SONS OF GOD

SONS OF GOD.— See Children of God.

SONS OF THE PROPHETS.— See Prophecy, p.TSS".

SOOTHSAYER.— See Magic Divination and

SORCEBT.

SOP.— See Meals, 6.

SOP ATEE.SOSIPATER.— These are two formsof the

same name; St. Luke, as usual, adopts the more colloquial. 1. In Ac 20< we read that Sopater, son of Pyrrhus (BV), of Beroea, accompanied St. Paul on his journey towards Jerusalem as far as Asia (if these last words are part of the true text), i.e. Troas [see Secundus]. The mention of the father's name, unusual in NT, is thought by Blass to denote that Sopater was of noble birth; by Alford, to be intended to distinguish him from — 2. A 'kins-man,' i.e. fellow-countryman [see Jason], of St. Paul, who sends greetings in Ro IB^i. It seems unlikely, but not impossible, that these are the same person.

A. J. Maclean.

SOPE. — See Soap.

SOPHERETH.— A famUy of Nethinim, Neh 7"-Ezr 2'" Hassophereth, 1 Es S^' Assaphioth.

SOPHONIAS (2 Es 1<») =Zephaniah the prophet.

S0RCER7. — See Magic Divination and Sobceky.

SOREG.— See Temple, 11 (6).

SOREK, VALLEY OF (perh.=' valley of the soreq vine' [ct. art. Vine]). — The valley or wOdy in which Delilah lived (Jg 16*). Eusebius and Jerome connect the valley with Capharsorec, a village to the north of Eleutheropolis and near Saraa, that is, Zorah, the home of Samson's father. Capharsorec is now Khurbet Surlk, to the north of Wady es-Swar, which is identified with 'the valley of Sorek,' and not far from Swr'ah. See also ZOBAH.

SORREL.— See Colours, 3.

SOSIPATER.— See Sopateb.

SOSTHENES.— 1. Ruler of the synagogue at Corinth, whom 'they all' (RV) laid hold on and beat when Gallio dismissed the case against St. Paul (Ac 18"). He probably succeeded Crispus as ruler when the latter became a Christian (v.*), and the hostility of the rabble to the Jews showed itself when they were worsted in the courts. 2. 'The brother' associated with St. Paul in addressing the Corinthians (1 Co 1'), and therefore probably a native of Corinth who had special relations with the Church there. If both references are to the same man, he must have been converted after the Gallio incident. A. J. Maclean.

SOSTRATUS.— The governor of the citadel at Jeru-salem under Antiochus Epiphanes (2 Mac 4^' (28)- m).

SOTAI. — A family of 'Solomon's servants' (Ezr 2^ =Neh 7").

SOTTL. — The use of the term in the OT (Heb. nephesh) for any animated being, whether human or animal (Gn V 'life,' 2'), must be distinguished from the Greek philosophical use for the immaterial substance which gives life to the body, and from the use in the NT (Gr. psyche) where more stress is laid on individuality (Mt 16™ RVm). As the Bible does not contain a scientific psychology, it is vain to dispute whether it teaches that man's nature is bipartite (body and soul or spirit) or tripartite (body and soul and spirit): yet a contrast between soul and spirit (Heb. rHach, Gr. pneuma) may be recognized; while the latter is the universal principle imparting life from the Creator, the former is the individual organism possessed of life in the creature (Gn 2' — 'breath of life' and 'living soul'). — In some passages the terms are used as equivalent (Is 26», Lk !"• ", Ph 1" RV), in others a distinction is made (He 412, 1 Th 52=). The distinction is this: 'soul' ex-presses man as apart from God, a separate individual; 'spirit' expresses man as drawing his life from God (cf. Jn 10", 'life'^'soul,' and 19™). This separate

872

SPICE, SPICES

individuality may renounce its dependence and refuse its submission to God. Hence the adjective ' psychical ' may be rendered sensual (Ja 3", Jude " [RVm 'Or, natural. Or, animal'l), or natural (1 Co 2" 15"-«). Probably sensual in the two passages conveys more moral meaning than the term ' psychical ' justifies, and natural is the better rendering, as expressing what belongs to the old unregenerate life in contrast with the characteristic of the new life in Christ, the spiritual (.pneumatic). A parallel change in the use of the term 'flesh' and its corresponding adjective may be noted.

Alpked E. Gabvib.

SOUTH.— See Neqeb.

SOWER, SOWING.— See Agricdlture, § 1.

SPAIN. — The extent of country to which in NT times the name Spain, or more strictly 'the Spains,' was given, was practically identical with modern Spain. In the earliest times of which we have any knowledge it was inhabited, at least in part, by a race supposed to be a mixture of the aboriginal Iberian population with immigrant Celts. In b.c. 236, Hamilcar, father of the great Hannibal, invaded the country from Carthage, and after nine years of conquest was succeeded by hia son-in-law Hasdrubal, who in turn was succeeded by Hannibal, under whom about b.c. 219 the conquest of the country was practically completed. Hannibal used it as his base in the Second Punic War against Rome. The Romans first invaded Spain in 218, and after various successes and reverses constituted two provinces there in 197, known for centuries afterwards as Hispania Citerior (Tarraconensis) and Hispania Ulterior (Bsetica), separated from one another by the Ebro. The moun-tainous districts in the NW. were not actually subdued till the time of the Emperor Augustus (b.c. 20). The country was valued for its agricultural products, as well as its precious metals. It became the most thoroughly Romanized of all the Roman provinces, and in nothing is St. Paul's Roman attitude more evident than in his determination to proceed from Rome to Spain, rather than to Africa or to Gaul (Ro 15"). It is not known whether he carried out his plan. Spain claims more honoured names in Roman literature than any other country in the 1st cent, a.d., having been the birthplace of the two Senecas, Columella, Mela, Lucan, Martial, and Quintilian. A. Souter.

SPAN. — See Weights and Measures.

SPARROW mppsr, Ps 84= 102'). The Heb. word is probably equivalent of Arab. ' asfur, and includes any 'twittering' birds; generally tr. 'bird' or 'fowl'. See Bird. In the NT references (Mt 10™, Lk 12»- ') strou-thion evidently refers to the sparrow, which to-day is sold for food as cheaply as in NT times.

E. W. G. Masterman.

SPARTA. SPARTANS.— See Lacedemonians.

SPEAKING, EVIL.— See Evil Speaking.

SPEAR.— See Armour Arms, § 1.

SPECKLED BIRD.— Jer 12' (only). If the MT of this passage is correct, the tr. can hardly be other than 'Is mine heritage unto me (.i.e. to my sorrow [a dativus ethicus, Cheyne, ad loc.']) (as) a speckled bird of prey? Are (the) birds of prey against her round about?' (so, substantially, RV). The people of Israel is com-pared to a bird of preu, just as, on account of its hostility to Jehovah, it is compared in v.s to a lion. But, as a speckled bird attracts the hostile attention of other birds, Israel becomes a prey to the heathen. The rendering proposed by some, 'mine heritage is unto me (he ravenous hyaena, ' cannot be obtained from the present text, which, however, is possibly incorrect.

SPELT.— See Fitches, Rie.

SPICE, SPICES.— 1. fisssm, Ca 5^, RVm 'balsam'; Wsem [once. Ex 30'', besem], plur. besamlm. In Ex 30« is a list of various aromatic substances included under the name besHmim. These were stored in the Temple