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the tribe increased to fifty-two thou- | 2 Chron. xxxiii. 11, 12, &c. It was sand seven hundred. One circum- probably Sargon, or Esar-haddon, stance tended to weaken this tribe king of Assyria, who sent Tartan after the settlement in Canaan: the pastoral half of the tribe was allowed to establish itself with Reuben and Gad on the east of Jordan, where it occupied the northernmost portion, and the other half was provided for with the rest of the tribes in Canaan proper, west of the Jordan, where it had a fine tract of country, extending from that river to the Mediterranean, with the kindred tribe of Ephraim to the south, and Issachar on the north. This tribe makes no figure in the history of the Hebrews; and that portion which settled on the west of Jordan was not able fully to expel the former inhabitants. Josh. xvi., xvii.

2. The son and successor of Hezekiah, who began his reign at the age of twelve years. 2 Kings xx. 21; xxi. 1, &c. His mother's name was Hephzibah. He did evil in the sight of the Lord; worshipped the idols of the land of Canaan; rebuilt the high places that his father Hezekiah had destroyed; set up altars to Baal; and planted groves to false gods. He raised altars to the whole host of heaven, in the courts of God's house; made his son pass through the fire in honour of Moloch; was addicted to magic, divinations, auguries, and other superstitions; set up the idol Astarte in the house of God; finally, he involved his people in all the abomination of the idolatrous nations to that degree, that Israel committed more wickedness than the Canaanites, whom the Lord had driven out before them. To all these crimes Manasseh added cruelty; and he shed innocent blood in Jerusalem. The Lord, being provoked by so many crimes, threatened him by his prophets: "I will blot out Jerusalem as a writing is blotted out of a writingtablet." The calamities which God had threatened began towards the twenty-second year of this impious prince. The king of Assyria sent his army against him, who, seizing him among the briers and brambles where he was hid, fettered his hands and feet, and carried him to Babylon.

into Palestine, and he, taking Azoth, attacked Manasseh, put him in irons, and led him away, not to Nineveh, but to Babylon, of which Esarhaddon had become master, and had reunited the empires of the Assyrians and the Chaldeans. Manasseh, in bonds at Babylon, humbled himself before God, who heard his prayers, and brought him back to Jerusalem; and Manasseh acknowledged the hand of the Lord. Manasseh was probably delivered out of prison by Saosduchin, the successor of Esar-haddon. 2 Chron. xxxiii. 13, 14, &c. Being returned to Jerusalem, he restored the worship of the Lord; broke down the altars of the false gods; and abolished all traces of their idolatrous worship: but he did not destroy the high places; which is the only thing Scripture reproaches him with, after his return from Babylon. He caused Jerusalem to be fortified; and he enclosed with a wall another city, which, in his time, was erected west of Jerusalem, and which was called by the name of the second city. 2 Chron. xxxiii. 14. He put garrisons into all the strong places of Judah. Manasseh died at Jerusalem, and was buried in the garden of his house, in the garden of Uzza. 2 Kings xxi. 18. He was succeeded by his son Amon. The prayer ascribed to Manasses, and which is found in the Apocrypha, contains many pious and important sentiments, but it is the production of a later age.

MANDRAKES. Gen. xxx. 14-16; Sol. Song vii. 13. From the passages here referred to, it is evident that mandrakes were a plant or fruit growing in the fields, fit for gathering in the wheat-harvest, and which diffused a fragrant odour. The opinions as to the meaning of the Hebrew word DUDAIM are various. Violets, lilies, jasmines, truffles, mushrooms, fine flowers, citron, fruit of the lote-tree, cherries, have all had their advocates. Others think they were a kind of melon, or a plant resembling the Indian fig. The atropa mandragora of Linnæus is generally understood. The herb has

a root like a carrot, puts forth white and reddish blossoms, and bears yellow odoriferous apples, which are ripe from May to July. Whether it possesses the properties ascribed to it by the orientals is doubtful.

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by the heat of the sun when it was left abroad, was of so hard a consistence when brought into the tent, that it was beaten in mortars, and would even endure the fire, being made into cakes and baked in pans. It fell in so great quantities throughout the forty years of their journey, that it was sufficient to feed the whole multitude of above a million of persons. Every man, that is, every male or head of a family, was to gather each day the quantity of an omer, about three

observed, that "he that gathered much had nothing over, and he that gathered little had no lack," because his gathering was in proportion to the number of persons for whom he had to provide. Or, every man gathered as much as he could; and then, when brought home and measured by an omer, if he had a surplus, it went to supply the wants of some other family that had not been able to collect a sufficiency, the family being large, and the time in which the manna might be gathered, before the heat of the day, not being sufficient to collect enough for so numerous a household, several of whom might be so confined as not to be able to collect for themselves. Thus there was an equality; and in this light the words of St. Paul lead us to view the passage. 2 Cor. viii. 13-15. To commemorate their living upon manna, the Israelites were directed to put one omer of it into a golden vase; and it was preserved for many generations by the side of the ark.

MANEH. A Hebrew measure. The maneh, or mina, was one hundred shekels. See 1 Kings x. 17, compared with 2 Chron. ix. 16. The computation in Ezek. xlv. 12,-"twenty shekels, five-and-twenty shekels, fifteen shekels shall be your maneh,"must be either understood of a three-quarts English measure; and it is fold maneh, of twenty, twenty-five, and fifteen shekels, or else of one of (20+25+ 15) sixty shekels. MANNA, what is it? Hebrew, MAN-HU. Exod. xvi. 15. When the children of Israel saw it, they said, not as in our version, "It is manna,' but,-"What is it?" And Moses said unto them, "This is the bread which the Lord hath given you to eat." The substance was afterwards called man, probably in consequence of the question asked on the first sight of it. It was miraculously furnished to the people, and was a substitute for bread, since it was impossible for them to produce corn in the wilderness. We know not what this substance was. It was nothing common in the wilderness. The Israelites had never seen any till God sent it. He "fed thee with manna, which thou knewest not, neither did thy fathers know." Deut. viii. 3, 16. Probably nothing of the kind had ever been seen before; and by a pot of it being laid up in the ark, it is likely that nothing of the kind ever appeared after the miraculous supply ceased. Moses describes it as white like hoar-frost, round, and of the bigness of coriander-seed. It fell every morning upon the dew; and when the dew was exhaled by the heat of the sun, the manna appeared alone, lying upon the rocks or the sand. It fell every day except on the Sabbath, and only around the camp of the Israelites. Every sixth day there fell a double quantity; and though it putrefied and bred maggots when it was kept any other day, yet on the Sabbath there was no such alteration. The same substance which was melted

The miracles wrought in attestation of the sanctity of the Sabbathday, in connection with the bestowment of the manna, are very remarkable. 1. Double the quantity was supplied on the day preceding the Sabbath. 2. None was furnished on the Sabbath. 3. What they kept from the sixth to the seventh day was sweet and good; and what was kept on any other terms bred worms. The attempts to identify any substance now found in the East with the scriptural manna, have all signally failed. What is now called manna brought from Syria, Arabia, and Persia. It is obtained from a tree or shrub, in va

rious ways. strain it, and then use it on their bread or cakes as honey. This kind of manna is not found in the desert; it does not melt in the sun; it does not breed worms and become offensive; it cannot be ground or pounded in a mortar; it has medicinal proper

The Arabs boil and | ness :) "the Almighty hath dealt very bitterly with me.'

ties.

MANOAH. The father of Samson, of the tribe of Dan and the city of Zorah. Judges xiii. 2-23. See SAMSON. MAON. A town in the tribe of Judah, which gave the name to the wilderness in which David concealed himself when the Ziphites sought his life. In this neighbourhood, the churlish Nabal had great possessions. 1 Sam. xxiii. 24, 25; xxv. 2. Robinson assumes it to be the present Main, about seven miles south by east from Hebron. He found here a band of peasants keeping their flocks, and dwelling in caves amid the ruins of the place.

MARAH, bitterness. A place in the line of the march of the Israelites where they met with bitter water, which was sweetened by miracle. Exod. xv. 23-25. Some have attempted to show that the tree pointed out to Moses possessed certain sanitary virtues, and that the sweetening of the water was only the natural result of throwing in the wood. If such be the nature of the wood, it is remarkable that its curative virtues should so soon be forgotten. It is asked, Why any means were employed if there was not an adaptation in the wood to produce this effect? Perhaps the best answer to such a question may be, Why did Jesus Christ put clay on the eyes of a blind man a means far more likely to blind a man than to restore his sight. So this wood was much more likely to render sweet water bitter, than to make bitter water sweet. The well of Hawara, on the eastern shore of the Gulf of Suez, now contains bitter water, and corresponds in distance, &c., with the Marah of Scripture. Naomi, the wife of Elimelech, on her return from Moab, said to her acquaintance, "Call me not Naomi," (my pleasant one,) "call me Mara:" (bitter

MARANATHA. See ANATHEMA. MARBLE. 1 Chron. xxix. 2. A kind of limestone, remarkable for its texture and durability. It will take a very fine polish. It is dug out of the quarries in large blocks, and is used in buildings for ornamental pillars, &c. It is of all colours, and is occasionally beautifully variegated. The stone mentioned Esther i. 6, is rendered "the Parian stone;" which was remarkable for its bright white colour. cliff of Ziz, 2 Chron. xx. 16, appears to have been remarkable for its marble crag. It was afterwards called Petra. The porphyry of Egypt may be referred to in some of the Hebrew words which in our version are rendered marble.

The

MARESHAH. A town in Judah, Josh. xv. 44, rebuilt and fortified by Rehoboam. It is remarkable as the residence of Micah, the prophet; and also as the scene of the battle between Asa, king of Judah, and Zerah, king of Ethiopia. Robinson found the ruins a mile and a half south of Eleutheropolis.

MARK. Acts xii. 12. He was the son of Mary, a disciple resident at Jerusalem, who was the sister of Barnabas. He is supposed to have been converted by the instrumentality of St. Peter, who calls him his son in the Gospel. 1 Pet. v. 13. No circumstances of his conversion are recorded. The first historical fact mentioned of him in the New Testament is, that he went, in the year 44, from Jerusalem to Antioch, with Paul and Barnabas. Not long after, he set out from Antioch with those apostles upon a journey, which they undertook by the direction of the Holy Spirit, for the purpose of preaching the Gospel in different countries; but he soon left them, probably without sufficient reason, at Perga in Pamphylia, and went to Jerusalem. Acts xiii. Afterwards, when Paul and Barnabas had determined to visit the several churches which they had established, Barnabas proposed that they should take Mark with them; to which Paul objected, because Mark had left them

MARRIAGE.

in their former journey. This pro- | Acts xvi. 19; xvii. 17. Market-places duced a sharp contention between were the resort of labourers in quest Paul and Barnabas, which ended in of work; and also of children who their separation. Mark accompanied strolled thither for amusement. Matt. his uncle Barnabas to Cyprus, but it is xx. 1, et seq. not mentioned whither they went when they left that island. We may conclude that St. Paul was afterwards reconciled to St. Mark, from the manner in which he mentions him in his Epistles written subsequently to this dispute, and particularly from the direction which he gives to Timothy: "Take Mark, and bring him with thee; for he is profitable to me for the ministry." 2 Tim. iv. 11. No further circumstances are recorded of St. Mark in the New Testament; but it is believed, upon the authority of ancient writers, that soon after his journey with Barnabas he met Peter in Asia, and that he continued with him for some time; perhaps till Peter suffered martyrdom. Epiphanius, Eusebius, and Jerome, all assert that Mark preached the Gospel in Egypt; and the two latter call him bishop of Alexandria.

THE GOSPEL which bears his name is supposed by some to have been written by another Mark. This, however, does not at all affect the authority of the Gospel, since all agree that Mark was the familiar companion of St. Peter, and that he was qualified for the work he undertook, by having heard for many years the private and public discourses of that apostle. Eusebius says, it was written for the information of the hearers of Peter, and at their earnest request, that they might have some permanent record of the apostle's communications. The date is doubtful. It was written, probably, about A.D. 64 or 65.

MARKET, MARKET-PLACE. Matt. xi. 16; Luke vii. 32. The eastern markets were places of general concourse. They occupied one side of an area, the other consisting of public buildings, courts, and offices of various kinds. The site was generally near the gate of the city, and, being a kind of thoroughfare, it became the court of justice, the place where laws were promulgated, and public questions discussed. Mark xii. 38;

A civil and religious contract by which a man is bound and united to a woman, to dwell together in mutual affection for the purpose of rearing up a family, and thus fulfilling one end of human existence. The mutual consent of the parties is necessary to constitute marriage. Among the beneficial results of such an institution may be reckoned, 1. Provision for the education and support of children. 2. Domestic comfort. 3. The distribution of the community into families, with a head or governor of each, who possesses natural authority in his house. 4. The promotion of security to the state, from parental anxiety and the confinement of children to one habitation. 5. The encouragement of industry. Marriage has its engagements to God as well as to man. A Christian state acknowledges it as a branch of morality, and a source of public peace and security. The Mosaic laws contain only a few allusions to the subject. It is of divine institution. Gen. ii. 18–25. Among the Jews the parent who discouraged it was generally contemned. One husband and one wife is the law of nature and of Scripture, although polygamy existed both before and after the promulgation of the laws of Moses. The patriarchal history shows the miseries resulting from polygamy. See Gen. xvi. 4—10; xxx. 1, 3, 15. Under the law of Moses, in case a husband died childless, his unmarried brother or nearest kinsman married the widow, or suffered reproach. Deut. xxv. A man was at liberty to marry only within the twelve tribes. The "marrying strange women" refers to the violation of this law.

The marriage relation imposes upon both parties certain duties. It imposes the duty of chastity; forbidding adultery. See Matt. v. 28; Heb. xiii. 4; Rev. xxi. 8. It enforces the duty of mutual affection and mutual assistance. It constitutes the husband the head of the domestic insti

tution. See 1 Pet. iii. 1-7. It does | ban:
not require either party to surrender
to the other any control over any-
thing pertaining to conscience: but
it does require each party, whenever
individual gratification is concerned,
to prefer the happiness of the other
party; and this is easy where there
exists unreserved affection. "She
loved me for the dangers I had seen,
and I loved her that she did pity
them." And this is the only course
of conduct by which affection can be
retained. The matrimonial cere-
monies in the East were peculiar.
The bridegroom had around him
young persons of his own sex to make
merry with him. Matt. ix. 15. The
marriage was often celebrated in the
open air. A canopy was erected,
under which the bridegroom placed
himself. The contract was read.
Prov. ii. 17; Mal. ii. 14. The near
kindred of the parties used to bless
them. Gen. xxiv. 60; Ruth iv. 11, 12.
The marriage was celebrated in the
evening, and the pair were conducted,
with torches and lamps, in grand pro-
cession to their home. Psal. xlv. 14;
Matt. xxv. 1, et seq.

"It appears almost impossible to Europeans," says Mr. Hartley, "that a deception like that of Laban's could be practised. But the following extract, from a journal which I kept at Smyrna, presents a parallel case The Armenian brides are veiled during the marriage ceremony; and hence deceptions have occurred in regard to the person chosen for wife. I am informed, that on one occasion, a young Armenian at Smyrna solicited in marriage a younger daughter, whom he admired. The parents of the girl consented to the request, and every previous arrangement was made. When the time for solemnising the marriage arrived, the elder daughter, who was not so beautiful, was conducted by the parents to the altar, and the young man was unconsciously married to her. And it came to pass, that in the morning, behold, it was the elder daughter.' The deceit was not discovered, till it could not be rectified; and the manner in which the parents justified themselves was precisely that of La

I was once

It must not be so done in our country, to give the younger before the first-born.' It is really the rule amongst the Armenians, that neither a younger son nor daughter be married, till their elder brother or sister has preceded them. present at the solemnisation of matrimony amongst the Armenians; and some recollections of it may tend to throw light on this and other passages of Scripture. The various festivities attendant on these occasions continued for three days; and during the last night the marriage is celebrated. I was conducted to the house of the bride, where I found a very large assemblage of persons. The company was dispersed through various rooms; reminding me of the directions of our Saviour, in regard to the choice of the lowermost rooms at feasts. On the ground-floor I actually observed that the persons convened were of an inferior order of the community, whilst in the upper rooms were assembled those of higher rank. The large number of young females who were present, naturally reminded me of the wise and foolish virgins in our Saviour's parable. These being friends of the bride, the virgins, her companions, had come to meet the bridegroom. Psal. xlv. 14. It is usual for the bridegroom to come at midnight; so that, literally, at midnight the cry is made, Behold, the bridegroom cometh; go ye out to meet him.' Matt. xxv. 6. But, on this occasion the bridegroom tarried: it was two o'clock before he arrived. The whole party then proceeded to the Armenian church, where the bishop was waiting to receive them; and there the ceremony was completed."

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Marriage affords the means of copious illustration to the writers of Scripture. The prophets employ it to represent the relation of the Jewish church to Jehovah, and the apostles that of the Christian church to Christ. The applications of the idea are some of the most touching figures in Scripture.

MARS'-HILL. See AREOPAGUS. MARTHA. The sister of Lazarus and Mary, and probably the mistress of the house at Bethany where Christ

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