RHODOCUS
to
Csesarea
(Ac
21'),
as
it
was
a
regular
port
of
call
on
that
route.
Rhodes
is
mentioned
in
1
Mac
IS^^
as
one
of
the
free
States
to
which
the
Romans
sent
letters
in
favour
of
the
Jews.
Ezk
27",
according
to
the
LXX,
reads
'sons
of
the
Rhodians':
this
is
an
error;
the
mention
of
them
in
Gn
10^
(LXX)
and
1
Ch
1'
(LXX)
is
probably
correct.
The
famous
Colossus
was
a
statue
of
the
sun-god
at
the
harbour
entrance,
105
feet
high.
It
stood
only
from
e.g.
280
to
224.
A.
Souteh.
RHODOCUS.
—
A
Jewish
traitor
(2
Mac
IS^')-RIBAI.—
The
father
of
Ittai
(2
S
23"
=
1
Ch
lis')-RIBLAH.
—
1.
An
important
town
(mod.
Ribleh)
and
military
station
on
the
eastern
bank
of
the
Orontes,
60
miles
S.
of
Hamath.
It
is
mentioned
in
the
Bible
only
in
the
literature
of
the
Chaldasan
period,
and
was
appar-ently
the
headquarters
of
Nebuchadrezzar
the
Great
for
his
South-Syrian
and
Palestinian
dominions.
From
this
position
the
Phoenician
cities
of
the
coast
were
within
easy
command,
as
also
were
Cosle-Syria
and
the
kingdom
of
Damascus,
along
with
the
land-routes
leading
farther
south.
Here
judgment
was
pronounced
upon
Zedekiah
and
his
officers
(2
K
25»-
20.
2i_
jer
39='-629flO-
The
statement
of
2
K
23^,
that
Pharaoh-necho
put
Jehoahaz
in
bonds
at
Riblah
in
the
land
of
Hamath,
is
to
be
corrected
by
the
parallel
passage
2
Ch
36^,
where
the
transaction
is
said
to
have
taken
place
in
Jerusalem
itself.
The
true
reading
is,
'and
Pharaoh-necho
removed
him
from
reigning
in
Jerusalem'
(cf.
also
the
LXX).
It
was
the
later
action
of
Nebuchadrezzar
with
regard
to
Zedekiah,
above
referred
to,
that
suggested
the
change
in
the
text.
The
phrase
'in
the
land
of
Hamath'
(2
K
25^1)
is
to
be
com-pared
with
the
'nineteen
districts
of
Hamath'
enumerated
in
the
Annals
of
Tiglath-pileser
in.
Riblah
should
be
read
for
Diblah
in
Ezk
6".
See
No.
2.
2.
Riblah
(with
the
article)
is,
it
the
reading
is
correct,
mentioned
as
one
of
the
eastern
boundary
marks
of
Israel
in
Nu
34".
The
place
intended
was
not
far
N.E.
of
the
Sea
of
Galilee,
but
the
exact
site
is
unknown.
It
was,
of
course,
not
the
Riblah
on
the
Orontes.
It
is
remarkable,
however,
that
this
Riblah
is
mentioned
in
connexion
with
the
'approach
to
Hamath*
(v.
8),
which,
as
Winckler
has
shown,
was
on
the
S.W.
of
Mt.
Hermon,
and
the
centre
of
the
kingdom
of
Hamath
of
the
time
of
David.
Cf.
Ezk
6"
as
above
corrected.
J.
F.
McCtrKDT.
RIDDLES.—
See
Games,
and
Pkoverb,
2.
RIE
(the
AV
spelling
of
'rye')
occurs
twice
(Ex
9^^
Is
28**)
in
AV
as
rendering
of
kussemeth,
which
in
Ezk
4'
is
rendered
'fitches.'
In
all
three
passages
RV
has
'spelt.'
Whatever
kussemeth
was,
it
was
neither
true
rye,
which
is
a
cereal
unknown
in
Palestine,
nor
spelt.
See
Fitches.
E.
W.
G.
M.iSTE»MAN.
RIGHTEOUSNESS.—
I.
In
OT.—
'Righteousness,'
'righteoxas*
(except
in
a
few
passages)
stand
m
EV
for
some
offshoot
of
the
Semitic
root
tsdq
which
is
met
with
as
early
as
the
Tell
el-Amama
letters
in
the
sense
of
'to
be
innocent.*
The
Heb.
derivatives
are
the
adjective
tsadduj
and
the
nouns
isedeq
and
tseddqdh
(which
seem
to
be
practically
indistinguishable
in
meaning),
and
the
verbal
forms
isddaq,
hitsdlq,
etc.
This
group
of
words
is
represented
in
EV
in
about
400
passages
by
'
righteousness,'
'
nghteous,'
etc.;
in
the
remainder,
about
one-fifth
of
the
whole,
by
"
just,'
'justice,'
'justify,'
'right.'
Whether
the
primary
notion
was
'straightness'
or
'hardness'
is
uncertain,
and
quite
immaterial
for
the
present
inquiry.
The
material
can
be
conveniently
arranged
under
two
heads:
(1)
righteousness
in
common
speech;
(2)
righteousness
in
religious
terminology.
The
order
is
not
without
significance.
It
has
been
justly
remarked
that
the
development
of
the
idea
of
righteousness
in
OT
moves
in
the
opposite
direction
to
that
traversed
by
the
idea
of
holiness.
Whilst
the
latter
starts
from
the
Divine
and
comes
down
to
the
human,
the
former
begins
with
the
human
and
ascends
to
the
Divine.
1.
Righteousness
in
common
speech.
—
(a)
It
is
perhaps
safest
to
begin
with
the
forensic
or
juristic
application,
The
plaintiff
or
defendant
in
a
legal
case
RIGHTEOUSNESS
who
was
in
the
right
was
'righteous'
(Dt
25',
Is
5^);
and
his
claim
resting
on
his
good
behaviour
was
'righteousness'
(1
K
8'^).
A
judge
who
decided
in
favour
of
such
a
person
gave
'righteous
judgment,'
lit.
'judgment
of
righteousness'
(Dt
IB'*),
judged
'righteously'
(Dt
1").
The
Messianic
King,
who
would
be
the
ideal
judge,
would
be
'
swift
to
do
righteousness
'
(Is
160,
would
'judge
the
poor
with
righteousness'
(11'),
and
would
have
'righteousness
for
the
girdle
of
his
loins'
(v.').
A
court
of
justice
was,
in
theory,
'the
place
of
righteousness
'
(Ec
3")
.
The
purified
Jerusalem
would
be
'a
city
of
righteousness*
(Is
l^").
On
the
other
hand,
corrupt
judges
'
cast
down
righteousness
to
the
earth'
(Am
5'),
and
'take
away
the
righteousness
of
the
righteous
from
him'
(Is
5^).
(6)
From
the
forensic
use
is
readily
developed
the
general
meaning
'what
is
right,*
'what
ought
to
be*
[some
scholars
invert
the
order
of
a
and
6,
starting
with
the
idea
of
'Tightness*].
In
Pr
16'
we
read:
'Better
is
a
little
with
righteousness
(i.e.,
a
little
got
by
right
conduct)
than
great
revenues
with
injustice.'
Balances,
weights,
and
measures
which
came
up
to
the
required
standard
were
'just
balances,'
etc.,
lit.
'balances
of
righteousness'
(Lv
19^'),
whilst
their
converse
were
'wicked
balances,'
lit.
'balances
of
wickedness'
(Mio
6")
or
'balances
of
deceit
'
(Am
8^.
(c)
Righteous
speech
also,
i.e.
truthful
speech,
came
under
the
category
of
'righteousness.'
'Righteous
lips,'
lit.
'lips
of
righteousness,'
'are
the
delight
of
kings'
(Pr
16").
2.
Righteousness
in
reUgious
terminology.
—
(a)
For
the
ancient
Hebrew,
'
righteousness
*
was
especially
cor-respondence
with
the
Divine
mil.
The
thought
of
God,
indeed,
was
perhaps
never
wholly
absent
from
his
mind
when
he
used
the
word.
Note,
for
this
conception
of
righteousness,
Ezk
18'-',
where
'
doing
what
is
lawful
and
right
(tsedaqSh)
'
is
illustrated
by
a
number
of
concrete
examples
followed
up
by
the
general
statement,
'hath
walked
in
my
statutes
and
kept
my
judgments
to
deal
truly,*
The
man
who
thus
acts,
adds
the
prophet,
is
'just,'
rather
'righteous'
(tsaddiq).
The
Book
of
Ezekiel
has
many
references
to
righteousness
thus
understood.
—
(6)
As
the
Divine
will
was
revealed
in
the
Law,
'righteousness'
was
thought
of
as
obedience
to
its
rules
(Dt
6^).
Note
also
the
description
of
a
righteous
man
in
Ps
1
(cf.
v."-
with
v.">
and
v.'").
The
expression
was
also
used
of
obedience
in
a
single
instance.
Restor-ing
a
pledge
at
sun-down
was
'righteousness'
(Dt
24").
The
avenging
deed
of
Phinehas
was
'
counted
to
him
for
righteousness'
(Ps
lOe^').
So
we
find
the
word
in
the
plural:
'The
Lord
is
righteous:
he
loveth
righteous
deeds
'
(Ps
11'
RVm)
.
—
(c)
Inmost
of
the
passages
quoted,
and
in
many
places
in
Ezk.,
Job,
Prov.,
and
Eccles.,
the
righteousness
of
the
individual
is
referred
to;
but
in
others
Israel
(Ps
14'
97"
118™
etc..
Is
418-",
and
other
parts
of
Deutero-Isaiah,
Hab
1"
etc.),
or
a
portion
of
Israel
(Is
51>-
'
etc.),
is
represented
as
'righteous.'
—
(d)
Since
righteousness
is
conformity
to
the
Divine
will,
and
the
Law
which
reveals
that
will
is
righteous
in
the
whole
and
its
parts
(Ps
119'-
m-
'=■
"2
etc.),
God
Himself
is
naturally
thought
of
as
essentially
righteous
(Dt
32«
where
'just'='righteous';
Jer
12",
Is
422',
Ps
79
(10)
u
<i2))_
jjjg
throne
is
founded
on
righteousness
and
judgment
(Ps
89"-
(")),
and
all
His
ways
exhibit
righteousness
(Ps
145").
As,
however,
Israel
was
often
unrighteous,
the
righteousness
of
Jehovah
could
then
be
revealed
to
it
only
in
judgment
(Is
1"
S'«
10").
In
later
times
it
was
revealed
in
judgment
on
their
heathen
oppressors
(Pa
40"-
98^
etc.).
—
(e)
So
in
a
number
of
passages,
especially
in
Is
40-66,
'righteous-ness
'
is
almost
synonymous
with
justification,
salvation
(Is
458
46'3
51"-
588
590
61"
62';
many
passages
in
Psalms
[2231
(32)
24=
etc.],
Mai
42
[Heb
S"]).
For
more
on
this
subject
cf.
art.
Justification.
II.
In
NT.-
The
Greek
equivalents
of
tsaddiq,
tsedeq,
etc.,
are
dikaiot
(81
times),
'nghteous,'
*just';
a/ihaios
(5
t.)t
'justly,
