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Mizpah, MizpehAid to Bible Understanding
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Mizpah witnessed Samuel’s introducing Saul as Israel’s first king.—1 Sam. 10:17-25.
In the tenth century B.C.E. Mizpah was built up by Judean King Asa with materials from Ramah, a city that Israelite King Baasha had been forced to desert. (1 Ki. 15:20-22; 2 Chron. 16:4-6) Some three centuries later, in 607 B.C.E., the victorious Babylonian King Nebuchadnezzar appointed Gedaliah as governor over the Jews remaining in the land of Judah. Gedaliah administered affairs from Mizpah. There the prophet Jeremiah took up residence. Also, surviving army chiefs and other Jews who had been scattered came to Mizpah. Governor Gedaliah, although having been forewarned, failed to exercise caution and was assassinated at Mizpah. Chaldeans and Jews with him there were likewise slaughtered. Thereafter sixty visiting men also met their death. The band of assassins, led by Ishmael the son of Nethaniah, took the rest of the people captive. Overtaken by Johanan the son of Kareah, Ishmael escaped with eight men, but the captives were rescued, later to be taken to Egypt.—2 Ki. 25:23-26; Jer. 40:5–41:18.
Following the Babylonian exile, men of Mizpah and the princes Shallun and Ezer shared in repairing the wall of Jerusalem.—Neh. 3:7, 15, 19.
4. A city E of the Jordan in Gilead (Judg. 10:17; 11:11, 29), perhaps the same place as the Mizpah mentioned at Hosea 5:1. Since Mizpah was the home of Jephthah, logically this would place the city in the territory of Manasseh in northern Gilead. (Compare Judges 10:17–11:1, 11, 34; 12:4, 5.) But its exact location is uncertain.
5. A city of Moab where David, while outlawed by King Saul, settled his parents. (1 Sam. 22:3) Mizpeh’s precise location cannot be established definitely. Some scholars believe it may be the same place as Kir of Moab. (Isa. 15:1) Others have presented Ruzm el-Mesrife (situated W-SW of modern Madeba [ancient Medeba]) as a possible identification.
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MizraimAid to Bible Understanding
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MIZRAIM
(Mizʹra·im).
Listed second among the sons of Ham. (Gen. 10:6) Mizraim was the progenitor of the Egyptian tribes (as well as some non-Egyptian tribes) and the name came to be synonymous with Egypt. (Gen. 10:13, 14; 50:11) Thus, the word “Egypt” in English translations actually renders the Hebrew Mits·raʹyim (or Ma·tsohrʹ in a few cases, 2 Ki. 19:24; Isa. 19:6; 37:25; Mic. 7:12). The Tell el-Amarna letters of the late second millennium refer to Egypt as Misri, similar to the modern Arabic name for the land (Misr).
Many scholars hold that Mizraim is a dual form representing the duality of Egypt (that is, Upper and Lower Egypt), but this is conjectural. (See EGYPT, EGYPTIAN.) The names of Mizraim’s descendants are apparently plural forms: Ludim, Anamim, Lehabim, Naphtuhim, Pathrusim, Casluhim and Caphtorim. (Gen. 10:13, 14; 1 Chron. 1:11, 12) For this reason it is usually suggested that they represent the names of tribes rather than individual sons. Although this is possible, it should be noted that there are other names that appear to be dual or plural in their construction, such as Ephraim, Appaim, Diblaim and Meshillemoth (Gen. 41:52; 1 Chron. 2:30, 31; Hos. 1:3; 2 Chron. 28:12), each obviously referring to only one individual.
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MizzahAid to Bible Understanding
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MIZZAH
(Mizʹzah) [strong, firm].
A descendant of Esau through Reuel and a sheik of Edom. (Gen. 36:17; 1 Chron. 1:34-37) Mizzah was Esau’s grandson, as he is included among “the sons [or, “grandsons”] of Basemath, Esau’s wife,” who was Ishmael’s daughter and the mother of Reuel.—Gen. 36:2, 3, 10, 13.
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MnasonAid to Bible Understanding
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MNASON
(Mnaʹson) [possibly, reminding].
A native of Cyprus and “an early disciple.” Paul and those with him were to be entertained in Mnason’s home as the apostle returned from his missionary journey in c. 56 C.E. Some disciples from Caesarea accompanied Paul’s group on the way from Caesarea to Jerusalem, to bring them to Mnason.—Acts 21:15-17.
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MoabAid to Bible Understanding
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MOAB
(Moʹab) [possibly, from (her) father], Moabites (Moʹab·ites).
1. The son of Lot by his older daughter. Like his half-brother Ammon, Moab was conceived after Lot and his daughters left Zoar and began dwelling in a cave of the nearby mountainous region. Moab became the forefather of the Moabites.—Gen. 19:30-38.
2. The territory anciently inhabited by the Moabites was called “Moab” and also the “field(s) of Moab.” (Gen. 36:35; Num. 21:20; Ruth 1:2; 1 Chron. 1:46; 8:8; Ps. 60:8) Earlier the Emim had resided in this land but were apparently displaced by the Moabites. (Deut. 2:9-11; compare verses 18-22.) Toward the close of Israel’s wilderness wandering the territory of Moab appears to have extended from the torrent valley of Zered in the S to the torrent valley of Arnon in the N (a distance of some 30 miles [48 kilometers]), the Dead Sea forming the W boundary and the Arabian desert an undefined E boundary. (Num. 21:11-13; Deut. 2:8, 9, 13, 18, 19) Rising sharply from the Dead Sea, this region is chiefly a tableland slashed by gorges and has an average elevation of some 3,000 feet (900 meters) above the Mediterranean Sea. In ancient times it afforded pasture for vast flocks (2 Ki. 3:4) and supported vineyards and orchards. (Compare Isaiah 16:6-10; Jeremiah 48:32, 33.) Grain was also cultivated.—Compare Deuteronomy 23:3, 4.
There was an earlier period when the land of Moab extended N of the Arnon and included the “desert plains of Moab across the Jordan from Jericho.” (Num. 22:1) But sometime before the arrival of the Israelites, Amorite King Sihon annexed this region and the Arnon came to be Moab’s N boundary. (Num. 21:26-30; Judg. 11:15-18) The Ammonites also suffered defeat at the hands of Sihon and were pushed to the N and E. The territory conquered from both peoples by the Amorites formed a wedge between Moab and Ammon, and thus Moab came to be bounded by Amorite territory on the N and Edomite territory on the S. (Judg. 11:13, 21, 22; compare Deuteronomy 2:8, 9, 13, 14, 18.) At its greatest extent the territory of Moab was approximately sixty miles (97 kilometers) from N to S and twenty-five miles (40 kilometers) from E to W.—See map on page 70.
Probably because a part of Amorite territory had once belonged to Moab, it continued to be called the “land of Moab.” (Deut. 1:5) It was in this former Moabite territory that the Israelites encamped before crossing the Jordan. (Num. 31:12; 33:48-51) There a second census was taken of Israel’s able-bodied men from twenty years old upward. (Num. 26:2-4, 63) Also there divine commands and judicial decisions were received about Levite cities, cities of refuge and inheritance. (Num. 35:1–36:13) There Moses delivered his final discourses and concluded with Israel the covenant of the repeated law. (Deut. 1:1-5; 29:1) Finally Moses ascended Mount Nebo to view the Promised Land and then died. For thirty days Israel mourned Moses’ death on the desert plains of Moab.—Deut. 32:49, 50; 34:1-6, 8.
MOAB’S RELATIONSHIP TO ISRAEL
As descendants of Abraham’s nephew Lot, the Moabites were related to the Israelites. The languages of both peoples were very similar, as seen from the inscription on the Moabite Stone. Also, like the Israelites, the Moabites appear to have practiced circumcision. (Jer. 9:25, 26) Nevertheless, with few exceptions such as Ruth and King David’s mighty man Ithmah (Ruth 1:4, 16, 17; 1 Chron. 11:26, 46), the Moabites manifested great enmity toward Israel.
Before Israel’s entry into the Promised Land
The song of Moses about Jehovah’s destroying Egypt’s military might in the Red Sea indicated that news of this event would cause the “despots of Moab”
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