letter to Darius asking him to check into this. Darius’ reply acknowledged Cyrus’ unchangeable decree and not only ordered Shethar-bozenai and his comrades to ‘keep their distance’ from Jerusalem, but demanded, under severe penalty, that material support be provided from the royal treasury for the Jews so that their temple building and services could continue. Shethar-bozenai and his associates did as commanded.—Ezra 4:23–6:13.

SHEVA

(Sheʹva) [vanity].

1. Father of Machbenah and Gibea. As these are names of towns, however, Sheva was perhaps the father of those who settled there or was himself the founder of these towns. Sheva’s father Caleb (Chelubai) headed one of the three major divisions of Judah’s descendants through Hezron.—1 Chron. 2:9, 48-50.

2. David’s secretary.—2 Sam. 20:25; see SERAIAH No. 2.

SHIBAH

(Shiʹbah) [seven].

A well that Isaac’s servants dug, or redug, at Beer-sheba. (Gen. 26:32, 33; compare 26:18.) They reported finding water there after concluding a covenant of peace with Abimelech the king of Gerar; hence, Isaac named the well “Shibah” (meaning “seven” and referring to an oath or statement sworn to by seven things). (Gen. 26:26-33) Abraham had similarly made a covenant with Abimelech (either this Philistine king or another having the same name or title). On that occasion Abimelech accepted seven female lambs from the patriarch in evidence of Abraham’s title to a controversial well, perhaps the same one that Isaac later named “Shibah.” By using “Shibah” (another form of the name “Sheba”), Isaac also apparently was preserving the name “Beer-sheba,” originally given to this place by Abraham.—Gen. 21:22-32; see BEER-SHEBA.

SHIBBOLETH

(Shibʹbo·leth) [an ear of grain; or, a stream].

Escaping Ephraimites, during their conflict with Jephthah, gave themselves away to the Gileadite sentries at the fords of the Jordan by mispronouncing the initial “sh” sound of this password. (Judg. 12:4-6) Thus, it is evident that some variation of pronunciation existed among the tribes, even as in later times the Galileans had a manner of speech distinct from the Judeans.—Compare Matthew 26:73; Luke 22:59.

SHIELD

See ARMS, ARMOR.

SHIHOR

(Shiʹhor) [perhaps Egyptian; lake or pool of Horus].

Shihor, in its four occurrences in the Hebrew text, is always associated with Egypt. (Josh. 13:3 [“branch of the Nile,” NW]; 1 Chron. 13:5 [“river,” NW]; Isa. 23:3; Jer. 2:18) While some commentators would equate it with the “torrent valley of Egypt” (Num. 34:5), usually identified with the Wadi el-ʽArish, SW of Gaza, Jeremiah 2:18 and Isaiah 23:3 appear to link it more closely with Egypt and the Nile than was the case with this latter torrent valley or wadi. Particularly the Isaiah text with its reference to the “seed of Shihor” would seem to apply to a regularly flowing stream (na·harʹ) rather than a seasonal one (naʹhhal). For these reasons the Shihor, at least in these two texts, is more often identified with the easternmost arm of the Nile (after it divides into several branches upon reaching the Delta region). This position might allow for its being referred to as “in front of [that is, on the E of or to the E of] Egypt,” as at Joshua 13:3.

This latter text, however, forms part of the description of the land that was yet to be conquered by the Israelites after the initial campaigns under Joshua, extending as far N as the “entering in of Hamath.” (Josh. 13:1-6) Those arguing for an identification with the Wadi el-ʽArish point out that elsewhere the boundaries of Israel’s inheritance are given as from the “torrent valley of Egypt” up to “the entering in of Hamath.” (Num. 34:2, 5, 7, 8) At Joshua 13:3, some translations (RS, NW), however, consider the reference to the Shihor (“branch of the Nile,” NW) to be part of a parenthetical expression giving a historical note as to how far to the SW the land of the Canaanites at one time had extended. On this basis, instead of describing the territory to be conquered, the text could simply be showing that the Canaanites once resided as far as the easternmost border of Egypt proper.

Similarly, a correspondency is noted between the reference to David’s congregating the people of Israel from Shihor (“the river of Egypt,” NW) to Hamath (when endeavoring to bring the ark of the covenant up to Jerusalem) and the congregating of the people in Solomon’s day from “the entering in of Hamath down to the torrent valley of Egypt.” (1 Chron. 13:5; 1 Ki. 8:65) The explanation for this may be that in the latter case (Solomon’s time) the account gives the practical boundaries of Israelite residence. The region between the Wadi el-ʽArish and the eastern arm of the Nile is basically desert territory and scrubland, so this wadi or torrent valley fittingly marked the limit of territory suitable for Israelite inhabitation. Whereas in the former case (David’s) the description may be that of the entire region of Israelite activity, the region effectively dominated by David, which indeed ran to the border of Egypt.

Even prior to David, King Saul had pursued the Amalekites as far as Shur, “which is in front of Egypt” (1 Sam. 15:7), and the dominion Solomon received through David is stated to have reached to “the boundary of Egypt.” (1 Ki. 4:21) So, even though the territory actually distributed to the Israelite tribes did not extend beyond the “torrent valley of Egypt,” this would not appear to argue against the identification of the Shihor with a “branch of the Nile” at Joshua 13:3 and “the river of Egypt” at 1 Chronicles 13:5.

The word “Shihor” does not occur at Genesis 15:18, where Jehovah promised Abraham the land from the “river of Egypt to the great river, the river Euphrates.” So, here also, it is a question as to whether the “river [na·harʹ) of Egypt” refers to some part of the Nile or to the “torrent valley [naʹhhal] of Egypt” (the Wadi el-ʽArish). The answer would depend upon whether Jehovah here described the actual area distributed as a tribal inheritance, or referred to the whole region dominated by the Israelite kingdom at its greatest extent. If the former, then this text would likely apply to the Wadi el-ʽArish; if the latter, then to the Shihor.—See EGYPT, TORRENT VALLEY OF.

SHIHOR-LIBNATH

(Shiʹhor-libʹnath) [turbid stream of Libnath].

Eusebius and Jerome believed Shihor-libnath originally constituted the name of two sites, Shihor and Labanath. However, it is apparently a river on Asher’s boundary. (Josh. 19:24-26) Some geographers connect the Shihor-libnath with the Nahr ez-Zerqa, which flows into the Mediterranean Sea about six miles (9.7 kilometers) S of Dor.

SHIKKERON

(Shikʹke·ron) [drunkenness].

A site on the boundary of Judah. (Josh. 15:1, 11) Shikkeron’s modern location is uncertain. However, some tentatively identify it with Tell el-Ful, some three miles (5 kilometers) NW of the suggested site of Ekron (Khirbet el-Muqanna), with which it is mentioned in the Joshua account.

SHILHI

(Shilʹhi).

Father of Azubah, Asa’s wife and mother of Jehoshaphat.—1 Ki. 22:41-43; 2 Chron. 20:31.

SHILHIM

(Shilʹhim).

A city in the southern part of Judah. (Josh. 15:21, 32) It seems to be the same as Sharuhen, listed among the cities in Judah’s territory