Sabeans

In Bible versions:

Sabeans: NET AVS NIV NRSV NASB TEV
Seba: NET AVS NIV NRSV NASB TEV
Sheba: NET AVS NIV NRSV NASB TEV

people of Seba /Sheba, known as traders or sometimes as bandits
son of Cush son Ham son of Noah
a region and a people to the south of Egypt (OS)
son of Raamah son of Cush son of Ham son of Noah
son of Joktan of Shem
son of Jokshan son of Abraham and Keturah
a town that belonged to the tribe of Simeon
son of Bichri (Benjamin) who led a revolt against David
a country in southern Arabia whose queen visited Solomon (OS)
son of Abihail; a founding father of one of the clans of Gad

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captivity; conversion; old age
a drunkard; that turns
captivity; old man; repose; oath

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NET Glossary: (1) a race of tall people which probably refers to an African people living in Nubia (southern Egypt and northern Sudan today) mentioned in Isa 45:14; (2) in Joel 3:8, a distant nation to whom the Judeans will sell peoples captured from Tyre, Sidon, and Philistia, probably a reference to the inhabitants of the south Arabian kingdom of Sheba (modern Yemen); there may be some connection between the Arabian Sabeans and the African Sabeans described in (1); (3) in Job 1:14-15 the Sabeans are a north Arabian group in the vicinity of Tema (Job 6:19) who are raiders rather than traders

Google Maps: Seba (9° 1´, 38° 44´); Sheba (9° 1´, 38° 44´)

Hebrew

Strongs #07614: abv Sh@ba'

Sheba = "seven" or "an oath"

n pr m
1) son of Joktan and a descendant of Seth
2) son of Raamah, grandson of Cush, and a descendant of Ham
3) son of Jokshan, the son of Abraham by Keturah

n pr loc
4) a nation in southern Arabia

7614 Shba' sheb-aw'

of foreign origin; Sheba, the name of three early progenitors
of tribes and of an Ethiopian district:-Sheba, Sabeans.

Strongs #05436: yabo C@ba'iy

Sabeans = "drunkards"

1) the people of Seba

5436 Cba'iy seb-aw-ee'

patrial from 5434; a Sebaite, or inhabitant of
Seba:-Sabean.
see HEBREW for 05434

Strongs #07615: yabv Sh@ba'iy

Sabeans = "drunkard" or "he who is coming"

1) the people of the nation of Sheba

7615 Shba'iy sheb-aw-ee'

patronymic from 7614; a Shebaite or descendant of
Sheba:-Sabean.
see HEBREW for 07614

Strongs #05434: abo C@ba'

Seba = "drink thou"

n pr m
1) a son of Cush

n pr loc
2) a nation south of Palestine, perhaps Ethiopia

5434 Cba' seb-aw'

of foreign origin; Seba, a son of Cush, and the country
settled by him:-Seba.

Strongs #07652: ebv sheba`

Sheba = "seven"

n pr m
1) Benjamite, son of Bichri and one who led a rebellion against David
2) Gadite, brother of Michael, Meshullam, Jorai, Jachan, Zia, and Heber

n pr loc
3) a town in Simeon

7652 sheba` sheh'-bah

the same as 7651; seven; Sheba, the name of a place in
Palestine, and of two Israelites:-Sheba.
see HEBREW for 07651

Sabeans [EBD]

descendants of Seba (Gen. 10:7); Africans (Isa. 43:3). They were "men of stature," and engaged in merchandise (Isa. 45:14). Their conversion to the Lord was predicted (Ps. 72:10). This word, in Ezek. 23:42, should be read, as in the margin of the Authorized Version, and in the Revised Version, "drunkards." Another tribe, apparently given to war, is mentioned in Job 1:15.

Seba [EBD]

(1.) One of the sons of Cush (Gen. 10:7).

(2.) The name of a country and nation (Isa. 43:3; 45:14) mentioned along with Egypt and Ethiopia, and therefore probably in north-eastern Africa. The ancient name of Meroe. The kings of Sheba and Seba are mentioned together in Ps. 72:10.

Sheba [EBD]

an oath, seven. (1.) Heb. shebha, the son of Raamah (Gen. 10:7), whose descendants settled with those of Dedan on the Persian Gulf.

(2.) Heb. id. A son of Joktan (Gen. 10:28), probably the founder of the Sabeans.

(3.) Heb. id. A son of Jokshan, who was a son of Abraham by Keturah (Gen. 25:3).

(4.) Heb. id. A kingdom in Arabia Felix. Sheba, in fact, was Saba in Southern Arabia, the Sabaeans of classical geography, who carried on the trade in spices with the other peoples of the ancient world. They were Semites, speaking one of the two main dialects of Himyaritic or South Arabic. Sheba had become a monarchy before the days of Solomon. Its queen brought him gold, spices, and precious stones (1 Kings 10:1-13). She is called by our Lord the "queen of the south" (Matt. 12:42).

(5.) Heb. shebha', "seven" or "an oak." A town of Simeon (Josh. 19:2).

(6.) Heb. id. A "son of Bichri," of the family of Becher, the son of Benjamin, and thus of the stem from which Saul was descended (2 Sam. 20:1-22). When David was returning to Jerusalem after the defeat of Absalom, a strife arose between the ten tribes and the tribe of Judah, because the latter took the lead in bringing back the king. Sheba took advantage of this state of things, and raised the standard of revolt, proclaiming, "We have no part in David." With his followers he proceeded northward. David seeing it necessary to check this revolt, ordered Abishai to take the gibborim, "mighty men," and the body-guard and such troops as he could gather, and pursue Sheba. Joab joined the expedition, and having treacherously put Amasa to death, assumed the command of the army. Sheba took refuge in Abel-Bethmaachah, a fortified town some miles north of Lake Merom. While Joab was engaged in laying siege to this city, Sheba's head was, at the instigation of a "wise woman" who had held a parley with him from the city walls, thrown over the wall to the besiegers, and thus the revolt came to an end.

Sabeans [NAVE]

SABEANS
A people who invaded the land of Uz, Job 1:15; Isa. 43:3.
Giants among, Isa. 45:14.
Prophecies concerning, Isa. 43:3; Joel 3:8.
Proverbial drunkards, Ezek. 23:42.
See: Sheba.

Seba [NAVE]

SEBA
1. Son of Cush, Gen. 10:7; 1 Chr. 1:9.
2. A region in Ethiopia, Psa. 72:10; Isa. 43:3.

Sheba [NAVE]

SHEBA
1. Son of Raamah, Gen. 10:7; 1 Chr. 1:9.
2. Son of Joktan, Gen. 10:28; 1 Chr. 1:22.
3. Son of Jokshan, Gen. 25:3; 1 Chr. 1:32.
4. A Benjamite who led an insurrection against David, 2 Sam. 20.
5. A Gadite, 1 Chr. 5:13.
6. A city of Simeon, Josh. 19:2.
7. Queen of, visits Solomon, 1 Kin. 10:1-13; 2 Chr. 9:1-12.
Kings of, bring gifts to Solomon, Psa. 72:10.
Rich in gold, Psa. 72:15; incense, Jer. 6:20.
Merchandise of, Ezek. 27:22, 23; 38:13.
Prophecies concerning the people of, coming into the kingdom of Messiah, Isa. 60:6.
See: Sabeans.

SABEANS [SMITH]

[SHEBA]

SEBA [SMITH]

(pl. Sebaim ; in Authorized Version incorrectly rendered Sabeans) heads the list of the sons of Cush. Besides the mention of Seba in the lists of the pens of Cush, (Genesis 10:7; 1 Chronicles 1:9) there are but three notices of the nation -- (Psalms 72:10; Isaiah 43:3; 45:14) These passages seem to show that Seba was a nation of Africa bordering on or included in Cush, and in Solomon?s time independent and of political importance. It may perhaps be identified with the island of Meroe. Josephus says that Saba was the ancient name of the Ethiopian island and city of Meroe, but he writes Seba, in the notice of the Noachian settlements, Sabas. The island of Meroe lay between the Astaboras, the Atbara, the most northern tributary of the Nile, and the Astapus, the Bahr el-Azrak, "Blue River," the eastern of its two great confluents.

SHEBA [SMITH]

(on oath), the son of Bichri, a Benjamite, (2 Samuel 20:1-22) the last chief of the Absalom insurrection. The occasion seized by Sheba was the emulation between the northern and southern tribes on David?s return. (2 Samuel 20:1,2) Sheba traversed the whole of Palestine apparently rousing the population, Joab following in full pursuit to the fortress Abel Beth-maachah, where Sheba was beheaded. (2 Samuel 20:3-22)

SHEBA [SMITH]

(seven , or all oath).

1. A son of Raamah son of Cush. (Genesis 10:7; 1 Chronicles 1:9)
2. A soil of Joktan. (Genesis 10:28; 1 Chronicles 1:22)
3. A son of Jokshan son of Keturah. (Genesis 25:3; 1 Chronicles 1:32) We shall consider, first, the history of the Joktanite Sheba; and secondly, the Cushite Sheba and the Keturahite Sheba together. I. The Joktanites were among the early colonists of southern Arabia, and the kingdom which they there founded was for many centuries called the kingdom of Sheba, after one of the sons of Joktan. The visit of the queen of Sheba to King Solomon. (1 Kings 10:1) is one of the familiar Bible incidents. The kingdom of Sheba embraced the greater part of the Yemen, or Arabia Felix. It bordered on the Red Sea, and was one of the most fertile districts of Arabia. Its chief cities, and probably successive capitals, were Seba, San?a (Uzal), and Zafar (Sephar). Seba was probably the name of the city, and generally of the country and nation. II. Sheba, son of Raamah son of Cush settled somewhere on the shores of the Persian Gulf. It was this Sheba that carried on the great Indian traffic with Palestine, in conjunction with, as we hold, the other Sheba, son of Jokshan son of Keturah, who like Dedan appears to have formed, with the Cushite of the same name, one tribe.

SHEBA [SMITH]

one of the towns of the allotment of Simeon, (Joshua 19:2) probably the same as Shema. (Joshua 15:26)

SEBA [ISBE]

SEBA - se'-ba (cebha'; Saba (Gen 10:7; 1 Ch 1:9); Greek ibid., but Codex Vaticanus has (Saban):

1. Forms of Name, and Parentage of Seba:

The first son of Cush, his brothers being Havilah, Sabtah, Raamah, and Sabtecha. In Ps 72:10 and Isa 43:3 (where the Greek has Soene), Seba is mentioned with Egypt and Ethiopia, and must therefore have been a southern people. In Isa 45:14 we meet with the gentilic form, (csebha'im) (Sabaeim), rendered "Sabaeans," who are described as "men of stature" (i.e. tall), and were to come over to Cyrus in chains, and acknowledge that God was in him--their merchandise, and that of the Ethiopians, and the labor of Egypt, were to be his.

2. Position of the Nation:

Their country is regarded as being, most likely, the district of Saba, North of Adulis, on the west coast of the Red Sea. There is just a possibility that the Sabi River, stretching from the coast to the Zambesi and the Limpopo, which was utilized as a waterway by the states in that region, though, through silting, not suitable now, may contain a trace of the name, and perhaps testifies to still more southern extensions of the power and influence of the Sebaim. (See Th. Bent, The Ruined Cities of Mashonaland, 1892.) The ruins of this tract are regarded as being the work of others than the black natives of the country. Dillmann, however, suggests (on Gen 10:7) that the people of Seba were another branch of the Cushites East of Napatha by the Arabian Sea, of which Strabo (xvi. 4, 8, 10) and Ptolemy (iv.7, 7 f) give information.

See SHEBA and HDB, under the word

T. G. Pinches

SHEBA (1) [ISBE]

SHEBA (1) - she'-ba (shebha'; Saba): (1) Sheba and Dedan are the two sons of Raamah son of Cush (Gen 10:7). (2) Sheba and Dedan are the two sons of Jokshan the son of Abraham and Keturah (Gen 25:3). (3) Sheba is a son of Joktan son of Eber who was a descendant of Shem (Gen 10:28).

From the above statements it would appear that Sheba was the name of an Arab tribe, and consequently of Semitic descent. The fact that Sheba and Dedan are represented as Cushite (Gen 10:7) would point to a migration of part of these tribes to Ethiopia, and similarly their derivation from Abraham (Gen 25:3) would indicate that some families were located in Syria. In point of fact Sheba was a South-Arabian or Joktanite tribe (Gen 10:28), and his own name and that of some of his brothers (e.g. Hazarmaveth = Hadhramaut) are place-names in Southern Arabia.

The Sabeans or people of Saba or Sheba, are referred to as traders in gold and spices, and as inhabiting a country remote from Palestine (1 Ki 10:1 f; Isa 60:6; Jer 6:20; Ezek 27:22; Ps 72:15; Mt 12:42), also as slave-traders (Joel 3:8), or even desert-rangers (Job 1:15; 6:19; compare CIS 84 3).

By the Arab genealogists Saba is represented as great-grandson of Qachtan (= Joktan) and ancestor of all the South-Arabian tribes. He is the father of Chimyar and Kahlan. He is said to have been named Saba because he was the first to take prisoners (shabhah) in war. He founded the capital of Saba and built its citadel Marib (Mariaba), famous for its mighty barrage.

1. History:

The authentic history of the Sabeans, so far as known, and the topography of their country are derived from South-Arabian inscriptions, which began to be discovered about the middle of the last century, and from coins dating from about 150 BC to 150 AD, the first collection of which was published in 1880, and from the South-Arabian geographer Hamdani, who was later made known to European scholars. One of the Sabean kings is mentioned on Assyrian inscriptions of the year 715 BC; and he is apparently not the earliest. The native monuments are scattered over the period extending from before that time until the 6th century AD, when the

Sabean state came to an end, being most numerous about the commencement of our era. Saba was the name of the nation of which Marib was the usual capital. The Sabeans at first shared the sovereignty of South Arabia with Himyar and one or two other nations, but gradually absorbed the territories of these some time after the Christian era. The form of government seems to have been that of a republic or oligarchy, the chief magistracy going by a kind of rotation, and more than one "king" holding office simultaneously (similarly Dt 4:47 and often in the Old Testament). The people seem to have been divided into patricians and plebeians, the former of whom had the right to build castles and to share in the government.

2. Religion:

A number of deities are mentioned on the inscriptions, two chief being Il-Maqqih and Ta`lab. Others are Athtar (masculine form of the Biblical `ashtaroth), Rammon (the Biblical Rimmon), the Sun, and others. The Sun and Athtar were further defined by the addition of the name of a place or tribe, just as Baal in the Old Testament. Worship took the form of gifts to the temples, of sacrifices, especially incense, of pilgrimages and prayers. Ceremonial ablution, and abstinence from certain things, as well as formal dedication of the worshipper and his household and goods to the deity, were also religious acts. In return the deity took charge of his worshipper's castle, wells, and belongings, and supplied him with cereals, vegetables and fruits, as well as granted him male issue.

3. Civilization:

(1) The chief occupations of the Sabeans were raiding and trade. The chief products of their country are enumerated in Isa 60:6, which agrees with the Assyrian inscriptions. The most important of all commodities was incense, and it is significant that the same word which in the other Semitic languages means "gold," in Sabean means "perfume" (and also "gold"). To judge, however, from the number of times they are mentioned upon the inscriptions, agriculture bulked much more largely in the thoughts of the Sabean than commerce, and was of equal importance with religion.

(2) The high position occupied by women among the Sabeans is reflected in the story of the Queen of Sheba and Solomon. In almost all respects women appear to have been considered the equal of men, and to have discharged the same civil, religious and even military functions. Polygamy does not seem to have been practiced. The Sabean inscriptions do not go back far enough to throw any light upon the queen who was contemporary with Solomon, and the Arabic identification of her with Bilqis is merely due to the latter being the only Sabean queen known to them. Bilqis must have lived several centuries later than the Hebrew monarch.

(3) The alphabet used in the Sabean inscriptions is considered by Professor Margoliouth to be the original Semitic alphabet, from which the others are derived. In other respects Sabean art seems to be dependent on that of Assyria, Persia and Greece. The coins are Greek and Roman in style, while the system of weights employed is Persian.

See further SABAEANS.

LITERATURE.

Rodiger and Osidander in ZDMG, volumes XX and XXI; Halevy in Journal Asiatique, Serie 6, volume IX; Corpus Inscriptionum Semiticarum, pt. IV, edition by J. and H. Derenbourg; Hamdani, edition by D. H. Muller, 1891; Mordtmann, Himyarische Inschriften, 1893; Hommel, Sudarabische Chresthomathie, 1893; Glaser, Abyssinien in Arabien, 1895; D. H. Muller, Sudarabische Alterthumer, 1899; Derenbourg, Les monuments sabeens, 1899. On the coins, Schlumberger, Le tresor de San'a, 1880; Mordtmann in Wiener numismatische Zeitschrift, 1880.

Thomas Hunter Weir

SHEBA (2) [ISBE]

SHEBA (2) - she'-ba (shebha`; Sabee, or Samaa): The name of one of the towns allotted to Simeon (Josh 19:2). the King James Version mentions it as an independent town, but as it is not mentioned at all in the parallel list (1 Ch 4:28), and is omitted in Josh 19:2 in some manuscripts, it is probable that the Revised Version (British and American) is correct in its translation "Beer-sheba or Sheba." Only in this way can the total of towns in this group be made 13 (Josh 19:6). If it is a separate name, it is probably the same as SHEMA (which see).

E. W. G. Masterman