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Commentary Index | Return to PrayerRequest.com | DownloadMcClintock Biblical Encyclopedia: Left
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(prop. ùְׂîàֹåì , semôl´. a primitive word; Gr. åὐώíõìïò ', lit. well-named, i.e. lucky, by euphemism for ptar ἀñéóôåñüò , as opposed to éָîַéï , äåîéüò , the right). The left hand, like the Latin laevus, was esteemed of ill omen, hence the term sinister as equivalent to unfortunate. This was especially the case among the superstitious Greeks and Romans (see Potter's Gr. Ant. 1:323. Adams, Romans Ant. p. 301). Among the Hebrews the left likewise indicated the north (Job_23:9; Gen_14:15), the person's face being supposed to be turned towards the east. In all these respects it was precisely the opposite of the right (q.v.).