Abraham was much tried by an unhappy occurrence in which Hagar and Ishmael were principally concerned; for Ishmael, in consequence of Isaac's birth, had lost his former status and prospects, and his mother and himself began to cherish feelings of jealousy and hatred toward the favourite child and his Abraham married a second time, and had mother. God supported Abraham by an ex- several sons. As Abraham was very old ere plicit promise, that in Isaac his seed should Sarah died, and as his sons were of such age be called (Gen. xxi. 10-13; Gal. iv. 22-31). before his own death, that they were dismissed Abraham so obviously had the favour and with requisite portions in order to found new blessing of God in all that he did, that Abi-colonies, it is not improbable that Keturah had melech the king proposed to make with him a covenant of perpetual friendship; and a matter of wrong about a well, of which Abimelech's

children might be born before the decease of to the situation of Absalom, and having obSarah. Abraham, however, made Isaac his tained his decision, to apply the principle to sole heir, having in his lifetime distributed the real case. After a favourable decision was gifts among the other children, who were now obtained in the feigned case, the woman began dispersed; and at the great age of one hundred to plead for Absalom's return. The king imand seventy-five years, he died in peace, and mediately suspected Joab's concern in the plot, was buried by Isaac and Ishmael at Hebron in and the woman confessed that it was wholly the same sepulchre with Sarah. (See HEBRON.) planned by him. David therefore directed The character of Abraham is one of the Joab to go to Geshur, and bring Absalom back most wonderful and interesting recorded in to Jerusalem, after an absence of three years; Scripture. His property was immense. He but his father would not receive him into was a prince in the land, and was bold and favour, nor admit him to his presence; nor skilled in warlike stratagem. His retinue must did he see his face for two years more. Wearied have been numerous, when he had 318 home- with his banishment, Absalom often attempted born slaves able to carry arms. He evidently to obtain an interview with Joab; but for some commanded the respect of the Aborigines with cause Joab was not disposed to go to him. To whom he sojourned. Yet so really was he a compel him to come, Absalom resorted to the stranger and pilgrim, that he needed to buy a singular expedient of directing his servants to burial-place in the land which God had given set fire to Joab's fields. Joab immediately him. Distinguished by his unsullied integrity, came to Absalom; was persuaded to plead noble generosity, and princely hospitality, he with the king in his behalf, and succeeded in is yet more honoured in the simplicity and his effort, so that Absalom was received into earnestness of his faith, a faith that obeyed full favour. without hesitation and followed without delay, that shrunk not from arduous duty and recoiled not from a trial the most fearful that had ever been imposed on humanity. Abraham was called "the friend of God," and he still has the same name over all the East-el-Khalil.

ABRAHAM'S BOSOM. (See BOSOM). ABSALOM-father of peace (2 Sam. iii. 3) was a son of David, by Maacah, daughter of Talmai, king of Geshur. He was remarkable for his beauty, and for his hair, which is said to have weighed 200 shekels when cut off,-not "every year," as our version has it, but as the Hebrew formula merely implies, at stated times. As to the precise meaning of this weight, however, there has been much speculation. It is supposed that the shekel by which its weight is expressed means a lighter weight, by one third or one half, than the common shekel. Others suppose that the value, and not the weight, is denoted; and others, still, contend that what with gold-dust and powder, which were both profusely used in dressing the hair, the weight (supposing weight to be meant, and the common shekel to be used) is not at all incredible, being, according to Michaelis, not quite three pounds Troy weight, though it may be sufficiently remarkable to be noticed by the historian.

Absalom had a fair sister whose name was Tamar; and Amnon his half-brother having injured her, Absalom was revenged by taking Amnon's life at a feast to which he had invited him (2 Sam. xiii. 29). In a family where there are several mothers, the children by one mother feel a peculiar bond of connection. Absalom, according to usage, as well as prompted by affection, espoused the cause of his own full sister, and slew her ravisher. Immediately after this he filed to the house of Talmai, his mother's father, at Geshur. Joab, in order to secure Absalom's return and restoration to his father's favour, employed a woman of Tekoa to appear before David, and feign a case similar, in its leading circumstances,

But with a proud and wicked heart, he could not cease to do evil. His father's throne became the object of his ambition, and he procured chariots and horsemen, and other appendages of rank and royalty; and stood in the public places courting the favour of the people by the meanest arts; persuading them that their rights were not regarded by the government, and that it would be for their interest to elevate him to power, so that equal justice might be administered to all. By these and other means Absalom "stole the hearts" of the men of Israel. He might also regard himself as the rightful heir to the throne, as being the only son of David whose mother was of royal blood. And his assassination of his elder brother might spring from other motives than the mere desire to avenge a sister's disgrace. Solomon was at this time in early youth, and his destined succession to the kingdom may not have been known. The reason of this unnatural rebellion thus becomes somewhat apparent. Perhaps, too, Absalom, from his handsome person and other qualities, was David's favourite son, nursed and fondled as the heir-apparent. The great tribe of Judah had also become disaffected to David, its old favourite, though it is difficult to assign the reason of the change. In pursuing his wicked and traitorous design, and with a pretended regard to filial duty, he asked his father's permission to go to Hebron, and pay a vow which he said he had made. The unsuspecting king consented; and Absalom immediately sent men throughout the country, who were, at a given signal, to proclaim him king in Hebron. He also took 200 men with him from Jerusalem, though they did not know his plan; and then sent for Ahithophel, who was David's counsellor, that he might have his advice and assistance. Ahithophel's first counsel to the rebel was to take public possession of the royal harem, thus ratifying so far his succession to the throne, and inducing his partizans to commit themselves to his faction without reserve, since such an act made recon

kuf, where there is a remarkable ruin called Tel-Nimrud. Akkad is read by Rawlinson as the name of an early Hamite race who ruled in Babylonia; and in one of Sargon's inscriptions the same name is given to the Armenian mountains.

ACCESS-introduction into the presence of a superior. Used in the New Testament of the peculiar relation which believers bear to God, and of the blessings resulting from it. In Rom. v. 2 it signifies our entrance into a state of friendship with God; and in Eph. iii. 12; ii. 18, it denotes that free intercourse which we enjoy with God in the exercise of prayer.

ciliation impossible in the future. Absalom's party increased rapidly, intelligence of the conspiracy was communicated to the king, and so alarmed him that he fled from the city. At length David persuaded Hushai to go to Absalom, who had now come back to Jerusalem with his party, and to become his servant; and when opportunity occurred, to give such counsel as should defeat Ahithophel's plans, and bring confusion and discomfiture upon Absalom. By a train of singular providential interpositions (an account of which belongs rather to the life of David than to this article) Absalom's ruin was hastened. Before David's men went out to battle with the revolted party, he gave them special charge ACCHO (Judg. i. 31)-now Acca or Acre, respecting Absalom, and commanded them to or, from its connection with the knights of St. deal gently with him for his father's sake. John, St. Jean d'Acre, or Ptolemais (so called The two parties met in the wood of Ephraim, after the first Ptolemy, king of Egypt, into and the battle was severe and bloody. Ab-whose hands it fell about one hundred years salom rode upon a mule; and in passing under before Christ), was a seaport town, on the bay the thick boughs of an oak, he was caught by of Acre, over against mount Carmel and about his head in the fork or angle of two branches, thirty miles south of Tyre. It was in the and the mule passed onward, leaving him sus-territory assigned to the tribe of Asher, and pended in the air. Joab, being informed of it, took three darts and thrust them through the heart of Absalom, while he was yet alive in the midst of the oak; and they took his body and cast it into a pit in the wood, and covered it with stones.

ABSALOM, PILLAR OF. (See PILLAR, JERUSALEM.) The peculiar monument (a sketch of which is seen in the adjoining cut) which bears this name, is proved by various circumstances to be of comparatively modern origin. It is chiefly hewn out of the rock, and is a conspicuous object in the valley of Jehoshaphat. There is no real ground for giving it the title of Absalom's Pillar.

one of the cities from which they were unable to expel the Canaanites; and it is even now considered the strongest place in Palestine. It is mentioned in Acts xxi. 7. Its population is 5,000, and it has a strong garrison. The ruinous remains of this ancient city are very numerous, and are now used in the erection of new buildings, and all appearances of ancient grandeur are fading away. It was a famous place during the crusades, and it has been noted in modern times for the successful resistance it made, under Sir Sidney Smith, to the French army in 1799. In 1832 the place was under the dominion of the pacha of Egypt. In that year Ibrahim besieged it for six months; and in 1840 it suffered a severe bombardment from the English fleet. The plain of Acre is one of the richest in Palestine.

intensity of his love and sorrow for them. (See ANATHEMA.)

ACCURSED, CURSED (Josh. vi. 17)devoted to destruction (1 Cor. xii. 3; Gal. i. 8, 9). In Rom. ix. 3 the apostle says, "I could wish that myself were accursed from Christ." The translation is correct. He is not referring to what he had felt in his unconverted state, but to what he now felt "for his brethren, his kinsmen according to the flesh." The imperfect tense employed by him means, ABYSS-rendered in our version some-"I could wish, were it possible," showing the times DEEP (Luke viii. 31), and uniformly BOTTOMLESS PIT, in the book of Revelation. It signifies a deep without bottom, or a very deep pit-referring often to that vast body of water which in Jewish opinion was laid up in some cavernous receptacle within the earth. It refers sometimes to the dark sepulchres of the East, which, hewn out in the rock, and descending far beneath the surface, formed a kind of under-world (Rom. x. 7). In the Apocalypse, it symbolizes the abode and the doom of those powers which are hostile to Christ and his Church.

ACCAD (Gen. x. 10)-a city in Shinar, balt by Nimrod. Its site is unknown, some contending for Nisibis, and others for Ákker

ACELDAMA-field of blood (Acts i. 19)— a field for the burial of strangers, which the chief priests bought with the money returned by Judas, as the price of the Saviour's blood (Matt. xxvii. 6-8). Hence its name, Aceldama, or field of blood. It was just without the wall of Jerusalem, south of mount Zion, and was originally called the potter's field, because it furnished a sort of clay suitable for potter's ware. Aceldama, as late as the seventeenth century, was used as a burying-place by the Armenian Christians in Jerusalem. But, according to Robinson, it has long been abandoned for sepulchral purposes. It is not

fenced in, and the charnel-house, now a ruin, | New Testament is called "The Acts of the is all that remains to point out the site.

ACHAIA (Acts xviii. 12; Rom. xvi. 5; 2 Cor. xi. 10). In the most comprehensive use, this term was applied to all the region lying south of Thessaly and Macedonia as far as the Morea. The geographical phrase Achaia and Macedonia means the whole of Greece: but in a limited use Achaia embraced only the district between Macedonia and the Peloponnesus, of which Corinth was the capital. (See CORINTH.) This was its signification under the Romans; and in the New Testament it is only applied to this smaller tract of country. ACHAN, or ACHAR (Josh. vii. 18)-a son of Carmi, of the tribe of Judah, who secretly took and concealed several valuable articles from among the spoils of Jericho, in direct violation of the divine command (Josh. vi. 17, 18). For this sin judgment came upon the whole camp of Israel. (See JOSHUA.) By a process which God appointed, Achan's guilt was discovered, and he was taken into a valley north of Jericho, thence called the valley of Achor, and was there stoned to death. (See ACHOR.)

ACHISH (1 Sam. xxi. 10)-a king of Gath, to whom David fled, and with whom he afterwards formed an alliance through fear of Saul. ACHMETHA (Ezra vi. 2)—the Ecbatana of ancient Media, and the place where the records of the kingdom were preserved. The place is occupied, as it is supposed, by the modern city Hamadan, in Persia. It was surrounded by seven walls, and at one period was considered the strongest and most beautiful city of the East, except Nineveh and Babylon. (See MEDIA.)

ACHOR, VALLEY OF distress (Hos. ii. 15)a place in the vicinity of Jericho, where Achan was stoned for an offence which brought trouble upon the whole camp. (See ACHAN.) The figurative use of the word in the passage cited is susceptible of divers interpretations. The most common is, that as the valley of Achor was the place of great distress and trouble to Israel, on their first entrance into Canaan, it would become a place of hope and joy on their return from the captivity which they were then enduring. This opinion is perhaps confirmed by Isa, Ixv. 10.

Apostles," and is commonly referred to as The Acts, and sometimes Acts-without the article. It contains the history of the Christian church during the interesting period which elapsed from the ascension of our Saviour to the imprisonment of Paul at Rome-a period of about thirty years. It gives a minute account of the descent of the Holy Spirit on the day of Pentecost; the manner and success of the preaching of the apostles; and the gathering and establishing of Christian churches by them, both among Jews and Gentiles; the conversion of Paul, and the travels and labours of himself and his companions; the trials and sufferings they endured in propagating the Gospel, and the signs and wonders which were wrought in attestation of their authority. This book is particularly valuable as containing a vast body of evidence of the divine power and mission of Jesus Christ, and of his grace and faithfulness; by which the religion he taught was established and widely propagated, and the salvation offered by his Gospel was most clearly and gloriously illustrated.

This book is called by some of the oldest writers the Gospel of the Holy Ghost, and the Gospel of our Saviour's resurrection. It consists of two leading divisions; the first embraces the history of the Judaic-christian church up to the period when the Gospel was preached to the Gentiles. The second section records the mission of Peter to Cornelius, the conversion of Paul, and his labours and travels in founding and building up the Gentile Christian church. It is evident that the title, Acts of the Apostles, though a very old one, is scarcely appropriate; for the book describes not the deeds of the whole apostles, nor even gives an entire biography of any one of them. It details some deeds of Peter by himself, and of him in company with John; and though it be principally occupied with the career of Paul, it does not give any account either of his last days or of his martyrdom. Of the majority of the apostles, it gives no information. It is not, therefore, to be viewed as a regular history, but only as a series of detached memoirs, necessary to give Theophilus such knowledge as might enlighten his mind and sustain his Christian profession. There is no doubt that Luke, the writer of the third Gospel, was also the author of the Acts. Both treatises are dedicated to the same individual. The Acts are a sequel to the gospels. The gospels exhibit the new religion in the person and life of its Founder on earth: the treatise appended as the "Acts of the Apostles" portrays his life and government in heaven; shows the same religion in its early establishment and subsequent extension; describes how it has in it no national limits and no geographical barrier, but is meant for mankind, without distinction of colour or country; how the universal sovereignty of its exalted Author, the outpouring of his Spirit, and the vital power of his truth secured its early success, and will, in spite of all opposition, effect its ACTS. The fifth book in the order of the | ultimate triumph throughout the world. Luke

ACHSHAPH (Josh. xii. 20)—a city conquered by Joshua, and afterwards assigned to the tribe of Asher. It was not far from Accho (Josh. xix. 25).

ACHZIB, 1. (Josh. xix. 29) A city of Asher (Judg. i. 31), called also Ecdippa, and now es-Zab It is near the sea-coast, ten or twelve miles north of Ptolemais, and has been visited of late years and described by various travellers, 2 (Josh. xv. 44, and Mic. i. 14) A town in the low country of Judah.

ACRE (1 Sam. xiv. 14). In the passage cited, it is supposed to be used proverbially for a very small space. The Roman acre consisted of 3,200 square yards, and the Egyptian arours of 3,628 and seven-eighths.

This prohibition was positive in its nature. The only origin of the duty to abstain was the simple expressed will of God, and lay not in the nature of the command itself. Therefore it became a very fit test of obedience; and the violation of it proved that respect for God's will had ceased to reign in the hearts of the transgressors. The first indication of guilt was the consciousness of shame; and the next a vain attempt to hide themselves from the presence of Him whose eyes are in every place, "beholding the evil and the good." Without delay, each of the parties to the fatal transaction received a dreadful doom. (See SERIt is difficult for us to form an adequate PENT, EVE.) As for man, the ground was conception of the intellectual condition of cursed for his sake, and he was condemned to Adam before he reaped the results of ex-eat bread in the sweat of his face till he should perience and observation. Yet God must have return to the dust of which he was formed, or