COLOURS

a new motive and in the power of a new life. The third section of the Epistle (35-4«) applies this principle to various relations of lite — the mutual relation of Christians, husbands and wives, children and fathers, slaves and masters; and lastly, to the relation of St. Paul to them, and to their relation with the world. The closing section (4'-") deals with personal matters — with the mission of Tychicus, with whom St. Paul tactfully associates Onesimus; with St. Mark's proposed visit, in connexion with which St. Paul writes a word of special commendation, showing how completely the former discord has been healed. Then follow a warm commen-dation of Tychicus, greetings from Luke and Demas, instructions for exchanging letters with the neighbour-ing Church of Laodicea, and a final message for Archip-pus, who had apparently succeeded, in Epaphras' absence, to the supervision of the Colossian Church. J. HOWAHD B. Masteeman. COLOURS.— The colours named in OT and NT, as in other ancient literatures, are few in number, and of these several are used with considerable latitude.

1. White as the colour of snow in Is V, of the teeth described as milk-white (Gn 49"), and of horses (Zee 1* 6'- '); also of wool (Rev 1") — the prevailing colour of the Palestinian sheep being white (see Ca 4^ 6*) — and of garments (Ec 9*, Mk 9=). Gray (and grey) occurs only in the expression 'gray hairs,' while grisled (lit. 'grey,' from French gris) apparently means black with white spots (Gu 31i», Zee 65- «; cf. 6 below). Green is not a colour adjective (in Est 1' read as RVm), but a noun signifying green plants and herbs, as e.g. in Gn 1'° and Mk 6*'. A kindred word rendered greenish (Lv 13*' 14") is probably a greenish yellow, since it is also used in Ps 68" of 'yellow gold.'

2. The darker colours likewise merge into each other, black and brown, for example, not being clearly dis-tinguished. Black is the colour of hair (Ca S" ' black as a raven'), of horses (Zee 6'- ", Rev 6*), and of ink (2 Go 3'). In Ca 1^ the same Heb. word signifies dark- complexioned (AV 'black'). Laban's black sheep (Gn SO'^ff- RV) were probably dark brown (AV brown).

3. Red is the colour of blood (2 K 3^), and of grape juice (Is 63^). The same word is used of the reddish-brown colour of the 'red heifer' of Nu 19, and of the chestnut horse of Zechariah's vision (1*, AV 'red'), although the precise colour distinction between the latter and his companion, the sorrel (AVm bay; in Zee 6^ EV 'bay' should prob. be 'strong,' and in v.' [by a slight change of text] perh. 'red') horse, is not clear. 'Red' is used also of the sky (Mt 16^' — lit. 'of the colour of fire').

4. Crimson and scarlet are shades of the same colour, and were both derived from the same insect, the coccus ilicis or cochineal, which 'attaches itself to the leaves and twigs of the guercus coccifera' (Post), and is termed in Hebrew 'the scarlet worm.' Scarlet-coloured gar-ments were regarded as a mark of distinction and pros-perity (2 S 1", Pr 3121), but in OT scarlet is most frequently mentioned as one of the four liturgical, or, as we should say, ecclesiastical colours (see below). Vermilion is mentioned as a pigment (Jer 22", Ezk 23").

5. Associated with scarlet in the Priests' Code of the Pentateuch are found two colours, 'argHmdn rendered purple, and tekliMeth rendered blue. In reality these are two shades of purple, the red tone predominating in the former, the blue tone in the latter. Since blue predominates in our modem purple, it would be well to drop the cumbrous terms red-purple or purple-red, and blue-purple or purple-blue, in favour of the simpler names purple and violet, as in the margin of Est 1' 8" (AV). Both shades were obtained by the use, as a dye, of a colourless fiuid secreted by the gland of a shell-fish, the murex trunculus, which was found in great quantities on the Phoenician coast. Hence Tyre became the chief seat of the manufacture of the purple cloth for which Phoenicia was famous throughout the

COMMENTARY

ancient world (cf. Ezk 27'- '•). Purple raiment is repeatedly mentioned in Scripture as worn by kings and nobles. It was as 'King of the Jews ' that our Lord was derisively robed in purple (Mk 16", Jn 19^).

In the Priests' Code, as has been noted, from Ex 25 onwards, 'violet' (AV 'blue'), 'purple,' and 'scarlet' are used — and always in this order — to denote the fine linen thread, spun from yarn that had been dyed these colours (see esp. Ex 35^), which, with the natural white thread, was employed in weaving the rich material for the various hangings of the Tabernacle, and for certain parts of the priests' dress.

6. Jacob's small cattle, 'iring-straked, speckled, and spotted' (Gn 30^9 etc.), showed white mixed with black or brown in the case of the sheep, and black mixed with white in the case of the goats. For Joseph's 'coat of many colours' see Dress, 2 (d).

It may be added that the art of dyeing was one in which the Jews of later times excelled. According to tradition, as we have just seen, purple and scarlet — also red (Ex 26") — dyes were known as early as the Exodus time (cf. Jg S^" RVm). In NT times, as may be seen from the Mishna, dyeing was a fiourishing branch of native industry. The true Tyrian purple was always a monopoly, and consequently imported ; but many less costly dyes were known, such as the cochineal insect tor scarlet, dyer's woad (.isatis) for true blue, madder (Heb. pUah, cf . Tola ben-Puah, i.e. ' Cochineal, son of Madder,' Jg 10'), and others. A. R. S. Kennedy.

COLT is applied in the Bible not to the young horse, but to the young ass, and once (Gn 32") to the young camel. Outside the Bible it is not applied to the young of any animal but the horse.

COMFORT, from late Lat. confortare, ' to strengthen,' 'reinforce,' denoted in old Eng. (a) physical, or (6) mental refreshment of an active kind (invigaration, encouragement) — obsolete meanings. In modern use it denotes (c) mental refreshment of the softer kind (con-solalicm). Sense (o) appears in Gn 18^, Jg 19'- », Ca 2^; (c) elsewhere in O'T. In NT, ' comfort ' usually represents a Gr. verb and noun, common in Paul, which include any kind of animating address; in this connexion the sense (6) prevails, as in Ac 931 16", Ro 1'^ 15S 2 Co 13" etc.; the tenderer signification (c) appears in Mt 5', 2 Co l"*- etc. For the above Gr. noun, however, AV fourteen times writes 'consolation' (interchanging 'comfort' and 'consolation' in 2 Co 1'-'), aUke in senses (6) and (c): this RV replaces seven times (in Paul) by ' comfort.' ' Comfort ' is also in AV the rendering of a second and rarer group of Gr. words denoting consolation (in sorrow): so in Jn 11"- », 1 Co 14', and Ph 2' (cf. AV and RV), 1 Th 2" 6"; the original of 'com-fort' (soothing) in Col 4" is an isolated expression kindred to the last. 'Of good comfort' in Ph 2" renders a fourth Gr. word = ire good heart, cheerful; while 'of good comfort' in Mt 9^" 11= of good cheer in v.^ and elsewhere (so RV here, and in Mk 10*').

For OT and NT, comfort has its source in the tender love of God for His people, and for the individual soul; it is mediated (in the NT) by the sympathy of Christ, the visitings of the Holy Spirit, the help of brethren, and the hope of glory; it counteracts the troubles of life, and the discouragement of work tor God: see esp. Jn 16", Ro 52-', 2 Co 1'-'. G. G. Findlay.

COMFORTER.— See Advocate.

COMING OF CHRIST.— See Paeousia.

COMMANDMENTS.— See Ten Commandments.

COMMENTARY (2 Ch 13« 24" RV).— The Heb. (midrash) has been adopted into English. But the Midrash is not exactly what we understand by a com-mentary ; it is ' an imaginative development of a thought or theme suggested by Scripture, especially a didactic or homiletic exposition, or an edifying religious story' (Driver).

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