ELI

of these two texts is instructive, because they offer one of the clearest and simplest examples of how easy it is for corruptions to creep into the OT text. It is difficult, without using Hebrew letters, to show how this is the case here; but the following points may be noticed. Oregim means 'weavers,' a word which occurs in the latter halt of the verse in each case, and may easily have got displaced in the 2 Sam. passage; in both the texts the word which should be the equiva-lent of Jair is wrongly written; the words 'the Bethle-hemite' (2 Sam.) and 'Lahmi the brother of (1 Chr.) look almost identical when written in Hebrew. The original text, of which each of these two verses is a corruption, probably ran: 'And Elhanan the son of Jair, the Bethlehemite, slew Goliath the Gittite, the staff of whose spear was like a weaver's beam.' But if this is so, how are we to reconcile it with what we read of David's kilUng Goliath? Judging from what we know of the natural tendency there is to ascribe heroic deeds to great national warriors, realizing the very corrupt state of the Hebrew text of the Books of Samuel, and remembering the conflicting accounts given of David's first introduction to public Ufe (see David, § 1), the probabihty is that Elhanan slew Goliath, and that this heroic deed was in later times ascribed to David.

2. In 2 S 23»' and 1 Ch ll^s Elhanan the son of Dodo of Bethlehem is numbered among David's ' mighty men.' Remembering that the word Jair above is wrongly written in each case, and that it thus shows signs of corruption, it is quite possible that this Elhanan and the one just referred to are one and the same.

W. O. E. Gestehlet.

ELI (possibly an abbreviated form of Eliel, ' God Is high'). — The predecessor of Samuel as 'judge,' and high priest in the sanctuary at Shiloh. Excepting in the final scene of his life, every time he comes before us it is in connexion with others who occupy the position of greater interest. Thus in his interviews with Hannah, in the first one it is she in whom the chief interest centres (1 S 1™); in the second it is the child Samuel (v.^"'). The next time he is mentioned it is only as the father of Hophni and Phinehas, the whole passage' being occupied with an account of their evil doings (2'2ff). Again, in 2?'"'-, Eli is mentioned only as the listener to ' a man of God ' who utters his prophecy of evil. And lastly, in his dealings with the boy Samuel the whole account (ch. 3) is really concerned with Samuel, while Eli plays quite a subsidiary part. All this seems to illustrate the personality of Eli as that of a humble-minded, good man of weak character; his lack of infiuence over his sons only serves to emphasize this estimate. W. O. E. Oesterlet.

ELI, ELI, LAMA SABACHTHAHI.— SeeELOi, Eloi, etc.

ELIAB ('God is father'). — 1, The representative, or 'prince,' of the tribe of Zebulun, who assisted Moses and Aaron in numbering the children of Israel in the wilderness of Sinai (Nu 1'"). 2. The father of Dathan and Abiram (Nu 16'). 3. The eldest brother of David, and thought by Samuel to have been destined for kingship in Israel on account of his beauty and stature (1 S IB"- '). He is mentioned as being a warrior in the Israelite camp on the occasion of Goliath's challenge to and defiance of the armies of Israel; he rebukes his , younger brother David for his presumption in mixing himself up with the affairs of the army; his attitude towards David, after the victory of the latter over GoUath, is not mentioned. 4. One of the musicians who were appointed by the Levltes, at David'scommand, to accompany the procession which was formed on the occasion of bringing the ark from the house of Obed-edom up to Jerusalem (1 Ch IS'*). 5. One of the Gadites who joined David, during his outlaw life, in the hold in the wilderness (1 Ch 12»). 6. An ancestor

ELIEHOENAI

of Samuel (1 Ch 6"; see ELinn No. 1). 7. One of Judith's ancestors (Jth 8'). W. O. E. Oesterley.

ELIADA.— 1. A son of David (2 S S") ; called Beeliada in 1 Ch 14'. 2 . Father of Rezon, an ' adversary ' of Solo-mon (1 K 1123). 3. A warrior of Benjamin (2 Ch 17").

ELIADAS (1 Es 928) = Ezr 10" Elioeani.

ELIAHBA.— One of David's 'Thirty' (2 S 23»2, 1 Ch H»).

ELIAKIU ('God will estabUsh').— 1. The son of Hilkiah, he who was 'over the household' of king Hezekiah, and one of the three who represented the king during the interview with Sennacherib's emis-saries (2 K 1818, Is 36'). In Is 22"-^ (v.^ seems to be out of place) he is contrasted favourably with his predecessor Shebnah (who is still in office), and the prophet prophesies that Eliakim shall be a 'father' in the land. 2. The name of king Josiah's son, who reigned after him ; Pharaoh-necho changed his name to Jehoiakim (2 K 23^). 3. In Neh 121' a priest of this name is mentioned as one among those who assisted at the ceremony of the dedication of the wall. 4. The son of Abiud (Mt 1"). 5. The son of Melea (Lk 3™). The last two occur in the genealogies of our Lord.

W. O. E. Oesterley.

ELIALI (1 Es 98*). — The name either corresponds to Binnui in Ezr lO^s or is unrepresented there.

ELIASI. — 1. Father of Bathsheba, whose first husband was a Hittite, 1 S 11' ( = 1 Ch 3=, where Eliam is called Ammiel). 2. Son of Ahithophel the Gilonite, and one of David's heroes (2 S 23M). It is not impossible that this EUam is the same as the preceding.

ELIAONIAS (1 Es S^i).— A descendant of Phaath-moab, who returned from Babylon with Esdras. In Ezr 8' Eliehoenai.

ELIAS. — See Elijah.

ELIASAPH.— 1. Son of Deuel, and prince of Gad at the first census (Nu 1" 2" 7«- " lO^" P). 2. Son of Lael, and prince of the Gershonltes (Nu 32« P).

ELIASHIB.— 1 . The high priest who was contemporary with Nehemiah. He was son of Joiakim, grandson of Jeshua the son of Jozadak, the contemporary of Zerub-babel (Neh 12i», Ezr 31), and father of Joiada (Neh 12i« 1328). He assisted in the rebuilding of the walls of Jerus, during Nehemiah's governorship (Neh 3'). He can have had no sympathy with the exclusive policy of Ezra and Nehemiah, for both he himself and members of his family allied themselves with the leading foreign opponents of Nehemiah. See Joiada, No. 2, Tobiah, and Sanballat. 2. A singer of the time of Ezra, who had married a foreign wife (Ezr W"); called in 1 Es 9" Eliasibus. 3. An Israelite of the family of Zattu (Ezr 10"; in 1 Es 928 Eliasimus) ; and 4. another of the family of Bani (Ezr 10»«; called in 1 Es 9*" Enasibus), who had married foreign wives. 5. A son of Elioenai (1 Ch 3^). 6. Thenameof a priestly house (1 Ch 2412). 7. Father of Jehohanan, to whose chamber in the Temple Ezra resorted (Ezr 10=): possibly identical with No. 1.

ELIASIB (1 Es 9').— A high priest in the time of Neh. ; in Ezr 10° Eliasbib.

ELIASIBUS (AV Eleazurus, 1 Es 9»').— One of the 'holy singers,' who put away his strange wife. In Ezr W Elaishib.

ELIASIMUS, 1 Es 928=Ezr I02' Ellashib.

ELIASIS (1 Es 98«).— This name and Enasibus may be duplicate forms answering to Eliashib in Ezr 10».

ELIATHAH. — A Hemanite, whose family formed the twentieth division of the Temple service (1 Ch 25<- ").

ELIDAD. — Son of Chislon, and Benjamin's repre-sentative for dividing the land, Nu 34" P (perh. =EIdad, one of the elders, Nu U^'- E).

ELIEHOENAI.— 1. A Korahite (1 Ch 26>). 2. The

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