Mining And Metals
VIEW:49 DATA:01-04-2020
MINING AND METALS.Though Palestine proper is deficient in mineral resources, yet these were present to some extent on its borders, and were not only abundantly found, but even largely developed, in other parts of the ancient East. The Scripture references to mining, accordingly, though not very numerous, are sufficiently definite. Such a passage as Deu_8:9 (cf. Deu_33:25), though inapplicable to Palestine proper, may hold good of the Lebanon district or (as has been suggested by some) of the Sinaitic region. The classical description of the miners life in Job_28:1-28 is evidently based on observation. It depicts the adventurous and toilsome character of the quest, the shafts sunk and the galleries tunnelled in the rock, the darkness, the waters that have to be drained away, the hidden treasures of precious stones and metals that reward the effort and the ingenuity of man.
The list of metals in Num_31:22 includes all those that are mentioned in Scripture, viz. gold, silver, brass, iron, tin, and lead. All these are again enumerated in Eze_27:12-13; Eze_27:22 as articles of Tyrian commerce.
Brass.This English word, as late as 1611, denoted copper or bronze (an alloy of copper and tin) rather than the modern brass (an alloy of copper and zinc). Hence, where brass occurs in EV [Note: English Version.] , copper or bronze is to be understood (see RVm [Note: Revised Version margin.] on Gen_4:22, and art. Brass).
Copper occurs once in AV [Note: Authorized Version.] (Ezr_8:27, RV [Note: Revised Version.] bright brass). But see on Brass above and Steel below.
Gold is a metal the use of which can be traced back to the earliest times of civilization. As a medium of currency it was reckoned by weight, in shekels and talents, coinage being unknown among the Jews before the Exile. While it figured in the history of Israel from the beginning (see the spoils of Egypt [Exo_12:35], Midian [Num_31:52, Jdg_8:26], and Jericho [Jos_7:21]), it became specially plentiful in Palestine in the time of Solomon (1Ki_10:14; 1Ki_10:21), the main sources of it being Ophir (1Ki_9:28; 1Ki_10:11), Tarshish (1Ki_10:22), and Sheba (1Ki_11:2, Psa_72:15). Another gold-producing country was Havilah (Gen_2:11). Of these localities Havilah and Sheba were Arabian. Ophir (wh. see) may have been the same, though its situation has also been sought in India and S. Africa. For goldsmiths see Neh_3:18; Neh_3:21; Neh_3:32, Isa_41:18; Isa_41:7; Isa_46:5, also (RV [Note: Revised Version.] ) Jer_10:9; Jer_10:14; Jer_51:17. The products of their art comprised beaten work (Exo_25:18; Exo_37:17; Exo_37:22, Num_8:14; 37:7, 1Ki_10:16 f., 2Ch_9:15 f.), plating (Exo_25:11; Exo_25:24; Exo_26:29; Exo_26:32; Exo_30:3), and wire or thread for embroidery (Exo_39:3).
Iron appears to have come into use later than copper or bronze. Its ores are found in the Lebanon district, in the region of Sinai, and sparsely in Egypt. The most famous ancient seat of its manufacture was among the Chalybes in the Highlands of Assyria. Mining for the ore is mentioned in Job_28:2; the iron furnace in Deu_4:20, 1Ki_8:51, Jer_11:4; and the forge in Isa_44:12. In modern times iron is separated from its ores as cast iron, from which wrought iron and steel are subsequently prepared. But in ancient times the temperature necessary to melt iron was unavailable, and it must have been produced as wrought iron, which is still obtained by primitive smelting processes in various parts of the world. The uses of iron alluded to in Scripture are very varied, but call for no special comment. In Deu_3:11 and possibly in Amo_1:3 iron means black basalt.
Lead is mentioned in Jer_6:29, Eze_22:18-22 in connexion with the smelting of silver (see Silver below). Its weight is referred to in Exo_15:10. The ephah in Zec_5:7-8 has a leaden covering. Rock-cut inscriptions were made more durable by having the chiselled letters filled up with lead (Job_19:24).
Silver, like gold, was a very early medium of exchange (Gen_23:15; Gen_23:18). The Heb. and Gr. words for silver are often rendered money in EV [Note: English Version.] . There are frequent references in OT to the use of this metal for vessels and ornamental work. In NT there is special mention of the guild of silversmiths at Ephesus, and of the shrines or models of the temple of Diana which were their most profitable article of trade (Act_19:24). Among the sources of the metal, Arabia (2Ch_9:14) and Tarshish (2Ch_9:21, Jer_10:9, Eze_27:12) are named. The commonest ore of silver is argentiferous galena, which contains a large quantity of lead, and in which other metals may also be present. In the course of smelting the lead combines with the other impurities to form a heavy slag, which separates by its weight from the molten silver, leaving the latter pure. This process is referred to, usually in a figurative moral sense, in Psa_66:10 (cf. Isa_48:10), Pro_17:3; Pro_25:4; Pro_27:21, Zec_13:9, Mal_3:3, and especially in Jer_6:28-30 and Eze_22:17-22. In the last two passages lead is the most prominent impurity, the others being brass, iron, and tin. The mixture of these was the refuse or dross of silver (see also Isa_1:22; Isa_1:25).
Steel (2Sa_22:35, Job_20:24, Psa_18:34, Jer_15:12) is a mistaken translation in AV [Note: Authorized Version.] of the words elsewhere rendered brass. RV [Note: Revised Version.] has brass in these passages, and copper or bronze is to be understood. Only in Nah_2:3 (RV [Note: Revised Version.] ) is steel possibly a correct rendering. Steel is a form of iron containing more carbon than wrought iron. It is capable not only of being welded but also cast, and tempered to various degrees of hardness and elasticity.
Tin derived its importance from its use as a constituent of bronze (an alloy of copper and tin). It is mentioned as an article of Tyrian commerce in Eze_27:12, and as an impurity in silver in Eze_22:18 (cf. Isa_1:25, RVm [Note: Revised Version margin.] alloy). Its earliest sources are uncertain, but it appears to have come to the East from the West. It is known that the Phnicians obtained it from the Scilly Isles and Cornwall.
Flint is a form of silica, and occurs abundantly, in the form of nodules, in many of the limestone rocks of Palestine. It is exceedingly hard, and its property of sparking when struck on steel or on another flint provided a very ancient and common means of obtaining fire (2Ma_10:3). Flint has a sharp edge when broken or chipped, and was used for primitive weapons and instruments of many kindsarrow-heads, knives, etc. For the latter see Exo_4:25 RV [Note: Revised Version.] , Jos_5:2-3 RV [Note: Revised Version.] . In other Scripture references to flint its hardness is chiefly in view (Deu_32:13, Job_28:9 RV [Note: Revised Version.] , Isa_5:28; Isa_50:7, Eze_3:9).
Marble is limestone (carbonate of lime), hard and close-grained enough to be polished. The purest forms are white, but many coloured varieties are highly valued. Marble was among the materials prepared by David for the Temple (1Ch_29:2). Josephus (Ant. VIII. iii. 2, 9) says that Solomons Temple was built of white stone from Lehanon, but the stones exposed in the Jews Wailing Place appear to be from the neighbourhood of Jerusalem, probably from the quarries under Bezetha. Marble supplies a simile in Son_5:15, and is mentioned among the merchandise of Babylon in Rev_18:12.
James Patrick.
Hastings' Dictionary of the Bible
Edited by James Hastings, D.D. Published in 1909
The list of metals in Num_31:22 includes all those that are mentioned in Scripture, viz. gold, silver, brass, iron, tin, and lead. All these are again enumerated in Eze_27:12-13; Eze_27:22 as articles of Tyrian commerce.
Brass.This English word, as late as 1611, denoted copper or bronze (an alloy of copper and tin) rather than the modern brass (an alloy of copper and zinc). Hence, where brass occurs in EV [Note: English Version.] , copper or bronze is to be understood (see RVm [Note: Revised Version margin.] on Gen_4:22, and art. Brass).
Copper occurs once in AV [Note: Authorized Version.] (Ezr_8:27, RV [Note: Revised Version.] bright brass). But see on Brass above and Steel below.
Gold is a metal the use of which can be traced back to the earliest times of civilization. As a medium of currency it was reckoned by weight, in shekels and talents, coinage being unknown among the Jews before the Exile. While it figured in the history of Israel from the beginning (see the spoils of Egypt [Exo_12:35], Midian [Num_31:52, Jdg_8:26], and Jericho [Jos_7:21]), it became specially plentiful in Palestine in the time of Solomon (1Ki_10:14; 1Ki_10:21), the main sources of it being Ophir (1Ki_9:28; 1Ki_10:11), Tarshish (1Ki_10:22), and Sheba (1Ki_11:2, Psa_72:15). Another gold-producing country was Havilah (Gen_2:11). Of these localities Havilah and Sheba were Arabian. Ophir (wh. see) may have been the same, though its situation has also been sought in India and S. Africa. For goldsmiths see Neh_3:18; Neh_3:21; Neh_3:32, Isa_41:18; Isa_41:7; Isa_46:5, also (RV [Note: Revised Version.] ) Jer_10:9; Jer_10:14; Jer_51:17. The products of their art comprised beaten work (Exo_25:18; Exo_37:17; Exo_37:22, Num_8:14; 37:7, 1Ki_10:16 f., 2Ch_9:15 f.), plating (Exo_25:11; Exo_25:24; Exo_26:29; Exo_26:32; Exo_30:3), and wire or thread for embroidery (Exo_39:3).
Iron appears to have come into use later than copper or bronze. Its ores are found in the Lebanon district, in the region of Sinai, and sparsely in Egypt. The most famous ancient seat of its manufacture was among the Chalybes in the Highlands of Assyria. Mining for the ore is mentioned in Job_28:2; the iron furnace in Deu_4:20, 1Ki_8:51, Jer_11:4; and the forge in Isa_44:12. In modern times iron is separated from its ores as cast iron, from which wrought iron and steel are subsequently prepared. But in ancient times the temperature necessary to melt iron was unavailable, and it must have been produced as wrought iron, which is still obtained by primitive smelting processes in various parts of the world. The uses of iron alluded to in Scripture are very varied, but call for no special comment. In Deu_3:11 and possibly in Amo_1:3 iron means black basalt.
Lead is mentioned in Jer_6:29, Eze_22:18-22 in connexion with the smelting of silver (see Silver below). Its weight is referred to in Exo_15:10. The ephah in Zec_5:7-8 has a leaden covering. Rock-cut inscriptions were made more durable by having the chiselled letters filled up with lead (Job_19:24).
Silver, like gold, was a very early medium of exchange (Gen_23:15; Gen_23:18). The Heb. and Gr. words for silver are often rendered money in EV [Note: English Version.] . There are frequent references in OT to the use of this metal for vessels and ornamental work. In NT there is special mention of the guild of silversmiths at Ephesus, and of the shrines or models of the temple of Diana which were their most profitable article of trade (Act_19:24). Among the sources of the metal, Arabia (2Ch_9:14) and Tarshish (2Ch_9:21, Jer_10:9, Eze_27:12) are named. The commonest ore of silver is argentiferous galena, which contains a large quantity of lead, and in which other metals may also be present. In the course of smelting the lead combines with the other impurities to form a heavy slag, which separates by its weight from the molten silver, leaving the latter pure. This process is referred to, usually in a figurative moral sense, in Psa_66:10 (cf. Isa_48:10), Pro_17:3; Pro_25:4; Pro_27:21, Zec_13:9, Mal_3:3, and especially in Jer_6:28-30 and Eze_22:17-22. In the last two passages lead is the most prominent impurity, the others being brass, iron, and tin. The mixture of these was the refuse or dross of silver (see also Isa_1:22; Isa_1:25).
Steel (2Sa_22:35, Job_20:24, Psa_18:34, Jer_15:12) is a mistaken translation in AV [Note: Authorized Version.] of the words elsewhere rendered brass. RV [Note: Revised Version.] has brass in these passages, and copper or bronze is to be understood. Only in Nah_2:3 (RV [Note: Revised Version.] ) is steel possibly a correct rendering. Steel is a form of iron containing more carbon than wrought iron. It is capable not only of being welded but also cast, and tempered to various degrees of hardness and elasticity.
Tin derived its importance from its use as a constituent of bronze (an alloy of copper and tin). It is mentioned as an article of Tyrian commerce in Eze_27:12, and as an impurity in silver in Eze_22:18 (cf. Isa_1:25, RVm [Note: Revised Version margin.] alloy). Its earliest sources are uncertain, but it appears to have come to the East from the West. It is known that the Phnicians obtained it from the Scilly Isles and Cornwall.
Flint is a form of silica, and occurs abundantly, in the form of nodules, in many of the limestone rocks of Palestine. It is exceedingly hard, and its property of sparking when struck on steel or on another flint provided a very ancient and common means of obtaining fire (2Ma_10:3). Flint has a sharp edge when broken or chipped, and was used for primitive weapons and instruments of many kindsarrow-heads, knives, etc. For the latter see Exo_4:25 RV [Note: Revised Version.] , Jos_5:2-3 RV [Note: Revised Version.] . In other Scripture references to flint its hardness is chiefly in view (Deu_32:13, Job_28:9 RV [Note: Revised Version.] , Isa_5:28; Isa_50:7, Eze_3:9).
Marble is limestone (carbonate of lime), hard and close-grained enough to be polished. The purest forms are white, but many coloured varieties are highly valued. Marble was among the materials prepared by David for the Temple (1Ch_29:2). Josephus (Ant. VIII. iii. 2, 9) says that Solomons Temple was built of white stone from Lehanon, but the stones exposed in the Jews Wailing Place appear to be from the neighbourhood of Jerusalem, probably from the quarries under Bezetha. Marble supplies a simile in Son_5:15, and is mentioned among the merchandise of Babylon in Rev_18:12.
James Patrick.
Hastings' Dictionary of the Bible
Edited by James Hastings, D.D. Published in 1909
BUSCADAVERDADE
Visite o nosso canal youtube.com/buscadaverdade e se INSCREVA agora mesmo! Lá temos uma diversidade de temas interessantes sobre: Saúde, Receitas Saudáveis, Benefícios dos Alimentos, Benefícios das Vitaminas e Sais Minerais... Dê uma olhadinha, você vai gostar! E não se esqueça, dê o seu like e se INSCREVA! Clique abaixo e vá direto ao canal!
Saiba Mais
-
Nutrição
Vegetarianismo e a Vitamina B12 -
Receita
Como preparar a Proteína Vegetal Texturizada -
Arqueologia
Livro de Enoque é um livro profético?
Tags