HarperCollins Bible Dictionary

Mark Allan Powell

• Publisher: HarperOne
• Year: 2024
• Print ISBN: 9780061469060
• eBook ISBN: 9780062078599
• Topic: Theology & Religion
• Subtopic: Biblical Reference

An updated edition of the "magnificent" reference: "A mine of information for the beginning biblical student, the seasoned scholar, and the layperson." — Biblical Archaeological Review
The HarperCollins Bible Dictionary, revised and updated edition, is the most complete, up-to-date, and accessible guide for the study of the Bible available today. With more than 4,000 lively, informative, and reader-friendly entries, this essential reference book provides all the information you need to understand the Bible.
Whether you are a pastor, layperson, or a student of scripture, you will find every important name, place, and subject that makes Bible study come to life. From Aaron to Zurishaddai, here are all the people, events, and ideas of biblical times.
This third edition continues in the rich tradition of its predecessors but has been thoroughly updated and revised by a new editorial team under the direction of the premier international scholarly body, the Society of Biblical Literature (SBL). More than half the articles in this book are new, and several dozen charts and tables have also been added as well as updates on recent archaeological discoveries.
Over 200 contributors from a diverse group of authorities represent an ecumenical and non-biased viewpoint of scripture from different positions—Roman Catholic, Jewish, mainline Protestant, and evangelical. Filled with explanations of biblical beliefs, language, and insights into the culture and customs of the people who lived in biblical times, this resource will help anyone interested in scripture to more fully appreciate the meaning and message of the Bible.

S

Sabaoth

sabbath

sabbath day’s journey

sabbatical

Sabta

Sabtecha

Sachar

sackcloth

sacrifice

Sadducees

saffron

saints

Salamis

Salecah

Salem

Salim

Sallai

Sallu

Salma

Salmon

Salmone

Salome

Salome

salt

Salt, City of

Salt Sea

Salt Valley

saltwort

salvation

Samaria

Samaria, district of

Samaritan, the Good

Samaritan Pentateuch

Samaritans

Samgarnebo

Samlah

Samos

Samothrace

Samson

Samuel

Samuel, First and Second Books of

Sanballat

sanctification

sanctuary

sand

sandal

Sanhedrin

Sansannah

Saph

Sapphira

sapphire

Sarah

Sarai

sarcophagus

Sardis

Sarepta

Sargon

Sarid

Sarsechim

Satan

satrap

Saul

savior

scapegoat

scarlet

scepter

Sceva

schools

scorpion

scourge

scribe

scripture

scroll

sculpture

Scythians

Scythopolis

sea

seah

seal

Sea Peoples

season

seat, judgment

Seba

Secacah

Second Coming of Christ

second death

Second Quarter

sect

Secundus

seed

seer

Segub

Seir

Seirah

Sela

Selah

Seleucia

Seleucids

self-control

Semites

Senaah

Seneh

Senir

Sennacherib

sentinel

Sephar

Sepharad

Sepharvaim

Sepphoris

Septuagint

Serah

Seraiah

seraphim

Serapis

Sergius Paulus

Sermon on the Mount

serpent

Serpent’s Stone

Serug

servant

service

Seth

seven, seventy

seven words from the cross

Shaalbim

Shaalim

Shaaraim

Shaashgaz

Shabbethai

Shaddai

shades

Shadrach

Shaharaim

Shalisha

Shallum

Shalmai

Shalman

Shalmaneser

shalom

Shama

shame

Shamgar

Shamir

Shamma

Shammah

Shammai

Shammua

Shaphan

Shaphat

Sharai

Sharezer

Sharon

Sharuhen

Shaul

Shaveh

Shaveh-kiriathaim

shaving

Shavsha

Sheal

Shealtiel

Sheariah

Shearjashub

Sheba

Sheba, queen of

Shebaniah

Shebat

Shebnah

Shebuel

Shecaniah

Shechem

Shedeur

sheep

Sheep Gate

Sheerah

Shehariah

shekel

Shelah

Shelemiah

Sheleph

Shelesh

Shelomi

Shelomith

Shelomoth

Shelumiel

Shem

Shema

Shema

Shemaah

Shemaiah

Shemariah

Shemeber

Shemed

Shemer

Shemida

Sheminith

Shemiramoth

Shemuel

Shenazar

Sheol

Shepham

Shephatiah

Shephelah

Shepher

shepherd

Shephi

Shephupham

Sherebiah

Sheshach

Sheshai

Sheshan

Sheshbazzar

Shetharbozenai

Sheva

Shibah

shibboleth

shield

Shiggaion

Shihor

Shihor-libnath

Shiloah

Shiloh

Shilonite

Shilshah

Shimea

Shimeath

Shimeathites

Shimei

Shimeon

Shimon

Shimrath

Shimri

Shimrith

Shimron

Shimshai

Shinab

Shinar

Shion

Shiphi

Shiphrah

Shiphtan

ships

Shishak

Shitrai

shittah

Shittim

Shiza

Shoa

Shobab

Shobach

Shobai

Shobal

Shobek

Shobi

shoes

shofar

Shoham

Shomer

shoot

shovel, altar

showbread

shrine

Shua

Shuah

Shual

Shuham

Shuhite

Shunammite

Shunem

Shuni

Shur

Shushan

Shuthelah

Sia

Sibbecai

Sibmah

sickle

Siddim

Sidon

siege

sign

signet

Sihon

Silas

Siloam

Siloam

Silvanus

silver

Simeon

Simon

sin

Sin

Sin, Wilderness of

Sinai

sinew

Sinites

sin offering

Sirach

Sirah

Sirion

Sisera

Sismai

sister

sit

Sitnah

Sivan

six

skins

sky

slave

slavery in the ancient Near East

slavery in the New Testament

sledge

sling

smith

Smyrna

snail

snake

snare

snow

So

soap

Soco, Socoh

Sodom

sojourn

sojourner

soldier

solemn assembly

Solomon

Solomon, Song of

Solomon, Wisdom of

Solomon’s Pools

Solomon’s Portico

Solomon’s servants

son

song

Song of Ascent

Song of Solomon

Song of Songs

Song of the Three Jews

son of God, Son of God

son of man, Son of Man

sons of God, children of God

sons of prophets

sons of thunder

soothsayer

Sopater

Sophereth

Sophia

sorcery

Sorek

Sosipater

Sosthenes

soul

sowing

Spain

span

sparrow

speaking in tongues

spear

speck

spelt

spices

spies

spinning and weaving

spirit

Spirit, Holy

Spirit of God

spirits, evil

spiritual gifts

spitting

sponge

springs

squad

Stachys

stacte

staff

stairs

stall

stars

stater

stealing

stele

Stephanas

Stephen

steward

Stoicism

stone

stoning

storage

stork

stove

stranger

strangled animals

straw

stripes

stumbling block

Succoth

Succoth-benoth

suffering

Sukkoth

sulfur

Sumer

sun

Supper, Lord’s

surety

Susa

Susanna

Susanna, book of

swaddling

swallow

swearing

swine

sword

sycamore

Sychar

Sychem

Syene

Symeon

synagogue

Synoptic Problem

Syntyche

Syracuse

Syria

Syrophoenician

Syrtis

Sabaoth (sab′ay-oth), Lord of. See names of God in the Hebrew Bible.

sabbath (sab′uhth; Heb. shabbat, “to cease, desist”), the weekly day of rest and abstention from work enjoined upon the Israelites.

Origin: An etiological origin for the sabbath is supplied in Gen. 2:1–3, which speaks of God ceasing from the work of creation on the seventh day, blessing the day, and declaring it holy. The Bible also credits Moses with instituting specific sabbath laws (e.g., Exod. 16:22–30).

Scholars have looked for parallels between Hebrew sabbath observance and days of rest in other religions or cultures of the ancient Near East. Three similarities with Babylonian rites are intriguing, though they ultimately serve to point up the distinctiveness of Israel’s traditions. First, the Babylonian monthly calendar designated certain days on which normal activities of the king and certain professions were restricted. These days, known as “evil days,” were determined by the lunar cycle, corresponding with the quarters of the moon. The biblical sabbath, however, was ordained as a weekly institution with no relation whatsoever to the lunar cycle. Moreover, the somber nature of the Babylonian “evil days” stands in stark contrast to the joyous nature of the sabbath.

Second, in Babylonian culture, the full moon on the fifteenth of the month was known as shapattu, a term possibly related to sabbath. This day was described as a “day of pacifying the heart [of the god]” by certain ceremonies. Apart from the name, however, no significant similarities between this day and the Israelite sabbath have been recognized. Finally, the closest analogy between the biblical sabbath and Babylonian culture is the shared literary motif in Israelite and Babylonian creation stories of the god(s) resting after having created humans (see Enuma Elish 7.8, 34). Even here, however, the parallel is distant. The biblical God rests to signify that the work of creation is completed (nothing more needs to be done), while the Babylonian gods rest because, once humans were created to feed them, they no longer needed to labor to feed themselves.

Observance: The sabbath was a cornerstone of Israelite religious practice from earliest times. This can be seen from the consistent mention of the sabbath throughout all the strata of pentateuchal and extrapentateuchal sources, with the exception of wisdom literature. In the Pentateuch, sabbath observance is legislated repeatedly in general terms (Exod. 20:8–11; 23:12; 31:12–17; Lev. 23:3; Deut. 5:12–15), though the types of work prohibited are relatively limited; those mentioned include gathering food, plowing and reaping, kindling a fire, and chopping wood (Exod. 16:29–30; 34:21; 35:3; Num. 15:32–36). The positive specifications of sabbath observance include giving rest to one’s servants and animals (Exod. 20:10; 23:12; Deut. 5:14).

Outside the Pentateuch, evidence relating to the practical observance of the sabbath is not overabundant, but it is more extensive than that found for most laws. During the monarchic period (ca. 1050–587/6 BCE), the sabbath (as well as the New Moon) was marked by visits to prophet and temple (2 Kings 4:23; Isa. 1:13). Business activity came to a halt (Amos 8:5). The sabbath was a joyous day, much like the festivals (Hos. 2:13; Lam. 2:6). Its desecration was severely attacked by Jeremiah, who lashed out against those who carried burdens from their houses or through the gates of Jerusalem on the sabbath (17:19–27). During the period of postexilic restoration, Nehemiah enforced observance of the sabbath by locking the city gates of Jerusalem in order to prevent traders from selling their wares (Neh. 13:15–22). Contemporary documents from a Jewish colony in Elephantine, Egypt, likewise mention the sabbath, attesting to its recognition by Jews in the Dispersion (i.e., outside the land of Israel) in the fifth century BCE.

In addition to these features of popular observance of the sabbath, one can piece together a picture of sabbath observance in the temple. The pentateuchal prescriptions of additional sacrifices and changing of the bread of the Presence on the sabbath (Lev. 24:8; Num. 28:9–10) apparently reflect accepted practice (cf. Ezek. 45:17; 46:4–5; 1 Chron. 9:32; 23:31; 2 Chron. 2:3; 8:13; 31:3). The sacrificial service may have been accompanied by a special psalm (Ps. 92:1). There is also a somewhat cryptic reference to the changing of the royal guards at the temple on the sabbath (2 Kings 11:4–12).

Purpose: Two major rationales for sabbath observance are presented in the Pentateuch. The concept of the sabbath as a memorial to God’s resting from the work of creation is expressed in Gen. 2:1–3 and repeated in Exod. 20:11; 31:17. The last passage broadens the concept in defining the sabbath as “a sign forever between (God) and the people of Israel.” Although God had already sanctified the seventh day at the time of creation, God did not reveal its special status to humankind at large, but only to Israel. Thus, Israel’s observance of the sabbath underscored its special relationship with God. This rationale was emphasized by Priestly writers.

Along with the theological rationale, a distinctly humanistic approach is to be found in Exod. 23:12 and Deut. 5:14–15, both of which ground the observance of the sabbath on the need to give servants, strangers, and work animals an opportunity to rest. The added reminder in Deut. 5:15 of Israel’s experience in Egypt most likely intends to bolster the ow...

Table of contents

• Editorial Board
• Contributors
• Abbreviations
• Books of the Bible
• Pseudepigrapha and Early Christian Literature
• Dead Sea Scrolls and Related Texts
• Targumic Material
• Mishnaic and Related Literature
• Other Rabbinic Works
• Nag Hammadi Tractates
• Preface
• Pronunciation Key
• A
• B
• C
• D
• E
• F
• G
• H
• I
• J
• K
• L
• M
• N
• O
• P
• Q R
• S
• T
• U V W
• X Y Z
• Credits
• Copyright
• About the Publisher