one of them there came a change. He looked back upon his past life, and saw an infinite evil. He
looked to the man dying on the cross beside him, and saw an infinite compassion. There indeed
was one unlike all other “kings of the Jews” whom the robber had ever known. Such a one must
be all that he had claimed to be. To be forgotten by that king seems to him now the most terrible
of all punishments; to take part in the triumph of his return, the most blessed of all hopes. The
yearning prayer was answered, not in the letter, but in the spirit.
Thimnathah
a town in the allotment of Dan. (Joshua 19:43) only. It is named between Elon and Ekron. The
name is the same as that of the residence of Samson’s wife. [See Timna, Or Timnah, Timnah]
Thistle
[Thorns AND THISTLES]
Thomas
(a twin), one of the apostles. According to Eusebius, his real name was Judas. This may have
been a mere confusion with Thaddeus, who is mentioned in the extract. But it may also be that;
Thomas was a surname. Out of this name has grown the tradition that he had a twin-sister, Lydia,
or that he was a twin-brother of our Lord; which last, again, would confirm his identification with
Judas. Comp. (Matthew 13:55) He is said to have been born at Antioch. In the catalogue of the
apostles he is coupled with Matthew in (Matthew 10:3; Mark 3:18; Luke 6:15) and with Philip in
(Acts 1:13) All that we know of him is derived from the Gospel of St. John; and this amounts to
three traits, which, however, so exactly agree together that, slight as they are they place his character
before us with a precision which belongs to no other of the twelve apostles except Peter, John and
Judas Iscariot. This character is that of a man slow to believe, seeing all the difficulties of a case,
subject to despondency, viewing things on the darker side, yet full of ardent love of his Master.
The latter trait was shown in his speech when our Lord determined to face the dangers that awaited
him in Judea on his journey to Bethany. Thomas said to his fellow disciples, “Let us also go, that
we may die with him.” (John 11:16) His unbelief appeared in his question during the Last Supper:
“Thomas saith unto him Lord we know not whither thou goest, and how can we: know the way?”
(John 14:5) It was the prosaic, incredulous doubt as to moving a step in the unseen future, and yet
an eager inquiry as to how this step was to be taken. The first-named trait was seen after the
resurrection. He was absent—possibly by accident, perhaps characteristically—from the first
assembly when Jesus had appeared. The others told him what they had seen. He broke forth into
an exclamation, the terms of which convey to us at once the vehemence of his doubt, and at the
same time the vivid picture that his mind retained of his Master’s form as he had last seen him
lifeless on the cross. (John 20:25) On the eighth day he was with them st their gathering, perhaps
in expectation of a recurrence of the visit of the previous week; and Jesus stood among them. He
uttered the same salutation, “Peace be unto you;” and then turning to Thomas, as if this had been
the special object of his appearance, uttered the words which convey as strongly the sense of
condemnation and tender reproof as those of Thomas had shown the sense of hesitation and doubt.
The effect on him was immediate. The conviction produced by the removal of his doubt became
deeper and stronger than that of any of the other apostles. The words in which he expressed his
belief contain a far higher assertion of his Master’s divine nature than is contained in any other
expression used by apostolic lips—“My Lord and my God.” The answer of our Lord sums up the
moral of the whole narrative: “Because thou hast seen me, thou hast believed: blessed are they that
have not seen me, and yet have-believed.” (John 20:29) In the New Testament we hear of Thomas
frankie
(Frankie)
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