Part 61
St. Paul himself (1 Cor 5 1-5; 1 Tim 1 20) or bv the congregation (Gal 6 1; 2 Thess 3 10-15; 2 Cor 2 6). V. Rest of NT: Summary.— (I) St. John had the task of presenting Christ to Gentiles, who were as
(1) The emphasis of He is of course on the sacri-
ficial work of Christ, but the Ep. makes practically
no contribution to the theology of
2. Hebrews sacrifice. The argument is this: The OT sacrifices certainly had an efficacy
unfamihar with the technical meaning
1. St. John of such phrases as "kingdom of God" or "Son of Man" as is the world toda}', and to Gentiles who had instead a series of concepts unknown in Pal. So a "tran.slation of spiritual values" became necessary if the gospel were to make an immediate appeal, a translation accomplished so successfully that the Fourth Gospel has always been the most popular. The Synoptists, esp. the extremely literal St. Mark, imperatively demand a historical commentary, while St. John has successfully avoided this necessity. (2) The "kingdom of God," as a phrase (3 3.5; cf 18 36),
Christ's sacrifice fulfilled their types perfectly, therefore it had a perfect efficacy (9 13.14). This must have been a tremendously potent argument for He's own purpose, but it is of very little help to the modern theologian. (2) More than in St. Paul
is emphasized the human training of Christ for His high-priestly work. Since He laid hold of the seed of Abraham (2 16), He learned by experience
all that man had to suffer (2 17; 4 15; 5 8, etc). In He the essence of the sacrifice hes not in the death but in what we call the ascension—the presentation of the blood in the heavenly tabernacle (9 11-14; see the comms.). That the death was specifically on the cross (12 2 only) belonged to the stage of training and had no especial significance in the sacrificial scheme. Christ's intercession for us in heaven receives more emphasis than in the rest of the NT (7 25).
is replaced by "eternal hfe." This life is given in this world to the accepter of Christ's teaching (5 24; 6 47), but its full reaUzation will be in the "many mansions" of the Father's house (14 2), where the behever will be with Christ (17 24). Ajudgmentof
all men will precede the estabUshment of this glorified state (5 28.29), but the believer may face the judgrnent with equanimity (5 24). So the behever
The one other distinct contribution to NT soteriology is made in 1 Pet's evaluation of the vicarious
is delivered from a state of things so bad as expressible as a world under Satan's rule (12 31; 14 30; 16 11), a world in darkness (3 19), in ignorance of God (17 25), and in sin (8 21), all expressible in the one word "death" (5 24). (3) The Jews had real privilege in the reception of Christ's message (111; 4 22, etc), but the extension of the good tidings to all men was inevitable (12 23.32, etc). Behef in Christ is whoUy a personal matter, but the believers enter a community of service (13 14), with the unity of the Father and Son as their ideal (17 21). (4) The nature of the moral ideal, reduced to the single word "love" (13 34; 15 12), is assumed as known and identifiod with "Christ's words" (5 24; 6 63, etc), and the necessity of progress toward it as sharply pointed as in the Synoptists. The sinner
suffering of the "Servant" of Isa 53. 3. St. Peter What Christ did through His sufferings we may do in some degree through our sufferings; as His pains helped not only living mankind, but even departed sinners, so we may face persecution more happily with the thought that our pains are benefiting other men (3 16-20). It is hardly possible that St. Peter thought of this comparison as conveying an exhaustive description of the Atonement (cf 1 19), but that the comparison should be made at all is significant.
(1) Salvation is^both a present and a future matter for us. The full reahzation of all that God has in store will not be ours until the 4. Sumend of human history (if, indeed, there mary will not be opened infinite possibihties of eternal growth), but the enjoyment of these blessings depends on conditions fulfilled in us and by us now. But a foretaste of the blessings of forgiveness of sins and growth in hohness is given on this earth. The pardon depends on the fact of God's mercy through the death of Christ—a fact for religious experience but probably incapable of e.xpression as a complete philosophical dogma.
is the servant of sin (8 34), a total change of character is needed (3 6), and the blessing is only on him who does Christ's commandments (13 17). This "doing" is the proof of love toward Christ (14 15. 21); only by bearing fruit and more fruit can discipleship be maintained (15 1-6; cf 14 24), and, indeed, by bearing fruit men actually become Christ's disciples (15 8, Gr). The knowledge of Christ and of God that is eternal life (17 3) comes only through
2671 THE INTERNATIONAL STANDARD BIBLE ENCYCLOPAEDIA Salvation Samaria
But strength comes from God through the glorified Christ (or through the Spirit), this vital union with God being a Christian fundamental. These two lines are in large degree independent, and the selection of the proportions profitable to a given soul is the task of the pastor. (2) That human effort is an essential in salvation is not to be denied in the face of all the NT evidence, esp. St. Paul taken as a whole. And yet no one with the faintest conception of what religion means would think of coming before God to claim merit. Here the purely intellectual discussions of the subject and its psychological course in the soul run in different chan-
"outlook" would fitly apply to a city in such a commanding position. The residence, it was also the burying-place, of the kings of Israel (1 K 16 28; 22 37; 2 K 10 3.5; 13 9.13; 14 16). Toward the western edge of the Ephraimite uplands there is a broad fertile hollow called Wddy
esh-Sha'tr, "valley of barley." From the mid.st of
it rises an oblong hill to a height of over 300 ft., with a level top. The sides are steep, esp. to the S. The greatest length is from E. to W. The surrounding mountains on three sides arc much higher, and are well clad with olives and vineyards. To the W. the hills are lower, and from the crest a wide view is obtained over the Plain of Sharon, with the yellow ribbon of sand that marks the coast line, and the white foam on the tumbling billows; while away beyond stretch the blue waters ot the Medi-
nels, and "anti-syncrgistic" arguments are really based on attempts to petrify psychological experience into terms of pure dogma. (3) Still more true is this of attempts to describe mathematically the steps in salvation—the ordo salutis of the older dogmatics—for this differs with different souls. In particular, NT data are lacking for the development of the individual born of Christian parents in a Christian country. (4) Further, the social side of salvation is an essentially Christian doctrine and cannot be detached from the corporate life of the Christian church. Salvation from temporal evils is equally, if secondarily. Christian. Nationalism in salvation is at present much in the background. But it is as true today as it was in ancient Israel that the sins of a nation tend to harm the souls of even those who have not participated actively in those sins.
terranean. On the eastern end of the hill, surrounded by olive and cactus, is the modern village
of Scbasliyeh, under which a low neck of land con-
nects the hill with the eastern slopes. The position
Literature.—The literature of salvation is virtually the Uterature of theology (see under separate arts., Atonement; Justification; Sanctification ; Person OF Christ; JohannineTheology; Pauline Theology, etc), but a few recent works may be mentioned. Indispensable are the works of Stevens, The Christian Doctrine of Salvation and The Pauline Theology. Garvie's Romans in the "New Century" series should be used as a supplement to any other comm. on Rom. The juridical theory has as its best defence in Eng. Denney's
8&^
The Death of Christ. The ethical theory is best presented in the works of Du Bose, The Gospel in the Gospels, The
Gospel according to St. Paul, and High-Priesthood and
Sacrifice (Sanday's Expos reviews of the two former, reprinted in The Life of Christ in Recent Research, should be read in any case)
Burton Scott Easton SAMAEL, sam'S-el: AV = RV Salamiel (q.v.).
SAMAIAS, sa-ma'yas (2a|ia£as, Samaias)
(1) One of the "captains over thousands" promi-
nent at the Passover of Josiah (1 Esd 1 9) = "Shemaiah" in 2 Ch 35 9.
(2) One of the heads of families of the sons of Adonikam who returned with Ezra (1 Esd 8 39) =
"Shemaiah" in Ezr 8 13.
(3) One of the "men of understanding" whom Ezra commissioned to obtain from Loddeus, the
captain, men to execute the priest's office (1 Esd
8 44) = "Shemaiah" in Ezr 8 16 (AV Mamaias).
(4) AV =RV "Shemaiah the great," a kmsman
of Tobit and father of Ananias and Jonathan (Tob
5 13). S- ^°us
SAMARIA, sa-ma'ri-a, CITY OF (pl^TlJ , shom'-
ron; 2a|idpeio, Samdreia, 2e|j-«pwv, Semeron, and
(1) Shechem was the first oaPtal of the Northern Kingdom (1 K 12 25). Jeroboam seems later to
have removed the royal residence to Tirzah (14 U).
After the brief reigns of Elah and Zimri canie that
of Omri, who reigned 6 years in Tirzah, then he
purchased the hill of Samaria and built a city there,
which was thenceforward the metropohs of the kingdom of Israel (16 24). Here the hiU and the city
are said to have been named after Shemer, the origi-
nal owner of the land. There is nothmg mtrmsi-
caUy improbable m tliis. It might naturaUy be
denved from shainar, and the name m the sense ot
Samaria Samaritans THE INTERNATIONAL STANDARD BIBLE ENCYCLOPAEDIA 2672
Syrians the right to "make streets in Samaria" (1 K 20 34). Ben-hadad II besieged the city, but suffered ignominious defeat (20 1-21; Jos, Ant, VIII, xiv,
It is commonly thought that this city was the scene of PhOip's preaching and the events that followed recorded in Acts 8, but the absence of the
def. art. in ver 5 makes this doubtful. A Rom colony was settled here by Septimius Severus. From that time httle is known of the history of the
1 f). Persistent attempts by the Syrians to reach the city in the time of Jehoram were frustrated by EHsha (2K6 8ff; Jos, A?U, IX, iv, 3). At length, however, Ben-hadad again invested the city, and the besieged were reduced to dire straits, in which, urged by famine, scenes of awful horror were enacted (2 K 6 24ff). A m3-sterious panic seized the Syrians. Their deserted camp was discovered by despairing lepers who carried the good news to the famished citizens of the plentj' to be found there. Probably in the throat of the great western gateway occurred the crush in which the incredulous captain was trampled to death (ch 7; Jos, Ant, IX, iv, 5). Here the 70 sons of Ahab were slain by Jehu in the general destruction of the house of Ahab (2 K 10 Iff). In Samaria, the Chronicler tells us, Ahaziah in vain hid from Jehu (2 Ch 22 9; of 2 K 9 27). Pekah brought hither much spoil from Jerus and many captives, whom, at the instance of the prophet Oded, he released (2 Ch 28 8ff). The siege of Samaria was begun by Shalmaneser in the 7th year of Hoshea, and the city was finally taken by Sargon II at the end of 3 years, 722 BC (2 K 17 5f; 18 9f; Ant, IX, xiv, 1). This marked the downfall of the Northern Kingdom, the people being transported by the conqueror. That this was not done in a thoroughgoing way is evident from the fact recorded in the inscriptions that two years later the country had to be subdued again. Colonists were brought from other parts to take the places of the exiles (2 K 17 24; Ezr 4 10). Alexander the Great took the city in 331 BC, killed many of the inhabitants, and settled others in Shechem, replacing them with a colony of Syro-Macedonians. He gave the adjoining country to the Jews (CAp,
city; nor do we know to what the final castastrophe was due. It became the seat of a bishopric and was represented in the councils of Nicaea, Constantinople and Chalcedon. Its bishop attended the Synod of Jerus in 536 AD.
The Church of St. John, a Crusading structure beside the modern village, is now a Moslem mosque.
It is the traditional burying-place of John the Bap-
tist's body.
(2) 17 Sa/idpeict, he Samdreia: A town mentioned
in 1 Mace 5 66 as on the route followed by Judas from the district of Hebron to the land of the Philis. The name is probably a clerical error. The margin reads Marisa, and probably the place intended is Mareshah, the site of which is at Tell Sandahannah, about a mile S. of Beit Jibrin. W. Ewing
SAMARIA, COUNTRY OF ("iilttiiJ, shdm'ron;
T) 2a|iapeiTis X"P°'' ''^ Samareitis chdra) : The name of the city was transferred to the country of which
it was the capital, so that Samaria became synonymous with the Northern Kingdom (1 K 13 32; Jer 31 5, etc). The extent of territory covered by this appellation varied greatly at different periods. At first it included the land held by Israel E. of the Jordan, Galilee and Mt. Ephraim, with the northern part of Benjamin. It was shorn of the eastern portion by the conquest of Tiglath-pileser (1 Ch 5 26). Judah probably soon absorbed the territory of Dan in the S. In NT times Samaria had shrunk to still smaller dimensions. Then the country W. of the Jordan was divided into three portions: Judaea in the S., Galilee in the N., and Samaria in the middle. The boundaries are given in general terms by Jos (BJ, III, iii, 1, 4, 5). The southern edge of the Plain of Esdraelon and the lands of ScythopoUs, the city of the Decapolis W. of the Jordan, formed the northern boundary. It reached S. as far as the toparchy of Acrabatta (modern 'Akrabeh), while on the border between Samaria and Judaea lay the villages of Annath and Borceos, the modern Khirbet 'Aina and Berkit, about 15 miles S. of Nahlus. The Jordan of course formed the eastern boundary. On the W. the coast plain as far as Acre belonged to Judaea. The country thus indicated was much more open to approach than the high plateau of Judah with its steep rocky edges and difficult passes. The road from the N. indeed was comparatively easy of defence, following pretty closely the line of the watershed. But the gradual descent of the land to the W. with long wide valleys, offered inviting avenues from the plain. The great trade routes, that to the fords of Jordan and the E., passing through the cleft in the mountains at Shechem, and those connecting Egypt with the N. and the N.E., traversed Samarian territory, and brought her into constant intercourse with surrounding peoples. The influence of tl»heathen religions to which she was thus exposed iMfde a swift impression upon her, leading to the corruptions of faith and life that heralded her doom (Jer 23 13; Hos Tiff, etc). The Assyrians came as the scourge of God (2 K 17 5-23). Their attack centered on the capital. Shalmaneser began the siege, and after three years the city fell to Sargon II, his successor. With the fall of Samaria the kingdom came to an end. Following the usual Assyr policy, great numbers of the inhabitants were deported from the conquered country, and their places taken by men brought from "Babylon, and from Cuthah, and from Avva, and
II, 4). The city suffered at the hands of Ptolemy Lagi and Demetrius Poliorcetes, but it was still a place of strength (Jos, Ant, XIII, x, 2) when John Hyrcanus came against it in 120 BC. It was taken after a year's siege, and the victor tried to destroy the city utterly. His turning of the water into trenches to undermine the foundations could only refer to the suburbs under the hUl. From the only two sources, 'Aire Hdrun and 'Ain Kefr Rlma, to the E. of the town, the water could not rise to the
hill. The "many fountains of water" which Benjamin of Tudela says he saw on the top, from which water enough could be got to fiU the trenches, are certainly not to be seen today; and they have left no trace behind them. The city was rebuilt by Pompey and, having again fallen under misfortune, was restored by Gabinius (Jos, Ant, XIV, iv, 4; V, 3; BJ, I, vii, 7; viii, 4). To Herod it owed the chief splendor of its later days. He extended, strengthened and adorned it on a scale of great magnificence, calling it Sebaste ( = Augusta) in honor of the emperor, a name which survives in the modern Sehastiyeh. A temple also was dedicated to Caesar. Its site is probably marked by the impressive flight of steps, with the pedestal on which stood the gigantic statue of Augustus, which recent excavations have revealed. The statue, somewhat mutilated, is also to be seen. Another of Herod's temples W. of the present village was cleared out by the same explorers. The remains of the great double-columned street, which ran round the upper terrace of the hill, bear further testimony to the splendor of this great builder's work (Jos, Anl, XV,
vii, 3; viii, 5; BJ, I, xxi, 2). It was here that Herod killed perhaps the only human being whom he ever really loved, his wife Mariamne. Here also his sons perished by his hand (Jos, Ant, XV vii 6-7; XVI, iii, 1-3; xi, 7).
2673 THE INTERNATIONAL STANDARD BIBLE ENCYCLOPAEDIA Samaria Samaritans
from Hamath and Sepharvaim," cities which had already bowed to the Assyr power (ver 24).
deeper bitterness. For the history of the people and their temple on Gerizim, see Samaritans.
It appears from the Assyr inscriptions that the number carried away was 27,290. The number afterward deported from Judah was 200,000, and then the poorest of the land were left to be vinedressers and husbandmen (2 K 26 12). It is evident that a similar policy must have been followed in Samaria, as 27,290 could certainly not include the whole population of the cities and the country. But it would include the higher classes, and esp. the priests from whom the victors would have most to fear. The population therefore after the conquest contained a large proportion of Israelites. It was no doubt among these that Josiah exercised his reforming energy (2 K 23 19 f; 2 Ch 34 6f). Here also must have been that "remnant of Israel," Manasseh and Ephraim, who contributed for the repair of the house of God (ver 9). These people, left without their religious guides, mingling with the heathen who had brought their gods and, presumably, their priests with them, were apt to be turned from the purity of their faith. A further importation of pagan settlers took place under Esar-haddon and Osnappar (Ezr 4 9.10). The latter is to be identified with Assur-bani-pal. What the proportions of the different elements in the population were, there is now no means of knowing. That there was some intermarriage is probable; but having regard to racial exclusiveness, we may suppose that it was not common. When the Jews deny to them any relation to Israel, and call them Cuthaeans, as if they were the descendants purely of the heathen settlers, the facts just mentioned should be borne in mind.
Samaria, with Pal, fell to Alexander after the battle of Issus. Antiochus the Great gave it to Ptolemy Epiphanes, as the dowry of his daughter Cleopatra (Jos, Aiit, XII, iv, 1). John Hyrcanus reduced and desolated the country (Jos, BJ, I, ii, 6 f ) . After varying fortunes Samaria became part of the kingdom of Herod, at whose death it was given to Archelaus (Jos, Ant, XVII, xi, 4; BJ, II,
vi, 3). When Archelaus was banished it was joined to the Rom province of Syria (Jos, Ant, XVII,
xiii, 5; BJ^ II, viii, 1). Samaria is a country beautifully diversified with mountain and hill, valley and plain. The olive grows plentifully, and other fruit trees abound. There is much excellent soil, and fine crops of barley and wheat are reaped annually. The vine also is largely cultivated on the hill slopes. Remains of ancient forests are found in parts. As Jos said,
it is not naturally watered by many rivers, but derives its chief moisture from rain water, of which there is no lack [BJ, III, iii, 4). He speaks also of the excellent grass, by reason of which the cows yield more milk than those in any other place.
There is a good road connecting Nablus with Jaffa; and by a road not quite so good, it is now possible to drive a carriage from Jerus to Nazareth, passing through Samaria. W. Ewing
SAMARITAN, sa-mar'i-tan, PENTATEUCH, THE. See Pentateuch, The Samaritan.
SAMARITANS, sa-mar'i-tanz (D'^I'TBTC , shom'- ronlm; 2a|jiap6iTai,, Samareltai, NT 2a|jiap(Ti)s
[sing.], Samarites): The name "Samaritans" in 2 K 17 29 clearly appKes to the Israelitish inhabitants of the Northern Kingdom. In subsequent history
After the Assyr conquest we are told that the people suffered from lions (2 K 17 25). Jos (Ant, IX, xiv, 3) says "a plague seized upon them." In accordance with the ideas of the time, the strangers thought this due to the anger of the tutelary deity
it denotes a people of mixed origin, composed of the peoples brought by the conqueror from Babylon and elsewhere to take the places of the expatriated Israehtes and those who were left in the land (722 BC). Sargon claims to have carried away only 27,290 of the inhabitants {KIB, II, 55) . Doubtless these were, as in the case of Judah, the chief men, men of wealth and influence, including all the priests, the humbler classes being left to till the land, tend the vineyards, etc. Hezekiah, who came to the throne of Judah probably in 715 BC, could
of the land, because they worshipped other gods in
his territory, while neglecting him. Ignorant of
his special ritual ("manner"), they petitioned the Assyr king, who sent one (Jos says "some") of the
priests who had been carried away to teach them "how they should fear the Lord." How much is implied in this "fearing of the Lord" is not clear. They continued at the same time to serve their own
gods. There is nothing to show that the Israelites among them fell into their idolatries. The interest
still appeal to the tribes of Ephraim, Manasseh, Issachar, Asher and Zebulun (2 Ch 30 5.10.11. 18 ff); and the presence of these tribesmen is implied in the narrative of Josiah's reformation (34 6f). Although the number of the colonists was increased by Esar-haddon and Osnappar (Assurbani-pal, Ezr 4 2.9 f), the population, it is reasonable to suppose, continued prevaihngly Israelite; otherwise their religion would not so easily have won the leading place. The colonists thought it necessary for their own safety to acknowledge Jeh, in whose land they dwelt, as one among the gods to be feared (2 K 17 24 ff). In .the intermixture that followed "their own gods" seem to have fallen on evil days; and when the Samaritans asked permission to share in building the temple under Zerubbabel, they claimed, apparently with a good conscience, to serve God and to sacrifice to Him as the Jews did (Ezr 4 1 f). Whatever justification there was for this claim, their proffered friendship was turned to deadly hostihty by the blunt refusal of their request. The old enmity between north and south no doubt intensified the quarrel, and the antagonism of Jew and Samaritan, in its bitterness, was destined to pass into a proverb. The Samaritans set themselves, with great temporary success, to frustrate the work in which they were not permitted to share (Ezr 4 4ff: Neh 4 7 ff. etcl.
of these in the temple at Jerus, the use of which they may now have shared with the Jews, is proved
lay 2 Ch 34 9. In another place we are told that four score men "from Shechem, from Shiloh, and from Samaria," evidently Israelites, were going up with their offerings to the house of the Lord (Jer 41 5). Once the people of the country are called Samaritans (2 K 17 29). Elsewhere this name has a purely religious significance. See Samaritans.
Of the history of Samaria under Assyr and Bab
rulers we know nothing. It reappears at the return
of the Jews under Pers auspices. The Jews refused
the proffered assistance of the Samaritans in rebuild-
ing the temple and the walls of Jerus (Ezr 4 1.3). Highly offended, the latter sought to frustrate the purpose of the Jews (vs 4 ff; Neh 4 7 ff ; 1 Esd 2
16 ff). That the Samaritans were accustomed to
worship in Jerus is perhaps implied by one phrase
in the letter sent to the Pers king: "The Jews that came up from thee are come to us unto Jerus" (Ezr
4 12). Perhaps also they may be referred to m
6 21. Idolatry is not alleged against the "adver-
saries." We can hardly err if we ascribe the refusal
in some degree to the old antagonism between the
N. and the S ., between Ephraim and Judah. What-
ever the cause, it led to a wider estrangement and a
aamatus Samson THE INTERNATIONAL STANDARD BIBLE ENCYCLOPAEDIA 2674
"strange wives" (1 Esd 9 21) = "Shemaiah" (RVm "Maaseiah") of the sons of Harim in Ezr 10 21.
From the strict administration of the Law in Jerus malcontents found their way to the freer atmosphere of Samaria. Among these renegades was Manasseh, brother of the liigh priest, who had mar-
SAMGAR-NEBO, sam-gar-ne'bo (il? "15'??, samgar n'hho, a Bab name) : An officer of Nebuchadnezzar, king of Babylon, who, according to the MT of Jer 39 3, took his seat with other nobles in the middle gate of Jerus after the Chaldaean army had taken the city. Schrader {COT, ii, 109) holds that the name is a Hebraized form of the Assyr Sumgirnabu ("be gracious, Nebo"), but Giesebrecht {Comm., 211) conjectures for Samgar a corruption of Sar-mag {sar-magli), equivalent to Rab-mag {rabmagh) , v.'hich implies virtual dittography. The number of variant readings exhibited by the LXX seems to confirm the belief that the text is corrupt. Nebo {nahu) is there joined with the following Sarsechim to agree with Nebushazban of ver 13. If the name Samgar-nebo is correct, the first Netgal-sharezer should perhaps be dropped; we would then read: "Samgar-nebo the Sarsechim, Nebushazban the Rab-saris [cf ver 13] and Nergal-sharezer the Rabmag" (Sayce). See Rab-mag; Rab-saris. Horace J. Wolf SAMI, sa'mi: AV =RV Sabi (q.v.).
ried a daughter of Sanballat, the Pers governor of Samaria. According to Jos, Sanballat, with the sanction of Alexander the Great, built a temple for the Samaritans on Mt. Gerizim, of which Manasseh became high priest (Ant, XI, vii, 2; viii, 2ff}.
Jos, however, places Manasseh a century too late. He was a contemporary of Ezra and Nehemiah (Neh 13 28). ^ When it suited their purpose the Samaritans claimed relationship with the Jews, asserting that their roll of the Pent was the only authentic copy (see Pentateuch, The S.imaritan) ; they were equally ready to deny all connection in times of stress, and even to dedicate their temple to a heathen deity
(Jos, Ant, XII, V, 5). In 128 BC, John Hyrcanus destroyed the temple (XIII, ix, 1). In the time of Christ the Samaritans were ruled by procurators under the Rom governor of Syria. Lapse of years brought no lessening of the hatred between Jews and Samaritans {Ant, XX, vi, 1). To avoid insult and injury at the hands of the latter, Jews from Gahlee were accustomed to reach the feasts at Jerus by way of Peraea. "Thou art a Samaritan, and hast a demon" was an expression of opprobrium (Jn 8 48). Although Jesus forbade the Twelve to go into any city of the Samaritans (Mt 10 5), the parable of the Good Samaritan shows that His love overleaped the boundaries of national hatred (Lk 10 30 ff; cf 17 m; Jn 4 9). During the Jewish war Cereahs treated the Samaritans with great severity. On one occasion (67 AD) he slaughtered 11,600 on Mt. Gerizim. For some centuries they were found in considerable numbers throughout the empire, east and west, with their synagogues. They were noted as "bankers" and money-changers. For their anti-Christian attitude and conduct Justinian inflicted terrible vengeance on them. From this the race seems never to have recovered. Gradually dwindling, they now form a small community in Nahlus of not more than 200 souls. Their great treasure is their ancient copy of the Law. See Sajiahia.
SAMIS, sa'mis: AV =RV Someis (q.v.).
SAMLAH, sam'la (nbpto , samlah; 2aX.a|j.d, Salamd) : One of the kings of Edom, of the city of Masrekah. He reigned before the Israehtes had kings (Gen 36 36.37; 1 Ch 1 47.48). The fact that the city is mentioned in connection with the name of the king suggests that Edom was a confederacy at this time and the chief city was the metropohs of the whole country.
SAMMUS, sam'us (A, 2a(i(ioiis, Sammous, B, 2a(i(ioii, Sammou): One of those who stood on Ezra's right hand as he expounded the Law (1 Esd 9 43) = "Shema" in Neh 8 4.
SAMOS, sa'mos (Sdfjios, Sdtnos, "height," "mountain" [see Strabo 346, 457]) : One of the most famous of the Ionian islands, third in size among the group which includes Lesbos, Chios (q.v.) and Cos (q.v.). It is situated at the mouth of the bay, of Ephesus, between the cities of Ephesus and Miletus (q.v.), and separated from the mainland of Ionia by the narrow strait where the Greeks met and conquered the Pers fleet in the battle of Myoale, 479 BC (Herod. ix.lOO ff). The surface of the island is very rugged and mountainous, Mt. Kerki (modern name) rising to a height of 4,700 ft., and it was due to this that the island received its name (see above; see also Samothrace).
Literature.—The best account of the Samaritans is IMills, Nahlus and the Modern Samaritans (Murray, London): cf Montgomery, The Samaritans (1907). A good recent description by Rev. J. E. H. Thomson. D.D., of the Passover celebrated annually on Mt. Gerizim will be found in FEES, 1902, 82 fl.
W. EwiNQ SAMATUS, sam'a-tus (Sdiiaros, Sdmatos): One of the sons of Ezora who put away their "strange wives" (1 Esd 9 34). It is difficult to say which,
if any, name it represents in || Ezr 10 34 ff , where no "sons of Ezora" are inserted between "sons of Bani" and "sons of Nebo": probably Shallum (ver 42), but possibly Shemariah (ver 41).
Samos was renowned in antiquity as one of the noted centers of Ionian luxury, and reached its zenith of prosperity under the rule of the famous tyrant Polycrates (533-522 BC), who made hunself master of the Aegean Sea. He carried on trade with Egypt, and his intercourse with that country, his friendship with Amasis, the famous "ring" story and the revolting manner of the death of Polycrates are all told in one of the most interesting stories of Herodotus (Herod, iii.39 ff).
SAMECH, sam'ek (D , samekh) : The 15th letter of the Heb alphabet; transliterated in this Encyclopaedia as .s. It came to be used for the number 60. For name, etc, see Alphabet.
SAMEIUS, ,sa-me'yus: AV =RV Sametj.s (q.v.).
SAMELLIUS, sa-mel'i-us (B, SaneXXtos, Samel-
In 84 BC, the island was joined to the province of Asia, and in 17 BC it became a ciuitas libera, through the favor of Augustus (Dio Cass, liv.9; Phny, NH, v. 37). Both Marcus Agrippa and Herod visited the island; and according to Jos {Ant, XVI, ii, 2; BJ, 1, xxi, 11) "bestowed a great many benefits" on it. In the Apoc, Samos is mentioned among the places to which Lucius, consul of the Romans, wrote, asking their good will toward the Jews (1 Mace 15 23).
lios, A, SePt'Wios, Sehellios, al 2e|ieX\ios, Hemellios; AV Semellius): "S. the scribe," one of those who wrote a letter of protest to Arlaxerxes against the building of Jerus by the returned exiles (1 Esd 2 16.17.25.30) = "Shimshai" in Ezr 4 8.
SAMEUS. sa-me'us (A and Fritzsche, Sajiatos, Samaios, B, 0a|iaios, Thamaios; AV Sameius): One of the sons of Emmer who put away their
2675 THE INTERNATIONAL STANDARD BIBLE ENCYCLOPAEDIA Samatus Samson
shemesh, which means "house of the sun." Com-
In the NT, Paul touched here, after passing Chios
(q.v.), on his return from his third missionary journey (Acts 20 15) . In TR, we find in this passage Kal fielvavTes iv TpuiyvWii/j, kai me'inantes en Trogulllo ("and having remained in Trogyllium")- This reading is wanting in the oldest MSS, and may be a sort of gloss, or explanation, due to the technical use of parabdllein, "to touch land" (cf Jos, Ant, XVIII, vi, 4), and not necessarily "to make a landing." Trogyllium lay on the mainland opposite Samos, at the end of the ridge of Mycale. Still there is no particular reason why this reading should be supported, esp. as it is not found in the earliest of authorities. Soden's 1913 text, however, retains the reading in brackets.
pare the similar formation "'IBUIC , shimshay (Ezr 4
8.9.17.2,3). Samson was a judge, perhaps the last before Samuel. He was a Nazirite of the tribe of Dan
(Jgs 13 5); a man of prodigious
2. Characstrength, a giant and a gymnast—the
ter Heb Hercules, a strange champion for Jeh! He intensely hated the Philis who had oppressed Israel some 40 years (13 1), and was willing to fight them alone. He seems to have been actuated by little less than personal vengeance, yet in the NT he is named among the heroes of faith (He 11 32), and was in no ordinary sense an OT worthy. He was good-natured, sar-
LiTERATTTRE.—Tozor. Islands of the Aegean (1890). Herodotus and Pausanias have rather full accounts of Samos, and Enc Brit (11th ed) gives a good bibliography of works both ancient and modern.
castic, full of humor, and fought with his wits as
well as with his fists. Milton has graphically portrayed his character in his dramatic poem Samson Agonistes (1671), on which Handel built his ora-
Arthur J. Kinsblla SAMOTHRACE, sam'6-thras (SapioepqlKTi, Samoihrdke, "the Thracian Samos"; AV Samothracia, sam-5-thra'sha; the island was formerly Dardania; for change of name see Pausanias vii.4,3; Strabo X.457, and for a full discussion Conze, Hauser and Benndorf, Neue Untersuchungen auf S., 1S80): An island in the Aegean Sea, S. of Thrace opposite the mouth of the Hebrus River, and N.W. of Troas. The island is mountainous, as the name indicates
torio Samson (1743).
The story of S.'s Hfe is unique among the biographies of the OT. It is related in Jgs 13-16. Like Isaac, Samuel and John the Bap-
3. Story of tist, he was a child of prayer (13 8.12). His Life To Manoah's wife the angel of Jeh appeared twice (13 3.9), directing that the child which should be born to them should be a Nazirite from the womb, and that he would "begin to save Israel out of the hand of the Philis"
(see Samos), and towers above Imbros when viewed from the Trojan coast. The summit is about a mile high. It is mentioned in the Iliad (xiii. 12) as the seat of Poseidon and referred to by Virgil Aeneid vii.208.
(13 5.7.14). The spirit of Jeh first began to move him in Mahaneh-dan, between Zorah and Eshtaol
(13 25). On his arriving at manhood, five remarkable circumstances are recorded of him.
The island was always famous for sanctity, and the seat of a cult of the Cabeiri, which Herodotus (ii.51) says was derived from the Pelasgian inhabitants
(1) His marriage with a Phili woman of Timnah
(ch 14) . His parents objected to the alliance (14 3), but S.'s motive in marrying her was that he "sought an occasion against the Philis." At the wedding
(see also Aristophanes, Pax 277). The mysteries connected with the worship of these gods later rivaled the famous mysteries of Eleusis, and both Phihp of Macedon and Olympias his wife were
feast S. propounded to his guests a riddle, wagering that if they guessed its answer he would give them 30 changes of raiment. Dr. Moore feUcitously renders the text of the riddle thus:
initiated here (Plut. Alex. 3).
Probably because of its sacred character the
island did not figure to any extent in history, but
'Out of the eater came something to eat.
in the expedition of Xerxes in 480 BC, one ship at
And out of the strong came something sweet' (14 14).
least of the Samothracian contingent is mentioned
The Philis threatened the life of his bride, and she
as conspicuous in the battle of Salamis.
in turn wrung from S. the answer; whereupon he
The famous "Victory of Samothrace" (now in the Louvre) was set up here by Demetrius Polior-
retorted (in Dr. Moore's version)
' If with my heifer ye did not plough.
cetes c 300 BC, and was discovered in 1863. Since that time (1873-75), the Austrian government
Ye had not found out my riddle, I trow' (14 18).
carried on extensive excavations (see Conze, Hauser and Benndorf, op. cit.).
Accordingly, in revenge, S. went down to Ash-
kelon, slew some 30 men, and paid his debt; he even went home without his wife, and her father to save her from shame gave her to S.'s "best man"
In the NT the island is mentioned m Acts 16 11. From Troas, Paul made a straight run to Samo-
thrace, and the next day sailed to Neapolis (q.v.) on the Thracian coast, the port of Philippi (q.v.). At the northern end of S. was a town where the ship
(14 20). It has been suggested by W. R. Smith {Kinship and Marriage in Early Arabia, 70-76) that S. did not from the first intend to take his bride to his home, his marriage being what is known among the Arabs as a gadlkat, or gift marriage, by which is meant that the husband becomes a part
could anchor for the night, and on the return journey (Acts 20 6) a landing may have been made,
but no details are given. Pliny characterizes the
island as being most difficult for anchorage, but
of the wife's tribe. This assumes that the social
because of the hazards of sailing by night, the an-
relations of the Hebrews at that time were matri-
cient navigators always anchored somewhere if
archate, the wife remaining with her family, of which custom there are other traces in the OT, the husband merely visiting the wife from time to time. But this is not so obvious in S.'s case in view of
possible.
Literature.—See under Samos.
Arthur .1. Kinsella SAMPSAMES, samp'sa-mez (Sa|i4(diiTis, Natn-
his pique (14 19), and esp. in view of his parents' objection to his marrying outside of Israel (14 3). Not knowing that his bride had been given by her
vsdmes): A place mentioned in 1 Mace 15 23,
usually identified with Samsun, on the coast of the
Black Sea. Vulg, with RVm, has "Lampsacus.
father to his friend, S. went down to Timnah to
visit her, with a kid; when he discovered, how-
SAMSON, sam'sun ( illBpiP , shimshon, derived
ever, that he had been taken advantage of, he went out and caught 300 jackals, and putting firebrands between every two tails, he burned up the grain
probably from ©pi? , shemesh, "sun," with the
diminutive ending X^-, -on, meaning
fields and olive yards of the Philis. The Philis, however, showed they could play with fire, too, and burned his wife and her father. Thereupon, S.
1 Name "little sun" or "sunny," or perhaps "sun-man"; Saii+uv, Samyson; l,sX
and Eng. Samson): His home was near Beth-
Samson Samuel THE INTERNATIONAL STANDARD BIBLE ENCYCLOPAEDIA 2676
He prayed, and Jeh heard his prayer. Guided by his attendant, he took hold of the wooden posts of the two middle pillars upon which the portico of the house rested, and slipping them off their pedestals, the house fell upon the lords and upon all the people that were therein. "So the dead that he slew at hia death were more than they that he slew in his life"
smote the Philis in revenge, "hip and thigh" (15 1-8).
(2) When he escaped to Etam, an aknost vertical rock cliff in Judah (by some identified with 'Araq Ismain) not far from Zorah, S.'s home, the Philis invaded Judah, encamped at Lehi above Etam, and demanded the surrender of their arch-enemy. The men of Judah were willing to hand S. over to the PhiUs, and accordingly went down to the cliff Etam, bound S. and brought him up where the Philis were encamped (15 9-13). When S. came to Lehi the Philis shouted as they met him, whereupon the spirit of Jeh came mightily upon him, so that he broke loose from the two new ropes with which the 3,000 men of Judah had bound him, and seizing a fresh jawbone of an ass he smote with it 1,000 men of the Philis, boasting as he did so in pun-like poetry, 'With the jawbone of an ass, m-ass upon m-ass';
(16 29.30). His kinsmen came and carried him up and buried him near his boyhood home, between Zorah and Eshtaol, in the family burying-ground of his father. "And he judged Israel twenty years" (16 31).
The story of Samson is a faithiful mirror of his times: "Every man did that which was right in his own eyes"
(17 6; 21 25). There was no king in 4 Historithose days, i.e. no central government.
. ,^ , Each tribe was separately occupied driving cai value Q^t their individual enemies. For 40 years the Phihs had oppressed S.'s tribal compatriots. Their suzerainty was also recognized by Judah (14 4; 15 11). S. was the hero of his tribe. The general historicity of his story cannot be impeached on the mere ground of improbability. His deeds were those which would most naturally be expected from a giant, filled with a sense of justice. He received the local popularity which a man of extraordinary prowess would natm-ally be given. All peoples glory in their heroes. The theory that the record in Jgs 13-16 is based upon some "solar myth" is now generally abandoned. That there are incidents in liis career which are difficult to explain, is freely granted. For example, that he killed a lion (14 6) is not without a parallel; David and Benaiah did the same (1 S 17 34-36; 2 S 23 20). God always inspires a man in the line of his natural endowments. That God miraculously supplied his thirst (15 19) is no more marvelous than what God did for Hagar in the wilderness (Gen 21 19). That S. carried off the doors of the gate of Gaza and their two posts, bar and all. must not confound us till we know more definitely their size and the distance from Gaza of the hill to which he carried them. The fact that he pulled down the roof on which there were 3,000 men and women is not at all impossible, as Mr. Macalister has shown. If we suppose that there was an immense portico to the temple of Dagon, as is quite possible, which was supported by two main pillars of wood resting on bases of stone, like the cedar pillars of Solomon's house (1 K 7 2), all that S., therefore, necessarily did, was to push the wooden beams so that their feet would slide over the stone base on which they rested, and the whole portico would collapse. Moreover, it is not said that the whole of the 3,000 on the roof were destroyed (16 30). Many of those in the temple proper probably perished in the number (R. A. S. Macalister, Bible Side-Lighta from the Mound of Gezer, 1906, 127-38).
or, as Dr. Moore translates the passage, 'With the bone of an ass, I ass-ailed my ass-ailants' (15 16). At the same time, S. reverently gave Jeh the glory of his victory (15 18) . S. being thirsty, Jeh provided water for him at a place called En-hakkore, or "Partridge Spring," or "the Spring of the Caller" another name for partridge (15 17-19).
(3) S. next went down to Gaza, to the very stronghold of the Philis, their chief city. There he saw a harlot, and, his passions not being under control, he went in unto her. It was soon noised about that S., the Heb giant, was in the city. Accordingly, the Philis laid wait for him. But S. arose at midnight and laid hold of the doors of the gate and their two posts, and carried them a fuU quarter of a mile up to the top of the mountain that looketh toward Hebron (16 1-3).
(4) From Gaza S. betook himself to the vaUey of Sorek where he fell in love with another Phili woman, named Delilah, through whose machinations he lost his spiritual power. The Phili lords bribed her with a very large sum to dehver him into their hands. Three times S. deceived her as to the secret of his strength, but at last he explains that he is a Nazirite, and that his hair, which has never been shorn, is the secret of his wonderful power. J. G. Frazer {Golden Bough, III, 390 if) has shown that the belief that some mysterious power resides in the hair is still widespread among savage peoples, e.g. the Fiji Islanders. Thus S. fell. By disclosing to Delilah this secret, he broke his covenant vow, and the Spirit of God departed from him
Not a few important and suggestive lessons are deducible from the hero's fife: (1) S. was the object of parental solicitude from even before
6. Religious his birth. One of the most suggestive Value and beautiful prayers in the OT is that of Manoah for guidance in the training of his yet unborn child (13 8). Whatever our estimate of his personality is, S. was closely linked to the covenant. (2) He was endowed with the Spirit of Jeh—the spirit of personal patriotism, the spirit of vengeance upon a foe of 40 years' standing
(16 4-20). The Philis laid hold on him, put out his eyes, brought him down to Gaza, bound him with fetters, and forced him to grind in the prison house. Grinding was women's work! It is at this point that Milton catches the picture and writes,
"Eyeless in Gaza, at the mill -with slaves."
(13 1.25; 14 6 19; 15 14). (3) He also prayed, and Jeh answered him, though in judgment (16 30). But he was prodigal of his strength. S. had spiritual power and performed feats which an ordinary man would hardly perform. But he was unconscious of his high vocation. In a moment of weakness he yielded to DeUlah and divulged the secret of his strength. He was careless of his personal endowment. He did not realize that physical endowments no less than spiritual are gifts from God, and that to retain them we must be obedient. (4) He was passionate and therefore weak. The animal of his nature was never curbed, but rather ran unchained and free. He was given to sudden fury. S. was a wild, self-willed man. Passion ruled. He could not resist the blandishments of women. In short, he was an overgrown schoolboy, without selfmastery. (.5) He accordingly wrought no permanent deliverance for Israel; he lacked the spirit of cooperation. He undertook a task far too great for even a giant single-handed. Yet, it must be
Howbeit, the hair of his head began to grow again; but his eyes did riot! (16 21.22).
(5) The final incident recorded of S. is in connection with a great sacrificial feast which the Phili lords gave in honor of Dagon, their god. In their joyous celebration they sang in rustic rhythm:
' Our god has given us into our hand The foe of our land, "Whom even our most powerful band Was never able to withstand' (16 24).
This song was accompanied probably, as Mr. Macalister suggests, by hand-clapping {Gezer, 129). When they became still more merry, they called for S. to play the buffoon, and by his pranks to entertain the assembled multitude. The house of Dagon was full of people; about 3,000 were upon the roof beholding as S. made sport. With the new growth of his hair his strength had returned to him. The dismantled giant longed to be avenged on his adversaries for at least one of his two eyes (16 28).
2677 THE INTERNATIONAL STANDARD BIBLE ENCYCLOPAEDIA Samson Samuel
allowed that S. paved the way for Saul and David. He began the deliverance of Israel from the Philis. He must, therefore, be judged according to his times. In his days there was unrestrained individual independence on every side, each one doing as he pleased. S. differed from his contemporaries in that he was a hero of faith (He 11 32) . He was a Nazirite, and therefore dedicated to God. He was given to revenge, yet he was ready to sacrifice himself in order that his own and his people's enemies might be overthrown. He was willing to lay down his own life for the sake of his fellowtribesmen—not to save his enemies, however, but to kill them. (Cf Mt 5 43 f; Rom 6 10.) Literature. — (1) Comms. on Jgs, notably those by G. F. Moore, ICC. 1895; Budde, Kurzer Handkommentar, 1897; Nowack, Handkommentar, 1900; E. L. Curtis, The Bible for Home and School, 1913; Bachmann. 1868; Keil. 1862; Farrar in EllicoU's Comm.; Watson, Expositor's Bible. (2) Arts, on " Samson" in the various Bible Diets, and Encs; in particular those by Budde, HDB: C. W. Emmet, in 1-vol HDB; S. A. Cook, New Enc Brit; Davis, Diet, of the Bible.
return of the ark, and apparently at the close of the 20 years during which it was retained at Kiriath-
jearim, that Samuel again comes forward publicly, exhorting the people to repentance and promising them deliverance from the Philis. A summary narrative is then given of the SMmmoning of a na-
tional council at Mizpah, at which Samuel "judged the children of Israel," and offered sacrifice to the Lord, and of Jeh's response in a great thunderstorm, which led to the defeat and panic-stricken flight of the Philis. Then follows the narrative of the erec-
tion of a commemorative stone or pillar, Eben-ezer, "the stone of help," and the recovery of the
Israelite cities which the Philis had captured (7 5-14). The narrator adds that the Philis came no more within the border of Israel all the days of Samuel (7 13); perhaps with an intentional reference to the troubles and disasters of which this people was the cause in the time of Saul. A brief general statement is appended of Samuel's practice
as a judge of going on annual circuit through the
land, and of his home at Ramah (7 15-17).
George L. Robinson SAMUEL, sam'fl-el (bX^lSTa , sh'mu'el; Sanou^X, Samouel): The word "Samuel" signifies "name of God," or "his name is El" (God). Other interpretations of the name that have been offered are almost certainly mistaken. The play upon the name in 1 S 1 20 is not intended of course to be an explanation of its meaning, but is similar to the play upon the name Moses in Ex 2 10 and frequently elsewhere in similar instances. Thus by the addition of a few letters sh'mu'el becomes shd'ul
No indication is given of the length of time occupied by these events. At their close, however, Samuel was an old man, and his sons who had been appointed judges in his place or to help him in his
office proved themselves unworthy (8 1-3). The
elders of the people therefore came to Samuel demanding the appointment of a king who should be
his successor, and should judge in his stead. The request was regarded by the prophet as an act of
disloyalty to Jeh, but his protest was overruled by Divine direction, and at Samuel's bidding the people dispersed (8 4-22). At this point the course of the narrative is again interrupted to describe the family and origin of Saul,
me' el (bXlBlD, bSU b^SlB) , "asked of God," and
recalb to the mother of Samuel the circumstances of the Divine gift to her of a son. Outside of the 1st Book of S the name of the great judge and prophet
his personal appearance, and the search for the lost
asses of his father (9 1-5) ; his meeting with Samuel
is found in Jer 15 1 ; Ps 99 6 and in 1 and 2 Ch. The reference in Jer seems intended to convey the same impression that is given by the narrative of
in a city in the land of Zuph, in or on the border of the territory of Benjamin (Zuph is the name of an ancestor of Elkanah, the father of Samuel, in 1 S 1 1), a meeting of which Samuel had received Divine pre-intimation (9 15 f); the honorable place given to Saul at the feast; his anointing by Samuel as ruler of Israel, together with the announcement
1 S, that in some sense Samuel had come to be regarded as a second Moses, upon whom the mantle
of the latter had fallen, and who had been once again the dehverer and guide of the people at a great national crisis.
of three "signs," which should be to Saul assurances of the reality of his appointment and destiny; the
The narrative of the events of the life of Samuel appears to be derived from more than one source
spirit of prophecy which took possession of the future king, whereby is explained a proverbial saying which classed Saul among the prophets; and
(see Samuel, Books op). The narra-
1. Sources tor had before him and made use of and Charbiographies and traditions, which he
his silence with regard to what had passed between himself and Samuel on the subject of the kingdom
acter of the combined into a single consecutive
History history. The completed picture of the prophet's position and character which
(9 6—10 16).
It is usually, and probably rightly, believed that the narrative of these last incidents is derived from a different source from that of the preceding chapters. Slight differences of inconsistency or disagreement lie on the surface. Samuel's home is not at Ramah. but a nameless city in the land of Zuph, where he is priest of the high place, with a local but, as far as the narrative goes, not a national influence or reputation; and it is anticipated that he will require the customary present at the hands of his visitors (9 6-8). He is described, moreover, not as a judge, nor does he discharge judicial fvmctions, but expressly as a "seer," a name said to be an earlier title equivalent to the later "prophet" (9 9.11.19). Apart, however, from the apparently different position which Samuel occupies, the tone and style of the narrative is altogether distinct from that of the preceding chapters. It suggests, both in its form and in the religious conceptions which are assumed or implied, an older and less elaborated tradition than that which has found expression in the greater part of the book; and it seems to regard events as it were from a more primitive standpoint than the highly religious and monotheistic view of the later accounts. Its value as a witness to history is not impaired, but perhaps rather enhanced by its separate and independent position. The writer or compiler of 1 S has inserted it as a whole in his completed narrative at the point which he judged most suitable. To the same source should possibly be assigned the announcement of Saul's rejection in 13 8-15a.
is thus presented is on the whole harmonious and
consistent, and gives a very high impression of his
piety and loyalty to Jeh, and of the wide influence
for good which he exerted. There are divergences apparent in detail and standpoint between the
sources or traditions, some of which may probably
be due merely to misunderstanding of the true
nature of the events recorded, or to the failure of
the modem reader rightly to appreciate the exact
circumstances and time. The greater part of the
narrative of the life of Samuel, however, appears
to have a single origin.
In the portion of the general history of Israel
contained in 1 S are narrated the circumstances of
the future prophet's birth (ch 1); of
2. Life his childhood and of the custom of his
parents to make annual visits to the
sanctuary at Shiloh (2 11.18-21.26); of his vision
and the universal recognition of him as a prophet
enjoying the special favor of Jeh (3-^ 1). the
narrative is then interrupted to describe the conflicts
with the Philis, the fate of Eh and his sons, and the
The course of the narrative is resumed at 10 17 ff,
capture of the ark of God. It is only after the
Samuel Samuel, Books of THE INTERNATIONAL STANDARD BIBLE ENCYCLOPAEDIA 2678
and greatest of the judges, the first of the prophets, and inaugurates under Divine direction the Israelite
where, in a second national assembly at Mizpah, Saul is selected by lot and accepted by the people as king (10 17-24); after which the people dispersed, and Saul returned to his home at Gibeah (vs 25-27). At a solemn assembly at Gilgal, at which the kingship is again formally conferred upon Saul, Samuel delivered a farewell address to his fellow-countrymen. A thunderstorm terrified the people; they were reassured, however, by Samuel with promises of the protection and favor of Jeh,
kingdom and the Davidic line. It is
3. Characnot without reason, therefore, that he ter and Inhas been regarded as in dignity and fluence of importance occupying the position of Samuel a second Moses in relation to the people. In his exhortations and warnings the Deuteronomic discourses of Moses are reflected and repeated. He delivers the nation from the hand of the Philis, as Moses from Pharaoh and the Egyptians, and opens up for them a new national era of progress and order under the rule of the kings whom they have desired. Thus, like Moses, he closes the old order, and establishes the people with brighter prospects upon more assured foundations of national prosperity and greatness. In nobility of character and utterance also, and in fidelity to Jeh, Samuel is not unworthy to be placed by the side of the older lawgiver. The record of his
if they continued to fear and serve Him (11 14 12 25). Later the rejection of Saul for disobedience and presumption is announced by Samuel (13 8-1 5a). The commission to destroy Amalek is delivered to Saul by Samuel; and the rejection of the king is again pronounced because of his failure to carry out the command. Agag is then slain by Samuel with his own hand; and, the latter having returned to his home at Ramah, the narrator adds that he remained there in seclusion until the day of his death, "mourning" for Saul, but refusing to meet him again (ch 15). Finally the death and burial of Samuel at Ramah, together with the lamentation of the people for him, are briefly recorded in 25
life is not marred by any act or word which would appear unworthy of his office or prerogative. And the few references to him in the later literature (Ps 99 6; Jer 15 1; 1 Ch 6 28; 9 22; 11 3; 26 28; 29 29; 2 Ch 35 18) show how high was the estimation in which his name and memory were held by his fellow-countrymen in subsequent ages.
1, and referred to again in 28 3. Two incidents of Samuel's life remain, in which he is brought into relation with the future king David. No indication of date or circumstance is given except that the first incident apparently follows immediately upon the second and final rejection of Saul as recorded in ch 15. In 16 1-13 is narrated the commission of Samuel to anoint a successor to Saul, and his fulfilment of the commission by the choice of David the son of Jesse, the Bethlehemite. And, in a later chapter (19 18-24), a second occasion is named on which the compeUing spirit of prophecy came upon Saul, and again the proverbial saying, "Is Saul also among the prophets?" is quoted (19 24; cf 10 11.12), and is apparently regarded as taking its origin from this event.
Literature.—The literature is given in the art. Samuel, Books op (q.v.).
A. S. Geden SAMUEL, BOOKS OF:
I. Place OF THE Books OF S in the Hebrew Canon II. Contents of the Books and Period of Time Covered by the History III. Summary^ and Analysis 1. Life of Samuel 2. Reign and Death of Saul 3. Reign of David (1) In Hebron (2) In Jerusalem 4. Appendix IV. Sources of the History Two Main and Independent Sources V. Character and Date of the Sources VI. Greek Versions of the Books of S VII. Ethical and Religious Teaching Literature
The anointing of David by Samuel is a natural sequel to his anointing of Saul, when the latter has been rejected and his authority and rights as king have ceased. There is nothing to determine alasolutely whether the narrative is derived from the same source as the greater part of the preceding history. Slight dilTerences of style and the apparent presuppositions of the writer have led most scholars to the conclusion that it has a distinct and separate origin. If so. the compiler of the Books of S drew upon a third source for his narrative of the life of the seer, a source which there is no reason to regard as other than equally authentic and reliable. With the second incident related in 19 18-24, the case is different. It is hardly probable that so striking a proverb was suggested and passed into currency independently on two distinct occa.sions. It seems evident that here two independent sources or authorities were used, which gave hardly reconcilable accounts of the origin of a wellknown saying, in one of which it has been mistakenly attributed to a similar but not identical occurrence in the life of Saul. In the final composition of the book both accounts were then inserted, without notice being taken of the inconsistency which was apparent between them.
/. Place in the Canon.—In the Heb Canon and enumeration of the sacred books of the OT, the two Books of S were reckoned as one, and formed the third division of the Earlier Prophets (D''S''3D
D''D1BS"), ii^bhi'lm ri'shonim). The one book bore
the title "Samuel" (bX^'QlC , sh'mu'el), not because Samuel was beheved to be the author, but because his
life and acts formed the main theme of the book, or at least of its earlier part. Nor was the Book of S separated by any real division in subject-matter or continuity of style from the Book of K, which in the original formed a single book, not two as in the Eng. and other modern VSS. The history was carried forward without interruption; and the record of the life of David, begun in S, was completed in K. This continuity in the narrative of Israelite history was made more prominent in the LXX, where the four books were comprised under one title and were known as the four "Books of the Kingdoms" (/3i/3Xoi PanCKaCiv, hihloi basileioii). This name was probably due to the translators or scholars of Alexandria. The division into four books, but not the Gr title, was then adopted in the Lat tr, where, however, the influence of Jerome secured the restoration of the Heb names, 1 and 2 S, and 1 and 2 K (Regum). Jerome's example was universally followed, and the fourfold division with the Heb titles found a place in all subsequent VSS of the OT Scriptures. Ultimately the distinction of S and K each into two books was received also into printed editions of the Heb Bible. This was done for the first time in the editio princeps of the Rabbinic Bible, printed at Venice in 1516-17 AD.
Yet later in the history Samuel is represented as appearing to Saul in a vision at Endor on the eve of his death (28 11-20). The witch also sees the prophet and is stricken with fear. He is described as in appearance an old man "covered with a robe" (ver 14). In characteristically grave and measured tones he repeats the sentence of death against the king for his disobedience to Jeh, and announces its execution on the morrow; Saul's sons also will die with him (ver 19), and the whole nation will be involved in the penalty and suffering, as they all had a part in the sin.
The high place which Samuel occupies in the thought of the writers and in the tradition and esteem of the people is manifest throughout the history. The different sources from which the narrative is derived are at one in this, although perhaps not to an equal degree. He is the last
2679 THE INTERNATIONAL STANDARD BIBLE ENCYCLOPAEDIA Samuel Samuel, Books of
//. Contents and Period of the History.—The narrative of the two Books of S covers a period of about a hundred years, from the close of the unsettled era of the .ludges to the establishment and consolidation of the kingdom under David. It is therefore a record of the changes, national and constitutional, which accompanied this growth and development of the national life, at the close of which the Israelites found themselves a united people under the rule of a king to whom all owed allegiance, controlled and guided by more or less definitely established institutions and laws. This may be described as the general purpose and main theme of the books, to trace the advance of the people under Divine guidance to a state of settled prosperity and union in the promised land, and to give prominence to the theocratic rvde which was the essential condition of Israel's life as the people of God under all the changing forms of early government. The narrative therefore centers itself around the lives of the three men, Samuel, vSaul and David, who were chiefly instrumental in the establishment of the monarchy, and to whom it was due more than to any others that Israel emerged from the depressed and disunited state in which the tribes had remained during the period of the rule of the Judges, and came into possession of a combined and effective national life. If the formal separation therefore into two books be disregarded, the history of Israel as it is narrated in "Samuel" is most naturally divided into three parts, which are_ followed by an appendLx recording words and incidents which for some reason had not found a place
ing his own life and action, and exhorting them to fear and serve the Lord (ch 12).
(12) Saul at Gilgal olfers the burnt offering in Samuel's absence; gathering of the Philis to battle at Michmash; the Israelites' lack of weapons of iron (ch 13). (i:i) .Jonathan's surprise of the Phih army, and their sudden panic (14 1-23); Saul's vow, unwittingly broken by Jonathan, whom the people deliver from the fatal consequences (vs 24-4.5) ; victories of Saul over his enemies on every side (vs 46-.52).
(14) War against Amalek, and Saul's disobedience to the Divine command to exterminate the Amalekites
(ch 15).
(I) Anointing of David as Saul's .successor (16 1-13); his summons to the court of Saul to act as minstrel before tlie king (vs 14—23).
(2) David and Goliath (ch 17). (3) The love of David and .Jonathan (18 1-4); the former's advancement and fame, the jealousy of Saul, and his attempt to kin David (18 5-16.29.30); David's marriage to the daughter of Saul (vs 17-28).
2. Reign and Death of Saul
(1 S 16— 2 SI)
(4) Saul's renewed jealousy of David and second attempt to kill him (19 1-17); David's escape to Ramah, whitlier the king followed (vs 18-24).
(5) Jonathan's warning to David of his father's resolve and their parting (ch 20). (6) David at Nob (21 1-9) ; and with Achish of Gath (vs 10-15).
(7) David's band of outlaws at Adullam (22 1.2); his provision for the safety of his father and mother in Moab (ys 3-5) ; vengeance of Saul on those who had helped David (vs 6-23).
(8) Repeated attempts of Saul to take David (chs 23, 24). (9) Death of Samuel (25 1); Abigail becomes David's wife, after the death of lier husband Nabal (vs 2-44;.
(10) Saul's further pursuit of David (ch 26). (II) David's sojourn with Achish of Gath (27 1—28 2.29) ; Saul and the witch of Endor (28 3-25). (12) David's pursuit of the Amalekites who had raided Ziklag, and victory (ch 30).
(13) Battle between the Philis and Israel in Mt. Gilboa and death of Saul (ch 31).
in the general narrative:
(14) News of Saul's death brought to David at Ziklag (2 S 1 1-16); David's lamentation over Saul and Jonathan (vs 17-27). (1) David's seven and a half years' reign over Judah in Hebron (2 8 2 1—5 3).
A. The life and rule of Samuel (1 S 1-15) (death 1 S 25 1). B. The life, reign and death of Saul (1 S 16—2 S 1). C. The reign and acts of David to the suppression of the two rebelhons of Absalom and Sheba (2 S 2-20). D. Appendix; other incidents in the reign of David, the names of his chief warriors and his Song or Psalm of Praise (2 S 21-24).
(a) Consecration of David as king in 3. Reign of Hebron (2 l-4a) ; message to the men of
•p, jj Jabesh-gilead (2 46-7); Ish-bosheth made ^ r^ nn\ k'"S o^sr Northern Israel (vs 8-11); (2 S 2-20) defeat of Abner and death of Asahel (vs 12-32).
///. Summary and Analysis.—To present a brief and clear analysis of these Books of S is not
(b) Increase of the fame and prosperity of David, and the names of his sons (3 1-5) ; Abner's submission to David, and treacherous murder of the former by Joab
altogether easy. For as in the Pent and the earlier
historical Books of Josh and Jgs, repetitions and apparently duplicate accounts of the same event
(vs 6-39).
(c) Murder of Ish-bosheth and David's vengeance upon his murderers (4 1-3.5-12) ; notice of the escape of Mephibosheth, when Saul and Jonathan were slain at Jezreei (ver 4).
are found, which interfere with the chronological development of the narrative. Even the main