- ARIMATHEA a “city of the Jews” (Luke 23:51), the birth-place of
Joseph in whose sepulchre our Lord was laid (Matthew 27:57, 60; John
19:38). It is probably the same place as Ramathaim in Ephraim, and the
birth-place of Samuel (1 Samuel 1:1, 19). Others identify it with Ramleh in
Dan, or Rama (q.v.) in Benjamin (Matthew 2:18). - ARIOCH lion-like, venerable. (1.) A king of Ellasar who was confederate
with Chedorlamer (Genesis 14:1,9). The tablets recently discovered by
Mr. Pinches (see CHALDEA) show the true reading is Eri-Aku of Larsa.
This Elamite name meant “servant of the moon-God.” It was afterwards
changed into Rimsin, “Have mercy, O moon-God.” (2.) Daniel 2:14. - ARISTARCHUS best ruler, native of Thessalonica (Acts 20:4), a
companion of Paul (Acts 19:29; 27:2). He was Paul’s “fellow-prisoner” at
Rome (Colossians 4:10; Philemon 1:24). - ARISTOBULUS a Roman mentioned in Paul’s Epistle to the Romans
(16:10), whose “household” is saluated. - ARK Noah’s ark, a building of gopher-wood, and covered with pitch, 300
cubits long, 50 cubits broad, and 30 cubits high (Genesis 6:14-16); an
oblong floating house of three stories, with a door in the side and a window
in the roof. It was 100 years in building (Genesis 5:32; 7:6). It was
intended to preserve certain persons and animals from the deluge which
God was about to bring over the earth. It contained eight persons (Genesis
7:13; 2 Peter 2:5), and of all “clean” animals seven pairs, and of “unclean”
one pair, and of birds seven pairs of each sort (Genesis 7:2, 3). It was in
the form of an oblong square, with flat bottom and sloping roof. Traditions
of the Deluge, by which the race of man was swept from the earth, and of
the ark of Noah have been found existing among all nations.
The ark of bulrushes in which the infant Moses was laid (Exodus 2:3) is
called in the Hebrew teebah, a word derived from the Egyptian teb,
meaning “a chest.” It was daubed with slime and with pitch. The bulrushes
of which it was made were the papyrus reed.
The sacred ark is designated by a different Hebrew word, ’aron’, which is
the common name for a chest or coffer used for any purpose (Genesis
50:26; 2 Kings 12:9, 10). It is distinguished from all others by such titles
as the “ark of God” (1 Samuel 3:3), “ark of the covenant” (Joshua 3:6;