I.

ABANA and PHARPAR, two rivers of Damascus, mentioned in 2 Kings v. 12. The valley of Damascus, which lay between Libanus and Anti-Libanus, was watered by five rivers, of which these were the two principal. Both descended from Mount Hermon : the latter flowed by the walls of Damascus : the former flowed through the city and divided it into two parts. These rivers are not now to be distinguished. ABARIM, mountains of. See p. 241.

ABEL, Abel-beth - Maacha, or Abel-main, a city in the northern part of the canton allotted to the tribe of Naphtali. (2 Sam. xx. 14-22. 1 Kings xv. 20. 2 Kings xv. 29.)

ABEL-KERAMIM (the place or plain of the vineyards, Judg. xi. 33.), a village of the Ammonites, where they were discomfited by Jephtha.

ABEL-MEHOLAH was the native country of Elisha. (1 Kings xix. 16.) Not far from hence, Gideon obtained a victory over the Midianites. (Judg. vii. 22.)

ABEL-MIZRAIM (the mourning of the Egyptians), was formerly called the floor of Atad. (Gen.

1. 11.) Jerome, and some others after him, believe this to be the place afterwards called Bethagla, at some distance from Jericho and Jordan, west.

ABEL-SHITTIM was a town in the plains of Moab, beyond Jordan, opposite Jericho. Here the Israelites fell into idolatry, and worshipped Baal-Peor, seduced by Balek; and here God severely punished them by the hands of the Levites. (Numb. xxv. 1, &c.) ABILENE. See p. 225. Ассно. See PTOLEMAIS.

ACELDAMA (or the Field of Blood), the name given to a field purchased with the money for which Judas had betrayed Jesus. It was appropriated as a place of burial for strangers. (Acts i. 19. Matt. xxvii. 7, 8.)

ACHAIA, in a wider sense, comprised Peloponnesus and the whole of Greece properly so called. (2 Cor. xi. 10.) In a stricter sense, Achaia is the northern region of Peloponnesus, of which Corinth was the capital.

ACHMETHA. See ECBATANA.

Аснок, a valley in the territory of Jericho, and in the canton of the tribe of Benjamin, where Achan was stoned. (Josh. vii. 24.)

ACKSHAPH, a city belonging to the tribe of Asher. The king of Ackshaph was conquered by Joshua. (xii. 20.)

ADADA, a city in the southern part of the canton belonging to the tribe of Judah, not far from the boundaries of Idumæa or Edom. (Josh. xv. 27.)

ADMAH, OF ADAMA, one of the
five cities destroyed by fire from
heaven and afterwards over-
whelmed by the waters of the
Dead Sea. (Gen. xix. 24.)

ADRAMYTTIUM, a maritime town
of Mysia, in Asia Minor, for
which Paul embarked in his first
voyage to Italy. (Acts xxvii. 1, 2.)
ADRIA, mentioned in Acts
xxvii. 27., is the Adriatic Sea,
now called the Gulph of Venice.

ADULLAM, a city in the south
part of the canton of the tribe of
Judah towards the Dead Sea.
(Josh. xv. 35.) The king of this
place was killed by Joshua. (xii.
15.) In a cave in its vicinity
David was concealed. (1 Sam.
xxii. 1.) Rehoboam rebuilt and
fortified this place. (2 Chron. xi.
7.)

ENON, or Enon, signifies the
place of springs, where John bap-
tized. (John iii. 23.) It is un-
certain where it was situated,
whether in Galilee or Judæa.

AHAVA, a river of Babylonia,
or of Assyria, where Ezra assem-
bled those captives whom he after-
wards brought into Judæa. (Ezra
viii. 15.)

AI, or HAI, a city of antient
Canaan, near Bethel, which was
taken by military stratagem, by
the Israelites under Joshua. (Josh.
vii.)

AJALON, a city in the canton of
the tribe of Dan, assigned to the
Levites of Kohath's family. It
was situated between Timnath
and Beth-Shemesh, and is proba-
bly the city alluded to in Josh. x.

12.

ALEXANDRIA, a city of Egypt,
built by Alexander the Great, ce-
lebrated for the magnificence of
its edifices, and for the extensive
commerce carried on by its inha-
bitants, especially in corn. Alex-
andria was the native place of
Apollos. (Acts xviii. 24.)

AMALEKITES, the first and most
powerful of the nations in the vi-

cinity of Canaan. They dwelt in
Arabia Petræa, living like the
present Arabs in hamlets, caves,
or tents. They were always the
enemies of the Israelites, whom
they attacked in the desert, but
were repulsed. Balaam predicted
that they should perish for ever.
(Numb. xxiv. 29.) In fact, per-
petual wars against their neigh-
bours, and especially the Jews, in-
sensibly ruined them.

AMMONITES, the descendants of
Ammon, the son of Lot. They
dwelt to the east of the half tribe
of Manasseh, beyond the Jordan.
They were almost always at war
with the Israelites. They were
defeated by Jephthah, and subse-
quently by Saul, and particularly
by David, whose ambassadors they
had grossly insulted. At length
they were utterly destroyed by
Joab. (Judg. xi. 1 Sam. xi. 2 Sam.
x. xii.)

AMORITES, a people descended
from Amori or Amorrhæus, the
fourth son of Canaan. They first
peopled the mountains west of the
Dead Sea. They likewise had
establishments east of that sea,
between the brooks Jabbok and
Arnon, whence they forced the
Ammonites and Moabites. (Josh.
v. 1. Numb. xiii. 29. xxi. 29.)
Moses wrested this country from
their kings Sihon and Og.

AMPHIPOLIS, a city between
Macedon and Thrace, but de-
pendant on Macedon, mentioned
in Acts xvii. 1.

ANAKIM, the descendants of
Anak, a gigantic tribe who dwelt
in the land of Canaan; in com-
parison of whom the unbelieving
Hebrew spies, that were sent to
explore the country, reported that
they were but as grasshoppers.
(Numb. xiii. 33.) Their capital,
Kirjath-Arba or Hebron, was
taken, and they were destroyed by
Caleb, with the assistance of the
tribe of Judah. (Josh. xv. 14.
Judg. i. 20.)

ANATHOTH, a city in the tribe
of Benjamin, memorable as being
the birthplace of the prophet Je-
remiah. (Josh. xxi. 18. Jer. i. 1.)

ANTI-LIBANUS (Mount.) 237.
ANTIOCH, the metropolis of
Syria, was erected, according to
some writers, by Antiochus Epi-
phanes; according to others, by
Seleucus Nicanor, the first king
of Syria after Alexander the Great,
in memory of his father Antio-
chus, and was the royal seat of
the kings of Syria. For power
and dignity it was little inferior to
Seleucia or Alexandria. The dis-
tinctive name of Christians was
here first applied, by divine ap-
pointment, to the followers of
Jesus Christ. (Acts xi. 19. 26.)

ANTIOCH Of Pisidia, a city of
Phrygia, but thus denominated
because it was attached to the
province of Pisidia. (Acts xiii. 14.)

ANTIPATRIS, a small town which
was situated in the road from Je-
rusalem to Cæsarea. It was for-
merly called Capharsalma; but,
being rebuilt and beautified by
Herod the Great, it was by him
named Antipatris in honour of
his father Antipater. Hither St.
Paul was brought after his appre-
hension at Jerusalem. (Acts xxiii.
31.)

-

APHEK. There are several
cities of this name mentioned in
Scripture; as,

1. APHEK, in the tribe of Judah.
Here the Philistines encamped,
when the ark was brought from
Shiloh, which was taken in battle
by the Philistines. (1 Sam. iv.)
Probably this is the Aphekah,
mentioned in Josh. xv. 53.

2. APHEK, in the valley of Jez-
reel. Here the Philistines en-
camped, while Saul and his army
lay near Jezreel, on the mountains
of Gilboa. (1 Sam. xxix. 1, &c.)

3. APHEK, a city belonging to
the tribe of Asher, near the coun-
try of the Sidonians. (Josh. xix.
30. xiii. 4.) Perhaps this was the

4. APHEK, a city of Syria, one
of the principal in Ben-Hadad's
kingdom, in the vicinity of which
the battle was fought between
Ahab and Ben-Hadad, when the
Syrians were beaten (1 Kings xx.
26, &c.), and as they retreated
with precipitation into the city,
the city wall fell upon them, and
crushed 27,000.

APOLLONIA, a city of Mace-
donia Prima, through which Paul
passed, in his way to Thessalonica.
(Acts xvii. 1.)

APPII FORUM, a small town
on the celebrated Appian Way,
constructed by the censor Ap-
pius Claudius, through which St.
Paul passed on his first journey to
Rome.

ARABIA, the name of a large
region including the peninsula,
which lies between Syria, Pales-
tine, the Arabian and Persian
Gulfs, and the Indian Ocean or
Sea of Arabia. Its inhabitants
are supposed to be principally
descended from Ishmael.
distinguished into three parts,
Arabia Felix, Petræa, and De-
serta; but these divisions were not
antiently known to the inhabitants
of the East, nor are they observed
in the Bible.

It is

1. ARABIA FELIX lies between
the ocean on the south-east, and
the Arabian and Persian Gulfs.
It is a fertile region, especially in
the interior, producing various
species of odoriferous shrubs and
fragrant gums; as, frankincense,
myrrh, cassia, &c. The Queen
of Sheba (1 Kings x. 1.) is sup-
posed to have reigned over part of
this region.

2. ARABIA PETREA received
its name from the city Petra, and
lies on the south and south-east of
Palestine; extending to Egypt,
and including the peninsula of
mount Sinai. It is remarkable
for its mountains and sandy plains.

3. ARABIA DESERTA lies be-
tween the other two, and extends

northward along the confines of
Palestine, Syria, Babylonia, and
Mesopotamia; including the vast
deserts which lie within these
limits, and which are inhabited
only by wandering tribes of savage
Arabs.

ARAM, fifth son of Shem, was
father of the people of Syria,
who, from him, are called Ara-
mæans. The region, which in
the Old Testament is denominated
ARAM, is a vast tract extending
from Mount Taurus south as far
as Damascus, and from the Me-
diteranean Sea, in an eastern di-
rection beyond the Tigris into
Assyria. Different parts of this
region are called by different
names; as Aram Naharaïm, or
Syria of the Two Rivers, that is
Mesopotamia; Aram of Damascus ;
Aram of Soba; Aram Bethrehob;
and Aram of Maacha; because
the cities of Damascus, Soba,
Bethrehob, and Maacha were in
Syria; or at least, because Syria
contained the provinces of Soba,
Maachah, Rehob, &c.

ARARAT, a celebrated mountain
in the Greater Armenia; on which
Noah's ark rested after the deluge.
(Gen. viii. 4.)

ARIMATHEA, a small town to
which Joseph belonged, who
begged the body of Jesus from
Pilate (Matt. xxvii. 57.); it was
about thirty-six or thirty-seven
miles distant from Jerusalem.

ARNON (River.) See p. 235.
AROER. 1. The proper name
of a city of the Gadites, on the
river Arnon. (Numb. xxxii. 34.
Deut. ii. 36. iii. 12. Josh. xii. 2.
xiii. 25.) 2. The name of a place in
the canton of the tribe of Judah.
(1 Sam. xxx. 28.)

ASHDOD. See Azorus, p. 527.
infrà.

ASIA, one of the largest divi-
sions of the old world, is not men-
tioned in the Old Testament. In
the New Testament it is always
taken for Asia Minor, as it in-

cludes the proconsular Asia,
which comprised the four regions
of Phrygia, Mysia, Caria, and
Lydia. In this proconsular Asia
were the seven churches of Ephe-
sus, Laodicæa, Pergamos, Phila-
delphia, Sardis, Smyrna, and
Thyatira.

ASKELON, a city in the territory
of the Philistines, situated be-
tween Azoth and Gaza, on the
coast of the Mediterranean or
Great Sea, about 520 furlongs
from Jerusalem. After the death
of Joshua, the tribe of Judah
took Askelon, which subsequently
became one of the five govern-
ments belonging to the Philistines.
(Judg. i. 18.) This place is fre-
quently mentioned in the Scrip-

tures.

Assos, a maritime city of Mysia,
according to some geographers,
but of Troas, according to others.
It is mentioned in Acts xx. 13,
14.

ASSYRIA, a country of Asia,
the boundaries of which it is diffi-
cult to assign. Three of its mo-
narchs are particularly mentioned
in the Old Testament, viz. Tig-
lath-pileser, Shalmaneser, and
Sennacherib. The former, having
defeated Rezin king of Damascus,
and taken that city, put an end to
the kingdom there erected by the
Syrians. He also entered the
kingdom of Israel, conquered
Pekah, and carried away part of
the ten tribes beyond the river
Euphrates. Shalmaneser, the suc-
cessor of Tiglath-pileser, came
into Syria A. M. 3280, B. c. 724,
and desolated the country of the
Moabites, agreeably to the pro-
phecy of Isaiah (xvi. 1.), delivered
three years before. He then at-
tacked Samaria, and completed
the misfortunes of the Israelites
who remained, by carrying them
into captivity beyond the Eu-
phrates. Thus terminated the
kingdom of Israel, A. M. 3283,
B. c. 721. (2 Kings xvii. 3. xviii.

9-11.) Hezekiah, by the spe-
cial protection of God, escaped
the fury of Shalmaneser, to whom,
however, he became tributary, and
the Assyrian returned in triumph
to Nineveh. He was succeeded
on the throne by his son Senna-
cherib, A. M. 3287, B. c. 717. He
invaded the kingdom of Judah
during the reign of Hezekiah,
who had refused to pay the tribute
stipulated by Shalmaneser; but
an angel of Jehovah slew one
hundred and eighty-five thousand
of his troops. (2 Kings xix. 35.)
Sennacherib returned to Nineveh,
where two of his sons, weary of
his tyranny and savage temper,
slew him while he was worshipping
in the temple of Nisroch his god,
and immediately fled into the
mountains of Armenia. (2 Kings
xix. 37. Tobit i. 21.) He was
succeeded by his son Esarhaddon.

ATHENS, the capital of Attica,
and the chief city of antient
Greece. It was distinguished by
the military talents, but still more
by the learning, eloquence, and
politeness of its inhabitants. Saint
Paul coming hither, A. D. 32,
found them plunged in idolatry,
occupied in enquring and report-
ing news, curious to know every
thing, and divided in opinion con-
cerning religion and happiness.
(Acts xvii.) The great apostle
of the Gentiles, taking opportu-
nities here to preach Jesus Christ,
was carried before the judges of
the tribunal, called the Areopagus,
where he gave an illustrious testi-
mony to truth, and a remarkable
instance of powerful reasoning.
(See an account of the AREOP.
AGUS in p. 262.)

ATTALIA, a maritime city of
Pamphylia,and the chief residence
of the prefect. It derived its
name from king Attalus, its
founder. Hither St. Paul went
from Perga in Pamphylia. (Acts
xiv. 25.)

AVEN. See ON, p. 537, infrà.
AVIMS, the original inhabitants
of the country afterwards pos-
sessed by the Caphtorim or Philis-
tines. (Deut. ii. 23.)

AVITES OF AVIM, the inhabitants
of Aveh or Ava, a city whence
colonies were sent into Samaria.
(2 Kings xvii. 24. 31.) Ava is
supposed to have been situated in
the north-west of Chaldæa.

AZOTUS, or ASHDOD, a city of
Judæa, is situated between Gaza
and Jamnia, or Jafnia, in a plea-
sant plain. Here the ark of Je-
hovah triumphed over the Philis-
tine idol Dagon (1 Sam. v. 2.), and
Philip the Evangelist was found,
after he had baptised the Ethio-
pian eunuch. (Acts viii. 40.)—
It is at present an inconsiderable
place.

BABYLON, the metropolis of the
Chaldæan or Babylonish Empire,
was situated on the river Euphrates,
and was celebrated for its extent
and for the magnificence of its
edifices. The most terrible de-
nunciations were uttered against
it by the Hebrew Prophets, espe-
cially Isaiah; the literal fulfilment
of whose predictions has been
shown by various modern tra-
vellers.

BASHAN, or BATANEA. See
p. 226.

BEEROTH, a city belonging to
the Gibeonites, which was after-
wards given up to the tribe of Ben-
jamin. (Josh. ix. 7. 2 Sam. iv. 2.)

BEERSHEBA signifies the well of
an oath, or the well of seven, be-
cause here Abraham made an
alliance with Abimelech, king of
Gerar, and gave him seven ewe-
lambs, in token of that covenant
to which they had sworn. (Gen.
xx. 31.) Beersheba was given by
Joshua to the tribe of Judah; af-
terwards it was transferred to Si-
meon. (Josh. xv. 28.)

BEREA, a city of Macedonia,