Earthquake

Though the Greek word σεισμός is usually translated an earthquake, yet it is of so large a sig­nification, that it is often used for any sudden and violent shaking in any part of the world, even of the heavens, as well as of the earth. For which see Joe 2:10; Hag 2:21; Heb 12:26. Plin. Nat. Hist. Lib. 2. c. 79, & c. 52.

An earthquake, when great, overturns and quite changes the surface of the earth; overturning mountains, hills, and rocks; sinking some grounds; altering the course of the rivers; making ponds and lakes upon dry lands, and drying up those that were before; and is therefore a proper symbol of great revolutions or changes in the government or political world.

It is thus used in the Prophets; as in Hag 2:6-7; Joe 2:10; Jer 4:23-24, &c.; and to the same purpose explained by Artemidorus, Lib. 2. c. 46; and by the Oriental Interpreters, c. 144; who there also explain it, of a change in the State, occasioned by new laws.

The demolition of the earth, is the breaking to pieces of civil government, Psa 46:2; Isa 24:19-20. " It seems to me," says Bishop Horsley, "that there must always be, not only a similitude, but a proportion, be­tween the image and the thing intended by the image. Admitting therefore (what indeed cannot be denied), that the convulsions in the world politic are exhibited in pro­phecy under the images of convulsions in the world natural, I cannot but think, that where the image is greatest in its kind, the thing signified must be the greatest in its kind." This is a most important observation, and ought to be attended to in the interpretation of prophetic symbols.

The first account we have of an earthquake is in the book of Numbers, chap. 16. 28 - 34. in the instance of God’s judgments upon the rebellion of Korah, and his company. And it should seem from hence, but a manner of just conclusion, that earthquakes, notwithstanding that modem philosophers pretend to account for them by physical causes, are not so, but special indications of the Lord’s displeasure. It is somewhat remarkable, that in the ten plagues of Egypt, this was not one. For of all alarming events, no doubt, the earthquake is the greatest. The Scripture relates another earthquake in the days Uzziah, king of Judah. (See Amos i. 1. Zech. 14. 5.) And a third took place at the death of Christ. (Matt. 27. 51.) The Father in the church, St. Cyril, relates, that the rocks which were split on Mount Calvary on this occasion were visible in his days. Matthew tells us, that when the centurion saw this earthquake, it convinced him of the GODHEAD of Christ. (ver. 54.)

The Scripture speaks of several earthquakes. One happened in the twenty-seventh year of Uzziah, king of Judah, in the year of the world 3221. This is mentioned in Amo 1:1, and in Zec 14:5. Josephus says that its violence divided a mountain, which lay west of Jerusalem, and drove one part of it four furlongs. A very memorable earthquake is that which happened at our Saviour’s death, Mat 27:51. Many have thought that this was perceived throughout the world. Others are of opinion that it was felt only in Judea, or even in the temple at Jerusalem. St. Cyril of Jerusalem says, that the rocks upon mount Calvary were shown in his time, which had been rent asunder by this earthquake. Maundrell and Sandys testify the same, and say that they examined the breaches in the rock, and were convinced that they were the effects of an earthquake. It must have been terrible, since the centurion and those with him were so affected by it, as to acknowledge the innocence of our Saviour, Luk 23:47. Phlegon, Adrian’s freedman, relates that, together with the eclipse, which happened at noon day, in the fourth year of the two hundred and second Olympiad, or A.D. 33, a very great earthquake was also felt, principally in Bithynia. The effects of God’s power, wrath, and vengeance are compared to earthquakes, Psa 18:7; Psa 46:2; Psa 114:4. An earthquake signifies also, in prophetic language, the dissolution of governments and the overthrow of states.

The proximate cause of earthquakes, though by no means accurately defined, seems referable to the action of internal heat or fire. That the earth was once subject to the action of a vast internal power springing probably from the development of subterranean or central heat, the elevations and depressions, and the generally scarred and torn character of its exterior, make sufficiently evident. A power similar in kind, but more restricted in degree, is still at work in the bowels of the earth, and occasionally breaks down all barriers and devastates certain parts of the world.

The manifestation of these awful phenomena is restricted in its range. Accordingly geologists have laid down certain volcanic regions or bands within which this manifestation takes place. Over these regions various traces of volcanic agency are found, such as either gaseous vapors or hot springs, or bituminous substances, and in some instances (occasionally) active volcanoes. Several sources of bitumen are found on the Tigris, in the Persian mountains, near the Kharoon, and at Bushire, as well as along the Euphrates. At Hit, especially, on the last-mentioned river, it exists on a very large scale, and, having been much used from the earliest times, seems inexhaustible. Abundant traces of it are also to be seen amid the ruins and over the entire vicinity of Hillah—the ancient Babylon. Syria and Palestine abound in volcanic appearances. Between the river Jordan and Damascus lies a volcanic tract. The entire country about the Dead Sea presents indubitable tokens of volcanic agency.

Accordingly these places come within one of the volcanic regions. The chief of these are—1. that which extends from the Caspian Sea to the Azores; 2. from the Aleutian Isles to the Moluccas; 3. that of the Andes; 4. the African; 5. the Icelandic. Syria and Palestine are embraced within the first band; and these countries have not infrequently been subject to earthquakes. The first visitation of the kind, recorded to have happened to Palestine, was in the reign of Ahab (B.C. 918-897; 1Ki 19:11-12). A terrible earthquake took place ’in the days of Uzziah, king of Judah’ (B.C. 811-759). Its awful character may be learned from the fact that Zechariah (Zec 14:5) thus speaks respecting it—’Ye shall flee as ye fled from before the earthquake in the days of Uzziah, king of Judah:’ and also that it appears from Amos (Amo 1:1) that the event was so striking, and left such deep impressions on men’s minds, that it became a sort of epoch from which to date and reckon; the prophet’s words are, ’two years before the earthquake.’

That earthquakes were among the extraordinary phenomena of Palestine in ancient times is shown in their being an element in the poetical imagery of the Hebrews, and a source of religious admonition and devout emotion (see Psa 18:7; Hab 3:6; Nah 1:5; Isa 5:25). The only earthquake mentioned in the New Testament is that which happened at the crucifixion of the Savior of mankind (Mat 27:50-51; Luk 23:44-45; Mar 15:33). This darkness has been misunderstood, and then turned to the prejudice of Christianity [DARKNESS]. The obscuration was obviously an attendant on the earthquake. Earthquakes are not seldom attended by accompaniments which obscure the light of day during (as in this case, from the sixth to the ninth hour, that is, from 12 o’clock at noon to 3 o’clock p.m.) several hours. If this is the fact, then the record is consistent with natural phenomena, and the darkness which skeptics have pleaded against speaks actually in favor of the credibility of the Gospel. Now it is well known to naturalists that such obscurations are by no means uncommon.

An earthquake devastated Judea some years (31) before the birth of our Lord, at the time of the battle of Actium, which Josephus reports was such ’as had not happened at any other time, which brought great destruction upon the cattle in that country. About ten thousand men also perished by the fall of houses.’ Jerome writes of an earthquake which, in the time of his childhood (about A.D. 315), destroyed Rabbath Moab. The writers of the middle ages also speak of earthquakes in Palestine, stating that they were not only formidable, but frequent. In 1834 an earthquake shook Jerusalem, and injured the chapel of the nativity at Bethlehem. As late as the year 1836 (Jan. 1) Jerusalem and its vicinity were visited by severe shocks of earthquake, yet the city remains without serious injury from these subterranean causes.

A convulsion of the earth common in volcanic regions, and well known in all parts of the world; probably occasioned by the action of internal heat or fire. Scripture speaks of several earthquakes, Num 16:1-50 1Ki 19:11,12 . One occurred in the twenty-seventh year of Uzziah king of Judah, and is mentioned in 1Sa 1:1 Zec 14:5 . A very memorable earthquake was that at our Savior’s death, Mat 27:51, which some suppose extended throughout the world. Palestine has been often visited by earthquakes. So late as 1837 one occurred in the vicinity of the Sea of Galilee, by which about a third part of Tiberias was destroyed, and thousands of people perished there and in the towns near by. Earthquakes were among the calamities foretold as connected with the destruction of Jerusalem, Mat 24:7 ; and history proves the truth of the prediction.\par The word earthquake is also used figuratively to denote God’s power and wrath, as in Psa 18:7 46:2 104:32, etc.; and as an emblem of a great civil or national catastrophe, Mat 24:7,29 Jer 16:18,19 .\par

Earth-quake. Earthquakes, more or less violent, are of frequent occurrence in Palestine. The most remarkable occurred in the reign of Uzziah. Zec 14:5. From Zec 14:4, we are led to infer that a great convulsion took place at this time, in the Mount of Olives, the mountain being split so as to leave a valley between its summit. An earthquake occurred at the time of our Saviour’s crucifixion. Mat 27:51-54.

Earthquakes are not unfrequently accompanied by fissures of the earth’s surface; instances of this are recorded in connection with the destruction of Korah and his company, Num 16:32, and, at the time of our Lord’s death, Mat 27:51, the former may be paralleled by a similar occurrence at Oppido in Calabria, A.D. 1783, where the earth opened to the extent of five hundred feet and to a depth of more than two hundred feet.

Traces of volcanic agency abound in Palestine. Yet the only recorded earthquake is that in Uzziah’s reign (Amo 1:1). It must have been a terrible one, since two and a half centuries later it was still being made an epoch in Zec 14:5; his sin in the spiritual world was connected with the convulsion in the natural world. Such physical signs and premonitory upheavals shall accompany the closing conflict between the powers of light and darkness (Isa 24:20; Zec 14:4; Mat 24:7). Also that in 1Ki 19:11. The awe it inspires made it an accompaniment attributed to Jehovah’s presence (Jdg 5:4; 2Sa 22:8; Psa 77:18; Psa 104:32; Amo 8:8; Hab 3:10). The valley of Siddim, S. of the Dead Sea, probably subsided owing to an earthquake. Bela is so-called ("swallowed up") from having been engulfed by an earthquake, as Dathan and Abiram were (Num 16:30-32; Gen 14:2).

The miraculous darkness and earthquake at our Lord’s death (Mat 27:51-54) agree with the natural fact of darkness often accompanying earthquakes. The Jordan Valley, with a lower and a lower valley, the sulphurous and bituminous neighborhood of the Dead Sea, the lava, pumice stones, and hot springs, the crater like depression of the Dead Sea, 1,300 ft. below the Mediterranean level, and 3,500 ft. below Jerusalem, only 20 miles away (the deepest depression on the earth), its basaltic columns, disturbed strata, and numerous crevices, all betoken action of volcanoes and earthquakes. The line of earthquakes extends from Hebron and Jerusalem to Baalbek and Aleppo, from S.W. to N.E., following the central chain of Syria, parallel to the Jordan Valley, and terminating in the volcanic slope of Taurus on the N. and in the mountains of Arabia Petrea on the S.

(רִעִשׁ, ra’ash, a shaking, σεισμός).The proximate cause of earthquakes, though by no means accurately defined, seems referable to the action of internal heat or fire. That the earth was once subject to the action of a vast internal power springing probably from the development of subterranean or central heat, the elevations and depressions, and the generally scarred and torn character of its exterior make sufficiently evident. A power similar in kind, but more restricted in degree, is still at work in the bowels of the earth, and occasionally breaks down all barriers and devastates certain parts of the world. There is good reason for holding that earthquakes are closely connected with volcanic agency. Both probably spring from the same cause, and may be regarded as one mighty influence operating to somewhat dissimilar results. Volcanic agency, therefore, is an indication of earthquakes, and traces of the first may be taken as indications of the existence (either present or past, actual or possible) of the latter. (See Hitchcock’s Geology, p. 234 sq.) The manifestation of these awful phenomena. is restricted in its range. Accordingly, geologists have laid down certain volcanic regions or bands within which this manifestation takes place. Over these regions various traces of volcanic agency are found, such as either gaseous vapors, or hot springs, or bituminous substances, and in some instances (occasionally) active volcanoes. Several sources of bitumen are found on the Tigris, in the Persian mountains, near the Kharun, and at Bushire, as well as along the Euphrates. At Hit, especially on the last-mentioned river, it exists on a very large scale, and, having been much used from the earliest times, seems inexhaustible. Abundant traces of it are also to be seen amid the ruins and over the entire vicinity of Hillah, the ancient Babylon. Syria and Palestine abound in volcanic appearances. Between the river Jordan and Damascus lies a volcanic tract. The entire country about the Dead Sea presents indubitable tokens of volcanic agency. Accordingly, these places come within one of the volcanic regions. The chief of these are,

(1) that which extends from the Caspian Sea to the Azores; (2) from the Aleutian Isles to the Moluccas; (3) that of the Andes; (4) the African; (5) the Icelandic.

Syria and Palestine are embraced within the first band, and these countries have not unfrequently been subject to earthquakes. (See Stanley, Palest. pages 279, 283, 285, 363; Volney, Trav. 1:281; Rusegger, Reisess, page 205). SEE PALESTINE.

That earthquakes were among the extraordinary phenomena of Palestine in ancient times is shown in their being an element in the poetical imagery of the Hebrews, and a source of religious admonition and devout emotion. An earthquake, when great, overturns and changes the surface of the earth, subverting mountains, hills, and rocks, sinking some parts, elevating others, altering the course of rivers, making ponds and lakes on dry lands, and drying up those that already existed; and is therefore a proper symbol of great evolutions or changes in the government or political world (Heb 12:26). See Wemyss, Symbolical Dict. s.v. In Psa 18:7, we read, "Then the earth shook and trembled; the foundations also of the chills moved and were shaken, because he was wroth" (comp. Hab 3:6; Nah 1:5; Isa 5:25). It was not an unnatural transition that any signal display of the will, sovereignty, or goodness of Providence should be foretold in connection with, and accompanied as by other signs in the heavens above or on the earth below, so by earthquakes and their fearful concomitants (see Joe 2:28; Mat 24:7; Mat 24:29). Earthquakes are not unfrequently attended with fissures of the earth’s surface; instances of this are recorded in connection with the destruction of Korah and his company (Num 16:32; compare Josephus, Ant. 4:3, 3), and at the time of our Lord’s death (Mat 27:51); the former may be paralleled by a similar occurrence at Oppido, in Calabria, A.D. 1783, where the earth opened to the extent of 500 and a depth of more than 200 feet, and again by the sinking of the bed of the Tagus at Lisbon, in which the quay was swallowed up (Pfaff, Schopfungsgesch. p. 115). These depressions are sometimes on a very large scale; the subsidence of the valley of Siddim, at the southern extremity of the Dead Sea, may be attributed to an earthquake. Similar depressions have occurred in many districts, the most remarkable being the submersion and subsequent re- elevation of the temple of Serapis at Puteoli. The frequency of earthquakes about the Dead Sea is testified in the name Bela (Gen 14:2; compare Jerome ad Isa 15:1-9). SEE SODOM. The awe which an earthquake never fails to inspire, "conveying the idea of some universal and unlimited danger" (Humboldt’s Kosmos, 2:212), rendered it a fitting token of the presence of Jehovah (1Ki 19:11); hence it is frequently noticed in connection with his appearance (Jdg 5:4; 2Sa 22:8; Psa 77:18; Psa 97:4; Psa 104:32; Amo 8:8; Hab 3:10). Earthquakes, together with thunder, lightning, and other fearful phenomena of nature, form no small portion of the stock of materials which the interpreters of the German rationalistic school employ with no less liberality than confidence in order to explain after their manner events recorded in the Scriptures which have been commonly referred to the immediate agency of God. Hezel, Paulus, as other miracle exploders would, but for this resource, find their "occupation gone." But, if there is reason for ’the statement that truth is sometimes stranger than fiction, it may with equal propriety be observed that their " natural" causes are most unnatural, unlikely, and insufficient. SEE MIRACLES.

The first visitation of the kind recorded as having happened to Palestine was in the reign of Ahab (about B.C. 905), when Elijah (1Ki 19:11-12) was directed to go forth and stand upon the mountain before Jehovah: "And behold Jehovah passed by, and a great and strong wind rent the mountains, and brake in pieces the rocks before Jehovah; but Jehovah was not in the wind: and after the wind an earthquake; but Jehovah was not in the earthquake: and after the earthquake a fire; but Jehovah was not in the fire: and after the fire a still small voice." A terrible earthquake took place "in the days of Uzziah, king of Judah" (B.C. 781), which Josephus (Ant. 9, 10, 4) says " shook the ground, and a rent was made in the Temple, so that the rays of the sun shone through it, which, falling upon ’the king’s face, struck him with the leprosy," a punishment which the historian ascribes to the wrath of God consequent on Uzziah’s usurpation of the priest’s office. That this earthquake was of an awful character may be learned from the fact that Zechariah (Zec 14:5) thus speaks respecting it: "Ye shall flee as ye fled from before the earthquake in the days of Uzziah, king of Judah:" and it likewise appears from Amos (Amo 1:1) that the event was so striking, and left such deep impressions on men’s minds, as to become a sort of epoch from which to date and reckon; the prophet’s words are, "two years before the earthquake." SEE UZZIAH. From Zec 14:4 we are led to infer that a great convulsion took place at this time in the Mount of Olives, the mountain being split so as to leave a valley between its summits. Josephus records something of the sort, but his account is by no means clear, for his words (τοῦ ὄρους ἀποῥῥαγῆναι τὸ ἣμισν τοῦ κατὰ τὴν δύσιν) can hardly mean the western half of the mountain, as Whiston seems to think, but the half of the western mountain, i.e., of the Mount of Evil Counsel, though it is not clear why this height particularly should be termed the western mountain. We cannot but think that the two accounts have the same foundation, and that the Mount of Olives was really affected by the earthquake. Hitzig (Comm. in Zechariah) suggests that the name מִשְׁחַית"corruption," may have originated at this time, the rolling down of the side of the hill, as described by Josephus, entitling it to be described as the destroying mountain, in the sense in which the term occurs in Jer 2:25. SEE AZAL.

The only important or clear earthquake mentioned in the New Testament (except the doubtful one of Mat 28:2) is that which happened at the crucifixion of the Savior of mankind (Mat 27:50-51; compare Luk 23:44-45; Mar 15:33). The concomitant darkness is most naturally held to have been an attendant on the earthquake. Earthquakes are not seldom attended by accompaniments which obscure the light of day during (as in this case from the sixth to the ninth hour, that is, from 12 o’clock at noon to 8 o’clock P.M.) several hours. If this is the fact, then the record is consistent with natural phenomena, and the darkness which skeptics have pleaded against speaks actually in favor of the credibility of the Gospel. Now it is well known to naturalists that such obscurations are by no means uncommon. It may be enough to give the following instances. A very remarkable volcanic eruption took place on the 19th of January, 1835, in the volcano of Coseguina, situated in the Bay of Fonseca (usually called the coast of Conchagua), in Central America. The eruption was preceded by a rumbling noise, accompanied by a column of smoke which issued from the mountain, increasing until it assumed the form and appearance of a large dense cloud, which, when viewed at the distance of thirty miles, appeared like an immense plume of feathers, rising with considerable velocity, and expanding in every direction. In the course of the two following days several shocks of earthquakes were felt; the morning of the 22d rose fine and clear, but a dense cloud of a pyramidal form was observed in the direction of the volcano. This gradually ascended, and by 11 o’clock A.M. it had spread over the whole firmament, entirely obscuring the light of day, the darkness equaling in intensity that of the most clouded night: this darkness continued with little intermission for three days; during the whole time a fine black powder continued to fall. This darkness extended over half of Central America. The convulsion was such as to change the outline of the coast, turn the course of a river, and form two new islands. Precisely analogous phenomena were exhibited on occasions of earthquakes that took place at Cartago, in Central America, when there prevailed a dense black fog, which lasted for three days (Recreations in Physical Geography, page 382). In the case of the volcanic eruption which overwhelmed Herculaneum and Pompeii (A.D. 79), we learn from the younger Pliny that a dense column of vapor was first seen rising vertically from Vesuvius, and then spreading itself out laterally, so that its upper portion resembled the head, and its lower the trunk of a pine. This black cloud was pierced occasionally by flashes of fire as vivid as lightning, succeeded by darkness more profound than night, and ashes fell even at Misenum. These appearances agree perfectly with those witnessed in more recent eruptions, especially those of Monte Nuovo in 1538, and Vesuvius in 1822. Indeed earthquakes appear to exert a very marked influence on our atmosphere: among other effects, Lyell (Principles of Geology, 1:400) enumerates sudden gusts of wind, interrupted by dead calms; evolution of electric matter or of inflammable gas from the soil, with sulphurous and mephitic vapors; a reddening of the sun’s disk, and a haziness in the air often continued for months (Joe 2:30-31). Other interpreters, however, understand the earthquake in Mat 27:54 to have been merely some special and supernatural operation of God, in attestation of the marvelous work that was in progress, producing a tremulous motion in the immediate locality, and in connection therewith a sensible consternation in the minds of the immediate actors; hence there is no other historical allusion to it. This view is confirmed by its being in the second case connected with the angel’s descent (Mat 28:2; compare 1Sa 14:15). Like the one that occurred at Philippi (Act 16:16), it is perhaps to be regarded as a somewhat exceptional phenomenon, wrought for a specific purpose, and consequently very limited as to its sphere of action. Nor does it appear from any notices of Scripture that the phenomena of earthquakes in the ordinary and extensive sense of the term, played more than a very occasional and subordinate part in the scenes and transactions of sacred history. Treatises in Latin on the earthquake at our Savior’s passion have been written by Berger (Viteb. 1710), Posner (Jen. 1672), Schmerbauch (Lubbeai. 1756), Schmid (Jen. 1683). SEE DARKNESS.

An earthquake devastated Judaea some years (31) before the birth of our Lord, at the time of the battle of Actium, which Josephus (Ant. 15:52) reports was such "as had not happened at any other time, which brought great destruction upon the cattle in that country. About ten thousand men also perished by the fall of houses." Jerome writes of an earthquake which, in the time of his childhood (about A.D. 315), destroyed Rabbath Moab (Jerome on Isa 15:1-9). The writers of the Middle Ages also speak of earthquakes in Palestine, stating that they were not only formidable, but frequent. In 1834 an earthquake shook Jerusalem, and injured the chapel of the nativity at Bethlehem. In 1837 (January 1) Jerusalem and its vicinity were visited by severe shocks of earthquake, yet the city remains without serious injury from these subterranean causes. This last earthquake totally overthrew the village of Safed, in Galilee (Thomson, Land and Book, 1:428 sq.). For a full account of these and others, affecting various parts of Syria, see Kitto, Phys. Hist. of Palest. volume 2, chapter 4, Comp. Bulenger, in Graevii Thesaur. 5:515 sq.; Forbiger, Handb. d. alt. Geogr. 1:636 sq.

The first earthquake mentioned is when Elijah was told to stand before the Lord. There passed by a strong wind that rent the rocks, then an earthquake, and fire; but the Lord was not in the earthquake, nor in the fire; but in a still small voice: a lesson for Elijah when he was thinking much of himself. 1Ki 19:11-12. In the days of Uzziah there was a great earthquake, from which the people fled. Amo 1:1; Zec 14:5. Josephus (Ant. ix. 10, 4) states that this happened when the king went into the temple and was struck with leprosy. 2Ch 26:16-21.

There was an earthquake at the death of the Lord, and the rocks were rent, which drew from the centurion the saying, "Truly this was the Son of God." Mat 27:51; Mat 27:54. There was also a great earthquake at the resurrection of the Lord. Mat 28:2. When Paul and Barnabas were in the prison at Philippi there was a great earthquake that shook the prison, which led to the conversion of the jailer. Act 16:26. Josephus (Ant. xv. 5, 2) relates the particulars of a dreadful earthquake in Palestine about B.C. 31, when as many as 10,000 of the inhabitants lost their lives.

In the future judgements on the earth, earthquakes are often mentioned. Isa 29:6; Mat 24:7; Mar 13:8; Luk 21:11; Rev 6:12; Rev 8:5; Rev 11:13; Rev 11:19; Rev 16:18. Symbolically they point to the upheaval of the lower masses of society, overthrowing the social system either partially or entirely.

EARTHQUAKE.—Palestine abounds in traces of seismic and volcanic action. From the region of the Dead Sea northward along the Jordan valley and as far as Damascus the whole country must have been visited by tremendous earthquakes in prehistoric ages. Mention of several is made in the OT, sometimes coupled with significant reference to serious disaster and widespread alarm caused by them (1Sa 14:15, Amo 1:1, Zec 14:5 etc.). Regarded as supernatural visitations, signs of the times, they produced a deep impression.

Five times in the Gospels the noun σεισμός (fr. σείω, ‘to shake’) is used of an earthquake (Mat 24:7; Mat 27:54; Mat 28:2, Mar 13:8, Luk 21:11), and once (Mat 27:51) the idea is expressed by the phrase ἡ γῆ ἐσεισθη (Authorized and Revised Versions ‘the earth did quake’). In LXX Septuagint σεισμός (or συνσεισμος) is employed to render רִעִשׁ of the original. Though specifically applied to an earthquake, σεισμός properly has a wider connotation: thus in Mat 8:24 it is used of a tempest (σεισμὸς μέγας ἑγένετο ἑν τῆ θαλασσκ). Hence Alford thinks that in Mat 28:2 it denotes not an earthquake, but the ‘shock’ produced by the rolling away of the stone from the sepulchre.

1. Recorded earthquakes.—Of these there are two, namely, the earthquakes at the Crucifixion and the Resurrection (Mat 27:51; Mat 27:54; Mat 28:2). The historicity of these earthquakes is disputed. St. Matthew alone mentions them; St. Mark (Mar 15:33; Mar 15:38) and St. Luke (Luk 23:44 f.), in agreement with St. Matthew in regard to the darkness and the rending of the veil, apparently know nothing of an earthquake at the Crucifixion [the Fourth Gospel has no allusion to any of the portents], and they are equally silent in the case of the Resurrection. Plummer (‘St. Luke’ in Internat. Crit. Com.) quotes a statement in the Gemara that some forty years before the destruction of Jerusalem the heavy gates of the temple were mysteriously flung open about midnight at the Passover; but it would seem that sufficient evidence of earthquake shocks being felt in or near Jerusalem at the date in question is wanting. Probably a legendary element must be recognized in the passages under consideration. At the same time it should be borne in mind that the circumstance narrated is ‘not in itself incredible’ (Cary, Synop. Gospels). Earthquakes are frequently accompanied by a ‘strange, bewildering darkness’ (Plumptre, Bibl. Studies), and if shocks did then take place they would naturally be interpreted of the ‘sympathy of nature.’ (Cf. Corn. a Lap.: ‘The earth, which trembled with horror at the death of Christ, as it were leaped with joy at the Resurrection’).

2. Predicted earthquakes.—Mat 24:7, Mar 13:8, Luk 21:11. The question arises, Do the Synoptists here preserve ipsissima verba of our Lord? It must be remembered that ‘a generation and a half … bad passed between the events and the telling of the tale’ (F. C. Burkitt); hence a possibility that the eschatological discourses as reported are coloured by events which had already taken place when the narratives were compiled. On the assumption that the predictions were uttered by Jesus, account should be taken of the fact that they are clothed in the language of current Messianic expectation. The setting up of the Kingdom was at hand; it would be consequent on that national disaster which, looming in the near future, would be presaged by phenomena in which men saw the dread precursors of catastrophe. And this actually came about: between the Crucifixion and the destruction of Jerusalem the earthquake was frequent; the earth was a prey to the most violent convulsions (Godet, St. Mat. p. 149; Renan, L’Antichrist, ch. xiv.).

Literature.—Gilbert, Student’s Life of Jesus; Schürer, HJ^{P [Note: JP History of the Jewish People.]} , see Index; Gould, ‘St. Mark’ in Internat. Crit. Com.; Cary, ‘The Synoptic Gospels’ in Internat. Handbooks to NT.

H. L. Jackson.

By: Emil G. Hirsch, Samuel Krauss

The Hebrew word "ra'ash," as well as its Assyrian and Arabic equivalents designating an earthquake, is indicative of a great noise or tremendous roaring. In Ps. lxxii. 16 the same word is used to describe the gentle rustling of wheat. It is also employed in poetry to express the harmonious choral song of angels. It would thus seem that during an earthquake the Hebrew was most impressed by the rumbling connected with it, which he regarded as a theophany (Ps. xviii. 8 [A. V. 7]; Hab. iii. 6; Nahum i. 5; Isa. v. 25). Thetrembling and smoking of the mountains, as during the revelation on Sinai (Ex. xix. 18, xx. 18), the moving of the door-posts, as during Isaiah's initiation (Isa. vi. 4), accompanying great theophanies, must in the view of the authors be regarded as earthquakes (comp. I Kings xix. 11, 12).

Palestine was subject to frequent earthquakes, the volcanic nature of the region around the Dead Sea and the Sea of Gennesaret being a contributory cause. The earthquake mentioned under Ahab (I Kings xix. 11) is legendary, but that under Uzziah (809-759 B.C.) is historical: time was counted from it (Amos i. 1; Zech. xiv. 5). Ibn Ezra and R. David Ḳimḥi refer Amos' entire prophecy, especially Amos ix. 1, to this earthquake (comp. Eusebius, "Demonstratio Evangelica," vi. 18).

Josephus describes an earthquake that occurred in Judea during the battle of Actium. The earth trembled, and many animals and more than 30,000 persons perished ("Ant." xv. 5, § 2). The earthquake at the death of Jesus is mentioned in Matthew (xxvii. 52), but not in the other Gospels (see Crucifixion). A few years before Bar Kokba's insurrection, the cities of Cæsarea and Emmaus were destroyed by an earthquake (Eusebius, "Chronicon," eleventh year of Hadrian). In 499 severe earthquakes devastated Asia Minor, continuing until 502, when the synagogue of the Jews at Beirut fell (Assemani, "Bibl. Orient." i. 272; "Jerusalem," vi. 17). Antioch was visited by numerous earthquakes in the sixth century (Procopius, "De Bello Persico," ii. 14; Evagrius, "Hist. Eccl." v. 17, vi. 8). Bar Hebræus, 'Abd al-Laṭif, and the "Gesta Dei per Francos" mention many earthquakes in Palestine during the Middle Ages. On Jan. 1, 1837, the whole province of Galilee was shaken; the cities of Safed and Tiberias especially suffered, 4,000 Jews perishing. The seismic disturbance was also felt at Tyre, Sidon, Beirut, and even at Jerusalem. The last-named city has otherwise been free from earthquakes (Robinson, "Biblical Researches in Palestine," etc., iii. 500-585; "Jerusalem," v. 295).

The Rabbis, following Joel and Amos, use the expression in the sense of "earthquake" (Yer. Ber. 13c; Ex. R. xxix. 9). Earthquakes, according to them, are a divine punishment for the performances in the circus and theater of the heathens, or for their immorality. Others held that earthquakes were meant to remind men of their sins. An earthquake, like thunder and lightning, called forth the benediction, "Praised be Thou, Eternal One, with whose power and might the world is filled" (Ber. ix. 1). A chapter on "Thunder and Earthquake," in the form of a calendar, is contained in the appendix to "Milḥemet Ḥobah," Constantinople, 1710.

Bibliography:

Forbiger, Handbuch der Alten Geographie, i. 636;

M. Rahmer, Das Erdbeben in den Tagen Usia's, in Monatsschrift, 1870, xix. 241.

EARTHQUAKE.—The whole formation of the country running in a straight line from the Taurus range to the gulf of Akabah, which therefore includes Central Judæa, reveals a volcanic character of a striking kind. That this large tract was, in days gone by, the scene of frequent and terrible earthquakes, admits of no doubt. Apart from the actual occurrences of earthquakes recorded in the Bible and elsewhere (e.g. at the time of the battle of Actium, in the seventh year of the reign of Herod the Great, Jos. [Note: Josephus.] Ant. XV. v. 2), the often-used imagery of the earthquake bears eloquent testimony to a fearful experience.

It is necessary to distinguish between actual earthquakes and those which belong to the descriptive accounts of theophanies or Divine manifestations of wrath, etc. Of the former only one is mentioned in the OT, that which occurred in the reign of Uzziah (Amo 1:1, Zec 14:5); among the latter must be included such references as Exo 19:18, 1Ki 19:11, Num 16:31, Psa 18:7; Psa 68:8; Psa 77:18; Psa 104:4, Isa 29:6 etc. In the NT it is recorded that an earthquake occurred at the Crucifixion (Mat 27:51; Mat 27:54), at the Resurrection (Mat 28:2), and on the night of St. Paul’s imprisonment in Philippi (Act 16:26); further, it is foretold that there shall be earthquakes at Christ’s second coming (Mat 24:7, Mar 13:8, Luk 21:11); their mention in Rev. Is characteristic of apocalyptic literature.

W. O. E. Oesterley.

ûrth´kwāk (רעשׁ, ra’ash; σεισμός, seismós):

1. Earthquakes in Palestine

The last earthquake which worked any damage in Palestine and Syria occurred in 1837, and destroyed the village of Safed, near Mt. Hermon, and was felt even all the way to Hebron. Since that time a few feeble shocks have been felt but no damage was done. The region is just on the edge of the great earthquake circle whose center is in Armenia, and is liable to earthquakes. The large number of references in the Bible to earthquakes, and the evident fear in the minds of the people of those times, would seem to indicate that they were more frequent in Bible times than recently.

2. Causes of Earthquakes

There are three main causes of earthquakes:

(1) Earthslips

In the slow process of cooling, the crust of the earth tends to wrinkle and fold as it contracts. This causes a stress to be set up in the strata composing the crust. If the strata are too rigid to bend there must come after a time a break or fault. The shock caused by the break, which is usually several miles below the surface of the earth, is an earthquake, and it spreads in the form of earth waves from the break as center. Seismographs in all parts of the world are now adjusted to receive the waves even though the origin is on the opposite side of the earth.

(2) Explosion of Steam or Gases Under the Surface

Some earthquakes, especially those underneath the sea, are thought to be caused by water seeping through the soil and rocks and finding its way to the heated masses below. Steam is formed and if there is no escape for it, an explosion takes place whose force is felt on the surface.

(3) Volcanic

As earthquakes are of common occurrence in volcanic regions it seems likely that there is some connection between the two, but the relation has not been fully traced. It may be that the second cause is the origin of both the volcano and earthquake. See further, DELUGE OF NOAH.

3. Earthquakes in Jerusalem

Many destructive earthquakes have been recorded in the history of Syria, but they have been mostly in the north, in the region of Aleppo. Jerusalem itself has seldom been affected by earthquakes. The Hauran beyond the Jordan is covered with volcanic remains and signs of violent shocks, and the cities on the coast have suffered much, but Jerusalem on the higher ground between has usually escaped with little destruction.

4. Earthquakes in Scripture

A number of earthquakes are mentioned in the Scriptures: (1) At Mount Sinai (Exo 19:18); (2) Korah and companions destroyed in fissure and sinking ground (Num 16:31; Ant, IV, iii, 3); (3) in the Philistine camp in the days of Saul (1Sa 14:15); (4) after Elijah’s flight (1Ki 19:11); (5) in the reign of Uzziah, between 790 and 740 bc (Amo 1:1); Zec 14:5 probably refers to the same (Ant., IX, x, 4); (6) at Christ’s death (Mat 27:51-54); (7) at Christ’s resurrection (Mat 28:2); (8) at Philippi when Paul and Silas were freed from prison (Act 16:26). Most of these shocks seem to have been slight and caused little loss of life. Josephus mentions one in the reign of Herod, “such as had not happened at any other time, which was very destructive to men and cattle” (Ant., XV, v, 2). Professor G. A. Smith in his recent work on Jerusalem is of the opinion that earthquakes were sufficiently frequent and strong to account for the appearance and disappearance of Nehemiah’s Fountain (Jerus, I, 74). The Hebrew ra‛ash is commonly used to mean a great noise. Large earthquakes are sometimes accompanied by a rumbling noise, but as a rule they come silently and without warning.

5. Symbolic Use

In the Scriptures earthquakes are mentioned as tokens of God’s power (Job 9:6) and of His presence and anger (Psa 68:8; Psa 18:7; Isa 13:13): “She shall be visited of Yahweh of hosts ... with earthquake, and great noise” (Isa 29:6); also as a sign of Christ’s “coming, and of the end of the world” (Mat 24:3-7). See also Rev 11:13, Rev 11:19; Rev 16:18.

Literature

Milne, Earthquakes (Inter. Scient. series); Plumptre, Biblical Studies, 136; Dutton, Earthquakes.

(óåéóìüò, from óåßù, ‘to shake’)

In the ancient East all abnormal phenomena were regarded as supernatural, and any attempt to explain them by secondary causes was discouraged as savouring of irreverent prying into hidden things. Being at once so mysterious and so terrible, earthquakes and volcanoes were traced to the direct activity of One ‘who looketh upon the earth and it trembleth; he toucheth the mountains and they smoke’ (Psa_104:32). Minor tremors were not, indeed, always interpreted as signs of the Divine displeasure; sometimes quite the contrary. When a company of disciples were praising God and praying after the release of St. Peter and St. John from prison, the shaking of the room was regarded as a token that the Lord Himself was at hand to defend His cause. But more severe shocks ware always apt to cause a panic fear, which was naturally greatest in the breasts of those who were conscious of guilt. When St. Paul and Silas ware praying and singing in a Philippian gaol, the place was shaken by an earthquake violent enough to open the doors and loose every man’s bands (Ramsay’s explanations [St. Paul, 1895, p. 221] are interesting); but terror prevented the prisoners from seizing the opportunity of escaping, and the chance was past before they had recovered their wits.

Earthquakes play a great rôle in prophetic and apocalyptic literature. God’s last self-manifestation, like the first at Sinai, is to be in an earth-quake, and His voice will make not only the earth but also the heaven tremble. While the things that are shaken will be removed, those that are unshaken (ôὰ ìὴ óáëåõüìåíá) will remain, the temporal giving place to the eternal (Heb_12:26-28; cf. Hag_2:6 f.), When the sixth seal of the Book of Destiny is opened, there is a great earthquake (Rev_6:12). When the censer filled with fire is cast upon the earth, there follow thunders and an earthquake (Rev_8:5). In another earthquake the tenth part of a great city falls (probably Jerusalem is meant, though some think of Rome) and 7000 persona are killed (Rev_11:13). When the last bowl is poured upon the air, the greatest earthquake ever felt cleaves Jerusalem into three parts, and entirely destroys the pagan cities (Rev_16:16 f.).

The writer of the Revelation may himself have experienced many earthquakes, and at any rate he could not but be familiar with reports of such visitations, for in Asia Minor they were frequent and disastrous. In a.d. 17 ‘twelve populous cities of Asia’-among them Sardis and Philadelphia-‘fell in ruins from an earthquake which happened by night’ (Tac. Ann. ii. 47). In a.d. 60 ‘Laodicea, one of the famous cities of Asia,’ was ‘prostrated by an earthquake’ (ib. xiv. 27). Palestine and Syria were very liable to similar disturbances; regarding earthquakes in Jerusalem see G. A. Smith, Jerusalem, 1907-08, i. 61ff.

The religious impression made by earthquakes in pre-scientific ages was profound (see e.g. Mat_27:54). They were regarded as judgments or warnings, it might be as signs of the approaching end of the world, ‘the beginning of travail’ (Luk_13:8=Mat_24:8). Even Pliny, the ardent student of Nature, asserts that they are invariably precursors of calamity (Historia Naturalis (Pliny) ii. 81-86). The just man of the Stoics was undismayed by them: ‘si fractus illabatur orbis, impavidum ferient ruinae’ (Hor. Car. III. iii. 7f.). Jesus assured His disciples that amid all the ‘Messianic woes’ not a hair of their head should perish (Luk_21:18).

It was not till the middle of the I9th cent. that a careful investigation of the phenomena of earthquakes was begun. Seismology is now an exact science, in which remarkable progress has been made in Japan, a land of earthquakes. But while man rationalizes such calamities, and can no longer regard them as strictly supernatural, he is practically as helpless as ever in their presence. In the earthquake of 1908 which destroyed Messina and Reggio (the Rhegium of Act_28:13) the loss of life was appalling.

James Strahan.

1Ki 19:11 (c) Probably this is telling us that great calamities and sudden tragedies do not always bring a message from GOD to the heart. It is the Holy Spirit who imparts divine impressions to the soul.

Mat 28:2 (c) It is symbolical of the fact that things which the world calls "real" are not very stable. The One who made the world is able to shake it. The foundations of this earth will come under the judgment of GOD to be destroyed and the inhabitants will be punished. (See also Mat 27:51; Act 16:26).

Earthquakes were well known events in the world of the Bible story (Exo 19:18; 1Sa 14:15; 1Ki 19:11; Amo 1:1; Zec 14:5; Mat 27:54; Mat 28:2; Act 16:26). The Bible writers often refer to earthquakes as evidence of God’s mighty power (Jdg 5:4; Psa 18:7; Isa 29:6; Joe 2:10; Joe 3:16; Nah 1:5; Hab 3:6; Mat 24:7; Rev 6:12; Rev 8:5; Rev 11:13; Rev 16:18).

God may have used earthquakes, along with other forces of nature, to bring about his judgments, even in cases where the Bible does not specifically mention an earthquake. The destruction of Sodom and Gomorrah, the stopping of the Jordan River at the time of Israel’s entrance into Canaan, and the collapse of the walls of Jericho may all have involved earthquake activity. These events occurred in the place and at the time God had earlier announced, showing that they had resulted from his direct intervention (Gen 19:12-14; Gen 19:24-28; Jos 3:7-8; Jos 3:13-17; Jos 6:5; Jos 6:20).