The Brandon news. (Brandon, Miss.) 1892-1961, 1904-01-28

phaim, name which frequently occurs
and in some remarkable passages.
The earliast mention of them IS the
record.of their defeat by Chedurlaumer and
some allied kings at Ashcroft karnaim
(Gen. 4:5) Extirpated, however, from
the east of Palestine they long found a
home in the west Gil Sam 2I:TS.)
1t is probable that they had possessed
districts west of the Jordan in early times,
arises the "Valley of Rephraim" (lIS Sam.
5:iS, Chron.l ll:Is; lisa. I7:5,) rich valley
southwest of Jerusalem derived IT'S
name from them. They were probably
one of those aboriginal people to whose
existence the traditions of many natives
testify and of w hose genealogy the Bible
gives no information. Some supposed
hem to be the Japhethites.
In A. Y. the words used for it are Gre
phaim giants" and "the dead" That it
has the latter meaning in many passages
is certain. FPS. 1910; Prov. 2:I8; 2I:Io;
Isa 2oI4.l
An attentive consideration seems to
leave little room for doubt that the dead
were called Rephaim from some nation
of Sheol "a. V. a held being the residence
Of the fallen spirits or buried giants
Branches of this great unknown people
were called Emlms, Anakin, and Zuzim
a Emim, smitten by Chedelaomer at
Shaveth Kiriathaim (Gen I4:6) and
oc- upyng the country afterwards held
by the Moabites (Deut. 2:Io) (5 An
akin, the imbecile terror of the spies ex-
aggerated their proportion into something
superhuman. Mum. I3:28-33,) and their
name became proverbial, (Deut. 2:Io; o:2
(6) Zuzim whose principle town was
Ham (Gen. 1850 and who lived between
the Aanon and Jabbok, being a northern
tribe of Rephaim.
No one has yet proved by experience
the possibility of giant races materially
exceeding in size the average height of
men. There is no great variation in the
ordinary standard. The general belief,
until very recent times, in the existence of
fabulouSly enormous men arose from
the discovery of huge bones, which were
taken for those of men, in days when
comparative anatomy was unknown On
the other hand isolated instances of mon
StroSity are Sufficiency attested to prove
that being like Goliath and his kinsman
may have existed. The great iron bed
stead, which belonged to Og or Sihon,
indicated that he was of full strength TO-
say the last of it (3) Oaks of BaShan. !"
There are six Hebrew names translated
oak in the Bible and refer to various
species Of oak such as evergreen oaks.
A three species of oaks are found in Pal
istlne, and in the early days of the Israel
ties oak forest must have been very ex-
tensive. We read about an oak near
Hebron with astem23 feet in girth Oaks
possibly remnants of the earliest forest
are often alluded to in the Old Testament;
under them people buried their dead, and
ldolatrous rites were performed The
oaks of Bashan" are classed by the in
Spired writer with the cedars of Lebanon.
"They arose, all the valiant men,
and took away the body of Saul
and the bodies of his sons and
brought them to Jabesh and tasted seven
days" q Chron. Io:I2) "And upon all
the cedars of Lebanon, that are high and
lifted up and upon all the oak of Bashan."
Elsa 2:I3) "Open thy doors, 0, Lebon-
on. that the fire may devour thy cedars.
Howl, fir tree, for the cedar S
fallen, because the mighty are spoiled;
howl, Q, We oaks of Bashan; for
the forest of vintage is come down "
Czech. II:I-2) 1t was in one of those
that Absalom was caught and was killed
by Joab III Sam IS:o-I4)
We read also of the oak of Abraham
and tradition tells US that it is still stand
ing, which is not likely, 5000 or 1000 years
make vast changes, and Palestine is not
now what it formerly was. and never
will be again till Christ comes to take his
people home.