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NATURE

are divided into trees and herbs. Yet even in speaking of the knowledge of the vegetable kingdom which Solomon possessed, it is said that "he spake of trees, from the cedar tree that is in Lebanon even unto the hyssop that springeth out of the wall" (1 Kings 4:33). All plants are here characterized as trees. Solomon seems to have divided the animal kingdom into four classes, corresponding to the modern classes of the vertebrates-" he spake also of beasts (mammalia), and of fowl (birds), and of creeping things, (reptiles, including amphibians), and of fishes" (4:33). The last class doubtless includes most or all of the aquatic creatures not included in the modern class of fishes. It is plain that in this

NAZARETH

NAVE (Heb. 3, gab, hollow or curved), the hub of a wheel, the central part into which the spokes are inserted (1 Kings 7:33).

NAVEL (Heb., shore,, shaw-reer', twisted, as a string), the umbilical connection of the fetus with the mother (Ezek. 16:4), hence abdomen where it is attached (Job 40:16).

Figurative. The bodice or vestment of a woman (Cant. 7:2); so the passage is understood by

some.

NAVY (Heb., on-ee', conveyance, 1 Kings 9:26, etc.) is used in the sense of fleet. See SHIP. NAZARENE (Gr. Nakapmvós, nad-zar-ay-nos), an inhabitant or native of Nazareth, as Matt. 21:11,

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classification of Solomon no notice is taken of insects, cœlenterata, etc. Worms were probably included among creeping things. Moses seems to have recognized a somewhat similar division. In the ceremonial law a classification into clean and unclean was based on the correlation of certain organs and functions, as cleft hoofs and rumination, and, in the case of aquatic creatures the presence or absence of fins and scales. According to this, water mollusks, colenterata, and scaleless fishes were in one class and other fishes in a second.-G. E. POST.

NATURE. (Gr. Yéveous, ghen'-es-is); elsewhere, as Rom. 1:26, ovos (foo-sis, genus). The following are the uses of these terms: (1) The law of the natural or moral world (Rom. 1:26; 2:14; 11:24); (2) birth, origin, natural descent, e. g., "Jews by nature" (Gal. 2:15; Rom. 2:27), "which by nature are no gods" (Gal. 4:8); (3) genus, kind: "For every kind (marg. 'nature') of beasts," etc., "is tamed, and hath been tamed of mankind" (marg. "nature of man," James 3:7). NAUGHTINESS (Heb. 2, ro'-ah, badness, 1 Sam. 17:28, wickedness of heart);, havvaw' (Prov. 11:6), eagerly coveting, and so mischievous things; (Gr. Kakia, kak-ee'-ah, James 1:21), malice, ill-will, vicious disposition. See GLOSSARY. NA'UM (Gr. Naovu, nah-oom'), the son of Esli and father of Amos, in the maternal ancestry of Christ (Luke 3:25). He is probably the same with Johanan, the son of Elioenai (1 Chron. 3: 24).

etc., and rendered "of Nazareth." The term Nazarene (Gr. Natopaios, nad-zo-rah'-yos) occurs only in Matt. 2:23; Acts 24:5, and should have been rendered Nazoraan in English. At first it was applied to Jesus naturally and properly, as defining his residence. In process of time its population became impure (mixed with other peoples), its dialect rough, provincial, and strange, and its people seditious, so that they were held in little consideration. "The name of Nazarene was but another word for despised one. Hence, although no prophet has ever said anything of the word Nazarene, yet all those prophecies describing the Messiah as a despised one are fulfilled in his being a Nazarene. But we are convinced that something more than this is intended. The Hebrew word for Nazareth was Netzer, a branch, or rather germ... Nazareth is called a germ from its insignificance, yet it shall, through Him, fill the earth with its importance" (Whedon, Com., in loc.) The Christians were called "Nazarenes" (Acts 24:5), a contemptuous appellation, as the followers of Jesus, whose presumed descent from Nazareth stamped him as a false Messiah.

NAZARETH (Gr. Našapé0, nad-zar-eth', or Nagaper, nad-zar-et', perhaps germ, sprout), the home of Joseph and Mary.

1. Location. Nazareth is situated on the most southern of the ranges of Lower Galilee, about ten miles from the plain of Esdraelon. "You cannot see from Nazareth the surrounding country, for Nazareth lies in a basin; but the moment you climb to the edge of this basin...

NAZARITE

what a view you have. Esdraelon lies before you, with its twenty battlefields-the scenes of Barak's and of Gideon's victories, of Saul's and Josiah's defeats, of the struggles for freedom in the glorious days of the Maccabees. There is Naboth's vineyard and the place of Jehu's revenge upon Jezebel; there Shunem and the house of Elisha; there Carmel and the place of Elijah's sacrifice. To the east the valley of Jordan, with the long range of Gilead; to the west the radiance of the Great Sea ... You can see thirty miles in three directions" (Smith, Hist. Geog., p. 432). Across the plain of Esdraelon emerged from the Samaritan hill the road from Jerusalem and Egypt. The name of the present village is en-Nâzirah, the same as of old, and is near Cana.

There are no conclusive analogies tending to show that the custom was derived from a heathen source, especially from Egypt.

3. The Nazarite Vow. This vow consisted in the person consecrating his life to God for a fixed period. The Mosaic law speaks of such consecration as being limited to a particular time, which was probably fixed by the one making the vow; yet instances occur of children being dedicated by their parents before their birth to be Nazarites all their lives, e. g., Samson (Judg. 13:5, 14), Samuel (1 Sam. 1:11), and John the Baptist (Luke 1:15). According to the Mishna the usual time was thirty days, but double vows for sixty days, and treble vows for a hundred days, were sometimes made. The vow of the apostle Paul seems also to 2. Scripture Mention. Nazareth is not men-have been a kind of Nazarite vow, in fulfillment tioned in the Old Testament, or by Josephus; it was of which he shaved his head at Cenchrea (Acts the home of Joseph and Mary (Luke 2:39); there 18:18), although according to the law (Num. 6:9, the angel announced to Mary the birth of the Mes-18) and the Talmud the shaving of the head was siah (1:26-28), and thither Joseph brought Mary required to be done at the door of the temple. and Jesus after the sojourn in Egypt (Matt. 2:1922); here Jesus grew up to manhood (Luke 4:16), and taught in the synagogue (Matt. 13:54; Luke 4:16). His long and intimate association with this village made him known as "Jesus of Naza-kind of intoxicating drink. He was forbidden to reth" (Luke 18:37; 24:19; John 1:45, etc.; Acts 2:22, etc.). The disrepute in which Nazareth stood (John 1:47) has generally been attributed to the Galileans' lack of culture and rude dialect; but Nathanael, who asked, "Can any good thing come out of Nazareth?" was himself a Galilean. It would seem probable that "good" must be taken in an ethical sense, and that the people of Nazareth had a bad name among their neighbors for irreligion or some laxity of morals.

3. Present Condition. Modern Nazareth is a better class Eastern village, with a population of about four thousand-a few Mohammedans and the rest Latin and Greek Christians.

NAZʼARITE, more properly NAZ'IRITE, one of either sex who was bound by a vow of a peculiar kind to be set apart from others for the service of God. The obligation was either for

life or for a defined time.

7:9

4. The Law of the Nazarite (Num. 6:1-21). The Nazarite, during the term of his consecration, was bound to abstain from wine, grapes, with every production of the vine, and from every

cut the hair of his head, or to approach any dead body, even that of his nearest relation. If a Nazarite incurred defilement by accidentally touching a dead body, he had to undergo certain rites of purification, and to recommence the full period of his consecration. There is nothing whatever said in the Old Testament of the duration of the period of the vow of the Nazarite of days. When the period of his vow was fulfilled he was released therefrom, and was required to offer a he lamb for a burnt offering, a ewe lamb for a sin offering, and a ram for a peace offering, with the usual accompaniments of peace offerings (Num. 6:13-20) and of the offering made at the unleavened bread, cakes of fine flour mingled consecration of priests (Exod. 29:2), “a basket of

with oil, and wafers of unleavened bread anointed

with oil" (Num. 6:15). He brought also a meat offering and a drink offering, which appear to have been presented by themselves as a distinct 1. Name (Heb., naw-zeer', and act of service (v. 17). He was to cut off the , neh-zeer' el-o-heem', Nazarite of God). The hair of "the head of his separation" (i. e., the term comes from the verb, naw-zar', to sepa-hair which had grown during the period of his rate; and denotes in general one who is separated consecration) at the door of the tabernacle, and to from certain things and unto others, and so distin-put it into the fire under the sacrifice on the altar. guished from other persons and consecrated unto God (Gen. 49:26; Deut. 33:16). According to others, the word, nayʻ-zer, a diadem, contains the original idea of naw-zar', which will then radically signify to crown, and the hair is regarded as a crown to the person. In accordance with this view the Nazarite is a crowned one, because he has "the crown of God upon his head" (Num. 6: 7), evidently in allusion to the mass of uncut hair, which was considered an ornament (2 Sam. 14:25, 26).

ened cakes and one of the wafers, and then took

The priest then placed upon his hands the sodden left shoulder of the ram, with one of the unleavthem again and waved them for a wave offering. These, as well as the breast and the heave, or right shoulder (to which he was entitled in the case of ordinary peace offerings, Lev. 7:32-34) were the perquisite of the priest. The Nazarite also gave him a present proportioned to his circumstances (Num. 6:21). From this the custom afterward grew up, that when poor persons took the Nazarite's vow upon them, those who were better 2. Origin. The origin of the custom is in-off defrayed the expenses of the sacrifices (Acts volved in obscurity. The prescriptions in Num. 6 presuppose it to have been an institution already in existence, and merely regulate it so as to bring it into harmony with the whole Mosaic legislation.

21:24). When all the service was concluded the late Nazarite was at liberty again to indulge in the use of wine (Num. 6:20).

5. Meaning of the Vow. As the name

NAZARITE

means, it was an act of consecrating oneself to Jehovah (Num. 6:2), and that negatively, "by renouncing the world with its pleasures-that are so unfavorable to sanctification-and all its defiling influences;" and positively, by giving a certain complexion to the life as being specially devoted to the Lord. Consequently, the Nazarite was "holy unto the Lord" (v. 8). Abstinence from the fruit of the vine was meant not merely to secure that sobriety which is necessary to qualify one for the service of the Lord, but to serve as a symbol of the renunciation of those delicacies of the flesh that tend to endanger a man's sanctification.

NEBAIOTH

was a step toward the realization of the priestly character which had been set before the whole nation as its goal at the time of its first calling (Exod. 19:5); and although it was simply the performance of a vow, and therefore a work of perfect spontaneity, it was also a work of the Spirit of God which dwelt in the congregation of Israel, so that Amos could describe the raising up of Nazarites along with prophets as a special manifestation of divine grace" (K. and D., Com., in loc.).

NE'AH (Heb., nay-aw', the shaking or settlement), a town of Zebulun, on the southern border of Rimmon (Josh. 19:13). As it is stated to have been not far from Rimmon ("Methoar," i. e., "which pertains to" Neah) it lay perhaps at the modern site Nimrin, a little west of Kurn

The long uncut hair of the Nazarite was the symbol of strength and abundant vitality (see 2 Sam. 14:25, 26), and was worn in honor of the Lord as a sign that he belonged to the Lord, and dedicated himself to his service with all his vital Hattin.

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powers. Then, too, a luxurious growth of long hair was looked upon as imparting a somewhat handsome appearance, an ornament, and, in the case of the Nazarite, was the diadem of the head consecrated to God (Jer. 7:29).

Because the Nazarite was "holy to the Lord," and wore upon his head the diadem of his consecration, he was required, like the anointed priest, to avoid defiling himself by association or contact with the dead.

NEAPOLIS (Gr. Neánoλiç, neh-ap'-ol-is, new city), a place in northern Greece and seaport town of Philippi, distant ten miles. Its remains are remarkable, and its aqueduct still indicates its importance, long since departed. A place where Paul first landed in Europe (Acts 16:11). The site is now occupied by a Turkish village with a population of about six thousand.

NEARI'AH (Heb., neh-ar-yaw', servant of Jehovah).

The time that the Nazarite vow lasted was not a lazy life, involving a withdrawal from the duties of citizenship, but was perfectly reconcilable with the performance of all domestic and social duties, the burial of the dead alone excepted. sition of the Nazarite, as Philo, Maimonides, and 2. A son of Ishi, and one of the captains of the others clearly saw, was a condition of life conse- five hundred Simeonites who, in the days of Hezecrated to the Lord, resembling the sanctified rela-kiah, drove out the Amalekites from Mount Seir tion in which the priests stood to Jehovah, and (1 Chron. 4:42), B. C. about 715. differing from the priesthood solely in the fact that it involved no official service at the sanctuary and was not based upon a divine calling and institution, but was undertaken spontaneously for a certain time and through a special vow. The object was simply the realization of the idea of a priestly life, with its purity and freedom from all contamination from everything connected with death and corruption, a self-surrender to God stretching beyond the deepest earthly ties. In respect the Nazarite's sanctification of life

1. One of the six sons of Shemaiah in the line

of the royal family of Judah after the captivity (1 Chron. 3:22, 23). Some identify him with "The poNAGGE (q. V.).

NE'BAI (Heb. ", nay-baw', fruitful), a family of the heads of the people who signed the covenant with Nehemiah (Neh. 10:19), B. C. 445.

NEBA'IOTH, or NEBA'JOTH (Heb. i?, neb-aw-yoth', fruitfulnesses), the eldest son of Ishmael (Gen. 25:13; 1 Chron. 1:29) and father of a pastoral tribe named after him (Isa. 60:7; comp. Gen. 17:20). This "Ishmaelitish tribe which was of no account even in the time of the kings of Israel, rose into a highly cultivated nation in the

NEBAJOTH

centuries just before Christ, and had a kingdom extending from the Elanitic Gulf to the land on the east of the Jordan, and across Belka as far as Hauran; for the monuments reach from Egypt to Babylonia, though Arabia Petræa is the place where they chiefly abound" (Delitzsch, Com., on Isaiah).

NEBA'JOTH. See NEBAIOTH.

NEBAL'LAT (Heb., neb-al-lawt', wickedness in secret), a place occupied by the Benjamites after the captivity (Neh. 11:34). Possibly identified with Beit-Nebála, near Lydda.

NE'BAT (Heb., neb-awt', regard), the father of Jeroboam, whose name is only preserved in connection with that of his distinguished son (1 Kings 11:26; 12:2, 15, etc.), B. C. before 934. He is described as an Ephrathite, or Ephraimite,

of Zereda.

NE BO (Heb., neb-o', foreign derivation). 1. A town east of Jordan, situated in the fertile country asked for by Reuben and Gad (Num. 32:3), taken possession of and rebuilt by Reuben (v. 38), although it does not occur in the catalogue of the towns of Reuben in the Book of Joshua (13:15-22), which may be because the Israelites gave it another name. In the list of places south of es-Salt, given by Dr. Robinson (Nib. Res., iii, App., p. 170) one occurs named Beba, which may be identical with Nebo. It perhaps indicates the ruins now extant on the present Jebel Nebbah, or Mount Nebo.

2. The mountain from which Moses saw the promised land (Deut. 32:49; 34:1), and in a ravine of which he was buried (32:50; 34:6). It was the head or summit of MOUNT PISGAH (q. v.), a portion of the general range of the "mountains of Abarim." Josephus says of Abarim (Ant., iv, 8, 48) that it "is a very high mountain, situate over against Jericho, and one that affords a prospect of the greatest part of the excellent land of Canaan." This is corroborated by Eusebius and Jerome. "The mountains of Abarim are a mountain range forming the Moabitish tableland, which slope off into the steppes of Moab."

3. A man whose descendants, to the number of fifty-two, are mentioned among those of Judah and Benjamin who returned from Babylon with Zerubbabel (Ezra 2:29; 7:33). Seven of them put away their foreign wives (Neh. 10:43).

4. A god of the Chaldeans (Isa. 46:1; 48:1). See GODS, FALSE.

NEBUCHADNEZZAR

Chaldeans, who lived in the south near the Persian Gulf, saw an opportunity of again seizing power in the much coveted city of Babylon. The signs of decay were evident in the reign of Asshurbanapal (see ASSYRIA), though the collapse of the Assyrian commonwealth did not come until 607 B. C. The Chaldeans did not need to wait so long as that for their opportunity, but Nabopolassar seized the throne in 625 as soon

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as

Nebuchadnezzar.

ceased to reign in AssyrAsshurbanapal had ia. But Nabopolassar and numerous conflicts must have occurred during was not accounted king at once by the Assyrians his reign between the successors of Asshurbanapal and the new Chaldean king in Babylon. Nabopolassar followed the ancient Babylonian custom of building temples and attending to the internal affairs of his splendid kingdom. His records have little to say of anything else.

1. In the Field. His son Nebuchadnezzar was destined to be his successor and was his representative in the field. He probably began his military service against the later Assyrian kings and soon achieved distinction. Toward the end of the reign of Nabopolassar the fall of Nineveh became imminent and the Babylonian king determined to gain not only his own complete independence of Assyria, but also as much as possible of the former Assyrian possessions. He allied his own family to that of the Manda, who were threatening to overthrow Assyria, by marrying his son Nebuchadrezzar to the daughter of Cyaxares. This alliance, as well as the vigilance and ability of Nebuchadrezzar as a warrior was completely successful. When the Manda delivered the final blow which ended forever the Assyrian commonwealth, they secured Nineveh and the northern and northwestern provinces of the Assyrian empire, while Nabopolassar secured all of southern Assyria and so much of the vast western provinces as were still in Assyrian control. All this territory, however, was but loosely held together during the latter part of the Assyrian control, and much of it was already lost to Egypt.

2. Opposes Egypt. It was quite natural that Egypt should early seek to profit by the weakening of Assyrian power. Palestine and Syria had belonged to Egypt by right of conquest during the reign of Thothmes III and so late as the days of Amenophis III and Amenophis IV the governors of Syrian cities were wont to address the Egyptian kings as their lords and even as their gods. When Necho II succeeded his father, Psammetichus I, as king of upper and of lower Egypt, he promptly began the reconquest of Syria and Palestine. In 608 B. C. he left Egypt and marched up the seacoast, penetrating inland to the plain of Esdraelon at Megiddo. There Josiah, king of Judah, vainly opposed him and was killed. Necho was soon able to count himself master of the whole country. It was now his purpose to move eastward to

NEBUCHADNEZZAR (Heb. neb-oo-kad-nets-tsar'; and also 7, neboo-kad-rets-tsar'. Gr. Naßovxódvooop, Nubouchodnosor; and also Naßovkodpócopos, Naboukodrosoros (so Eusebius). Name of a king of Babylon. The name of this king in Babylonian is Nabu. kudurri-uzur, which means "Nebo protect the boundary." In Hebrew the name is more correctly represented in the form Nebuchadrezzar, than in the more common form Nebuchadnezzar. Nebuchadrezzar was the son of Nabopolassar, and was in all probability of Chaldean race, and not of pure Babylonian (see BABYLONIA). When the Assyrian power was tottering to its fall the

NEBUCHADNEZZAR

the Euphrates and cross the great valley to seize what might fall to his share when the Assyrian empire met its end. He reached Carchemish, on the Euphrates, in 605, and there was confronted by Nebuchadnezzar at the head of his father's armies. The battle that ensued was one of the greatest in all history, judged simply by its immediate historic results. Necho was utterly and disastrously defeated, and fled in a rout homeward closely pursued by the victor. That one blow made Nebuchadnezzar the presumptive holder of all the valuable territory of Syria and Palestine. He pursued Necho to the very borders of Egypt. 3. Becomes King. At that critical moment, B. C. 604, his father died at Babylon, and he had to return post haste to take over the gov. ernment. But for this he would probably have invaded Egypt. Had he dared so to do his success would have been almost certain, and he and his father would have made in twenty years an empire as vast as that achieved by the Assyrians after centuries of relentless conflict. The first years of the reign of Nebuchadnezzar were devoted to the establishing and ordering of his rule in Babylonia. The warlike enterprises which follow he has unfortunately not described for us. Following the example of the earlier Babylonian kings Nebuchadnezzar has left to us almost exclusively records of his building operations and proofs of his zeal in the worship of the gods and of care in conserving their sanctuaries. From the Old Testament and from the classical historians we secure the necessary information for following his campaigns with reasonable fullness. The Egyptians had been defeated in their plan in securing by the sword possession of Syria and Palestine, but they had not given up the hope of attaining their desires in some other way. Apries, who is called Hophra (Egyptian Mah-abR) in the Old Testament, was now king of Egypt, and he set himself to arrange rebellions in Palestine which should culminate in the loss of this territory to Nebuchadnezzar,

NEBUSHASBAN

to Syene (the modern Aswân). As the direct result of this single campaign Egypt became subject to Babylonia during the reign of Amasis II, who had dethroned Hophra and succeeded him on the throne. To hold the advantage thus gained Nebuchadnezzar had to invade Egypt again, and one of his own inscriptions mentions the sending of an expedition thither in the thirty-seventh year of his reign. Nebuchadnezzar also carried on a war (Jer. 49:28-33) against the Arabs of Kedar, but we have no other account of it than that preserved by the Old Testament. With this ends our knowledge of the warlike undertakings of Nebuchadnezzar. There is every reason to believe that he fought many a campaign of which we know nothing. He would not have been able to hold this great empire together without frequent recourse to the sword. By force he had achieved power and by force only could it be successfully maintained. It is curious and interesting to notice that on one occasion at least Nebuchadnezzar played the part of peacemaker. When the Manda who had overthrown Assyria pushed westward they came into conflict with the Lydians. On May 25, 585, during a fierce battle on the Halys an eclipse of the sun separated the combatants. Nebuchadnezzar interposed and made peace between them. A selfish desire to prevent too great success to his former allies doubtless contributed to this undertaking, but the deed may be accounted good, nevertheless.

5. Works of Peace. If we are to take Nebuchadnezzar's own estimate of his life and work we should arrive at the conclusion that he had but little interest in his campaigns and that his real concern was the glory of Babylon and its gods. The chief concern of Nebuchadnezzar was for the great temple of Bel-Marduk at Babylon known under the name of E-sagil. This he rebuilt and greatly adorned and beautified. To the Nebo temple of E-zida at Borsippa he also gave unstinted means and time. Besides these two temples he carried on works of repair and construction in bewildering number and variety at Cr, Larsa, Sippar, Erech, and Kutha. The city of Babylon also (see BABYLON) he greatly beautified and strengthened. In it he built new streets, and its walls he greatly strengthened, so that the city was deemed impregnable. The world-wide glory of Babylon owed more to Nebuchadnezzar than to any other man. After a prosperous and eventful reign of forty-three years (604-561 B. C.) Nebuchadnezzar died and was succeeded by his son, Evil-Merodach (Amel-Marduk). Taking his reign as a whole it may safely be regarded as one of the strongest as it was clearly one of the most glorious in all the long history of Babylon as a world center. A man of great force and decision of character; not severe in his dealings beyond the custom of his age; a man who could plan and execute great and daring movements, he may surely be regarded as one of antiquity's greatest men.-R. W. R.

4. Western Campaign. Zedekiah unhappily foreswore himself, and Nebuchadnezzar promptly invaded his unhappy country and besieged Jerusalem for a year and a half. In 587 Jerusalem fell and numbers of its inhabitants were carried away captive to Babylonia, while Judah became a Roman province. In these acts of rebellion Edom, Moab, Tyre, Sidon, and Ammon had also joined, and these all were punished by Nebuchadnezzar. The punishment of Tyre was more difficult and less successful than that of the other partners. Nebuchadnezzar besieged it from 585 to 572 B. C., but was not able to take it. The city was so situated on its rocky island as not to be easily reduced from the mainland, and the Babylonians had no navy with which to cut off its supplies by sea and so reduce it by starvation. The city at last capitulated and resumed the pay ment of its former tribute, but was not otherwise punished. The punishment of Egypt for inciting the Palestinian states was undertaken and successfully carried through in 568. Nebuchadnezzar himself has left us no account of this very important campaign, but an Egyptian inscription proves NEBUSHAS'BAN (Heb., neb-oothat he marched the whole length of Egypt proper | shaz-bawn', votary of Nebo), one of the officers of

NEBUCHADREZʼZAR, another form of NEBUCHADNEZZAR (q. V.).

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