Evening Republican, Volume 21, Number 176, Rensselaer, Jasper County, 5 August 1918 — Explaining “Mizpah.” [ARTICLE]

Explaining “Mizpah.”

Mizpah or Mispeh is the name of several towns in Palestine. The name is derived from a verb of the ancient Hebrew signifying to look or watch out. The word occurs In several places in the Old Testament. The first mention is the most significant. Jacob and his prospective fathef-ln-law, Laban, met on a slope of Mt. Gilead and entered into a covenant. Laban had several times violated his agreement as to the wages he was paying Jacob, and Jacob demanded a fair deal. When they came to an agreement they raised a monument of stones, which Laban declared should be called “Galeed, and Mizpah." “This heap shall be a witness between me and thee this day. The Lord watch between me and thee, when we are absent, from the other.” This passage is used as a benediction by the Young People’s Soj clety of Christian Endeavor.