Elam

Highland, the son of Shem (Gen. 10:22), and the name of the country inhabited by his descendants (14:1, 9; Isa. 11:11; 21:2, etc.) lying to the east of Babylonia, and extending to the shore of the Mediterranean, a distance in a direct line of about 1,000 miles. The name Elam is an Assyrian word meaning “high.” “The inhabitants of Elam, or ‘the Highlands,’ to the east of Babylon, were called Elamites. They were divided into several branches, speaking different dialects of the same agglutinative language. The race to which they belonged was brachycephalic, or short-headed, like the pre-Semitic Sumerians of Babylonia. “The earliest Elamite kingdom seems to have been that of Anzan, the exact site of which is uncertain; but in the time of Abraham, Shushan or Susa appears to have already become the capital of the country. Babylonia was frequently invaded by the Elamite kings, who at times asserted their supremacy over it (as in the case of Chedorlaomer, the Kudur-Lagamar, or ‘servant of the goddess Lagamar,’ of the cuneiform texts). “The later Assyrian monarchs made several campaigns against Elam, and finally Assur-bani-pal (about B.C. 650) succeeded in conquering the country, which was ravaged with fire and sword. On the fall of the Assyrian Empire, Elam passed into the hands of the Persians” (A.H. Sayce). This country was called by the Greeks Cissia or Susiana.

(eternity).

E'LAM (age). The eldest son of Shem, and ancestor of the Elamites and Persians. Gen 10:22; 1 Chr 1:17. A Korhite Levite in the time of David. 1 Chr 26:3. A chief man of Benjamin. 1 Chr 8:24. " Children of Elam" returned from Babylon. Ezr 2:7; Neh 8:7; Neh 7:12. Children of "the other Elam" likewise returned. Ezr 2:31; Neh 7:34. Their representative sealed the covenant. Neh 10:14. Some had foreign wives. Ezr 10:26. A priest who helped to dedicate the wall. Neh 12:42.

E'LAM, a country peopled by the descendants of Shem, and called, after his son, Elam. Gen 10:22. It lay south of Assyria and west of Persia proper, and reached to the Persian Gulf. Herodotus called it Cissia. It was a province of Persia, of which Susa was capital. Ezr 4:9; Dan 3:2. History.-Elam was a strong power in Abram's time. Gen 14:9. Its people aided in the destruction of Babylon, Isa 21:2; invaded Israel, Isa 22:6. Its destruction was foretold. Jer 49:34-39; Jer 25:25; Eze 32:24-25. A remarkable statement illustrating the truth of the Scriptures in respect to Elam has lately been deciphered from Assyrian cylinders in the British Museum. Assur-banipal records, b.c. 668-626, "In my fifth expedition, to Elam I directed the march. ... I overwhelmed Elam through its extent. I cut off the head of Te-umman, their wicked king, who devised evil. Beyond number I slew his soldiers. . . . For a month and a day Elam to its utmost extent I swept." There are other records equally remarkable, but there is not space to quote them.

a young man; a virgin; a secret

E'LAM, a country peopled by the descendants of Shem, and called, after his son, Elam. Gen 10:22. It lay south of Assyria and west of Persia proper, and reached to the Persian Gulf. Herodotus called it Cissia. It was a province of Persia, of which Susa was capital. Ezr 4:9; Dan 3:2. History.-Elam was a strong power in Abram's time. Gen 14:9. Its people aided in the destruction of Babylon, Isa 21:2; invaded Israel, Isa 22:6. Its destruction was foretold. Jer 49:34-39; Jer 25:25; Eze 32:24-25. A remarkable statement illustrating the truth of the Scriptures in respect to Elam has lately been deciphered from Assyrian cylinders in the British Museum. Assur-banipal records, b.c. 668-626, "In my fifth expedition, to Elam I directed the march. ... I overwhelmed Elam through its extent. I cut off the head of Te-umman, their wicked king, who devised evil. Beyond number I slew his soldiers. . . . For a month and a day Elam to its utmost extent I swept." There are other records equally remarkable, but there is not space to quote them.