DOT^A

book to Alexandria in the 4th year of Ptolemy Philo-metor (7) and Cleopatra, c. b.c. 178 (Ad. Est 11'). 2. A soldier of Judas Maccabseus, who made a vain attempt to take Gorgias prisoner (2 Mac 12^*). 3. A renegade Jew who frustrated the plot of Theodotus to assassinate king Ptolemy Philopator (3 Mac 1'). 4. An officer of Judas Maccabaeus (2 Mac 12"- ").

DOT^A (Jth 35).— Anotherform of Dothan (wh. see). AV has incorrectly Judcea.

DOTHAN (Gn 37", 2 K 6"-"; Dotsea, Jth 3=; Dothaim, Jth 4= etc.).— To-day, TeU Dothan, a remark-able isolated tiill at the S.E. comer of a great plain Sahl ' ArrHbeh; surrounded on three sides by hills (2 K 6"). Clearly a place suitable for defence, it must have been of importance when the neighbouring high-road, still much used, was a main thoroughfare from Damascus to Egypt. The situation is, too, a choice one on account of its abundant fountain, now used to work a mill and irrigate fruit gardens; two ancient wells and a number of empty cisterns (Gn 37") are also found near the foot of the tell. Great herds of cattle, sheep, and goats from the neighbouring abundant pastures, may always be found gathered there in the afternoon drinldng from the water and browsing in the shade. Although there are no ancient remains on the surface, traces of walls may be seen all around the hill top. E. W. G. Masterman.

DOUBT (from Lat. duMtare, 'to hold two (opinions),' 'hesitate'). — 1. In AV 'doubt' (vb. and noun) six times renders a Gr. vb. meaning 'to be at a loss' or 'quite at a loss'; in all these instances except Jn 13^2 RV substitutes ' perplexity,' following the AV rendering of Lk 9' 24*, 2 Co 4s. In this sense 'doubt' is now nearly obsolete; as it is in the meaning riddle, knotty question, which it bears in Du 5'^- ". Not dissimilar is its use in the AV of Jn 10" ('make us to doubt'), where RV, more literally, reads 'hold us in suspense.' Quite archaic also is the use of 'doubt' for 'suspect,' instanced in Sir 6" (AV). 2. Elsewhere 'doubt' has a religious signification, standing in express or tacit antithesis to 'faith' (wh. see), (a) In Mt 212", Mk 11«, Ac 10" 1112, Ro 1423, ja Id (RV), Jude ^ (RV), it stands for a vb. signifying 'to be divided in mind (judgment) ' — the same Gr. word is rendered ' staggered ' in AV, 'wavered' in RV, of Ro i"; (6) in Mt 14» 28" 'to be of two opinions,' 'to waver,' is the force of the original: the vb. above indicates (1) more subjectively, (2) more objectively, a state of qualified faith, of faith mixed with misgiving, something between whole-hearted faith and decided unbeUef. Thus wavering, faith is robbed of its power; hence such hesitation, in regard to Christ and the promises and commands of God, is strongly deprecated and reproved. In the above examples the doubt, affecting the mind of a believer, arises from contradictory circumstances or conscientious scruples; unless this be the case in Mt 28" (cf. Lk 2V, noticed below), it has none of the quality of rationalistic doubt or scepticism, (c) Akin to the above is the expres-sion of Lk 122', where ' of doubtful mind ' ( AV, RV) is the rendering of an obscure Gr. word that seems to mean iein^ lifted into the air, and so agitated, held in suspense or driven by gusts (cf. Eph 4", Ja 1*-"). (d) Another group of expressions remains: Ro 14' 'doubtful dis-putations' (AV), 'decisions of doubts' (RVm); 1 Ti 2' 'disputing' (RV) or 'doubting' (AV) = ' reasoning' (Lk 243S RV); 'disputings' (Ph 2"). In these passages arguing, questioning is intended, and (in Ro.) matter of argument, debatable questions. This usage Jies on the border between 1 and 2; for the questions referred to, except in Lk 24'8, did not directly belong to faith, but their agitation disturbed and tended to weaken it.

G. G. FiNDLAY.

DOVE. — The words translated 'dove' apply equally to doves and pigeons. In Palestine seven varieties of the Columbas are found. The most noticeable are: the '

DREAMS

wood pigeons or ring-doves (Columba palumbus), which fly in great flocks all over the land; the turtle-dove (Turtur communis), a harbinger of spring, arriving in the land in April (Jer 8', Ca 2i2); and the palm turtle-dove (Turtur senegalensis), which is common in a semi-domesticated state in the streets and courts of Jerusalem. 'Dove' is a favourite name of affection (Ca 1" 4' 5^- " 6"), and to-day it is one of the commonest names given to girls by Eastern Jewish parents. It is typical of harmlessness (Mt 10"), helplessness (Ps 74"), and innocence. The last quality doubtless makes it typical of the Holy Spirit (Mt 3" etc.). Doves were used in sacrifice (Lv 5' 12f etc.), and have been kept as pets for long ages. E. W. G. Masterman.

DOVES' DUNG.— 'A fourth part of a cab' of this material was sold at a high price in Samaria during the siege (2 K e^s). The words hart ySnlm, as they stand, are plain, and no suggested alternative has cleared up the difficulty. It is an example of the actual ex-tremity of the siege comparable with the threats of the approaching siege of 2 K 18^'. Whether, as Josephus suggests, the dung was a source of salt, or was used as medicine or as food, it is impossible to say.

E. W. G. Mastehman.

DOWRY. — See Marhiage.

DEACHM.— See Dram; Monet, §§ 4, 7.

DRAGON.— (1) tannlm (pi.), AV 'dragons,' but RV 'jackals,' Is I322 34" 35', Job 30", Ps 44>», Jer 10« 49". (2) tannSth, AV 'dragons.' but RV 'jackals,' Mai l'. See Jackal. (3) tannim (sing.), 'dragon,' Ezk 29' 32^, refers to Egypt, and probably means specially the crocodile (wh. see). (4) tannin (pi. tannlnim), tr. in RV of Gn 121 and Job 7" 'sea monsteT(s)' ( AV ' whale(s)') ; Aaron's rod became a tan-nin (Ex7'-", EV serpent [wh. see, §11]). Thesameterm, tannin, is also applied metaphorically to Pharaoh (Ps 74", Is 51'; and thus perhaps refers to the crocodile), and to Nebuchadnezzar (Jer 51"). Doubtless many references here and elsewhere ^.re tinged by current mythological tales of 'dragons,' such as that preserved in the Assyrian creation-epic of the contest between Marduk and Tiamat. The reference in Rev 123i'- is certainly of this nature. E. W. G. Masterman.

DRAM, from the Gr. drachma, is used in AV to render two words which RV, with questionable accuracy, has rendered 'darics' (see more fully under Monet, § 4). The 'ten pieces of silver' of Lk 15"-, however, were real drachmas, as marg. of AV and RV, for which see Monet, § 7.

DRAUGHT (Mt 1 5", Mk 7") and DRAUGHT HOUSE

(Amer. RV 'draught-house,' 2 K 10^') both signify a privy or closet, which in the Mishna is 'water-house.' Jehu, according to the last-cited passage, turned the temple of Baal in Samaria into public latrines.

DREAMS. — Sleep impressed primitive savages as a great mystery; and they consequently attributed a peculiar significance to the dreams of sleepers, as phe-nomena which they could not control by their will or explain by their reason. In the lowest stage of culture all dreams were regarded as objectively real experiences; the god or spirit actually visited the dreamer, the events dreamed actually occurred. Hence any one who was subject to frequent dreaming was looked on as a special medium of Divine energy, and many sought to produce the state by artificial means, e.g. fasting or the use of drugs. In process of time dreams came to be treated rather as Divine warnings than as actual occurrences. Such admonitions could be deliberately sought, e.g. by sleeping in a sacred spot, such as the temples of Asklepios or Serapis or the grotto of Trophonius; or they could come unsought, when the gods wished either to reveal or to deceive. (Plato, however, while allowing that the gods may send dreams, denies that they can wish to

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