Ancient Egyptian Lexicon

Alice C. Linsley

Here is an alphabetically arranged list of ancient Egyptian words and roots. It has taken me some time to compose this lexicon and I hope that it will be helpful to students of Biblical Anthropology.

akhet – the horizon

ash - invocation
brk - blessing

baty – the north  (cf: suten-baty – south and north)

bu – place, condition

bd or bdt – gourd, bed of gourds

deshr – red

djrt – hand (cf. djrt-ntr – hand of God)

dpt – ship

dpwt – ships

dwa – tomorrow

edjo - cobra
feh - to go away (Yoruba feh - to blow away)

ha – after, behind

hekau – magician/ lector priests

het – front (cf. akhet – horizon)

hat – moment in time  (Bantu hatua – point time/space, pace walk/step, period of time)

henâ – together with

her / hr – over, above, upon
hika - evil  (Yoruba ika - evil) 
hir - praise

horiwo – head

hpr – to come into being

hprr – that which comes into being

hpry – diety with a scarab beetle for a head
ḥm-ntr - prophets
ḥnn – phallus,  perhaps pronounced khenen (the kh is a guttural as in Hanukkah)

i – to be

iw – is/ are
imy-wnwt - hour/sky watcher
i’pw – it is
i’nw –  it is

inw – tribute
irtiu - blue (also khesbedj - blue)

ir.t – eye (cf. Yoruba iri – to see)

isw – weeds

iw – to come

jb (jib) – heart

kenit (khenet) – yellow
khau - sieve

khem (kem) – black

khenty – before, in front of

khenen (hnn) – penis/phallus
khepesh - thigh
kheper - scarab beetle

khesbedj (also irtiu) – blue

km – to bring to an end, to complete/fulfill  (Bantu koma – strength, force, power, lion)

me – unto, against

mer – love

m – in, with, by, at the time of

‘m – mother   (Northern Arabian ‘m - mother)

mau – to see

mdju ntjr – words of God (cf. djrt-ntr – hand of God)

mw or nwy – water (mu)

n – and

nmhf – green stone
nofir - good

ntr /ntjr – god/gods (Neter)

ns – tongue

nxb – sign for Upper Egypt/sedge

nxn – Onn or Heliopolis (the Falcon-City, home of Horus of the South)
nwh - to intoxicate or be drunk
pḥty - strength, power

pr – house or temple

pr pn – this house

prw – houses  (cf. O-piru - House of the Sun or temple)

qma - bull rushes

Râ pw – It is Râ (Ra it is); or He is Râ

re – father of

ro – to talk  (Yoruba ro – to think and Yoruba oro – word)

rwd – ball, sphere

sa – man

sba – star (may also mean door)

sbg - planet Mercury

sen – granary
shesep (also hedj) – white

sheut (šwt) – shadow (origins of Hebrew Sheol)

s-shr, ssr, scr – linen
sr.t - proclamation/pronouncement

ssr – corn/flax
ssn – lotus plant
sm – herb, plant

smr – companion

snb – to be healthy  (Bantu simba – health)

sut/sutn – the south  (cf. suten-baty – south and north)
swnw - doctors
tm - universe (Atum)

tr – pure
urshu - soldiers on watch

wadj – green

warih – moon

wbn – rising sun   (cf. bnbn – stone pillars, swelling)

wi – mummy

w-r-q – green

zaw – guardian

References:
The Pronunciation of Ancient Egyptian
E.A. Wallis Budge, An Egyptian Hieroglyphic Dictionary
Rainer Hannig, Grosses Handworterbuch Agyptisch-Deutsch
Raymond O. Faulkner, Middle Egyptian

Ezekiel's New Temple

Alice C. Linsley

The prophet Ezekiel received a vision concerning the New Temple (“The Third Temple”). In this vision the temple is not very similar to Solomon's temple and the question arises as to whether this new temple is completely new or based on an earlier pattern or celestial archetype.  If the latter is the case, Ezekiel may be speaking about the restoration of a pattern known to his distant ancestors.  In this essay we will explore how that is so.

Ezekiel’s Ancestors

Ezekiel is believed to have lived between 625 and at least 572 B.C.  He lived in the southern kingdom of Judah until he was taken to Babylon around the year 599 B.C. He was thirty years old when he received his call, the age when men were first to enter priestly service. In the fashion of the other biblical prophets, he began his prophetic ministry with a theophany (celestial chariot vision) in the year 593. He was a contemporary of the prophets Jeremiah and Daniel. Jeremiah went into exile in Egypt, but Ezekiel, like Daniel before him, was taken to Babylon.

Ezekiel was the son of Buz. His name is Buzi in Akkadian, the Afro-Asiatic language instituted by Nimrod, identified as Sargon the Great (B.C. 2290-2215).  Nimrod controlled the Tigris-Euphrates River Valley where, according to Genesis 10:8-12, he built many of the cities that are mentioned in Ezekiel, including Babylon and Erech.

Buz was one of Abraham’s nephews. The others were Lot, Huz, Buz, Kamuel, Chesed, Hazo, Pildash, Jidlaph and Bethuel (Gen. 22:20-22).  Abraham lived between B.C. 2039-1964. So it is evident that Ezekiel’s father was a later Buz than Abraham’s nephew, but clearly a descendant of the Horite priestly lines that intermarried exclusively. One of Job's inquisitors, Elihu, was a descendant of Abraham’s older brother Nahor through his son Buz. 

Buz and Huz formed a three-clan confederation with Uz. Uz was also the name of Job’s homeland. Uz is associated with Dedan in the hill country of Edom/Seir. Isaiah 21:13 alludes to the caravans of Dedanites, and Ezekiel 27:20 speaks of Dedan as supplying Tyre with precious things.  The rulers of these people controlled the routes of commerce, both caravan routes and river routes.

Uz the Elder’s grandson (by his daughter) was Uz the son of Dishan (I Chron. 1:42). Dishan the Horite was the brother-in-law of Esau the Younger (Jacob’s brother). Uz the Younger was Seir's grandson. Here is a diagram of the Horite family in question:

The Horites were the earliest caste of priests from whom the Aaronic, Levitical and Zadokite priesthoods emerged later in Israel’s history. Tzadok צדוק, meaning "righteous" was a descendant of Aaron.  He was the first High Priest to serve in the New Temple built by Solomon. Ezekiel extols the sons of Zadok as staunch opponents of paganism and indicates their right to unique duties and privileges in the future Third Temple (Ezekiel 42:13, 43:19). This is one of numerous references to the number three in the book.  Ezekiel is called “son of man” (literally ben’adam, meaning son of Adam/mortal) 93 times in Ezekiel. Ezekiel 4:5 speaks of how the prophet is to endure punishment for 390 days.

There are also numerous references to the number 25 and multiples of 25. Chapter 40 begins with “In the twenty-fifth year of our exile...”, then almost all of the dimensions listed in these chapters are multiples of 25.  In Ezekiel 48:8, we read that the sanctuary of the New Temple will be within Judah and measure 25,000 reeds. To the Levites are granted a space of 25,000 reeds in length (Ez. 48:13).

One commentator wonders if Ezekiel believed the reestablishment of Israel would be a 50th year of jubilee – thus Israel was at the time of captivity in Babylon halfway to the day when the temple would be established according to the pattern of the celestial archetype described in an earlier chapter.  

The occurrences of the number 25 include:

Ezekiel was age 25 when he went into exile (30 when he received his prophet call).

In Ezekiel 40, the angelic measurements of the New Temple are made using a reed, as was done in ancient Egypt.  It appears to replicate the measurements of the older temples along the Nile.  That suggests another meaning for the number 25.

Heliopolis (called “On” in Genesis) was called “Lunu” which means place of pillars because the temple was constructed with many pillars. The average number of pillars in Hindu temples is 25 and those temples were based on the pattern of the ancient Kushite temples.  Abraham’s ancestors were Kushites.

Another ancient temple of the Sun (a Pir-O) is in Lebanon. It was called "Heliopolis" and called “Baalbek.” The platform was raised 25 ft. above the ground.  This temple was a center of activity in the Bronze Age. It was in use during the New Stone Age because Neolithic artifacts have been found there which date to about 9000 B.C.

Ezekiel clearly knew about the ancient temple of Heliopolis because he mentions it in Chapter 30:17: “The young men of On and of Pi-beseth will fall by the sword, and the women will go into captivity.” 

Pi-be’seth was originally a Horite temple, but was known by Herodotus as Bubastis because it was later dedicated to the cat goddess Bast or Bastet.

There were no vowels in the Proto-Semitic languages so the word would be P-b-St, which means the Palace/temple of Seth.  It is an agglutinated form of Piru-bu-Set, meaning Sun House (temple/palace) of Seth.  Seth was Cain’s bother.  His royal line is listed in Genesis 5.

Ezekiel was a descendant of Cain and Seth (whose lines intermarried exclusively) and it appears that his New Temple is based on a pattern that was known to his ancestors.

Related reading: The Ruler Seth; The Ha-piru were Devotees of Horus

Deborah the Warrior Bee

Alice C. Linsley

Rebecca's nurse, Deborah, was buried beneath a tree known as either the “tree of weeping” or the “Oak of Weeping" in Bethel. The tree is not specified. It is named Allon-bachuth, which means “tree of weeping”. (Gen. 35:8). The Hebrew word “allon” can refer to a large or important tree species, but here probably refers to either an oak, a terebinth, or sycamore fig. The sycamore fig was associated with Hathor, the virgin mother of Horus, and there is some evidence that graves were placed beneath fig trees.

The name Deborah means “bee.” In Lower Egypt, the bee was the symbol of kings and rulers. Also, Neith, an important deity in Lower Egypt, had a temple known as “the House of the Bee” to which women went for counsel. Neith's symbol during the predynastic period was a shield crossed with two arrows. She was considered "Mistress of the Bow, Ruler of Arrows," so it is not surprising that there should be an association between Neith and Deborah, a later warrior and prophetess in Israel.

Deborah is also associated with Nun, another important figure in Israel's history who also connects to ancient Egyptian mythology. Joshua, the warrior who lead the forces of Israel in conquest of the land of the Canaanites, was the son of Nun. Egyptians believed that the universe came from the primordial waters of Tehom (תְּהוֹם‎), the chaotic deep, which they called "Nun." The connection between Tehom and Nun is interesting, as both suggest the chaotic nature of warfare.
Deborah, who is cvalled a "judge" in Israel, was also a warrior.  She delivered judgement and gave counsel at her tamar (date nut palm) between Ramaah and Bethel (Judges 4:5). There is a natural association between the fig tree and the name Deborah which means bee or wasp.  The wasp lays its eggs inside the ripening figs.

The association of palm trees with rulers and prophets is a common among many Africans and Arabians and is found in the Bible. Fresh palm tree fronds are used ceremonially at the installation of rulers and are used to decorate places of worship. The tamar is the complement of the oak tree. Male prophets sat under oaks (Gen. 12:6) while female prophets sat under date palms (Judges 4:5).


Related reading:  Trees in Genesis; Women Rulers in Ancient Israel