PILLAR, PLAIN OF THE

This question can hardly be approached without a reference to the still unsolved problem of the religious signiflcance of 'standing stones' all the world over. This world-wide phenomenon ' must rest on some cause which was operative in all primitive religions' (W. R. Smith, RS' 209). It will probably be found, on con-sideration of all the conditions to be satisfied, that the desire to appease the spirit of the dead lies at the be-ginning, while the conception of the pillar-stone as a representation of the deity, beside the altar dedicated to his worship, comes at the end of a long process of evolution. On this view, a stone, over or beside the grave of the dead, afforded, to the primitive mind, a convenient abode for the departed spirit, when it chose to return to receive the homage and offerings of the living. The blood of the sacrifice was poured over the stone, and thus brought into contact with the in-dwelling spirit (cf. the cup-marks on the cap-stones of the dolmens on the east of the Jordan and elsewhere). With this desire to do honour to the dead, the idea of keeping alive his memory by a conspicuous or upright stone was sooner or later associated. When and where higher Ideas of the spirit world prevailed, the mazzibSh became a memorial stone and nothing more, as in group (o) above.

The belief that a stone might become the abode of any numen marked a distinct step in advance. In Gn 2S it is admitted that we have a later adaptation of a Ganaanite temple myth, which explained the origin of the sanctuary at Bethel, and especially the sanctity attaching to the original beth-el, i.e., the abode of an el or numen (.v.^), round which the sanctuary grew up. In the original form of the story the anointing of the stone was an offering to the indwelling numen. The second of the Gezer mazzebdhs shows an exact counter-part to this. The cavities in the other recently dis-covered mMzzibahs, above mentioned, were no doubt originally intended to receive similar offerings of blood, wine, or oil (cf. Gu 35").

When this fetish worship had been outgrown, the mazzebah became merely a symbol or representation of the deity, who had his home elsewhere. The conical pillar standing in the court of the temple of Astarte, as represented on the coins of Byblus, is an illustration of this higher conception. We may be sure that the worshippers of J" regarded the Ganaanite mazzebshs in this light from the first. But the danger of con-tamination was great (see High Place, § 6), and the condemnation of the mazzibahs is a recurring feature of all the law codes (reff. above).

6. Another unsolved problem may be mentioned In conclusion. What is the relation of the mazzSbSk to the altar? Shall we say, with the distinguished author of the Religion of the Semites' (p. 204), that 'the altar is a differentiated form of the primitive rude stone pillar, the nosb or massebah'; or, with the latest investigator, that ' the massebah is nothing else than the artificial sulDstitute for the sacrificial stone' (Kittel, op. cit. 1 29, 134) ? If the views expressed in the previous section are correct, the second alternative offers the more probable solution. The pillar will then be a differentiated form of the most ancient altar (Altar, §§ 1. 2), the cause of the differentiation, as we have seen, being the desire to commemorate, as well as to appease, the dead. A. R. S. Kennedy.

PILLAR, PLAIN OF THE.— In Jg 9» we read that the men of Shechem made Abimelech king 'by the plain (AV; RV 'oak,' RVm 'terebinth') of the pillar.' The correct translation is undoubtedly 'the terebinth of the pillar,' the meaning being the sanctuary of Shechem. The 'pillar' refers to the sacred stone, originally a fetish, which was often found in holy places along with the sacred tree (see preced. article).

W. F. BOTD.

PILLOW.— The 'pUlow' of Mk 4=8 (AV) is the

PISIDIA

cushion (so RV) used by rowers. See also Bolster and House, 8.

PILTAI.— A priestly house (Neh 12i').

PINE TREE.— 1. •lls-shemen, Neh 8'', see Oil Tree. 2. tUhdr, Is iV [RVm 'plane'] 60". From similarity to the Syr. daddar ('elm'), the tidhar has been supposed to be the elm, but quite as probably may have been a kind of pine; of these the two common varieties known in Syria are the Aleppo or maritime iPinus halepensis), and the stone (P. pinea) with its umbrella-like top. E. W. G. Masterman.

PINNACLE. — This word has been adopted by our EV from the Vulgate of Mt 4' ipinnaculum) to indicate the spot within the Temple enclosure from which the devil tempted our Lord to cast Himself down. The precise nature and location of 'the pinnacle of the temple' (Mt.i.c, Lk 4' [both RV]), however, are nowhere indicated. The context and the use of the word usually employed for the whole complex of buildings as op-posed to that which denotes the Temple proper (see plan in art. Temple, § 12) rather favour the view that the 'pinnacle' is to be sought in the neighbourhood of the S.E. corner, where the royal ' porch ' met that of Solomon. Here, as Josephus informs us — and the excavations corroborate his testimony — a spectator looking down into the valley of the Kidron ' would turn giddy, while his sight could not reach down so such an abyss ' (Ant. XV. xi. 6). Many authorities, on the contrary, favour some part of the roof of the Temple building itself.

A. R. S. Kennedy.

PINON.— An Edomite 'duke' (Gn 36«, 1 Ch l"), prob. same name as Punon of Nu 33>":

PIPE.— See Music, etc., § 4 (2) (o).

PIRAM. — The king of Jarmuth, defeated by Joshua at Beth-horon and afterwards put to death (Jos 10"^-).

PIRATHON, PIRATHONITE.— Pirathon 'in the

land of Ephraim' was the home of Abdon 'the Pira-thonite' (Jg 12"- "), and of Benaiah, one of David's heroes (2 S 23'» etc.). It can hardly have been identical with Parathon (wh. see), but it is probably represented by either Fer'on or Fer'ata. W. Ewino.

PISGAH. — A mountain in the region of Moab, with a commanding view over both the desert (Nu 21'") and Western Palestine. Hither the Israelites journeyed from Bamoth, and there took place the extraordinary episode of Balaam, who on the top of Pisgah built seven altars (Nu 23"). Its principal distinction, however, is its being the scene of Moses' vision of the Promised Land (Dt 3" 341) and of his death. It fell into the territory of Reuben (Jos IS"" [AV Ashdoth-pisgah, as in 12' and Dt 3"; RV in all three ' slopes (mg. ' springs ') or Pisgah ']) .

An alternative name for Pisgah is Nebo (wh. see), referred to in Dt 32" as the scene of the death of Moses. The latter name is preserved by Jebel Neba, a range whose summit reaches a height of 2643 feet and commands a view of a large part of Western Palestine. It is 5 miles S.W. of Heshbon, and runs westward from the Moabite plateau. R. A. S. Macalister.

PISHON.— See Eden [Garden of].

PISIDIA. — The name applied to a district about 120 miles long and 50 miles broad, immediately N. of the plains of Pamphylia. It is entirely occupied by the numerous ranges into which the Taurus here breaks, with the deep intersecting valleys. The name was not applied to a definite political division, and nothing is known of the race inhabiting Pisidia. Until the time of Augustus they were wild mountaineers and brigands. Augustus began their reduction about B.C. 25 by estab-lishing a chain of Roman posts which included on the N. side Antioch and Lystra, reconstituted as colonies. The name ' Pisidian Antioch ' (Ac 13") would seem to record this fact, since Antioch was never included in

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