Ashpenaz (Hastings' Dictionary)

The chief of Nebuchadrezzar's eunuchs (Dn 1'). ASHTAROTH (ni-u??y, in I'onn the plural of AshtOrcth ; cf. 'Andthoth from 'Andth: the name is no doubt an indication that the place was once a notable seat of the worship of 'Ashtoreth). — A place mentioned in OT as (with Edre'i) one of the two roval cities of 'Og, the king of Bashan (IH 1*, Jos 9'» 12' 13', "), and as a Levitical city (1 Ch 6" <"• ; the parallel text Jos 21" has Be'Eshterah, i.e.

probably House, or Temple, of 'Ashtoreth) assigned (according to P) to the Gershonites. So far as the biblical data go, 'Ashtaroth might b« identical with ' Ashteroth-lfarnaim (the name being merely abbreviated from it) ; if, however, tha statements of Euseb. (in the Onom.) be correct, the two places were distinct. In the Onom., namely, we read : ' (I) Ashtaroth Kamaim: there are still two villages [of this name] in Bashan, 9 miles distant from each other, between Adara (Edre'i) and Abila (p.

209, Lag.) (2) Ashtaroth : an ancient city of Ug, in Bashan, 6 miles from Adara (p. 213). (3) Kamaim Ashtaroth : now a large \-illage in the comer [see Jerome, p. 108, 18] of Bashan, where the traditional dwelling of Job is showTJ (p. 268).' Now, an ancient tradition (see Wetzstein in the App. to Delitzsch's Hiob (E. tr. ii. 397 tf.; ed. 2, p. 552 If.) places U?, the fatherland of Job, in this region : at the top of a long, low hill, 16 miles N.N.W.

of Edre'i, on which stands the vUlage of Sa'diye (also called Sheikh Sa'd), is a mosque, containing the Sakhret Ayyub, or Job's Stone, a monolith of basalt, against which, according to the legend reported by Arab, writers, the patriarch leaned as he sat on the ground and received nis friends (see Wetzst. p. 563, and Schumacher, Across the Jordan, pp. 189-191, with plans and cuts) ; at the foot of the hill, from what is supposed to be the spot where, at the close of his sutterings.

Job stamped his foot (cf. I^or. 38""-), gushes forth the beautiful 'Job's Spring,' the waters of which, after flowing a short distance, are conducted to the Hammdm, Ayytib, or Job's Bath, reputed to possess healing virtues (Wetzst. p. 502; Schum. p. 193 f. ; also PEFSt, 1895, p. 180) ; slightly to the S. of this, Wetzstein (p. 561 f.) saw the Makdm Ayyub, or Tomb of Job ; a little farther S.

, about | of a mile from Sheikh Sad, at a government settlement now called El-Merkez, there was, until recently (for its place is now occupied by barracks), a iJer Ayyub. or Monastery of Job, the foundation of which is assigned by Abulfeda (Hist. anteisL, ed. Fleischer, p. 128) to the Ghassanide prince 'Amr I. in the 3rd cent. A.D. (Wetzst. pp. 564-566 ; Schum. p. 196 ; Socin in Bad. Pal.^ 303 : Schum. p. 197 also describes here a Makdm Ayyub, or Tomb of Job, which is not mentioned by Wetzst.

; but van Kasteren, ZDPV, 1893, pp. 200-204, declares this building to be not 30 years old, and argues that the site of the Ma^am must have been changed since Wetzstein saw it in 1858). All these Job- antiquities are frequently mentioned by Arab, writers (see Wetzst., and v. Kast. I.e.) The 'angulus' of Jerome may be the angle formed by the two deep gorges of the Nahr er-Rukkad and the Shari'at el-Menadireh, still called ' the Eastern Angle ' (Schum. pp. 3, 342) : cf. Onom.

282, 90 (where Nivei/^ is NawA). 'Job's Stone 'is described more fully by Schumacher in the ZDPV, 1892, 14211'. (with photographs): the representa- tion of an Egyp. kin^ worshipping before a deity can be traced upon it, together with characters, which Erman (ib. 1893, 205 (1.) reads as Wesr-ma- lie, ' chosen of Re',' the official title of Ramses II, (19th dynasty); it is consequently in reality a monument of the age when the Egyp. kings held rule over Syria. Further, only 2J miles S.S.W.

of Sheikh Sa'd there is a hill. Tell 'Ashtera {\3JL.z)< rising about 80 ft, above the surrounding pliiin, and watered at its foot by the same copious stream spoken of above as having its source in 'Job's Spring,' and here called Moyet en-Nehu Ayyub ('stream of the prophet Job'). Tell 'Ashterfi was a military centre in the Middle Age« (Nfildoko, 'Zur Topogr. u. Gesch. der Hauran- gegi!n<l,' ZDMG, 1875, p.

431, witli the references) ; and there are remains of fortifications around tlifl summit, together with massive blocks of stone at ASHTAROTH ASUTORETH 167 it» S. and S.W. base, running up the hill to meet the wall at the top, all of a character betokening an early age (Merrill, East of Jordan, 32'J f. ; cf. Schmn. Across the Jordnn, p. 209). There ia a strong presumption tliat the ' Kamaim Ashtaroth ' of Eusul). was one of these localities ; and Wetzst. (p. 575j Eng. tr. p.

427), Guthe (ZDPV, 1890, p. 235), uiid V. Kasteren (ib. 1891, p. 213), all identify the biblical 'Ashterotli-tCaruaim with Tell 'Ashtera, — the last named scholar.who in terprets(after Wetzst.) t he name as signifying 'Ashtaroth near l;Lamaim (cf . Moresheth-Gath, etc.), supposin';, further, that l^arnaim (which Euseb. connects closely with Job's home) wa8 at Sheikh Sad, though owning (ib. 1893, p. 197 f.)

that this site is hardly so inaccessible as ' Karnaim ' is described as being, in 2 Mac 12^'). If, however, this was the ' Kamaim Ashtaroth ' of Euseb., where was his 'Ashtaroth'? Just 9J miles south of Sheikh Sad, and 6^ (Sebum.) — or 8 (Stubel'» map, ZDPV, 1890, Heft 4) — miles N.W. of Edrei, — almost exactly, therefore, at the distances assigned by Euseb.

, — is the village of El-Mezeirib — situated on the great pilgnm-track (the Derb el-IIaj) between Damas- cus and Mecca, and the first lialting-place of the pilgrims after leaving Damascus. A plan, descrip- tion, and view will be found in Schumacher, pp. 157-166.

The situation of El-Mezeirib gives it im]>ortance : an annual fair is held there at the time cf the Mecca-pilgrimage : the ancient city (which lies in the centre of a small lake) * must have been once a strongly fortified place,' and the ruins and huge basaltic blocks, scattered about the shores of ths lake, ' seem to be the remains of pre- M'jhammedan buildings ' (Schum. p. 165). "This may well be the ' Ashtaroth ' of Euseb. (so Buhl, Topogr. des Nurdl. Ostjordanlandea, 1894, p. 16).

Whether, how^ever, it is the biblical 'Ashtaroth, the residence of 'Og, is less certain. There is a site, 4i miles S. of Tell 'Ashtera, and 11 miles N.\V. of Edre'i, called Tell el- Ash' art, which, though no argument in favour of the identi- fication can be drawn from the Arab, name (which ia radically dilTerent from 'Ashtera), is preferred by others (e.g. v. Kasteren, ZDPV, 1891, p.

213), and wliich ia adapted, by its situation (see the description under ASHTEHOTH- Karnaim ; and for a view, Oliphant, Land of Gilead, 87 f., where the name is wrongly spelt Asherah), for a royal stron^'hold. On the whole, there is a reasonable probability that Tell 'Ashtera is one of the two 'Asntaroths (if there were two), and that either El-Mezeirib or Tell el-'Ash'ari was the other. And if Euseb.

distinguishes the two places correctly (though in calling both Ashtaroth Karnaim he shows confuHion), the former was 'Ash- teroth-^Camaim, and one of the latter 'Ashtaroth. Othera identify Tell 'Ashterii with 'Ashtaroth, and either Tell el-'Ash'ari (Oliphant, Schum. pp. 207 f., 209) or Mezeirib (Buhl) with 'Ashteroth-l^arnaim : this ia oppo.'<ed to Euseb., and we do not know, as Schum.

tacitly assumes, that 'Ashteroth-J^arnaim waa a more considerable place than 'Og's capital, 'Ashtaroth ; but it seems to have the aovantage of providing for Karnaim a site more nearly agreeing with the description in 2 Mac 12". The antiquity of 'Ashtaroth (if the name be read and identified correctly) is attested independently by Egyp. and Assyr. inscriptions : an Astertu occurs in the list of places in Southern Syria conquered by Tahutmes III.

, of the 18th dynasty, in his twentv-second year (Tomkins, 'J'SDA ix. 262, and in JiP' v. 45, No, 28 ; W. Max Miiller, Asien u. Eur. nach altag. JJenkm. p. 162; cf. Wiedemann, Ag. Gesck. 348" f., 371); and an Ashtarti is mertioned in the correspondence, from Pal., with Ameni'iphia IV. (15th cent. B.C.) as having been in the possession of the Egyptians, and being seized by rebels (Bezold and Badge, Th4 Tel el- A mama Tablets in the Brit. Mas., Nos. 43, 64 ; cf. Sayce, Patriarchal Age, 1895, pp.

133, 153). The writers named identify these places with 'Ashteroth-^Jamaim ; but they may equally well have been the later capital of 'Og, Ashtaroth (supposing thia to have been distinct). S. R. Driver. ASHTEROTH-KARNAIM {n-Pfl n\-yi:i]i Ashtaroth* of the two horTis). — This is given in the Sam. Targ. as Clip n'j'£y t ''Aphinith J^arnaim,' and in the Arab. VS of Sa'adya as ' E^-^anamain.' It is a site of hoary age. The Kephaim were there smitten by Chedorlaomer (Gn 14°).

Under this name it is seen no more in canon. Scrip. ; but it appears aa ' Carnaim ' or ' Carnion ' in the Books of Alac. It is a city ' great and strong ' (1 Mao 5^). It is ' hard to besiege, and difficult of access, by reason of the narrowness of the approaches on all sides' (RV 2 Mac 12'"). Judas Maccabseus took the city by assault. The inhabitants took refuge in the great temple of Atargatis, an idol resembling Dagon of the Philistines ; by some also identiliea with the Gr. Astarte.

There some five and twenty thousand were slain, and the temple itself was destroyed. The distinction between Ashtaroth and Ajshteroth- Kamaim, indicated in the Onomasticon, is con- firmed by the existence of two sites bearing similar names. Tell 'Ashtera and Tell 'Ash'an. Eusebius and Jerome describe Ashteroth-Kamaim as vicus grandis in angulo Batanace, distin- guishing two villages of the same name, 9 miles apart, which lay inter Adaram et Abilatn civitiites.

From Tell 'Ash'ari, Der'ah (Adara) is distant U miles to the S.E., and Abil (Abila) 14 miles to the S.W., while Tell 'Ashtera is about 5 miles N. Tell 'Ash'ari is a position of (jreat strength. On one side is the deep gorge o7 the Yarmuk, on the other extends a great chasm at the head of which is a waterfall. Built on this projecting headland the city was protected on the only side open to attack by a triple wall, traces of winch still remain.

There are ruins of a temple beside a bridge which sjjana the Yarmuk lower down, possibly that destroyed by Judas. Tell 'Ashtera, standing in the plain, although once girt by mighty walls, could never have been a place of such strength as this. The question of identification can be settled only by excavation. The .Sam. Aphinith, which may be Afineh on Jebel llaur&n, not far from Bo^rah (Waddington, No. 2296-7), and the Arab. E§-Sanamain on the Ifaj road, south of Damascus, 20 m. N.N.E.

of Tell 'Ashteri, are palpably impossible. W. EwiNa.