THIGH

(Ant. XX. V. 1) speaks of a Theudas who misled the people and gave himself out for a prophet, a,t least ten years after Gamaliel's speech; and also a little after-wards (§ 2) speaks of the sons of Judas the Galilffian, the instigator of a rebellion in the time of Quirinius. Now St. Luke (Ac 5") speaks successively of Theudas and Judas, and it is alleged that he erroneously put their names into Gamaliel's mouth owing to a misreading of Jose^hus. But the difference between the writers is so great that it is impossible to suppose that the one account depends on the other. It St. Luke depends on Josephus, where did he get his number '400 men' from? There may have been more than one Theudas, and Lightfoot suggests that the name might be used as the Greek equivalent of several different Hebrew ones. There certainly were, as Josephus tells us, many re-bellions at this period. Or the name may be an inter-polation in Josephus, taken from Acts by some Christian scribe (Blass); or one of the writers may have made a mistake in the name. But they could hardly be quoting, either from the other. A. J. Maclean.

THIGH (Heb. yarm, Gr. mSros). — The hollow of Jacob's thigh was strained as he wrestled at Peniel {Gn 32'"), and to this is attributed the Jewish custom (enjoined in the Mishna) of not eating 'the sinew of the hip' (v.'^). On the thigh the sword was girded (Ex 32", Ps 45s, Ca 38); Ehud's on the right thigh because he was left-handed (Jg 3"- 21). Under the jealousy ordeal the woman's thigh falls away if she has been guilty of adultery (Nu S^"'-). To smite 'hip and thigh' (lit. "leg upon thigh') is a phrase denoting utter discomfiture accompanied by great slaughter (Jg 15'). Its origin is unknown, and its meaning much disputed. In Jer 31" and Ezk 21'^ smiting upon one's thigh is a gesture of sorrow or terror. In Heb. (ct. AVm) of Gn 46», Ex 1«, Jg 8™ a man's children are described as coming out of his thigh. This explains the oath taken by placing the hand under the thigh (Gn 242' » 472"), a special sacredness being ascribed to the organs of generation. In NT 'thigh' occurs only in Rev 19", where perhaps the meaning is that the name was written on that part of the garment which covered the thigh. J. C. Lambeht.

THISBE. — The place from which Tobit was carried away captive by the Assyrians (To 1^). Its position is described as being on the right hand (south) of Kedesh-naphtali in Galilee above Asher. No trace of the name has yet been found. Some commentators maintain that Thisbe was the home of Elijah 'the Tishbite,' but this is very doubtful.

THISTLES.— See Thokns.

THOOANUS (1 Es 9'*) =Tikvah, Ezr 10".

THOMAS. — One of thejtwelve Apostles. The earlier Evangelists mention only his name (Mt 10'=Mk 3"= Lk 6"), but St. John has rescued him from oblivion. His question in the Upper Room (Jn 14*) proves him somewhat slow of understanding. He was querulous and gloomy, always disposed to look at the dark side. Thus, when Jesus on the evening of the Resurrection- day appeared to the Apostles in the room at Jerusalem where they were assembled with closed doors, Thomas was absent, buried in despair; and when he heard that they had seen the Lord, he would not believe it. He would not, he declared, be persuaded unless he saw and handled His pierced hands and side (Jn 20"-2*). The next Sunday evening Jesus appeared as before, and gave Thomas the evidence he had craved. 'My Lord and my Godl' cried the doubter, leaping from the depth of despair to the summit of faith (Jn 20™™). His doubts were removed, and he was one of the seven who journeyed north to meet the Lord at the Lake of Galilee (21'). Despondent though he was, Thomas was no coward, and he had a great devotion to Jesus. It was he who, when tidings of Lazarus' sickness were

THORNS, THISTLES, ETC.

brought to Bethany beyond Jordan, and the rest, fearing the rage of the rulers, were disposed to let the Master venture alone into Judaea, put their cowardice to shame: ' Let us also go, that we may die with him! ' (Jn 11".)

Thomas is not really a name but an epithet, meaning, like its Greek equivalent Didymus (Jn 11" 202< 21'), 'the Twin.' If, as Eusebius states, the Apostle's name was Judas, he would be styled ' the Twin ' to distinguish him from Judas the son of James and Judas Iscariot. Tradition credits him with the authorship of a Gospel (see Gospels [Apocryphal], 6). David Smith.

THOMEI.— See Temah.

THORNS.THISTLES, ETC.— So many words are used

in the Heb. for thorny plants, and they are so variously translated, that it will be convenient to consider them all in .one group. In the great majority of cases it is impossible to identify the special species referred to.

1. 'dtdd, Jg 9»'- AV'' bramble,' mg. ' thistle,' RVm ' thorn'; Ps 58= AV and RV ' thorns.' In Gn 50'»- ", Atad occurs as a propername. The 'afacJis probably the buckthom(ii^mnus palesiina), a_ lowly bush.

2. barqanim (Jg 8^- " 'briers'), some kind of thorn. Arab, berqdn is the Centaurea scoparia, a thorny-headed composite common in Palestine.

3. dardar (Gn 3^', Hos 10'), some thistly or thorny plant. In modem Arab, shauket el-dardar is applied to the star thistles or knapweeds of which Centaurea calcitrapa and C. verutum are common Palestine forms.

i.chedeq (Pr 15^^ 'thorn,' Mic 7* 'brier'; of. Arab, chadaq 'to enclose'), some prickly plant used as a hedge (Pr 15'^).

5. chSach (2 K 14', 2 Ch 25i8, and Job 31" 'thistle'; 2 Ch 33" , Ca 22, and Hos 9» ' thorns '; Is 34>3 AV ' brambles ' ; 1 S 13" 'thickets': Job 41' 'thorn,' where 'hook,* as in RV, would be better), some shrub, species unknown,with very strong spines.

6. mesukdh, a thorn hedge (Mic 7*).

7. na'utsuts (Is 7^^ 'thorns,' 55" 'thorn'), from Aram. na'ats 'to prick'), a general term for a thorn.

8. sinm (Eo 7K Is 34", Hos 2", Nah 1" 'thorn'). The reference to the ' crackling of thorns ' suggests the thorny bumet, which is burned all over Palestine in lime-kilns. slroth. Am 4', means 'hooks.'

9. sillon (Ezk 28^" 'brier"; sallonim, Ezk 2« 'thorns').

■ 10. sarablm (Ezk 2* 'briers,' Ht. 'rebels,' as in mg., but text doubtful).

11. sirpdd (Is 55" 'brier,' lit. the 'burner,' hence perhaps 'nettle').

12. tsinnim (Job 5', Pr 22^ 'thorns'); tsenlnlm, (Nu 33", Jos 23" 'thorns').

13. qots (Gn 3'8, Ex 22", Jg 8'- " etc.), the commonest and most general word for ' thorns.'

14. gimTnos (Pr 24^1 'thorns'), elsewhere 'nettles.' See Nettle.

15. eikklm (Nu 33'* 'pricks'), cf. Arab, shauk 'thorn.'

16. shayith, only in Is. (5« 7'"- 9" 10" 27*), always with shdmir ('brier'), and tr. 'thorns.'

17. shdmir, in Is. (see above) always tr. 'brier'; cf . Arab. samur '& thorny tree.'

18. rhamnos (Gr.), Bar 6" (AV and RV 'thorn').

19. skolops (Gr.), 2 Co 12' 'thorn' (RVm 'stake'). See Medicine, p. 600"; Paul, p. 688'.

20. akanthai (Gr.) = Heb. qots, Mt 7" 13'- =» 272» etc. ' thorns.'

21. tribolos (Gr.), Mt 7" 'thistle,' He 6' 'brier.'

The variety of words used to describe these prickly plants is not surprising, when it is remembered that such plants are ubiquitous throughout Palestine, and for many months of the year are almost the only living uncultivated vegetation. They form the common food of goats and camels; they are burned (Ec 7«), specially the thorny burnet (Arab. billSn), in ovens and lime-kilns, large areas of land being diligently cleared every autumn for this purpose. Gigantic thistles, sometimes as high as a horse's head, cover whole acres of fallow land and have to be cleared by fire before ploughing can begin. 'Thorns' of various kinds, e.g. brambles, oleasters, etc., are commonly used as hedges; and tangled masses of dead thorny branches from the Zizyphus and similar trees are used, particularly in the Jordan Valley, as defences round fields, flocks, or tents (Pr 15", Mic 7' etc.). E. W. G. Masteeman.

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