Concise Bible Dictionary: L
George A. Morrish
Table of Contents
Laadah
Son of Shelah and grandson of Judah (1 Chron. 4:21).
Laadan
1. Son of Tahan, an Ephraimite (1 Chron. 7:26).
2. Descendant of Gershon the son of Levi (1 Chron. 23:7-9; 1 Chron. 26:21).
Laban
1. Son of Bethuel, brother of Rebekah, and father of Leah and Rachel. His prompt hospitality towards Abraham’s servant shows a heart disposed by the Lord in answer to prayer; but why he took the lead instead of Bethuel, his father, is not revealed. In his dealings with Jacob, Laban was scheming and unscrupulous. This was met by craft on Jacob’s part, and would doubtless have led to a serious conflict, had not God warned Laban not to speak to Jacob either good or bad. After Jacob had rehearsed all the wrongs and hardships he had endured during the twenty years he had served Laban, they made a covenant together and separated amicably. Laban is called a Syrian, and he dwelt at Haran (Gen. 24:29,50; Gen. 25:20; Gen. 27:43; Gen. 28:2,5; Gen. 29:5-29; Gen. 30:25-42; Gen. 31:1-55).
2. One of the stations of the Israelites (Deut. 1:1).
Lachish
An Amorite city in the lowlands of Judah. Its king was one of the four called upon by the king of Jerusalem to join him in attacking Gibeon because it had made peace with the Israelites. But the Amorites were smitten, and Lachish was taken by Joshua after a siege of two days. It was a fortified city in the route running from north to south. On the division of the kingdom it was garrisoned by Rehoboam. It was taken by Sennacherib, and among the slabs discovered at Nineveh is one representing the king sitting on his throne, with captives from Lachish kneeling before him, while his troops, passing in review, show the spoils they have taken. The inscription reads, “Sennacherib, king of multitudes, king of Assyria, sitteth upon a lofty throne, and the spoil of the city of Lachish passeth before him.” This slab is now in the British Museum (Josh. 10:3-35; Josh. 12:11; Josh. 15:39; 2 Kings 14:19; 2 Kings 18:14,17; 2 Kings 19:8; 2 Chron. 11:9; 2 Chron. 25:27; 2 Chron. 32:9; Neh. 11:30; Isa. 36:2; Isa. 37:8; Jer. 34:7; Mic. 1:13). Identified by some with Tell el Hesy, 31° 33' N, 34° 44' E.
At this mound 60 feet have been dug through and explored. The ruins of as many as eight cities have been discovered, which are judged by the marks on the pottery, to extend back to about 1500 B.C. Nearer the surface have been found scarabs (beetles) and an inscription which makes it evident that at one time it was subject to Egypt. This is proved also by records on the Tell Amarna Tablets.
Lael
Father of Eliasaph, a Gershonite (Num. 3:24).
Lahad
Son of Jahath, of the family of the Zorathites (1 Chron. 4:2).
Lahai-roi
See BEER LAHAI-ROI.
Lahmam
City in the lowlands of Judah (Josh. 15:40). Identified with ruins at el Lahm, 31° 34' N, 34° 54' E.
Lahmi
Brother of Goliath, killed by Elhanan (1 Chron. 20:5).
Laish
1. City in the far north of Palestine, conquered by the tribe of Dan (Judg. 18:7,14,27; Isa. 10:30). Called LESHEM in Joshua 19:47. Its name was afterward altered to DAN.
2. Father of Phalti or Phaltiel (1 Sam. 25:44; 2 Sam. 3:15).
Lake of Fire
See HELL.
Lakes
There are three lakes in Palestine, all connected with the Jordan.
1. Huleh in the north, four square miles in extent, and seven feet above the Mediterranean. See MEROM.
2. Lake of Gennesaret, 682 feet below the sea. See GALILEE, SEA OF.
3. The Dead Sea, 1292 feet below the sea. See SALT SEA.
Lakum
Border city of Naphtali (Josh. 19:33). Not identified.
Lamb
The lamb is symbolical of meek submissiveness, and when selected for the sacrifices, must be without blemish and without spot: a very apt type of the Lord Jesus, the Lamb of God. He, the submissive and spotless One, was “like a lamb dumb before his shearer,” and was proclaimed by John as “the Lamb of God which taketh away the sin of the world”; and again as “the Lamb of God” as an object for the soul’s contemplation (John 1:29,36). In John’s vision of heaven the Lord Jesus is seen as a Lamb “which had been slain,” to whom universal adoration is given.
The special character attached to the title of “Lamb” in the book of Revelation is that of suffering, the earth-rejected One, but seen in the midst of the throne in heaven. He who suffered is vindicated there, and finally possesses His bride, the new Jerusalem, in which the throne of God and of the Lamb is established. He will always bear the character of the chosen One of God “that taketh away the sin of the world” on the ground of the sacrifice of Himself (Rev. 5:6-13; Rev. 6:1,16; Rev. 7:9-17; Rev. 12:11; Rev. 14:1-10; Rev. 15:3; Rev. 17:14; Rev. 19:7,9; Rev. 21:9-27; Rev. 22:1,3). In all these passages in the Revelation the word is ἀρνίον, the diminutive of ἀρνός, “a lamb,” signifying a “young lamb,” or “lambkin.” The same word was used by the Lord to Peter in John 21:15: “Feed My lambs,” applying it to the Lord’s young disciples.
Lamech
1. Descendant of Cain. He was the first to take two wives (sign of corruption); his sons were noted for making musical instruments, and working in brass and iron (Gen. 4:18-24). Lamech acknowledged his vengeance (sign of violence), for some injury he had received, but intimated his belief that God would watch over him as He had over the life of Cain. His address to his wives is poetical. See POETRY.
2. Son of Methuselah and father of Noah (Gen. 5:25-31; 1 Chron. 1:3; Luke 3:36).
Lamentations of Jeremiah
This book shows the compassion and interest God has in the afflictions of His people, and that these are not lessened even when the afflictions have been brought about by Himself because of their sins. It is declared of the Lord that “in all their affliction He was afflicted” (Isa. 63:9); and this was seen when the Lord was on earth in His weeping over Jerusalem. Jeremiah had a like spirit and lamented over the calamities that had fallen upon his beloved people and their city Jerusalem. He appealed to the passersby: could they see such sorrow, caused by an affliction sent by Jehovah in His fierce wrath, and be unmoved by it? (Lam. 1:12). Then he adds that Jehovah in these dealings was righteous, for they had rebelled against His commandments.
Lamentations 3. The prophet details his personal sufferings: they were like the sympathetic sufferings of Christ spoken of elsewhere; but in Lamentations 3:22 The prophet remembers the mercies of Jehovah, and expresses his hope in Him. Because of His compassions they were not consumed; and it was good to wait and hope. Jehovah will not cast off forever, and He does not afflict willingly. The prophet then calls for repentance and a turning to Jehovah. He has confidence that God hears, and he asks for the destruction of their enemies.
Lamentations 4. Jeremiah as in the presence of Jehovah spreads out all the humiliating reverses that had fallen upon them, mentioning separately the Nazarites, the prophets, the priests, and the people; and then he foretells that God’s wrath should pass also unto Edom, who had doubtless rejoiced at the calamities of Jerusalem. He could add that the punishment of the daughter of Zion was accomplished, she should no more be carried away.
Lamentations 5. An affecting appeal is made to God. All had been confessed, and hope in God had been expressed; yet the afflictions pressed heavily upon the prophet. His last words are: “Turn thou us unto Thee, O Lord, and we shall be turned; renew our days as of old. But Thou hast utterly rejected us: Thou art very wroth against us.”
The composition of the Lamentations is uncommon. The first four chapters are arranged in alphabetical order and the chapters contain 22 verses each, the number of letters in the Hebrew alphabet, except that Lamentations 3 has 22 stanzas of three verses, making in all 66. In Lamentations 1, 2, and 4, verse 1 begins with A; verse 2 with B, and so on, as in some of the Psalms. In Lamentations 3 each verse in a stanza begins with the same letter, thus verses 1, 2, 3 begin with A; verses 4, 5, 6 with B, and so on to the end. The prayer in Lamentations 5 is not alphabetical. In the Hebrew Bible the “Lamentations” form a part of the Hagiographa (Holy Writings), and is placed between Ruth and Ecclesiastes. In the Jewish Liturgy this book was appointed to be repeated on the Fast of the ninth of Ab (fifth month), to commemorate the destruction of the city and the temple by the Chaldeans and also by the Romans.
Lamp
1St Century Oil Lamp
The lamp was commonly used to furnish artificial light, and numbers of them have been found in the ruins of Jerusalem and other cities, some being made of terra cotta and others of glass. In the “golden candlestick” the light was obtained from lamps, and wherever the word “candle” occurs a lamp is signified. The lamp is used symbolically for the light that is obtained from it; thus “Thy word is a lamp unto my feet” (Psalm 119:105; Prov. 6:23). The ten virgins, when they went forth to meet the bridegroom, each took a lamp (more correctly a torch); but the issue made it manifest that the lamp without oil could give no light: a striking symbol of mere profession without the Holy Spirit (Matt. 25:1-8). Oil for the light is further exemplified in the candlestick in Zechariah 4, where the seven lamps are furnished with oil by pipes from two olive trees: to these God’s two witnesses in a future day are compared (Rev. 11:4). See LIGHT.
8th Century Oil Lamp
Lance (Kidon)
A light spear that could be thrown at an enemy (Jer. 50:42).
Lance Point – 1800s (Central or East Africa)
Roman Gladiator Holding Lance (modern drawing)
Lancet (Romach)
A spear used by warriors, with a metal point (1 Kings 18:28). The word is often translated “spear.” The priests of Baal, in their desperation, wounded themselves with this weapon.
Landmark
Anything, as a stone or stake, that marked the boundary of a tribe, or of a man’s possession. The moving of such was forbidden by the law (Deut. 19:14; Job 24:2; Prov. 22:28; Prov. 23:10).
Ancient boundary line at Raffah, between Egypt and Palestine.
Laodicea
An important city in the district of Phrygia in Asia Minor. It forms a triangle with Hierapolis and Colosse. Its ancient name was Diospolis, but when Antiochus Theos rebuilt it he called it Laodicea, after the name of his wife. It became a wealthy city: on one occasion when it was destroyed by an earthquake the inhabitants were able to rebuild it without asking aid from the state (compare Rev. 3:17). Its destruction has been complete: its ruins are called Eski-hissar.
There is no account of Paul having visited this city, but it is evident that the church there was on his heart and that he sought its welfare. All that is known of the state of the Laodicean church is gathered from the address sent to it through the apostle John-see REVELATION (Col. 2:1; Col. 4:13,15-16; Rev. 1:11; Rev. 3:11).
Laodiceans
Inhabitants of Laodicea (Col. 4:16; Rev. 3:14).
Lapidoth
Husband of Deborah the prophetess (Judg. 4:4).
Lapwing (Dukiphath)
Hoopoe
This is generally supposed to refer to the Hoopoe, which rendering the RV has adopted. It is judged to be the Upupa epops. It feeds upon all sorts of insects, and its nest has a very unpleasant smell, either of which facts would be a sufficient reason for its being classed among the unclean birds (Lev. 11:19; Deut. 14:18). It has a conspicuous crest on its head, which it seems proud of displaying.
Lasea
City of Crete, near the port of the Fair Havens. Some ruins in the neighborhood bear the ancient name (Acts 27:8).
Lasha
Place which marked the limit of the country of the Canaanites. It was probably on the east of the Dead Sea (Gen. 10:19).
Lasharon
Canaanite city captured by Joshua (Josh. 12:18). Identified by some with Sarona, 32° 43' N, 35° 28' E.
Last Time or Days
This was spoken of by the apostle John as then existing. There were many antichrists, whereby it was known that the last time (literally hour) had commenced (1 John 2:18). Apostasy from apostolic doctrine was a sign of the last time (it was not exactly the “last days,” as in 2 Timothy). No further revelation had to be made, and if this doctrine was refused, nothing but judgment could be the result; (Compare 2 Tim. 3:1; 2 Pet. 3:3; Jude 18). The “last days” of Hebrews 1:2 and “last times” of 1 Peter 1:20 are changed by Editors of the Greek Testament to the “end of these days”; These passages refer to the end of the period of the law when the Messiah appeared.
Latchet
The fastening, either by strap or ribbon, of the oriental shoe or sandal. Mentioned as a thing of the least value, and the unloosing of which was accounted a menial act (Gen. 14:23; Isa. 5:27; Mark 1:7; Luke 3:16; John 1:27).
Latin
The language of the Romans. In scripture it is only mentioned as being one of the tongues in which Pilate wrote the inscription on the cross of the Lord Jesus (Luke 23:38; John 19:20). A number of words in the Greek of the New Testament are borrowed from the Latin. Such are σπεκουλάτωρ, “an executioner,” Lat. speculator; σοωδάριον, “a napkin,” Lat. sudarium.
Lattice
The window of the East, formed of trellis work, which admitted air and light, yet screened from observation (Judg. 5:28; 2 Kings 1:2; Song of Sol. 2:9).
Latticework Window Screen
Laud
To praise or celebrate (Rom. 15:11).
Laver
This appertained to the tabernacle and the temple. It was placed between the tabernacle and the brazen altar, and the priests were required to wash their hands and their feet when they approached for any service (Ex. 30:18-21). The priests were at first thoroughly washed, but that was a distinct thing from the continual cleansing of their hands and feet. John 13:4-14 is somewhat analogous to this, where the apostles, though declared to be clean (except Judas), needed that their feet should be washed, because of the defilements of the way, in order to have part with Christ when He went to the Father. In the tabernacle it was hands as well as feet that were to be washed, because there it was service, as well as the sphere of their walk (Ex. 40:7,11,30).
The laver for the tabernacle was made of the brazen mirrors given by the women (Ex. 38:8): its shape and size are not specified. The laver for the temple was circular, being ten cubits in diameter, and (in round numbers) thirty in circumference, and five cubits in height. 1 Kings 7:26 states that it “contained 2000 baths,” which probably refers to the quantity of water that was usually put into it; for 2 Chronicles 4:5 says “it received and held 3000 baths,” which may signify its full capacity. The above dimensions do not seem to agree with this capacity; but the definite shape of the laver is not given, it may have bulged out considerably in the middle.
The laver for the temple is called “a molten sea,” and “a brazen sea” and was supported on twelve oxen. It was used for the same purpose as the laver of the tabernacle; but in the temple there were also ten smaller lavers at which the sacrifices were washed (1 Kings 7:23-43; 2 Kings 16:17; 2 Chron. 4:6, 14).
Law
The subject of “law” is not restricted in scripture to the law given by Moses. God gave a commandment (or law) to Adam, which made Adam’s subsequent sin to be transgression. Where there is no law there is no transgression (Rom. 4:15), though there may be sin, as there was from Adam to Moses: “until the law sin was in the world, but sin is not imputed [or put to account] when there is no law” (Rom. 5:13). This doubtless signifies that specific acts were not put to account as a question of God’s governmental dealings, when there was no law forbidding them. Men sinned, and death reigned, though they “had not sinned after the similitude of Adam’s transgression” (Rom. 5:14), for no definite law had been given to them. The nations that had not the law were however a law unto themselves, having some sense of good and evil, and their conscience bore witness accordingly. It is not a true definition of sin, to say that it is “the transgression of the law,” as in the AV of 1 John 3:4. The passage should read “Sin is lawlessness:” that is, man doing his own will, defiant of restraint, and regardless of his Creator and of his neighbor.
“Law” may be considered as a principle in contrast to “grace,” in which sense it occurs in the New Testament, the word “law” being often without the article (though the law of Moses may at times be alluded to in the same way). In this sense it raises the question of what man is for God, and hence involves works. “The doers of [the] law shall be justified” (Rom. 2:13); but if, on the other hand, salvation be “by grace, then is it no more of works: otherwise grace is no more grace” (Rom. 11:6). The conclusion is that “by the deeds of [the] law there shall no flesh be justified in his sight.” None can be saved on that principle. In opposition to it “the righteousness of God without [the] law is manifested.” The believer is “justified freely by his grace through the redemption that is in Christ Jesus” (Rom. 3:20-24). “Law” as a principle stands also in scripture in contrast to “faith.” “The just shall live by faith: and the law is not of faith; but the man that doeth them shall live in them” (Gal. 3:11).
The word “law” is also used for a fixed and unvarying principle, such as “a law of nature”; thus we read of the “law of faith,” “law of sin,” “law of righteousness,” “law of the Spirit of life,” (compare Rom. 7:21).
The term “law” is occasionally used in the New Testament as a designation of other parts of the Old Testament besides the Pentateuch. The Lord said, “Is it not written in your law, I said, Ye are gods?” when the quotation was from the Psalm. John 10:34: similarly 1 Corinthians 14:21.
The LAW OF LIBERTY, (James 1:25; James 2:12), implies that, the nature being congruous, the things enjoined, instead of being a burden, are a pleasure. Doing the commandments of the Lord is the fruit of the divine nature: they are therefore both law and liberty.
Law of Moses
The law was like a straight edge given by God to make manifest the crookedness of man. “[The] law entered that the offense might abound” (Rom. 5:20), that is, not to increase sin, but to show its offensiveness, and to bring it home to the soul. “By [the] law is the knowledge of sin” (Rom. 3:20). The apostle said that he would not have known lust had not the law said, “Thou shalt not covet” (Rom. 7:7). The object of the law therefore was to evince the heinousness of sin, while it was a test of the obedience of man to God. It was given to Israel only, the one nation which was under God’s special dealings, and in which He was trying man in the flesh. The heading of the ten commandments is “I am the Lord thy God, which have brought thee out of the land of Egypt, out of the house of bondage,” and this could apply only to the Israelites. Again, God says, “You only have I known of all the families of the earth: therefore I will punish you for all your iniquities” (Amos 3:2). The Gentiles are described as not having the law (Rom. 2:14), though they had the work of the law written in their hearts, and a conscience which bore witness when they did wrong. As the Gentiles became associated with Israel, and heard what God required morally of man, they doubtless became more or less responsible according to the light received. But greater light having come in, the Galatian Christians are sharply rebuked for putting themselves under law, where, as Gentiles, they never had been. Some things forbidden in the law were wrong intrinsically, such as theft, murder, but other things were wrong only because God had forbidden them, such as the command to abstain from eating certain creatures called “unclean.”
The law in its enactment of sacrifices and feasts was essentially typical and foreshadowed what was to be fulfilled in Christ. In accordance with this, Paul, as a Jew, could say, “The law was our schoolmaster unto Christ”; and the Lord said, “Had ye believed Moses, ye would have believed Me: for he wrote of Me” (John 5:46). This is an important point, for the passage that speaks of the law as the schoolmaster goes on to say that it was in order that they “might be justified by faith.” After that faith was come believers were no longer under a schoolmaster (Gal. 3:25). A converted Jew was no longer under the law—how much less a Gentile believer whom God had never put under the law! See SCHOOLMASTER.
This is often construed to mean that while the Christian is not under the law for justification, he is under it for walk, as a rule of life. This theory is however opposed to scripture, which says, “sin shall not have dominion over you: for ye are not under the law, but under grace” (Rom. 6:14). A Christian has died with Christ and lives unto God, beyond the jurisdiction of law, which applies to man in the flesh, man “in Adam.” Christianity is not in its true power apart from death and resurrection. See also Galatians 5:18.
Many contend that the ceremonial law is abrogated, but that the moral law is binding upon all. This distinction between the ceremonial and the moral law can only be true in so far as the law is the embodiment of moral principles, which must ever be the rule of conduct for an intelligent being as such. So the righteous requirements of the law are fulfilled now in those who walk after the Spirit—while they are said to have become dead to the law by the body of Christ. Scripture speaks only of “the law.” The law engraven on stones (the ten commandments) is called “the ministration of death,” not the law of life to a Christian (2 Cor. 3:7). Law gives no power over sin; indeed, no sooner does a law say that a particular thing must not be done, than a desire arises to do it. Scripture does not say a word about the Christian being ruled by law; but it says that grace teaches him how to walk (Titus 2:11-12), and because he is under grace sin will not have dominion over him. The law depicted what a righteous man should be for the earth. It was perfect for the purpose for which it was given, but as seen in the question of divorce (Mark 10:4) it permitted what God had not intended for man at the beginning, and to this Christ bore witness. In Matthew 5:21-48 the Lord mentions five particulars, which they had heard in old time, in contrast to which He legislates in accordance with the new order of things that He was bringing in. The law did not come up to the responsibilities of Christianity. The Christian has a higher standard, even Christ Himself. He is to walk “worthy of the Lord” unto all pleasing. Having received Christ Jesus the Lord, he is to walk in Him, (Col. 1:10; Col. 2:6); and to walk also “worthy of God” (1 Thess. 2:12); indeed his aim should be to say, with Paul, “To me to live is Christ” (Phil. 1:21).
Man naturally clings to law because it recognizes him as alive in the flesh. And though the curse follows the not keeping it in all points, yet he is not willing to give up that ground. Christ glorified is the One whom God now recognizes—He only suits God’s glory. Hence every one that is not “in Christ” is a sinner already condemned by the light that has come in.
Lawgiver
This in the first place refers to God; but in human affairs He is pleased to delegate His authority to the rulers, and Judah is twice mentioned as God’s lawgiver (Gen. 49:10; Num. 21:18; Deut. 33:21; Psalm 60:7; Psalm 108:8; Isa. 33:22; Jas. 4:12).
Lawless
The word is ἄνομος, and is translated “without law” in 1 Corinthians 9:21; it is applied to those who, regardless of all law, do their own will (Acts 2:23 Thess. 2:8; 1 Tim. 1:9; 2 Pet. 2:8). It is wrongly translated “transgressor” in the AV of Mark 15:28 and Luke 22:37. A kindred word is translated “transgression of the law” in 1 John 3:4, which as a definition of sin is a serious error: it should be “sin is lawlessness,” and this term is equally applicable to those who never had the law.
Lawyer
A teacher of the law, one who expounded the law. Nicodemus was probably one, for the Lord called him a “teacher of Israel.” The Lord said of the lawyers that they put heavy burdens on others, but did not touch them themselves; and in their expositions they took away the key of knowledge. They did not enter in themselves, and hindered those who were entering—a solemn description that may, alas, apply to some in this day, such as are elsewhere described as “blind leaders of the blind” (Matt. 22:35; Luke 7:30; Luke 10:25; Luke 11:45-52; Luke 14:3; Titus 3:13).
Laying on of Hands
See HANDS.
Lazarus
1. Brother of Martha and Mary, and a resident at Bethany. Jesus loved them all, and He spoke of Lazarus as “our friend.” Very little is recorded of him except the striking fact that he was raised from the dead by the Lord Jesus, which manifested the glory of God and glorified the Son of God. When his sisters made the Lord a supper at Bethany, Lazarus was one of those who sat with Him. He was a living witness of the power of the Son of God over death, and as such he was in danger of being killed by the Jews, on account of many believing on the Lord because of him (John 11:1-43; John 12:1-17).
2. The poor man in the parable of Luke 16. His circumstances are related—his poverty, his sores, and his desiring to be fed with the crumbs that fell from the rich man’s table; but nothing is said as to his moral character. Neither is the rich man spoken of as a wicked man, though it is clear that he was living to himself and not to God; he was neither loving his neighbor as himself, nor was he sacrificing the present for the future. The teaching of the parable appears to be that worldly prosperity, which had been a token in Old Testament times of God’s blessing, was used to exclude the Blesser from the thoughts and life of the man rich in this world only. The poor man entered into Abraham’s bosom, and the rich man into torments. Though a parable, it is a vivid picture of the reality of existence after death, and of the different conditions in that existence (Luke 16:19-31).
Lead (Ophereth)
The well-known heavy metal. It is mentioned as early as Exodus 15:10, where its weight is alluded to. Job speaks of it, apparently, as being used for filling in the engravings on stones. It was no doubt also used for making solder (Num. 31:22; Job 19:24; Jer. 6:29; Ezek. 22:18,20; Ezek. 27:12; Zech. 5:7-8).
Lead with Pyrochroite
League
See ALLIANCE.
Leah
The elder daughter of Laban, given to Jacob as wife through the artifice of her father. She was “tender eyed,” and not as beautiful as Rachel; but she was blessed of God in bearing to Jacob six sons and one daughter, and was thus the mother of the heads of the important tribes of Reuben, Levi, and Judah, as well as of Simeon, Issachar, and Zebulun (Gen. 29:16-35; Gen. 30:9-21; Gen. 31:4,14,33; Gen. 33:1-2,7; Gen. 49:31).
Leannoth
See MAHALATH.
Leasing
The Hebrew word is commonly translated “lies” (Psa. 4:2; Psa. 5:6). The word “leasing” is from the Anglo-Saxon leas, “false.” Wiclif, in John 8:44, translated “Whanne he spekith lesynge.”
Leather
Elijah is described as a “hairy man, and girt with a girdle of leather” (2 Kings 1:8). The same Hebrew word is many times translated “skin.” In the New Testament John the Baptist had about his loins a “leathern girdle” (Matt. 3:4); or “of a skin” as in Mark 1:6. We read of Simon a tanner (Acts 9:43; Acts10:6, 32); and the monuments show that the art of tanning was practiced in Egypt, so that without doubt it was also known to the Israelites.
Leather to be dyed at a Moroccan tannery.
Leaven
Leaven (Yeast)
This was early used in the fermentation of bread. As a symbol it is always used in scripture for the working of the human element, whether mind or flesh, in the things of God, and hence evil. It was strictly forbidden to be burnt in any offering made by fire (Lev. 2:11); but in the peace offering, besides the unleavened cakes and wafers, the offerer was to present leavened bread, which was to be eaten (Lev. 7:12-13; Lev. 23:17-18). Its presence here might seem to suggest an exception to the statement that leaven always signifies that form of evil; but it is not, for the peace offering typifies worship, and there, alas, the worshipper is not entirely free from indwelling sin. In the parable of “the leaven hid in the meal,” it also represents the same evil, which in an insidious way permeates the mass with which it is mixed. The solemn words are added, “till the whole was leavened” (Luke 13:20-21). It is only a too true similitude of the kingdom of God, for everywhere evil is spreading therein. In Matthew 16:6-12 leaven is applied to the teaching of the Pharisees and Sadducees. In the church, leaven when discovered must be purged out, for “a little leaven leaveneth the whole lump” (1 Cor. 5:6-8); but in the kingdom it is represented as working until all is leavened (Matt. 13:33). It is then that the King will purge out from His kingdom all that offend and commit iniquity, and cast them into a furnace of fire.
Leavened Bread
Lebana, Lebanah
Ancestor of some Nethinim who returned from exile (Ezra 2:45; Neh. 7:48).
Lebanon
Lebanon
The mountain range in the north of Palestine. Its name signifies “white,” and may have arisen from some of its peaks being always covered with snow, or from the whiteness of its limestone cliffs. It is mentioned as the northern boundary of Palestine (Deut. 1:7; Deut. 11:24; Josh. 1:4). There are two ranges bearing this name, the southern terminus of both being about 33° 23' N. They run N.E. nearly parallel with the Mediterranean; a fertile valley, from five to eight miles wide, running between them. This is mentioned in Joshua 11:17. Its modern name is El Bukeiah. The valley may be considered as being prolonged southward
Cedars of Lebanon
The western range is the Lebanon generally referred to in scripture and the one from whence Solomon obtained cedar and fir trees for the temple (1 Kings 5:8-9; Psa. 29:5; Isa. 14:8). Of the cedars only a few remain. There are many villages situated on the small plains on the mountains, with patches of grain growing here and there vines also are cultivated from which excellent wine is made (Hos. 14:7). Firs grow, clinging as it were to the bare rock, yet quite secure (Hos. 14:5). Olives, figs, and mulberries also abound, and a number of aromatic shrubs, which perfume the air, as alluded to in Song of Solomon 4:11. Wild beasts still inhabit the glens and peaks as they did in Old Testament times (2 Kings 14:9; Song of Sol. 4:8; Hab. 2:17). Its modern name is Jebel Libnan.
The eastern range is often called ANTI-LEBANON, but in scripture it is alluded to as “Lebanon toward the sun-rising” (Josh. 13:5). Its modern name is Jebel esh Shurky. Mount Hermon is its southern point. The road from Beirut to Damascus crosses both the mountains of Lebanon.
Lebanon, Tower of
Only mentioned symbolically in Song of Solomon 7:4 it is supposed to refer to mount Hermon.
Lebaoth
Town in the south of Judah (Josh. 15:32). Not identified.
Lebbaeus
One of the twelve apostles, who was surnamed THADDAEUS, (Matt. 10:3): apparently the apostle Jude. See JUDAS.
Lebonah
City near to Bethel and Shechem (Judg. 21:19). Identified with el Lubban, 32° 4' N, 35° 14' E.
Lecah
Son of Er, a descendant of Judah (1 Chron. 4:21).
Leeks (Chatsir)
Leek Field
The Hebrew word seems to refer to what is “green,” and is often translated “grass”; twice it is rendered “hay” and once “herb,” but the leek is very likely referred to in Numbers 11:5. The Israelites, longed for such as they had eaten in Egypt. The Allium porrum has long been a favorite in the East. Dr. Kitto preferred the Trigonella foerum graecum, a grass similar to clover.
Allium Porrum
Trigonella Foerum Graecum
Lees
Apple Wine Lees
“Wines on the lees” are wines left undisturbed on their sediment to mature (Isa. 25:6). The expression “settled on the lees” is used figuratively of Moab, which had not been disturbed as other nations (Jer. 48:11). Also for those who in Jerusalem remained in the Jordan valley indifferent and undisturbed amidst the evils upon which punishments were threatened (Zeph. 1:12). A very significant type of the poor apathetic world, and of the self-satisfied and unconcerned spirit of Christendom.
Stirred and unstirred barrels of Chardonay.
Legion
In the Roman army a body of troops consisting of from three to five thousand; but the term is also used for an indefinite number. The Lord said that His Father on His request would send Him more than twelve legions of angels (Matt. 26:53). The demons who possessed the man among the Gadarenes said, “My name is Legion; for we are many” (Mark 5:9,15; Luke 8:30).
Lehabim
Son of Mizraim (Gen. 10:13; 1 Chron. 1:11). Probably the founder of the Lubim. See LIBYA.
Lehi
Place in Judah, near to the land of the Philistines. It was where Samson slew a thousand men with the jaw-bone of an ass (Judg. 15:9-17). Lehi signifies “jaw-bone,” but whether the place had this name before the victory or after is not clear. Samson called the place RAMATH-LEHI, “hill of the jaw-bone” Judges 15:19 is better translated, “God clave the hollow place that is in Lehi,” that is, in the rock, not in the jaw-bone.
Lemuel
The name of a king, to whom was given, by his mother, the instruction recorded in Proverbs 31:1-9. The name does not occur elsewhere, and is supposed by some to be a symbolical one, signifying “godward,” or “(created) by God,” Gesenius.
Lentils (Adashim)
Red Lentils
The small seeds of different kinds of vetch used for food. The Arabic name is Adas. When ground, the meal can be made into a palatable red pottage (Gen. 25:34; 2 Sam. 23:11).
Lentils formed part of the provisions furnished to David and his followers on the revolt of Absalom (2 Sam. 17:28). They were also used in a time of scarcity, and among the poor, as an ingredient of their bread (Ezek. 4:9). The Ervum lens is cultivated in Palestine.
Leopard
The Hebrew word, namer, signifies a “spotted” animal. This well-known wild animal is introduced by the prophet as an illustration: as the leopard cannot change its spots, no more can rebellious man change his nature (Jer. 13:23). The leopard is also represented as lying in wait and watching its prey, and acting with swiftness (Jer. 5:6; Hos. 13:7; Hab. 1:8). The Grecian kingdom was compared to a leopard with four wings (Dan. 7:6); and it answered to this in the rapidity of its conquests. The future Roman empire is symbolically likened to a leopard, but having the feet of a bear, and the mouth of a lion: that is, like no known beast, but symbolically uniting the characteristics of the three former powers (Rev. 13:2). In the millennium “the leopard shall lie down with the kid” (Isa. 11:6). The common leopard is the Leopardus varius.
Leprosy
This loathsome and incurable disease is often mentioned in scripture. Some persons were smitten with leprosy as a direct judgment from God, as were Miriam (though she in grace was subsequently cured), Gehazi, and Amaziah; in the case of Gehazi the disease was to descend also to his seed. God’s power alone could cure the leper, as seen in the case of Naaman the Syrian, and in the many lepers that the Lord cured when on earth. Amaziah dwelt in a separate house, and the lepers were enjoined to proclaim, their own condition by calling out, “Unclean, Unclean” (Lev. 13:45).
Leprosy is a vivid type of sin, and its insidious working, producing an unclean condition. Leviticus 13-14 treats of the way it was to be discovered and dealt with by the priests as those having the mind of God. The instruction in Leviticus 13:12-13, though seemingly paradoxical, is significant: when the leprosy covered all the skin, the priest was to pronounce the man clean: “it is all turned white: he is clean.” That is, the leprosy, instead of striking inwards, had worked itself out, typical of a man truly confessing his sin; then the effect only of the defilement remains.
Besides leprosy in the person, laws were also given as to leprosy in a garment, answering to the sin that may be in a person’s surroundings, which must be cleansed or destroyed. There is also leprosy in the house (when they were come into the land), answering to manifest sin in a Christian assembly, which must be removed, or the assembly must be dissolved. Holiness becomes God’s house.
Spinalonga – Leprosy Island (Crete, Greece)
Two Cases of Leprosy – April 2, 1920 (Dominican Republic)
Leshem
See LAISH.
Letter, The
This expression occurs in Romans 2:29; Romans 7:6 and 2 Corinthians 3:6, where the apostle contrasts it with “the spirit”; “the letter killeth, but the spirit giveth life.” Whether of the law or of the gospel, the mere intellectual reception of the words only leads to formality and death; it is only what is “of the Spirit” that can result in life. The Lord is the spirit of all that is written in letters in scripture.
Letushim
Son of Dedan, a son of Jokshan (Gen. 25:3).
Leummim
Son of Dedan, a son of Jokshan (Gen. 25:3).
Levi
1. The third son of Jacob and Leah (Gen. 29:34). Very little is recorded of Levi: he joined with Simeon in the treacherous and vindictive dealings with Shechem (Gen. 34:25-31). When Jacob blessed his sons, a curse was pronounced on their cruelty, and it is added “I will divide them in Jacob and scatter them in Israel.” The above illustrates the righteous government of God, which is in no way set aside by the reward of after faithful conduct, which caused this tribe to be chosen for the Levitical service and the priesthood (compare Mal. 2:4, 6). It was sovereign grace. For the blessings on Levi’s descendants by Moses, see Deuteronomy 33:8-11. His three sons, Gershon, Kohath, and Merari were heads of the three branches of the LEVITES.
2. Another name of MATTHEW the apostle (Mark 2:14; Luke 5:27,29).
3-4. Son of Melchi, and son of Simeon, in the genealogy of the Lord Jesus (Luke 3:24,29-30).
Leviathan
This is really a Hebrew word (livyathan), and is generally believed to refer to any great sea or land monster, and especially to the crocodile, which comparatively lately has been met with in the river Kishon in Palestine. The minute description given in Job 41 agrees with what is known of the crocodile. He cannot be taken with a hook, nor his flesh be filled with barbed irons: his scales, which are very close, protect him. Fire proceeding from his mouth is figurative language. The whole account is given to contrast the mighty power of God in His works, with the littleness of Job.
Crocodile
The crocodile is able to remain a long time under water without breathing, and can thus approach a waterfowl unperceived and hold it down till it is drowned. It then tears it to pieces with its teeth, and swallows the pieces whole.It is thus an apt symbol of the enemy of God’s people (Psalm 74:14).
In Isaiah 27:1 it also typifies Satan: “leviathan the piercing serpent, even leviathan that crooked serpent,” whom God will punish. In Psalm 104:26 the reference may be to any sea monster, for it is in connection with the “great and wide sea,” that is, the Mediterranean. In Job 3:8 it should be translated “leviathan,” instead of “their mourning,” and this confirms the general meaning of some monster.
Levites
The tribe that descended from Levi, son of Jacob. When Moses came down from the mount and saw the golden calf which the people had made, he asked, “Who is on the Lord’s side? let him come unto me. And all the sons of Levi gathered themselves together unto him.” He bade them gird on their swords and slay every man his brother, his companion, and his neighbor. And there fell of the people that day about three thousand. Moses spoke of it as consecrating themselves to the Lord, every man upon his son, and upon his brother, that God might bestow a blessing upon them (Ex. 32:26-29).
The Levites were chosen by God as a redemption for all the firstborn of Israel, which God claimed for Himself. They thus became wholly His, and they were given to Aaron to minister in all that pertained to the service of the tabernacle, except the priesthood, which was restricted to Aaron and his descendants (Num. 3:5-51).
Of the Levites there were three main branches: the GERSHONITES, the KOHATHITES, and the MERABITES. Moses and Aaron were descendants of Kohath. When the camp of Israel rested, this tribe surrounded the tabernacle. When it moved they had to carry its various parts and the sacred things belonging thereto. According to Numbers 4:3, the Levites appear to have commenced their tabernacle service at the age of thirty; but in Numbers 8:24-26 the age is given as twenty-five. It may be that they spent the first five years on probation, learning their duties. When Israel had settled in Canaan and the labor of carrying the tabernacle was over, they commenced their service at the age of twenty. They labored till they were fifty years of age (1 Chron. 23:24-27).
Before the Levites entered upon any service they were thoroughly cleansed and consecrated. The children of Israel put their hands upon them, and Aaron offered them “before the Lord for an offering of the children of Israel” that they might execute the service of the Lord. An atonement was made for them (Num. 8:5-26).
The Levites had no inheritance in the land, and in order that they might be free to serve the Lord, tithes were given them (Leviticus 18:1-32). Forty-eight cities were given to them as places to dwell in, and the suburbs thereof for their cattle. Six of these cities were to be CITIES OF REFUGE (Lev. 35:1-8). The names of the cities are given (Josh. 20:7-9; Josh. 21:1-42).
In the time of David the Levites were set over “the service of song”; others were door-keepers: some were singers and others played on various instruments (1 Chron. 6:31; 1 Chron. 15:16,26). In the days of Hezekiah, after the temple had been cleansed, the Levites apparently helped to flay the sacrifices, being found “more upright in heart to sanctify themselves than the priests” (2 Chron. 29:34). At the Passover that followed, the Levites had the charge of killing the passover lambs for the people who were unclean (2 Chron. 30:17). On the return from exile the Levites helped to explain the law to the people (Neh. 8:7-8). In the New Testament the Levites are mentioned only in Luke 10:32; John 1:19 and Acts 4:36.
The Levites are typical of Christians, who are redeemed, cleansed, and consecrated to the service of the Lord, and have no inheritance on earth.
Leviticus, Book of
The title of this Book was copied from the Septuagint; but why it was so called is not known, the Levites are but seldom mentioned in it. The Hebrew has simply the first word of the book for its title. The book is occupied with the way of approach to God, who is looked upon as dwelling in the holy of holies. The people having been redeemed from Egypt, and having received God’s covenant, and promised obedience thereto, are in relation with God, and come to Him as worshippers. They must approach in the way He directs and must be in a suited state to approach, which approach could only be accomplished through God’s appointed priests. The Epistle to the Hebrews takes up many of the same subjects for the Christian, but there they often stand in contrast to what is found here. This is especially the case in the veil which here shut in the holy of holies, where the high priest could enter only once a year, and then with blood; whereas now the veil is rent, God has come out, with grace to all, and every Christian has access to the presence of God. In Leviticus there was a continued remembrance of sins; but by the one sacrifice of Christ He hath perfected forever them that are sanctified.
The opening of the book shows that it is not merely an addition to the law given at Sinai: God spoke it to Moses “out of the tabernacle of the congregation,” except the last three chapters. He, as among the people, directs everything.
Leviticus 1-7 gives the sacrifices, all of which are needed to embrace the varied aspects of the death of Christ. The four principal offerings are given in this order: the burnt offering, the meat offering, the peace offering, and the sin offering: it begins with God’s side first, what Christ is to God; but in the consecrating of Aaron, the sin offering came first, Leviticus 8; and must be so when man’s need is in view. For the teaching of the sacrifices see OFFERINGS.
Leviticus 8-10 give the sanctification of Aaron and his sons (see AARON); and the failure of Nadab and Abihu.
Leviticus 11 distinguishes the clean and the unclean animals for food.
Leviticus 12-15 gives laws respecting purification of women; LEPROSY; and the uncleanness of men.
Leviticus 16 See ATONEMENT, DAY OF.
Leviticus 17-22 gives many instructions bearing upon holiness, and the avoidance of all uncleanness.
Leviticus 23. The feasts of Jehovah. See FEASTS.
Leviticus 24 gives divers laws: Israel’s position internally before God, and externally in the world.
Leviticus 25. The Sabbatical years and the year of Jubilee. See JUBILEE.
Leviticus 26. Threats and promises realized in the nation’s after history.
Leviticus 27. Concerning vows, and so forth.
The book ends with “These are the commandments which the Lord commanded Moses for the children of Israel in mount Sinai.” This apparently embraces the last three chapters, for Leviticus 25 commences with “And the Lord spake unto Moses in mount Sinai,” in contrast to Leviticus 1, which was spoken to him out of the tabernacle. These three chapters refer more to what God is in government, than to what He is as the One to be worshipped, with which the previous part of the book is occupied, giving directions as to how alone He could be approached, together with injunctions as to many things that would be inconsistent in the worshippers of Jehovah.
Libertines
These are supposed to have been Jews who after having been captured by the Romans had been set at liberty: hence their name. It is well known that there were such. They formed a party at Jerusalem, and were among those who persecuted Stephen (Acts 6:9).
Liberty
Besides the common application of this term, it is used in scripture symbolically, as
1. The liberty obtained by Christ for those that were captives of Satan (Isa. 61:1; Luke 4:18; John 8:36).
2. The conscience set free from guilt, as when the Lord said to several, “Thy sins be forgiven thee: go in peace.”
3. Freedom from the law, “Stand fast therefore in the liberty wherewith Christ hath made us free” (Rom. 7:24-25; Gal. 5:1). Jesus said, “I am the door: by me if any man enter in he shall be saved, and shall go in and out, and find pasture” (John 10:9).
4. The Christian’s deliverance from the power of sin by having died with Christ, as in Romans 6:8-22; and, having reckoned himself dead to sin, experimentally enjoying liberty, as in Romans 8:2-4, after experiencing that the flesh is too strong for him. The deliverance is realized by the Spirit of life in Christ Jesus, and the love of God is known and enjoyed. Christ is then the object before the soul, and not self.
Libnah
1. One of the stations at which the Israelites encamped (Num. 33:20-21).
2. City in the south-west taken by Joshua and its inhabitants totally destroyed. It was allotted to Judah and was afterward given to the priests. It revolted from Jehoram. Afterward it was besieged by Sennacherib, but apparently was not taken (Josh. 10:29-39; Josh. 21:13; 1 Chron. 6:57; 2 Chron. 21:10; Isa. 37:8; Jer. 52:1). Not identified.
Libni
1. Son of Gershon, the son of Levi (Ex. 6:17; Num. 3:18; 1 Chron. 6:17,20).
2. Son of Mahli, and grandson of Merari (1 Chron. 6:29).
Libnites
Descendants of Libni, the son of Gershon (Num. 3:21; Num. 26:58).
Libya, Libyans
The part of Africa west of Egypt, and the inhabitants of the same (Jer. 46:9; Ezek. 38:5; Dan. 11:43; Acts 2:10). The Hebrew is Phut. The same district is called LUBIM in Nahum 3:9, and its inhabitants LUBIMS in 2 Chronicles 12:3 and 2 Chronicles 16:8. They are supposed to be descendants of Phut, the son of Ham. They are classed with the Ethiopians, and were allies of Egypt.
Lice
See PLAGUES OF EGYPT.
Lieutenants (Achashdarpenim)
Governors of districts in the Persian kingdom, otherwise known as satraps or viceroys (Ezra 8:36; Esther 3:12; Esther 8:9; Esther 9:3).
Life
Life is that by which a created being enjoys the place in which the Creator has set it. God breathed into man’s nostrils “the breath of life; and man became a living soul” (Gen. 2:7). Sin having come in, this life is forfeited and God claims it, saying, “surely your blood of your lives will I require; at the hand of every beast will I require it, and at the hand of man; at the hand of every man’s brother will I require the life of man” (Gen. 9:5). This instituted capital punishment for murder, which law has never been rescinded or altered.
Scripture recognizes a difference between “life” in a moral sense and “existence,” as seen in the passage, “What man is he that desireth life, and loveth many days, that he may see good?” (Psa. 34:12). Here is a man desiring life, desiring to enjoy life. This answers the objection of those who, wishing to deny eternal punishment, say that “living forever” is only spoken of the Christian, as in John 6:51, 58. True, but many other scriptures prove that the wicked will have an eternal existence.
Man, in his natural state, is regarded as morally dead in sins, and as needing to be quickened by the power of God; or as living in sins and needing to accept death in order to live in Christ, as in the Epistle to the Romans.
Life, Eternal
This stands commonly in scripture in contrast to death. It is revealed in the Lord Jesus. “He is the true God, and eternal life.” “This is the record, that God hath given to us eternal life, and this life is in his Son. He that hath the Son hath life; and he that hath not the Son of God hath not life” (1 John 5:11-12, 20). He that has the Son of God therefore has life now, and knows it by the Holy Spirit, the Spirit of life. The apostle John speaks of life as a subjective state in believers, though inseparable from the knowledge of God fully revealed as the Father in the Son, and indeed characterized by this. The Lord said to His Father, “This is life eternal, that they might know Thee the only true God, and Jesus Christ, whom Thou hast sent” (John 17:3). The Apostle Paul presents eternal life more as a hope before the Christian, which however has a present moral effect (Titus 1:2; Titus 3:7). From which we gather that eternal life for the Christian refers in its fullness to the glory of God, when the present body as a part of the old creation will be changed, and there will be complete conformity to Christ, according to the purpose of God. In the meantime the mind of God is that the Christian, indwelt by the Holy Spirit, should know (have the conscious knowledge) that he has eternal life (1 John 5:13). For Christians it is evident that eternal life is morally distinct from life after the flesh.
Light
Besides the references to physical light as existing distinct from the sun, and then emanating from the sun as the great light-bearer, the term is mainly used in scripture in a moral sense. Light from God is His word revealing Himself, and not only making manifest the dangers here, but acting as a lamp in showing the true path (Psa. 119:105). The Psalmist asked Jehovah to lift upon him the light of His countenance (Psa. 4:6), and declared that Jehovah Himself was his light (Psa. 27:1). As natural light brings vigor and health to the body, so the light of God gives cheerfulness and strength to the soul.
“God is light,” and the Lord Jesus came to the earth as the true light which lighteth every man. He not only exposed all the evil in the world and all the false pretensions of the leaders of Israel; but “the life was the light of men” (John 1:4; John 8:12). Christians are “light in the Lord,” and are exhorted to walk as “children of light” (Eph. 5:8; 1 Thess. 5:5). In the midst of darkness they are set to shine as lights in the world (Phil. 2:15). A grave responsibility rests upon them lest they should not have the heavenly luster that would characterize them as having in their hearts the light of the glory of the Lord. If the light in the Christian become darkness by his not walking in the reality of it, how great is that darkness! (Matt. 6:23).
It has been very properly said that light is appropriately descriptive of God; for light, invisible in itself, manifests everything. Christians, as we have seen, are “light in the Lord,” and thus convict the unfruitful works of darkness; but here we may notice that it is not said of them, as of God, that they are “love,” for love is the sovereign, spring of activity in God.
Lign Aloes
See ALOES.
Ligure (Leshem)
The first in the third row of gems in the breastplate. It is supposed by some to be the hyacinth, by others the lyncurium, and by others amber; but its identification is uncertain (Ex. 28:19; Ex. 39:12).
Likeness
See IMAGE.
Likhi
Son of Shemidah, of the tribe of Manasseh (1 Chron. 7:19).
Lily (Shushan, κρίνον)
Lilium Chalcedonicum
The well-known flower of graceful form, of which there are several species that grow in the fields and valleys of Palestine. One of great beauty grows near the Merom waters, and is called the Huleh-lily. In the Song of Solomon the bride calls herself “a lily of the valley,” to which the Bridegroom responds, “as the lily among thorns, so is my love among the daughters” (Song of Sol. 2:1-2). Israel is to grow up as a lily in a future day (Hos. 14:5). The pattern of the lily was among the ornamental work of the temple. The lily is extolled by the Lord as exceeding in beauty all the glory of Solomon (1 Kings 7:19,22,26; Song of Sol. 2:16; Song of Sol. 4:5; Song of Sol. 5:13; Song of Sol. 6:2-3; Song of Sol. 7:2; Matt. 6:28; Luke 12:27). Some suppose the Lilium Chalcedonicum, the “red Turk’s-cap lily,” to have been the plant referred to by the Lord. Others think it was probably the Anemone coronaria, which they judge to have been included in the Greek κρινον. The term may be general, as the modern Arabic susan. LILY-WORK is ornamentation in resemblance to lilies (1 Kings 7:19, 22). See SHOSHANNIM.
A field in Israel with Anemone Coronaria.
Lime
The use of this material was evidently understood by the Israelites. Isaiah 33:12 speaks of the “burnings of lime”; and in Amos 2:1 judgment is pronounced upon Moab because of having “burned the bones of the king of Edom into lime.”
Linen
Linen
Various Hebrew and Greek words are translated “linen,” and there can be no doubt that linen made of flax was known in ancient Egypt and to the Israelites; but cloths generally are called “linen” whether made of cotton or flax, some being distinguished as “fine linen,” such as was worn by the priests, kings. The word shesh, often translated “fine linen” and “fine twined linen” (for the curtains of the tabernacle, etc.) signifies “whiteness,” and is applicable to both fine linen and cotton (Ex. 26:1,31). Joseph was arrayed in “vestures of fine linen” (Gen. 41:42). The wrappings on the ancient Egyptian mummies were for a long time judged to be cotton, but by the use of the microscope they have been discovered to be linen.
Lintel
In Exodus 12:22-23 the “lintel” is the beam that runs along the top of a door and joins the two side-posts. The word is mashgoph, and occurs only in the above passage and in Exodus 12:7, where it is translated “upper door post,” but clearly means the lintel. In 1 Kings 6:31 The word is ayil, which is often translated “posts.” In this passage its meaning is doubtful. In Amos 9:1 and Zephaniah 2:14 the word is kaphtor, which is elsewhere translated “knop.” It may refer to some device placed over a door.
Linus
Christian at Rome whose greetings were sent to Timothy by Paul (2 Tim. 4:21).
Lion
There are several Hebrew words translated “lion,” the principal of which is ari, from “to tear.” The lion is declared to be the “strongest among beasts and turneth not away for any” (Prov. 30:30). This shows that the lion may be taken as a symbol of “strength,” and as such the Lord is called the lion of the tribe of Judah, to which is attached the symbol of royalty, for Judah held the scepter (Gen. 49:9-10; Rev. 5:5). Satan also has a kingdom and is called a strong one (Matt. 12:26); and he is the “lion” seeking whom he may devour. He is compared to a “roaring lion,” because he is like that animal, which roars when it is sure of its prey (compare Amos 3:4). The Lord knows how to deliver His servants even out of the mouth of the lion.
Lion-Like Men
See ARIEL
Litter
Sedan or light coach, mentioned among the various means by which the Jews will be conveyed to the promised land (Isa. 66:20).
Liver
The large and heavy gland that secretes the bile. In the sacrifices it is named only to point out the caul which is above it (Ex. 29:13,22; Lev. 3:4). To be wounded in the liver is fatal (Pro. 7:23). The liver being poured out is symbolical of deep anguish (Lam. 2:11, compare Job 16:13). Among the heathen the liver was one of the parts of an animal that were examined in order to foretell events, as practiced by the king of Babylon (Ezek. 21:21).
Living Creatures
These in Ezekiel point symbolically to the attributes of God in connection with His throne, and His acting upon earth in His judicial government and providence. There were wheels on earth, and there was a wheel within a wheel. These wheels acted in concert with the living creatures; for the spirit of the living creatures was in the wheels. The faces of these living creatures correspond with the faces of the “four beasts” (which should be translated “living creatures,” the word being ζῶον, and not θηρίον, which occurs for the “beasts” of Ezekiel 13) in Revelation 4, etc. Each living creature had four faces: the first was the face of a man, which speaks of “intelligence”; the second the face of a lion, which symbolizes “strength”; the third the face of an ox, representing “patient endurance”; and the fourth the face of an eagle, which implies “swiftness of execution.” All show perfect organization for carrying out the government of God according to His righteous judgment (Ezek. 1:5-25; Ezek. 3:13; Ezek. 10:15-22). See CHERUBIM.
Lizard (Letaah)
This occurs only in Leviticus 11:30 among the creatures not to be eaten. Lizards of different species abound in Palestine. They feed upon insects and small reptiles.
Lo-Ammi
Symbolical name of a son of Hosea, signifying “not my people” (Hos. 1:9). The same words occur in Hosea 1:10 and Hosea 2:23, but are there translated. Because of the sin of Israel they for a time are ostensibly not God’s people. God has not changed His purpose concerning His ancient people (Rom. 11:29); He has only changed His manner toward them. Hosea 2:23 adds “I will say to them which were not My people, Thou art My people; and they shall say, Thou art My God.” This will be when God’s set time arrives for bringing them again into blessing. The wording of Hosea 1:10, quoted in Romans 9:26, leaves room for the Gentiles as “sons of the living God.”
Lo-debar
Town on the east of Jordan, to which Mephibosheth retired after the death of his father (2 Sam. 9:4-5; 17:27). Not identified.
Lo-ruhamah
Symbolical name given to Hosea’s daughter. The context shows its meaning to be “not having obtained mercy,” as in the margin. It was given to emphasize the fact that God was going to punish the people of Israel, and take them from the land; though still having mercy for a time on Judah (Hos. 1:6,8; compare 1 Pet. 2:10).
Locks
These in the East were anciently very rude contrivances. They were made of wood with long wooden bolts into which were driven a few pins which dropped into holes and held the bolt secure. The key, also of wood with corresponding pins, would raise the pins of the bolt, and allow it to be shot back (Judg. 3:23-24; Neh. 3:3-15; Song of Sol. 5:5).
Locusts
There are several species of locusts which visit Palestine; they are brought by the wind, and carried away by the same. Five Hebrew words are translated “locusts,” but they cannot now be definitely distinguished. Some of the Hebrew words are also translated GRASSHOPPERS. They formed one of the plagues of Egypt (Ex. 10:4-19). They are remarkable for the immense numbers that suddenly swarm upon a district, and for the vast devastation they accomplish in vegetation in a little while, as the prophet says, before them the land may be as the garden of Eden, and behind them a desolate wilderness: nothing escapes them (Joel 2:3).
Locust Swarm
They were classed among the clean things that might be eaten by the Israelites (Lev. 11:22); they were the food of John the Baptist (Matt. 3:4); and are eaten at the present time. They are boiled, roasted, and fried, or salted, or pounded into cakes with salt. The Œdipoda migratoria is a species that commonly visits Palestine.
THE BALD LOCUSTS, salam. These are mentioned only in Leviticus 11:22; as distinct from the common locusts (arbeh). The bald locust is supposed to be a species of Truxalis, which have smooth heads.
In Revelation 9:3,7 the locust is symbolical of some destructive power that will issue from “the smoke,” or influence, of the bottomless pit, to sting and torment the men that have not the seal of God in their foreheads. These locusts have stings like scorpions, are in shape or appearance like horses, with faces of men, and with crowns of gold on their heads, implying imperial power, with pretended subjection to God; but withal cruel, pitiless and false.
Lod
Town in Benjamin (1 Chron. 8:12; Ezra 2:33; Neh. 7:37; Neh. 11:35). In the New Testament it is called LYDDA, where Aeneas the paralytic was healed by Peter. It is said to be nigh to Joppa. The distance is about ten miles if the identification be correct (Acts 9:32,35,38). Identified with Ludd, 31° 57' N, 34° 54' E, at which place there is now a station on the railway from Jaffa to Jerusalem.
Log.
See WEIGHTS AND MEASURES.
Loins
The part of man that is used to prefigure the seat of strength. Descendants are represented as coming out of the loins of a man (Gen. 35:11; Heb. 7:10). The loins were girded up for action and activity. God said to Job, “Gird up now thy loins like a man” (Job 38:3). In the Christian’s conflict with wicked spirits in the heavenlies he is exhorted to have his loins girt about with truth (Eph. 6:14).
Lois
Grandmother of Timothy, whose unfeigned faith Paul calls to remembrance (2 Tim. 1:5).
Looking Glass
See GLASS.
Lord
1. adon, κύριος. These words are commonly translated “lord.” They are used as a term of respect as between man and man, as seen in the children of Heth to Abraham (Gen. 23:6); between servants and masters, and once by a wife to her husband (Gen. 18:12; Luke 16:3,5; 1 Pet. 3:6). The title “Lord” is applied to God (Psalm 90:1, Adonai), and in the New Testament to the Lord Jesus, not only as a term of respect, but as owning His constituted lordship (Acts 2:36; Phil. 2:11). He is emphatically the Lord as eclipsing every other for the Christian, who delights to appropriate Him as “My Lord” (Luke 1:43; John 20:13; Phi. 3:8). To believers collectively He is “Our Lord Jesus Christ.”
There is also in this title the idea of administration which it is of great consequence to observe. As Man the Lord Jesus is mediator between God and men, and receives blessings for men which are administered through Him as Lord. “To us there is....one Lord, Jesus Christ, through whom are all things, and we through Him” (1 Cor. 8:6). See Rom. 5:1-2,11,17,21 and other scriptures.
The same Greek word is often used in the LXX for the Hebrew name Jehovah, and is transferred to the New Testament without the article. It stands as a proper name in the sense of Jehovah, as in Matthew 1:20,22,24, though the English requires it to be translated “the Lord.” See GOD.
2. δεσπότης, signifying “owner, master,” as a man who owns slaves. It is applied to God and to the Lord Jesus (Luke 2:29; Acts 4:24; 2 Pet. 2:1; Jude 4; Rev. 6:10); and in 2 Timothy 2:21 is translated “master.”
3. ραββονί, a word similar to Rabbi, a term of respect among the Jews, signifying “teacher.” It is applied to the Lord by the blind man in Mark 10:51; and by Mary in John 20:16, where it is untranslated.
Lord's Day, The
This occurs only in Revelation 1:10: John was in [the] Spirit on the Lord’s day. It was the day of the week on which the Lord arose—the resurrection day. It is the first day of the week, and is suggestive of the beginning of a new order of things, altogether distinct from that connected with the legal Sabbath. It was the day on which the disciples commonly came together for the express purpose of breaking bread, Acts 20:7; and though no legal enactment is given concerning it, it is a day specially regarded by Christians. It is literally “the dominical-day,” κυριακός a word that occurs only in reference to “the Lord’s supper” in 1 Corinthians 11:20 and to “the Lord’s day”; the term is not to be confounded with “the day of the Lord.”
Lord's Table, The; the Lord's Supper
The first of these expressions is used in 1 Corinthians 10:21, in contrast to the table of demons with which those were identified who partook of idolatrous feasts. In this passage the expression appears to be synonymous with the bread, the wine being spoken of as the cup of the Lord. The idea connected with the Lord’s table is the identification of the saints as one body with the death of Christ. Hence “Ye cannot be partakers of the Lord’s table and of the table of demons.” The cup is the fellowship of the blood of Christ, the bread is the fellowship of the body of Christ, and to this fellowship every believer is bound to be faithful. It expresses the separation of the entire company from all to which He died—from sin and from the world, in connection with which the god of this world furnishes his table. The “one loaf” was expressive of the oneness of the company of believers at Corinth, as bound together in the fellowship of the death of Christ.
The expression “the Lord’s supper” is found in 1 Corinthians 11:20, and is in connection with the remembrance of the Lord in the breaking of bread and drinking the cup by the saints as in assembly. This chapter gives the positive character of the ordinance, as 1 Corinthians 10 is rather the separation consequent on it. It is the assembly come together and the affections of the saints stirred by the remembrance of the Lord’s love in presence of the memorials of that which is the proof and expression of it, namely, His death. It is the assembly’s proper privilege as brought, in company with the Lord Jesus Christ as the leader of its praises, to know and enjoy God revealed as Father, and to worship Him by the Spirit. In 1 Corinthians 12 -14, which succeed, the organization, the motive spring, and functions of the assembly are referred to.
Lot
Son of Haran the brother of Abraham. He seems to have accompanied Abraham without having a like faith in Abraham’s God. When their flocks and herds had so increased that they could no longer dwell together, Abraham bade his nephew choose where he would turn. Lot looked on the well-watered plain of the Jordan, and went toward Sodom, notwithstanding that the men of that city were exceedingly wicked. The next record of Lot is that he dwelt in Sodom, and from thence was carried away by the four kings who made war against that city.
Though rescued by Abraham he did not profit by the discipline, but returned to dwell in the guilty city; whereas Abraham would not accept so much as a shoe latchet from its king. Lot is next seen sitting in the gate of Sodom, the place of power and judgment, when the two angels arrived to destroy the city. He acted hospitably towards them, but had to be rescued by them from the enmity of the inhabitants.
Lot and his family were loth to leave the city, but the angels hastened them out, and bade them flee to the mountains. Lot begged to be allowed to go to Zoar, and was permitted; but, fearing to stay there, he left with his two daughters and abode in a cave, where, alas, he became the father of Moab and Ben-ammi, the ancestors of the Moabites and the Ammonites, who are afterward alluded to as the children of Lot.
From his history in the Old Testament it could not have been discovered that he was a righteous man; but this testimony is given of him in 2 Peter 2:7-8, where he is called “just Lot,” who, as a righteous man, was daily vexed in his soul by the unlawful deeds of those among whom he dwelt. Though God delivered him, he is a solemn instance of a righteous man dwelling needlessly amid gross wickedness; his course being the strongest contrast to that of Abraham (Gen. 11-14, 19; Psa. 83:8; Luke 17:28-29).
LOT’S WIFE, on leaving Sodom, looked back and became a pillar of salt and is held up as a warning not to linger but to flee from coming judgments (Luke 17:32).
Lotan
Son of Seir, the Horite (Gen. 36:20,22,29; 1 Chron. 1:38-39).
Lots, Casting
This mode of determining a matter was ordered of God to be practiced over the two goats on the day of atonement (Lev. 16:8-10). God also commanded that the land should be divided by lot (Num. 26:55-56). The people resorted to it for various purposes on the return from exile (Neh. 10:34; Neh. 11:1). God overruled among His people how the lot should fall, as stated in Proverbs 16:33: “The lot is cast into the lap; but the whole disposing thereof is of the Lord.” He also could direct it among the heathen to work out His own purposes, as He did in the case of Haman, which so deferred the period of the execution of his design that there was time for the action of Esther, and for new edicts to be sent all over the kingdom, that the Jews might be saved from destruction (Esther 3:7; Esther 9:24). The various names, dates, and so forth, for selection were marked on pieces of wood, potsherd, etc., and these “lots” were then shaken together either in a vessel or the fold of a garment, till one came out.
The lot was also used by the Roman soldiers in parting the garments of the Lord (Psa. 22:18; Mark 15:24). In order to fill up the vacancy caused by the fall of Judas, the lot was resorted to; but was on that occasion accompanied by prayer that the Lord would show which of the two He had chosen (Acts 1:26). There is no instruction in the New Testament as to casting lots. It would have been quite out of place among the disciples while the Lord was with them, as also now that the Holy Spirit has been given to the Christian.
The land being “divided by lot” in a future day means rather that the land will be “allotted,” for God has Himself directed where each of the twelve tribes shall be situated (Ezek. 45:1; Ezek. 47:22; Ezek. 48:29).
Love Feasts
See FEASTS OF CHARITY.
Lubim
See LIBYA.
Lucas
See LUKE.
Lucifer
Name, signifying in Latin “light-bringer,” being a translation of the Hebrew word, helel, associated with “morning star,” given in irony to the king of Babylon, because in his pride he said he would exalt his throne above the stars of God (Isa. 14:12). He resembles the leader of this world in the last days (Rev. 13:1-10).
Lucius
1. Prophet or teacher of Cyrene, one of those at Antioch who, after prayer and fasting, laid their hands on Barnabas and Paul and sent them on the first missionary journey (Acts 13:1).
2. Kinsman of Paul whose salutation was sent to Rome (Rom. 16:21).
Lucre
“Gain,” such as a judge should not have wished for or accepted (1 Sam. 8:3). In the New Testament it is called “filthy” or “base gain”; the desire for it rendered a man ineligible for the position of elder in the church (1 Tim. 3:3,8; Titus 1:7,11; 1 Pet. 5:2).
Lud
Son of Shem (Gen. 10:22; 1 Chron. 1:17). See SEEM.
Lud, Ludim
Son of Mizraim (Gen. 10:13 and 1 Chron. 1:11). His descendants are mentioned with Phut, and are held to have inhabited the northwest of Africa (Isa. 66:19; Ezek. 27:10). The same district is called LYDIA (though the Hebrew is simply Lud) and its inhabitants, LYDIANS (Jer. 46:9; Ezek. 30:5).
Luhith, Ascent of
Some place in Moab which would be ascended with weeping when God’s judgments were poured out upon Moab (Isa. 15:5; Jer. 48:5). Talat el Heisah, 31° 46' N, 35° 43' E, has been suggested as probably the place alluded to. It lies between Mount Pisgah and Mount Nebo.
Luke, Gospel of
It has often been declared that this gospel was gathered by the writer from various sources, especially from the apostle Paul, because he was so much with that apostle. This was an early opinion: Irenaeus and Tertullian asserted that we have in Luke the gospel that Paul preached. Eusebius referred the words “according to my gospel” (2 Tim. 2:8) to the gospel of Luke; and Jerome agreed with this. Many modern writers repeat the same. In this theory there are two grave errors. The one is endeavoring to account for the Gospel of Luke by mere human agency, instead of recognizing that the writer was led and guided by the Holy Spirit. The other is ignoring the unique character of the gospel taught by Paul, which he declared he had received by the revelation of Jesus Christ, and which is called “the gospel of the glory of the Christ.” It associated the believer with Christ in the glory (2 Cor. 4:4).
On the other hand, it is evident that Luke’s presentation of the service of Christ on earth is in correspondence with the service of “the apostle of the Gentiles,” whose fellow-laborer and companion Luke was. Grace to man—“to the Jew first, and also to the Greek,” as Paul expresses it—is the key-note of Luke’s gospel.
The Gospel of Luke sets the Lord before us in the character of Son of Man, revealing God in delivering grace among men. Hence the present operation of grace and its effect are more referred to, and even the present time prophetically, not the substitution of other dispensations, as in Matthew, but of saving, heavenly grace. At first no doubt (and just because He is to be revealed as Man, and in grace to men), He is presented (in a prefatory part in which there is the most exquisite picture of the godly remnant) to Israel, to whom He had been promised, and in relationship with whom He came into this world; but afterward this gospel presents moral principles which apply to man generally whosoever he may be, while yet manifesting Christ, for the moment, in the midst of that people. This power of God in grace is displayed in various ways in its application to the wants of men.
After the transfiguration (Luke 9), which is recounted earlier, as to the contents of the gospel, than by the other evangelists, we find the judgment of those who rejected the Lord, and the heavenly character of the grace which, because it is grace, addresses itself to the nations, to sinners, without any particular reference to the Jews, overturning the legal principles according to which the latter pretended to be, and as to their external standing were originally called at Sinai to be, in connection with God. Unconditional promises to Abraham and prophetic confirmation of them, are another thing. They will be accomplished in grace and were to be laid hold of by faith.
After this (Luke 19-21), details are given as to that which should happen to the Jew according to the righteous government of God; and, at the end, the account of the death and resurrection of the Lord, accomplishing the work of redemption.
Luke morally sets aside the Jewish system and introduces the Son of Man as the Man before God, presenting Him as the One who is filled with all the fullness of God dwelling in Him bodily, as the Man before God, according to His own heart, and thus as Mediator between God and man, center of a moral system much more vast than that of Messiah among the Jews. While occupied with these new relations (ancient in fact as to the counsels of God), Luke nevertheless gives the facts belonging to the Lord’s connection with the Jews, owned in the pious remnant of that people, with much more development than the other evangelists, as well as the proofs of His mission to that people, in coming into the world— proofs which ought to have gained their attention, and fixed it upon the child who was born to them.
That which specially characterizes the narrative, and gives peculiar interest to this gospel, is that it sets forth what Christ is Himself. It is not His official glory, a relative position that He assumed; neither is it the revelation of His divine nature in itself; nor His mission as the great Prophet. It is Himself, as He was, a man on the earth—the Person one would have met every day had one lived at that time in Judaea or in Galilee.
A remark may be added as to the style of Luke. He often brings a mass of facts into one short general statement, and then expatiates at length on some isolated fact, where moral principles and grace are displayed. (Adapted from the Synopsis of the Books of the Bible, J.N. Darby)
Luke, Lucas
Fellow laborer with Paul, and called “the beloved physician.” He is only three times mentioned by name (Col. 4:14; 2 Tim. 4:11; Philem. 1:1,24). He was the writer of the Gospel bearing his name, and also of the Acts of the Apostles, the introduction to both being addressed to a certain Theophilus. It is supposed, from Colossians 4:11,14, that he was a Gentile, though these verses are no proof of it.
In Acts 16:10 Luke uses the word “we,” showing that he was then with the apostle Paul at Troas, and accompanied him to Philippi, where apparently Luke remained. In Luke 20:5 he is again with Paul, and went with him to Jerusalem. Paul then became a prisoner for more than two years, and we lose sight of Luke; but as soon as Paul was about to be sent to Rome, Luke was with him again (Acts 27:1), and accompanied him to Rome (Acts 28:16), and was there with Paul when he wrote the Epistles to the Colossians and Philemon. He was also with Paul during his second imprisonment. Others had forsaken the aged apostle, Luke alone remained. He was Paul’s beloved fellow-laborer, and in his own writings has skillfully hidden himself that the work of God by His servants Paul and others might, by the leading of the Holy Spirit, be faithfully recorded, and come into prominence.
Lunatics
These are clearly distinguished in Matthew 4:24 from those possessed by demons. The word is σεληνιαζόμενοι, which, like the word lunatic, is derived from “the moon,” and is thought to embrace epileptics as well as those of unsound mind. The lad in Matthew 17:15 is called a lunatic, but he was also possessed by a demon: in Mark 9:25 it is called a “dumb and deaf spirit.”
Lust, To
The word έπιθυμέω signifies “to desire earnestly,” and is often translated “desire,” without the thought of the desire being an evil one, as in Matthew 13:17; 1 Timothy 3:1; 1 Peter 1:12. The English word “lust” was anciently not always used in a bad sense, as it now is (see Deuteronomy 12:15 and Galatians 5:17).
Luz
1. City of the Canaanites, afterward called BETHEL.
2. City in the land of the Hittites, built by the man who had betrayed the city in Canaan, and who called it after the same name (Judg. 1:26). Identified by some with ruins at el Luweiziyeh, 33° 16' N, 35° 36' E.
Lycaonia
District nearly in the center of Asia Minor, in which were Lystra, Derbe, and Iconium (Acts 14:6,11).
Lycia
District in the S.W. of Asia Minor. It was formerly a part of Pamphylia, but increased in importance and became a separate district, with Myra for its capital (Acts 27:5).
Lydda
See Lod.
Lydia
A disciple of Thyatira—a place noted for its dyes—a seller of purple, residing at Philippi, whose heart the Lord opened, and who became, as far as is known, the first convert in Europe. She received Paul, Silas, and Luke into her house (Acts 16:14,40).
Lydia, Lydians
See LUD, LUDIM.
Lysanias
Tetrarch of Abilene, of whom nothing more is recorded (Luke 3:1). He is mentioned by Josephus (Ant. 15. 4, 1).
Lysias
See CLAUDIUS.
Lystra
City of Lycaonia, in Asia Minor. Paul and Barnabas fled there from Iconium, and there cured a cripple, which caused the inhabitants to think they were gods, to whom they would have offered sacrifices had not the apostles restrained them. Soon afterward however, being incited by the Jews, they stoned Paul and left him for dead. The labors of the apostles were not in vain, an assembly of saints was gathered there. It was again visited by Paul on his second missionary journey, when he met with Timothy, and attached him to his mission (Acts 14:6-21; Acts 16:1-2; 2 Tim. 3:11).
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