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Spear, the.

From: The New Topical Textbook By: Reuben Archer Torrey

• 1 min. read • grade level: 10

An offensive weapon. 2 Sam. 23:8, 18⁸These be the names of the mighty men whom David had: The Tachmonite that sat in the seat, chief among the captains; the same was Adino the Eznite: he lift up his spear against eight hundred, whom he slew at one time. (2 Samuel 23:8)
¹⁸And Abishai, the brother of Joab, the son of Zeruiah, was chief among three. And he lifted up his spear against three hundred, and slew them, and had the name among three. (2 Samuel 23:18).

First mention of, in Scriptures. Josh. 8:18¹⁸And the Lord said unto Joshua, Stretch out the spear that is in thy hand toward Ai; for I will give it into thine hand. And Joshua stretched out the spear that he had in his hand toward the city. (Joshua 8:18).

PARTS OF, MENTIONED;

The staff of wood. 1 Sam. 17:7⁷And the staff of his spear was like a weaver's beam; and his spear's head weighed six hundred shekels of iron: and one bearing a shield went before him. (1 Samuel 17:7).

The head of iron or brass. 1 Sam. 17:7⁷And the staff of his spear was like a weaver's beam; and his spear's head weighed six hundred shekels of iron: and one bearing a shield went before him. (1 Samuel 17:7), with 2 Sam. 21:16¹⁶And Ishbi-benob, which was of the sons of the giant, the weight of whose spear weighed three hundred shekels of brass in weight, he being girded with a new sword, thought to have slain David. (2 Samuel 21:16).

Probably pointed at both ends. 2 Sam. 2:23²³Howbeit he refused to turn aside: wherefore Abner with the hinder end of the spear smote him under the fifth rib, that the spear came out behind him; and he fell down there, and died in the same place: and it came to pass, that as many as came to the place where Asahel fell down and died stood still. (2 Samuel 2:23).

Called the glittering spear. Job 39:23²³The quiver rattleth against him, the glittering spear and the shield. (Job 39:23). Hab. 3:11¹¹The sun and moon stood still in their habitation: at the light of thine arrows they went, and at the shining of thy glittering spear. (Habakkuk 3:11).

DIFFERENT KINDS OF;

Lances. Jer. 50:42⁴²They shall hold the bow and the lance: they are cruel, and will not show mercy: their voice shall roar like the sea, and they shall ride upon horses, every one put in array, like a man to the battle, against thee, O daughter of Babylon. (Jeremiah 50:42).

Javelins. Num. 25:7⁷And when Phinehas, the son of Eleazar, the son of Aaron the priest, saw it, he rose up from among the congregation, and took a javelin in his hand; (Numbers 25:7). 1 Sam. 18:10¹⁰And it came to pass on the morrow, that the evil spirit from God came upon Saul, and he prophesied in the midst of the house: and David played with his hand, as at other times: and there was a javelin in Saul's hand. (1 Samuel 18:10).

Darts. 2 Sam. 18:14¹⁴Then said Joab, I may not tarry thus with thee. And he took three darts in his hand, and thrust them through the heart of Absalom, while he was yet alive in the midst of the oak. (2 Samuel 18:14). Job 41:26, 29²⁶The sword of him that layeth at him cannot hold: the spear, the dart, nor the habergeon. (Job 41:26)
²⁹Darts are counted as stubble: he laugheth at the shaking of a spear. (Job 41:29).

Those who used, called spearmen. Psa. 68:30³⁰Rebuke the company of spearmen, the multitude of the bulls, with the calves of the people, till every one submit himself with pieces of silver: scatter thou the people that delight in war. (Psalm 68:30). Acts 23:23²³And he called unto him two centurions, saying, Make ready two hundred soldiers to go to Caesarea, and horsemen threescore and ten, and spearmen two hundred, at the third hour of the night; (Acts 23:23).

Frequently used by horse soldiers. Nah. 3:3³The horseman lifteth up both the bright sword and the glittering spear: and there is a multitude of slain, and a great number of carcases; and there is none end of their corpses; they stumble upon their corpses: (Nahum 3:3).

Furbished before war. Jer. 46:4⁴Harness the horses; and get up, ye horsemen, and stand forth with your helmets; furbish the spears, and put on the brigandines. (Jeremiah 46:4).

Pruning-hooks made into, before war. Joel 3:10¹⁰Beat your plowshares into swords, and your pruninghooks into spears: let the weak say, I am strong. (Joel 3:10).

Made into pruning-hooks in peace. Isa. 2:4⁴And he shall judge among the nations, and shall rebuke many people: and they shall beat their swords into plowshares, and their spears into pruninghooks: nation shall not lift up sword against nation, neither shall they learn war any more. (Isaiah 2:4). Mic. 4:3³And he shall judge among many people, and rebuke strong nations afar off; and they shall beat their swords into plowshares, and their spears into pruninghooks: nation shall not lift up a sword against nation, neither shall they learn war any more. (Micah 4:3).

THE ISRAELITES

Acquainted with the making of. 1 Sam. 13:19¹⁹Now there was no smith found throughout all the land of Israel: for the Philistines said, Lest the Hebrews make them swords or spears: (1 Samuel 13:19).

Frequently used. Neh. 4:13, 16¹³Therefore set I in the lower places behind the wall, and on the higher places, I even set the people after their families with their swords, their spears, and their bows. (Nehemiah 4:13)
¹⁶And it came to pass from that time forth, that the half of my servants wrought in the work, and the other half of them held both the spears, the shields, and the bows, and the habergeons; and the rulers were behind all the house of Judah. (Nehemiah 4:16).

Ill provided with, in the times of Deborah and of Saul. Judg. 5:8⁸They chose new gods; then was war in the gates: was there a shield or spear seen among forty thousand in Israel? (Judges 5:8). 1 Sam. 13:22²²So it came to pass in the day of battle, that there was neither sword nor spear found in the hand of any of the people that were with Saul and Jonathan: but with Saul and with Jonathan his son was there found. (1 Samuel 13:22).

Provided by the kings of Israel in great abundance. 2 Chr. 11:12¹²And in every several city he put shields and spears, and made them exceeding strong, having Judah and Benjamin on his side. (2 Chronicles 11:12). 2 Chr. 32:5⁵Also he strengthened himself, and built up all the wall that was broken, and raised it up to the towers, and another wall without, and repaired Millo in the city of David, and made darts and shields in abundance. (2 Chronicles 32:5).

Frequently thrown from the hand. 1 Sam. 18:11¹¹And Saul cast the javelin; for he said, I will smite David even to the wall with it. And David avoided out of his presence twice. (1 Samuel 18:11). 1 Sam. 19:10¹⁰And Saul sought to smite David even to the wall with the javelin; but he slipped away out of Saul's presence, and he smote the javelin into the wall: and David fled, and escaped that night. (1 Samuel 19:10).

Often retained in the hand of the person using. Num. 25:7⁷And when Phinehas, the son of Eleazar, the son of Aaron the priest, saw it, he rose up from among the congregation, and took a javelin in his hand; (Numbers 25:7). 2 Sam. 2:23²³Howbeit he refused to turn aside: wherefore Abner with the hinder end of the spear smote him under the fifth rib, that the spear came out behind him; and he fell down there, and died in the same place: and it came to pass, that as many as came to the place where Asahel fell down and died stood still. (2 Samuel 2:23).

Stuck in the ground beside the bolster during sleep. 1 Sam. 26:7-11⁷So David and Abishai came to the people by night: and, behold, Saul lay sleeping within the trench, and his spear stuck in the ground at his bolster: but Abner and the people lay round about him. ⁸Then said Abishai to David, God hath delivered thine enemy into thine hand this day: now therefore let me smite him, I pray thee, with the spear even to the earth at once, and I will not smite him the second time. ⁹And David said to Abishai, Destroy him not: for who can stretch forth his hand against the Lord's anointed, and be guiltless? ¹⁰David said furthermore, As the Lord liveth, the Lord shall smite him; or his day shall come to die; or he shall descend into battle, and perish. ¹¹The Lord forbid that I should stretch forth mine hand against the Lord's anointed: but, I pray thee, take thou now the spear that is at his bolster, and the cruse of water, and let us go. (1 Samuel 26:7‑11).

Illustrative of the bitterness of the wicked. Psa. 57:4⁴My soul is among lions: and I lie even among them that are set on fire, even the sons of men, whose teeth are spears and arrows, and their tongue a sharp sword. (Psalm 57:4).

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The New Topical Textbook

• Sin-Offering.

• Sins, National.

• Spear, the.

• Stars, the.

• Steadfastness.

• Strangers in Israel.

• Swearing Falsely.

• Swearing, Profane.

• Sword, the.

• Synagogues.

• Tabernacle, the.

• Temple, the First.

• Temple, the Second.

• Temptation.

• Thanksgiving.

• Theocracy, the, or Immediate Government by God.