GIBBAR

span (1 S 17*), not necessarily more than 7 ft. 4 In., but more probably 9 ft. 10 in., may well be regarded, with the enormous size and weight of his armour, as the natural exaggeration to be expected in a popular story. Even if the story is not historical in its present form, it arose out of the conflicts which David and his men were frequently having with those Philistine giants. There is no mention of the Rephaim or of a single giant after David's time.

4. As tr. of Heb. gibbSr = 'a mighty man,' as in Job 16"; cf. Ps 19« (Pr.-Bk. version). This is hardly a correct tr. of the word.

II. In the Apocrypha. — We find here some interest-ing allusions: (1) to the supposed destruction of the NephUlm by the Flood (Wis 14«, Sir 16', Bar 3»-!8); (2)_to the slaughter of the 'giant' by David (Sir 47').

F. H. Woods. GIBBAB. — A family which returned with Zerub. (Ezr 22"). The name is probably an error for Gibeon of Neh 7».

GIBBETHOH ( ' mound, ' 'height ') . —A town belonging to the tribe of Dan, and a Levltical city (Jos 19" 21i»). Nadab, king of Israel, was besieging it when he was slain by Baasha; and Omri was similarly engaged when he was made king by the army (1 K 15*' 16"-"). It is possibly the modern Kibbiah, to the N.E. of Lydda. 6IBEA.— A grandson of Caleb (1 Ch 2"). The list of the descendants of Judah through Caleb given in 1 Ch 2*22- is geographical rather than genealogical, and comprises all the towns lying in the Negeb of Judah to the S. of Hebron. Gibea is probably only a variation in spelling of the more common Gibeah, See Gibeah, 1. GIBEAH (Heb. gib'ah, 'a hill'). — The name, similar in form and meaning to Geba, attached to a place not far from that city. The two have sometimes been confused. It is necessary to note carefully where the word means 'hill' and where it is the name of a city. At least two places were so called. 1. A city in the mountains of Judah (Jos 15", perhaps also 2 Ch 13*), near Carmel and Ziph, to the S.E. of Hebron, and therefore not to be identified with the modern Jeba', 9 miles W. of Bethlehem (OnoTnast.); site unknown. 2. Gibeah of Benjamin (Jg 19'* etc.), the scene of the awful outrage upon the Levite's concubine, and of the conflict in which the assembled tribes executed such terrible vengeance upon Benjamin. It was the home of Israel's first Idng (1 S 10^), and was known as 'Gibeah of Saul' (1 S 11«, Is 102=); probably identical with 'Gibeah of God' (1 S lO* RVm). From the narrative regarding the Levite we learn that Gibeah lay near the N. road from Bethlehem, between Jerusa-lem and Ramah. It was near the point where the road from Geba joined the highway towards Bethel (Jg 20^1). Jg 2033 affords no guidance: Maareh-geba (RV) is only a transliteration of the words as they stand in MT. A sUght emendation of the text makes it read 'from the west of Gibeah,' which is probably correct (Moore, Judges, in loc). Josephus, who calls it ' Gabaothsaul ' (BJ V. ii. 1), places it 30 stadia N. of Jerusalem. The site most closely agreeing with these conditions is Tuleil d-FUl, an artificial mound, E. of the road to the N., about 4 miles from Jerusalem. The road to Jeba' leads off the main road immediately to the north of the site. Certain remains of ancient buildings there are, but nothing of importance has yet been discovered. As a place of strategic importance, Gibeah formed the base of Saul's operations against the Philistines (1 S 13. 14). There was enacted the tragedy in wliich seven of Saul's sons perished, giving occasion for the pathetic vigil of Rizpah. It appears in the description of Sen-nacherib's advance from the north (Is lO^s-s*).

W. BWING. GIBEATH (Heb. gib'ath, st. constr. of gib'ah), 'hiU of,' enters into the composition of place names, and is occasionally retained untranslated by RVm. Such in-

GIDEON

stances are: (o) Oibeath hO-'arOldth, ' hill of the foreskins,' where the Israelites were circumcised (Jos 5^). (B) Gibeath-Phinehas, in Mount Ephraim, where Eleazar was buried (Jos 243>); site unknown, (c) Gibeath ham-nareh (Jg 7' etc.; see Moheh, 2). (d) Oibeath hO-Blohlm (1 S 10') = Gibeah, 2. (e) Gibeath hO-HachUah (1 S 23i» etc.). See Hachilah. (/) Oibeath Ammah (2 S 2*'). See Ammah. (ff) Gibeath Gareb (Jer 3139). See Gareb, 2. W. Ewinq.

GIBEON. — A town in Palestine north of Jerusalem. Its inhabitants seem to have been Hivites (Jos 9'), though spoken of in 2 S 21* by the more general term 'Amorites.' It was a city of considerable size. Its inhabitants, by means of a trick, succeeded in making a truce with Joshua, but were reduced to servitude (Jos 9) ; a coalition of other Canaanite kings against it was destroyed by him (ch. 10). It became a Levitical city (21") in the tribe of Benjamin (IS^s). The circum-stances of the destruction of part of the Gibeonites by Saul (2 S 21') are unknown. Here the champions of David fought those of the rival king Ish-bosheth (2 S 212-32), and defeated them; and here Joab murdered Amasa (20'). The 'great stone' in Gibeon was prob-ably some part of the important high place which we know from 1 K 3* was situated here. The statement of the parallel passage, 2 Ch 13, that the ark was placed here at the time, is probably due merely to the desire of the Chronicler to explain Solomon's sacrificing there in the light of the Deuteronomic legislation. Here Solomon was vouchsafed a theophany at the beginning of his reign. In Jer iV^ we again hear of Gibeon, in connexion with Johanan's expedition against Ishmael to avenge the murder of Gedaliah.

The city has constantly been identified with el-Jib, and there can be little or no doubt that the identification is correct. This is a small village standing on an isolated hill about 5 miles from Jerusalem. The hill is rocky and regularly terraced. It is remarkable chiefly for its copious springs — a reputation it evidently had in an-tiquity (2 S 213, Jer 41"). Ninety-five Gibeonites returned from Babylon under Zerubbabel (Neh T^), and Gibeonites were employed in repairing part of the wall of Jerusalem (3'). At Gibeon, Cestius GaUus en-camped in his march from Antipatris to Jerusalem.

R. A. S. Macalister.

GIDDALTI ('I magnify [God]').— A son of Heman (1 Ch 25<- 2S).

GIDDEL ('very great'). — 1. The eponym of a family of Nethinim (Ezr 2" = Neh 7"); called in 1 Es 53° Cathua. 2. The eponym of a family of 'Solomon's servants' (Ezr 2™ = Neh 7"); called in 1 Es 533 Isdael.

GIDEON. — The son of Joash, a Manassite; he dwelt in Ophrah, a place hitherto unidentified, which belonged to the clan of the Abiezrites. Gideon has also the names of Jerubbaal (Jg 632) and Jerubbesheth (2 S H^O. After the victory of the Israelites, under the guidance of Deborah, over the Canaanites, the land had rest for forty years (an indefinite period). Apostasy from Jahweh again resulted in their being oppressed, this time by the neighbouring Bedouin tribes, the Midianites and Amalekites. The underlying idea is that, since the Israelites did not exclusively worship their national God, He withdrew His protection, with the result that another nation, aided by its national god, was enabled to overcome the unprotected Israelites. A return to obedience, and recognition of Jahweh the national God, ensures His renewed protection; relief from the oppressor is brought about by some chosen instrument, of whom it is always said that Jahweh is 'with him'; this is also the case with Gideon (Jg 612),

The sources of the story of Gideon, preserved in Jg 61-833, offer some difllcult problems, upon which scholars differ considerably; all that can he said with certainty is that the narrative is composite, that the hand of the redactor is visible in certain verses (e.g.

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