home “where quite a few were gathered together and praying.” The house must have been of considerable size, and the presence of servants suggests that Mary was a woman of means. (Acts 12:12-17) It being referred to as her home, and not her husband’s, indicates that she probably was a widow.—Acts 12:12.

6. Mary of Rome. She was sent greetings by Paul in his letter to the Romans, and was commended for her “many labors” in behalf of the Roman congregation.—Rom. 16:6.

MASH

A descendant of Shem through Aram. (Gen. 10:22, 23; 1 Chron. 1:17, Sy and six Hebrew manuscripts) At 1 Chronicles 1:17 the Masoretic text reads “Meshech” instead of “Mash.” But this is probably a scribal error, since Meshach is listed as a “son” of Japheth.—Gen. 10:2; 1 Chron. 1:5.

Some link Mash and his descendants with Mons Massius, a mountainous region of northern Mesopotamia mentioned by Greek geographer Strabo. Others associate Mash with a part of the Syro-Arabian desert called “the country of Mash” in Assyrian annals and described as “the desert where parching thirst is at home, where there are not even birds in the sky and wherein neither wild donkeys (nor) gazelles pasture.”—Ancient Near Eastern Texts, p. 299.

MASHAL

(Maʹshal).

A city of Asher assigned to the Gershonites; apparently an alternate name for Mishal. (Josh. 21:27, 30; 1 Chron. 6:71, 74) Its exact location is unknown.

MASKIL

(Masʹkil) [Heb., mas·kilʹ].

This word appears in the superscriptions of thirteen psalms. (32, 42, 44, 45, 52, 53, 54, 55, 74, 78, 88, 89, 142) The term is of uncertain meaning. It appears a number of times in the Hebrew text, and is there translated “prudently,” “with discretion,” “with consideration,” “having insight,” and so forth.—1 Sam. 18:14, 15; Ps. 41:1; 53:2.

MASON

A craftsman who builds with brick or stone. (2 Ki. 12:12; 22:6) The stonemason of ancient times hewed and sawed stones and then used them to construct walls and various kinds of buildings. (2 Sam. 5:11; 1 Ki. 7:9-12; 1 Chron. 22:2; 2 Chron. 24:12) Other constructions included burial places (Isa. 22:16) and water tunnels.—2 Ki. 20:20.

Among the tools used by masons were the hammer, the ax, the stone-saw, the leveling instrument, the measuring line and the plummet. (1 Ki. 6:7; 7:9; Isa. 28:17; Zech. 4:10) As shown on monuments, implements used by Egyptian masons included the mallet and chisel, doubtless also employed by Israelite stonemasons. During construction in Egypt, stones were measured, marked with dark lines, which served as guides for the stonecutters, and each stone’s position in the building was designated by a mark or number placed on it.

Ancient masons were able to dress stones so well as to make it unnecessary to use mortar. To this day it is impossible to insert a knife blade between the massive stones of certain structural remains in Palestine dating from the Herodian period.—See ARCHITECTURE.

MASREKAH

(Mas·reʹkah) [possibly, vineyard].

Apparently the home of Samlah, an Edomite king. (Gen. 36:31, 36; 1 Chron. 1:43, 47) The name “Masrekah” may be preserved in the mountain that the Arabs call Jebel el-Mushraq, located about thirty-two miles (51 kilometers) SW of Maʽan. Eusebius placed Masrekah farther N, nearer the Dead Sea.

MASSA

(Masʹsa) [Heb., mas·saʼʹ, burden, pronouncement, weighty message].

A descendant of Abraham through Ishmael. (Gen. 25:12-14; 1 Chron. 1:29, 30) Massa’s offspring probably settled somewhere in N Arabia. In the annals of Tiglath-pileser III, Masʼa (Biblical Massa?) is mentioned along with Tema and other locations in N Arabia. Massa has been linked with the Ma·sa·noiʹ located by Greek geographer Ptolemy (second century C.E.) as NE of “Dumah” (the Dumat al-Ghandal area in N Arabia?).

The Hebrew word mas·saʼʹ is also found at Proverbs 30:1 (with the definite article ha) and at Proverbs 31:1 (without an article). This has given rise to the renderings ‘Agur son of Jakeh, of Massa’ and ‘Lemuel king of Massa.’ (Compare AT, JB, Ro, RS and/or their alternate readings.) However, Agur and Lemuel evidently were Israelites and, therefore, mas·saʼʹ is appropriately translated “oracle” (AS), “declaration” (Yg) and “weighty message.”—NW; compare Proverbs 30:5, 9; 31:30 with Psalm 12:6; Romans 3:1, 2.

MASSAH

(Masʹsah) [testing, trial].

One of the names for the place near Rephidim from where the Israelites received a miraculous supply of water. As instructed by Jehovah, Moses and some of the older men of Israel went to the rock in Horeb. There Moses struck the rock. The water that then began to issue forth flowed as a river there in the wilderness. Moses subsequently named the place “Massah” (testing, trial) because the Israelites had put Jehovah to the test by their faithless murmuring and, on account of their quarreling, he called it “Meribah” (quarreling, strife, contention).—Ex. 17:1-7; Ps. 105:41.

Shortly before his death Moses warned Israel not to put Jehovah to the test as they had done at Massah. (Deut. 6:16; see also Deuteronomy 9:22.) Then, in blessing Israel, he again took note of this event, indicating that it had resulted in testing Levi. (Deut. 33:8) In this case Levi may mean the heads of the tribe, that is, Moses and Aaron.

Later, the psalmist admonished the Israelites not to harden their hearts like the generation that wandered in the wilderness. His reference to Meribah and Massah evidently alludes to Israel’s murmuring for water at Rephidim, the incident being representative of their faithless course throughout the entire forty-year period. (Ps. 95:8-11) This appears to be the thought conveyed by the quotation of the psalmist’s words (from the Septuagint Version) found at Hebrews chapter 3: “Do not harden your hearts as on the occasion of causing bitter anger [Meribah], as in the day of making the test [Massah] in the wilderness, in which your forefathers made a test of me with a trial, and yet they had seen my works for forty years [literally, ‘and they saw my works forty years’].” (Vss. 8, 9) Both Psalm 95:8 and Hebrews 3:8 may also include Israel’s later murmuring for water at the Meribah in the Kadesh area.—Num. 20:1-13.

MATRED

(Maʹtred) [spear, or, perhaps, expulsion].

Mother of Mehetabel, the wife of Edomite King Hadar (Hadad). (Gen. 36:31, 39; 1 Chron. 1:50) At Genesis 36:39 the Syriac Peshitta Version and the Septuagint present Matred as the son of Mezahab, but, according to the Masoretic text, Matred was Mezahab’s daughter.

MATRITES

(Matʹrites).

A Benjamite family of which King Saul of Israel was a member. (1 Sam. 10:21) The Authorized Version uses the name “Matri” (Maʹtri), meaning “rainy.” However, the Hebrew word mat·riʹ here is accompanied by the definite article. Thus the New World Translation appropriately reads “the Matrites,” as do the other modern translations.—AS; AT; RS.

MATTAN

(Matʹtan) [a gift].

1. A priest of Baal who was killed before the altars at the house of that false god. This occurred when the people, led by Jehoiada the priest of Jehovah, pulled down the house of Baal, as well as destroying his altars and images. At that time the usurper Athaliah was put to death and Jehoash was installed as Judah’s king.—2 Ki. 11:16-21; 2 Chron. 23:17.

2. The father of Jeremiah’s persecutor Shephatiah.—Jer. 38:1, 4-6.