scales, most common are ctenoid scales (with a comblike edge) and cycloid scales (with a rounded border). These are arranged in overlapping rows, forming a thin, light, and flexible covering.

The same Hebrew word is used in Ezekiel 29:4, where the Egyptian Pharaoh is symbolically described as what seems to be a crocodile. The entire body of a crocodile is covered with strong plates of horn set in its leathery skin. Job 41:15-17 apparently also refers to the scales (AS, NW, MR) of the crocodile, in this case using the Hebrew word that is often translated “shield.”​—See LEVIATHAN.

Scales for Weighing. A device for weighing objects. The ancients were acquainted with the simple beam scale, or balance. It consisted of a horizontal bar, or beam, pivoted at the center on a peg or cord, and from each end of the beam hung a pan or hook. The object to be weighed was put in one pan (or hung on one hook, as with a small bag of money), and the known weights were put on the other side. (Jer 32:10; Isa 46:6; Ge 23:15, 16; Eze 5:1; see MONEY.) During a famine, even food might be measured carefully on a balance. The rider of the black horse described at Revelation 6:5 held a pair of scales “for measuring bread by weight, to personify . . . bad times, when provisions became cruelly expensive.”​—The Expositor’s Greek Testament, edited by W. Nicoll, 1967, Vol. V, p. 390.

Jehovah commanded honesty and accuracy in using scales (Le 19:35, 36), for a cheating pair of scales was detestable to him. (Pr 11:1; 16:11; Eze 45:10) Scales could be made inaccurate by having the arms of unequal length, or they could be rendered less sensitive by having the arms relatively short or by making the beam thicker and heavier. At times Israelites used scales fraudulently (Ho 12:7; Am 8:5), and they multiplied the deception by using inaccurate weights, one set for buying and another for selling.​—Pr 20:23.

Weighing scales were spoken of figuratively, as when Job mentioned ‘weighing his adversity on scales.’ (Job 6:2) The littleness of earthling men was emphasized by saying that they are lighter than an exhalation on the scales (Ps 62:9), and the nations were compared to an insignificant film of dust on the scales from the standpoint of Jehovah, who could, as it were, weigh all the hills in the scales. (Isa 40:12, 15) Scales were sometimes used to represent accurate measurement in judgment.​—Job 31:6; Da 5:27.

Scales of Armor. A coat of mail might have had scales (Heb., qas·qas·simʹ, plural of qas·qeʹseth) attached to it. These were small metal plates that overlapped and provided a relatively flexible armor plate.​—1Sa 17:5; see ARMS, ARMOR (Coat of Mail).

Scales on Paul’s Eyes. When Paul was cured of the blindness resulting from Jesus’ appearing to him, “what looked like scales” fell from his eyes. (Ac 9:18) Some scholars take the view that nothing actually fell from Paul’s eyes but that this is simply figurative language meaning that Paul regained his sight. However, numerous modern translations indicate that something really fell from Paul’s eyes.​—AT, NW, RS, Sd, We.

An object such as a pole or pile of stones, usually in a form suggesting a human figure, arranged in a field in such a way as to frighten away birds or other animals. Jeremiah likened the idols of the nations to “a scarecrow [Heb., toʹmer] of a cucumber field.” (Jer 10:5) The word toʹmer is elsewhere rendered “palm tree.” (Jg 4:5) Truly the idols of the nations amounted to no more than a scarecrow, a falsity.​—AT, Mo, NE, NW, RS.

See COLORS.

Among the luxury items that traders brought to symbolic “Babylon the Great” were articles in “scented wood,” or in “thyine wood.” (Re 17:5; 18:11, 12, ftn) Such wood, likely from N Africa, was prized by the ancient Romans for the making of very costly furniture. The most costly wood was that from the lower part of the trunk, because of the variety in the grain and the broadness of the sections obtainable. The wood was fragrant, hard, and took a high polish; and because of wavy or spiral lines in the grain, some of the tables came to be called “tiger tables” or “panther tables.” Among the Greeks the balsamic wood was used in temple worship, and its name is derived from the Greek term for making burnt offerings.

The tree producing this scented wood is understood to be the sandarac tree (Tetraclinis articulata), a coniferous tree native to N Africa and of the cypress family, growing to a height of 4.5 to 7.5 m (15 to 25 ft). Its wood has a rich reddish-brown hue and is finely marked.

A baton or rod carried by a ruler as an emblem of royal authority. At times “scepter” is used in a figurative sense to represent kings (Eze 19:10, 11, 14) or authority (Zec 10:11), especially royal authority.

In ancient Persia, unless the monarch held out the golden scepter, anyone who appeared uninvited before the king was put to death.​—Es 4:11; 5:2; 8:4.

Jacob’s prophetic words that ‘the scepter would not turn aside from Judah’ indicated that the kingship would come to be the possession of the tribe of Judah and would remain such until Shiloh came. (Ge 49:10; see COMMANDER’S STAFF.) Centuries later the Babylonians, acting as Jehovah’s executional “sword,” destroyed the kingdom of Judah and took its king captive. This is alluded to by Jehovah’s words through Ezekiel: “A sword, a sword! It has been sharpened, and it is also polished. . . . Is it rejecting the scepter of my own son, as it does every tree? . . . For an extermination has been made, and what of it if it is rejecting also the scepter?” (Eze 21:9, 10, 13) Thus the “sword” treated the Judean “scepter” of the Davidic dynasty like every tree (to be chopped down) or like other kings or kingdoms that it brought to ruin.

Psalm 2, a prophecy that Peter applied to Jesus Christ (Ac 4:25-27), showed that Jehovah’s anointed one would use an iron scepter to break the nations to pieces. (Ps 2:2, 6, 9; compare Re 12:5; 19:15.) As Jesus Christ always uses his royal authority in the right way, his scepter is one of uprightness.​—Ps 45:6, 7; Heb 1:8, 9.

Psalm 125:3 states that “the scepter of wickedness will not keep resting upon the lot of the righteous ones.” These words give assurance that the righteous will not always be oppressed by those who exercise authority in a wicked way.

(Sceʹva).

A Jewish “chief priest.” His seven sons were among “certain ones of the roving Jews who practiced the casting out of demons.” In one instance, in the city of Ephesus, they tried to exorcise a demon by saying, “I solemnly charge you by Jesus whom Paul preaches.” The wicked spirit responded by saying: “I know Jesus and I am acquainted with Paul; but who are you?” The man obsessed by the spirit then leaped upon Sceva’s seven sons and drove them out of the house naked and wounded. This resulted in magnifying the name of the Lord and caused many to give heed to the good news that Paul was preaching.​—Ac 19:13-20.

No Jewish priest named Sceva is elsewhere mentioned, unless Sceva was a Latin name for a priest otherwise known by a Hebrew name.

An institution that provides instruction. The word “school” is derived from the Greek skho·leʹ, which means, basically, “leisure”; then, that for which leisure is employed​—discussion, lecture, study, learning.

The Creator placed the responsibility upon parents to teach their offspring the true meaning of life, physical life as well as spiritual life. In ancient Israel, he also set aside the tribe of Levi to provide religious education.​—See EDUCATION.

At a later time, places of advanced religious schooling developed among the Jews. For example, Saul (Paul) had studied at the feet of Gamaliel. The Jews challenged the qualifications of anyone claiming to instruct in God’s law if he had not studied at their schools.​—Ac 22:3; Joh 7:15.

When he was in Ephesus, Paul gave talks in the synagogue for a period of three months, since synagogues were places of instruction. But when some strongly opposed the good news, Paul withdrew the disciples to the school auditorium of Tyrannus, where he gave talks daily for two years. No details are provided as to the purpose for which that school had been established, but Paul was evidently welcome to use the facilities, perhaps for a number of hours each day.​—Ac 19:8-10, ftn.

Meeting places of the Christian congregation served as schools where the scrolls of the Hebrew Scriptures as well as the writings of the apostles and their associates could be considered. Few Christians could possess all the Hebrew scrolls or copies of all the Christian letters. The meetings provided an opportunity for thorough examination and discussion of these. (Col 4:16) Poor Christians who did not possess other writing material likely wrote down Bible texts for personal study and use on ostraca, that is, pieces of broken pottery. As they heard the Scriptures read or had access to the scrolls at the meeting, they could copy them in ink on the pottery fragments. At the same time schooling at home for the entire family continued as a vital part of Christian education. (Eph 6:4; 1Co 14:35) No separate arrangement for children, as with the modern-day “Sunday school,” was anywhere authorized or practiced by the Jews or by the Christian apostles.

[Heb., ʽaq·ravʹ; Gr., skor·piʹos].

A small animal (an arachnid, not included by biologists as among insects) classified in the same group as spiders. But, unlike other arachnids, the female scorpion gives birth to living offspring instead of depositing eggs.

The scorpion is equipped with eight walking legs; a long, narrow, segmented tail terminating in a curved, poisonous stinger; and a pair of pincers resembling those of a lobster and studded with hypersensitive hairs. The tail is usually carried upward and curved forward over the creature’s back and waves in all directions. The scorpion uses its stinger in defense and also to procure its prey. The victim is seized by the nippers and then, if necessary, stung to death. A nocturnal animal, the scorpion spends the day hidden under stones, in cracks and crevices of buildings, and even under mats and beds, coming out at night to feed on spiders and insects.

Of the over 600 varieties of scorpions, generally ranging in size from less than 2.5 cm (1 in.) to 20 cm (8 in.), about a dozen types have been encountered in Palestine and Syria. Although the scorpion’s sting is usually not fatal to humans, there are several varieties with venom proportionately more potent than that of many dangerous desert vipers. The most poisonous of the kinds found in Israel is the yellow Leiurus quinquestriatus. The great pain caused by a scorpion’s sting is noted at Revelation 9:3, 5, 10, where symbolic locusts are described as having “the same authority as the scorpions of the earth” and as having the capability of tormenting men just as “a scorpion when it strikes a man.”

Scorpions were common in the Wilderness of Judah and the Sinai Peninsula with its “fear-inspiring wilderness.” (De 8:15) An ascent on the SE frontier of Judah, located SW of the southern end of the Dead Sea, was even called Akrabbim (meaning “Scorpions”).​—Nu 34:4; Jos 15:3; Jg 1:36.

At 1 Kings 12:11, 14 and 2 Chronicles 10:11, 14, the Hebrew term ʽaq·rab·bimʹ, which is rendered “scourges,” literally means “scorpions.” The instrument of punishment alluded to may have been a scourge equipped with sharp points.

In illustrating that his heavenly Father would give holy spirit to those asking him, Jesus Christ pointed out that a human father would not hand his son a scorpion if he requested an egg. (Lu 11:12, 13) To the 70 disciples he sent out, Jesus gave authority over injurious things, represented by serpents and scorpions.​—Lu 10:19; compare Eze 2:6.

See BEATING; PLAGUE.

A secretary or a copyist of the Scriptures; later, a person educated in the Law. The Hebrew word so·pherʹ, which comes from a root meaning “count,” is translated “secretary,” “scribe,” “copyist”; and the Greek word gram·ma·teusʹ is rendered “scribe” and “public instructor.” The term implies one who has learning. The tribe of Zebulun had those who possessed “the equipment of a scribe” for numbering and enrolling troops. (Jg 5:14; compare 2Ki 25:19; 2Ch 26:11.) There were scribes, or secretaries, in connection with the temple. (2Ch 34:9, 13) King Jehoash’s secretary worked together with the high priest in counting money contributed and then gave it to those paying wages to the workers repairing the temple. (2Ki 12:10-12) Baruch wrote at the prophet Jeremiah’s dictation. (Jer 36:32) Secretaries of King Ahasuerus of Persia worked under the direction of Haman in writing out the decree for the destruction of the Jews, and under Mordecai when the counterdecree was sent out.​—Es 3:12; 8:9.

The Egyptian scribe was usually a man of the lower class but intelligent. He was well schooled. He carried his equipment, consisting of a palette with hollow places to hold ink of different colors, a water jug, and a reed-brush case. He was acquainted with the legal and business forms in use. For filling out such forms, taking dictation, and so forth, he received a fee.

In Babylon the scribe held a professional position. His services were practically indispensable, as the law required that business transactions be in writing, duly signed by the contracting parties and witnessed. The secretary would sit near the city gate, where most of the business was carried on, with his stylus and lump of clay, ready to sell his services whenever required. The scribes recorded business transactions, wrote letters, prepared documents, cared for temple records, and performed other clerical duties.

The Hebrew scribes acted as public notaries, prepared bills of divorce, and recorded other transactions. At least in later times they had no fixed fee, so one could bargain with them beforehand. Usually one of the parties to a transaction paid the fee, but sometimes both shared. Ezekiel, in his vision, saw a man with a recorder’s inkhorn doing a marking work.​—Eze 9:3, 4.

Scripture Copyists. It was in the days of Ezra the priest that the scribes (soh·pherimʹ, “Sopherim”) first began to come into prominence as a distinct group. They were copyists of the Hebrew Scriptures, very careful in their work and regarding mistakes with terror. As time went on they became extremely meticulous, going so far as to count not only the words copied but the letters also. Until centuries after Christ was on earth, the written Hebrew consisted only of consonants, and the omission or addition of a single letter often would have changed one word into another. If they detected the slightest error, the miswriting of a single letter, that entire section of the roll was rejected as unfit for synagogue use. Thereupon that section was cut out and replaced by a new and faultless one. They read aloud each word before writing. To write even a single word from memory was regarded as gross sin. Absurdities of practice crept in. It is said that the religious scribes prayerfully wiped their pen before writing the word ʼElo·himʹ (God) or ʼAdho·naiʹ (Sovereign Lord).

But, despite this extreme care to avoid inadvertent errors, in process of time the Sopherim began to take liberties in making textual changes. In 134 passages the Sopherim changed the primitive Hebrew text to read ʼAdho·naiʹ instead of YHWH. In other passages ʼElo·himʹ was the word used as a substitute. Many of the changes were made by the Sopherim because of superstition in connection with the divine name and to avoid anthropomorphisms, that is, attributing human attributes to God. (See JEHOVAH [Superstition hides the name].) The Masoretes, the name by which copyists came to be known centuries after Jesus’ days on earth, took note of the alterations made by the earlier Sopherim, recording them in the margin or at the end of the Hebrew text. These marginal notes came to be known as the Masorah. In 15 passages in the Hebrew text, certain letters or words were marked by the Sopherim with extraordinary points, or dots. The meaning of these extraordinary points is disputed.

In standard Hebrew manuscripts the Masorah, that is, the small writing in the margins of the page or at the end of the text, contains a note opposite a number of Hebrew passages that reads: “This is one of the eighteen Emendations of the Sopherim,” or similar words. These emendations were made evidently because the original passages in the Hebrew text appeared to show irreverence for Jehovah God or disrespect for his earthly representatives. However well intentioned, this was an unjustified alteration of God’s Word. For a list of occurrences of emendations by the Sopherim, see the appendix of the New World Translation, page 1569.

Scribes as Teachers of the Law. At first the priests served as scribes. (Ezr 7:1-6) But great stress was laid on the need for every Jew to have a knowledge of the Law. Therefore those who studied and gained a great deal of knowledge were looked up to, and these scholars eventually formed an independent group, many not being priests. By the time Jesus came to earth the word “scribes,” therefore, designated a class of men learned in the Law. They made the systematic study of the Law and its exposition their professional occupation. They were evidently among the teachers of the Law, the ones versed in the Law. (Lu 5:17; 11:45) They were generally associated with the religious sect of the Pharisees, for this body recognized the interpretations or “traditions” of the scribes that had developed in course of time into a bewildering maze of minute, technical regulations. The expression ‘scribes of the Pharisees’ appears several times in the Scriptures. (Mr 2:16; Lu 5:30; Ac 23:9) This may indicate that some scribes were Sadducees, who believed only in the written Law. The scribes of the Pharisees zealously defended the Law, but additionally upheld the traditions that had been developed, and they held sway over the thought of the people to an even greater extent than the priests. Primarily, the scribes were in Jerusalem, but they also were to be found all over Palestine and in other lands among the Jews of the Dispersion.​—Mt 15:1; Mr 3:22; compare Lu 5:17.

The scribes were looked up to by the people and were called “Rabbi” (Gr., rhab·beiʹ, “My great one; My excellent one”; from Heb., rav, meaning “many,” “great”; a title of respect with which teachers were addressed). The term is applied to Christ several places in the Scriptures. At John 1:38 it is interpreted as meaning “Teacher.” Jesus was, in fact, the teacher of his disciples, but he forbade them, at Matthew 23:8, to covet that designation or to apply it to themselves as a title, as was done by the scribes. (Mt 23:2, 6, 7) The scribes of the Jews along with the Pharisees were strongly condemned by Jesus because they had added to the Law and had provided loopholes by which to circumvent the Law, so that he said to them: “You have made the word of God invalid because of your tradition.” He cited an instance of this: They would permit one who should have helped his father or mother to avoid doing so​—by claiming that the substance or possession he had with which he could help his parents was a gift dedicated to God.​—Mt 15:1-9; Mr 7:10-13; see CORBAN.

Jesus declared that the scribes, like the Pharisees, had added many things, making the Law burdensome for the people to follow, loading the people down. Furthermore, as a class, they had no genuine love for the people nor did they desire to help them, being unwilling to use a finger to lighten the people’s burdens. They loved the plaudits of men and high-sounding titles. Their religion was a front, a ritual, and they were hypocrites. Jesus showed how difficult their attitude and practices had made it for them to come into God’s favor, saying to them: “Serpents, offspring of vipers, how are you to flee from the judgment of Gehenna?” (Mt 23:1-33) The scribes were heavily responsible, for they knew the Law. Yet they took away the key of knowledge. They were not content with refusing to acknowledge Jesus, of whom their copies of the Scriptures testified, but they added to their reprehensibility by fighting bitterly to keep anyone else from acknowledging him, yes, from listening to Jesus.​—Lu 11:52; Mt 23:13; Joh 5:39; 1Th 2:14-16.

In their office, not only were the scribes as “rabbis” responsible for theoretic development of the Law and the teaching of the Law but they also had judicial authority, expressing sentence in courts of justice. There were scribes on the Jewish high court, the Sanhedrin. (Mt 26:57; Mr 15:1) They were not to receive any pay for judging, because the Law prohibited presents or bribes. Some rabbis may have had inherited wealth; almost all practiced a trade, of which they were proud, in that they were capable of supporting themselves aside from their rabbinic office. While they could not properly receive anything for work as judges, they may have expected and received pay for teaching the Law. This may be inferred from the words Jesus spoke when he warned the crowds about the greed of the scribes, also when he spoke of the hired man who did not care for the sheep. (Mr 12:37-40; Joh 10:12, 13) Peter warned Christian shepherds against making gain of their positions.​—1Pe 5:2, 3.

Copyists of the Christian Greek Scriptures. In the apostle Paul’s letter to the Colossians, he orders that the letter be read in the congregation of the Laodiceans in exchange for the one to Laodicea. (Col 4:16) No doubt all the congregations desired to read all the congregational letters of the apostles and their fellow members of the Christian governing body, and so copies were made for later consultation and to give them wider circulation. The ancient collections of Paul’s letters (copies of the originals) stand as evidence that there was considerable copying and publication of them.

The Bible translator Jerome of the fourth century and Origen of the third century C.E. say that Matthew wrote his Gospel in Hebrew. It was directed primarily to Jews. But there were many Hellenized Jews among the Dispersion; so it may be that it was Matthew himself who later translated his Gospel into Greek. Mark wrote his Gospel mainly with Gentile readers in view, as is indicated by his explanations of Jewish customs and teachings, by his translations of certain expressions that would not be understood by Roman readers, and by other explanations. Both Matthew’s and Mark’s Gospels were intended for wide circulation, and of necessity, many copies would be made and distributed.

Christian copyists were not often professional, but having respect and high regard for the value of the inspired Christian writings, they copied them carefully. Typical of the work of these early Christian copyists is the oldest extant fragment of any of the Christian Greek Scriptures, the Papyrus Rylands No. 457. With writing on both sides, it consists of but some 100 letters (characters) of Greek and has been dated as early as the first half of the second century C.E. (PICTURE, Vol. 1, p. 323) While it has an informal air about it and makes no pretensions to be fine writing, it is a careful piece of work. Interestingly, this fragment is from a codex that most likely contained all of John’s Gospel, or some 66 leaves, about 132 pages in all.

Bearing more extensive witness, but at later dates, are the Chester Beatty Biblical Papyri. These consist of portions of 11 Greek codices, produced between the second and fourth centuries C.E. They contain parts of 9 Hebrew and 15 Christian Bible books. These are quite representative in that a variety of writing styles is found in them. One codex is said to be “the work of a good professional scribe.” Of another it is said: “The writing is very correct, and though without calligraphic pretensions, is the work of a competent scribe.” And of still another, “The hand is rough, but generally correct.”​—The Chester Beatty Biblical Papyri: Descriptions and Texts of Twelve Manuscripts on Papyrus of the Greek Bible, by Frederic Kenyon, London, 1933, Fasciculus I, General Introduction, p. 14; 1933, Fasciculus II, The Gospels and Acts, Text, p. ix; 1936, Fasciculus III, Revelation, Preface.

More important than these characteristics, however, is their subject matter. In the main they corroborate those fourth-century vellum manuscripts termed the “Neutrals,” which are rated most highly by textual scholars Westcott and Hort; among these are the Vatican No. 1209 and the Sinaiticus. Further, they contain none of the striking interpolations that are found in certain vellum manuscripts that have been termed, perhaps mistakenly, “Western.”

There are extant thousands of manuscripts dating from especially the fourth century C.E. forward. That the copyists used extreme care is seen by scholars who have carefully studied and compared these manuscripts. Some of these scholars have made recensions or collations based on these comparisons. Such recensions form the basic texts for our modern translations. Scholars Westcott and Hort stated that “the amount of what can in any sense be called substantial variation is but a small fraction of the whole residuary variation, and can hardly form more than a thousandth part of the entire text.” (The New Testament in the Original Greek, Graz, 1974, Vol. II, p. 2) Sir Frederic Kenyon stated concerning the Chester Beatty Papyri: “The first and most important conclusion derived from the examination of them is the satisfactory one that they confirm the essential soundness of the existing texts. No striking or fundamental variation is shown either in the Old or the New Testament. There are no important omissions or additions of passages, and no variations which affect vital facts or doctrines. The variations of text affect minor matters, such as the order of words or the precise words used.”​—Fasciculus I, General Introduction, p. 15.

For several reasons, little remains of the earliest copyists’ work today. Many of their copies of the Scriptures were destroyed during the time that Rome persecuted the Christians. Wear through use took its toll. Also, the hot, humid climate in some locations caused rapid deterioration. Additionally, as the professional scribes of the fourth century C.E. replaced papyrus manuscripts with vellum copies, there seemed to be no need of preserving the old papyrus copies.

The ink used by copyists in writing was a mixture of soot and gum made in a cake form and mixed in water for use. The pen consisted of a reed. The tip, when softened with water, resembled a brush. Writing was done on leather and papyrus in scrolls or rolls; later in codex form on sheets which, if bound, often had a wooden cover.

As used in the Christian Greek Scriptures, the Greek word gra·pheʹ (“a writing”) refers only to the sacred writings in God’s Word the Bible. There were other documents used by the writers of both the Hebrew and the Greek Scriptures, such as official public genealogical records, histories, and so forth, but these were not regarded as inspired or on an equal level with the writings recognized as canonical. Even the apostles may have written other letters to certain congregations. For example, Paul’s statement at 1 Corinthians 5:9: “In my letter I wrote you,” implies that he wrote a previous letter to the Corinthians, one that is not now existent. Such writings evidently were not preserved by God’s holy spirit for the Christian congregation because they were essential only to those to whom they were addressed.

The Greek word gramʹma, denoting a letter, or character of the alphabet, is drawn from the verb graʹpho. Used in the sense of “document,” it is at times rendered “scripture” in some translations, “writing” in others. At John 5:47 and 2 Timothy 3:15, the word is used with reference to inspired “writings” of the Hebrew Scriptures.​—See CHRISTIAN GREEK SCRIPTURES; HEBREW SCRIPTURES.

Appealed To by Christ and Apostles. Jesus Christ and the writers of the Christian Scriptures often used the word gra·pheʹ in appealing to the writings of Moses and the prophets as their authority for their teaching or for their work, on the grounds that these writings were inspired by God. Frequently these Hebrew writings as a whole were designated “Scriptures.” (Mt 21:42; 22:29; Mr 14:49; Joh 5:39; Ac 17:11; 18:24, 28) Sometimes the singular form “Scripture” was used where a certain text was cited, referring to it as part of the entire body of writings in the Hebrew Scriptures. (Ro 9:17; Ga 3:8) Again, reference was made to a single text as a “scripture,” with the sense of its being an authoritative statement. (Mr 12:10; Lu 4:21; Joh 19:24, 36, 37) At 2 Timothy 3:16 and 2 Peter 1:20, Paul and Peter appear to refer to both the inspired Hebrew and Greek writings as “Scripture.” Peter classifies Paul’s writings as part of the “Scriptures” at 2 Peter 3:15, 16.

The expression “prophetic scriptures” (Ro 16:26) may have reference to the prophetic character of all the Hebrew Scriptures.​—Compare Re 19:10.

Personified. Since the Scriptures were recognized as inspired by God, as his Word, the voice of God​—God speaking, in effect—​they were sometimes personified as though speaking with divine authority (just as God’s holy spirit, or active force, was personified by Jesus, and was said to teach and to bear witness [Joh 14:26; 15:26]). (Joh 7:42; 19:37; Ro 4:3; 9:17) For the same reason the Scriptures are spoken of as though they possess the quality of foresight and the active power of preaching.​—Ga 3:8; compare Mt 11:13; Ga 3:22.

Essential for Christians. Since Jesus Christ constantly appealed to the Hebrew Scriptures to support his teaching, it is important for his followers not to deviate from them. The apostle Paul emphasizes their value and essential nature when he says: “All Scripture is inspired of God and beneficial for teaching, for reproving, for setting things straight, for disciplining in righteousness, that the man of God may be fully competent, completely equipped for every good work.”​—2Ti 3:16, 17.

A relatively small case containing four portions of the Law (Ex 13:1-10, 11-16; De 6:4-9; 11:13-21) and worn by Jewish men on their forehead and left arm. Concerning the practice of wearing such cases, or phylacteries, The Jewish Encyclopedia (1976, Vol. X, p. 21) observes: “The laws governing the wearing of phylacteries were derived by the Rabbis from four Biblical passages (Deut. vi. 8, xi. 18; Ex. xiii. 9, 16). While these passages were interpreted literally by most commentators, . . . the Rabbis held that the general law only was expressed in the Bible, the application and elaboration of it being entirely matters of tradition and inference.”

Christ Jesus censured the scribes and Pharisees for ‘broadening the scripture-containing cases that they wore as safeguards.’ (Mt 23:5) By enlarging these cases, they apparently wanted to give others the impression that they were very zealous and conscientious about the Law. Jesus’ words indicate that the religious leaders viewed these cases as safeguards, or charms. The Greek word phy·la·kteʹri·on, in fact, primarily means an outpost, fortification, or safeguard.​—See FRONTLET BAND.

The common book form during the period of Bible writing. The Scriptures were written and often copied on rolls or scrolls of leather, parchment, or papyrus. (Jer 36:1, 2, 28, 32; Joh 20:30; Ga 3:10; 2Ti 4:13; Re 22:18, 19) A scroll was made by gluing together pieces of such materials to form a long sheet, which was then rolled around a stick. For a very long scroll, a stick was used at each end and the scroll was rolled on both sticks toward the center. When about to read such a roll, a person unrolled it with one hand while rolling it up with the other until he located the desired place. After reading, he again rolled up the scroll.​—For details as to material, size, and so forth, see BOOK.

Bears Witness to Jesus. Jesus Christ came to earth to do God’s will, as foretold within the Hebrew Scriptures, in “the roll of the book.” (Ps 40:7, 8; Heb 10:7-9) In the synagogue at Nazareth, Jesus opened the scroll of Isaiah and read the prophetic words about his anointing by Jehovah’s spirit to preach. Christ then rolled up the scroll, handed it to the attendant, sat down, and explained to all present: “Today this scripture that you just heard is fulfilled.” (Lu 4:16-21; Isa 61:1, 2) In fact, since “the bearing witness to Jesus is what inspires prophesying,” all the scrolls of all the Scriptures and the public proclamation of the good news contained in the scrolls of the Christian Scriptures concerns Jesus Christ’s position and work in Jehovah’s purpose.​—Re 19:10.

At the conclusion of John’s Gospel account, he said: “There are, in fact, many other things also which Jesus did, which, if ever they were written in full detail, I suppose, the world itself could not contain the scrolls written.” (Joh 21:25) John in his Gospel did not try to write it all, but he wrote only what was sufficient to establish his main point, namely, that Jesus Christ was the Son of God and His Messiah. Indeed, there is enough in John’s “scroll,” as well as the other inspired Scriptures, to prove to the fullest satisfaction that “Jesus is the Christ the Son of God.”​—Joh 20:30, 31.

Symbolic Use. There are several instances of symbolic use of the word “scroll” in the Bible. Ezekiel and Zechariah each saw a scroll with writing on both sides. Since only one side of a scroll was commonly used, writing on both sides may refer to the weightiness, extent, and seriousness of the judgments written in these scrolls. (Eze 2:9–3:3; Zec 5:1-4) In the vision of Revelation, the one on the throne held in his right hand a scroll having seven seals, preventing detection of what was written until God’s Lamb opened them. (Re 5:1, 12; 6:1, 12-14) Later in the vision John himself was presented a scroll and was commanded to eat it. It tasted sweet to John but made his belly bitter. Since the scroll was open and not sealed, it was something that was to be understood. It was “sweet” to John to get the message contained therein but apparently had bitter things for him to prophesy, as he was told to do. (Re 10:1-11) Ezekiel had a similar experience with the scroll presented to him in which there were “dirges and moaning and wailing.”​—Eze 2:10.

“The scroll of life of the Lamb.” Idolatrous worshipers of the symbolic “wild beast” are not God’s choice for the associates of the Lamb. Hence, “the name of not one of them stands written in the scroll of life of the Lamb who was slaughtered,” and “from the founding of the world” of mankind it was determined that this would be the case.​—Re 13:1-8; 21:27.

Scrolls of judgment and of life. John also observed that “scrolls were opened” and resurrected ones were “judged out of those things written in the scrolls according to their deeds.” These scrolls apparently contain Jehovah’s laws and instructions setting forth the divine will for humans during that judgment period, and it is their deeds of obedience in faith or of disobedience to what is written in the scrolls that reveal whether they are worthy of having their names written or retained in Jehovah’s “scroll of life.”​—Re 20:11-15; see LIFE.

‘Rolled up like a book scroll.’ At Isaiah 34:4, the prophet speaks judgment against the nations, saying: “And the heavens must be rolled up, just like a book scroll.” Evidently he here refers to the rolling up and putting away of a scroll after one has finished reading it. So the expression is a symbol of the putting away or doing away with that which is no longer of any use or value.

(Scythʹi·an).

A fierce, nomadic people generally associated with the region N and NE of the Black Sea. Evidence suggests that they extended their roaming to western Siberia near the border of Mongolia. In the first century C.E. the word “Scythian” implied the worst of uncivilized people. However, even such persons could become Christians and have an equal standing with other believers as members of Christ’s body. Wrote the apostle Paul: “There is neither Greek nor Jew, circumcision nor uncircumcision, foreigner, Scythian, slave, freeman, but Christ is all things and in all.”​—Col 3:11; see CUTTINGS.

The collective waters of the earth as distinguished from land; or a large body of salt or fresh water, usually meaning a body smaller than an ocean and partially or wholly enclosed by land. Water covers over 70 percent of the earth’s surface.

Jehovah the Creator and Controller. The Bible repeatedly acknowledges Jehovah as the Creator of the seas, which were formed as distinct from the dry land on the third creative day. (Ge 1:9, 10, 13; Ne 9:6; Ac 4:24; 14:15; Re 14:7) It also comments on his ability to extend his power over the sea and to control it. (Job 26:12; Ps 65:7; 89:9; Jer 31:35) When his Son was on earth he was given authority by his Father to command the sea, with effectiveness. (Mt 8:23-27; Mr 4:36-41; Joh 6:17-20) God’s control of the seas is demonstrated by the way the coasts and the tides keep the sea within its set limits, barricaded, as it were, by doors. (Job 38:8-11; Ps 33:7; Pr 8:29; Jer 5:22; see SAND.) This accomplishment in connection with the sea, as well as its role in the earth’s water cycle (Ec 1:7; Am 5:8), makes the sea an example of Jehovah’s wonderful works. (Ps 104:24, 25) Poetically speaking, even the seas join in praising their Creator.​—Ps 96:11; 98:7.

Seas in the Area of Israel. Of the seas in the area of Israel, the most prominent was “the Great [Mediterranean] Sea,” also called “the western sea” or simply “the Sea.” (Jos 1:4; De 11:24; Nu 34:5) Others were the Red Sea, or the Egyptian Sea (Ex 10:19; Isa 11:15); the Salt (Dead) Sea, the Sea of the Arabah, or “the eastern sea” (De 3:17; Eze 47:18); and the Sea of Galilee, the Sea of Chinnereth, or the Sea of Tiberias. (Mt 4:18; Nu 34:11; Joh 6:1; see GALILEE, SEA OF; GREAT SEA; RED SEA; SALT SEA.) In Biblical references the particular body of water intended by the expression “the sea” often has to be determined from the context. (Ex 14:2 [compare 13:18]; Mr 2:13 [compare vs 1].) Sometimes the Hebrew term is applied to rivers.​—Jer 51:36 (speaking of the Euphrates); Isa 19:5 (the Nile).

The Abyss. According to Parkhurst’s Greek and English Lexicon to the New Testament (London, 1845, p. 2), the Greek word aʹbys·sos, meaning “very or exceedingly deep” and often translated “abyss,” is sometimes used with reference to or in making a comparison to the sea because of the sea’s great, seemingly fathomless, depth. (Ro 10:6, 7; compare De 30:12, 13.) In the symbols of Revelation, “the wild beast that ascends out of the abyss” (Re 11:7) is said, at Revelation 13:1, to ascend out of “the sea.”​—See ABYSS.

Origin of Sea Life. The Genesis account reports that sea life and flying creatures were the first animal life on earth. It reads: “And God went on to say: ‘Let the waters swarm forth a swarm of living souls and let flying creatures fly over the earth upon the face of the expanse of the heavens.’ And God proceeded to create the great sea monsters and every living soul that moves about, which the waters swarmed forth according to their kinds, and every winged flying creature according to its kind. And God got to see that it was good. With that God blessed them, saying: ‘Be fruitful and become many and fill the waters in the sea basins, and let the flying creatures become many in the earth.’ And there came to be evening and there came to be morning, a fifth day.”​—Ge 1:20-23.

In saying “Let the waters swarm,” God was not leaving the emergence of life to the seas themselves, to bring forth some primeval form from which all other animals evolved. For the account also says that “God proceeded to create [marine creatures] . . . according to their kinds.” Also in the record of the ‘sixth day’ and the creation of land animals, God is represented as saying: “Let the earth put forth living souls according to their kinds.” God did not command the sea to put forth living things for the land, or let these things evolve from the sea, but “God proceeded to make” each kind to suit the habitat each was to occupy.​—Ge 1:24, 25.

Illustrative Use. While the Promised Land was to extend “from the Red Sea to the sea of the Philistines [the Mediterranean Sea] and from the wilderness to the River [Euphrates],” the description of the dominion of the coming Messianic King as being “from sea to sea and from the River to the ends of the earth” would apparently refer to the entire globe. (Ex 23:31; Zec 9:9, 10; compare Da 2:34, 35, 44, 45.) This is indicated by Matthew and John in their application of the prophecy of Zechariah, in which prophecy Zechariah quotes Psalm 72:8.​—Mt 21:4-9; Joh 12:12-16.

Overflowing armies. Jeremiah described the sound of the attackers of Babylon as being “like the sea that is boisterous.” (Jer 50:42) Hence, when he foretold that “the sea” would come up over Babylon, he evidently meant the flood of conquering troops under the Medes and Persians.​—Jer 51:42; compare Da 9:26.

Masses alienated from God. Isaiah likened the wicked people of earth, the masses alienated from God, to “the sea that is being tossed, when it is unable to calm down, the waters of which keep tossing up seaweed and mire.” (Isa 57:20) At Revelation 17:1, 15 the “waters” on which Babylon the Great “sits” are said to mean “peoples and crowds and nations and tongues.” Isaiah further prophesied to God’s “woman” Zion: “Because to you the wealthiness of the sea will direct itself; the very resources of the nations will come to you.” (Isa 59:20; 60:1, 5) This seems to mean the turning of many persons from among the multitudes of earth toward God’s symbolic “woman.”

Daniel described four “beasts” that came up “out of the sea” and revealed these to be symbolic of political kings or kingdoms. (Da 7:2, 3, 17, 23) Similarly, John spoke of a “wild beast ascending out of the sea,” that is, out of that vast portion of mankind that is estranged from God; and his mention, in symbolic language, of diadems and a throne again links the idea of a political organization with this beast out of “the sea.” (Re 13:1, 2) He also saw in vision the time when there would be “a new heaven and a new earth” and when “the sea,” that is, the turbulent masses of people alienated from God, would be no more.​—Re 21:1.

Persons lacking faith. A person who lacks faith, having doubts when he prays to God, is likened by the disciple James to “a wave of the sea driven by the wind and blown about.” He does not recognize or appreciate God’s fine qualities of generosity and loving-kindness. “Let not that man suppose that he will receive anything from Jehovah; he is an indecisive man, unsteady in all his ways,” James declares.​—Jas 1:5-8.

Immoral men. James’ brother Jude warns his fellow Christians of the great danger from wicked men who slip into the congregation with the purpose of bringing in moral defilement. He calls them “wild waves of the sea that foam up their own causes for shame.” (Jude 4-13) Jude may have had in mind an earlier expression of Isaiah (57:20) and may be figuratively describing such ones’ passionate, reckless disregard for God’s laws and their rushing against the divinely constituted moral barriers in their degraded, lustful course. As Cook’s Commentary on Jude 13 remarks: “They cast forth to public view the mire and dirt of their excesses . . . So these men foam out their own acts of shame, and cast them forth for all men to see, and so to blame the Church for the ill-deeds of these professors.” Another commentator says: “What they impart is as unsubstantial and valueless as the foam of the ocean waves, and the result is in fact a proclamation of their own shame.”​—Barnes’ Notes on the New Testament, 1974; compare Peter’s description of such men at 2Pe 2:10-22.

(seʹah).

A dry measure that, according to rabbinic sources, is equal to one third of an ephah. (Ge 18:6; 1Sa 25:18; 1Ki 18:32; 2Ki 7:1, 16, 18) Since, on the basis of archaeological evidence regarding the capacity of the corresponding liquid bath measure (compare Eze 45:11), the ephah measure is reckoned at 22 L (20 dry qt), the seah measure would equal 7.33 L (6.66 dry qt).

An object used to make an impression (usually on clay or wax) that indicated ownership, authenticity, or agreement. Ancient seals consisted of a piece of hard material (stone, ivory, or wood) having engraved letters or designs in reverse. They were made in various shapes, including cones, squares, cylinders, scarabs, and animal heads. (Regarding signet or seal rings, see RING.) Those in the form of a cylinder commonly measured between 2 and 4 cm (0.75 to 1.5 in.) in length. When a cylinder that was engraved on its curved surface was rolled on moist clay, it produced a continuous impression in relief. Often cylinder seals were pierced through from end to end and thus could be suspended from a cord.

Religious symbols, as well as plants, animals, and simple scenes, are among the things depicted on Egyptian and Mesopotamian seals. The Babylonian “Temptation” Seal (British Museum) shows a tree with a man seated on one side and a woman on the other, and behind the woman is an erect serpent. Often seals gave the owner’s name and his position. For example, one seal found in Palestine reads, “Belonging to Shema, the minister of Jeroboam.”​—The Biblical World, edited by C. Pfeiffer, 1966, p. 515.

Seal impressions could indicate ownership or authenticity and could prevent tampering with documents or other things that were sealed, including bags, doors, and tombs. (Job 14:17; Da 6:17; Mt 27:66) When the prophet Jeremiah purchased a field, the copy of the deed bearing the signatures of witnesses was sealed, but a second copy was left open. Perhaps the sealing was done by folding the deed closed, tying it with a cord, and then putting a lump of wax or other soft substance on the cord and impressing the soft material with a seal. If later any question would arise about the accuracy of the open copy, the deed that had been sealed before witnesses could be produced. (Jer 32:10-14, 44) A person entrusted with the king’s seal could issue official decrees, the seal impression stamping the decrees as authentic. (1Ki 21:8; Es 3:10, 12; 8:2, 8, 10) Affixing one’s seal to a document could signify an acceptance of the terms contained therein. (Ne 9:38; 10:1) Numerous ancient jar handles with seal impressions on them have been found. Some of these seal impressions identified the owner of the jars and their contents; others gave an indication of the quantity or quality of the contents.

Figurative Use. The actual uses for seals provide the basis for a number of figurative expressions found in the Bible. It was foretold that the Messiah would “imprint a seal upon vision and prophet.” This is because, by fulfilling the prophecies, the Messiah would stamp them as authentic and inspired of God. (Da 9:24; compare Joh 3:33.) In the sense of a mark of possession, or ownership, Abraham received circumcision as a “seal” of the righteousness that he had. (Ro 4:11) Since the apostle Paul had helped many Corinthian Christians to become believers, they served as a seal confirming the genuineness of his apostleship. (1Co 9:1, 2) First-century Christians are spoken of as being “sealed” by means of holy spirit, which is an advance token of their heavenly inheritance. (Eph 1:13, 14; 4:30) The seal signifies their being God’s possession (2Co 1:21, 22) and shows that they are truly in line for heavenly life. The book of Revelation shows the number finally sealed to be 144,000.​—Re 7:2-4; 9:4.

The Bible speaks of something that is closed, hidden, or secret as being sealed. Prophetic messages were “sealed” during the time they were not understood. (Da 12:4, 9; Re 5:1; 22:10; compare Isa 8:16; 29:11.) And Jehovah is said to ‘put a seal around stars,’ evidently meaning that he hides them from view by means of clouds.​—Job 9:7.

There is uncertainty as to the particular kind of skin referred to as taʹchash; this Hebrew word is used in describing the outer cover of the tabernacle and a wrapping for the furnishings and utensils of the sanctuary for transport. Taʹchash or techa·shimʹ (plural) usually appears alongside ʽohr or ʽoh·rohthʹ (skin, skins). (Ex 25:5; 26:14; 35:7, 23; 36:19; 39:34; Nu 4:6-14, 25; Eze 16:10) The translators of the Greek Septuagint seem to have understood the Hebrew word to denote, not an animal, but the color blue. (Compare Nu 4:14, ftn.) However, the almost unanimous opinion of Jewish commentators is that taʹchash refers to an animal. This view was also endorsed by the Hebrew lexicographer Gesenius, who considered the Septuagint reading to be simply conjecture, a rendering having the support neither of etymology nor of related languages. He understood taʹchash to mean either the seal or the badger, basing his conclusions on the context, the authority of the Talmudists, a comparison of the Hebrew word with similar words in other languages, and Hebrew etymology.

Bible translators have variously rendered ʽohr (ʽoh·rohthʹ) taʹchash (techa·shimʹ) as “badgers’ skin(s)” (KJ), “goatskin(s)” (RS), “porpoise skin(s)” (AT), “sealskin(s)” (AS), “leather” (Mo), “fine leather” (JB), “violet skins” (Dy), and “tahash leather” (NW, Ex 25:5, ftn, but “sealskins” in main text). The rendering “badgers’ skin(s)” is not generally favored by scholars, since it is thought unlikely that the Israelites would have been able to procure enough badger skins, either in Egypt or in the wilderness, for covering the tabernacle. There are also scholars who consider neither “badgers’ skin(s)” nor “sealskin(s)” nor “porpoise skin(s)” to be correct, in view of the fact that badgers, seals, porpoises or dolphins, dugongs, and similar creatures were evidently unclean for food. (Le 11:12, 27) They therefore find it hard to conceive that the skin of an “unclean” animal would have been used for something so sacred as the construction of the tabernacle and as a protective covering for the furnishings and utensils of the sanctuary. Those taking this view suggest that taʹchash may designate the skin of a clean animal, possibly of a kind of antelope, sheep, or goat.

Usable, Though Seal Classed as Unclean. The fact that seals were evidently unclean for food would not necessarily rule out using their skins as a covering for the tabernacle. For instance, whereas the lion and the eagle were “unclean” (Le 11:13, 27), the heavenly cherubs seen by Ezekiel in vision were depicted with four faces, including that of a lion and of an eagle. (Eze 1:5, 10; 10:14) Also, the copper carriages that Solomon made for temple use were adorned with representations of lions, and this undoubtedly according to the plans given to David by divine inspiration. (1Ki 7:27-29; 1Ch 28:11-19) The Israelites used “unclean” animals, such as asses, for mounts, it even being foretold that the Messiah would ride into Jerusalem upon an ass. (Zec 9:9; Mt 21:4, 5) Although John the Baptizer had a most sacred commission to “go in advance before Jehovah to make his ways ready,” he wore clothing made from the hair of an “unclean” animal. (Lu 1:76; Mt 3:4; Le 11:4) All of this tends to indicate that the distinction between clean and unclean was simply dietary, though at times it was also used with reference to sacrifice, and did not require that the Israelites regard “unclean” animals with general abhorrence. (Le 11:46, 47) Also, these, like the “clean” animals, were created by God and were therefore good, not loathsome in themselves.​—Ge 1:21, 25.

How Obtainable by Israelites. If the taʹchash of the Bible does designate a kind of seal, then a question may arise as to how it was possible for the Israelites to obtain sealskins. While seals are generally associated with Arctic and Antarctic regions, some seals favor warmer climates. Today a few monk seals still inhabit part of the Mediterranean Sea, as well as other warmer waters. Over the centuries man has greatly reduced the number of seals, and in Bible times these animals may have been abundant in the Mediterranean and in the Red Sea. As late as 1832 an English edition of Calmet’s Dictionary of the Holy Bible (p. 139) observed: “On many of the small islands of the Red sea, around the peninsula of Sinai, are found seals.”​—See also The Tabernacle’s Typical Teaching, by A. J. Pollock, London, p. 47.

The ancient Egyptians engaged in commerce on the Red Sea and, of course, received goods from many of the Mediterranean regions. So the Egyptians would have had access to sealskins. Hence, when the Israelites left Egypt, they might have taken with them the sealskins they already had, along with others obtained when the Egyptians gave into their hands an abundance of valuable things.​—Ex 12:35, 36.

This generally translates the Hebrew word tan·ninʹ (tan·nimʹ, “sea monster” at Eze 29:3 and “marine monster” at Eze 32:2). This term is rendered “big snake” when not mentioned in connection with the sea or water (Jer 51:34) or when a reference to snakes is definitely indicated by the context. (Ex 7:9, 12; compare Ex 4:2, 3.) Undoubtedly tan·ninʹ includes a variety of large marine animals (Ge 1:21; Ps 148:7), but this term is usually employed in a figurative sense. The destruction of Pharaoh and his hosts appears to be alluded to by the phrase: “You [Jehovah] broke the heads of the sea monsters in the waters.” (Ps 74:13) At Isaiah 51:9, “sea monster” appears in parallel with Rahab (Egypt; compare Isa 30:7) and hence may denote Egypt, or the reference may be to Pharaoh, as in Ezekiel 29:3 and 32:2. Faithful Job asked whether he himself was “a sea monster” that had to have a guard set over him.​—Job 7:12; see LEVIATHAN.

A season is a period during which a specific type of agricultural work is normal or a certain kind of weather prevails; a suitable or appointed time for something.

As the earth revolves around the sun, the tilt of the earth’s axis at an angle to the plane of the ecliptic produces a cycle of weather seasons. As markers of the passing of time, the heavenly bodies serve as indicators of seasons. (Ge 1:14) Genesis 8:22 says that the earth’s seasons will “never cease.” For a correlation of the months of the Jewish and Gregorian calendars and the festival, weather, and agricultural seasons, see CALENDAR.

Closely connected with the agricultural seasons were the annual “festival seasons” when the festivals established by the Mosaic Law were celebrated. (1Ch 23:31; 2Ch 31:3) Hence, when Paul counseled some Jewish Christians who were “scrupulously observing days and months and seasons,” he meant the festival seasons that were a part of the Law, not simply weather or agricultural seasons.​—Ga 4:10.

“Season” can therefore refer to a fixed or an appointed time or a period possessed of certain characteristics. (Ac 3:19, ftn; Ro 8:18; Ga 6:9) In time what constituted healthful teaching and proper conduct were made very clear to Christians. Accordingly, it was the “season” to be awake. (Ro 13:11-14) The “times or seasons,” or periods when Jehovah’s will in certain matters would take place, were of real interest to his worshipers (Ac 1:7), who understood them as they were progressively revealed.​—1Th 5:1.

In regard to the dwelling of nations on the earth, God “decreed the appointed times” (Ac 17:26; “fixed the epochs of their history,” NE) in that he determined when certain changes should occur, such as when the divinely appointed time came to uproot the Canaanite inhabitants of the Promised Land.​—Ge 15:13-21; Jer 25:8-11; Da 2:21; 7:12; see APPOINTED TIMES OF THE NATIONS.