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International Standard Bible Encyclopedia

CU


CUB

kub (kubh; the King James Version Chub): The word occurs only in Ezek 30:5. There it is almost certainly a corruption, and we should read, as in Septuagint, "Lub," i.e. Libya. Libya, in the earlier part of the same verse (the King James Version), is a mistr of "Put," thus correctly rendered in the Revised Version (British and American).


CUBIT

ku'-bit ('ammah; pechus): The standard for measures of length among the Hebrews. They derived it from the Babylonians, but a similar measure was used in Egypt with which they must have been familiar. The length of the cubit is variously estimated, since there seems to have been a double standard in both countries, and because we have no undisputed example of the cubit remaining to the present time. The original cubit was the length of the forearm, from the elbow to the end of the middle finger, as is implied from the derivation of the word in Hebrew and in Latin (cubitum). It seems to be referred to also in Dt 3:11: "after the cubit of a man." But this was too indefinite for a scientific standard, and the Babylonians early adopted a more accurate method of measurement which passed to the nations of the West. They had a double standard, the so-called royal cubit and the ordinary one. From the remains of buildings in Assyria and Babylonia, the former is made out to be about 20,6 inches, and a cubit of similar length was used in Egypt and must have been known to the Hebrews. This was probably the cubit mentioned by Ezek 40:5 and perhaps that of Solomon's temple, "cubits after the first measure" (2 Ch 3:3), i.e. the ancient cubit. The ordinary cubit of commerce was shorter, and has been variously estimated at between 16 and 18 or more inches, but the evidence of the Siloam inscription and of the tombs in Palestine seems to indicate 17,6 inches as the average length. See WEIGHTS AND MEASURES . This was the cubit of six palms, while the longer one was of seven (Ezek 40:5). The cubit mentioned in Jdg 3:16 is from a different word in Hebrew (gomedh) and was probably shorter, for Ehud girded it on his thigh under his clothing.

The New Testament references are Mt 6:27; Lk 12:25, "Which of you .... can add a cubit unto the measure of his life?"; Jn 21:18, "about two hundred cubits off"; Rev 21:17, "the wall thereof, a hundred and forty and four cubits."

H. Porter


CUCKOW; CUCKOO

kook'-oo, kuk'-oo (shachaph; laros; Latin Cuculus canorus): The Hebrew root from which the word shachaph is derived means "to be lean" and "slender," and in older versions of the Bible was translated cuckow (cuckoo). It was mentioned twice in the Bible (Lev 11:16, and practically the same in Dt 14:15 the King James Version "cuckoo"), in the list of unclean birds. The Latin term by which we designate the bird is very similar to the Arabic, and all names for it in different countries are so nearly the same that they prove themselves based on its double cry, "cuck-oo," or the single note "kowk" or "gouk." The bird is as old as history, and interesting because the European species placed its eggs in the nests of other birds, which gave rise to much fiction concerning its habits. The European bird is a brownish gray with white bars underneath, and larger than ours, which are a beautiful olive gray, with tail feathers of irregular length touched with white, knee tufts, black or yellow bill, according to species, and beautiful sleek head and shining eyes. Our birds build their own nests, attend their young with care and are much loved for their beauty. Their food is not repulsive in any species; there never was any reason why they should have been classed among the abominations, and for these reasons scientists in search of a "lean, slender" bird of offensive diet and habit have selected the "sea-mew" (which see) which is substituted for cuckoo in the Revised Version (British and American) with good natural-history reason to sustain the change.

Gene Stratton-Porter


CUCUMBER

ku'-kum-ber (qishshu'im; sikuos): One of the articles of food for which Israel in the wilderness looked back with longing to Egypt (Nu 11:5). Cucumbers are great favorites with all the people of Palestine. Two varieties occur, Cucumis sativus (Arabic, Khyar), originally a product of Northwest India, which is smooth-skinned, whitish and of delicate flavor, and requires much water in its cultivation, and Cucumis chate (Arabic, faqqus), which is long and slender but less juicy than the former. Probably the Biblical reference is to this latter as it is a plant much grown in Egypt where it is said to attain unusual excellence.

A "garden of cucumbers" or more literally a "place of cucumbers" (miqshdh), is mentioned in Isa 1:8; Baruch 6:70. "A lodge in a garden of cucumbers" (Isa 1:8) is the rough wooden booth erected by the owner from which he keeps guard over his ripening vegetables. It is commonly raised upon poles and, when abandoned for the season, it falls into decay and presents a dreary spectacle of tottering poles and dead leaves.

E. W. G. Masterman


CUD

See CHEW .


CULTURE

kul'-tur: Found only in 2 Esdras 8:6 the King James Version and the Revised Version (British and American), "give .... culture to our understanding," i.e. to nourish it as seed in the ground.


CUMBER; CUMBERED

kum'-ber, (katargeo, "to make idle," perispaomai, "to be drawn about," in mind "to be distracted"): Spoken of the barren fig tree in the parable: "Cut it down; why doth it also cumber (block up, make unproductive) the ground?" (Lk 13:7). Cumbered means to be over-occupied with cares or business, distracted: "But Martha was cumbered about much serving" (Lk 10:40). The word cumbrance occurs only in Dt 1:12: "How can I myself alone bear your cumbrance?" (Torach, "an encumbrance," "a burden"). Compare Isa 1:14, where the Revised Version, margin has "cumbrance," the Revised Version (British and American) "trouble."


CUMI

koo'-me, ku'-mi.

See TALITHA CUMI .


CUMMIN

kum'-in (kammon; kuminon): The seed of the herb Cuminum cyminum (Natural Order Umbelliferae). It has carminative properties and is used for flavoring various dishes, especially during fasts. In flavor and appearance it resembles caraway, though it is less agreeable to western palates. As an illustration of Yahweh's wisdom it is said (Isa 28:25,27) that cummin is scattered in sowing and beaten out with a rod in threshing. These facts are true in Palestine today. The Jews paid tithes of cummin (Mt 23:23) (see cut on following page).


CUN

kun (kun, A, ek ton eklekton poleon, "from the chosen cities"): One of the cities of Hadarezer, king of Syria, spoiled by David (1 Ch 18:8, the King James Version "Chun"). In the parallel passage (2 Sam 8:8) its place is taken by BEROTHAH, which see.


CUNNING

kun'-ing (chakham, chashabh): In Bible-English "cunning" means always "wise" or "skilful"; the word does not occur in the bad sense, and it is found in the Old Testament only. The chief Hebrew words are chakham, "wise," "skilful" (2 Ch 2:7 the King James Version "a man cunning to work in gold"; 2 Ch 2:13; Isa 3:3 the King James Version, etc.); chashabh, "to think," "devise," "desire" (Ex 26:1,31; 28:6,15 the King James Version, etc.). We have also da`ath, "knowledge" (1 Ki 7:14 the King James Version); bin, "to be intelligent" (1 Ch 25:7 the King James Version); machasbebheth, "thought," "device," "design" (Ex 31:4; 35:33,15 the King James Version); 'aman, "artificer" (Song 7:1 the King James Version); yadha`, "to know," once translated "cunning" (Dan 1:4 the King James Version).

For cunning the American Standard Revised Version gives "skilful" (Ex 31:4, etc.; Isa 3:3 "expert"); for "cunning work" the work of the "skilful workman" (Ex 26:1,31, etc., the English Revised Version "cunning workman"); for "curious," "skilfully woven," the English Revised Version "cunningly woven" (Ex 28:8, etc.).

W. L. Walker


CUP

(Most frequently, koc; four other words in one passage each; poterion): A vessel for drinking from, of a variety of material (gold, silver, earthenware), patterns (Est 1:7) and elaboration.

Figurative: By ordinary figure of speech, put sometimes for the contents of the cup, namely, for that which is drunk (Mt 26:39). In both Old Testament and New Testament applied figuratively to that which is portioned out, and of which one is to partake; most frequently used of what is sorrowful, as God's judgments, His wrath, afflictions, etc. (Ps 11:6; 75:8; Isa 51:17; Rev 14:10). In a similar sense, used by Christ concerning the sufferings endured by Him (Mt 26:39), and the calamities attending the confession of His name (Mt 20:23). In the Old Testament applied also to the blessedness and joy of the children of God, and the full provision made for their wants (Ps 16:5; 23:5; 116:13; compare Jer 16:7; Prov 31:6). All these passages refer not only to the experience of an allotted joy and sorrow, but to the fact that all others share in this experience. Within a community of those having the same interests or lot, each received his apportioned measure, just as at a feast, each cup is filled for the individual to drain at the same time that his fellow-guests are occupied in the same way.

The Holy Supper is called "the cup of the Lord" (1 Cor 10:21), since it is the Lord who makes the feast, and tenders the cup, just as "the cup of demons" with which it is contrasted, refers to what they offer and communicate. In 1 Cor 11:25, the cup is called "the new covenant in my blood," i.e. it is a pledge and seal and means of imparting the blessings of the new covenant (Heb 10:16 f)--a covenant established by the shedding of the blood of Christ. The use of the word "cup" for the sacrament shows how prominent was the part which the cup had in the Lord's Supper in apostolic times. Not only were all commanded to drink of the wine (Mt 26:27), but the very irregularities in the Corinthian church point to its universal use (1 Cor 11:27). Nor does the Roman church attempt to justify its withholding the cup from the laity (the communion in one form) upon conformity with apostolic practice, or upon direct Scriptural authority. This variation from the original institution is an outgrowth of the doctrines of transubstantiation and sacramental concomitance, of the attempt to transform the sacrament of the Eucharist into the sacrifice of the Mass, and of the wide separation between clergy and laity resulting from raising the ministry to the rank of a sacerdotal order. The practice was condemned by Popes Leo I (died 461) and Gelasius (died 496); but gained a firm hold in the 12th century, and was enacted into a church regulation by the Council of Constance in 1415.

See also BLESSING ,CUP OF .

As to the use of cups for divination (Gen 44:5), the reference is to superstitious practice derived from the Gentiles. For various modes of divining what is unknown by the pouring of water into bowls, and making observations accordingly, see Geikie, Hours with the Bible, I, 492 f, and articleDIVINATION .

H. E. Jacobs


CUPBEARER

kup'-bar-er (mashqeh, "one giving drink"; oinochoos): An officer of high rank at ancient oriental courts, whose duty it was to serve the wine at the king's table. On account of the constant fear of plots and intrigues, a person must be regarded as thoroughly trustworthy to hold this position. He must guard against poison in the king's cup, and was sometimes required to swallow some of the wine before serving it. His confidential relations with the king often endeared him to his sovereign and also gave him a position of great influence. This officer is first mentioned in Scripture in Gen 40:1 ff, where the Hebrew word elsewhere translated "cupbearer" is rendered "butler." The phrase "chief of the butlers" (40:2) accords with the fact that there were often a number of such officials under one as chief (compare Xen. Hellen. vii.1, 38). Nehemiah (compare 1:11) was cupbearer to Artaxerxes Longimanus, and was held in high esteem by him, as the record shows. His financial ability (Neh 5:8,10,14,17) would indicate that the office was a lucrative one. Cupbearers are mentioned further in 1 Ki 10:5; 2 Ch 9:4, where they, among other evidences of royal splendor, are stated to have impressed the queen of Sheba with Solomon's glory. The title Rabshakeh (Isa 36:2), once thought to mean "chief of the cupbearers," is now given a different derivation and explained as "chief of the officers," or "princes" (BDB under the word). See further on cupbearers Herod. iii.34; Xen. Cyrop. i.3, 8, 9; Josephus, Ant, XVI, viii, 1; Tobit 1:22.

Benjamin Reno Downer


CUPBOARD

kub'-erd (kulikion, 1 Macc 15:32): A kind of sideboard in or on which Simon's gold and silver vessels were displayed, and which, among other evidences of his glory, amazed the Syrian envoy Athenobius. Compare the Roman abacus, said to have been introduced into Rome from Asia.


CURDLE

kur'-dl (qapha', "to congeal," "harden," "curdle"): Occurs in Job 10:10, "Hast thou not .... curdled me like cheese?" i.e. made him take solid form. "The formation of the embryo is a mystery on which the Hebrew dwells with a deep and reverential awe: compare Ps 139:13-16." These similes are often met with in the Koran and oriental poetry. See Speaker's Commentary in the place cited


CURE; CURES

kur: Represents the words gahah, marpe', raphdh; therapeuo, iasis. Gahah in Prov 17:22 translated "medicine" means properly the removal of a bandage from a healed wound, and, is used figuratively in Hos 5:13; marpe', "healing," is used in the sense of deliverance of the city in Jer 33:6; with a negative particle in 2 Ch 21:18 it is used to describe the bowel disease of Jehoram as incurable. The Greek words are used of physical cures (iasis in Lk 13:32) as contradistinguished from the casting out of demons as Mt 17:16; Lk 7:21; Jn 5:10. Cure is only used in the New Testament in the sense of physical healing; in the Old Testament usually in the sense of spiritual or national deliverance from danger.

Alex. Macalister


CURIOUS

ku'-ri-us (machashebheth; periergos): The above Hebrew word, meaning "thought," "device," "design," is translated "curious," Ex 35:32 the King James Version "curious works"; the English Revised Version "cunning"; the American Standard Revised Version "skilful"; cheshebh ("device," "devised work"), translated the King James Version "curious girdle," is translated by the English Revised Version "cunningly woven band," the American Standard Revised Version "skilfully" (Ex 28:8,27,28; 29:5; 39:5,20,21; Lev 8:7). In Ps 139:15 raqam, "embroidered," "variegated" is used figuratively of a child in the womb, translated "curiously wrought"; "the body or the fetus is described as woven together of so many different-colored threads, like a cunning and beautiful network or tapestry" (Perowne in the place cited.). See also CURDLE . Periergos, "working round about," is used of the "curious arts" of some in Ephesus who brought their books to be burned (Acts 19:19 the American Standard Revised Version "magical").

See ASTROLOGY 14.

W. L. Walker


CURRENT MONEY

See MONEY ,CURRENT .


CURSE

kurs ('alah (Nu 5:21,23,17, etc.), me'erah (Prov 3:33; Mal 2:2, etc.), klalah (Gen 27:12,13); katara (Gal 3:10,13)): This word as noun and verb renders different Hebrew words, some of them being more or less synonymous, differing only in degree of strength. It is often used in contrast with "bless" or "blessing" (Dt 11:29). When a curse is pronounced against any person, we are not to understand this as a mere wish, however violent, that disaster should overtake the person in question, any more than we are to understand that a corresponding "blessing" conveys simply a wish that prosperity should be the lot of the person on whom the blessing is invoked. A curse was considered to possess an inherent power of carrying itself into effect. Prayer has been defined as a wish referred to God. Curses (or blessings) were imprecations referred to supernatural beings in whose existence and power to do good or inflict harm primitive man believed. The use of magic and spells of all kinds is based on the belief that it is possible to enlist the support of the superhuman beings with whom the universe abounds, and to persuade them to carry out the suppliant's wishes. It has been suggested that spells were written on pieces of parchment and cast to the winds in the belief that they would find their way to their proper destination--that some demoniac being would act as postman and deliver them at the proper address. In Zec (5:1-3) the "flying roll," with curses inscribed on it "goeth forth over the face of the whole land." It would find its way into the house of every thief and perjurer. But it was not always possible to commit curses to writing, it was enough to utter them aloud. Generally the name of some deity would be coupled with such imprecations, as Goliath cursed David by his gods (1 Sam 17:43). Such curses once uttered possessed the power of self-realization. It was customary for heads of families in their declining years to bless their children, such a blessing being, not simply a paternal wish that their children should prosper in life, but a potent factor in determining their welfare (Gen 9:25). in this case Jacob seeks his father's blessing, which was more than his father's good wishes for his future career. Such blessings and curses were independent of moraI considerations. Before moral distinctions played any part in molding theological conceptions it was not necessary, before a spell could be effectual, that the individual against whom the spell was pronounced should be deserving, on moral grounds, of the fate which was invoked on him. It was sufficient that he should be the foe of the author of the curse. We may assume that such curses signalized the commencement of a battle. But in process of time such indiscriminate imprecations would not satisfy enlightened moral judgment. In the dramatic situation depicted in Dt (11:29; 27:12 f) the curse was placed on Mt. Ebal and the blessing. on Mr. Gerizim. But the curse was the penalty for disobedience, as the blessing was the reward for obedience. The Book of Prov (26:2) summarily dismisses the traditional belief--"the curse that is causeless alighteth not." "In the discourses of Jesus we find blessings and curses. They are however simply authoritative declarations of the eternal connection between right doing and happiness, wrong doing and misery" (Cheyne).

Whereas curses by ordinary persons were considered more or less efficacious--some god being always only too glad to speed them on their way to their destination--yet special persons--"holy" persons--in virtue of their special relation to Divine beings possessed special powers of pronouncing effectual curses on account of their powers of enlisting supernatural aid. Balaam, according to the narrative in Nu (22 f), was an expert in the article Balak was convinced that Balaam's curse would bring about the defeat of the Israelites (see Gray, "Numbers,"ICC ).

The term--and the thing signified--plays an important part in Paul's interpretation of the cross. In the light of the law all men are guilty. There is no acquittal through appeal to a law that commands and never forgives--prohibits and never relents. The violator of the law is under a curse. His doom has been pronounced. Escape is impossible. But on the cross Jesus Christ endured the curse--for "cursed is every one that hangeth on a tree" (Gal 3:10,13)--and a curse that has overtaken its victim is a spent force.

See PUNISHMENTS .

Jesus commands His disciples, "Bless them that curse you" (Lk 6:28; compare Rom 12:14). He Himself cursed the fruitless fig tree (Mk 11:21)--a symbol of the doom of a fruitless people.

Curse as the rendering of cherem, implies a totally different, idea.

See ACCURSED .

T. Lewis


CURTAIN

kur'-t'-n, -ten, -tin: The word ordinarily used for curtain is yeri`ah. Thus in Ex 26:1 ff; 36:8 ff of the curtains of the tabernacle (see TABERNACLE ); in 2 Sam 7:2; Ps 104:2; Song 1:5; Isa 54:2; Jer 4:20; 10:20; 49:29; Hab 3:7.

Figurative: In Isa 40:22 (like Ps 104:2, of the heavens), the word used is doq, literally, "gauze."


CUSH (1)

kush (kush):

1. The Ancestor of Many Nations:

(1) The first of the sons of Ham, from whom sprang Seba, Havilah, Sabtah, Raamah and Sabtecah. He was also the father of Nimrod, who rounded Babel (Babylon) and the other great states of Shinar or Babylonia (Gen 10:6-8). The meaning of the name is uncertain.

(2) The name of the country around which the Gihon flowed (Gen 2:13), rendered "Ethiopia" in the King James Version, but in view of the distance of that country from the other rivers mentioned, this seems to be an unlikely identification.

2. A District of the Garden of Eden:

Fried. Delitzsch has suggested (Wo lag das Paradies? 74 ff) that the watercourse in question is the canal Gu-hande or Arahtu, which, coming from the South, entered Babylon a little to the East of the Euphrates, and, flowing alongside the Festival-Street, entered the Euphrates to the North of Nebuchadrezzar's palace. Koldewey (Tempel von Babylon und Borsippa, 38) regards the Gu-hande as the section of the Euphrates itself at this point. There is no indication, however, that the district which it enclosed was ever called Kusu or Cush, and the suppression of the final syllable of Gu-hande would remain unexplained. Moreover, the identification of Cush with a possible Cas, for Kasdu, "Chaldea," seems likewise improbable, especially as that name could only have been applied, in early times, to the district bordering on the Persian Gulf (see CHALDEA ).

3. Probably not in Asia Minor:

Another theory is, that the Cush of Gen 2:13 is the Kusu of certain Assyrian letters, where it seems to designate a district in the neighborhood of Cappadocia. This identification apparently leads us back to an ancient tradition at one time current in the East, but later forgotten, which caused the Pyramus river to assume the name of Jihun (i.e. Gihon). This stream rises in the mountains Northeast of the Gulf of Alexandretta, and, taking a southwesterly course, flows into the Mediterranean near Karatash. Though nearer than the Ethiopian Cush, this is still too far West, and therefore unsatisfactory as an identification--all the streams or waterways of the Garden of Eden ought to flow through the same district.

4. The Ethiopian Cush:

(3) The well-known country of Cush or Ethiopia, from Syene (Ezek 29:10) southward--Egyptian Kos, Babylonian Kusu, Assyrian Kusu. This name sometimes denotes the land (Isa 11:11; 18:1; Zeph 3:10; Ezek 29:10; Job 28:19; Est 1:1; 8:9); sometimes the peopl (Isa 20:4; Jer 46:9; Ezek 38:5); but is in many passages uncertain. Notwithstanding that the descendants of Ham are always regarded as non-Semites, the Ethiopians, Ge`ez, as they called themselves, spoke a Semitic language of special interest on account of its likeness to Himyaritic, and its illustration of certain forms in Assyro-Babylonian. These Cushites were in all probability migrants from another (more northerly) district, and akin to the Canaanites--like them, dark, but by no means black, and certainly not Negroes. W. Max Muller (Asien und Europa, 113 note) states that it cannot be proved whether the Egyptians had quite black neighbors (on the South). In earlier times they are represented as brown, and later as brown mingled with black, implying that negroes only came to their knowledge as a distinct and extensive race in comparatively late times. Moses' (first?) wife (Nu 12:1) was certainly therefore not a Negress, but simply a Cushite woman, probably speaking a Semitic language--prehistoric Ge`ez or Ethiopian (see CUSHITE WOMAN ). In all probability Semitic tribes were classed as Hamitic simply because they acknowledged the supremacy of the Hamitic Egyptians, just as the non-Sem Elamites were set down as Semites (Gen 10:22) on account of their acknowledging Babylonian supremacy. It is doubtful whether the Hebrews, in ancient times, knew of the Negro race--they probably became acquainted with them long after the Egyptians.

5. Negroes Probably not Included:

In the opinion of W. Max Mailer (A, und East, 112), the Egyptians, when they became acquainted with the Negroes, having no word to express this race, classed them with the nechese, which thereafter included the Negroes. If the Hebrew name Phinehas (Pi-nechas) be really Egyptian and mean "the black," there is still no need to suppose that this meant "the Negro," for no Israelite would have borne a name with such a signification. The treasurer of Candace queen of Meroe (Acts 8:27-39)--the Ethiopian eunuch--was an Abyssinian, not a Negro; and being an educated man, was able to read the Hebrew Scriptures in the Greek (Septuagint) version. Cush (mat Kusi, pr. Kushi) is frequently mentioned in the Assyrian inscriptions in company with Melubha (Merohha) to indicate Ethiopia and Meroe.

See EDEN ;ETHIOPIA ;TABLE OF NATIONS .

T. G. Pinches


CUSH (2)

kush (kush; Septuagint Chousei, Ps 7 title): A Benjamite, perhaps he that "was without cause" the "adversary" of David (compare Ps 7:4).

See CUSHI .


CUSHAN

kushan: In the psalm of Habakkuk (Hab 3:7) "the tents of Cushan" are mentioned in an individualizing description of the effects of a theophany. Parallel is the phrase "the curtains of the land of Midian." Septuagint renders Cushan, kushan, by Aithiopon, reading perhaps kushim, or kushin (kushin). The context indicates that the same land or people is intended as the Old Testament elsewhere calls Cush, yet vaguely and not in any strict geographical usage that would limit it to Africa.


CUSHAN-RISHATHAIM

ku'-shan-rish-a-tha'-im (kushan rish`athayim, translated, or rather interpreted, as "man from Cush, he of the twofold crime"; Septuagint Chousarsathaim, the King James Version Chushan-rishathaim): Mentioned in Jdg 3:8-10 as a king of Mesopotamia who was chosen by God as his tool to chastise the Israelites for their idolatry. After Joshua's death the children of Israel soon began to affiliate themselves with the heathen peoples among whom they dwelt. This was the fertile source of all their troubles. God delivered ("sold") them into the hands of the heathen. C.-r. is the first whose name is given in this connection. Barring this short passage in Jdg nothing is known of the man. Eight years the Israelites were under his dominion, when the Lord raised up a deliverer to them, Othniel, the son of Kenaz, Caleb's younger brother--the first of the judges.

William Baur


CUSHI

ku'-shi: This name represents kushi, in the original Septuagint Chousei, Chousi), either with or without the article. With the article (so in 2 Sam 18:21-32 seven out of eight times, all readings supported by the Septuagint) it simply indicate that the person so designated was of the Cushite people, as in Jer 38:7 ff. Its use without the article has doubtless developed out of the foregoing according to a familiar process. For the Cush of Ps 7, title read "Cushi" with Septuagint.

(1) The messenger (the Revised Version (British and American) "the Cushite") sent by Joab to acquaint David with the victory over Absalom. That this man was in fact a foreigner is indicated by his ignorance of a shorter path which Ahimaaz took, by his being unrecognized by the watchman who recognizes Ahimaaz, and by his ignorance, as compared with Ahimaaz, of the sentiments of David, whom he knows only as a king and not as a man. 2 Sam 18:21 (twice, the second time without the article), 2 Sam 18:22,23,11 (twice), 2 Sam 18:32 (twice).

(2) The great-grandfather of Jehudi, a contemporary of Jeremiah (Jer 36:14). The name Jehudi itself ("a man of Judah") is sufficient refutation of the opinion that the use of Cushi as or in lieu of a proper name "seems to show that there were but few Cushites among the Israelites."

(3) The father of Zephaniah the prophet (Zeph 1:1).

J. Oscar Boyd


CUSHION

koosh'-un (proskephalaion): In New Testament, only in Mk 4:38 the Revised Version (British and American). The word means literally, a cushion for the head (the King James Version "pillow") but was also used of one for sitting or reclining upon, e.g. of a rower's cushion. The article used with it in this passage suggests that it was one of the customary furnishings of the boat, and it was probably similar to the cushion placed for the comfort of passengers in the stern of modern boats on the Sea of Galilee. "Silken cushions" of Am 3:12 the Revised Version (British and American) is a rendering of the Hebrew demesheq from its supposed connection with damask. These cushions formed the divan, often the only article of furniture in an oriental reception room. "Cushions" occurs further in the somewhat doubtful the Revised Version, margin rendering of Prov 7:16; 31:22.

Benjamin Reno Downer


CUSHITE

kush'-it: Whereas kushi, is elsewhere rendered Ethiopian, in 2 Sam 18:21-32 it is rendered Cushite in the Revised Version (British and American) (see CUSHI and compareCUSHITE WOMAN ). Its plural, which occurs in Zephaniah, Daniel and 2 Chronicles, also in the form kushiyim, in Amos, is uniformly translated Ethiopians, following Septuagint. The other Old Testament books use simply kush, for people as well as land.


CUSHITE WOMAN; ETHIOPIAN WOMAN

kush'-it: In Nu 12:1 Moses is condemned by his sister Miriam and his brother Aaron "because of the Cushite woman ha-'ishshah ha-kushith whom he had married"; and the narrator immediately adds by way of needed explanation, "for he had married a Cushite woman" ('ishshah khushith). Views regarding this person have been of two general classes: (1) She is to be identified with Zipporah (Ex 2:21 and elsewhere), Moses' Midianite wife, who is here called "the Gushite," either in scorn of her dark complexion (compare Jer 13:23) and foreign origin (so most older exegetes), or as a consequence of an erroneous notion of the late age when this apocryphal addition, "because of the Cushite," etc., was inserted in the narrative (so Wellhansen). (2) She is a woman whom Moses took to wife after the death of Zipporah, really a Cushite (Ethiopian) by race, whether the princess of Meroe of whom Josephus (Ant., II, x, 2) romances (so Targum of Jonathan), or one of the "mixed multitude" (Ex 12:38; compare Nu 11:4) that accompanied the Hebrews on their wanderings (so Ewald and most). Dillmann suggests a compromise between the two classes of views, namely, that this woman is a mere "variation in the saga" from the wife elsewhere represented as Midianite, yet because of this variation she was understood by the author as distinct from Zipporah. The implication of the passage, in any case, is clearly that this connection of Moses tended to injure his prestige in the eyes of race-proud Hebrews, and, equally, that in the author's opinion such a view of the matter was obnoxious to God.

J. Oscar Boyd


CUSTODY

kus'-to-di (yadh, pequddah): In Est 2:3,8 bis. 14, yadh, "the hand," is translated "Custody": pequddah, "numbering," "chanrge"; occurs in Nu 3:36 the Revised Version (British and American) "the appointed charge," margin, Hebrew "the office of the charge."


CUSTOM (1)

kus'-tum (tax): (a) halakh, Ezr 4:13,10; 7:24 the King James Version; (b) belo, Ezr 4:13, etc.; (c) telonion, Mt 9:9; Mk 2:14; Lk 5:27, "receipt of custom" the King James Version, the Revised Version (British and American) "place of toll," the collectors' office; (d) telos, Mt 17:25 (the Revised Version (British and American) "toll"); Rom 13:7; 1 Macc 11:35 (the Revised Version (British and American) "tolls"; compare 1 Macc 10:31). The tax designated by halakh in Ezr 4:13, etc., is usually taken to mean a road tax, a toll, from root halakh, but compare Winckler, Altorientalische Forschungen,II , 463, which derives from root ilku, a command, a decree, hence, an imposed tax. Belo from root yabhal is supposed to be a tax on merchandise or produce (as distinguished from "tribute" or the tax on houses, lands and persons), usually paid in kind and levied for the support of the native or provincial government. See Ryle, Cambridge Bible, Ezra-Nehemiah, in the place cited Telos in New Testament and Macc is an indirect tax farmed out to the publicans.

Walter R. Betteridge


CUSTOM (2)

kus'-tum (usage): In the Old Testament, except, Gen 31:35 where the Revised Version (British and American) renders, better, "manner" (derekh, "way"), the words translated "custom" are choq, chuqqah, "statute," and mishpaT, "judgment." Such passages as Jdg 11:39; Jer 32:11, and especially Ezr 3:4 (the King James Version "custom," the Revised Version (British and American) "ordinance"), illustrate the difficulty of deciding upon the proper translation, in cases where "custom" might become "statute," "usage" establish itself as "law." In Lev 18:30; Jer 10:3 the reference is to heathen religious practices.

In the New Testament Lk 1:9; 2:42; Acts 6:14; 15:1 (the King James Version "manner"); 16:21; 21:21; 26:3; 28:17 (ethos), and Lk 2:27 from the same Greek root, refer likewise to definitely established religious practices; in every case except Acts 16:21, those of the Jewish law. The Revised Version (British and American) makes the translation of ethos uniform, reading "custom" in Lk 22:39 (the King James Version "wont") and in Jn 19:40; Acts 25:16; Heb 10:25 (the King James Version "manner"). Greek eiothos, from the same root, is rendered "custom" in Lk 4:16 by English Versions of the Bible, and by the Revised Version (British and American) also in Acts 17:2, its only other occurrence in the New Testament. In Jn 18:39; 1 Cor 11:16 "custom" is the translation of Greek sunetheia, in the sense of "usage" rather than of "law."

F. K. Farr


CUT; CUTTING

(karath, gadha`, kachadh, nathach; apokopto, ekkopto): Many Hebrew words are translated "cut." Of these karath, "to cut down, out, off," is the most frequent. As "cut off" it is used in the sense of laying or destroying (Gen 9:11; Dt 12:29; 1 Ki 11:16; Ps 101:8, etc.), also for cutting off transgressors from the community of Yahweh, which meant probably separation, or exclusion, rather than death or destruction (Gen 17:14; Ex 12:15,19). Other words are damam, "to be silent," "cease" Jer 25:37 the King James Version; Jer 48:2); tsamath "to destroy" (Ps 54:5 the King James Version; Ps 94:23, etc.); gadhadh, "to cut, one's self," is used of the cutting of one's flesh before heathen gods and in mourning for the dead, which was forbidden to the Israelites, (Dt 14:1; 1 Ki 18:28; Jer 16:6; 41:5; 47:5); sereT, sareTeth, "incision," are also used of those "cuttings of the flesh" (Lev 19:28; compare 21:5). See CUTTINGS IN THE FLESH . The cutting of the hair of head and beard in mourning for the dead is referred to in Isa 15:2; "Every, beard is cut off" (gadha`), and Jer 7:29, gazaz, "Cut off thy hair (the Revised Version, margin "thy crown"), O Jerusalem (compare Isa 22:12; Jer 16:6; Ezek 7:18; Am 8:10). This early and widespread practice was also forbidden to the Israelites as being unworthy of them in their relation to Yahweh (Lev 19:27; Dt 14:1).

Charosheth, "carving," "engraving," is used for the cutting of stones (Ex 31:5; 35:33).

In the New Testament we have apokopto "to cut away" (Mk 9:43,15; Gal 5:12 the King James Version; see CONCISION ); diaprio, "to saw through" (Acts 5:33, "they were cut to the heart"); dichotomeo, "to cut in two" (Mt 24:51); suntemno, "to cut together" (Rom 9:28), "finishing it and cutting it short," i.e; "making it conclusive and brief."

Among the changes of the Revised Version (British and American) are "brought to silence" for "cut down" (Jer 25:37), also for "cut off" (Jer 49:26; 50:30); "sore wounded" for "cut in pieces" (Zec 12:3); for "cut off," "pass through" (Job 11:10), "gone" (Ps 90:10); "rolled up" (Isa 38:12); "cut off" for "destroy" (Ps 18:40; 69:4; 118:10,11,12); for "cut them in the head" (Am 9:1), "break them in pieces on the head of"; for "in the cutting off of my days" (Isa 38:10; Hebrew demi, "silence," "rest"), "noontide," margin "Or, tranquillity" (Gesenius, Delitzsch, etc., "in the quiet of my days"); instead of, "I would that they were even cut off which trouble you" (Gal 5:12), the English Revised Version has "cut themselves off," margin "mutilate themselves," the American Standard Revised Version "go beyond circumcision," margin, Greek: "mutilate themselves."

W. L. Walker


CUTH; CUTHAH

kuth, ku'-tha (kuth, kuthah; Choua, Chountha): The longer writing is the better of the two, and gives the Hebrew form of the name of one of the cities from which Sargon of Assyria brought colonists to fill the places of the Israelites which he deported from Samaria in 772 BC (2 Ki 17:24,30). Probably in consequence of their predominating numbers, the inhabitants of Samaria in general were then called kuthiyim, or Cutbeans.

1. The Ruins of Cuthah:

From contract-tablets found at Tel-Ibrahim by the late Hormuzd Hassam, on which the ancient name of the place is given as Gudua or Kutu, it would seem that that is the site which has to be identified with the Biblical Cuthah. It lies to the Northeast of Babylon, and was one of the most important cities of the Babylonian empire. The explorer describes the ruins as being about 3,000 ft. in circumference and 280 ft. high, and adjoining them on the West lies a smaller mound, crowned with a sanctuary dedicated to Ibrahim (Abraham). From the nature of the ruins, Rassam came to the conclusion that the city was much more densely populated after the fall of Babylon than in earlier times. A portion of the ruins were in a very perfect state, and suggested an unfinished building.

2. The Temple:

The great temple of the city was called E-mes-lam, and was dedicated to Nergal (compare 2 Ki 17:30), one of whose names was Meslam-ta-ea. Both city and temple would seem to have been old Sumerian foundations, as the name Gudua and its later Sere form, Kutu, imply.

LITERATURE.

See Rassam, Asshur and the Land of Nimrod, 396, 409, and, for details of the worship of Nergal,PSBA , December, 1906, 203-18.

T. G. Pinches


CUTHA

ku'-tha (Koutha; 1 Esdras 5:32, the King James Version Coutha): Head of a family of temple servants who returned with Zerubbabel from Babylon; not mentioned in the canonical lists.


CUTHAH

See CUTH ,CUTHAH .


CUTHEAN; CUTHITE

ku-the'-an, kuth'-it.

See CUTH ;SAMARITANS .


CUTTING ASUNDER

See ASUNDER ;PUNISHMENTS .


CUTTING OFF

See CONCISION ;PUNISHMENTS .


CUTTINGS IN THE FLESH

(sereT, sareTeth): For relatives or friends to cut or beat themselves even to free blood-flowing, especially in the violence of grief in mourning for their dead (see BURIAL ;MOURNING ), was a widely prevalent custom among ancient peoples, and is well-nigh universal among uncivilized races today (see Spencer, Prin. of Soc., 3rd edition, I, 163 ff). The fact is abundantly attested for most of the nations of antiquity, but there are two notable exceptions, the Egyptians (Herod. ii.61, 85; Wilkinson, Anc. Egyptian II, 374), and the Hebrews (Dt 14:1; Lev 21:5). According to Plutarch (Sol. 21) Solon forbade the women of Athens to beat themselves to the effusion of blood, and the laws of the Twelve Tables, quoted by Cic. (De leg. ii.23) contained a like injunction. Among the ancient Arabs the forbidden practice was associated, as among the Hebrews, with the cutting off of the hair (Wellhausen, Skizzen, III, 160 f).

That the prohibition among the Hebrews was urgently called for is made clear by the way it is dealt with by the Law and the prophets. The Law of Holiness reads: "Ye are the children of Yahweh your God: ye shall not cut yourselves" (Dt 14:1), or "make any incision" (sereT; Lev 19:28, sareTeth; Septuagint entomis) in the flesh "for the dead." Probably the earliest reference to the custom as actually prevalent among the Hebrews is in Hos 7:14 (ERVm). It was widely prevalent in the time of Jeremiah among his countrymen, even as among the Philistines (Jer 47:5) and the Moabites (48:37; compare Am 8:10; Isa 3:24; 15:2; 22:12; Mic 1:16; Ezek 7:18).

In seeking for the reason or purpose underlying all such prohibitions, we may note, first, that the "cuttings" and "baldness" forbidden are alike said to be "for the dead." Not less explicitly are they said to be incompatible with Israel's unique relation to Yahweh--a relation at once of sonship (Dt 14:1) and of consecration (Dt 14:2). Moreover such mutilations of the body are always dealt with as forming part of the religious rites of the heathen (as of the Canaanitish Baal (1 Ki 18:28) note "after their manner," see article inHDB , under the word). Both such shedding of blood and the dedication of the hair are found in almost all countries of that day in intimate connection with the rituals of burial and the prevailing belief in the necessity of propitiating the spirit of the deceased. The conclusion, then, seems clearly warranted that such tokens of grief were prohibited because they carried with them inevitably ideas and associations distinctly heathen in character and so incompatible with the pure religion of Yahweh, and unworthy of those who had attained to the dignity of the sons ("children") of Yahweh.

See also STIGMATA ,MARK ;

LITERATURE.

Benzinger, Heb Arch., section 23; Nowack, Heb Arch., I, 33 f; Tylor, Prim. Cult.; W. R. Smith, Rel Semitic, Lect IX; and Comm., Knobel-Dillmann, Ex-Lev on Lev 19:28; Driver, Dt on 14:1; and Lightfoot, Gal on 6:17.

George B. Eager



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