white. (1.) The son of Bethuel, who was the son of Nahor, Abraham's brother. He lived at Haran in Mesopotamia. His sister Rebekah was Isaac's wife (Gen. 24). Jacob, one of the sons of this marriage, ...
Lachish:
impregnable, a royal Canaanitish city in the Shephelah, or maritime plain of Palestine (Josh. 10:3, 5; 12:11). It was taken and destroyed by the Israelites (Josh. 10:31-33). It afterwards became, und ...
Ladder:
occurs only once, in the account of Jacob's vision (Gen. 28:12).
Laish:
a lion. (1.) A city of the Sidonians, in the extreme north of Palestine (Judg. 18:7, 14); called also Leshem (Josh. 19:47) and Dan (Judg. 18:7, 29; Jer. 8:16). It lay near the sources of the Jordan, ...
Lama:
(Matt. 27:46), a Hebrew word meaning why, quoted from Ps. 22:1.
Lamb:
(1.) Heb. kebes, a male lamb from the first to the third year. Offered daily at the morning and the evening sacrifice (Ex. 29:38-42), on the Sabbath day (Num. 28:9), at the feast of the New Moon (28: ...
Lamech:
the strikerdown; the wild man. (1.) The fifth in descent from Cain. He was the first to violate the primeval ordinance of marriage (Gen. 4:18-24). His address to his two wives, Adah and Zillah (4:23, ...
Lamentation:
(Heb. qinah), an elegy or dirge. The first example of this form of poetry is the lament of David over Saul and Jonathan (2 Sam. 1:17-27). It was a frequent accompaniment of mourning (Amos 8:10). In 2 ...
Lamentations, Book of:
called in the Hebrew canon _'Ekhah_, meaning “How,“ being the formula for the commencement of a song of wailing. It is the first word of the book (see 2 Sam. 1:19-27). The LXX. adopted the name r ...
Lamp:
(1.) That part of the candle-sticks of the tabernacle and the temple which bore the light (Ex. 25:37; 1 Kings 7:49; 2 Chr. 4:20; 13:11; Zech. 4:2). Their form is not described. Olive oil was generall ...
Landmark:
a boundary line indicated by a stone, stake, etc. (Deut. 19:14; 27:17; Prov. 22:28; 23:10; Job 24:2). Landmarks could not be removed without incurring the severe displeasure of God.
Laodicea:
The city of this name mentioned in Scripture lay on the confines of Phrygia and Lydia, about 40 miles east of Ephesus (Rev. 3:14), on the banks of the Lycus. It was originally called Diospolis and th ...
Laodicea, Epistle from:
(Col. 4:16), was probably the Epistle to the Ephesians, as designed for general circulation. It would reach the Colossians by way of Laodicea.
Lapidoth:
torches. Deborah is called “the wife of Lapidoth“ (Judg. 4:4). Some have rendered the expression “a woman of a fiery spirit,“ under the supposition that Lapidoth is not a proper name, a woman ...
Lapping:
of water like a dog, i.e., by putting the hand filled with water to the mouth. The dog drinks by shaping the end of his long thin tongue into the form of a spoon, thus rapidly lifting up water, which ...
Lapwing:
the name of an unclean bird, mentioned only in Lev. 11:19 and Deut. 14:18. The Hebrew name of this bird, _dukiphath_, has been generally regarded as denoting the hoope (Upupa epops), an onomatopoetic ...
Lasaea:
a city in the island of Crete (Acts 27:8). Its ruins are still found near Cape Leonda, about 5 miles east of “Fair Havens.“
Lasha:
fissure, a place apparently east of the Dead Sea (Gen. 10:19). It was afterwards known as Callirhoe, a place famous for its hot springs.
Latchet:
a thong (Acts 22:25), cord, or strap fastening the sandal on the foot (Isa. 5:27; Mark 1:7; Luke 3:16).
Latin:
the vernacular language of the ancient Romans (John 19:20).
Lattice:
(1.) Heb. 'eshnabh, a latticed opening through which the cool breeze passes (Judg. 5:28). The flat roofs of the houses were sometimes enclosed with a parapet of lattice-work on wooden frames, to scre ...
Laver:
(Heb. kiyor), a “basin“ for boiling in, a “pan“ for cooking (1 Sam. 2:14), a “fire-pan“ or hearth (Zech. 12:6), the sacred wash-bowl of the tabernacle and temple (Ex. 30:18, 28; 31:9; 35: ...
Law:
a rule of action. (1.) The Law of Nature is the will of God as to human conduct, founded on the moral difference of things, and discoverable by natural light (Rom. 1:20; 2:14, 15). This law binds all ...
Law of Moses:
is the whole body of the Mosaic legislation (1 Kings 2:3; 2 Kings 23:25; Ezra 3:2). It is called by way of eminence simply “the Law“ (Heb. Torah, Deut. 1:5; 4:8, 44; 17:18, 19; 27:3, 8). As a wri ...
Lawyer:
among the Jews, was one versed in the laws of Moses, which he expounded in the schools and synagogues (Matt. 22:35; Luke 10:25). The functions of the “lawyer“ and “scribe“ were identical.
Lazarus:
an abbreviation of Eleazar, whom God helps. (1.) The brother of Mary and Martha of Bethany. He was raised from the dead after he had lain four days in the tomb (John 11:1-44). This miracle so excited ...
Leaf:
of a tree. The olive-leaf mentioned Gen. 8:11. The barren fig-tree had nothing but leaves (Matt. 21:19; Mark 11:13). The oak-leaf is mentioned Isa. 1:30; 6:13. There are numerous allusions to leaves, ...
League:
a treaty or confederacy. The Jews were forbidden to enter into an alliance of any kind (1) with the Canaanites (Ex. 23:32, 33; 34:12-16); (2) with the Amalekites (Ex. 17:8, 14; Deut. 25:17-19); (3) w ...
Leah:
weary, the eldest daughter of Laban, and sister of Rachel (Gen. 29:16). Jacob took her to wife through a deceit of her father (Gen. 29:23). She was “tender-eyed“ (17). She bore to Jacob six sons ...
Leannoth:
for answering; i.e., in singing, occurs in the title to Ps. 88. The title “Mahalath (q.v.) Leannoth“ may be rendered “concerning sickness, to be sung“ i.e., perhaps, to be sung in sickness.
Leasing:
(Ps. 4:2; 5:6) an Old English word meaning lies, or lying, as the Hebrew word _kazabh_ is generally rendered.
Leather:
a girdle of, worn by Elijah (2 Kings 1:8) and John the Baptist (Matt. 3:4). Leather was employed both for clothing (Num. 31:20; Heb. 11:37) and for writing upon. The trade of a tanner is mentioned (A ...
Leaven:
(1.) Heb. seor (Ex. 12:15, 19; 13:7; Lev. 2:11), the remnant of dough from the preceding baking which had fermented and become acid. (2.) Heb. hamets, properly “ferment.“ In Num. 6:3, “vinegar ...
Lebanon:
white, “the white mountain of Syria,“ is the loftiest and most celebrated mountain range in Syria. It is a branch running southward from the Caucasus, and at its lower end forking into two parall ...
Lebbaeus:
courageous, a surname of Judas (Jude), one of the twelve (Matt. 10:3), called also Thaddaeus, not to be confounded with the Judas who was the brother of our Lord.
Lebonah:
frankincense, a town near Shiloh, on the north side of Bethel (Judg. 21:19). It has been identified with el-Lubban, to the south of Nablus.
Leek:
(Heb. hatsir; the Allium porrum), rendered “grass“ in 1 Kings 18:5, 2 Kings 19:26, Job 40:15, etc.; “herb“ in Job 8:12; “hay“ in Prov. 27:25, and Isa. 15:6; “leeks“ only in Num. 11:5. ...
Lees:
(Heb. shemarim), from a word meaning to keep or preserve. It was applied to “lees“ from the custom of allowing wine to stand on the lees that it might thereby be better preserved (Isa. 25:6). “ ...
Left hand:
among the Hebrews, denoted the north (Job 23:9; Gen. 14:15), the face of the person being supposed to be toward the east.
Left-handed:
(Judg. 3:15; 20:16), one unable to use the right hand skilfully, and who therefore uses the left; and also one who uses the left as well as the right, ambidexter. Such a condition of the hands is due ...