[c. 1,215 feet (370 meters)] distant from Jerusalem.” However, the exact location of the Low Plain of Shaveh cannot now be ascertained.—Antiquities of the Jews, Book VII, chap. X, par. 3.

SHAVEH-KIRIATHAIM

(Shaʹveh-kir·i·a·thaʹim) [level (plain) of Kiriathaim (twin cities)].

Scene of Chedorlaomer’s victory over the Emim. (Gen. 14:5) It was apparently the plain near or surrounding the city of Kiriathaim, E of the Jordan and later built or rebuilt by the Reubenites. (Num. 32:37; Josh. 13:15, 19) Geographers usually place Kiriathaim at el-Qereiyat, about six miles (10 kilometers) NW of the suggested location of Dibon.

SHAVING

See BALDNESS; BEARD.

SHAVSHA

(Shavʹsha).

A secretary of King David.—1 Chron. 18:16; see SERAIAH No. 2.

SHEAL

(Sheʹal) [asking].

One of several in the family of Bani whom Ezra induced to dismiss their foreign wives and sons.—Ezra 10:10, 11, 29, 44.

SHEALTIEL

(She·alʹti·el) [I have asked of God].

A descendant of King David and ancestor of Jesus in the tribe of Judah. Shealtiel is called the son both of Jehoiachin (Jeconiah) and of Neri. Both Shealtiel and his brother Pedaiah are called the father of post-exilic Governor Zerubbabel.

As to Shealtiel’s father: Shealtiel is listed first among the sons born to Jehoiachin during his exile. (1 Chron. 3:17; Matt. 1:12) If Shealtiel married an unnamed daughter of Neri through whom Luke traces Jesus’ genealogy, Shealtiel might be termed by Luke “the son of Neri,” “son” embracing son-in-law, the same as Luke later calls Joseph, who apparently married Heli’s daughter Mary, simply “the son of Heli.”—Luke 3:23, 27.

As to Zerubbabel’s father: Pedaiah is once so identified (1 Chron. 3:19), but Pedaiah’s brother Shealtiel (1 Chron. 3:17, 18) is so termed in all other instances. (Ezra 3:2, 8; 5:2; Neh. 12:1; Hag. 1:1, 12, 14; 2:2, 23; Matt. 1:12; Luke 3:27) If Pedaiah died when his son Zerubbabel was a boy, Pedaiah’s oldest brother Shealtiel might have raised Zerubbabel as his own son. Or, if Shealtiel died childless and Pedaiah performed levirate marriage on his behalf, the son of Pedaiah by Shealtiel’s wife would have been the legal heir of Shealtiel.

SHEARIAH

(She·a·riʹah).

A descendant of Saul and Jonathan; one of Azel’s six sons.—1 Chron. 8:33-38; 9:44.

SHEAR-JASHUB

(Sheʹar-jashʹub) [a mere remnant will return].

The first son of Isaiah. Shear-jashub went along when Isaiah delivered a prophetic message to King Ahaz at the time of Israelite King Pekah’s invasion of Judah between 761 and 759 B.C.E. (Isa. 7:1, 3) Isaiah and his sons were to serve as signs and miracles from Jehovah in Israel; hence Shear-jashub’s name foretold that ‘a mere remnant would return’ from Babylonian exile.—Isa. 8:18; 10:21.

SHEATH

See ARMS, ARMOR.

SHEBA

(Sheʹba).

1. The first-listed son of Raamah the son of Cush.—Gen. 10:7; 1 Chron. 1:9.

2. A son of Joktan of the line of Shem. (Gen. 10:21-30; 1 Chron. 1:17-23) The thirteen Arabian tribes springing from the sons of Joktan dwelt “from Mesha [believed to have been near Dumah in N Arabia] as far as Sephar, the mountainous region of the East [probably near the S coast of the peninsula].” It is not possible to give a precise location for the tribe of Sheba in this vast area. It may be that men of this nomadic tribe were the marauding “Sabeans” who made the raid described in Job 1:14, 15.

3. One of the two sons of Jokshan, the son of Abraham by Keturah. (Gen. 25:1-3; 1 Chron. 1:32) While Abraham was still alive he sent his offspring through Keturah “eastward, to the land of the East.” (Gen. 25:6) So it seems that this Sheba settled somewhere in Arabia.

4. The son of Bichri a Benjamite, and one who lost his life in a revolt against David. (2 Sam. 20:1, 2) At the time David was returning to Jerusalem after Absalom’s rebellion, Sheba, “a good-for-nothing man,” detected the ill-feeling of ten of the tribes toward the men of Judah, David’s tribe. (2 Sam. 19:40-43) Sheba fanned the flames of this bitterness, saying that the other tribes had no “share in David” and urging: “Every one to his gods.” The men of Judah stuck to the king, but “all the men of Israel” deserted David to follow Sheba. One motive behind this rebellion may have been to bring back to the tribe of Benjamin some of the prominence it had under Saul.

David told his general, Amasa, to collect the men of Judah for battle within three days in order to put down Sheba’s uprising. When Amasa did not appear on time, the king sent Abishai after fleeing Sheba (though it appears that Abishai’s brother Joab actually took charge during the chase). Sheba and his supporting relatives fled all the way N to Abel-beth-maacah, a fortified city of Naphtali. The pursuers laid siege to the city and began to undermine the wall. Then a wise woman of the city spoke with Joab requesting peace. Joab replied that the army would withdraw if the city delivered up the rebel Sheba. On hearing this, the people of the city cut off Sheba’s head and pitched it over the city wall to Joab.—2 Sam. 20:1-8, 13-22.

5. A Gadite living in Bashan, a descendant of Abihail.—1 Chron. 5:11, 13.

6. A wealthy kingdom, in all probability located in SW Arabia. It was especially known for its gold, perfumes and incense. (1 Ki. 10:1, 2; Isa. 60:6; Jer. 6:20; Ezek. 27:22) The origin of these people of Sheba, or Sabeans, as they are frequently designated in secular sources, cannot be established with certainty. In the line of Shem there were two Shebas (Nos. 2 and 3) and one in the line of Ham (No. 1), who evidently settled in Arabia. However, some modern scholars believe that the people of this kingdom were Semitic, of the line of Joktan, descendants of Shem through Eber. (Gen. 10:26-28) Sheba’s own name and that of some of his brothers (for example, Hazarmaveth and Ophir) are connected with locations in S Arabia.—See HAVILAH No. 3; HAZARMAVETH.

The kingdom of Sheba was located, according to some authorities, in the eastern portion of modern-day Yemen. Its capital was evidently Marib, on the E side of the mountain range and some sixty miles (97 kilometers) E of Sanʽa.

Before nautical improvements made navigation in the Red Sea less hazardous, trade from S Arabia and possibly E Africa and India was largely accomplished by means of camel caravans through Arabia. Sheba dominated the caravan routes and became renowned for its traders of frankincense, myrrh, gold, precious stones and ivory. The Bible indicates that these traders reached as far as Tyre. (Ezek. 27:2, 22-24; Ps. 72:15; Isa. 60:6) A clay stamp unearthed at Bethel provides material confirmation of commerce between Palestine and S Arabia. Discoveries from excavations at Marib suggest that the Sabeans were a relatively peaceful, commercially minded people. At their capital they had a huge temple to the moon god.

QUEEN OF SHEBA

Sometime after Solomon had completed many building works, he was visited by “the queen of Sheba,” who had heard “the report about Solomon in connection with the name of Jehovah.” This queen, unnamed in the Bible, went to Jerusalem with “a very impressive train, camels carrying balsam oil and very much gold and precious stones.” (1 Ki. 10:1, 2) The mode of her travel and the type of gifts she brought indicate that she was from the kingdom of Sheba in SW Arabia. This is also indicated by Jesus’ comment that she was the “queen of the south” and that she “came from the ends of the earth.” (Matt. 12:42) From the standpoint of persons in Jerusalem, she had truly come from a most distant part of the then-known world. (Ps. 72:10; Joel 3:8) Marib is about 1,200 miles (1,930 kilometers) from Ezion-geber, which is on the N shore of the Red Sea.

Jesus said of the queen of Sheba that she came “to hear the wisdom of Solomon.” (Luke 11:31) Both by what Solomon said and by what she saw of the prosperity of his kingdom, she was impressed. She pronounced the king’s servants happy for being able to hear his wisdom, and blessed Jehovah for putting him on the throne. (1 Ki. 10:2-9; 2 Chron. 9:1-9) The queen gave Solomon 120 talents of gold (worth $4,639,320) as well as balsam oil and precious stones. Solomon gave her gifts that apparently exceeded the value of the treasures she brought and then she returned to her own land.—2 Chron. 9:12, NW, AT, Mo.

Christ stated that this woman would rise up in the judgment and condemn the men of the first-century generation. (Matt. 12:42; Luke 11:31) She had made an arduous trip to hear Solomon’s wisdom, but the unbelieving Jews, who claimed to be servants of Jehovah, had present in Jesus something more than Solomon and did not pay attention to him.

7. Apparently one of the enclave cities given to the tribe of Simeon in the S part of the territory of Judah. (Josh. 19:2) The name, though, does not appear in the parallel list in 1 Chronicles 4:28-32 or among the accounts of cities at first assigned to Judah. (Josh. 15:26) Since Joshua 19:2-6 gives the sum as thirteen cities, but actually seems to list fourteen cities, some scholars have suggested that Sheba and Beer-sheba were two parts of the same city, Sheba being the older. If it was a separate location, it may have been the same as Shema, named in the list at Joshua 15:26-32.

SHEBANIAH

(Sheb·a·niʹah).

1. A priest who played a trumpet in the procession that accompanied the ark of the covenant to Jerusalem in David’s day.—1 Chron. 15:3, 24.

2. A priestly paternal house that Joseph represented in the days of High Priest Jeshua’s successor Joiakim. (Neh. 12:12, 14) In a generally similar list of priests having returned with Zerubbabel in 537 B.C.E. the name Shecaniah appears in the place of Shebaniah. (Neh. 12:1-7) During Nehemiah’s governorship, a member of the same family (or some individual priest of the same name) attested to the national covenant then made.—Neh. 10:1, 4, 8.

3. One of the Levites, or a representative of a Levitical family of the same name, contemporaneous with Ezra and Nehemiah, who led the Jews in a prayer of confession, after which they proposed and sealed a covenant of faithfulness.—Neh. 9:4, 5, 38; 10:1, 9, 10.

4. Another Levite who attested to the same trustworthy arrangement, either in his own name or that of a forefather.—Neh. 9:38; 10:9, 12.

SHEBARIM

(Shebʹa·rim) [quarries].

The place to which men of Ai chased the Israelites, when they were unable to stand before the enemy after Achan’s sin. (Josh. 7:5) The site is unknown, except that it was near Ai. Certain translators prefer to render the Hebrew term as “stone-works” or “stone-quarries” rather than as Shebarim.—The Bible in Basic English; Le.

SHEBAT

(Sheʹbat).

The postexilic name of the eleventh Jewish lunar month of the sacred calendar, but the fifth of the secular calendar. (Zech. 1:7; Deut. 1:3; 1 Chron. 27:14) It corresponds to part of January and part of February. The meaning of the name is uncertain.

This midwinter month comes somewhat after the peak of the heavy rains but is still a time of major rainfall. Mean average temperatures run about 45 degrees Fahrenheit (7.2 degrees Centigrade) in Jerusalem and about ten degrees higher along the Mediterranean coast. The pink and white flowers of the almond tree are the first to brighten up the winter scenery and herald the approach of spring.

Shebat was unmarked by any festival seasons in the Bible record.

SHEBER

(Sheʹber) [breakdown, crash].

A son of Caleb by Maacah his concubine; of the tribe of Judah.—1 Chron. 2:48.

SHEBNA(H)

(Shebʹna[h]).

An officer of King Hezekiah. At one time Shebna was the “steward . . . over the house,” presumably of Hezekiah, an influential position. Jehovah, however, directed Isaiah to denounce Shebna, prophesying that he would be ‘pushed away from his position,’ apparently because of his pride and glory-seeking, shown by building himself a conspicuous sepulcher. His robe, sash and dominion, together with “the key of the house of David,” were given instead to ‘God’s servant Eliakim.’—Isa. 22:15-24.

Shebna was not stripped of all privileges, however, for when Sennacherib threatened Jerusalem in 732 B.C.E. and Eliakim had become steward, Shebna was the royal secretary sent with Eliakim and the recorder to speak with Rabshakeh from the wall. With clothes ripped apart they reported back to Hezekiah what had been said and were then sent to Isaiah to inquire of Jehovah.—2 Ki. 18:18–19:7; Isa. 36:3–37:7.

SHEBUEL

(Shebʹu·el), Shubael (Shuʹba·el) [he returned to God; captive of God].

The two men named Shebuel are both alternately referred to as Shubael.

1. A Levitical son or descendant of Moses’ son Gershom. (1 Chron. 23:15, 16) Shebuel’s (Shubael’s) paternal house was enrolled when David reorganized the Levitical services (1 Chron. 24:20, 30b, 31), being given duties that included caring for the stores.—1 Chron. 26:24.

2. One of the sons of Heman and an expert musician selected by lot to head the thirteenth division of sanctuary musicians.—1 Chron. 25:4, 6, 9, 20.

SHECANIAH

(Shec·a·niʹah) [Jehovah has taken up his abode].

1. A descendant of Aaron whose paternal house was selected by lot as tenth of the twenty-four priestly divisions that David organized.—1 Chron. 24:1-3, 7, 11.

2. One of those entrusted with equal distribution of the tithes and other contributions in the priests’ cities during Hezekiah’s reign.—2 Chron. 31:12, 15.

3. A priest who returned to Jerusalem with Zerubbabel.—Neh. 12:1, 3, 7; see SHEBANIAH No. 2.

4. A paternal house represented among the group that returned with Ezra in 468 B.C.E.—Ezra 8:1, 3.

5. Head of the paternal house of Zattu, 300 males of which returned with Ezra; son of Jahaziel.—Ezra 8:1, 5.

6. “The son of Jehiel of the sons of Elam” who proposed to Ezra the covenant by which those in restored Judah having foreign wives volunteered to send them away.—Ezra 10:2-4.

7. Father of the Shemaiah who did repair work on Jerusalem’s wall.—Neh. 3:29.

8. Father-in-law of Tobiah the Ammonite; son of Arah.—Neh. 4:3; 6:17, 18.

9. A descendant of David through Zerubbabel who lived several generations after the Babylonian exile. He was a son of Obadiah and father of Shemaiah.—1 Chron. 3:5, 9, 10, 19, 21, 22.

SHECHEM

(Sheʹchem) [shoulder].

1. Son of Hivite chieftain Hamor. (Gen. 33:19; Josh. 24:32) After Jacob settled near the city of Shechem (see No. 4 below), his daughter Dinah began associating with females of that city. The man Shechem, described as being the “most honorable of the whole house of his father,” saw Dinah and “lay down with her and violated her.” Then he fell in love