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Dictionary of the Bible

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LYE

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prosperous, dealing as she did in very fine wares. It lias been held that Lydia is the proper name of this woman; but it seems more likely that it merely means 'the Lydian,' and that it was the designation by which she was ordinarily known at Phllippl. She is not mentioned (at least, by that name) in St. Paul's Epistle to the Philippians, and unless we identify her with Euodia or Syntyche, she had probably left the city when the Apostle wrote; for a conjecture of Renan's, see art. Synzygus. The incident in Ac 16 is one example out of many of the comparatively independent position of women in Asia Minor and Macedonia.

A. J. Maclean. LYE. See Nitke and Soap.

LYRE. See Music and Musical Instruments, 4 (1) (a).

LYSANIAS. This tetrarch of Abilene is mentioned only in Lk 3'. St. Luke has been accused of gross inaccuracy here, and is said tfl be referring to a Lysanias who died b.c. 36. But that Lysanias was king (not tetrarch) of Ohalcis (not Abilene). Josephus speaks of ' Abila of Lysanias ' and of a tetrarchy of Lysanias; he is confirmed on the latter point by a medal and an in-scription. Thus Luke's statement is made at least quite probable. Perhaps Lysanias was a dynastic name of the rulers of Abilene. Abila was the capital of Abilene, and lay on the N. side of Mount Hermon. See also Abilene. A. J. Maclean.

LYSIAS. 1. A general of Antiochus Epiphanes, charged with a war of extermination against the Jews (1 Mac 3™., cf. 2 Mac 10" lli«); defeated at Bethsura (1 Mac 4'<''-) ; after the death of Epiphanes he championed the cause of Eupator, and finally suffered death along with the latter at the hands of Demetrius (6"«- » 7^-*, 2 Mac 142). Cf. art. Maccabees, § 2.

2. See next article.

LYSIAS, CLAUDIUS.— A chiliarch of a cohort in Jerusalem who rescued St. Paul from the Jews in the Temple and took him to the 'Castle,' the fortress Antonia which commanded the Temple. His second

MAASEAS

name shows him to have been a Greek, but he had bought the Roman citizenship (Ac 22^8) and taken the name Claudius. On account of a plot he sent St. Paul guarded to Felix at Caesarea, and wrote a letter of which the version in Ac 23'«, although doubtless only a para-phrase, yet clearly represents the true sense. It is just what we should expect from Lysias, being much more favourable to his course of action than the real facts warranted. (See art. Eqyptian [The]).

A. J. Maclean.

LTSIMACHITS.— 1. The translator of the Greek edition of Esther into Greek (Ad. Est 11'). 2. The brother of the high priest Menelaus. He excited the hatred of the populace by his systematic plundering of the Temple treasures, and was finally killed in a riot (2 Mac 42»- »»-«).

LYSTBA (modern Khatyn Serai). A city situated about 18 miles S.S.W. of Iconlum in the south of the Roman province Galatia and in the Lycaonian part of that province, connected with Pisidian Antioch by the direct miUtary 'Imperial road,' which did not pass through Iconium (Ramsay in Studies in the History and ArtoftheEastemProvincesoftheBomanEmpire, p. 2ilO.). Both Pisidian Antioch and Lystra were 'colonies' (see Colony) estabUshed by the Emperor Augustus in a.d. 6 to make the Roman occupation more effective, and the ofScial language of these was Latin. Hardly any re-mains of the city exist above groimd. No trace of the temple of Zeus-before-the-City (Ac 14") has been found, but it is probable that a coUege of priests was attached to it. The sacrifice to Barnabas and Paul as Zeus and Hermes (or rather the national Lycaonian gods corresponding to these) took place at the entrance to it. The town appears not to have been much Grecized, and the uncultivated populace expressed themselves in Lycaonian. There were Jews in Lystra (Ac 16'), but there was evidently no synagogue. Timothy was a native of Lystra, which was visited by St. Paul four times in all (Ac 14»- 21 16' 18!»), and addressed by him in the Epistle to the Galatians. A. Souteb.

M

UAACAH.— 1. A eon of Nahor (Gn 22"). 2. The daughter of Talmai, wife of David, and mother of Absalom (2 S 3' etc.). 3. The father of Achish, king of Oath (1 K 2"), possibly the same as Maoch (1 S 27^).

4. Wife of Rehoboam, and mother of Abijah (2 Ch H^"). When she is called 'daughter' of Absalom (1 K IS^- '•, 2 Ch IV"), 'granddaughter' may be intended, as Absalom had but one daughter, Tamar, who may have married Uriel of Gibeah (2 Ch 13^, where the name is given as Micaiah; cf. Jos. Ant. vii. x. 1). Maacah fell under the spell of loathsome idolatry, for which Asa deposed her from the position of queen-mother, which she appears to have held till then (1 K 15", 2 Ch 15").

5. A concubine of Caleb (1 Ch 2"). 6. Wife of Machir (1 Ch 7"'). 7. Wife of Jehiel, the father of Gibeon (1 Ch 8" 9»). 8. One of David's warriors, father of Hanan (1 Ch 11"). 9. The father of Shephatiah, the captain of the Simeonltes (1 Ch 27'»). W. Ewing.

MAACAH. A small kingdom out of which the Aramsean (1 Ch 19») inhabitants were not driven (Jos 13"). It probably lay in what is now known as the Jaulan, E. of the Sea of Galilee and the Upper Jordan (Dt 3", Jos 12' 13"), but its borders cannot now be determined. Its king and army were hired against David by the Ammonites, and shared their overthrow in the

battle fought near Medeba (2 S 10, 1 Ch 19). The inhabitants were called Maacathites (2 S 23" etc.).

W. EwiNO.

MAADAI. One of the sons of Bani, who had married a foreign wife (Ezr 10"); 1 Es 9" Momdis.

MAADIAH. A priestly family which returned with Zerubbabel (Neh 12»); called in v." Moadiah.

UAAI. One of the sons of Asaph who took part in the dedication of the walls (Neh 12»).

mAALEH-ACBABBIM.— Jos 15' AV ('ascent of Akrabbim,' RV). See Akrabbim.

MAANI (1 Es S«0 = Meunim, Ezr 2«», Neh 7«.

HAABATH.— A town of Judah (Jos IS"). Possibly the name survives in Belt 'UmmOr, west of 'Tekoa.

MAABEH-GEBA (AV 'the meadows of Gibeah,' RVm 'the meadow of Geba'). The place from which the men placed in ambush rushed forth to attack the Benjamites (Jg 20"). There can be little doubt that we ought to emend MT to ' to the west of Geba ' (better Gibeah).

MAASAI. The name of a priestly family (1 Ch 9")-

MAASEAS. The grandfather of Baruch (Bar 1') = Mabseiah of Jer 32'2 51".

2N

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