Dead (properly some form of מוּת, θνήσκω). See BURIAL. When a Hebrew died in any house or tent, all the persons and furniture in it contracted a pollution which continued seven days (Nu 19:14-16). All who touched the body of one who died, or was killed in the open fields; all who touched men's bones, or a grave, were unclean seven days. To cleanse this pollution, they took the ashes of the red heifer, sacrificed by the high-priest on the day of solemn explanation (Numbers 19:1-22); on these they poured water in a vessel, and a person who was clean dipped a bunch of hyssop in the water, and sprinkled with it the furniture, the chamber, and the persons, on the third day and on the seventh day. It was required that the polluted person should previously bathe his whole body, and wash his clothes, after which he was clean. Since the' destruction of the Temple, the Jews have ceased generally to consider themselves as polluted by a dead body. SEE CORPSE. On the play upon the two senses of the word in its literal and spiritual application in Mt 5:22, see the Dissertatio of Schicht (Altd. 1770). SEE DEATH.
The word rendered "dead" in Job 26:5; Ps 88:10; Pr 2:18; Pr 9:18; Pr 21:16; Isa 14:9; Isa 26:14,19, is רפָאַים, rephaim; derived from רָפָא; having, according to Gesenius, the sense of silent, but, according to Fürst, meaning dark; in either case denoting the shades, manes, or disembodied spirits of the under world. SEE SHEOL.
The Cyclopedia of Biblical, Theological, and Ecclesiastical Literature was edited by John McClintock and James Strong. It contains nearly 50,000 articles pertaining to Biblical and other religious literature, people, creeds, etc. It is a fantastic research tool for broad Christian study.
John McClintock was born October 27, 1814 in Philadelphia to Irish immigrants, John and Martha McClintock. He began as a clerk in his father's store, and then became a bookkeeper in the Methodist Book Concern in New York. Here he converted to Methodism and considered joining the ministry. McClintock entered the University of Pennsylvania in 1832 and graduated with high honors three years later. Subsequently, he was awarded a doctorate of divinity degree from the same institution in 1848.WikipediaRead More