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Official GarmentAid to Bible Understanding
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it appears, sometimes wore similar garments of hair to deceive the people into accepting them as reputable prophets of Jehovah, thus making their messages seem more credible.—Zech. 13:4.
The term ʼad·deʹreth was also used in reference to costly and royal garments, like the one stolen by Achan, “an official garment from Shinar, a good-looking one.” (Josh. 7:21, 24) Ancient Babylon or Shinar was noted for its beautiful robes. The king of Nineveh “put off his official garment,” undoubtedly a splendid robe, and clothed himself with sackcloth to show his repentance.—Jonah 3:6.
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OgAid to Bible Understanding
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OG
The powerful Amorite king of Bashan (1 Ki. 4:19) whom the Israelites defeated before crossing into the Promised Land. Og was one of the giant Rephaim. In fact, his immense iron bier (perhaps a sarcophagus, or possibly a bed frame) measured some 13 feet by 6 feet (3.9 by 1.8 meters). He and Sihon ruled the Amorites E of the Jordan. (Deut. 3:11, 13; 4:46, 47) The domain of Og extended from Mount Hermon to the Jabbok River, territory E of the Jordan that included sixty fortified cities and numerous rural towns. (Deut. 3:3-5, 8-10; Josh. 12:4, 5; compare Numbers 21:23, 24.) His two principal cities were Edrei and Ashtaroth.—Deut. 1:4; Josh. 13:12.
The defeat of Og at the hands of Israel came toward the end of Israel’s forty-year wandering, just before they encamped on the plains of Moab. After defeating Sihon, Israel clashed with Og’s forces at Edrei and, in an overwhelming God-given victory, killed off Og and all his army and took possession of his cities and towns. (Num. 21:33–22:1; Deut. 3:1-13) Og’s territory became part of Manasseh’s inheritance. (Num. 32:33; Deut. 3:13; Josh. 13:29-31) The victory brought fright to the inhabitants of Canaan and was a contributing factor prompting Rahab and the Gibeonites to seek peace with Israel so that they too were not exterminated. (Josh. 2:10, 11; 9:9, 10) The victory was a great encouragement to Israel and was remembered even many centuries later.—Deut. 31:4; Neh. 9:22; Ps. 135:10-12; 136:17-22.
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OhadAid to Bible Understanding
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OHAD
(Oʹhad).
The third-listed son of Simeon. (Gen. 46:10; Ex. 6:15) His name does not appear as founder of a family in the later registration list.—Num. 26:12-14.
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OhelAid to Bible Understanding
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OHEL
(Oʹhel) [tent].
A son of Governor Zerubbabel and descendant of David.—1 Chron. 3:19, 20.
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OholahAid to Bible Understanding
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OHOLAH
(O·hoʹlah) [her (own) tent].
Ezekiel chapter 23 depicts Samaria (representing the ten-tribe kingdom of Israel) as the prostitute Oholah, the older sister of Oholibah, representing Jerusalem (the kingdom of Judah). The fact that the ten-tribe kingdom established its own centers of worship may be alluded to by the name Oholah, “her own tent.” Her prostitution began in Egypt and continued in the Promised Land. In later times it involved her currying the favor of the Assyrians and engaging in degrading idolatrous practices, including child sacrifice. For her unfaithfulness to him, Jehovah delivered Oholah (the northern kingdom) into the hands of the Assyrians, her lovers.
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OholiabAid to Bible Understanding
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OHOLIAB
(O·hoʹli·ab) [father’s tent].
Chief assistant of Bezalel in constructing the tabernacle; of the tribe of Dan, son of Ahisamach. Oholiab was “a craftsman and embroiderer and weaver in the blue thread and the wool dyed reddish purple and coccus scarlet material and fine linen.”—Ex. 31:6; 35:34; 36:1, 2; 38:23.
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OholibahAid to Bible Understanding
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OHOLIBAH
(O·holʹi·bah) [my tent is in her].
In Ezekiel chapter 23, Jerusalem’s unfaithfulness to Jehovah is portrayed under the allegory of the prostitute Oholibah. The meaning of the name Oholibah seems to allude to the fact that Jehovah’s tent or sanctuary was in her territory. (Compare OHOLAH.) However, instead of appreciating this and taking to heart the punishment that came upon her sister Oholah (Samaria) for unfaithfulness, Oholibah not only continued the record of infidelity begun in Egypt, but conducted herself even worse than her sister. She practiced idolatry on a large scale and became politically involved with the Assyrians and the Babylonians. Consequently her former lovers, the Babylonians, were foretold to come against her and make her a “frightful object.”
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OholibamahAid to Bible Understanding
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OHOLIBAMAH
(O·hol·i·baʹmah) [tent of the high place].
1. A Canaanite wife of Esau. She bore him three sons, Jeush, Jalam and Korah, all of whom became sheiks of Edom. Oholibamah was a daughter of Anah and granddaughter of Hivite Zibeon.—Gen. 36:2, 5-8, 14, 18, 25.
2. The designation for an Edomite sheik; some scholars would apply these listed names to places, believing they should read “the sheik of Oholibamah,” etc.—Gen. 36:40, 41; 1 Chron. 1:51, 52.
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OilAid to Bible Understanding
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OIL
The fatty liquid most familiar to the Hebrews was that obtained from olives. Fully ripened black olives gave the most oil, but those yet green, though beginning to change in color, produced the oil of finest quality. After the fruit was carefully removed from the trees, and the twigs and leaves were cleaned from the olives, they were carried to the oil press.
The pulp of the ripe olive berry is about half oil, which varies in grade according to the method of processing the pulp. The very best, called “pure, beaten olive oil,” was produced by a simple process before the olives were put into the press. (Lev. 24:2) First, the olives were placed in a mortar and beaten until they were well bruised, or they were sometimes trodden by foot. (Mic. 6:15) Next, the bruised fruit was transferred to strainer baskets wherein it “bled” oil until the “virgin” or “first expressed” oil was released. The pure, beaten oil was stored in earthenware jars and the pulp was moved to the olive press.
A common grade of oil was prepared by thoroughly crushing the olives in a mortar or hand mill. After the oil ran off from the pulp, it was allowed to clarify in clay jars or vats.
The lowest grade of oil was that pressed from the pulp refuse in an olive or wine press after the crushing process. The pulverized mass of pulp was packed into baskets and stacked between the two vertical pillars of the olive press. A weighted lever was applied to the stack of baskets to press out the oil, which was then channeled into large reservoirs for clearing. There, the oil would rise to the surface, separating from the bits of pulp and the water below before it was drawn off into large earthenware jars or special cisterns for storage.—Compare 2 Chronicles 32:27, 28; see PRESS.
A SYMBOL OF PROSPERITY
Great prosperity was signified when reference was made to the ‘press vats overflowing with oil.’ (Joel 2:24) Suffering Job longed for his previous days of plenty when “the rock kept pouring out streams of oil” for him. (Job 29:1, 2, 6) Jehovah caused “Jacob,” or the Israelites, figuratively to suck “oil out of a flinty rock,” apparently from olive trees growing in rocky terrain. (Deut. 32:9, 13) Moses declared that Asher would become “one dipping his foot in oil,” indicating that this tribe would enjoy material blessings.—Deut. 33:24.
AN IMPORTANT TRADE AND FOOD COMMODITY
Olive oil became an important trade commodity in Palestine because of its abundance there. Yearly, Solomon gave King Hiram of Tyre “twenty cor measures [1,162 gallons; 4,400 liters] of beaten-out oil” as part of a payment for temple construction materials. (1 Ki. 5:10, 11) Judah and Israel were once
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