מֶ֫שֶׁךְ

From the study of Ezekiel 39:1

Range of meaning

Two peoples of Anatolia, always paired in Ezekiel. In Gen 10:2 both are sons of Japheth, that is, distant northern and western peoples.

Against the English

All versions transliterate. The issue is what modern readers attach to the names.

How it drifted

In the 19th and 20th centuries popular readers matched them to Moscow and Tobolsk because the names sound alike. There is no linguistic connection.

Used elsewhere in the period

Assyrian texts of the 12th–7th centuries BC name the Mushki (central Anatolia, later linked with Phrygia; Mita of Mushki = Midas) and the Tabal (south-central Anatolia). Ezekiel 27:13 lists them as traders in slaves and bronze with Tyre, and 32:26 places them among fallen warrior nations in the underworld. Herodotus (3.94; 7.78) names the Moschoi and Tibarēnoi near the Black Sea.

From the study of Ezekiel 27:13

Range of meaning

A people name. Meshech is identified with the Mushki of Assyrian texts (from Tiglath-pileser I, 12th century BC, onward) in central and eastern Anatolia. By the 8th century BC it is tied to Phrygia under Mita (Midas). Its constant partner Tubal is Assyrian Tabal, in south-central Anatolia. Herodotus later knows the Moschoi and Tibarenoi in north-eastern Anatolia (Histories 3.94; 7.78).

Against the English

English versions simply transliterate the names. That is accurate, but readers are not told that these were real, locatable trading kingdoms of Asia Minor.

How it drifted

In the 19th century, sound-alike etymologies tied Meshech to Moscow and Tubal to Tobolsk, and popular prophecy writing carried this into the 20th century, mainly through Ezekiel 38–39. The equation rests on English spelling, not on Hebrew or ancient geography.

Used elsewhere in the period

Genesis 10:2 and 1 Chronicles 1:5 list Javan, Tubal and Meshech together as "sons of Japheth". Isaiah 66:19 places Tubal and Javan among "the distant coastlands". Ezekiel 32:26 and 38:2–3 and 39:1 mention Meshech-Tubal. Assyrian annals of Shalmaneser III, Tiglath-pileser III and Sargon II name Tabal and Mushki.

From the study of Ezekiel 38:2

Range of meaning

Two peoples always paired in the Hebrew Bible: Meshech (Assyrian Mushki) and Tubal (Assyrian Tabal), both in Anatolia, in what is now central and eastern Turkey. In Ezekiel they are traders in slaves and bronze vessels (27:13) and mighty warriors now lying in Sheol (32:26).

Against the English

English versions spell them consistently. Older reference works and popular prophecy books sometimes 'translate' them as Moscow and Tobolsk, which no English Bible does.

How it drifted

The identification with Moscow and Tobolsk is based purely on how the names sound in English. Moscow is first attested in AD 1147, and Tobolsk was founded in AD 1587.

Used elsewhere in the period

Neo-Assyrian royal inscriptions (Tiglath-pileser I, Sargon II) mention the Mushki and the land of Tabal, and Herodotus (3.94; 7.78) mentions the Moschoi and Tibarenoi in the same region. The geography is among the better-established details in the chapter.