PLAISTER, PLASTER

the other view see Driver's art. 'Zoar' in Hastings' DB).

The nature ot the catastrophe which destroyed the cities can only be conjectured. It may perhaps be suggested that the bitumen which abounds in the neighbourhood of the Dead Sea was ignited by lightning, and that this caused an extensive conflagration in which the cities perished. G. W. Wade.

PLAISTER, PLASTER.— 1. See Arts and Cbafts, § 4. House, §4.

2. The 'plaister' (Is 38»; Amer. RV etc., 'plaster') which Isaiah prescribed for Hezel^iah's boil was a fig- poultice, according to the text of 2 K 20', but the parallel passage above cited reads literally, 'let them talie a cal^e of figs and rub it upon the boil.'

A. R. S. Kennedy.

PLANE. — Is 44" only; see Arts and Cratts, § 1. For 'plane tree' see Chestnut Tree, Pine Thee.

, PLEAD. — In AV ' plead ' always means to ' argue tor or against a cause' as in a court of justice, never to 'pray' or 'beseech.' The substantive 'pleading' Is used in the same sense in Job 13° 'Hearken to the pleadings of my lips.'

PLEDGE. — The taking of a pledgefor there-payment of a loan was sanctioned by the Law, but a humanitarian provision was introduced to the effect that, when this pledge consisted of the large square outer garment or cloak called sinUah, it must be returned before nightfall, since this garment often formed the only covering of the poor at night (Ex 22^i-, Dt 24^"-; cf. Am 28, Job 22« 249, Ezk 18'- «• « 3315). it was forbidden also to take the mill or the upper millstone as a pledge (Dt 24»). In Is 36' the reference is to a pledge to be forfeited if a wager is lost (cf. RVm). In 1 S 17" 'take their pledge' probably means 'bring back a token ot their welfare' (Driver).

PLEIADES.— See Stars.

PLEROMA. — The transliteration of a Gr. word which is generally rendered 'fulness' in the NT. plSrBma is derived from the verb pl^oun, which means either (o) 'to fill,' or (6) 'to fill up,' hence 'to fulfil.' The corresponding meanings of the noun are (a) 'fulness,' (6) 'fulfilment.'

1. pleroma=' th&t which fills.' — The word has this meaning in the LXX version of Ps 24' (cf . LXX Ezk 5^ Dn IC) quoted in 1 Co 10™ 'The earth is the Lord's and the fulness thereof; also in Mk e" (cf. S^"), where the fragments of the loaves are described as amounting to 'the fillings of twelve baskets.'

2. pleroma=' tha,t which fills up.' — The word has this meaning in Mk 22> (cf. Mt 9") which refers to the effect of sewing a piece of undressed cloth on a worn garment: 'That which should fill it up (to plSrSma) taketh from it, the new from the old, and a worse rent is made.' Lightfoot says the patch 'must be called' the pUrdma ' not because it fills the hole, but because it is itself fulness or full measure as regards the defect.' His paraphrase is 'the completeness takes away from the garment, the new completeness of the old garment' (Com. on Col., Note on ' The meaning of plSrBma'). The obscurity of this statement is removed by the active interpretation: the supplementary 'unfulled' patch takes away from the original garment. The new piece used to fill up the rent ' tears itself away by contraction when wetted, taking a part of the old garment along with it' (Bruce, EGT i. 153).

To this section belong: (a) Ro IS", which contrasts partial fulfilment of the Law, secured by obedience to this or that commandment, with love's complete filling up of the measure ot neighbourly duty. (6) Ro 11'2, which contrasts the enriching of the Gentiles through Israel's loss with what Dr. Armitage Robinson (Com. on Eph.) happily describes as 'wealth in store tor them in the great Return, when all Israel shall be saved —

PLUMBLINE, PLUMMET

" when God hath made the pile complete I " ' (c) Ro ll^s, in which the coming in of 'the fulness of the Gentiles' refers to the completing of their whole number. The same idea is expressed in the phrase 'the fulness of the seasons' (Eph 1'" RVm; cf. 'the fulness of the time,' Gal 4<).

3. p;eroma='that which is filled,' or 'that which is filled up.' — In its passive use pllrOma means 'pleni-tude,' whether fulness is contrasted with incompleteness or with emptiness. As the plenipotentiary of Christ, St. Paul (Ro 15") is confident that he will come to Rome ' In the fulness of the blessing of Christ.'

Six important passages remain; they may be classified according as 'the plenitude Divine' is said to be (o) in Christ, (6) imparted by Christ to His Church, (c) imparted to believers.

(a) In Col 2» St. Paul declares that in Christ ' dwelleth all the fulness of the Godhead bodily.' The assertion 'negatives the Alexandrian "philosophy" with its cloud of mediating angel-powers and spiritual emana-tions' (Findlay, Pulpit Com., in loc). The defining phrase ' ot the Godhead ' is not found in Col 1", which bases the pre-eminence ot Christ on the indwelling in Him ot 'all the fulness.' Instead ot making this ex-pression identical in meaning with the more definite statement in 2', it is better with Meyer (Com., in loc.) to expound pleroma as referring to ' the whole treasure of Divine grace ' with which the Son of God was endowed. A suggestive parallel to these Pauline sayings is furnished by Jn 1", 'of his fulness we all received, and grace for grace.' The fulness is ours, if we are Christ's. 'In him,' says St. Paul (Col 2"), 'ye are made full.'

(6) In Eph V it is probable that St. Paul describes the Church as 'the fulness ot him that fiUeth all in all.' The main thought is what Christ is to the Church; He is its Head and in Him it is complete. Dr. Armitage Robinson (op. dt.) regards the Church as 'the fulfilment ot the Christ who, all in all, is being fulfilled.' According to this interpretation the main thought is what the Church is to Christ. Moreover, the adverbial phrase 'all in all' seems inadequate to express the meaning of the emphatic assertion: He filleth 'the all with all things.' The objection to the active rendering of the verb (pUroumenou), which is middle or passive, does not apply to Dr. Salmond's exposition of the reflexive middle: it conveys 'the idea of filling the totality of things for Himself (EGT iii. 281).

(c) To individual believers as well as to His Church Christ imparts the plenitude of His grace. Eph 4" gives the measure of the stature ot the 'full grown' Christian; it is nothing less than the fulness which belongs to Christ, by which is meant ' the full possession on our side of that which Christ has to impart — the embodiment in us, the members, of the graces and qualities which are in Him the Head ' (Salmond, EGT iii. 333). An earlier passage in this Epistle (3i««) teaches that this exalted ideal may be attaiined. When, as the result of the Holy Spirit's inward strengthening, Christ dwells within the heart, and His knowledge-surpassing love is known, the only limit to spiritual excellence is ' to be filled unto all the fulness ot God.' J . G. Tasker.

PLOUGH. — See AGRicaLTUEE, § 1.

PLUMBLDfE, PLUMMET.— Thelatterisadiminutive of 'plumb,' from Lat. plumbum, 'lead,' and denotes the combined cord and weight, by suspending which against a wall it can be seen whether or not the latter is perpendicular. On the strength of Zee 4i» (lit. ' the stone, the tin,' not 'lead'; cf. AVm) it has been inferred that the Hebrew masons used a plumb-bob of lead, but the text of this passage is undoubtedly corrupt (Wellh., Marti, Nowack). The Hebrew plummet (2 K 21", Is 28") more probably consisted of a stone (Is 34" AV, but RV 'plummet') suspended by a cord, the 'plumbline'of Am7"-. Cf. Arts and Crafts, § 3.

A. R. S. Kennedy.

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