June, Dictionary of the Bible.

From: Good News for Young and Old: Volume 14 (1872)

Beth’el (house of God), an ancient town, called Luz at the first, where Jacob saw his wonderful vision, and set up a stone which had served him for a pillow, and poured oil upon it, calling the place “the house of God” (Gen. 28:11-19¹¹And he lighted upon a certain place, and tarried there all night, because the sun was set; and he took of the stones of that place, and put them for his pillows, and lay down in that place to sleep. ¹²And he dreamed, and behold a ladder set up on the earth, and the top of it reached to heaven: and behold the angels of God ascending and descending on it. ¹³And, behold, the Lord stood above it, and said, I am the Lord God of Abraham thy father, and the God of Isaac: the land whereon thou liest, to thee will I give it, and to thy seed; ¹⁴And thy seed shall be as the dust of the earth, and thou shalt spread abroad to the west, and to the east, and to the north, and to the south: and in thee and in thy seed shall all the families of the earth be blessed. ¹⁵And, behold, I am with thee, and will keep thee in all places whither thou goest, and will bring thee again into this land; for I will not leave thee, until I have done that which I have spoken to thee of. ¹⁶And Jacob awaked out of his sleep, and he said, Surely the Lord is in this place; and I knew it not. ¹⁷And he was afraid, and said, How dreadful is this place! this is none other but the house of God, and this is the gate of heaven. ¹⁸And Jacob rose up early in the morning, and took the stone that he had put for his pillows, and set it up for a pillar, and poured oil upon the top of it. ¹⁹And he called the name of that place Beth-el: but the name of that city was called Luz at the first. (Genesis 28:11‑19)). It is mentioned by this name prophetically even before Jacob’s day (Gen. 12:8, 13:3), and very frequently afterward (Gen. 35:1-15,¹And God said unto Jacob, Arise, go up to Beth-el, and dwell there: and make there an altar unto God, that appeared unto thee when thou fleddest from the face of Esau thy brother. ²Then Jacob said unto his household, and to all that were with him, Put away the strange gods that are among you, and be clean, and change your garments: ³And let us arise, and go up to Beth-el; and I will make there an altar unto God, who answered me in the day of my distress, and was with me in the way which I went. ⁴And they gave unto Jacob all the strange gods which were in their hand, and all their earrings which were in their ears; and Jacob hid them under the oak which was by Shechem. ⁵And they journeyed: and the terror of God was upon the cities that were round about them, and they did not pursue after the sons of Jacob. ⁶So Jacob came to Luz, which is in the land of Canaan, that is, Beth-el, he and all the people that were with him. ⁷And he built there an altar, and called the place El-beth-el: because there God appeared unto him, when he fled from the face of his brother. ⁸But Deborah Rebekah's nurse died, and she was buried beneath Beth-el under an oak: and the name of it was called Allon-bachuth. ⁹And God appeared unto Jacob again, when he came out of Padan-aram, and blessed him. ¹⁰And God said unto him, Thy name is Jacob: thy name shall not be called any more Jacob, but Israel shall be thy name: and he called his name Israel. ¹¹And God said unto him, I am God Almighty: be fruitful and multiply; a nation and a company of nations shall be of thee, and kings shall come out of thy loins; ¹²And the land which I gave Abraham and Isaac, to thee I will give it, and to thy seed after thee will I give the land. ¹³And God went up from him in the place where he talked with him. ¹⁴And Jacob set up a pillar in the place where he talked with him, even a pillar of stone: and he poured a drink offering thereon, and he poured oil thereon. ¹⁵And Jacob called the name of the place where God spake with him, Beth-el. (Genesis 35:1‑15) comp. 32:28, and 28:20-22; Josh. 12:16, 18:22; Judg. 1:22-26, 20:26; comp. 1 Sam. 10:3, 7:16).

It was made the southern seat of the worship of the calves by Jeroboam (Dan being the northern), and became the more important of the two (1 Kings 28-33, 13:1; Amos 5:5⁵But seek not Beth-el, nor enter into Gilgal, and pass not to Beer-sheba: for Gilgal shall surely go into captivity, and Beth-el shall come to nought. (Amos 5:5); Hos. 4:15,¹⁵Though thou, Israel, play the harlot, yet let not Judah offend; and come not ye unto Gilgal, neither go ye up to Beth-aven, nor swear, The Lord liveth. (Hosea 4:15) vs. 8, 10:5, 8). After the Israelites were carried captive by the Assyrians, Josiah, king of Judah, destroyed all traces of this worship, and so fulfilled a prophecy made 350 years before to Jeroboam (2 Kings 13:1, 2, 23:15-18). After the Babylonish captivity the place was in the possession of the Benjamites (Ezra 2:28²⁸The men of Beth-el and Ai, two hundred twenty and three. (Ezra 2:28); Neh. 7:32³²The men of Beth-el and Ai, an hundred twenty and three. (Nehemiah 7:32)). A place now called Beitin is supposed to be the Bethel of the Scriptures. The ruins are considerable, and lie on the point of a low hill shut in by higher land on every side.

Beth-ho’ron (house or place of the Cave). — Two places of this name are mentioned, the Upper and the Nether Bethhoron. The latter was in the N.W. corner of. Benjamin, and between the two places was a pass leading from the region of Gibeon down to the western plain (Josh. 18:13, 14, 10:11). The five kings of the Amorites were driven down the pass (Josh. 10:11¹¹And it came to pass, as they fled from before Israel, and were in the going down to Beth-horon, that the Lord cast down great stones from heaven upon them unto Azekah, and they died: they were more which died with hailstones than they whom the children of Israel slew with the sword. (Joshua 10:11)). Both towns were fortified by Solomon (1 Kings 9:17¹⁷And Solomon built Gezer, and Beth-horon the nether, (1 Kings 9:17); 2 Chron. 8:5⁵Also he built Beth-horon the upper, and Beth-horon the nether, fenced cities, with walls, gates, and bars; (2 Chronicles 8:5)), and both still exist under the names of Upper and Lower Beit-Ur, as inhabited villages. The Lower is very small, and stands on a small ridge, separated by a narrow valley from the foot of the mountain on which the Upper Beit-Ur stands. Traces of ancient foundations and walls may still be seen.

Beth’lehem (house of bread), a city of Judah sometimes called Bethlehem-Judah, to distinguish it from Bethlehem in Zebulon (Josh. 19:15¹⁵And Kattath, and Nahallal, and Shimron, and Idalah, and Bethlehem: twelve cities with their villages. (Joshua 19:15); Judg. 12:10¹⁰Then died Ibzan, and was buried at Bethlehem. (Judges 12:10)). It was also called Ephratah (fruitful), and its inhabitants Ephratites (Gen. 48:7⁷And as for me, when I came from Padan, Rachel died by me in the land of Canaan in the way, when yet there was but a little way to come unto Ephrath: and I buried her there in the way of Ephrath; the same is Bethlehem. (Genesis 48:7); Mic. 5:2²But thou, Bethlehem Ephratah, though thou be little among the thousands of Judah, yet out of thee shall he come forth unto me that is to be ruler in Israel; whose goings forth have been from of old, from everlasting. (Micah 5:2)). It is now a large straggling village, six miles north of Jerusalem, on the brow of a high hill, and inhabited by nominal Christians, whose principal employments are the keeping of bees and the manufacture of superstitious and idolatrous relics, such as beads, crosses, &c. To the northeast of the town, in a deep valley, there is a spring of excellent water, said to be that for which David longed, and which thereof his mighty men fetched at the risk of their lives (2 Sam. 23:15-18¹⁵And David longed, and said, Oh that one would give me drink of the water of the well of Bethlehem, which is by the gate! ¹⁶And the three mighty men brake through the host of the Philistines, and drew water out of the well of Bethlehem, that was by the gate, and took it, and brought it to David: nevertheless he would not drink thereof, but poured it out unto the Lord. ¹⁷And he said, Be it far from me, O Lord, that I should do this: is not this the blood of the men that went in jeopardy of their lives? therefore he would not drink it. These things did these three mighty men. ¹⁸And Abishai, the brother of Joab, the son of Zeruiah, was chief among three. And he lifted up his spear against three hundred, and slew them, and had the name among three. (2 Samuel 23:15‑18)).

Beth-sa’ida (fishing town), in Galilee, on the western side of the sea of Tiberias, not far from Capernaum. It was the native place of Philip, Andrew and Peter. Its exact site is unknown, but it seems to have been about midway on the shores of the lake (John 1:44, 12:21; Mark 6:45, 8:22, 23). Another Bethsaida is said to have stood on the north-eastern border of the sea of Galilee. This was at one time only a village until Philip the Tetrarch rebuilt and enlarged it, and called it Julias, in honor of Julia the daughter of Augustus. Philip died and was buried there in an elegant tomb. This is supposed to be the Bethsaida in the desert neighborhood of which the Lord fed the multitude (Luke 9:10¹⁰And the apostles, when they were returned, told him all that they had done. And he took them, and went aside privately into a desert place belonging to the city called Bethsaida. (Luke 9:10); Matt. 14:13,¹³When Jesus heard of it, he departed thence by ship into a desert place apart: and when the people had heard thereof, they followed him on foot out of the cities. (Matthew 14:13) comp. 34; Mark 6:32-45³²And they departed into a desert place by ship privately. ³³And the people saw them departing, and many knew him, and ran afoot thither out of all cities, and outwent them, and came together unto him. ³⁴And Jesus, when he came out, saw much people, and was moved with compassion toward them, because they were as sheep not having a shepherd: and he began to teach them many things. ³⁵And when the day was now far spent, his disciples came unto him, and said, This is a desert place, and now the time is far passed: ³⁶Send them away, that they may go into the country round about, and into the villages, and buy themselves bread: for they have nothing to eat. ³⁷He answered and said unto them, Give ye them to eat. And they say unto him, Shall we go and buy two hundred pennyworth of bread, and give them to eat? ³⁸He saith unto them, How many loaves have ye? go and see. And when they knew, they say, Five, and two fishes. ³⁹And he commanded them to make all sit down by companies upon the green grass. ⁴⁰And they sat down in ranks, by hundreds, and by fifties. ⁴¹And when he had taken the five loaves and the two fishes, he looked up to heaven, and blessed, and brake the loaves, and gave them to his disciples to set before them; and the two fishes divided he among them all. ⁴²And they did all eat, and were filled. ⁴³And they took up twelve baskets full of the fragments, and of the fishes. ⁴⁴And they that did eat of the loaves were about five thousand men. ⁴⁵And straightway he constrained his disciples to get into the ship, and to go to the other side before unto Bethsaida, while he sent away the people. (Mark 6:32‑45)).

Beth-sha’n (house of rest), a city in the half tribe of Manasseh; on the west of the Jordan, about two miles from that river. It is now called Beisan, but is only a small place of about 70 houses. The ruins of the ancient town are still to be seen, and it appears to have been about three miles in circumference (Josh. 17:11¹¹And Manasseh had in Issachar and in Asher Beth-shean and her towns, and Ibleam and her towns, and the inhabitants of Dor and her towns, and the inhabitants of Endor and her towns, and the inhabitants of Taanach and her towns, and the inhabitants of Megiddo and her towns, even three countries. (Joshua 17:11); Judg. 1:17¹⁷And Judah went with Simeon his brother, and they slew the Canaanites that inhabited Zephath, and utterly destroyed it. And the name of the city was called Hormah. (Judges 1:17); 1 Sam. 31:10¹⁰And they put his armor in the house of Ashtaroth: and they fastened his body to the wall of Beth-shan. (1 Samuel 31:10)).

Beth-shemesh (house of the sun), a city of refuge in the tribe of Judah (Josh. 15:10, 21:16; 1 Sam. 6:12-15¹²And the kine took the straight way to the way of Beth-shemesh, and went along the highway, lowing as they went, and turned not aside to the right hand or to the left; and the lords of the Philistines went after them unto the border of Beth-shemesh. ¹³And they of Beth-shemesh were reaping their wheat harvest in the valley: and they lifted up their eyes, and saw the ark, and rejoiced to see it. ¹⁴And the cart came into the field of Joshua, a Beth-shemite, and stood there, where there was a great stone: and they clave the wood of the cart, and offered the kine a burnt offering unto the Lord. ¹⁵And the Levites took down the ark of the Lord, and the coffer that was with it, wherein the jewels of gold were, and put them on the great stone: and the men of Beth-shemesh offered burnt offerings and sacrificed sacrifices the same day unto the Lord. (1 Samuel 6:12‑15); 1 Chron. 6:59⁵⁹And Ashan with her suburbs, and Beth-shemesh with her suburbs: (1 Chronicles 6:59)). It belonged originally to the Philistines, and they again got possession of it in the days of Ahaz (1 Kings 4:9⁹The son of Dekar, in Makaz, and in Shaalbim, and Beth-shemesh, and Elon-beth-hanan: (1 Kings 4:9); 2 Chron. 28:18¹⁸The Philistines also had invaded the cities of the low country, and of the south of Judah, and had taken Beth-shemesh, and Ajalon, and Gederoth, and Shocho with the villages thereof, and Timnah with the villages thereof, Gimzo also and the villages thereof: and they dwelt there. (2 Chronicles 28:18)). To this place the ark was carried by the mulch kine, and a number of persons slain for looking into it (1 Sam. 4:19¹⁹And his daughter in law, Phinehas' wife, was with child, near to be delivered: and when she heard the tidings that the ark of God was taken, and that her father in law and her husband were dead, she bowed herself and travailed; for her pains came upon her. (1 Samuel 4:19)), but the Syriac and Arabian versions read 5,070 instead of 50,070 people. It is now a mass of ruins.

Bethu’el (separated of God), son of Nahor, Abraham’s brother. He was the father of Laban and Rebecca (Gen. 22:22, 23²²And Chesed, and Hazo, and Pildash, and Jidlaph, and Bethuel. ²³And Bethuel begat Rebekah: these eight Milcah did bear to Nahor, Abraham's brother. (Genesis 22:22‑23)).

Beth’zur (house of refuge), a town in Judah on the road to Hebron fortified by Rehoboam (Josh. 15:58⁵⁸Halhul, Beth-zur, and Gedor, (Joshua 15:58); 2 Chron. 11:7⁷And Beth-zur, and Shoco, and Adullam, (2 Chronicles 11:7); Neh. 3:16¹⁶After him repaired Nehemiah the son of Azbuk, the ruler of the half part of Beth-zur, unto the place over against the sepulchres of David, and to the pool that was made, and unto the house of the mighty. (Nehemiah 3:16)). Josephus calls Hath’zur the strongest fortress in Judea, but its site is now unknown. Israel knows not where to look for that true House of Refuge which he needs, while “the veil” is on his heart (2 Cor. 3:15¹⁵But even unto this day, when Moses is read, the vail is upon their heart. (2 Corinthians 3:15)).

Be’zek (lightning), the city of which Adoni-bezek once was king (Judg. 1:4⁴And Judah went up; and the Lord delivered the Canaanites and the Perizzites into their hand: and they slew of them in Bezek ten thousand men. (Judges 1:4)); and where Saul gathered his army for the deliverance of Jabesh Gilead (1 Sam. 11:8⁸And when he numbered them in Bezek, the children of Israel were three hundred thousand, and the men of Judah thirty thousand. (1 Samuel 11:8)).

Be’zer (fortification), a city of Reuben beyond Jordan, and one of six cities of refuge (Deut. 4:43⁴³Namely, Bezer in the wilderness, in the plain country, of the Reubenites; and Ramoth in Gilead, of the Gadites; and Golan in Bashan, of the Manassites. (Deuteronomy 4:43); Josh. 20:8⁸And on the other side Jordan by Jericho eastward, they assigned Bezer in the wilderness upon the plain out of the tribe of Reuben, and Ramoth in Gilead out of the tribe of Gad, and Golan in Bashan out of the tribe of Manasseh. (Joshua 20:8)). Its site is now unknown.

Bible, the name first given in the fifth century to the collection of sacred scriptures which before this time were called sacred writings or sacred letters (Jno. 7:15¹⁵And the Jews marvelled, saying, How knoweth this man letters, having never learned? (John 7:15)).

Big’than, an eunuch whose conspiracy against Ahasuerus was defeated through Mordecai (Esther 2:21²¹In those days, while Mordecai sat in the king's gate, two of the king's chamberlains, Bigthan and Teresh, of those which kept the door, were wroth, and sought to lay hand on the king Ahasuerus. (Esther 2:21)).

Beldad (son of strife), the Shuhite, one of Job’s friends. The Shuah, of which, according to the Septuagint, Beldad was prince or patriarch, is supposed to have been the region in the east country, named after Shuah, son of Abraham by Keturah (Gen. 25.).

Bil’hah, (terror), the handmaid of Rachel, and mother of Dan and Naphtali (Gen. 30:1-8¹And when Rachel saw that she bare Jacob no children, Rachel envied her sister; and said unto Jacob, Give me children, or else I die. ²And Jacob's anger was kindled against Rachel: and he said, Am I in God's stead, who hath withheld from thee the fruit of the womb? ³And she said, Behold my maid Bilhah, go in unto her; and she shall bear upon my knees, that I may also have children by her. ⁴And she gave him Bilhah her handmaid to wife: and Jacob went in unto her. ⁵And Bilhah conceived, and bare Jacob a son. ⁶And Rachel said, God hath judged me, and hath also heard my voice, and hath given me a son: therefore called she his name Dan. ⁷And Bilhah Rachel's maid conceived again, and bare Jacob a second son. ⁸And Rachel said, With great wrestlings have I wrestled with my sister, and I have prevailed: and she called his name Naphtali. (Genesis 30:1‑8)).

Birthright. — The rights or privileges belonging to the first-born among the Hebrews.

Bishop, an overseer, elder, or presbyter (Acts 20:17¹⁷And from Miletus he sent to Ephesus, and called the elders of the church. (Acts 20:17); comp. 28, and 1 Tim. 3:1, 2,¹This is a true saying, If a man desire the office of a bishop, he desireth a good work. ²A bishop then must be blameless, the husband of one wife, vigilant, sober, of good behavior, given to hospitality, apt to teach; (1 Timothy 3:1‑2) which is the same word).

Bith’ron (division), supposed to mean a region of hills and valleys, and not any particular place (2 Sam. 2:29²⁹And Abner and his men walked all that night through the plain, and passed over Jordan, and went through all Bithron, and they came to Mahanaim. (2 Samuel 2:29)).

Bithyn’ia one of the provinces of Asia Minor, inhabited by a rude and uncivilized people called Thracians, who had colonized this part of Asia, and lived in villages (Acts 16:7⁷After they were come to Mysia, they assayed to go into Bithynia: but the Spirit suffered them not. (Acts 16:7); 1 Peter 1:1¹Peter, an apostle of Jesus Christ, to the strangers scattered throughout Pontus, Galatia, Cappadocia, Asia, and Bithynia, (1 Peter 1:1)).

Bittern occurs three times in Scripture, but it is uncertain what creature is intended by the original word (Isa. 14:23, 34:11; Zeph. 2:14¹⁴And flocks shall lie down in the midst of her, all the beasts of the nations: both the cormorant and the bittern shall lodge in the upper lintels of it; their voice shall sing in the windows; desolation shall be in the thresholds: for he shall uncover the cedar work. (Zephaniah 2:14)).

Blas’tus, chamberlain to Herod Agrippa (Acts 12:20²⁰And Herod was highly displeased with them of Tyre and Sidon: but they came with one accord to him, and, having made Blastus the king's chamberlain their friend, desired peace; because their country was nourished by the king's country. (Acts 12:20)).

Boaner’ges (sons of thunder), the surname given to James and John by the Lord Jesus Christ (Mark 3:17¹⁷And James the son of Zebedee, and John the brother of James; and he surnamed them Boanerges, which is, The sons of thunder: (Mark 3:17)).

Boar, mentioned in Leviticus 11:7⁷And the swine, though he divide the hoof, and be clovenfooted, yet he cheweth not the cud; he is unclean to you. (Leviticus 11:7); Deuteronomy 14:8⁸And the swine, because it divideth the hoof, yet cheweth not the cud, it is unclean unto you: ye shall not eat of their flesh, nor touch their dead carcase. (Deuteronomy 14:8); Psalms 80:13¹³The boar out of the wood doth waste it, and the wild beast of the field doth devour it. (Psalm 80:13); Proverbs 11:22²²As a jewel of gold in a swine's snout, so is a fair woman which is without discretion. (Proverbs 11:22); Isaiah 65:4; 66:3,17⁴Which remain among the graves, and lodge in the monuments, which eat swine's flesh, and broth of abominable things is in their vessels; (Isaiah 65:4)
³He that killeth an ox is as if he slew a man; he that sacrificeth a lamb, as if he cut off a dog's neck; he that offereth an oblation, as if he offered swine's blood; he that burneth incense, as if he blessed an idol. Yea, they have chosen their own ways, and their soul delighteth in their abominations. (Isaiah 66:3)
¹⁷They that sanctify themselves, and purify themselves in the gardens behind one tree in the midst, eating swine's flesh, and the abomination, and the mouse, shall be consumed together, saith the Lord. (Isaiah 66:17). Wild boars are still to be seen in Mount Carmel, and are numerous about the sources of the river Jordan, and near the Dead Sea.

Boaz (in him is strength), the husband of Ruth and father of Obed (worshipping), who was the father of Jesse, the father of David. This name was also given to one of the pillars of the temple of Solomon.

Bo’chim (weepings), a place supposed to be near Shiloh, where the angel of the Lord rebuked the people for their iniquity (Judg. 2:1¹And an angel of the Lord came up from Gilgal to Bochim, and said, I made you to go up out of Egypt, and have brought you unto the land which I sware unto your fathers; and I said, I will never break my covenant with you. (Judges 2:1)).

Be’han (thumb), a son of Reuben, whose stone or monument is mentioned (Josh: 15:6; 18:17).

Booth, a hut or tabernacle made of branches of trees (Gen. 33:17¹⁷And Jacob journeyed to Succoth, and built him an house, and made booths for his cattle: therefore the name of the place is called Succoth. (Genesis 33:17); Lev. 23:42,43⁴²Ye shall dwell in booths seven days; all that are Israelites born shall dwell in booths: ⁴³That your generations may know that I made the children of Israel to dwell in booths, when I brought them out of the land of Egypt: I am the Lord your God. (Leviticus 23:42‑43)).