Smith's Bible Dictionary

J

Jaakan — Jebusites

Jaakan

Ja’akan (he shall surround), the same as Jakan, the forefather of Bene-Jaakan. Deuteronomy 10:6.

Ja-akobah

Ja-ak’obah (supplanter), one of the princes of the families of Simeon. 1 Chronicles 4:36. (b.c. about 710.)

Ja-ala

Ja-a’la (wild she-goat). Bene-Jaala were among the descendants of “Solomon’s slaves” who returned from Babylon with Zerubbabel. Nehemiah 7:58. (b.c. before 536.) The name also occurs as

Ja-alam

Ja-a’lam (whom God hides), a son of Esau, Genesis 36:5, Genesis 36:14, Genesis 36:18; comp. 1 Chronicles 1:35, and a head of a tribe of Edom. (b.c. 1790.)

Jaana-i

Ja’ana-i (whom Jehovah answers), a chief man in the tribe of Gad. 1 Chronicles 5:12.

Ja’are-or’egim (forests of the weavers), 2 Samuel 21:19, a Bethlehemite, and the father of Elhanan who slew Goliath. In the parallel passage, 1 Chronicles 20:5, Jair is found instead of Jaare, and Oregim is omitted. (b.c. 1063.)

Ja-asau

Ja-a’sau (whom Jehovah made), one of the Bene-Bani who had married a foreign wife. Ezra 10:37. (b.c. 459.)

Ja-asi-el

Ja-a’si-el (whom God comforts), son of the great Abner. 1 Chronicles 27:21. (b.c. 1046–1014.)

Ja-azaniah

Ja-azani’ah (whom Jehovah hears).

1. One of the captains of the forces who accompanied Johanan ben-Kareah to pay his respects to Gedaliah at Mizpah, 2 Kings 25:23, and who appears afterwards to have assisted in recovering Ishmael’s prey from his clutches. Comp. Jeremiah 41:11; Jeremiah 43:4, Jeremiah 43:5. (b.c. 587.)

2. Son of Shaphan. Ezekiel 8:11. It is possible that he is identical with

3. Son of Azur; one of the princes of the people against whom Ezekiel was directed to prophesy. Ezekiel 11:1. (b.c. 593.)

4. A Rechabite, son of Jeremiah. Jeremiah 35:3. (b.c. 606.)

Ja-azer

Ja-a’zer, or Ja’zer (Jehovah helps), a town on the east of Jordan, in or near to Gilead. Numbers 32:1, Numbers 32:3; 1 Chronicles 26:31. We first hear of it in possession of the Amorites, and as taken by Israel after Heshbon, and on their way from thence to Bashan. Numbers 21:32. It seems to have given its name to a district of dependent or “daughter” towns, Numbers 21:32, Authorized Version “villages”; 1 Maccabees 5:8, the “land of Jazer.” Numbers 32:1.

Ja-aziah

Ja-azi’ah (whom Jehovah comforts), apparently a third son, or a descendant, of Merari the Levite. 1 Chronicles 24:26, 1 Chronicles 24:27. (b.c. before 1014.)

Ja-azi-el

Ja-a’zi-el (whom Jehovah comforts), one of the Levites appointed by David to perform the musical service before the ark. 1 Chronicles 15:18. (b.c. 1014.)

Jabal

Ja’bal (stream), the son of Lamech and Adah, Genesis 4:20, and brother of Jubal. He is described as the father of such as dwell in tents and have cattle.

Jabbok

Jab’bok (emptying), a stream which intersects the mountain range of Gilead, comp. Joshua 12:2, Joshua 12:5, and falls into the Jordan on the east about midway between the Sea of Galilee and the Dead Sea. It was anciently the border of the children of Ammon. Numbers 21:24; Deuteronomy 2:37; Deuteronomy 3:16. It was on the south bank of the Jabbok that the interview took place between Jacob and Esau, Genesis 32:22; and this river afterward became, toward its western part, the boundary between the kingdoms of Sihon and Og. Joshua 12:2, Joshua 12:5. Its modern name is Wady Zurka.

Jabbok (Wady Zurka).

Jabesh

Ja’besh (dry).

1. Father of Shallum, the fifteenth king of Israel. 2 Kings 15:10, 2 Kings 15:13, 2 Kings 15:14. (b.c. before 770.)

2. Jabesh-gilead, or Jabesh in the territory of Gilead. In its wildest sense Gilead included the half tribe of Manasseh, 1 Chronicles 27:21, as well as the tribes of Gad and Reuben, Numbers 32:1-42, east of the Jordan; and of the cities of Gilead, Jabesh was the chief. It is first mentioned in Judges 21:8-14. Being attacked subsequently by Nahash the Ammonite, it gave Saul an opportunity of displaying his prowess in its defence. 1 Samuel 11:1-15. Eusebius places it beyond the Jordan, six miles from Pella on the mountain road to Gerasa; where its name is probably preserved in the Wady Yabes.

Jabez

Ja’bez (sorrow).

1. Apparently a place at which the families of the scribes resided who belonged to the families of the Kenites. 1 Chronicles 2:55.

2. The name occurs again in the genealogies of Judah, 1 Chronicles 4:9, 1 Chronicles 4:10, in a passage of remarkable detail inserted in a genealogy again connected with Bethlehem. ver. 1 Chronicles 4:4.

Jabin

Ja’bin (whom God observes).

1. King of Hazor, who organized a confederacy of the northern princes against the Israelites. Joshua 11:1-3. Joshua surprised the allied forces by the waters of Merom, ver. Joshua 11:7, and utterly routed them. (b.c. 1448.) During the ensuing wars Joshua again attacked Jabin, and burnt his city. Joshua 11:1-14.

2. A king of Hazor, whose general, Sisera, was defeated by Barak. Judges 4:2, Judges 4:13. (b.c. 1316.)

Jabne-el

Jab’ne-el (building of God).

1. One of the points on the northern boundary of Judah, not quite at the sea, though near it. Joshua 15:11. There is no sign, however, of its ever having been occupied by Judah. Josephus attributes it to the Danites. There was a constant struggle going on between that tribe and the Philistines for the possession of all the places in the lowland plains, and it is not surprising that the next time we meet with Jabneel it should be in the hands of the latter. 2 Chronicles 26:6. Uzziah dispossessed them of it and demolished its fortifications. Called also Jabneh. At the time of the fall of Jerusalem, Jabneh was one of the most populous places of Judea. The modern village of Hebna, more accurately Ibna, stands about two miles from the sea, on a slight eminence just south of the Nahr Rubin.

2. One of the landmarks on the boundary of Naphtali, Joshua 19:33, in upper Galilee.

Jabneh

Jab’neh (building of God). 2 Chronicles 26:6. [JABNEEL.]

Jachan

Ja’chan (affliction), one of seven chief men of the tribe of Gad. 1 Chronicles 5:13.

Jachin

Ja’chin (he shall establish).

1. One of the two pillars which were set up “in the porch,” 1 Kings 7:21, or before the temple, 2 Chronicles 3:17, of Solomon. [BOAZ.]

2. Fourth son of Simeon, Genesis 46:10; Exodus 6:15; founder of the family of the Jachinites. Numbers 26:12.

3. Head of the twenty-first course of priests in the time of David. 1 Chronicles 9:10; 1 Chronicles 24:17; Nehemiah 11:10.

Jacinth

Jacinth, a precious stone, forming one of the foundations of the walls of the new Jerusalem. Revelation 21:20. Called hyacinth in the Revised Version. This is simply a different English rendering of the same Greek original. It is probably identical with the ligure of Exodus 28:19. The jacinth or hyacinth is a red variety of zircon, which is found in square prisms of a white, gray, red, reddish-brown, yellow, or pale-green color. The expression in Revelation 9:17, “of jacinth,” is descriptive simply of a dark-purple color.

Jacob

Ja’cob (supplanter), the second son of Isaac and Rebekah. He was born with Esau, probably at the well of Lahai-roi, about b.c. 1837. His history is related in the latter half of the book of Genesis. He bought the birthright from his brother Esau, and afterward acquired the blessing intended for Esau, by practicing a well-known deceit on Isaac. (Jacob did not obtain the blessing because of his deceit, but in spite of it. That which was promised he would have received in some good way; but Jacob and his mother, distrusting God’s promise, sought the promised blessing in a wrong way, and received with it trouble and sorrow.—Ed.) Jacob, in his 78th year, was sent from the family home to avoid his brother, and to seek a wife among his kindred in Padan-aram. As he passed through Bethel, God appeared to him. After the lapse of twenty-one years he returned from Padan-aram with two wives, two concubines, eleven sons and a daughter, and large property. He escaped from the angry pursuit of Laban, from a meeting with Esau, and from the vengeance of the Canaanites provoked by the murder of Shechem; and in each of these three emergencies he was aided and strengthened by the interposition of God, and in sign of the grace won by a night of wrestling with God his name was changed at Jabbok into Israel. Deborah and Rachel died before he reached Hebron; Joseph, the favorite son of Jacob, was sold into Egypt eleven years before the death of Isaac; and Jacob had probably exceeded his 130th year when he went thither. He was presented to Pharaoh, and dwelt for seventeen years in Rameses and Goshen, and died in his 147th year. His body was embalmed, carried with great care and pomp into the land of Canaan, and deposited with his fathers, and his wife Leah, in the cave of Machpelah.

The example of Jacob is quoted by the first and the last of the minor prophets. Besides the frequent mention of his name in conjunction with the names of the other two patriarchs, there are distinct references to the events in the life of Jacob in four books of the New Testament—John 1:51; John 4:5, John 4:12; Acts 7:12, Acts 7:16; Romans 9:11-13; Hebrews 11:21; Hebrews 12:16.

Jacob’s Well

Ja’cob’s Well, a deep spring in the vicinity of Shechem (called Sychar in Christ’s time and Nablûs at the present day). It was probably dug by Jacob, whose name it bears. On the curb of the well Jesus sat and discoursed with the Samaritan woman. John 4:5-26. It is situated about half a mile southeast of Nablûs, at the foot of Mount Gerizim. It is about nine feet in diameter and 75 feet deep. At some seasons it is dry; at others it contains a few feet of water.

Jacob’s Well at Shechem.

Jada

Ja’da (wise), son of Onam and brother of Shammai, in the genealogy of the sons of Jerahmeel by his wife Atarah. 1 Chronicles 2:28, 1 Chronicles 2:32. (b.c. after 1445.)

Jadau

Jada’u (loving), one of the Bene-Nebo who had taken a foreign wife. Ezra 10:43. (b.c. 459.)

Jaddua

Jaddu’a (known).

1. Son and successor in the high priesthood of Jonathan or Johanan. He is the last of the high priests mentioned in the Old Testament, and probably altogether the latest name in the canon. Nehemiah 12:11, Nehemiah 12:22. (b.c. 406–332.)

2. One of the chief of the people who sealed the covenant with Nehemiah. Nehemiah 10:21. (b.c. 410.)

Jadon

Ja’don (judge), the Meronothite, who assisted to repair the wall of Jerusalem. Nehemiah 3:7. (b.c. 446.)

Jael

Ja’el (mountain goat), the wife of Heber the Kenite. (b.c. 1316.) In the headlong rout which followed the defeat of the Canaanites by Barak, at Megiddo on the plain of Esdraelon, Sisera, their general, fled to the tent of the Kenite chieftainess, at Kedesh in Naphtali, four miles northwest of Lake Merom. He accepted Jael’s invitation to enter, and she flung a mantle over him as he lay wearily on the floor. When thirst prevented sleep, and he asked for water, she brought him buttermilk in her choicest vessel. At last, with a feeling of perfect security, he fell into a deep sleep. Then it was that Jael took one of the great wooden pins which fastened down the cords of the tent, and with one terrible blow with a mallet dashed it through Sisera’s temples deep into the earth. Judges 5:27. She then waited to meet the pursuing Barak, and led him into her tent that she might in his presence claim the glory of the deed! Many have supposed that by this act she fulfilled the saying of Deborah, Judges 4:9; and hence they have supposed that Jael was actuated by some divine and hidden influence. But the Bible gives no hint of such an inspiration.

Jagur

Ja’gur (lodging), a town of Judah, one of those farthest to the south, on the frontier of Edom. Joshua 15:21.

Jah

Jah (Jehovah), the abbreviated form of Jehovah, used only in poetry. It occurs frequently in the Hebrew, but with a single exception, Psalm 68:4, is rendered “Lord” in the Authorized Version. The identity of Jah and Jehovah is strongly marked in two passages of Isaiah—Isaiah 12:2; Isaiah 26:4. [JEHOVAH.]

Jahath

Ja’hath (union).

1. Son of Libni, the son of Gershom, the son of Levi. 1 Chronicles 6:20. (b.c. after 1706.)

2. Head of a later house in the family of Gershom, being the eldest son of Shimei, the son of Laadan. 1 Chronicles 23:10, 1 Chronicles 23:11.

3. A man in the genealogy of Judah, 1 Chronicles 4:2, son of Reaiah ben-Shobal.

4. A Levite, son of Shelomoth. 1 Chronicles 24:22.

5. A Merarite Levite in the reign of Josiah. 2 Chronicles 34:12. (b.c. 623.)

Jahaz

Ja’haz, also Jaha’za, Jaha’zah and Jah’zah (trodden down). Under these four forms is given in the Authorized Version the name of a place which in the Hebrew appears as Yahats and Yahtsah. At Jahaz the decisive battle was fought between the children of Israel and Sihon king of the Amorites. Numbers 21:23; Deuteronomy 2:32; Judges 11:20. It was in the allotment of Reuben. Joshua 13:18. Like many others relating to the places east of the Dead Sea, the question of its site must await further research.

Jahaza

Jaha’za (trodden down). Joshua 13:18. [JAHAZ.]

Jahazah

Jaha’zah (trodden down). Joshua 21:36; Jeremiah 48:21. [JAHAZ.]

Jahaziah

Jahazi’ah (whom Jehovah watches over), son of Tikvah, apparently a priest. Ezra 10:15.

Jahazi-el

Jaha’zi-el (whom God watches over).

1. One of the heroes of Benjamin who joined David at Ziklag. 1 Chronicles 12:4. (b.c. 1055.)

2. A priest in the reign of David. 1 Chronicles 16:6.

3. A Kohathite Levite, third son of Hebron. 1 Chronicles 23:19; 1 Chronicles 24:23.

4. Son of Zechariah, a Levite of the Bene-Asaph in the reign of Jehoshaphat. 2 Chronicles 20:14. (b.c. 896.)

5. The “son of Jahaziel” was the chief of the Bene-Shecaniah who returned from Babylon with Ezra. Ezra 8:5. (b.c. before 459.)

Jahda-i

Jah’da-i (whom Jehovah directs), a man who appears to be thrust abruptly into the genealogy of Caleb, as the father of six sons. 1 Chronicles 2:47.

Jahdi-el

Jah’di-el (whom Jehovah makes joyful), a chieftain of Manasseh on the east of Jordan. 1 Chronicles 5:24. (b.c. 320.)

Jahdo

Jah’do (united), a Gadite, 1 Chronicles 5:14, son of Buz and father of Jeshishai.

Jahle-el

Jah’le-el (hoping in Jehovah), the third of the three sons of Zebulun, Genesis 46:14; Numbers 26:26; founder of the family of Jahleelites. (b.c. 1706.)

Jahma-i

Jah’ma-i (whom Jehovah guards), a man of Issachar, one of the heads of the house of Tolah. 1 Chronicles 7:2. (b.c. 1491.)

Jahzah

Jah’zah (trodden down). 1 Chronicles 6:78. [JAHAZ.]

Jahze-el

Jah’ze-el (whom God allots), the first of the four sons of Naphtali, Genesis 46:24; founder of the family of the Jahzeelites. Numbers 26:48. (b.c. 1306.)

Jahzerah

Jahze’rah (whom God leads back), a priest of the house of Immer. 1 Chronicles 9:12.

Jahzi-el

Jah’zi-el (whom God allots), the same as Jahzeel. 1 Chronicles 7:13.

Jair

Ja’ir (enlightener).

1. A man who on his father’s side was descended from Judah, and on his mother’s from Manasseh. (b.c. 1451.) During the conquest he took the whole of the tract of Argob, Deuteronomy 3:14, and in addition possessed himself of some nomad villages in Gilead, which he called after his own name Havoth-jair. Numbers 32:41; 1 Chronicles 2:23.

2. Jair the Gileadite, who judged Israel for two-and-twenty years. Judges 10:3-5. (b.c. 1160.) He had thirty sons, and possessed thirty cities in the land of Gilead, which, like those of their namesake, were called Havoth-jair.

3. A Benjamite, son of Kish and father of Mordecai. Esther 2:5. (b.c. before 598.)

4. The father of Elhanan, one of the heroes of David’s army. 1 Chronicles 20:5.

Jairite

Ja’irite (descendant of Jair), The. Ira the Jairite was a priest (Authorized Version “chief ruler”) to David. 2 Samuel 20:26.

Jairus

Ja’irus (whom God enlightens).

1. A ruler of a synagogue, probably in some town near the western shore of the Sea of Galilee. Matthew 9:18; Mark 5:22; Luke 8:41. (a.d. 28.)

2. Esther 11:2. [JAIR, 3.]

Jakan

Ja’kan (sagacious), son of Ezer the Horite. 1 Chronicles 1:42. The same as Jaakan. [And see AKAN.]

Jakeh

Ja’keh (pious). [PROVERBS, BOOK OF.]

Jakim

Ja’kim (whom God sets up).

1. Head of the twelfth course of priests in the reign of David. 1 Chronicles 24:12. (b.c. 1014.)

2. A Benjamite, one of the Bene-Shimhi. 1 Chronicles 8:19. (b.c. 588.)

Jalon

Ja’lon (abiding), one of the sons of Ezra. 1 Chronicles 4:17.

Jambres

Jam’bres. [JANNES AND JAMBRES.]

James

James (the Greek form of Jacob, supplanter).

1. James the son of Zebedee, one of the twelve apostles. He was elder brother of the evangelist John. His mother’s name was Salome. We first hear of him in a.d. 27, Mark 1:20, when at the call of the Master he left all, and became, once and forever, his disciple, in the spring of 28. Matthew 10:2; Mark 3:14; Luke 6:13; Acts 1:13. It would seem to have been at the time of the appointment of the twelve apostles that the name of Boanerges was given to the sons of Zebedee. The “sons of thunder” had a burning and impetuous spirit, which twice exhibits itself. Mark 10:37; Luke 9:54. On the night before the crucifixion James was present at the agony in the garden. On the day of the ascension he is mentioned as persevering, with the rest of the apostles and disciples, in prayer. Acts 1:13. Shortly before the day of the passover, in the year 44, he was put to death by Herod Agrippa I. Acts 12:1, Acts 12:2.

2. James the son of Alphæus, one of the twelve apostles. Matthew 10:3. Whether or not this James is to be identified with James the Less, the son of Alphæus, the brother of our Lord, is one of the most difficult questions in the gospel history. By comparing Matthew 27:56 and Mark 15:40 with John 19:25, we find that the Virgin Mary had a sister named, like herself, Mary, who was the wife of Clopas or Alphæus (varieties of the same name), and who had two sons, James the Less and Joses. By referring to Matthew 13:55 and Mark 6:3 we find that a James and a Joses, with two other brethren called Jude and Simon, and at least three sisters, were living with the Virgin Mary at Nazareth. By referring to Luke 6:16 and Acts 1:13 we find that there were two brethren named James and Jude among the apostles. It would certainly be natural to think that we had here but one family of four brothers and three or more sisters, the children of Clopas and Mary, nephews and nieces of the Virgin Mary. There are difficulties, however, in the way of this conclusion into which we cannot here enter; but in reply to the objection that the four brethren in Matthew 13:55 are described as the brothers of Jesus, not as his cousins, it must be recollected that ̓αδελφόι, which is here translated “brethren,” may also signify cousins.

James the Less

James the Less, called the Less because younger or smaller in stature than James the son of Zebedee. He was the son of Alphæus or Clopas and brother of our Lord (see above); was called to the apostolate, together with his younger brother Jude, in the spring of the year 28. At some time in the forty days that intervened between the resurrection and the ascension the Lord appeared to him. 1 Corinthians 15:7. Ten years after we find James on a level with Peter, and with him deciding on the admission of St. Paul into fellowship with the Church at Jerusalem; and from henceforth we always find him equal, or in his own department superior, to the very chiefest apostles, Peter, John, and Paul. Acts 9:27; Galatians 1:18, Galatians 1:19. This pre-eminence is evident throughout the after history of the apostles, whether we read it in the Acts, in the epistles, or in ecclesiastical writers. Acts 12:17; Acts 15:13, Acts 15:19; Acts 21:18; Galatians 2:9. According to tradition, James was thrown down from the temple by the scribes and Pharisees; he was then stoned, and his brains dashed out with a fuller’s club.

James The General Epistle of

James, The General Epistle of. The author of this epistle was in all probability James the son of Alphæus, and our Lord’s brother. It was written from Jerusalem, which St. James does not seem to have ever left. It was probably written about a.d. 62, during the interval between Paul’s two imprisonments. Its main object is not to teach doctrine, but to improve morality. St. James is the moral teacher of the New Testament. He wrote for the Jewish Christians, whether in Jerusalem or abroad, to warn them against the sins to which as Jews they were most liable, and to console and exhort them under the sufferings to which as Christians they were most exposed.

Jamin

Ja’min (right hand).

1. Second son of Simeon, Genesis 46:10; Exodus 6:15; 1 Chronicles 4:24, founder of the family of the Jaminites. Numbers 26:12. (b.c. 1706.)

2. A man of Judah, second son of Ram the Jerahmeelite. 1 Chronicles 2:27.

3. One of the Levites who expounded the law to the people. Nehemiah 8:7. (b.c. 410.)

Jamlech

Jam’lech (whom God makes king), one of the chief men of the tribe of Simeon. 1 Chronicles 4:34.

Jamnia

Jam’nia. [JABNEEL.]

Janna

Jan’na (flourishing), son of Joseph, and father of Melchi, in the genealogy of Christ. Luke 3:24. In the Revised Version written Jannai.

Jannes

Jan’nes and Jam’bres, the names of two Egyptian magicians who opposed Moses. Exodus 7:9-13; 2 Timothy 3:8, 2 Timothy 3:9. (b.c. 1492.)

Janoah

Jano’ah (rest), a place apparently in the north of Galilee, or the “land of Naphtali”—one of those taken by Tiglath-pileser in his first incursion into Palestine. 2 Kings 15:29. No trace of it appears elsewhere.

Janohah

Jano’hah (rest), a place on the boundary of Ephraim, Joshua 16:6, Joshua 16:7, east of Neapolis. A little less than twelve miles from Nablûs, and about southeast in direction, two miles from Akrabeh, is the village of Yanûn, doubtless identical with the ancient Janohah.

Janum

Ja’num (slumber), a town of Judah in the mountain district, apparently not far from Hebron. Joshua 15:53.

Japheth

Ja’pheth (enlargement), one of the three sons of Noah. The descendants of Japheth occupied the “isles of the Gentiles,” Genesis 10:5—i.e., the coast lands of the Mediterranean Sea in Europe and Asia Minor—whence they spread northward over the whole continent of Europe and a considerable portion of Asia.

Japhia

Japhi’a (splendid). The boundary of Zebulun ascended from Daberath to Japhia, and thence passed to Gath-hepher. Joshua 19:12. Yûfa, two miles south of Nazareth, is not unlikely to be identical with Japhia.

Japhia

Japhi’a (splendid).

1. King of Lachish at the time of the conquest of Canaan by the Israelites. Joshua 10:3. (b.c. 1450.)

2. One of the sons of David born to him in Jerusalem. 2 Samuel 5:15; 1 Chronicles 3:7; 1 Chronicles 14:6. (b.c. 1046.)

Japhlet

Japh’let (whom God delivers), a descendant of Asher through Beriah. 1 Chronicles 7:32, 1 Chronicles 7:33.

Japhleti

Japh’leti (the Japhletite). The boundary of the “Japhletite” is one of the landmarks on the south boundary line of Ephraim. Joshua 16:3.

Japho

Ja’pho (beauty). Joshua 19:46. The Hebrew form for the better-known Joppa. 2 Chronicles 2:16; Ezra 3:7; Jonah 1:3. In its modern garb it is Yûfa.

Jarah

Ja’rah (honey), a descendant of Saul; son of Micah and great-grandson of Mephibosheth. 1 Chronicles 9:42, comp. 1 Chronicles 9:40.

Jareb

Ja’reb (adversary) is to be explained either as the proper name of a country or person, as a noun in apposition, or as a verb from a root, rûb, “to contend, plead.” All these senses are represented in the Authorized Version and the marginal readings, Hosea 5:13; Hosea 10:6, and the least preferable has been inserted in the text. Jareb is most probably the name of some city of Assyria, or another name of the country itself.

Jared

Ja’red (descent), one of the antediluvian patriarchs, and father of Enoch. Genesis 5:15, Genesis 5:16, Genesis 5:18-20; Luke 3:37. In the lists of Chronicles the name is given in the Authorized Version Jered.

Jaresiah

Jaresi’ah (whom Jehovah nourishes), a Benjamite, one of the Bene-Jehoram. 1 Chronicles 8:27.

Jarha

Jar’ha, the Egyptian servant of Sheshan, about the time of Eli, to whom his master gave his daughter and heir in marriage. 1 Chronicles 2:34, 1 Chronicles 2:35. (b.c. before 1491.)

Jarib

Ja’rib (adversary).

1. Named in the list of 1 Chronicles 4:24 only, as a son of Simeon. Perhaps the same as Jachin. Genesis 46; Exodus 6; Numbers 26.

2. One of the “chief men” who accompanied Ezra on his journey from Babylon to Jerusalem. Ezra 8:16. (b.c. 459.)

3. A priest of the house of Jeshua the son of Jozadak, who had married a foreign wife, and was compelled by Ezra to put her away. Ezra 10:18. (b.c. 459.)

4. 1 Maccabees 14:29. A contraction or corruption of the name Joarib. ch. 1 Maccabees 2:1.

Jarimoth

Jar’imoth (heights). 1 Esdras 9:28. [JEREMOTH.]

Jarmuth

Jar’muth (high).

1. A town in the low country of Judah. Joshua 15:35. Its king, Piram, was one of the five who conspired to punish Gibeon for having made alliance with Israel, Joshua 10:3, Joshua 10:5, and who were routed at Beth-horon and put to death by Joshua at Makkedah. ver. Joshua 10:33. Its site is probably the modern Yarmûk.

2. A city of Issachar, allotted with its suburbs to the Gershonite Levites. Joshua 21:29.

Jaroah

Jaro’ah (moon), a chief man of the tribe of Gad. 1 Chronicles 5:14.

Jashen

Ja’shen (sleeping). Bene-Jashen—“sons of Jashen”—are named in the catalogue of the heroes of David’s guard in 2 Samuel 23:32. (b.c. 1046.)

Jasher

Ja’sher (upright), Book of (“the book of the upright”), alluded to in two passages only of the Old Testament. Joshua 10:13 and 2 Samuel 1:18. It was probably written in verse; and it has been conjectured that it was a collection of ancient records of honored men or noble deeds. It is wholly lost.

Jashobe-am

Jasho’be-am (to whom the people turn), named first among the chief of the mighty men of David. 1 Chronicles 11:11. (b.c. 1046.) He came to David at Ziklag. His distinguishing exploit was that he slew 300 (or 800, 2 Samuel 23:8) men at one time.

Jashub

Ja’shub (he turns).

1. The third son of Issachar, and founder of the family of the Jashubites. Numbers 26:24; 1 Chronicles 7:1. (b.c. 1706.)

2. One of the sons of Bani, who had to put away his foreign wife. Ezra 10:29. (b.c. 459.)

Jashubi-lehem

Jash’ubi-le’hem (turner back for food), a person or a place named among the descendants of Shelah, the son of Judah by Bath-shua the Canaanitess. 1 Chronicles 4:22.

Jasi-el

Ja’si-el (whom God made), the last named on the list of David’s heroes in 1 Chronicles 11:47.

Jason

Ja’son (one who will heal), called the Thessalonian, entertained Paul and Silas, and was in consequence attacked by the Jewish mob. Acts 17:5, Acts 17:6, Acts 17:7, Acts 17:9. (a.d. 48.) He is probably the same as the Jason mentioned in Romans 16:21. It is conjectured that Jason and Secundus, Acts 20:4, were the same.

Jasper

Jasper, a precious stone frequently noticed in Scripture. It was the last of the twelve inserted in the high priest’s breastplate, Exodus 28:20; Exodus 39:13, and the first of the twelve used in the foundations of the new Jerusalem. Revelation 21:19. The characteristics of the stone as far as they are specified in Scripture, Revelation 21:11, are that it “was most precious,” and “like crystal”; we may also infer from Revelation 4:3 that it was a stone of brilliant and transparent light. The stone which we name “jasper” does not accord with this description. There can be no doubt that the diamond would more adequately answer to the description in the book of Revelation.

Jathni-el

Jath’ni-el (whom God gives), a Korhite Levite, the fourth of the family of Meshelemiah. 1 Chronicles 26:2. (b.c. 1014.)

Jattir

Jat’tir (pre-eminent), a town of Judah in the mountain districts, Joshua 15:48, one of the group containing Socho, Eshtemoa, etc. See also Joshua 21:14; 1 Samuel 30:27; 1 Chronicles 6:57. By Robinson it is identified with ’Attir, six miles north of Molada and ten miles south of Hebron.

Javan

Ja’van (clay).

1. A son of Japheth. Genesis 10:2, Genesis 10:4. Javan was regarded as the representative of the Greek race. The name was probably introduced into Asia by the Phœnicians, to whom the Ionians were naturally better known than any other of the Hellenic races, on account of their commercial activity and the high prosperity of their towns on the western coast of Asia Minor.

2. A town in the southern part of Arabia (Yemen), whither the Phœnicians traded. Ezekiel 27:19.

Javelin

Javelin. [ARMS.]

Jazer

Ja’zer (Jehovah helps). [JAAZER.]

Jaziz

Ja’ziz (whom God moves), a Hagarite who had charge of the flocks of King David. 1 Chronicles 27:31. (b.c. 1046.)

Jearim

Je’arim (forests), Mount, a place named in specifying the northern boundary of Judah. Joshua 15:10. The boundary ran from Mount Seir to “the shoulder of Mount Jearim, which is Cesalon”—that is, Cesalon was the landmark on the mountain. Kesla, seven miles due west of Jerusalem, stands on a high point on the north slope of a lofty ridge, which is probably Mount Jearim.

Jeb’usites (descendants of Jebus), The, were descended from the third son of Canaan. Genesis 10:16; 1 Chronicles 1:14. The actual people first appear in the invaluable report of the spies. Numbers 13:29. When Jabin organized his rising against Joshua, the Jebusites joined him. Joshua 11:3. “Jebus, which is Jerusalem,” lost its king in the slaughter of Beth-horn, Joshua 10:1, Joshua 10:5, Joshua 10:26; comp. Joshua 12:10, was sacked and burned by the men of Judah, Judges 1:21, and its citadel finally scaled and occupied by David. 2 Samuel 5:6. After this they emerge from the darkness but once, in the person of Araunah the Jebusite, “Araunah the king,” who appears before us in true kingly dignity in his well-known transaction with David. 2 Samuel 24:23; 1 Chronicles 21:24, 1 Chronicles 21:25.