counsel to Israel when these were needed. The method by which this was
done can be only a matter of mere conjecture. They were apparently
material objects, quite distinct from the breastplate, but something added
to it after all the stones had been set in it, something in addition to the
breastplate and its jewels. They may have been, as some suppose, two
small images, like the teraphim (comp. Judges 17:5; 18:14, 17, 20; Hos.
3:4), which were kept in the bag of the breastplate, by which, in some
unknown way, the high priest could give forth his divinely imparted
decision when consulted. They were probably lost at the destruction of
the temple by Nebuchadnezzar. They were never seen after the return
from captivity.
- THUNDER often referred to in Scripture (Job 40:9; Psalm 77:18; 104:7).
James and John were called by our Lord “sons of thunder” (Mark 3:17). In
Job 39:19, instead of “thunder,” as in the Authorized Version, the Revised
Version translates (ra’amah) by “quivering main” (marg., “shaking”).
Thunder accompanied the giving of the law at Sinai (Exodus 19:16). It was
regarded as the voice of God (Job 37:2; Psalm 18:13; 81:7; comp. John
12:29). In answer to Samuel’s prayer (1 Samuel 12:17, 18), God sent
thunder, and “all the people greatly feared,” for at such a season (the
wheat-harvest) thunder and rain were almost unknown in Palestine. - THYATIRA a city of Asia Minor, on the borders of Lydia and Mysia. Its
modern name is Ak-hissar, i.e., “white castle.” Here was one of the seven
churches (Revelation 1:11; 2:18-28). Lydia, the seller of purple, or rather
of cloth dyed with this colour, was from this city (Acts 16:14). It was and
still is famous for its dyeing. Among the ruins, inscriptions have been
found relating to the guild of dyers in that city in ancient times. - THYINE WOOD mentioned only in Revelation 18:12 among the articles
which would cease to be purchased when Babylon fell. It was called citrus,
citron wood, by the Romans. It was the Callitris quadrivalvis of botanists,
of the cone-bearing order of trees, and of the cypress tribe of this order.
The name of this wood is derived from the Greek word thuein, “to
sacrifice,” and it was so called because it was burnt in sacrifices, on
account of its fragrance. The wood of this tree was reckoned very valuable,
and was used for making articles of furniture by the Greeks and Romans.
Like the cedars of Lebanon, it is disappearing from the forests of Palestine.