TARPELITES
gogue
in
interpreting
certain
passages
Messianically
whicli
later
were
expounded
differently
in
ortiiodox
Jewish
circles'
(Oesterley
and
Box,
op.
cil.
p.
60).
W.
O.
E.
Oesterley.
TARPELITES.—
One
of
the
peoples
settled
in
the
cities
of
Samaria
(Ezr
4');
text
doubtful.
TARSHISH.—
1.
See
foUowing
article.
2.
A
Ben-jamite
family
(1
Ch
T-").
3.
One
of
the
seven
princes
who
had
the
right
of
access
to
the
royal
presence
(Est
1").
4.
The
name
of
a
precious
stone
(Ex
ZS^"
39",
Ezk
1"
109
28",
Ca
5",
Dn
10«).
See
Jewels
and
Precious
Stones.
TARSHISH
is
frequently
mentioned
in
the
OT,
but
its
position
is
never
definitely
indicated.
From
Jon
is
4'
we
may
infer
that
it
was
far
from
Palestine,
prob-ably
in
the
extreme
west
of
the
Mediterranean.
If
Sheba
and
Dedan
stand
for
the
commerce
of
the
East,
Tarshish
may
stand
for
that
of
the
West
(Ezk
38").
The
Greeks
were
in
touch
with
Tartessus
in
the
7th
and
6th
cents.
B.C.
(Herod,
i.
163,
iv.
162).
The
inclusion
of
Tarshish
among
the
'
sons
'
of
Javan
(Gn
10',
1
Ch
1
')
may
refer
to
this.
The
Onomaslicon
speaks
of
Tharseis
ftS
BaitikS.
Bochart
(Phaleg,
iii.
7)
identifies
this
with
the
Andalusian
plain
in
S.W.
Spain,
watered
by
the
BmHs
(mod.
Guadalquivir).
The
Greek
name
TarUsaos
may
possibly
come
through
an
Aram,
form
Tartlsh,
from
the
Phoen.
TarshUh.
It
may
have
denoted
a
city
(Strabo,
iii.
147
£[.).
The
name
TarsSion
occurs
in
a
commercial
treaty
(Polyb.
iii.
24)
referring
to
a
city
of
the
Carthaginians
in
Spain.
Max
Mtlller
(Hastings'
DB,
s.v.)
favours
a
suggestion
of
Cheyne,
that
Tarshish
may
be
identical
with
Tiras
(Gn
10').
Vocalizing
Twshush
with
Josephus
(Ant.
i.
vi.
1;
he
identifies
with
Cilician
Tarsus,
which
to
the
present
writer
appears
impossible)
,
we
get
the
Tyrsenians,
Tyrrenians,
or
Etruscans
—
intrepid,
piratical
people,
called
Tursim
by
the
ancient
Egyptians.
In
either
case
Tarshish
would
be
fitly
named
with
"the
isles,'
a
term
covering
not
only
islands
in
our
sense,
but
also
land
bordering
on
the
sea
(Ps
72'°,
Is
60'
66").
The
wealth
of
Tarshish
consisted
of
silver,
iron,
tin,
and
lead
(Jer
10»,
Ezk
27").
•Ships
of
Tarshish'
did
not
necessarily
belong
to
or
trade
with
Tarshish.
The
name
is
used
of
the
ships
of
Jehoshaphat
and
Abaziah,
which
sailed
for
Ophir
from
Ezion-geber
(1
K
22<8,
2
Ch
20»).
The
Chronicler's
explanatory
phrase
(v.")
is
erroneous.
The
cargo
brought
by
Solomon's
'navy
of
Tarshish'
shows
that
its
voyages
must
have
been
eastward,
not
westward
(1
K
10«,
2
Ch
92').
The
name
probably
denoted
specially
large
merchant
vessels,
designed
for
distant
voyages
(Ps
48',
Is
2"
23',
Ezk
272*).
W.
Ewing.
TARSUS,
the
capital
of
the
Roman
province
of
Cilicia
(Ac
22')
in
the
S.E.
of
Asia
Minor,
and
the
birth-place
of
St.
Paul,
is
a
place
about
which
much
more
might
be
known
than
is
known
if
only
the
necessary
money
were
forthcoming
to
excavate
the
ancient
city
in
the
way
that
Pompeii,
Olympia,
Pergamum,
and
other
cities
have
been
excavated.
It
would
be
im-possible
to
exaggerate
the
value
which
would
accrue
to
the
study
of
St.
Paul's
life
and
vfritings
and
of
Christian
origins,
if
such
a
work
were
satisfactorily
carried
out.
It
may
be
commended
to
the
whole
Christian
Church
as
a
pressing
duty
of
the
utmost
importance.
Tarsus,
as
a
city
whose
institutions
combined
Oriental
and
Western
characteristics,
was
signally
fitted
to
be
the
birthplace
and
training
ground
of
him
who
was
to
make
known
to
the
Gentile
world
the
ripest
development
of
Hebrew
religion.
Tarsus
(modern
Tersous)
is
situated
in
the
plain
of
Cilicia,
about
70
to
80
feet
above
sea
level,
and
about
10
miles
from
the
S.
coast.
The
level
plain
stretches
to
the
north
of
it
for
about
2
miles,
and
then
begins
to
rise
gradually
till
it
merges
in
the
lofty
Taurus
range,
about
30
miles
north.
The
climate
of
the
low-lying
TARSUS
city
must
always
have
been
oppressive
and
unfavourable
to
energetic
action,
but
the
undulating
country
to
the
north
was
utilized
to
counteract
its
effects.
About
9
to
12
miles
north
of
the
city
proper
there
was
a
second
Tarsus,
within
the
territory
of
the
main
Tarsus,
in
theory
a
summer
residence
merely,
but
in
reality
a
forti-fied
town
of
importance,
permanently
inhabited.
It
was
to
periodical
residence
in
this
second
city
among
the
hills
that
the
population
owed
their
vigour.
In
Roman
times
the
combined
cities
of
Tarsus
contained
a
large
population,
probably
not
much
less
than
a
million.
The
history
of
the
Maritime
Plain
of
Cilicia
was
deter-mined
by
the
mutual
rivalries
of
the
three
cities,
Mallus
on
the
Pyraraus,
Adana
on
the
Sarus,
and
Tarsus
on
the
Cydnus.
The
plain
Is
mainly
a
deposit
of
the
second
of
those
rivers,
and
contains
about
800
square
miles
of
arable
land,
with
a
strip
of
useless
land
along
the
coast
varying
from
2
to
3
miles
in
breadth.
The
site
of
Mallus
is
now
unknown,
as
it
has
ceased
to
have
any
importance;
but
the
other
two
cities
retain
their
names
and
some
of
their
importance
to
the
present
day.
In
ancient
times
Mallus
was
a
serious
rival
of
Tarsus,
and
was
at
first
the
great
harbour
and
the
principal
Greek
colony
in
Cilicia.
The
struggle
for
superiority
lasted
till
after
the
time
of
Christ,
but
the
supremacy
was
eventually
resigned
to
Tarsus.
The
river
Cydnus
flowed
through
the
middle
of
the
city.
This
river,
of
which
the
inhabitants
were
very
proud,
was
liable
to
rise
very
considerably
when
there
had
been
heavy
rains
in
the
mountains,
but
inundation
in
the
city
was
in
the
best
period
very
carefully
guarded
against.
Between
A.D.
527
and
563
a
new
channel
was
cut
to
relieve
the
principal
bed,
which
had
for
some
time
previously
been
insufiiciently
dredged,
and
it
is
in
this
new
channel
that
the
Cydnus
now
flows,
the
original
channel
having
become
completely
choked.
About
five
or
six
miles
below
the
modern
tovm
the
Cydnus
flowed
into
a
lake;
this
lake
was
the
ancient
harbour
of
'Tarsus,
where
were
the
docks
and
arsenal.
At
the
harbour
town,
which
was
called
Aulai,
ail
the
larger/Ships
discharged,
and
in
ancient
times
buildings
were
continuous
between
the
north
of
this
lake
and
the
city
of
Tarsus.
Much
engineer-ing
skill
must
have
been
employed
in
ancient
times
to
make
a
harbour
out
of
what
had
been
a
lagoon,
and
to
improve
the
charmel
of
the
river.
A
great
deal
was
done
to
conquer
nature
for
the
common
benefit,
and
it
was
not
only
in
this
direction
that
the
inhabitants
showed
their
perseverance.
This
city
also
cut
one
of
the
greatest
passes
of
ancient
times,
the
'
Cilician
Gates.'
Cilicia
is
divided
from
Cappadocia
and
Lycaonia
by
the
Taurus
range
of
mountains,
which
is
pierced
from
N.W.
to
S.E.
by
a
glen
along
which
flows
the
Tchakut
Su.
This
glen
offers
a
natural
road
tor
much
of
its
course,
but
there
are
serious
difficulties
to
overcome
in
its
southern
part.
The
Tarsians
built
a
waggon
road
over
the
hills
there,
and
cut
with
the
chisel
a
level
path
out
of
the
solid
rock
on
the
western
bank
of
the
stream.
The
probable
date
of
this
engineering
feat
was
some
time
between
B.C.
1000
and
500.
It
is
possible
(but
see
Tarshish)
that
Tarsus
is
meant
by
the
Tarshish
of
Gn
10',
and
that
it
is
there
indicated
c.
B.C.
2000
as
a
place
where
Greeks
settled.
The
difference
in
the
form
of
the
name
need
cause
no
diiflculty
in
accepting
this
identification.
The
name
is
originally
Anatolian,
and
would
quite
easily
be
transliterated
differently
in
Greek
and
Hebrew.
All
the
evidence
is
in
harmony
with
the
view
that
at
an
early
date
Greeks
settled
there
among
an
originally
Oriental
community.
Shalmaneser,
king
of
Assyria,
captured
Tarsus
about
the
middle
of
the
9th
cent,
b.c;
afterwards
kings
ruled
over
Cilicia,
with
the
Persian
kings
as
overlords.
In
B.C.
401
there
was
still
a
king,
but
not
in
b.c.
334,
when
Alexander
the
Great
entered
the
country.
He
found
a
Persian
ofliicer
directly
governing
the
country.
Of
the
character
of
the
kingdom
we
know
nothing.
Thus
