The sea - port where Solomon’s fleets were. (1 Kings x. 22.)
a country of this name, whither Solomon sent his fleets, 1Ki 10:22; 2Ch 9:11. There is a multitude of different opinions concerning this country. Josephus, and the Chaldee and Arabic paraphrasts, explain it of Tarsus, a city of Cilicia; the Septuagint, St.
Jerom, and Theodoret, understand it of Carthage. The Arabian geographer will have it to be Tunis in Africa. Bochart makes it to be Tartessus, an island in the Straits of Gades. By Tarshish, M. Le Clerc understands Thassus, an island and city in the AEgean sea. Grotius thinks that the whole ocean was called Tarshish, because of the famous city of Tartessus, now mentioned. Sanctius believes the sea in general to be called Tarshish, and that the ships of Tarshish were those that are employed in voyages at sea, in opposition to the small vessels that are used only in most navigable rivers. The LXX translate Tarshish sometimes by “the sea;” and the Scripture gives the names of ships of Tarshish to those that were fitted out at Ezion-Geber, on the Red Sea, and which sailed upon the ocean, as well as to those that were fitted out at Joppa, and in the ports of the Mediterranean. Therefore, when we see ships fitted out upon the Red Sea, or at Ezion-Geber, in order to go to Tarshish, we must conclude one of these two things, either that there were two countries called Tarshish, one upon the ocean, and another upon the Mediterranean, or that ships of Tarshish in general signifies nothing else but ships able to bear a long voyage; large merchant ships, in opposition to the small craft intended for a home trade in navigable rivers.
Tarshish, 1
Tar´shish, a celebrated part of the ancient world, about the exact position of which opinions are much divided. From a careful examination of the various Scriptural accounts and allusions it appears that Tarshish was an old, celebrated, opulent, cultivated, commercial city, which carried on trade in the Mediterranean and with the sea-ports of Syria, especially Tyre and Joppa, and that in all probability it is to be identified with Tartessus in Spain, which appears to have lain not far from the Straits of Gibraltar and near the mouth of the Guadalquivir, consequently at no great distance from the famous Granada of later days. It is not improbable, however, that the name may have been employed in a wider sense, and may have denoted the district of southwestern Spain, comprising the several colonies which Tyre planted in that country.
Tarshish, 2
Tarshish, a precious stone, so called as brought from Tarshish, as Ophir is also put for the gold brought from thence (Exo 28:20; Exo 39:13; Eze 1:16; Eze 10:9; Eze 28:13; Son 5:14; Dan 10:6). The Septuagint, followed by Josephus, makes it the ’chrysolyte,’ i.e. the topaz of the moderns, which is still found in Spain. Others suppose it to be ’amber:’ but this does not agree with the passages in Exodus, which make the Tarshish to have been one of the engraved stones of the high-priest’s breast-plate. The word is translated ’beryl’ in the Authorized Version.
1. The second son of Javan, Gen 10:4 .\par 2. Tartessus, an ancient city between two mouths of the Guadalquiver, in the south of Spain. It was a Phoenician colony, and was the most celebrated emporium in the west to which the Hebrews and Phoenicians traded. That Tarshish was situated in the west is evident from Gen 10:4, where it is joined with Elisha, Kittim, and Dodanim. See also Psa 72:10 . According to Eze 38:13, it was an important place of trade; according to Jer 10:9, it exported silver, and according to Eze 27:12,25, silver, iron, tin, and lead to the Tyrian markets. They embarked for this place from Joppa, Jon 1:3-4 . In Isa 23:1,6,10, it is evidently represented as an important Phoenician colony. It is named among other distant states, in Isa 66:19 . All these notices agree with Tartessus.\par In some of these passages, however, Tarshish may be used as a general expression, applicable to all the distant shores of Europe; and thus the custom may have arisen of designating as "ships of Tarshish" any large merchant ships bound on long voyages in any direction. The English term Indiaman is very similarly used. Whether the ships fitted out by Solomon at Ezion-geber on the Red sea, sailed around Africa to Tarshish in Spain, or gave the name of Tarshish to some place in India of Ethiopia, as the discovers of America gave it the eastern names India and Indians, cannot now be determined, 1Ki 10:22 22:48,49 2Ch 9:21 20:26 Isa 23:1,14 60:9.\par
Tar’shish. (established).
1. Probably, Tartessus, a city and emporium of the Phoenicians in the south of Spain, represented as one of the sons of Javan. Gen 10:4; 1Ki 10:22; 1Ch 1:7; Psa 48:7; Isa 2:16; Jer 10:9; Eze 27:12; Eze 27:25; Jon 1:3; Jon 4:2 The identity of the two places is rendered highly probable by the following circumstances:
First. There is a very close similarity of name between them, Tartessus being merely Tarshish, in the Aramaic form.
Second. There seems to have been a special relation between Tarshish and Tyre, as there was at one time between Tartessus and Phoenicians.
Third. The articles which Tarshish is stated, by the prophet Ezekiel, Eze 27:12, to have supplied to Tyre are precisely such as we know, through classical writers, to have been productions of the Spanish peninsula.
In regard to tin, the trade of Tarshish in this metal is peculiarly significant, and, taken in conjunction with similarity of name, and other circumstances already mentioned, is reasonably conclusive as to its identity with Tartessus. For even now when countries in Europe, or on the shores of the Mediterranean Sea, where tin is found are very few; and in reference to ancient times, it would be difficult to name any such countries, except Iberia or Spain, Lusitania, which was somewhat less in extent than Portugal, and Cornwall in Great Britain.
In the absence of positive proof, we may acquiesce in the statement of Strabo, that the river Baetis, (now the Guadalquivir), was formerly called Tartessus, that the city Tartessus was situated between the two arms, by which the river flowed into the sea, and that the adjoining country was called Tartessis.
2. From the book of Chronicles, there would seem to have been a Tarshish accessible from the Red Sea, in addition to the Tarshish of the south of Spain. Thus, with regard to the ships of Tarshish, which Jehoshaphat caused to be constructed at Ezion-geber, on the Elanitic Gulf of the Red Sea, 1Ki 22:48, it is said in the Chronicles, 2Ch 20:36, that they were made to go to Tarshish; and in like manner, the navy of ships, which Solomon had previously made in Ezion-geber, 1Ki 9:26, is said in the Chronicles, 2Ch 9:21, to have gone to Tarshish, with the servants of Hiram.
It is not to be supposed that the author of these passages in the Chronicles contemplated a voyage to Tarshish, in the south of Spain by going around, what has since been called the Cape of Good Hope. The expression "ships of Tarshish" originally meant ships destined to go to Tarshish; and then, probably, came to signify large Phoenician ships, of a particular size, the description, destined for long voyages, just as in English "East Indiaman," was a general name given to vessels, some of which were not intended to go to India at all.
Hence, we may infer that the word Tarshish was also used to signify any distant place, and, in this case, would be applied to one in the Indian Ocean. This is shown by the nature of the imports, with which the fleet returned, which are specified as "gold, silver, ivory, apes, and peacocks." 1Ki 10:22. The gold might possibly have been obtained form Africa, or from Ophir in Arabia, and the ivory and the apes might, likewise, have been imported from Africa; but the peacocks point conclusively, not to Africa, but to India. There are only two species known: both inhabit the mainland and islands of India; so that the mention of the peacock seems to exclude the possibility of the voyage having been to Africa.
Tartessus (as Asshur became Athur, Bashan, Batanoea), a Phoenician city S. of Spain; the portion of Spain known to the Hebrew (Psa 72:10). "The kings of Tarshish ... kings of Sheba," i.e. the wealthy Tarshish in the far W. and Sheba in the S.E. Tarshish was a dependency of Phoenician Tyre. Isa 23:6; Isa 23:10 ("pass through thy land as a river, O daughter of Tarshish," i.e. Tartessus and its inhabitants would now that Tyre’s strength was disabled pour forth as waters, no longer kept working mines for the parent city), 14,18; Eze 26:15; Eze 26:18; Eze 27:12. "Tarshish was thy (Tyre’s) merchant ... with silver, iron, tin, and lead, they traded in thy fairs."
Tarshish was famed for various metals exported to Tyre; most of them were drawn from Spain and Portugal, tin possibly from Cornwall or from Lusitania or Portugal. "Ships of Tarshish" are mentioned often: Psa 48:7, "Thou brakest the ships of Tarshish with an east wind," alluding with undesigned coincidence to the event recorded 2Ch 20:36-37; "Jehoshaphat joined himself with Ahaziah king of Israel to make ships to go to Tarshish ... in Ezion Gaber ... because ... the Lord hath broken thy works," i.e. wrecked thy ships. The ships of Tarshish built at Ezion Geber on the Elanitic gulf of the Red Sea (1Ki 22:48) were intended by Jehoshaphat to trade with Africa and India; but a copyist in 2Ch 20:36 makes them go to Tarshish.
It is possible they were carried across the land to the Mediterranean, but more likely that "ships of Tarshish" mean large vessels, as our phrase "East Indiamen" does not imply the destination but the size; the copyist mistook the phrase for the destination. So in 1Ki 9:26; 1Ki 10:22; 2Ch 9:21; the "peacocks" point to India, for southern Asia and the isles of the eastern archipelago are their native home. The names too are of Sanskrit etymology,
Tarshish (tär’shish), a breaking. 1Ki 10:22; 1Ki 22:48. 1. An ancient commercial city whose situation is not certainly determined. Some place it not far from the Straits of Gibraltar. Gen 10:4; Psa 72:10. The region of Tarshish, also written Tharshish, 1Ki 10:22; 1Ki 22:48, is possibly the Tartessus of the Greeks and Romans. The Hebrews and the Phœnicians imported silver, iron, tin, lead, and other articles of merchandise from this place of trade. Isa 23:1; Isa 23:6; Isa 23:10; Isa 66:19; Jer 10:9; Eze 27:12; Eze 27:25; Eze 38:13. "Ships of Tarshish" designated ships employed by the Tyrians in voyages to and from Tarshish, Isa 60:9; Jon 1:3; Jon 4:2; possibly all large merchant ships. Isa 2:16; Psa 48:7.
By: Isidore Singer, M. Seligsohn
In the genealogical table of the Noachidæ, Tarshish is given as the second son of Javan and is followed by Kittim and Dodanim (Gen. x. 4; I Chron. i. 7). As with all these names, Tarshish denotes a country; in several instances, indeed, it is mentioned as a maritime country lying in the remotest region of the earth. Thus, Jonah flees to Tarshish from the presence of Yhwh (Jonah i. 3, iv. 2). With Pul, Tubal, and Javan, it is mentioned as one of the remote places that have not heard of Yhwh (Isa. lxvi. 19, comp. lx. 9; Ps. lxxii. 10; Ezek. xxxviii. 13). Any large vessel capable of making a long sea-voyage was styled a "ship of Tarshish," though this did not necessarily mean that the vessel sailed either to or from Tarshish (Ps. xlviii. 7; I Kings x. 22, xxii. 48; Isa. ii. 16; et al.). It seems that in parallel passages referring to Solomon's and Jehoshaphat's ships (I Kings l.c.) the author of Chronicles did not understand the meaning of "ships of Tarshish" (II Chron. ix. 21, xx. 36).
Tarshish appears to have had a considerable trade in silver, iron, tin, and lead (Jer. x. 9; Ezek. xxvii. 12). It gave its name, besides, to a precious stone which has not yet been satisfactorily identified ( See Gems). The Targum of Jonathan renders the word "Tarshish" in the prophetical books by "sea," which rendering is followed by Saadia. Moreover, the term "ships of Tarshish" is rendered by Jewish scholars "sea-ships" (comp. LXX., Isa. ii. 16,
Josephus ("Ant." i. 6, § 1), apparently reading "Tarshush," identifies it with Tarsus in Cilicia. This identification was adopted by Bunsen and Sayce ("Expository Times," 1902, p. 179); but it seems from Assyrian inscriptions that the original Hebrew name of Tarsus was not "Tarshush." Bochart (in his "Phaleg"), followed by many later scholars, identifies Tarshish with Tartessus, mentioned by Herodotus and Strabo as a district of southern Spain; he thinks, moreover, that "Tartessus" is the Aramaic form of "Tarshish." On the other hand, Le Page Renouf ("Proc. Soc. Bibl. Arch." xvi. 104 et seq.) refutes this theory, declaring besides that Tartessus never really existed. Renouf's opinion is that "Tarshish" means a coast, and, as the word occurs frequently in connection with Tyre, the Phenician coast is to be understood. Cheyne (in "Orientalische Litteraturzeitung," iii. 151) thinks that "Tarshish" of Gen. x. 4, and "Tiras" of Gen. x. 2, are really two names of one nation derived from two different sources, and might indicate the Tyrsenians or Etruscans. Thus the name may denote Italy or the European coasts west of Greece.
TARSHISH is frequently mentioned in the OT, but its position is never definitely indicated. From Jon 1:3; Jon 4:2 we may infer that it was far from Palestine, probably in the extreme west of the Mediterranean. If Sheba and Dedan stand for the commerce of the East, Tarshish may stand for that of the West (Eze 38:13). The Greeks were in touch with Tartessus in the 7th and 6th cents. b.c. (Herod. i. 163, iv. 152). The inclusion of Tarshish among the ‘sons’ of Javan (Gen 10:4, 1Ch 1:7) may refer to this. The Onomasticon speaks of Tharseis hç Baitikç. Bochart (Phaleg, iii. 7) identifies this with the Andalusian plain in S.W. Spain, watered by the Baetis (mod. Guadalquivir). The Greek name Tartçssos may possibly come through an Aram
Max Müller (Hastings’ DB
In either case Tarshish would be fitly named with ‘the isles,’ a term covering not only islands in our sense, but also land bordering on the sea (Psa 72:10, Isa 60:9; Isa 66:19). The wealth of Tarshish consisted of silver, iron, tin, and lead (Jer 10:9, Eze 27:12).
‘Ships of Tarshish’ did not necessarily belong to or trade with Tarshish. The name is used of the ships of Jehoshaphat and Abaziah, which sailed for Ophir from Ezion-geber (1Ki 22:48, 2Ch 20:36). The Chronicler’s explanatory phrase (2Ch 20:37) is erroneous. The cargo brought by Solomon’s ‘navy of Tarshish’ shows that its voyages must have been eastward, not westward (1Ki 10:22, 2Ch 9:21). The name probably denoted specially large merchant vessels, designed for distant voyages (Psa 48:7, Isa 2:16; Isa 23:1, Eze 27:25).
W. Ewing.
(1) Eponym of a Benjamite family (1Ch 7:10);
(2) One of the “seven princes” at the court of Ahasuerus (Est 1:14 Massoretic Text).
(3) The Hebrew name of a precious stone (Eze 10:9 margin, English Versions of the Bible “beryl”; Exo 28:20; Exo 39:13; Eze 1:16; Eze 28:13; Son 5:14; Dan 10:6). See STONES, PRECIOUS.
It is thought that Tarshish was a land in the western Mediterranean region, probably in Spain. It was rich in silver, iron, tin and lead (Jer 10:9; Eze 27:12). Tarshish was a wealthy trading nation of the ancient world (Psa 72:10; Eze 27:25) and built large ships to carry goods far and wide to many countries (Jon 1:3; Jon 4:2).
The ships of Tarshish were so successful that they became the model on which people throughout the region built their large merchant ships. As a result, ‘ship of Tarshish’ became the common name for any large ocean-going cargo ship, especially an ore-carrier. The name described a certain kind of ship. It had nothing to do with the place where a particular ship was made, or the place to which or from which it was sailing (1Ki 10:22; 1Ki 22:48; Isa 2:16; Isa 23:1; Isa 23:14).
A city far away from Israel, probably
in Spain, famous for its large ships
that sailed the Mediterranean Sea.