Esh´col (a cluster), one of the Amoritish chiefs with whom Abraham was in alliance when his camp was near Hebron, and who joined with him in the pursuit of Chedorlaomer and his allies, for the rescue of Lot (; ).
Eshcol, 2
The name of the valley in which the Hebrew spies obtained the fine cluster of grapes which they took back with them, borne 'on a staff between two,' as a specimen of the fruits of the Promised Land (). The cluster was doubtless large; but the fact that it was carried in this manner does not, as usually understood, imply that the bunch was as much as two men could carry, seeing that it was probably so carried to prevent its being bruised in the journey. The valley of Eshcol probably took its name from the distinguished Amorite already mentioned, and is hence to be sought in the neighborhood of Hebron. Accordingly the valley through which lies the commencement of the road from Hebron to Jerusalem is indicated as that of Eshcol. This valley is now full of vineyards and olive-yards; the former chiefly in the valley itself, the latter up the sides of the enclosing hills. 'These vineyards are still very fine, and produce the finest and largest grapes in all the country.'
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John Kitto was an English biblical scholar of Cornish descent.Born in Plymouth, John Kitto was a sickly child, son of a Cornish stonemason. The drunkenness of his father and the poverty of his family meant that much of his childhood was spent in the workhouse. He had no more than three years of erratic and interrupted education. At the age of twelve John Kitto fell on his head from a rooftop, and became totally and permanently deaf. As a young man he suffered further tragedies, disappointments and much loneliness. His height was 4 ft 8 in, and his accident left him with an impaired sense of balance. He found consolation in browsing at bookstalls and reading any books that came his way.
From these hardships he was rescued by friends who became aware of his mental abilities and encouraged him to write topical articles for local newspapers, arranging eventually for him to work as an assistant in a local library. Here he continued to educate himself.
One of his benefactors was the Exeter dentist Anthony Norris Groves, who in 1824 offered him employment as a dental assistant. Living with the Groves family, Kitto was profoundly influenced by the practical Christian faith of his employer. In 1829 he accompanied Groves on his pioneering mission to Baghdad and served as tutor to Groves's two sons. In 1833 Kitto returned to England via Constantinople, accompanied by another member of the Groves mission, Francis William Newman. Shortly afterwards he married, and in due course had several children.
A London publisher asked Kitto to write up his travel journals for a series of articles in the Penny Magazine, a publication read at that time by a million people in Britain, reprinted in America and translated into French, German and Dutch. Other writing projects followed as readers enquired about his experiences in the East amidst people living in circumstances closely resembling those of Bible times.
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