Chu-Cop
CHURCH, IDEA OF (ekklhsia, ek klay se ah) In comparison with other terms
used to describe the church, ecclesia was relatively neutral and colorless,
conveying by itself little theological meaning. The Greek Old Testament
uses ecclesia almost a hundred times as the translation for the Hebrew
qahal. The basic meaning for both the Greek and the Hebrew is a meeting
or gathering. It is the people and purpose which give significance to the
qahal; it could be a gathering of men called up for military duty, or for civic
action, or a gathering of prophets.
List of Topics—Introduction; Ten Groups of Ecclesia;
1. The saints and the sanctified;
2. Believers and faithful; 3. Slaves and servants;
4. The people of God; 5. Kingdom and temple;
6. Household and family; 7. The New Exodus;
8. Vineyard and flock; 9. One body in Christ;
10. The new humanity;
Conclusion
Introduction—In the New Testament, ekklesia could mean an assembly
of persons which was summoned for a particular purpose; that purpose could be
secular or religious. It could mean a community of believers of any size, from
a single household to an entire province. In all cases, the basic function of the
word is to identify, without qualifying adjectives, a particular congregation or
group of congregations.
It could mean a community gathered by God through Christ; and the
nature of this community is continually qualified by the One who summons or
gathers it. The ecclesia belongs to God because God has called it into being,
dwells within it, rules over it and realizes purpose through it. And because the
ecclesia belongs to Christ, and to a worldwide covenant community.
10 Groups of Ecclesia—There are more than 100 expressions in that
this Messiah is now gathering his people, ecclesia comes to include a strong
sense of decisive finality. They will be gathered and will participate in the new
age the Messiah begins, and the gathering will span all generations and all
places. The community will be a recipient and channel of God's glory, a partici-
pant in God's war with Satan, and the heir of promises, including eternal ones.
express ecclesia's idea of community. Here they will be put into 10 groups:
1. The saints and the sanctified. Ecclesia may be viewed as thosewhom God has actively called, chosen, gathered, foreknown, justified,
glorified, and sanctified. The church is sometimes designated as “the
2. Believers and faithful. Ecclesia may be viewed as a personal,
yet communal response to God's action through Christ. In Christ, God
justifies all, and pronounces them righteous before God; in response,
people commit themselves in confidence, in trust, and in faith. Those
who believe in the faithful God and God's faithful Son are those in whom
the faithfulness of God in Christ operates; they are made alive and are
united in the work of divine reconciliation.
3. Slaves and servants. Ecclesia may be viewed as the basic duties
which this response of faith entails. The church is those who through
faith have accepted enlistment as slave, servant, steward, minister. in
Christ isn't incompatible with being friends and brothers. The term dia-
konia reflects the church's image. Although a special office of deacons
appears, their work does not diminish the truth that the whole church is
a diakonia.
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4. The people of God. The Christian ecclesia is viewed throughout
the New Testament as the people of God. Almost all the descriptions of
ecclesia in the New Testament utilize concepts and images which in the
Greek Old Testament had been applied to God's people, and thus suggest
a recognition of solidarity with Israel that is sometimes made entirely
explicit. What constitutes people as the Israel of God is that communal
relationship to God which is produced by God's promise, election.
Christ's dying life, and the communal response to those actions.
The community is held together by its remembrance of deliver-
ance. It is bound to God in a covenant written on hearts, which God will
never repudiate. It is a realm pervaded by personal family relationships
to God. The life of God's people involves essentially the praise and
God's glorification among the nations, and the extension of the bounds of
the covenant community to include people from every nation, tribe, and
tongue. All positive qualifications of the true people of God are kept in
tension with also remembering the history of a people which rejected and
continue to reject their God, and who repudiated and continue to repudi-
ate their rightful King. The old promise of strict judgment is still present.
5. Kingdom and temple. The church is viewed in terms of these
institutions, which are both familiar and central in the life of Israel. The
church includes those who have been transferred into the kingdom of his
Son. And the way into the kingdom is narrow and steep requiring total
renunciation and humiliation. The center of Israel's kingdom was David's
City, Jerusalem. The Messiah and the messianic people were described
as heirs and inhabitants of God's city. For John in the Revelation,
both the Harlot and Satan are represented by by Jerusalem, which is both
the scene of great apostasy and the scene of the redemption.
Central to the mission and destiny of Jerusalem was the temple. In
fact, it was the presence of the temple which made Jerusalem the Holy
City. God doesn't dwell in a temple, but rather erects God's people as a
sanctuary. Jesus' body is also called a temple, and Christ is thought of as
the cornerstone. People on earth are the substance of the temple, but
there is a close inter-dependence between this visible community and
temple in heaven.
Because God's presence creates this temple and because the funda-
mental function of the temple is to serve God day and night, there is no
incongruity in thinking of Jesus as both cornerstone and high priest, and
of believers as both living stones and priests. Here the conception is that
of the shared priesthood of a community which has received life and
power through their dying Lord.
Because his priesthood is accomplished through his “sacrifice” of
himself, so too the community of the priests is created and sustained by
self-sacrifice. The self-sacrificing work of the apostle in his ministry of
God's grace to the Gentiles is his priestly service. And the priesthood is a
royal priesthood because the source of its liturgical holiness is identical
with the source of its kingly power. Its Lord revealed in his death and
resurrection the meaning of both kingship and priesthood.
6 . Household and family. The church is understood to be the
gathering place for the coming of the new age of God's household, God's family.
Many Old Testament concepts enter into new vitality in Christian thinking. “The
house of Israel” and “the house of God” is used to describe the church. To God,
the household is related in terms of dependence, obedience, stewardship, watch-
ful waiting, and patient boldness. The church is thought of as the Sons of God.
Related to this is the conception of the church as a brotherhood.
In fact the church is addressed as brothers no fewer than 30 times in the book
of Acts alone. Sonship and brotherhood are inseparably related to sharing in his
sufferings. And the character of the church depends upon the interdependence of
the life of the elder son and his many brethren.
7. The New Exodus. The New Testament often thinks of the church in
comparison to key events in the scriptural history of Israel. Among the more
incidental is the reference to baptism as comparable to salvation from the
Flood, with the church as the ark. Most pervasive and subtle are the asso-
ciations of the church with Israel in Egypt: the sojourn; the conflict between
Moses and Pharaoh; the plagues and the Exodus; the covenant at Sinai; the
tabernacle, etc.
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8. Vineyard and flock. The church is described by a wide range of agri-
cultural analogies, all evocative of the church's dependence on God. The com-
parison of God's people to the vineyard is a familiar one. God rents his vine-
yard to tenants and demands an accounting from them. The Old Testament
conception of Israel as a fig tree informs the gospel parables concerning the
fruitless tree.
The picture of Israel as the olive tree is supplemented by Paul. To Paul,
9. One body in Christ. The ecclesia is described as “one body in Christ.”
Finally, related to the concept of body is the concept of Christ, not as the body,
In this one new person, it is impossible for hostilities to remain between slave and
CHURCH, LIFE OF. During the time between his resurrection and his 2nd coming, Jesus Christ continues
Before Matthew, Mark, Luke, and John were written in the years 65-100 approximately, the ele-
CHURCH, ORGANIZATION OF. The church is Christ’s body, and each body
member has to serve according to his calling and ability. Salvation’s work had
been accomplished by Jesus Christ at a given moment in history. This work had
been done once for all; it wasn’t repeated. The apostles’ witness, which made this
work known to all, became as important as the work itself. The church was thus
founded by Christ’s work and by the apostles’ testimony. But the construction or the
edification of the church must be pursued until the 2nd coming of Christ.
The church draws its life from the gospel; it needs people to preach it and to explain it. On the
other hand, the church is called on to be a structure, a body and not an unorganized mass of
believers. Lastly, the church has had,from eariest times, the ministry of caring for the poor and
the unfortunate.
The 12 apostles were chosen by Jesus in his earthly life to join him. They saw the risen Lord and received from him the commission to be his witness in Jerusalem, in Palestine, and to the earth’s end. Thus the 12 stood in a unique position. They were wit-
nesses of the ministry and of Christ’s resurrection. And while Matthias replaced Judas
after his apostasy, no attempt was made to replace any other of the 12 who died.
As to apostleship, the New Testament (NT) uses the term “apostle” in both a
looser and a stricter sense. 1st, it is applied either to missionaries like Barnabas, or to
messengers of a particular community. 2nd, it designates a limited group of men who
have been recognized as the authorized representatives of Jesus Christ. In order to be
apostle in this sense, one must be a direct witness of the glorified Christ.
Paul stands in a position similar to that of the 12 for 2 reasons. 1st, Paul sets his
experience on the Damascus Road alongside the 12's experience on Easter. 2nd, Paul
has been entrusted by Christ with the gospel to the Gentiles. Paul is highly con-
scious of the exceptional vocation of an apostle, and while he recognizes the apostles
before him, he considers himself the last of the apostles. Thus, according to the NT, the
apostle occupies a unique position in the salvation history. He has seen the risen Lord
and has been commissioned by him to preach the gospel.
It isn't enough, if the world is to be saved, that Christ should have died and risen
again. What is also necessary is that Christ’s death and resurrection should be an-
nounced to the world. God has elected to save the world by a concrete, historical work of
redemption. The witnesses’ mission is to announce this work. As Christ’s witnesses,
the apostles are clothed with his power. But as the church grows, the apostles leave their
preaching and teaching, in the hands of new ministers. Only their charge as witnesses
of the risen Lord is not transmissible. The church can have no other apostles than those
chosen by Jesus himself, or who are chosen like Matthias to replace one who had forfei-
ted his position by his betrayal.
In Jerusalem, the growth of the church necessitated the appointment of the 7 “to
serve tables,” in order that the apostles might devote themselves “to prayer and to the mini-
stry of the word.” Among the 7, 2 played a great part as real preachers and missionaries:
Stephen and Philip. The elders appear a little later in Jerusalem. They received the collec-
tion made by Barnabas and Paul at Antioch. They were the chief residents belonging to the
church. They collaborated with the apostles when the latter were present and assumed
the direction in their absence.
According to Acts, elders existed in the churches founded by Paul, although Paul
himself does not use the term. Acts calls the Ephesian elders guardians or bishops. Paul
calls the ministers at Ephesus “pastors” and “teachers”; ministers doing the same work at
Phillipi are called bishops and deacons. In fact, “to feed the Lord's church” is to nourish
spiritually the believers with the true apostolic teaching. The same pre-eminent ministry of
the word was entrusted to elders, according to the book of Acts, and to teachers and
bishops, according to the Pauline letters.
Paul salutes the Philippian “bishops and deacons,” but he does not state what their
duties consist of. The bishops are those who watch over the church in order to make sure
that the members are persevering in the teaching from the apostle. The bishops and dea-
cons make their appearance also later in the Pastoral letters. Philippi was the model church.
Consequently, the simple bishops' organization carrying out the ministry of the word
and deacons taking charge of all matters of assistance might have been the organization
answering most nearly the desires of Paul.
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The situation was very different in the Church of Corinth. Paul had great difficulties
there, and reminds them of the need for an organized ministry. “God has appointed
in the church first apostles, second prophets, third teachers, . . .” along with five other mini-
stries. He first mentions the three ministries of the word, and he numbers them in order to
mark their hierarchy and their importance; these are the indispensable ministries. The apo-
stle comes in at the head of the list, because it is he who founds the church by his testi-
mony. The prophets are, no doubt, inspired preachers, who express themselves in clear
and comprehensible language. And the task of teachers here seems to be to interpret
the Christian message, to show its relation to the Old Testament, and to bring to light all its
riches.
Paul also gives a list of spiritual gifts; these gifts are doubtless spontaneous and
sporadic manifestations of the Spirit. According to Paul, the Spirit pours out its gifts on
certain believers in order to enrich the life of the church. A church without these gifts
would still be a church, but it could not be formed without the testimony of the word from
an apostle.
In the letter to the Ephesians, a new term added to the “essential” list is “evangelist,”
which has the same function as the apostle, namely to spread the gospel where as yet it has
not been preached. Evangelists are seldom mentioned in the NT, and only two by name:
Philip, 1 of the 7, and Timothy, companion to Paul. In the Letter to the Romans, a
church Paul didn't found, Paul names the following gifts: “prophecy . . ., service . . ., he who
teaches . . ., he who exhorts . . ., he who contributes . . .[etc.].” This list too gives an important
position to prophets and teachers. In the later church Paul has vanished from the scene,
and we have a far more advanced organization than in Paul's time. His disciples Timothy and
Titus appear in the letters we have as the apostle's agents, whose task is to supervise
the good organization of the church, and to specify the duties of the four different ministers.
1st, the deacons must have strong moral and practical qualities. These qualities are
the only indications we have as to the type of duties they have, namely works of assistance
and administration. 2nd, the elders must be of irreproachable character. They occupy a
governing office, but some of them take up the work of preaching and teaching. We see,
moreover, that the elders are remunerated, which implies they devote at least part of their
time, if not the whole, to their ministry.
3rd, the bishop is always spoken of in the singular. It therefore seems likely that in
the time of the Pastoral Letters there was only one bishop. It was the bishop who provided
hospitality to travelers, and who represents the church in other churches' eyes and in the
Gentiles' eyes. What's more, the bishop doesn't confine himself to teaching like the elders;
he must also be able to urge all to follow the sound teaching and to correct those
who disagree with it.
The 4th ministry was that of Timothy and Titus themselves; it extended over a whole
province, and involved securing the link and unity between the various churches of one
district. Thus the function of these apostolic delegates were distinct from those of the
bishop, the elders, and the deacons; it too must be continued in the church.
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3 facts are clear from the descriptions of ministries in the NT. 1st, all believers were
active members of the community and in this sense fulfilled a service. 2nd, God himself
gave ministers to the church, and primarily the apostleship. 3rd, the ministry which is of first
necessity is always that of the word, whereby the gospel and the apostolic tradition conti-
nue faithfully to nourish the church. The NT contains very few precise indications of the orga-
nization of the church. In the first century, there was really no general, uniform organization
of the church.
The appointment of ministers began with the 12 apostles and with Paul, all chosen
by God. In the appointment of the Seven the first step is made by the apostles, who recom-
mend that “men of good repute, full of the Spirit and of wisdom,” be elected. Barnabas and
Paul are sent out as missionaries by the Spirit. Similarly, the elders in Ephesus were made
leaders by the Spirit. Paul and Barnabas appointed elders for the disciples in every church,
through the process of discerning by prayer the will of God. It is by virtue of this same capa-
city that Paul chose Timothy and Titus. And, at the moment the apostle disappears from
the pages of history, his power is not handed on to the church, but to men who have as-
sumed a certain ministry.
In passing on the ministry, the apostle was only acting as the agent of Christ or of
the Spirit. Prayer is the genuine Christian rite of ordination; there is nothing mechanical in
the transmission of the ministry in the church, and the new minister receives in truth his
charge from the Spirit. In the NT, the imposition of hands is always done by the apostle or
by the minister of the word who has received the laying-on of hands.
Jesus chose his own apostles. Subsequently the apostles presided with prayer over
the choice and ordination of the new ministers required by the church. The believers were
consulted but the ministry was not transmitted by the church. It was given from on high,
and it was transmitted by those who had already received it; the Spirit was at work in
this transmission. This is an absolutely original system. The church in the NT isn't a demo-
cracy, in the sense that the power is in the hands of the people. Neither is the church in
the NT an oligarchy, in the sense that the apostles are capable themselves of designating
their successors with authority. Christ is the head of the church, which he rules through his
Spirit. Power in the church belongs neither to the ministers nor to the community itself, but
to Christ.
CHURCH, WORSHIP OF. (See Worship in the New Testament, Christian)
CILICIA (Kilikia (kil ee kee ah)) A large and important district situated on southeast coast of Asia Minor.
Cilicia has two distinct types of geography. The western part is called Cilicia Tracheia
and has a forbidding mountainous appearance. The terrain was mostly steep and rocky, both
along the coast and inland, which made agriculture unprofitable. Communications were diffi-
cult, and traffic naturally followed the coast as well as it could. The 2nd part of Cilicia, the re-
gion east of the Lamus River was called Cilicia Pedias. It was sub-tropical and well watered
by several rivers. The plain was a vast expanse of rich land. Communications are rapid and
easy within this region. Ancient roads connected it with the countries to the north and east.
The northern pass through the Cilician Gates and the eastern Beilan pass could provide pas-
sage or could be easily closed.
The earliest inhabitants of Cilicia Pedias lived in villages and towns all over the plain.
Prehistory begins in the Neolithic period (6000 B.C.). Contact with the interior and coastal tra-
vel began to develop. After 2000 B.C., Cilicia entered history as Kizzuwatna, an indepen-
dent country. Sometime shortly after 1400 B.C., they were part of the Hittite Empire until the
Hittites’ downfall around 1200 B.C. Next, Cilicia was overrun by the Sea People. Small groups
of Greeks began to colonize. In the course of the 600s, Cilicia emerged again as an indepen-
dent kingdom. The Cilician king mediated between the Lydian and Median King in 585. The
use of Greek had become common and remained so in the Persian period.
In the Greek period after Alexander the Great, Cilcia came under Seleucid rule. The
rival Greek group, the Ptolemies, seized several cities after 246 B.C. Under the Seleucid Antio-
chus III (223-187) these cities were reconquered, but this monarch had his territory reduced
by the Romans in 188 B.C. In Cilicia Tracheia, a local dynasty of priest kings, Teucrids, main-
tained itself in the mountains. The coastal zone became a paradise for robbers and pirates,
who used the small harbors to escape detection and terrorize coastal shipping. A first cam-
paign was conducted in 102 B.C. without lasting results. The major blow against the pirates
was struck by Pompey in 67 B.C. He defeated them and resettled better elements in cities
of Cilicia. Both the eastern and western parts of Cilicia were annexed as a Roman province,
with Tarsus as its capital.
However, the two parts were not ruled as a unified district. Cilicia Pedia (Eastern) was
attached to the province of Syria. Cilicia Tracheia (Western) was first given by Antony to
Cleopatra (36 B.C.), and later by Octavian to King Amyntas of Galatia. The last monarch with
Greek roots to rule over Tracheia was Antiochus IV of Commagene (38 A.D.-72). His abdication
in 72 led to the final unification of Cilicia Tracheia and Pedias as a Roman province known as
Cilicia under Vespasian. The travels of Paul in his native country are not specific, but he clearly
followed the ancient road from Antioch to Tarsus (his hometown) and north through the Cilician
Gates to Derbe on his second journey. Archaeology is still in the process of exploring the wide
range of ruins found, from prehistoric to Roman times.
CINNAMON (קנמון (kin neh mon); kinnamwmon (kin na mow mon)) Fragrant bark of an oriental
tree. In the Old Testament, it was used for holy oil, perfume, and praise of the bride in the Song of
Songs [Solomon]. In the New Testament, it was listed as a trade item for Babylon, which was aIt isn't known when the rite was transferred by the Hebrews to infancy. By New Testament
times (NT), naming of the child on the 8th day accompanied the rite. Circumcision must have been
widely practiced in the pre-exilic period, although Deuteronomy does not require it, but speaks only
of “circumcision of the heart.” (See also the entry in the Old Testament Apocrypha / Influences Out-
side the Bible section of the Appendix.)
We must first distinguish between the original meaning and purpose of circumcision, and
the interpretation given to the developed form of the rite. We can only guess at circumcision's origi-
nal purpose, as the workings of the primitive mind remain a mystery. The 1st theory is that it was
performed for physical reasons, such as to prevent disease, to prepare for marriage by facilitating
intercourse, or for reasons of general hygiene. 2nd, it may have been a form a sacrifice, perhaps
of the reproductive powers to a fertility god. There is no evidence that Hebrews ever considered it
a sacrifice. The 3rd theory of circumcision is that it was an act of initiation, either into membership
in the community, or into the duties of manhood. For the later Hebrews circumcision was indeed
an act of initiation into the covenant people.
It is probable that a combination of the above views is necessary to explain the original pur-
CISTERN (באר,בור, bore) A pit or hole dug for holding water. The difference between “well” and
“cistern” often is not apparent. Pits dug in
Palestine's porous limestone were not satisfactory for
water storage until lime plaster became common around time of the Conquest. The cistern brought
a measure of comfort and security and eased the labors of women. The cisterns in the cities were
fed by water channeled from the roofs into the cisterns. Cisterns were often roughly bottle-shaped
and irregular. The mouth was sometimes finished with a prepared rim and was covered with a stone.
Sometimes a small settling basin was placed beside the rim. In nearly every one under the
mouth lay a heavy cone of everything from broken vessels to jewelry to skeletons.
CITADEL (ארמון (ar mone); akra (ak ra)) The stronghold of a city for purposes of defense or domina-
tion. David conquered Jerusalem by first taking the citadel of the city. The last citadel of Jewish
Jerusalem, the Antonia of the Herodian temple, fell under the Roman attack led by Titus in 70 A.D.
CITIES OF THE VALLEY (ככר ערי (ay ree ka kour)) The 5 cities of Sodom, Gomorrah, Admah, Zebohm,
and Zoar, situated in he Valley of the Jordan and the Dead Sea. Except
for Zoar, they were
destroyed by God.
CITIZENSHIP The state of being a citizen, whether of a Greek city-state or of the Roman Empire. Caesar
gave it to all the physicians and
teachers of liberal arts at Rome. Under Claudius, native auxiliary sol-
diers became citizens upon their discharge from the army; the emperor's wife later sold the privilege.
Most likely citizens carried something akin to passports. The rights of citizenship meant that a citizen
could not be punished without a trial. A citizen could not be examined by scourging, or even bound.
Most important of all was the right to “appeal to Caesar,” to be tried at Rome. The emperors gradually
extended the citizenship until in 212 A.D. it was given to all free inhabitants of the Empire.
The apostle Paul was a Roman citizen because he was born with this
status, and a citizen of Tar-
sus, where he was born. This suggests that his father was among the pro-Roman provincials who
were given citizenship in the last years of the republic. Paul's ethnos or nation was Jewish, and his
citizenship was dual, namely that of Rome and Tarsus. Paul's status as Roman citizen was one of the
factors which fitted him to become an apostle to the Gentiles.
CITY (עיר (aw yar); poliV (po lis)) None of our modern terms, like “city,” “town,” and “village,” covers ex-
actly the same area of meaning or suggests the same mental picture as do the words of any an-
cient language. Cities varied among themselves in ancient as in modern times, probably much more
in ancient times than today. As isolated as each city was, the city and the region around were largely
self-sufficient, and much more at the mercy of local conditions than now. Proximity to the sea, the
steppe, and to caravan routes, or a site on mountain or plain were modifying factors that produced
a different look in each city.
But all cities needed to provide for shelter, food, drink, security, civic and cultic functions, busi-
ness and economic life. Cities of Palestine bore little resemblance to Nineveh, Babylon, Ephesus,
Corinth, Alexandria, or Rome. The primary distinction between the city and the village was that the
former was walled. And the gate of a city was extremely important, not only in the defense of a city,
but also in its social functions. The city was a place of refuge, and had villages
or “daughters” which looked to the city for protection.
The sale of houses was treated differently in a village than in a city. A house in a village could
not be permanently separated from the original owner, but must be returned in the year of jubilee.
A house in a walled city, on the other hand, could only be redeemed by the original owner in the first
year after the sale only. The usual Palestinian city served an agricultural population, both in the city
itself and in its villages.
In ancient Palestine, trees were scarce. There were, aside from caves, 2 solutions of the pro-
blem of housing: the tent and the building of stone or mud brick. A “tent city” of great size might
easily spring up overnight on the edge of the steppe in Transjordan or the Negeb when different sec-
tions of a tribe came together. In selecting a site for a village or city, as actual practice shows, pro-
ximity to cultivable land was naturally a first consideration, but it was sometimes overridden by the
desire to be on a hilltop and near a spring.
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The mound of Old Testament Jericho is a unique example of a walled city, the oldest yet disco-
vered. Already before 7000 or 8000 B.C., in a Neolithic period when pottery was not yet known, it had
a strong wall connected with a massive round tower. Among other city sites that have been exca-
vated are the ruins of what is most likely Mizpah. It was first a little border city (1200-900 B.C.) and
was then turned by King Asa into a strong border fortress (900-850 B.C.), while still serving as a
market town. After the exile, it served as a local administrative center.
In contrast, Megiddo is more like a walled village in size. As elsewhere, the limestone strata of
the hill were in horizontal layers. The walls were built on the projecting strata, whose contours ranged
from 819 to 826 meters above sea level. The great wall of the main period was still standing to a
height of 6.5 meters or more, and was built on a foundation of large flat stones projecting slightly be-
yond the face of the wall. The circumference of the city was about 840 meters. The casement style
wall was formed by connecting two adjoining parallel walls with cross-walls at right angles to them.
The
wall was made crudely out of rubble, and was usually two stones in thickness and rea-
ching a width of about a meter, or rarely 2 meters. 2 heavily built towers were placed on either side of
the gate, each having 2 rooms. On the outside, from the surface of the ground, the wall was often
overlaid with a thick coating of hard yellow plaster up to 5 or 6 meters high to discourage scaling.
The average height of the wall was estimated to have been 13 to 15 meters above the founda-
tion. The wall wasn't constructed very methodically; most likely separate gangs worked on separate
sections, with little coordination or merging of one section into the next. The stones were only ham-
mer trimmed and laid in irregular, ill-fitting courses in clay mortar, some of them large enough to
require three men to lift them; small stones were used to fill up the chinks. Towers were placed at
irregular intervals along the wall.
Usually city gates were placed in the opening between the two ends of the wall. The gate at
Mizpah differs from this in several respects. The wall comes in from the north and slightly higher
than the wall from the south. They continued until they overlapped one another about13 meters.
There is 3 meters between the 2 walls, making for a square area; the gate itself took up 5.5 meters.
There were two sets of gate piers with an opening of 4.5 meters between them.
The overlapping gates of Mizpah provided an unusually strong defense for the gate. A paral-
lel has not yet been discovered elsewhere. The method of finishing the wall above the gate cannot
be positively determined. Heavy wooden lintels over the gateway may have carried the wall, but
the arch is probable. Another gate was also found at Mizpah, further south in the eastern wall; it
was an indirect-access gate with three pairs of piers. This type of gate was maintained at many
cities; two of Jerusalem's gates are of this type.
A small fortress city, such as Mizpah, may or may not have had a further interior defense;
there is no evidence either way. The citadel, or acropolis was usually combined with the palace.
2 positions were preferred, either the northwest corner, for the sake of the cool winds from that
quarter, or a place by the city gate. In the smaller cities, the governor's headquarters occupied
this position. In Hebrew Palestine no storage cities that can be distinguished as such have been
excavated. Presumably they were of imperial design and construction and connected with provi-
sion for the Persian armies that invaded Egypt.
There were cities of still other types besides those mentioned in either the Old Testament
or the New Testament. The seaports were: Tyre, Sidon, Joppa, and Ezion-geber (the latter was
also an industrial city). As to caravan cities, the well-known international routes through Syria
determined their sites and their character, even though they were not mentioned in the Bible as
such. Gaza, Tyre, Damascus, and Petra are known as caravan cities, both from their locations
and from written and archaeological records. The principal seaports in New Testament times
were Joppa, Caesarea, Stratonis, and Ptolemais.
In general, Palestinian cities were not planned but merely grew. At Samaria and Tell Beit
Mirsim the houses often used the inner wall of the casements as their back wall. At Mizpah, on
the other hand, there is a space of from 4 to 10 meters between the houses and the wall. Cities
on Palestinian hills were usually crowded in order to bring as many families as possible within the
walls. A striking feature of cities all over the Near East is the immense labor spent on provisions
for water. Long shafts and tunnels became common in the Late Bronze Age (around 1550 B.C.).
Cisterns came into use at about the beginning of the Iron Age (1200 B.C.), when the use of lime
plaster became known.
Another striking feature was the importance of the gate to Hebrew social life. For the an-
cient Hebrew, the city gate was much more than a means of exit and entrance, and much
more than an important part of the city's defenses. It was also the “center” of the city's social,
economic, and judicial affairs. Since the “judges sat in the gate,” the one place where there
was room and everybody congregated, “gate” stood for justice. “They were crushed in the gate,”
is thus a figurative way of describing injustice.
The concept of streets was slow in developing in Hebrew cities. In the Hebrew language
the word for “street” actually means merely “outside” the house or the city or any enclosure. The
ordinary streets in Hebrew times received no paving, but they did accumulate potsherds and
small stones, which were trodden down and gradually became a very unsatisfactory kind of maca-
dam. In larger cities, where there was a much-visited temple or a king's palace to be reached,
room was taken for a “broad way,” often with an enclosed courtyard before the temple or palace.
There were also special sections of streets, with copper and iron workers in one place, jewelers
in another.
The Greco-Roman city is much better known than that of the Orient because of the closer
connection of the western world. Also, whereas Judaism and the gospels had a distinctly agricul-
tural background, Christianity almost immediately gravitated toward the city. Jesus was a man
of the country; Paul of the city. This began with Alexander the Great and his successors taking the
Greek city to the Orient. All around the Mediterranean, Alexander and the Seleucids were
vigorous builders. The people still lived in their country villages and spoke Aramaic, while the cities
put on an alien veneer.
The typical Greek city, which came into fashion in the 400s B.C. is a called Hippodamian
city. The ideal city plan was oriented to the 4 points of the compass, but in practice the terrain deci-
dedly affected the direction and the regularity of the city plans. This city is marked by: its (fairly)
rectangular form; its agora, or marketplace; its open-air theater; a smaller roofed theater, called an
odeum; a gymnasium; an amphitheater; and various temples. Most notable is the agora, whose most
obvious function was as a market place. It also fulfilled the role as a civic center, taking over the city
gate’s role. No street passed through it, but a city street ran along 1 side, while the other 3 sides
were occupied with city office buildings, meeting halls, and temples.
The Roman city superficially followed the Hellenistic city plan. Streets crossed at right angles,
usually near the center of the city, and ran from a gate on one side through the city to a gate on the
other side. The forum took the place of the agora as sites for the display of statues. The bath was
a necessary feature of the Roman city. Usually Greek and Roman cities exhibited great care in pro-
viding for water by aqueducts and underground tunnels and pipes, as well as provisions for drai-
nage and sanitation. Walls were still built, but with less attention to detail as with other aspects of
the city. The gates were largely ornamental, and often a triumphal arch preserved the name of some
donor who had dedicated it to the emperor, as well as inscriptions to governors, the imperial family,
and benefactors of the city. A street of tombs outside the city along a prominent road was a standing
feature.
C-44
CITY AUTHORITIES (politarcai (po lit ark ahee)) A term occurring in Acts 17 only, referring to the poli-
tarchs of Thessalonica. The title politarch was mainly the Macedonian title for the non-Roman city
magistrate. The number of politarchs in a town varied with its importance; Thessalonica had 6.
When Macedonia was conquered by the Romans in 168 B.C., it was divided into 4 districts, with
Thessalonica the capital of the second district. In 146, the whole of Macedonia was reduced to a
single province with Thessalonica as its chief city. In turn Thessalonica was made a “free city” by
Octavius and Antonius and was ruled by its own assembly and magistrates. The politarchs are in
full charge and responsible both to the city and to Rome. Paul was accused of proclaiming another
king (i.e. Jesus), which was not something the politarchs could permit, as the freedoms of the city
did not include the right to recognize another king.
CITY OF DAVID (See David, City of)
CITY OF MOAB (ער מואב (awr mo ab)) The city where Balak went to meet Balaam.
CITY OF THE PALM TREES (עיר התמרים (aw yar ha ta mar eem)) A place mentioned as a part of
Jericho. Since Jericho was in ruins from the Conquest to Ahab, the term probably refers to a
nearby grove.
CITY OF REFUGE (ריע מקלט (aw yar mik lawt)) 1 of 6 Levitical cities appointed to receive and give
asylum to accidental manslayers. Among many peoples of antiquity certain shrines or sacredprecincts were regarded as providing absolute security to fugitives, who passed beyond the reach
of revenge and justice alike upon attaining sacred ground and claiming the protection of the city.
But biblical law restricted the right of asylum to the accidental homicide alone, because en-
suring the safety of the accidental homicide and avoiding the shedding of innocent blood was in
the vital interest of the whole community. The book of Numbers prescribes that 6 Levitical Cities, 3
on each side of the Jordan, are to be appointed as asylums.
Both the view point and the procedure for dealing with the manslayer vary from source to
source. In Numbers the manslayer is tried by the “congregation,” and if found innocent of murder is
“rescued” by the congregation and returned to the city of refuge, where he must remain until the
death of the (local?) high priest. If he leaves before then, he may be slain by the avenger. Deutero-
nomy stresses the responsibility of the community to establish easily accessible asylums for man-
slayers, and to keep murderers from enjoying immunity in them. Joshua is a combination of Num-
bers and Deuteronomy. The elders of the city of refuge pass upon the fugitive's right of asylum; the
congregation tries him; if innocent he must remain in the city until the high priest's death.
It is commonly held that the cities of refuge were conceived of by Deuteronomy as a replace-
ment of the local altars, which were abolished in the Deuteronomic reform. Banishment was used
elsewhere in the ancient world, but was not a biblical penalty. The Israelite alternative could only
have been an enforced exile of the manslayer from his home town. It secures the life of the man
slayer for an indefinite period while at the same time providing for the expiation of his guilt by a
kind of banishment and by the death of the high priest.
The asylums were presumably priestly towns containing important shrines. The United Mo-
narchy is the time period when all 6 cities were a part of Israelite territory, and also the most likely
time for such a national program for regulating blood revenge to have been conceived. Although
there is no mention of the cities of refuge outside the laws, it appears likely that the laws take their
departure from an earlier living custom.
CITY OF THE SUN (עיר החרם ('ir ha kher es)) In Isaiah 19, usually taken reference to Heliopolis in
Egypt.
CLAMP (מחברה (mekh ab ber ah)) An iron instrument among the materials prepared by David for use
in the construction of the Jerusalem temple.
CLAN (משפחה (mish pah khah)) The word “clan” is used to distinguish a kin group more extensive
than the family. The father's house and kindred, the “whole family” of a widow's husband, and a
clan united in the Passover sacrifice are examples of biblical usage. It also indicates a technical
division of the tribes of Israel.
CLASPS (קרס (keh res)) Gold or bronze fastenings by which linen curtains and goatskin hangings in the tabernacle were held together. Clasps were also used on veils surrounding the most High
Place in the tabernacle.
CLAUDIA (Klaudia) A Christian woman, probably a Roman, mentioned in II Timothy as sending
greetings.
CLAUDIUS Tiberius Claudius Nero Germanicus, successor of Caligula as Roman Emperor (41-54
A.D.). He is mentioned in Acts 11, and is most likely referred to in Acts 17.
C-45
Claudius was born in 10 B.C. Partly paralyzed and considered stupid by Augustus, Tiberi-
us, and Caligula, he came to the throne only because the praetorian guard proclaimed him. Be-
fore his reign, he had developed an intense interest in Roman history. He invaded Britain, and
suppressed the Druid religion, and while at first he tried to curb the anti-Jewish activities which
Caligula had favored, he later “expelled from Rome the Jews, who were constantly rioting under
the leadership of Chrestus.” Actually, Claudius forbade their assemblies in Rome because of
Jewish turbulence, which for a devout Jew amounted to the same thing. There were Christian
Jews in Rome during Claudius' reign; Paul's friends Aquila and Priscilla were also expelled.
In 54 A.D. the emperor was reviewing the problem of the succession and reached the con-
clusion that his own son Brittanicus should succeed him, rather than Nero, his step son.
Claudius was poisoned by Nero's mother. In spite of fiscal reforms and some military successes,
the reign of Claudius was marred by marital infidelity, a good deal of conspiracy, and the empe-
ror's own ineptness.
CLAY (חסף (khas af), baked clay; חמר (kho mer), clay mud; phloV (pay los), clay mud) The Hebrew
is very skillful in its use of the various Hebrew terms for “clay,” although the English translations
do not always bring this out. Clay was used for the making of both sun-dried and kiln-fired brick;
a certain kind was also used as a cheap plaster, a floor surface, and especially as a roof covering
to shed water. Jesus used clay when healing the blind man. The most skilled craftsman in clay
was the potter, who made dishes, toys, idols, cult objects, etc. Potsherds were a common writing
material when ink was used. Clay was not only used as a mold in metal castings, but also, when
fired, as a crucible.
CLAY TABLETS. The normal material for writing in Mesopotamia. It was available in large quantities
and, unlike papyrus in Egypt, inexpensive. When dried or baked, the tablets became hard and
almost indestructible. Initiated by the Sumerian, the use of clay tablets soon passed to other
Western Asiatic people (e.g. Hurrians, Hittites, Elamites, and Canaanites).
CLEAN AND UNCLEAN (טהר (tah hore or tah hare), clean; kaqarizw (kah thar its oh), clean; טמא
(tah may), unclean; akaqartoV (ah kah thar tos), unclean) To be unclean means to be contamina-
ted by a physical, ritual, or moral impurity; the absence of such impurities constitutes cleanness.
These words appear over 500 times in English translations of the Bible.
Old Testament (OT) laws of clean and unclean are applied to persons, foods, places, and ob-
jects. Human beings become unclean principally by contact with the dead or with the discharge of
one of the body fluids. Places and objects are usually clean in themselves and become unclean by
contact with something impure. Hebrew priestly tradition regarded the laws of cleanness as part
of the Mosaic covenant, and essential to the survival of the nation, since violation of them was of-
fensive to the holiness of God and estranged him from his people. Impurity due to leprosy and to
demon possession are New Testament themes, but the main direction of New Testament thought
is an almost exclusive emphasis on moral purity, and a repealing of the dietary laws, which was
necessary in order to include the Gentiles in the church.
Terminology and General Consideration—Altogether the linguistic picture shows that ques-
tions of cleanness and uncleanness were major concerns of the biblical writers, especially those
who held closely to the priestly tradition. An important part of the priestly function was “to dis-
tinguish between the unclean and and the clean.” Fundamentally, to be unclean means to be con-
taminated by some impurity. In Hebrew there is a close relationship between sin and unclean-
ness; both represent a contamination of the true nature by an alien element. Cleanness thus ap-
pears as a negative condition, as a passive state which can’t be transmitted, while uncleanness
can be. The New Testament (NT) employs concepts of cleanness and uncleanness in ways which
parallel the Old Testament, but concepts of cleanness and uncleanness occur relatively infre-
quently in the NT.
The clean and the unclean take an important place in the religions of tribal societies, and
the emphasis continues in modified and developed form in all the religions of humankind. Primitive
people make no real distinction between animate and inanimate nature, but regards the whole uni-
verse as infused with a personality or personalities akin to their own. Since the nonhuman powers
may be hostile, the survival of the group demands exclusion from it of potentially destructive ele-
ments. Certain things and events introduce an alien element into group life. Such things are un-
clean, and contact with them renders a person unclean.
Although self-preservation is the fundamental reason for laws of cleanness, a wide variety of
secondary reasons may account for any particular object's being unclean. Anything repulsive, abnor-
mal, or distorted was likely to be regarded as unclean. Those having a blemish could not serve as
priests, and the pig was unclean for the Hebrews probably because of its extensive use by the Cana-
anites as a sacrificial animal.
When a religion possesses a pantheon of gods, uncleanness is defined in relation to the will
of these supreme beings. The priesthoods tend to systematize the laws and practices of clean and
unclean. The OT priests related them to the covenant theology by placing their origin in the Mosaic
period and making them an integral part of the events which called Israel into existence and de-
fined her nature.
When the gods of a nation become concerned for the moral conduct of their worshipers, the
concept of “cleanness” inevitably broadens to include ethical purity. Moral uncleanness is an act of
rebellion arising from an inner defect of the heart. Both prophets and priests recognized that God
demands ethical purity, and that sinfulness is a form of uncleanness. Since a holy person, place,
or thing is specially set apart for the god's use, it is removed from common use. The holy thing is
removed from ordinary life and hedged around by ritual protections similar to those governing an
unclean object. It is isolated because it is so close to the god, while the unclean is isolated
because it is so remote from the god.
Laws of Uncleanness and Purification Rituals—Since in priestly thought uncleanness was in-
fectious, a human being might incur it by contact with any unclean person or thing. The appearance
of swellings, eruptions, and raw sores indicated to the ancient mind that evil powers or divine judg-
ment of sin was at work. The horrible effects of leprosy and the disfiguring nature of any skin dis-
eases, which Hebrews also described as “leprosy,” produced an uncleanness which lasted until a
cure was found, or the sufferer died. Frequent NT references to the healing of lepers show that OT
ideas of disease continued virtually unchanged into NT times.
C-46
panying childbirth—caused in ancient man irrational revulsion. A woman's menstrual flow, with its
monthly occurrence, relationship to fertility, and its relationship to blood, made it a potent source of
uncleanness. It produced an impurity of 7 days duration in the woman and any man who had inter-
course with her. Any bodily fluid's uncleanness could be transferred people by contact.
The dead body of a human being is an object of horror. Any contact caused uncleanness and
made necessary elaborate purification rituals. The need to bury the dead meant that this source of
impurity could not be entirely avoided. A demon, one of the cosmic powers opposed to God, is an
“unclean spirit.” Pagan idols and the cult practices belonged to the sphere of the anti-god, and ren-
dered Israel unclean.
The concept of ritual uncleanness did not gradually give way to a higher, moral conception of
purity. In fact, both grew together and in close relationship with each other. Both reached their high-
est level of strictness in the postexilic Jewish community. The NT, on the other hand, repudiated the
whole corpus of purity laws; the food laws were rejected most vigorously of all.
Since food is taken into the body, it represents a potential source of uncleanness. The writers
of Genesis differ as to when the distinction of clean and unclean animals was made. The Yahwist
writer wrote that it existed at the time of Noah. The Priestly tradition held that the main body of food
laws was given by divine revelation during the Mosaic period. OT food laws declared unclean any
animal which died of itself or was torn by beasts; meat that had blood in it, or that had touched an
unclean thing was unclean. In addition, the law described those animals which were unclean in them-
selves. Beasts which didn't both divide the hoof and chew the cud were unclean. All unclean animals
produce uncleanness when they are eaten, or when their carcasses are touched or carried.
The fact that the food of all Gentile nations was unclean posed a difficult problem for Jewish
communities living in a foreign environment. Jesus led the way by stating that defilement couldn't be
caused by any external agent. Peter's vision of the sheet lowered from heaven and containing all
types of animals, all of which the divine voice pronounced clean, provided the church with a mandate
to abandon the food laws. The Council of Jerusalem settled on the formula: Abstain from meat offered
to idols, from blood, from things strangled, and from fornication. Paul's position was that “nothing is
unclean in itself” but that being Christian meant being sensitive to those to whom such things mattered.
In the matter of clean and unclean places the OT writers are chiefly concerned to prevent intru-
invasion of the holy. The impressive annual ritual of the Day of Atonement removed the pollution of
concern to protect the holy from the unclean appears in the requirement that remnants of sacrifices
An object isn't unclean in itself, but it becomes unclean by contact with impure persons or ani-
mals. Exceptions were houses, garments of wool or linen, and leather, which sometimes had gree-
nish or reddish spots that spread. If a 14-day quarantine and replastering did not work the house
was destroyed. After 14 days without a cure, all garments were burned. The carcasses of unclean
swarming creatures defiled any object they touched, except water in a cistern or spring. Pottery and
clay ovens contaminated by an unclean person were broken. Booty captured in war, coming from a
foreign environment, was considered impure. The Bible also describes objects as clean or unclean in
a non-ritualistic sense.
A complete purification ritual consists of three elements: a waiting period; a cleansing agent
(i.e. fire, water, blood, or a priestly mixture called “water for impurity”); and a sacrifice specifically for
that type sin or guilt offering. Secondary infections—i.e. those which did not originate in the person
himself but were acquired by contact with uncleanness—were usually unclean until the evening.
Waiting periods of 40 and 80 days were reserved for mothers of a newborn, during which time they
must stay away from holy things.
Water is symbolic of cleansing throughout the Bible, and blood has the same symbolic value
in more intense form. Cedar wood, scarlet thread, and hyssop dipped in blood were used for clean-
sing lepers and leprosy in houses. The same mixture with red heifer ashes mixed with spring
water became “water for impurity.” Sacrifices, often combined with or preceded by ritual washing,
were part of the purification following discharges, childbirth, and leprosy. An interesting feature of
some rituals is the transference of human uncleanness to an animal, which is sent away and takes
the uncleanness with it.
Theology of Cleanness—The questions of cleanness and uncleanness were of pressing
theological concern to those OT writers most closely associated with the priesthood. A pervasive
principle of OT theology is that Israel should reflect in her community life the character and activity
which she ascribes to God. Since God is holy, the nation must be holy. Holiness and uncleanness
are as incompatible as light and darkness, and there is nothing casual or optional in the demand
for cleanness.
The concern for cleanness is, thus an essential part of Israel's response to Yahweh’s holi-
ness. Uncleanness in Israel causes Yahweh to turn away the Lord's face. To profane Yahweh by
bringing uncleanness into the Lord's presence is to negate Israel’s holiness, and to forfeit Yah-
weh's protecting presence. The distinction between holy and unclean is both a religious and a
cosmic division, running through the whole universe.
The priestly literature does not distinguish moral wickedness from impurity. The ritual of the
Day of Atonement removes simultaneously the accumulation of guilt for both sin and uncleanness.
The Israelite cult did not claim the power to remove the source either of sin or of uncleanness by
ritual means. Moral iniquity is a form of uncleanness of which the source is the inner life of the sin-
ner, and unless God forgives the sin, the source of defilement remains. Deliberate and unrepentant-
sin renders purification rituals useless.
When, however, the originating cause has been removed, a stain is left which continues
unless and until taken away by the prescribed ritual. Because the Jewish priests couldn’t deal with
the source of impurity, which was God's prerogative, they had no need to draw as harp line be-
tween sin and ritual impurity. The cultic purifications fulfilled an important psychological function
by relieving worshippers of debilitating guilt.
The mighty act and indicator of God's holiness was the deliverance of Israel from Egypt and
the covenant at Sinai. Priestly theology thus projected the Holiness Code, the Priestly Code, and
Deuteronomy back to the Mosaic period, and made them secondary to the covenant. The structu-
ring of the cleanness laws into the covenant theology made them absolutely binding on Israel.
They were part of the constitution of Israel's national life, and their observance was an absolute
necessity if the obligations of the covenant were to be met.
Paul reversed the OT view that uncleanness was contagious while holiness was not. In a Christian
marriage, therefore, the Christian consecrates the unbeliever. Since the NT eliminates the concept
of ritual uncleanness and concentrates on moral impurity arising from within, uncleanness is re
duced to a minor aspect of the doctrine of atonement. OT cleansing agents foreshadow the water
of Christian baptism. In the letter to the Hebrews, Christ as the perfect High Priest, sprinkles
the heart clean from an evil conscience and washes the body with water that remains eternally pure.
CLEMENT (KlhmhV (kleh mes)) An individual living in Philippi; one of Paul's fellow workers in the esta-
blishment of Paul’s first church in Europe. From the way that Paul wrote about him, Clement occu-
pied a place of special esteem in Paul's memory of his days at Philippi. It is unlikely that this
individual is the same as the Clement of Rome, because the Clement of Philippi was probably
old around 50 A.D. and would not have lived until the end of the century when Clement of Rome
was active. Also, the name is so common that identifications need to be supported by evidence
other than the name.
CLEOPAS (KleopaV) One of the two disciples who were confronted by the risen Jesus on the road to
Emmaus. He could be the same as Clopas, but the connection is not certain.
CLOAK (מעיל (meh ‘eel); imation (im at ee on); profasiV (pro fas is)) The translation of
several words referring to outer garments.
CLOPAS (KlwpaV) The husband, son, or father of one of the women who stood at the foot of the
cross. There is no certain way to link him with the Cleopas on the road to Emmaus. Ancient sour-
ces do mention that Joseph had a brother Clopas. This opens the possibility that the woman at the
cross was the sister (-in-law) of Mary, the mother of Jesus.
CLOSET (לשכה (lish kah); חדר (kheh der); תאה (tah ‘ah); tameion (ta my on)) King James Ver. uses
chamber.
CLOTH (בגד (beg ed); שמלה (sim lah); rakoV (ra kos); sindwn (sin done)) Because fabrics disinte-
grate in wet climates, not many of those made in Bible times have survived in Palestine, and the
Bible references to cloth give us a very hazy notion of what was made and almost no idea of how
it was made.
The most interesting question still to be answered concerns the type of garment made by
Jacob for Joseph. Since Jacob lived in the Bronze Age, the wool still had to be plucked from the
heep. A great portion of plucked wool was sorted, dyed, and made into felt, as spun wool fiber
had not come into its own. Based on what we know so far, it seems logical to assume that Jacob
made Joseph a garment of leathers or wool felt, with a woven binding to keep it from tearing.
The dimensions given for the different curtains for the tabernacle suggest that 4 cubits, or 2
meters was a standard width for curtains. The fabric used in these curtains were fine twined linen,
blue and purple and scarlet stuff, and goats' hair. For holy garments, gold was added to the other
materials. Many samples of cloth have been found in the dry climate of Egypt, and some of them
may have come from Palestine. There are textiles made of linen and textiles made of wool. Plain
and patterned specimens have been found of both. The method of weaving was uniformly simple.
Fibers Used—Flax and cotton are vegetable fibers, which people have been spinning since
the Stone Age. The fact that plant fibers turn or twist naturally in a certain direction may have sug-
gested the idea of spinning to early humans. And the people who cultivated them had to stay in
one place long enough to sow and reap. Flax was the longer fiber, so it was easier to spin. Wool
began to be spun in the Bronze Age, but the practice became much more common in the Iron Age.
Flax grew abundantly in Egypt. The Pharaohs gave as gifts garments of fine linen, which
was very comfortable to wear. This pliability seems to have been produced by steeping or ret-
ting the flax in running water to decompose the woody parts of the stem and liberate the linen
fibers. Some flax grew in Palestine, and the linen of Galilee compared favorably to Egyptian linen.
The Bible mentions cotton fabrics in Assyria. The cotton tree was introduced in Assyria
around 700 B.C. Over 200 years later we find “cotton curtains,” white & blue in Susa. Cotton grew
in many lands, but seems to have been spun only in countries with damp or humid climates, which
kept short fibers together during spinning. In earlier times, as in the Roman period, linen and cot-
ton were used undyed. Cotton could be dyed indigo easier than linen, which was occasionally deco-
rated with blue threads woven into the fabric.
Of the animal fibers used for cloth, silk and wool, the silk at our period was confined to the Far
East. The economy of Bible lands, except for Egypt, was based on wool. Sheep raised at high alti-
tudes grow a special undercoat of fine wool to keep them warm; those at sea level may not grow
this undercoat, because they do not need it. The samples of wool that archaeology has provided us
show that wool in Asia Minor is clear white; in the Caucasus and Upper Mesopotamia it contains a
series of colors from clear white through yellow, tan, and chocolate brown to dark brown.
The many natural colors in wool could be separated or used together, and they affected the
color one got when the wool was dyed. Indigo dye used on white wool could give a light or medi-
um dark blue; when used on gray wool, it would be darker still; on yellow wool, it produced green. In
fact, with a blue dye and a red dye, and the natural colors in wool itself, the weaver had at his dis-
posal a complete palette. The habit of dyeing wool before spinning gave yet another method of
achieving gradation of color, for wools of various natural shades, or that were dyed differently were
often spun together to make a desired effect.
Looms and Weaving Customs—3 kinds of looms were in common use in Bible times, 2 ver-
tical and one horizontal. The Egyptian vertical loom, which was used only by Egyptians, had 2
beams, one at the top holding the vertical threads, and one at the bottom holding the cloth. A wea-
ver stood at each side of the loom; the two would pass the shuttle back and forth through alterna-
ting threads. The horizontal thread was then packed down with those already woven to form the
cloth; gravity helped pack these threads tightly.
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The vertical Greek loom was used mostly for weaving wool. It had the cloth beam at the top
and loom weights on the bottom of the warps. The weaver stood in front of this loom and beat the
horizontal threads upwards. These threads were woven or embroidered past 5 or 6 vertical threads
at a time, rather than all the vertical threads at once. This made it easier to weave colored patterns.
The horizontal loom was an easy type for nomadic people to carry. It consisted of 2 beams held in
place by 4 pegs driven into the ground. Both wool and linen were woven on this loom. The type of
loom on which fabrics were to be made seems to have been implied by the phrases used to de-
scribe the process. Fabrics to be made on a Greek vertical loom were to be “embroidered”; those to
be made on a horizontal loom were to be “skillfully worked.”
The specifications for the curtains of the tabernacle show us that 4 cubits or 2 meters was
a standard width for both linen and wool material. The hangings for the court were to be 45 meters
long. The inner curtains were to have linen lengthwise threads with wool patterns woven into them.
The hangings for the court were to be plain linen, and the tent was to be plain goats' hair.
Garments were woven on the same types of looms as the curtains; a long warp would suffice
for many garments. For a robe, the weaver began his work on enough center vertical threads to make
a sleeve, leaving the threads on either side bare. The full loom or length of the robe would be woven
once the sleeve had been woven up to the shoulder line. The head opening was made by weaving
half of the area he wanted to weave at a time to separate back and front of the tunic. Then the weaver
would weave the other shoulder and sleeve.
The robe was then cut from the loom and the raw ends finished. When a tunic was woven on a
narrow loom, it was made in three pieces. The center section was woven as on a wide loom from cuff
to cuff, with a head slit in the middle. When a circular garment was to be woven the weaver
would widen the area he was weaving one or two lengthwise threads at a time, instead of all at once.
When narrow tapes were woven which had to be strong, 2 yarns were often used together in-
stead of a single yarn of larger size. As with the hangings, expensive materials and methods were
used for important garments. The materials available in Palestine were linen, wool, goats' hair, and
gold. In the Bible linen was referred to as “fine twined linen.” Wool was mentioned as“ blue and pur-
ple and scarlet (stuff).”
Gold thread preparation was a rare technique, and is described in the Bible, but the Bible de-
scription doesn’t match what archaeology has found. The Bible method uses gold leaf, hammered
out and cut into threads; Archaeology has not found any evidence of gold leaf being used in Near
Eastern fabrics. Instead there is evidence that drawn wire was beaten thin and cut into strips. Levi-
ticus 19 prohibits "garments of cloth made of 2 kinds of stuff." Apparently the cloth itself may not be
spun using 2 different kinds of fiber, because the description of the girdle, robe, breast-piece, and
ephod called for a combination of wool, linen, and gold.
The questions we have been able to answer make it clear that Bible references to textiles and
garments alike were meant for a civilization well acquainted with all weaving and tailoring processes.
Therefore, references point to techniques and customs without feeling a need to explain processes.
CLOUD (ענן (ah nawn), thunder-cloud; עב (awb), thick cloud; nefelh (ne fe lay)) There was of course
the “pillar of cloud” of Exodus 13; the cloud and darkness of Exodus 14 was probably a dust storm
of a sirocco or east wind. The cloud covering the tabernacle in Exodus 40 was morning mist or a
cloudy sky. Cloud is used figuratively in the New Testament. “To come with (or in) clouds” as in Mark
13 and Revelation 1 refers to Christ coming as the instrument of divine justice.
CLUB (תותח (toe thawkh), King James Version uses “dart”; מפץ (may feets); xulon (ex oo lon))
A weapon used in war. In the New Testament, it was carried by the crowd that came with Judas
to seize Jesus at Gethsemane (Matthew 26; Mark 14; Luke 22).
CNIDUS (kniduV) A Greek city on the coast of southwestern Asia Minor. It was colonized by Dorian
Greeks in territory which even attracted prehistoric settlers from the Aegean area. The point of land
extending into the sea at Cnidus is about 64 km west to east, with rugged mountains to the East, and
some fertile territory in coastal plains to the West, with a narrow strip of land in the middle. Ancient
Cnidus probably lay at the center, and was later moved to the site near Tekir on the western tip of the
peninsula in the 300s B.C. Paul sailed by Cnidus on his way to Rome.
COAL (גחלת (gah kheh leth); anqrakia (anth rak ee ah)) True mineral coal has not been found in
Palestine, whose geological formation is too recent. Biblical references are to charcoal, which was
used for heating, cooking, and smithing.
COAST The King James Version uses this word, which once had the meanings of “border,” “boundary,”
“territory,” and “region,” along with its modern day meaning of land along a body of water.
COAT, COAT OF MAIL (כתנת (koot toe neth); citwn (khee tone); שריון (shir yone), coat of mail)
Both the Hebrew and the Greek word refer to a long shirt-like inner garment, worn under the outer
garment. The Revised Standard Version uses the term almost exclusively for the priests' undergar-
ments; the King James Version uses it more frequently.
A coat of mail is a protective vest worn from the neck to the girdle, probably formed of two
pieces of leather joined below the arms. Goliath wore such a coat, reported to weigh 5,000 shekels,
57kg or 125 lbs., while David refused to wear Saul's because of its weight.
COCK (alektwr (al ek tor)) The Hebrew words which might be translated as “cock,” are still in dispute
among scholars. In Proverb 30:31, where the Revised Standard Version uses “cock,” the King James
Version uses “greyhound.” In Mark 13, the third watch (12 am to 3 am) is “cockcrow.”
COCKATRICE (צפע (tseh fah), viper) A fantastic reptile alleged to be hatched by a serpent from a cock's
egg, and having the power to kill by a glance. In the King James Version usage it is only a venomous
serpent.
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COCKLE (באשה (bash aw), bad plant, weed) Word used in King James Version
to translate the Hebrew word. Revised Standard Version translates as “foul weed.”
CODE A term used for various collection of Old Testament legal materials.
CODEX The earliest book form. The term came to be used for wooden leaves or tablets, and eventually
for books consisting of leaves laid on one another.
COFFER. King James Version form of “Box.”
COFFIN. See Burial.
COHORT (speira (spi rah)) 1/10 of a legion. The paper strength of a cohort was 6 centuries or 600
men. The troops stationed in Palestine were auxiliary troops, which had a paper-strength of 760
infantry and 240 cavalry. They were usually posted on the frontiers in small forts, 4 to 8 acres in
area.
COL-HOZEH (כל־הזה, every seer) An ancestor in the tribe of Judah who gave his name to a clan.
COLLAR ( a.)פה (peh), opening; b.) ענק (aw nawk), necklace; c.) צינק (tsee noke), pillory, stock)
a.) Used in Exodus 28 to describe the opening for the head in a priestly garment.b.) A decorative ornament, with pendants, which Midianite camels wore around their neck (Judge 8).
c.) A pillory into which a person's head was placed.
In Psalm 105, the Hebrew phrase “neck in iron,” suggests a “collar of iron,” which is the way that
the Revised Standard Version translated the phrase.
the lowest, working class of Rome, and for his legions’ veterans at a low cost to the state. Most co-
lonies were established in the western provinces (Corinth and Philippi are 2 eastern exceptions),
thus relieving overcrowding in Rome, while strengthening the Roman element outside of Italy.
Augustus also established colonies in Africa, Sicly, Macedonia, Spain, Achaea, Asia, Syria, Gallia,
Narbonesis, Pisidia, and 28 in Italy. Other communities were given Roman colony status in order
to honor their inhabitants and strengthen their ties with Rome.
The colonies possessed autonomous government, in some cases immunity from taxation,
and use of Italian legal procedure. The magistrates included praetors who in colonies could deal
with civil or criminal cases. They could impose floggings by the lictors, but not in the case of
uncondemned Roman citizens.
COLORS The Old Testament has no word for the abstract concept of color. Where
“color” is used in the Bible, the word actually has another basic meaning. For
example, Joseph's “many-colored” coat was actually “long with sleeves.” In the
New Testament, the word “color” does not occur in Greek.
When one turns to the names for the individual colors, one is struck both by the relative
poverty of terms and by the lack of precision in their definition. The clearest terms are for manu-
factured colors; natural colors are rarely used in descriptions. It has also so been noted that the
Hebrew are more concerned and clear about how somber or bright a color is, than they are about
the color itself. Colors are often used symbolically, but there is no evidence that colors were
employed in the actual decoration of the tabernacle or temple. In later ages, however, the colors
were seen to represent other things: white represented earth; purple stood for the sea; blue was
for air; and red was for fire.
COLOSSAE (Kolossai) As a city in southwestern Asia Minor, Colossae is a city with a non-Greek
name that was altered to make it “more Greek.” Of the 3 major Christian cities in the Lycus dis-
trict, Colossae is the earliest to have achieved city status. Xerxes stopped there during his expe-
dition to Sardis in 481 B.C., when the city was mostly Phrygians speaking their native language
and worshipping their great goddess. It was a large and prosperous city when Cyrus the Younger
stopped there in 401 B.C.
Competition arose from nearby Laodicea and Hierapolis, nearby cities developed by the
Greeks after Alexander the Great. Colossae must have become more Greek and eventually more
Roman in a gradual process of assimilation to its neighbors. On the north bank, there's a collection
of rock-cut and partly built graves. A Byzantine church was also built on this side of the river for
Saint Michael; the church was destroyed in a Turkish raid at the end of the 1100s A.D.; the ruins
are still there. Colossae was abandoned in the 700s A.D..
COLOSSIANS, LETTER TO THE A letter from Paul and Timothy to the Christians of Colossae, carried
by Tychicus and Onesimus, the slave of Philemon. It is now the 12th book in the New Testament.
Its notable features are its advanced Christology in the hymn of Chapter 1, and its refutations of a
dangerous heresy combining Christianity with another belief. Colossians is also the primary
source for the letter to the Ephesians.
As to the time and date of writing, the evidence of Acts indicates that
Paul could have met
Onesimus the runaway at Caesarea (57-59) or Rome (61-62); Colossians could have been written
during the Roman period. Some have proposed Ephesus, but there is no solid evidence to sup-
port this theory. Colossians was accepted as part of the New Testament and as Paul's writing
by 200 A.D.
The main controversy surrounding Colossians was its relationship to the letter to the Ephe-
sians. There is some belief that the source of Ephesians was a similar, shorter letter; it all depends
on how much Paul's disciples edited his work. This article supports the theory that the letter to the
Colossian we have today is the source of Ephesians. But Ephesians comes off as ponderous and
dull, whereas Colossians is lively with personal feeling, and gives one the sense of being a genu-
ine and original letter.
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Colossian has some unusual vocabulary; it has 34 words that are not found elsewhere in the
New Testament. It shares 15 words with Ephesians that appear only in other letters not written by
Paul, and 10 words in Colossians are found in Ephesians but nowhere else. No doubt, the unusual
Colossians crisis and heresy is responsible for the introduction of unusual words. Colossians lacks
the Pauline words “righteousness,” “fellowship,” and “law.” In terms of style, the grammar and long
sentences used can be found elsewhere in Paul's writing and especially in Ephesians. There have
been long-standing, major difficulties in the translation of Chapter 2: 18, 23, and minor difficulties
with 3 verses of Chapter 1, 3 verses of Chapter 2, and 1 verse of Chapter 3.
The things Philemon and Colossians share in common also support authenticity, and while
Philippians has a different tone than Colossian, it does share words and ideas in common. The diffe-
rent tone can be traced to the intimate connections Paul has with the church at Philippi, as opposed
to Colossae, where Paul is following up on Epaphras’ work. The heresy Paul dealt with at Colossae
could certainly belong to Paul's day.
The apostle wrote with 4 goals in mind. 1st, he wrote to establish the Colossians in the true
faith by exposing the deadly nature of the heretical teaching. 2nd, he wrote to instruct them in the
Christian way of life. 3rd, he wrote to encourage them to promote mutual love and harmony. And
4th, he wrote to give them news of the company at Rome and send greetings to his friends.
The heresy with which Paul was dealing was apparently a mystery cult where visions played
a part. They apparently sought to blend pagan and Jewish sources with Christianity, and turn it into
a faith based on obtaining “secret knowledge” in order to gain entrance to Paradise. The heretics at-
tacked Christianity as an immature faith and denied the sufficiency of Jesus Christ as divine healer
and redeemer from sin. The angelic powers were to be worshiped as well as Christ. Angels were
seen as beings with power to negotiate between the holy, transcendent deity, and the material world
where people live. Certain forms of self-denial and practice in worship were regarded as essential to
salvation.
Paul's answer was that Christ is the beloved Son of God and Savior, and that he ruled over the
angelic powers. Paul's position on self-denial or abasement is that mortification does not promote
spiritual health, that it leads rather to self-indulgence. He also vigorously objected that Colossians
were creating a new and negative legalism, and were denying the reality of faith union with the living
Christ, the container of “all the treasures of wisdom and knowledge.”
Colossians is brilliantly conceived and written, with Paul at his diplomatic
best. He graciously
recognizes Epaphras' work and perhaps Timothy's, yet he fights almost fiercely for the true faith of
the crucified and risen Lord. God is the Father of our Lord Jesus Christ. He is at once the invisible
and the knowable, revealed in his Son, the perfect Image, whom he raised from the dead. God's
plan to redeem the sinful and the fallen world is a mystery that was hidden from all eternity, but has
been revealed to his holy ones.
Like Philemon but unlike Philippians, Colossians lacks teaching about the Spirit of God. Jesus
is the Messiah and the Lord. He was put to death, but raised by God to reign at his right hand; he is
the beloved Son, the Savior of the universe. Moreover, he was the divine agent at Creation, the eter-
nal head who directs every process of life and energy.
3 propositions sum up the high Christology of Colossians: a.) Deity in its fullness chose to
dwell in Christ bodily; b.) Christ is Lord over all angels; c.) Christ is the head of the church, his body,
both as Creation’s mediator and as Savior. The salvation offered by such a Christ isn’t a mere prepa-
ration, in need of the secret teaching and regulations of another discipline. Because the “substance”
is in Christ, he isn’t only the clue to ultimate reality, he is also the judge of every religion and the stan-
dard by which all morals are judged.
In Paul's ethics, Christ's example is held up for imitation. Hence, love is the greatest virtue; the
bond of unity, the motive for mutual forgiveness. This love is Christian charity, compassionate, tender,
gracious and Christ-like. Christ's redemptive work, man's response in faith and baptism, bring the
church into being as the body of Christ. This church is to become united in love, and ought to grow in
wisdom, as each member becomes mature. The inferior groups (wives, children, and slaves) are told
to be submissive, as befits the Christian community; but Paul fails to advise them to love their supe-
riors. Slavery is not condemned, presumably because the hope that the Second Coming will be soon is
strong. And Christ is the Head who operates through his servants; implying the teaching of Roman 12.
Clearly this doctrine is what the 100s A.D. saw as being catholic universal).
COLT (בן (ben), son; עיר (ah yeer); pwloV (poe los)) The young of the horse or of animals like the horse.
In the Old Testament, “colt” is used for the young of camels, the tamed ass, and the wild ass. In the
New Testament, polos is used for the animal Jesus' disciples found for their Master's entry into
Jerusalem.
COMFORT (נחם (naw kham); parakalew (par ah kal ee o) While the Greek may also mean “to call (somebody)
to one's side,” it is also used of calling or speaking to someone else by way of comfort, encouragement,
entreaty, or exhortation. It is a key word in the gospel, going back to the words of comfort that begin
Isaiah 40. II Corinthians can be called the letter of comfort, so repeatedly does Paul strike this note
in it.
Those who enjoy the comfort of God are best able to comfort others. In the teaching of Jesus
those who mourn are congratulated because they are to be comforted. “Comfort” was used more often
in the King James Version than in the Revised Standard Version, because its range of meaning was
wider in Old English than it is today. It means “to strengthen,” as well as “to aid,” console, encourage,
refresh, relieve, and soothe.
COMFORTER (paraklhtoV (par ah klay tos)) King James Version translation of the Greek. (See Paraclete).
COMMANDMENT (פה (peh); מצוה (mits vah); entolh (en to leh), order, appoint, commission) In the Old
Testament, and often in the New Testament as well, the commandments of God generally refer to those
found in the first five books of the Old Testament or Torah. In the New Testament, the commandments
are summarized by Jesus in the command to love God and neighbor.
COMMENTARY Originally it meant sketchy notes as in a pupil's notebook or a speaker's outline, then a
book of unpolished history, and finally a book of notes explaining some earlier work. A biblical com-
mentary takes a section of scripture and seeks to make its meaning clear. The comment must deal to
some extent with textual, grammatical, and translation problems of the original; more satisfactory
commentaries strive to outline the author's thought, to relate each part to the aim of the whole, and
to see it against the religious, cultural, and political background in which it developed. Others place
greater emphasis on exegetical history and the writing's bearing upon present religious needs.
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COMMISSION, THE GREAT A way of referring to Jesus' command in Matthew 28 that his disciples should
go into all the world and “make disciples of all nations, baptizing them in the name of the Father, and
of the Son, and of the Holy Spirit." There are many questions surrounding the origins of this commis-
sion, about whether it was actually direct from Jesus, or from experience. The present text is attested
by other evidence, and its joining of Father, Son, and Spirit appears in other primitive confessions.
COMMON (חל (khole), profane; koinoV (koy nos)) In Old Testament priestly literature “common” is the op-
posite of “holy.” Although in the Old Testament the common is ritually neutral, and may be either clean
or unclean, in the New Testament koinos is synonymous with “unclean.”
COMMON LIFE The distinguishing characteristic of the Spirit-possessed community of the Christian body,
expressing that fellowship between men which results from corporate communion with God and tran-
scends secular divisions. For Luke, offenses against common life are directed against the Holy Spirit.
COMMONWEALTH (politeuma (po li too ma), community) Paul wrote to the Philippians: “Our common-
wealth is in heaven.” Paul implies the following in this statement: a.) our (i.e. Christian) commonwealth
is distinct from all others; b.) commonwealth implies community; c.) the conduct of Christians is to be
appropriate to their citizenship in the commonwealth; d.) only the miracle of the Savior coming from the
commonwealth in heaven will establish the fulfillment of the community's life.
COMMUNION (koinwnia (koy no nee ah); fellowship) In the Old Testament, the entire notion of the cove-
nant involves and implies the idea of communion between God and human. The covenant involves the
closest fellowship between God and God's people, without compromising the divine lordship or the fun-
damental truth that the whole relationship is based upon the sovereign grace of God. There can be no
tendency in the covenant theology of the Bible to suggest the possibility of an absorption of the human
by the divine, or of any union which would obscure the basic distinction between Creator and creation.
Within the terms of the relationship of grace and obedience, communion of a close and intimate
kind is established between humans and God. Certain individuals are granted a special and peculiarly
close relationship to God; Moses communed with God directly, “speaking face to face, as one would
to a friend.” Prophets, on the other hand were men to whom the word of the Lord came, to whom God
revealed the meaning of God's acts in history.
The hope of Israel included the expectation that in the age of fulfillment all God's people, and not
merely a selected few, would be admitted to a similar intimate, personal knowledge of, and commu-
ion with God. As Jeremiah put it, “No longer shall they teach one another, or say to each other, ‘Know
the Lord,’ for they shall all know me, from the least of them to the greatest. . .(Jeremiah 31:34).”
Under the system of the old covenant it could not be fully realized. The sacrifices themselves
were intended to supply a means toward communion with God. In particular, the peace offering was evi-
dently thought of as constituting a communion meal in which God and the worshiper were brought to-
gether in a mutual participation in the dedicated offering. Certainly, the apostle Paul describes “the
practice of Israel” this way in I Corinthians 10. Paul believed that to partake of the sacrifice makes the
worshiper a participant, either in fellowship with God in the case of the sacrifices of Judaism, or in fel-
lowship with demons in the case of offerings consecrated to pagan deities.
In the Christian dispensation, the God/human communion has been established in a new and
deeper sense through Christ. Human communion with God is now in and through Christ. The vocation
of those who are converted by the apostolic preaching is a calling “into the fellowship of God's Son,
Jesus Christ our Lord.” This calling involves union with Christ in his death, and resurrection; the state of
being “always with the Lord,” in a complete and final sense, belongs to the future hope. The union is
experienced now in a very personal communion with Christ. The Christian has died with Christ, belie-
ving that one will also live with him. The personal experience of Paul himself was of rejecting all that
had seemed valuable to him in his unconverted days and accepting righteousness from God through
communion with Christ in death and resurrection.
This communion with Christ isn't merely an individual experience. The community is a body with-
in which dwells the Spirit, so that it can, in one aspect, be virtually equated with Christ. The effective
sign of incorporation into Christ is baptism. The communion of the church with Christ is a union through
him with the Father. It is effectively signified and expressed in the Eucharist. It brings the community
into present union with the ascended Christ. In this Eucharistic communion, there are gathered up the
ideas underlying the commemoration of Christ's death, the re-enacting of the Last Supper, the meals
of fellowship, and the “breaking of the bread.” Present communion with God in Christ, and dedication
of the believer to God through Christ is to be perfected when the future hope of total redemption is
fulfilled. This “dedication” of the believer signifies chiefly participation in the future life, which is the life
of God.
COMMUNITY OF GOODS. In the Jerusalem church’s first days, the believers, taught by the apostles, united
in a communal life in which they joyfully and generously shared spiritual and material possessions. The
origins of this community of goods may be found in the example of Jesus and his disciples. Because
of Marxism today, “communism” isn't a suitable term for the communal life of the first Christians. Their
community of goods was voluntary. It was not equality of property or of production. It resulted in the
first dissension in the church. It soon faded out, but its influence continued in the church’s communal
monastic orders.
COMPASSION, PITY (ﬧחם (raw kham) חמל (khaw mal) splagcnizomai (splag kheh nih zo mah ee) eleew (el eh eh oh))
The Hebrew and Greek words above can be translated “compassion,” “pity,” or “mercy.”
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CONANIAH (כונניהו, Yahweh has established) 1. A Levite and chief officer over the collection of
contributions and tithes in King Hezekiah's reign. 2. A chief of the Levites in the reign of King Josiah.
CONCUBINE (פילגש (pee leh gesh); pallax (pal laks)) A slave girl who belonged to a Hebrew family and
bore children. They were acquired by purchase, captured in war, or taken in payment of debt. Her son
might become a co-heir; her name was remembered because of her offspring; a barren wife might have
a son through her. She had the rights to sabbath rest, food, clothing, and sexual intercourse.
CONCUPISCENCE A word used in the King James Version and other older versions of the New Testament,
meaning “sexual desire.” The word is not used in the Revised Standard Version and other modern ver-
sions, because it has since acquired different meaning through the theology of the Catholic Church.
CONDEMNATION (רשע (raw shah); katakrinw (kah ta kree no); κριmα (kree ma)) The condemnation
concept appears primarily in Job, Psalms, and Proverbs. God will condemn one who breaks a trust, one
of evil devices, and the unrighteous. God won’t condemn any who take refuge in God; God saves the
needy from those who condemn them. Job condemns himself, and God asked him whether he will
condemn God.
In the New Testament (NT), the root of the 2 Greek words given above meant originally “to sepa-
rate or distinguish”; then “to pass a judgment on”; and finally “to pass unfavorable judgment on.” In the
NT, God is sometimes the source of condemnation. But God sent his Son, not to condemn the world, but
that the world through Christ might be saved. People also condemn one another, but in Luke they are for-
bidden to do so. Jesus was condemned to death.
CONDUIT (תעלה (teh aw law)) A water channel or tunnel.
CONFESSION (ידה (ya dah); תודה (toe dah); omologew (oh mol og ee oh)) An aspect of the worship of
God. It involves acknowledgement of sin and helplessness, the declaration of the acts of God by which
man is rescued from his troubles, and praise and thanksgiving to the mighty, merciful God. Confession is
1st, the proclamation of the deliverance wrought by God. 2nd, it is the acknow-ledgement of sin and help-
lessness, and recognizing that God is in the right. 3rd, it is the praise of God, who rescues God's people.
In the New Testament (NT), John the Baptist emphasizes strongly the importance of confession of
sins. But the centrality of the person of Jesus caused significant modifications in the act of confession.
The NT confession focuses on Jesus as God's redemptive deed. Jesus is himself the great example of
confession. The disciple is also required to make confession; it is a public event. The disciple commits
himself in loyalty to Jesus. Jesus confronts his disciples with necessity of choice: they cannot serve both
God and mammon.
The apostolic church recognizes the necessity of confessing Jesus in the saying: “If you confess
with your lips that Jesus is Lord and believe in your heart that God raised him from the dead, you will be
saved.” In the life of the early church four factors influenced the development of confession. 1st, there
was the need for catechetical instruction as preparation for baptism. 2nd, the worship of the early church
also influenced the confession's forms. There are several examples of confessional formulas in the Bible;
even the Jewish worship tradition of the Shema has probably influenced the confession. 3rd, persecu-
tion also played a role. Jesus himself made the good confession before Pontius Pilate, and the Christian
was obliged to confess his name before Roman authorities also. 4th, the growth of heresy influenced
confessions. Some of the NT confessions show sharp reaction to false teaching.
Confession is an affirmation of the historical character of God's redeeming deed in Jesus Christ;
commitment to the lordship of Jesus, with all its risks; and rejection of all intellectual, moral, and mytho-
logical misinterpretation of the Christ event. While confession of Christ in its controversial setting is most
prominent in the NT, confession as praise is not absent.
CONFIRMATION The beginning of the church rite of confirmation is found by some scholars in Acts 8 and 19.
In both cases, the new disciples were baptized and received the Holy Spirit by the laying on of hands, byPeter and John in the first case, and by Paul in the second case. Different explanations of the origin of
confirmation have been proposed by scholars. The most probable seems to be the following: With the
mission in Samaria the gospel passed over to non-Jews for the first time. The solemn intervention of the
command. Both narratives may be considered as precedents of confirmation.
CONFISCATION Appropriation of private property to the public use. Confiscation, not mentioned in biblical
law, came into vogue in Israel with monarchy’s rise. As a judicial punishment, Ahab's appropriation of
Naboth's property was interpreted as an exercise of the royal right to confiscate the estate of state
offenders.
CONGREGATION, ASSEMBLY (a.) עדה (ay dah); b.) קהל (kah hawl); c.) מועד (mo awd), appointed time or place; d.) עצרת (‘ats eh reth); e.) ekklesia (ek klay see ah))
(a.) This word designates a company assembled by appointment, and may be applied to any gathe-
ring, group, or class viewed collectively, especially the wicked (e.g. “company of the godless”
(Job 15), “company of evildoers” (Psalm 22), “band of ruthless men” (Psalm 86).
In combination with other words it describes the “congregation of the righteous” (Psalm 1),
which refers, perhaps, to a judicial assembly rather than to the righteous in general. The phrase
“congregation of Israel,” may be used to explicitly identify the community; the word was frequent
ly used as a designation of the body politic. Frequently the word is simply determined by the defi-
nite article, “the congregation.”
The Hebrew word as a technical term applied to Israel is characteristic of the part of the 1st 5
books of the Old Testament written by the Priestly Writer. Those parts written by the Deutero-
nomist, Jahwist, and Elowhist don’t use this term. As used by the Priestly Writer, the term ap-
pears to designate the responsible element of the nation, the full citizens who have the rights
and duties of looking after the affairs of the nation.
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(b.) This word comes from the root-word qol (kole), which means “speak,” and is used to desig-
nate various sorts of human gatherings. When it isn't used in the general sense of “multitude,”
the term is not found much outside of the writings by the Deuteronomist. In his writings, it is the
regular designation for the gathering of the nation for religious purposes. The term sees frequent
use in Deuteronomy, Chronicles, Ezra, Nehemiah, and Psalms. The distinction, if any, between
'adah and kahal is difficult to determine. In general the terms are used synonymously, without
perceptible difference, to designate the cult community of Israel.
(c.) This Hebrew word is used of sacred seasons and appointed feasts. By
extension, the term may
also designate the assembly that celebrates the festival, the place of assembly, or any assembly.
(d.) Etsereth is a technical term for certain cultic assemblies. It is
applied to an assembly for the wor-
ship of Baal (II Kings 10), and specifically to the assembly of the 7th day of the Feast of Unlea-
vened Bread, and the 8th day of the Feast of Booths.
(e.) In the New Testament, ecclesia is applied to the community of Israel
in Stephen's speech, but
synagoge became the normal term to distinguish Israel from other nations. It was only natural
that the Christian movement dispensed with the term synagoge, because of its Jewish associa
tions, in favor of ecclesia.
CONSCIENCE (suneidhsiV (sun i day sis)) Generally, it is a witness within a person which condemns
that
person's sin. Other more specific meanings are given below.
Background and General Use of the Term—The conscience concept was not derived from the
Old Testament. For Hebrew thinking, the obedience demanded by God was revealed to humans in the
Law and the Prophets. It was not self-knowledge, but the fear of the Lord, that was the beginning of wis-
dom. Hence, there was no urge or interest in examining the inner motives of human behavior, even
though they may have been aware of this concept.
Thus, the emergence of the term “conscience,” with a moral
significance, seems to points to the
Greek world as its source. The Greek history of this term begins with Democritus (460-361 B.C.), whose
philosophy was akin to that of Epicurus. He describes the concept of conscience as a consciousness of
wrong-doing, which causes one to spend one's days in fear and anxiety. The term next appears in Chry-
sippus, a celebrated Stoic philosopher born around 280 B.C., he uses it to designate self-awareness in
all creatures, not only of humans. Several other Greek philosophers use “conscience” with a moral com-
ponent in the years before Christ.
In the first 100 years after Christ, Epictetus is supposed to have used the term in the following pas-
sage: “When we were children, our parents handed us over to a nursery slave who should watch over us
everywhere lest harm befall us. But when we were grown up, God hands us over to the conscience in us,
to protect us”; this passage may not be authentic Epictetus. And while it is popular to credit Stoicism
with the term “conscience,” there is no reason at all, to judge from the Greek sources, to assume that
the term is peculiarly Stoic, especially since it involves undertones of anxiety and fear that do not fit well
in Stoic philosophy.
In the time of the apostle Paul, the term was found in writers of Greek, such as Philo and Josephus,
with a moral connotations. Roman writers used it more frequently than the Greeks, and linked it to seve-
ral different Greek philosophies. The Latin writers do not reveal in Stoicism an emphasis on conscience,
nor do they support the view that moral conscience was an idea peculiar to Stoic doctrine. What they do
suggest is that, in its Latin form at least, conscience was a concept much employed in literary circles.
The use of “conscience” by Latin Stoic writers suggests that the needs of moral guidance overrode the
purity of philosophy. While it was not in use in the technical language of the “schools” of philosophy, it
was well established perhaps in more popular teaching among Epicureans, Cynics, and Stoic that
blended together philosophy and moralism.
The term “conscience” is to be understood in conjunction with a number of similar words and
phrases. Of particular importance is the phrase αυtω suneidhsi tι (aw toe soo nie den ah ee tee), which
means “to share knowledge with oneself,” “to know with oneself,” “to be a witness for or against one-
self.” By the time of the New Testament, suniedasis was the most popular term to express the meaning
of this phrase.
An examination of pertinent Greek passages suggests the following meanings for “conscience:”
a.) It is a faculty implanted in humans as part of their very nature, so that it functions as an expres-
sion of their very constitution.
b.) This faculty is a necessary characteristic of every one.
c.) Often the implanting of conscience is traced to God. Democritus asserts that conscience is con-
nected with punishment, presumably at the hands of the gods after death. Euripedes sees consci-
ence as the work of the Eumenides, the gods of vengeance and punishers of the wicked.
d.) Conscience becomes active in connection with a person's deeds.
e.) Primarily, it is a person's own acts which concern conscience; it “automatically” bears witness.
f.) While it is conceivable that conscience could mean a constant state of criticism of a person's cha-
racter, it is specific acts of wrongdoing, and not a continual habit, that call forth conscience.
g.) Stirred into activity of necessity by wrongdoing, conscience emerges as a pain. For, as Philo
wrote: For every soul has for its birth-fellow and house-mate a monitor whose way is to admit no-
thing that calls for censure, whose nature is ever to hate evil and love virtue, who is its accuser,
and its judge in one. . . If conscience has the strength to persuade, conscience rejoices and
makes peace. But if conscience cannot, then conscience makes war to the bitter end. Or, as
Euripides wrote: “My conscience, since I know I've done a dreadful deed, like an ulcer in the flesh,
leaves behind it in the soul regret which ever continues to wound and prick it. For the other pangs
reason does away with, but regret is caused by reason itself.”
h.) The passage from Philo depicts conscience also as an agent capable of inflicting pain.
i.) Conscience is said to suffer pain. Perhaps the most widespread concept of conscience was
that expressed in the quote wrongly attributed to Epictetus already cited above.
In the New Testament (NT)—The NT usage of suniedasis further attests to the fact that its meaning
grows out of its development by popular Greco-Roman philosophy. On the one hand, in the 4 gospels
which are primarily Hebraic or Palestinian, the term does not occur. On the other hand, suniedasis appears
30 times in the rest of the NT, with Paul using it 14 times.
The term first occurs in I Corinthians 8, where the issue of offering food to idols is addressed.
“Strong” Christians, who knew such offerings were meaningless, were tempted to ignore their weaker
brethren who refused to eat such food. But Paul insists that for the “strong” to do so would submit the
weak to conscience pains, so the “strong” shouldn’t eat meat sacrificed to idols. I Corinthians 10 takes up
this issue again, saying that the strong aren’t to be fettered by those of weak conscience. As a general
rule then, one should be guided by freedom; but one should pay respect, not to the weak brother's opi-
nion, but to his conscience's pains.
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Paul thus recognizes a variety in conscience. The weak conscience may be due to lack of know
ledge or force of habit; the weak conscience does not have the strength to act according to knowledge.
The sages are strong; in their strength, they are tempted to become presumptuous. This contrast of
weak and strong consciences can be found in the writings of Latin authors.
It is difficult to tell whether conscience refers strictly to the reaction to a wrong-doing occurring in the
present moment, or to guidance which avoids future wrong-doing. Unless we are to draw a very rigid dis-
tinction between the scruples one feels before an act, and the pain which follows, we are left with the con-
science affecting future as well as present actions. In Romans 13, Paul argues that, for the sake of con-
science, submission to the state is a necessity. Under the assumption that the state's power is derived
from God and thus commands a rightful obedience, future wrong-doing and pangs of conscience are
avoided through obedience.
Perhaps the difficulty of clarifying the conscience's possible future references arises from Paul's fail-
ure to clarify the distinction between “the conscience,” “the mind,” or “reason.” In Romans 2, three things
are distinguished: all are presumed to have a law written on the heart; all have a conscience; and all have
reason. Elsewhere in Romans, “mind” seems to have taken the place of the conscience as found in
I Corinthian 8. In I Corinthians, Paul has not been careful to distinguish between reason and conscience.
The effect of the inconsiderate conduct of the strong is to defile the conscience of the weak. If one
is persuaded to ignore one's conscience, to lay oneself open deliberately to its pains and not try to avoid
them, then one develops a resistance to them. In I Corinthians 10, the implication is that conscience
passes judgment, not on the subject's own acts only, but on those of other also. The blinded minds of un-
believers might be a synonym for the “perished consciences.”
Paul's usage of suniedasis seems to fall well within the Greco-Roman usage. Certain of Paul's usa-
ges are unique and noteworthy. In Roman 2 and 13, “conscience” is a property of humans by nature or ne-
cessity, and its operation, at least in part, may be regarded as the inner counterpart of the process of
“wrath” which Paul found at work in the external world's natural order and in society. In several places, Paul
makes clear that the conscience is subject to the Holy Spirit and to Christ. Paul makes it clear that consci-
ence is not his ultimate court of appeal; Christ is. Open to corrupting influences as it is, conscience is to be
stimulated by the Spirit and enlightened by Christ.
Outside the Pauline letters, “conscience” emerges in I Peter, the Pastoral Letters, and Hebrews, all of
which probably use the term the same way it is used by late Greco-Roman philosophers. In I Peter 2 and 3,
suniedasis probably means simply “consciousness” (Chapter 2), or refers to a consciousness of innocence
of any misconduct which might justify the criticism of outsiders (Chapter 3).
Noteworthy in the Pastoral Letters is the emergence of the phrase “a good conscience,” and the as-
sociation of conscience and loyalty to the faith. In I Timothy 1, in particular, the conduct of the Christian
life is dependent upon having both faith and a good conscience. And while in Paul, a tolerant attitude is ad-
vised on the ground of their conscience, in the Pastoral Letters the attitude of the “weak” is condemned
outright.
In both I Timothy 1 and Titus 1, a “good conscience” implies a positive loyalty to the truth. The cor-
ruption of the mind and the conscience is discussed, and a sharp distinction is made between the 2. This
distinction limits the directive function that conscience may have had, by making the rational process of
the mind which directs action separate from the intuitive process of the conscience. In Pastoral Letters,
“conscience” has become domesticated in this world. Living a Christian life means developing an ethic for
citizenship on earth, and it means fighting a battle, with conscience tied to the faith.
In Hebrews, “conscience” again merely means “consciousness.” Throughout Hebrews, conscience
is directed towards God; it is not primarily a moralistic, but a theological concept. The author is sure that,
in the particular situation facing him, he is not at fault. But he is faced with the necessity to act honorably
in all things as the proper response to God's truth, as befits a Christian.
CONSECRATE, CONSECRATION (a.) קדש (kaw dash), to separate, set apart; b.) מלא יד (meh law yawd), to fill the hand; c.) נזר (nay zer), to separate, dedicate; d.) agiazw (ah gee ah zoe), to separate, set apart)
To set apart dedicate, or sanctify a person or thing to some sacred purpose related to the serviceand worship of God, giving them or it a character of holiness. Consecrate was used for the ordination
and hallowing of persons to sacred office or service.
liness.” The original meaning of the word is not clear; most scholars hold to the view that the funda-
b.) The origin of this phrase, which literally means “to fill the hand,” are somewhat obscure. In the most
ancient practice the offerings were placed in the hands of the priest; by this symbolic act, involving
contact with the holy offering, the priest was consecrated.
c.) This word was occasionally translated “consecrate,” but its most common translation was “sepa-
rate.” The Nazirites derived their name from this word.
d.) In a few instances, this word is translated “consecrate,” but generally “sanctify” is used.
CONSOLATION (paraklgsiV (par ah klay sis)) Comfort. (e.g. “consolation of Israel” (Luke 2); “son of conso- lation” (Acts 4)) For the second example, the Revised Standard Version uses “encouragement” instead.
CONSUMPTION (1.) שחפת (shakh eh feth); 2.) כליון (kil law yone))
1.) Judging from context, it is likely a disease involving fever, joint-swelling, neuralgic pain, etc.
2.) The King James Version translation of the word in Isaiah 10 and 28. In both passages widespread
destruction, rather than specific disease is being portrayed.
CONTENTMENT (autarkeia (aw tar kie ah)) The acceptance of “things as they are” as the wise and loving providence of a God who knows what is good for us.
In the Old Testament (OT), contentment is of this godly sort. Moses had this sort of contentment,
even after his disappointing inability to enter Canaan. Occasionally such contentment may appear reac-
tionary to modern social reformers. Yet neither in the OT or New Testament does proper contentment
of godly people eliminate the possibility of divine discontent with injustice and wrong.
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Jesus himself calls for being content in the Sermon on the Mount, which sees the love of money
as a great enemy of true contentment. For the Christian, however, contentment is not self-regarding. Paul
assures the Corinthians that God provides in abundance, so that they might give in abundance. Paul also
writes of the innermost secret of this carefree, generous, contentment that lies in the Christian life with
God. “I have learned, in whatever state I am, to be content. I know how to be abased, and I know how to
abound; in any and all circumstances I have learned the secret of facing plenty and hunger, abundance
and want. I can do all things in Christ who strengthens me.” The Christian's all-conquering contentment
comes from knowledge of Christ and communion with Christ.
CONTRITE (דכא (dak kaw)) The religious sense of the word is indicated by the words or phrase with which it
appears in parallel. It belongs to vocabulary of later postexilic Israel, for which, as the result of the humilia-
ting experiences of the Exile, such qualities as humility, lowliness, meekness, had come to seem essen-
tial marks of the truly religious man.
CONVERSATION (דרך (deh rek), manner, custom; anastrofh (an as trof ay), mode of life, conduct; πολιteυmα (po li too ma), administration of commonwealth)
As used in King James Version, the old English meaning is that of manner, custom, lifestyle, con-
duct. This word is not used in modern English translations.
CONVERSION ( שוב (shoob), turn back; epistrefein (ee pi sir ef ine), conversion) In biblical usage, a turning or a returning. The Old Testament (OT) uses the term frequently; the New Testament (NT) uses it once.
In the OT, nouns and verbs are found with the physical meaning of “turn” or “return.” The most cha-
racteristic use is to describe God's “turning back” in respect of man. God's turning isn't fickleness, but
part of God's unchanging pursuit of human salvation. When humans turn from God, that is rebellion. On
the other hand, turning to God, or “conversion,” is thus more than a change of mind, more than under-
going some experience; its is a concrete change to a new way of life.
In the NT, the literal meaning of “turning” is found, but the NT doesn't speak of God's “turning.” It is
used a few times to speak of turning away from God, but more often it is used of one's turning to God.
The biblical emphasis is thus not upon a subjective psychological experience, but upon an objective
change in people. True turning to God follows upon repentance and belief, and it leads not only to an ob-
servable new way of life, but to a spiritual transformation as well.
CONVICTION (plhroforia (play ro fo ree ah), firm persuasion) Full assurance, certainty.
CONVOCATION, HOLY (מקרא קדוש (mik raw kaw doshe))
A term which refers to the Solemn Assembly and is virtually synonymous with it. It stresses the
summons to an assembly where Israel, in a state of special holiness, is called to fulfill sacred functions.
It is a central aspect of each of the 3 great feasts and of the Day of Atonement, which were days of rest,
and in later times were known as sabbaths. At this age's end, the hope of Israel is portrayed in a vision
of great convocations (Isaiah 4).
COOK AND COOKING (תבח (tab bawkh)) One who prepares and serves food.
Usually the women were the cooks, but men also cooked. The cook often had to butcher and boil
the meat. Some cooked professionally. The women of the house did the cooking except in the palace or
in wealthy homes, where servants were employed. Baking of bread was often done during the day, but
most of the cooking was done for the evening meal, which for the poor was often the only one.
In the average home the courtyard served as the kitchen. In Bible times bread was the most im-
portant food. The major grains used were wheat and barley, but their flour could be mixed with millet and
pelt. The rich used wheat, the poor used barley. Bread was often dipped in olive oil and then in some
ground spice or herb. Cakes were not only baked in the oven but were also made by frying in deep fat,
often olive or sesame oil. A second common method of eating grain was in porridge.
The 1st opportunity for cooking grain came in the harvest field itself. Grain was an item of food so
appreciated that it appears in the Levitical law of first fruits. The poor person's variant for bread and por-
ridge had to be vegetables and fruits, since they could seldom afford meat. Various kinds of lentils and
beans were especially valuable. The Hebrews were not great meat eaters; the use of meat was a sign
of wealth. For the poor, meat was a rare item reserved for religious occasions and special. There was no
easy way to preserve meat, so the whole animal had to be consumed the same day it was killed. Meat
was roasted, boiled, cooked in oil, or used on a spit or griddle. Boiling was the most common method
of cooking.
Food was made more palatable by the addition of salt. Common flavoring agents were onions,
leeks, and garlic. Condiments were various whole or ground seeds. Herbs and nuts were also used. The
place of these flavoring agents in the ancient diet cannot be overemphasized, for these gave the poor
the variety in their menu. Honey was the sugar of antiquity.
COOKING UTENSILS The Hebrews used several varieties of cooking pots. The most common form was wide
and shallow and made of clay. Copper kettles and pans were much more efficient, but they were also very
expensive. The oven for baking bread looked like a large inverted bowl with the bottom missing. The fire
was built inside the oven; then when only the embers were left, the thin bread was placed inside on the
walls of the oven. In the large cities there were public bakeries to which the housewives brought their
bread for baking.
COPING (טפח (tay fakh), handbreath) The meaning of this architectural term is obscure.
COPPER (נחשת (nekh o sheth); calkolibanon (kal ko li ban on), King James Version uses “brass” for both the Hebrew and Greek word. Revised Standard Version uses “bronze” for both.) The King James Version uses “brass” to translate these words because in the 1600s, “brass” meant any combination of copper and another metal. Actual brass (copper and zinc) was unknown in Biblical times.
After gold and meteoric iron, copper was the next metal used by humans, first for ornaments, and
then for tools. In Palestine, copper adzes dating from the 3300s or 3400s have been found at Meser.
From the Early Bronze Age (3000-2000 B.C.) came a few daggers and one ax head found at Jericho.
With the dawn of the Middle Bronze Age around 2000 B.C., copper became much more abundant. Copper
continued to be used extensively even after the introduction of bronze, especially for objects that did not
require casting.
COPPERSMITH (calkeuV (kal key us)) A worker in bronze, then generally a blacksmith, a brazier. The only New Testament use of kalkeyus indicates the occupation of a certain Alexander. Apparently, he strongly op- posed the Christian message, and Paul warns Timothy against him.
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