king who invaded Judah in the fourteenth year of Asa, with an army of many thousand men, and three hundred chariots. 2 Chron. xiv. 9-13. He is supposed by some to have been an Arabian, and by others to have been from Abyssinia, or African Ethiopia. Asa, relying upon the arm of the Lord, went out against him, and obtained a signal victory. There are other persons of this name mentioned in Scripture. 1. The son of Judah and Tamar. Gen. xxxviii. 30. 2. The son of Reuel, and grandson of Esau. Gen. xxxvi. 13. 3. The son of Simeon, and founder of a family in Israel. Numb. xxvi. 13. ZERED. The name of a stream and valley east of the Dead Sea. Deut. ii. 13. ZEREDA. A city of Manasseh, near Bethshan. 1 Kings xi. 26. This is supposed to be the same as Zererath, Judges vii. 22, and Zaretan, Josh. iii. 16. ZERESH, gold. Esth. v. 10. The wife of Haman, and his instigator in his iniquitous plans and purposes. ZERUBBABEL, sown or born in Babylon. The son of Shealtiel, of the royal house of David, 1 Chron. iii. 17; and the leader of the first colony of Jews that returned from the captivity to their native land under the permission of Cyrus, carrying with them the precious vessels belonging to the service of God. He laid the foundations of the temple, Ezra iii. 8, 9, and restored the usual worship of Jehovah. The Samaritans succeeded in securing the suspension of the work; but it was resumed in consequence of the influence of Zerubbabel with the Persian monarch. Hag. i. 1–14; ii. 1. He was an eminent patriot, and actuated by the highest religious motives. ZERUIAH, wounded. The sister of David, and mother of Joab, Abishai, and Asahel. 1 Chron. ii. 16; 2 Sam. ii. 18; iii. 39; viii. 16; xvi. 9. ZIBA, statue. A servant of Saul, whom David appointed to take charge of Mephibosheth. 2 Sam. ix. 2-10. For particulars in his history, see 2 Sam. xvi. 1, et seq.; xix. 24, et seq. ZIDON. See SIDON. ZIF. The eighth month of the civil, and second of the sacred, year. 1 Kings vi. 1. It corresponds with our April and May. In the ZIKLAG. A city of the Philistines, first allotted to Judah, and afterwards to Simeon. Josh. xv. 31; xix. 5. It does not appear that the Philistines were ever driven out. time of Saul, the Philistine king of this place granted it to David as a temporary residence, when he was subjected to sore persecution. 1 Sam. xxvii. 6. During David's absence, the Amalekites plundered and burned the city, and made the men and women prisoners. David pursued them, and recovered all the spoil. 1 Sam. xxx. ZILLAH, shade. One of the wives of Lamech, and the mother of TubalCain. Gen. iv. 19. ZILPAH, a dropping. The servant of Leah. Gen. xxix. 24. Subsequently she was given to Jacob as his concubine-wife, and was the mother of Gad and Asher. ZIMRAN, sung. A son of Abraham by Keturah; and the name of an Arabian tribe descended from him. Gen. xxv. 2; 1 Chron. i. 32. ZIMRI, pruned, sung, or celebrated in song. 1. A son of Zerah. 1 Chron. ii. 6. 2. The son of Salu, slain in the act of sin by Phinehas. Numb. xxv. 14. 3. A general of Elah, king of Israel. 1 Kings xvi. 9, et seq. He rebelled against his master, slew him, and reigned in his stead. ZIN, DESERT OF. Situated south of Palestine, and westward from Idumæa. Kadesh-barnea was in this desert. Numb. xiii. 21; xx. 1. It is frequently mentioned in the wanderings of the Israelites, and is now called El-Ghor. ZION. See SION and JERUSALEM. ZIPH. The name of a city in the tribe of Judah, Josh. xv. 55; and of a desert in its vicinity. 1 Sam. xxiii. 14, 15. ZIPPORAH, a sparrow, a little bird. One of the daughters of Reuel, the priest of Midian, to whom Moses was married. One of their children does not appear to have been circumcised at the proper time. God was displeased with this neglect, and Moses was seized with affliction the Angel of the Lord met him at the inn, "and sought to kill him," as he was on his way to see Pharaoh. This led to the circumcision of the child. Moses appears to have been unable to perform the ceremony; and Zipporah took a sharp stone, and did it, and cried out, "A bloody husband thou art, because of the circumcision." The words are few and ambiguous: as they are here rendered, they imply that she reprobated both Moses and his religion. The words may mean, "A husband thou art won back by the blood." It is, however, probable that she went back immediately to her father's house, and was subsequently brought to her husband while he was in the desert. See Exod. iv. 24-26; xviii. 1, et seq. ZIZ, CLIFF OF. A mountainpass, leading from the Dead Sea towards Jerusalem, by which the bands of the Moabites and Ammonites advanced against Jehoshaphat. 2 Chron. xx. 16. It is supposed that they came round the southern extremity of the Dead Sea, and along the western shore as far as Engedi, where there is a pass that leads northward. arm. ZOAN, low, inferior. A city of Lower Egypt, the same as Tanis, and the residence of the Pharaohs. A difference of opinion has existed with respect to its situation: it is now generally agreed that it lay on the east of that branch of the Nile which from this city called the Tanitic It was one of the oldest cities in Egypt, having been built seven years after Hebron; and this latter city existed before Abraham. It was probably the scene of the marvellous works wrought in the time of Moses. Psal. lxxviii. 12, 43. Its sculptured monuments are of great antiquity; and fragments of walls, columns, and fallen obelisks, attest the former splendour of a temple. The ruin predicted by Ezekiel, chap. xxx. 14, has long since befallen it. ZOAR, small. It was situated near the southern extremity of the Dead Sea, in the plain of Siddim. It was doomed to destruction with Sodom, Gomorrah, Admah, and Zeboim, but spared at the intercession of Lot. Gen. xiv. 2; xix. 19-23. ZOBAH. A province of Syria, lying along the Euphrates. Its king, Hadadezer, was smitten by David, when he went to recover his border on the Euphrates. 2 Sam. viii. 3. ZOPHAR. One of Job's three friends. He is called the Naamathite, because he resided in Naamah, a place unknown: the distance from the scene of Job's trials forbids us to assume that this is the place mentioned in Josh. xv. 41. Only two of Zophar's addresses are given: they are characterized by vehement and mistaken zeal. He assumed that Job was a hypocrite, and treated him accordingly. Job xi., xx. ZORAH, hornet's nest, or hornet's town. A town inhabited by Danites, not far from Eshtaol, and celebrated as the birthplace of Samson. Judges xiii. 2. The place is now called Surah. ZOROBABEL. See ZERUBBABEL. ZUPH. A Levite, an ancestor of Elkanah. 1 Sam. i. 1; 1 Chron. vi. 35. The land of Zuph probably derived its name from this individual. Ramathaim-zophim was within this province. See RAMAH. ZUR, stone, or rock. A prince of Midian, slain by the Israelites. Numb. xxv. 15. ZURIEL, God is my rock. The son of Abihail, and one of the chiefs of the Merarites. Numb. iii. 35. ZURISHADDAI, my rock is the Almighty. A prince of the tribe of Simeon. Numb. i. 6. ZUZIMS. See ZAMZUMMIMS. CHRONOLOGY OF THE SACRED SCRIPTURES. THE system of chronology gene- | uagint, and seems to have been first rally observed in this Dictionary is adopted by Bede, in the eighth centhat of the margin of the English tury. The reformation from Popery Bible. It is called USHER'S, is taken created a preference for everything from the Masoretic notes on the He- Hebrew; and as many of the rebrew text, and is established by public formers, suspicious of every opinion authority. Learned men have found held by the Papists, were induced to it a difficult task to harmonise the rank among their corruptions the more discrepancies which exist among extended chronology of the Septuachronologers, respecting the leading gint and Josephus, without profoundly epochs, eras, and periods, by reference investigating the grounds of their obto which all historical facts are usually jections, they published their opinion, regulated, and arranged in the order that the numbers of the Hebrew text of time. In every system of histori- were to be preferred to those of any cal chronology, sacred and profane, version: they thus gave the weight the two great eras of the creation of of their authority to the Jewish side the world, and the nativity of Christ, of the question, and opposed that have been usually adopted as stand- which had been maintained generally ards, by reference to which other by most Christians from the time of subordinate eras and periods have been the apostles. The scheme of Usher adjusted, such as those of the deluge, is rejected by many, and is deemed the exodus, the foundation of Solo- glaringly inconsistent, not only with mon's temple. The variations with the records of other nations, but with regard to the creation are upwards of the history of the ancient Hebrews one hundred and forty; the highest themselves. The reader, wishful to fixing it at 6984 years B.C., the lowest understand this subject, should conat 3616 B.C. With respect to the sult Hales's "Analysis of Chrononativity, ten different years have been logy." He adduces the testimonies respectively adopted by so many cele- of Josephus and Philo, to show: brated chronologers, ancient and 1. That there was originally no difmodern; and this is the more sur- ference between the Hebrew geneprising, considering the comparative alogies and those of the Greek version; recency of the event. Two principal 2. That the computation of Josephus chronological systems have been adopt- was conformable to both in his time; ed, which may be characterized as and, consequently, 3. That either the those of Usher and Hales; the former, Hebrew copies, or the Greek copies or contracted system, following the both of the Septuagint and of Josephus, authority of the Hebrew text, the have been adulterated since his time. other mainly regulated by the Septu- He then proves that this adulteration agint and Josephus. According to took place in the Hebrew copies rather Usher, the world was created 4004 than in the Greek; and that it did B.C.; according to Hales, 5411 B.C.: not originate in the ignorance or making a difference of 1407 years. carelessness of transcribers, but was The shorter scheme is recent in its contrived and planned for an unorigin, when compared with the more worthy object. Early in the second comprehensive chronology of the Sept-century the Jews were pressed, incon veniently to themselves, with the argument for the Messiahship of Jesus, arising out of the correspondence between the time of his appearing, and the general expectation of the people respecting him; and, therefore, in the most unprincipled manner, altered the dates of their ancient chronicles, in order to weaken the arguments derived from them in favour of Christianity. In vindication of this view, he quotes the testimony of Ephrem Syrus, who died A.D. 378; and also of the Armenian annalist, Abulfaragi. He proves the defalcation of the Hebrew genealogies by the concessions of Jewish writers, and, by the most undeniable internal evidence, shows that the patriarchal generations, both before and after the deluge, according to the shorter Hebrew computation, are repugnant to the course of nature, absurd, and inconsistent with history, sacred and profane. The great discrepancy between the numeration of the modern Hebrew text and that of the Septuagint will be seen by the subjoined table, which shows that, without abridging or extending the lives of the ancient patriarchs, six centuries are gained by the Septuagint declaring six of them to be each one hundred years older at the birth of his son than is reckoned in the Hebrew. It must be observed that the Jews constructed their chronological tables on the following principle. They measured the several eras of their ancient history, not by adding together the full lives of their successive patriarchs, but by taking the sum of their generations; that is, the age to which they had respectively attained at the birth of their firstborn. For example: in the above table the generation of Enos, or his age at the birth of Cainan, is estimated in the Hebrew at ninety years; the residue of his life, according to the same authority, is eight hundred and fifteen years, and the total length of his life nine hundred and five years; whereas in the Septuagint, the generation is enlarged to one hundred and ninety years, the residue of the life is diminished to seven hundred and fifteen years, while the full length of life is nine hundred and five years. Hence, in order to lengthen or shorten any particular era, it was only necessary to lengthen or shorten the proportion between the generation and the residue of life; and this seems to have been the mode actually adopted. The difference of opinion respecting the precise period of the birth of Jesus Christ arises from the fact, that this era was not used until so many centuries had elapsed that it was almost impossible, with accuracy, to fix the date. This is, however, of no consequence in the application of that era to chronological purposes, since all are agreed as to the numerical date of every year. All will admit that the year 1851 is that year of the Christian era, although they may doubt whether it is the exact measure of time which has elapsed since the birth of Christ. The system of computation_called Anno Domini was formed by a Roman abbot, called Dionysius Exiguus, about the year A.D. 527. He fixed it to correspond with the end of the 4713th year of the Julian period; which was four years too late, for our Saviour was born before the death of Herod. According to the testimony of Josephus, there was an eclipse of the moon in the time of Herod's last illness; which eclipse, by the computation found in astronomical tables, appears to have been in the year of the Julian period 4710, March 13th, at three hours past midnight, at Jerusalem. Now, as our Saviour must have been born some months before Herod's death, since in the interval he was carried into Egypt, the latest time in which we can fix the era of his birth is about the end of the 4709th year of the Julian period. The plan of reckoning called Anno Domini was not adopted for several centuries, but it led Europe into an error of four years; and Christianity had subsisted several centuries before learned divines knew exactly how many years had passed since the birth of our Saviour. Dr. Hales has adopted several important rules which have guided him in the improvement of chronology. They are the following: 1. To adhere to the scriptural standard. 2. To begin with the analytical method, and end with the synthetical. 3. Not to adopt any date which shall be repugnant to any other established date. 4. Never to frame an hypothesis, nor to assign a conjectural date, except in cases of downright necessity. 5. Carefully and critically to distinguish between different persons, in different ages and countries, called by the same name; and, on the other hand, to unite or identify persons bearing different names, in different authors, or at different times of their lives. By the sober and skilful application of these rules, he appears to have reduced to one simple, uniform, and consistent system, the ancient chronology, sacred and profane. The study of chronology is so intimately connected with that of history, that its importance cannot be denied. The reader, however, need not perplex himself in attempts to reconcile varying dates, as there are few passages of Scripture to the knowledge of which chronology is the sole guide, or which cannot be understood independently of its application. Ordinarily, the dates found in the margin of the Bible will serve as an elucidation of the sacred text. "The The following tables contain a synopsis of the chronology of Dr. Hales. They are taken from the second volume of his "New Analysis of Chronology and Geography, History and Prophecy." To these tables will be found added the chronology of Dr. Usher, taken from Annals of the World, deduced from the Origin of Time," &c. In cases where it was impossible to find the date of Usher, or to reconcile a date with some of his other dates, the chronology of the Bible has been introduced, so as to render complete the column headed "Usher." It has not been deemed necessary to intimate when the marginal date has been adopted instead of that of Usher. The reader, desirous of obtaining satisfaction on this subject, is recommended to read Dr. Hales's "Analysis," and especially the second volume. |