which I 'py took (laboured) under the sun." 21: “For there is a man whose labour is in wisdom, and in know

ledge, and in equity—yet to a man that hath not

boy laboured herein shall he leave it for his portion." 22: "For what hath

man of all his

labour and of the vexation of his heart,

wherein he hath

laboured under the sun?" iv. 4: “Again I

considered all

travail," (labour and sorrow.) 8: “Yet there

is no end to all his

labour, neither saith he, For whom do I

wherein he

labour." iii. 9: "What profit hath he that worketh in that

laboureth ?” v. 18: "And to enjoy the good

of all his

labour." vi. 7: "All the

labour of a

man is for his mouth." ix. 9: "For that is thy portion in this

labour." x.15: "They labour (amal)

life and in thy

of the foolish

'n wearieth every one of them."

melahkah is also quite analogous in its signification to

our word labour, insomuch that our word labour may be often used

in translation without impairing the sense.

Gen. ii. 2: "On the

labour. xxxix. 11:

seventh day God ended his work," "Joseph went into the house to do his business," (labour.) Exod. xx. 9: “And do all thy work," . 10: "In it thou shalt not do any work,” (labour, .) xxxi. 3: “All manner of workmanship,” p. 14: "For whosoever doeth any work," 15: "Six days may work by be done.” Lev. xii. 48: "Of any thing made of skin,” (done, laboured, manufactured.) Ezra iii. 8: "To set forward the work of the house." 9: "To set forward the workman," 72nha7. Esther iii. 9: "And those that have charge of the king's business,” n‡xpo. ix. 3: "And officers of the king.

Without multiplying examples, it may suffice to say, that this word, as expressive of labour, is ever associated with the idea of particularity, or class of labour, business, employment or job, without reference to any other adjective quality; and hence it came to mean a message, or one charged with a message, and is therefore sometimes used to mean an angel, because they were supposed to be messengers, charged to do a particular labour; hence, also, applied to a prophet; and hence, also, the prophet Malachi's name.

Asa properly means work or labour, as the result of making, procreating, producing, doing, acting, or performing, without any regard to the condition of the agent or actor. Gen. i. 7: "God made y the firmament." 16: "God made vy two great lights." ii. 2: "God ended his work in which he had made," y. This word is also used to express the result of labour in acquiring slaves and other property generally, as in Gen. xii. 5: "All their substance that they had gathered, and the souls they had gotten in Haran," i. e. all the property and slaves that they had laboured for, &c. y. Exod. xxxi. 4: "To work in gold and silver." 5: It is used with malabkah, thus:

66

מְלָאכָה) ",in all manner of workmanship לַעֲשׂוֹת to work *

ma

lakah.) These two words occur together again in Neh. iv. 15, the iv. 21 of the English text: "So we laboured y in the work,” p. Ezek. xxix. 20: “I have given him the land of Egypt for his labour," vy. Exod. xxx. 25: “And thou shalt make it (y labour it) an oil of holy ointment, an ointment composed after the art of the apothecary." Art is here translated from Typ maase, which is another word of very similar import, and is derived from, and expresses the idea of labour, as of a thing done, or wrought, a work, deed, action, concern, business, i. e. a labour emanating from a habit, or an occupation of busiGen. xliv. 15: "What deed is this that ye have done?" xlvii. 3: "What is your occupation?" Dye. Exod.

ness.

xxiii. 16: "And the feast of the harvest, the firstfruits of thy labours, which thou hast sown in the field, and the first of the ingathering, which is the end of the year, when thou hast gathered in thy labours," . Hag. ii. 17: "And I smote you 7. with blasting and with hail in all the labours eye of your hands." Hab. iii. 17: "Although the fig-tree shall not blossom, neither shall fruit be in the vine, the labour of the olive

shall fail."

sebel is sometimes translated labour, but it more often means something consequent to labour, as the burthen of labour is consequent to the labour: it is sometimes used to mean the produce of labour, and hence the Syrian Ephraimitish word siboleth, which is said to mean an ear of corn, because an ear of corn was the produce of labour. Hence, it is sometimes used to mean prolific and fruitful, because the produce of labour is prolific and fruitful; and because to sustain a burthen, as of labour, carries with it the idea of physical ability and strength, it is used in the sense of bearing up, to elevate, to deliver from, &c. A few instances of its use will suffice. Exod. i. 11: "To afflict them

".thee מִסְבֶל

with their burthens,” p. Ps. lxxxi. 70: “I delivered cxliv. 14: "That our oxen may be strong to labour,” pp. The Hebrews had thus several ways by which they could express the idea labour accompanied with different adjective qualities. So the word ebed may express the idea labour; but when so, it is always slave-labour, the labour peculiar to, or performed by a slave; as in Isa. xix. 9: "They that work in fine flax." The meaning is, they that labour or slave themselves in fine flax. The working in fine flax was slave-labour. If it were good English for us to say, they that slave in finc flax, it would be exactly what the prophet did say in this passage. So in Exod. xx. 9: "Six days shalt thou labour and do all thy work." Here labour is translated from ebediyn, as a verb "do"

is from and "work" from. The literal meaning of this is-Six days shalt thou slave and labour all thy work ;-or, more plainly-Six days shalt thou slave thyself (i. e. do slave labour) and ♫ labour, or make all thy particular, accus

tomed, professional or usual work or labour. This command is addressed to all mankind, and the propriety of it, as here explained, will be seen in the succeeding verse. "But the seventh day is the Sabbath of the Lord thy God; in it thou shalt not do any work thou nor thy son, nor thy daughter, nor thy ebeddeka, slave.)" So, then, if this particular word had not been used, we could not have said that the command applied to slaves.

man-servant, (

Thus,

But the Hebrews had a way of expressing the idea of labour alone, associated with the idea of industry as its adjective quality: Should I say, By your hands you shall be sustained, the idea would be that you shall be sustained by your labour; that is, your personal industry. So the Hebrews used the words y el yod, which means "by hand," and is used to mean labour. Prov. xiii. 11: “He that gathereth by vanity shall be diminished, but he that gathereth by labour (y by hand, i. e. by his own industry) shall increase." Is it not clear, then, that the Hebrews stood in no need of the word ebed to mean labour generally. They did use it to mean slave-labour, and slave-labour alone, as we shall more fully see hereafter.

This language enabled its writers to express the distinctive shades of meaning-those adjective qualities associated with the idea labour. These facts may appear to the mere English scholar as matters of no importance-not worth investigation. But, touching the Hebrew use of this word Ty ebed and its compounds, as it affects and expresses the institution of slavery, amid the eras of Divine inspiration, we hope to be sustained in the consideration of its very great importance.

LESSON IV.

SOME of the lexicons say that this root

ebed means also worship, to worship God, or idols, &c., without any connection with the idea of slavery. In Gen. xxii. 5: "And I and the lad will go yonder and worship;" here, worship is from

xxiii.

from the root n shahah, which means to bow down. 12: "And Abraham bowed down himself before the people of the Lord," bowed down himself in.

bowed himself upon the bed's head,"

xlvii. 31: "And Israel

"Then they bowed their heads and worshipped,"

Exod. iv. 31:

We will present a few inExod. xi. 8: "And bow xx. 5: "Thou shalt not

root, like all others, takes upon itself a change of shape, according to the condition in which it is used. stances of its application in Hebrew. down themselves unto me," . bow down thyself unto them." xxxiii. 10: "And the people rose up and worshipped," inn. Deut. xxvi. 10: "And worship in before the Lord thy God." Josh. v. 14: "And Joshua fell on his face to the earth and did worship," n. 1 Sam. xv. 30: "That I may worship m

the Lord thy God." 31: "And Saul worshipped

the

Lord." 2 Sam. i. 2: "That he fell to the earth and did obeisance,'

on his face to וַיִּשְׁתַּחוּ xiv. 33: “And bowed himself .וַיִּשְׁתָּחוּ

the ground before the king." 1 Kings i. 23: “He bowed himself before the king with his face to the ground." 2 Kings

v. 18: "When my master goeth into the house of Rimmon to

in the house of Rimmon,

worship 11

* when I bow myself down in the house of Rimmon." xviii. 22: "Ye shall before the altar of Jerusalem."

xix. 37: “And it came to pass as he was worshipping n in the house of Nishrosh, his God." Job i. 20: "Then Job arose and fell down