THE DESCENT: FROM THE MOUNT OF TRANSFIGURATION INTO THE VALLEY OF HUMILIATION AND DEATH.

THE UNJUST STEWARD, DIVES AND LAZARUS, JEWISH AGRICULTURAL NOTES, PRICES OF PRODUCE, WRITING AND LEGAL DOCUMENTS, PURPLE AND FINE LINEN, JEWISH NOTIONS OF HADES.

CHAPTER XVIII.

(St. Luke xvi.)

Although widely differing in their object and teaching, the last group of Parables spoken during this part of Christ's Ministry are, at least outwardly, connected by a leading thought. The word by which we would string them together is Righteousness. There are three Parables of the Unrighteous: the Unrighteous Steward, the Unrighteous Owner, and the Unrighteous Dispenser, or Judge. And these are followed by two other Parables of the Self-righteous: Self-righteousness in its Ignorance, and its dangers as regards oneself; and Self-righteousness in its Harshness, and its dangers as regards others. But when this outward connection has been marked, we have gone the utmost length. Much more close is the internal connection between some of them.

We note it, first and chiefly, between the two first Parables. Recorded in the same chapter, [a St. Luke xvi.] and in the same connection, they were addressed to the same audience. True, the Parable of the Unjust Steward was primarily spoken 'to His disciples,' [b ver 1.] that of Dives and Lazarus to the Pharisees. [c ver. 15.] But then the audience of Christ at that time consisted of disciples and Pharisees. And these two classes in the audience stood in peculiar relation to each other, which is exactly met in these two Parables, so that the one may be said to have sprung out of the other. For, the 'disciples,' to whom the first Parable was addressed, were not primarily the Apostles, but those 'publicans and sinners' whom Jesus had received, to the great displeasure of the Pharisees. [d St. Luke xv. 1, 2.] Them He would teach concerning the Mamon of unrighteousness. And, when the Pharisees sneered at this teaching, He would turn it against them, and show that, beneath the self-justification, [g ver. 17.] which made them forget that now the Kingdom of God was opened to all, [f ver. 16.] and imagine that they were the sole vindicators of aLaw [g ver. 17.] which in their everyday practice they notoriously broke, [h ver. 18.] there lay as deep sin and as great alienation from God as that of the sinners whom they despised. Theirs might not be the Mamon of, yet it might be that for unrighteousness; and, while they sneered at the idea of such men making of their Mamon friends that would receive them into everlasting tabernacles, themselves would experience that in the end a terrible readjustment before God would follow on their neglect of using for God, and their employment only for self of such Mamon as was theirs, coupled as it was with harsh and proud neglect of what they regarded as wretched, sore-covered Lazarus, who lay forsaken and starving at their very doors.

It will have been observed, that we lay once more special stress on the historical connection and the primary meaning of the Parables. We would read them in the light of the circumstances in which they were spoken, as addressed to a certain class of hearers, and as referring to what had just passed. The historical application once ascertained, the general lessons may afterwards be applied to the widest range. This historical view will help us to understand the introduction, connection, and meaning, of the two Parables which have been described as the most difficult: those of the Unjust Steward, [1 The reader who wishes to see the different views and interpretations of this Parable is referred to the modern commentaries, and especially to Archbishop Trench's Notes on the Parables (13th ed.). pp. 427-452.] and of Dives and Lazarus.

At the outset we must recall, that they were addressed to two different classes in the same audience. In both the subject is Unrighteousness. In the first, which is addressed to the recently converted publicans and sinners, it is the Unrighteous Steward, making unrighteous use of what had been committed to his administration by his Master; in the second Parable, which is addressed to the self-justifying,sneering Pharisees, it is the Unrighteous Possessor, who uses only for himself and for time what he has, while he leaves Lazarus, who, in his view, is wretched and sore-covered, to starve or perish, unheeded, at his very door. In agreement with its object, and as suited to the part of the audience addressed, the first Parable points a lesson, while the second furnishes a warning. In the first Parable we are told, what the sinner when converted should learn from his previous life of sin; in the second, what the self-deceiving, proud Pharisee should learn as regarded the life which to him seemed so fair, but was in reality so empty of God and of love. It follows, and this is of greatest importance, especially in the interpretation of the first Parable, that we must not expect to find spiritual equivalents for each of the persons or incidents introduced. In each case, the Parable itself forms only an illustration of the lessons, spoken or implied, which Christ would convey to the one and the other class in His audience.

I. The Parable of the Unjust Steward., In accordance with the canon of interpretation just laid down, we distinguish, 1. The illustrative Parable. [a St. Luke xvi. 1-8.] 2. Its moral. [b ver. 9.] 3. Its application in the combination of the moral with some of the features of the Parable. [c vv. 10-13.]

1. The illustrative Parable. [d vv. 1-8.] This may be said to converge to the point brought out in the concluding verse: [e ver. 8.] the prudence which characterises the dealings of the children of this world in regard to their own generation, or, to translate the Jewish forms of expression into our own phraseology, the wisdom with which those who care not for the world to come choose the means most effectual for attaining their worldly objects. It is this prudence by which their aims are so effectually secured, and it alone, which is set before 'the children of light,' as that by which to learn. And the lesson is the more practical, that those primarily addressed had hitherto been among these men of the world. Let them learn from the serpent its wisdom, and from the dove its harmlessness; from the children of this world, their prudence as regarded their generation, while, as children of the new light, they must remember the higher aim for which that prudence was to be employed. Thus would that Mamon which is 'of unrighteousness,' and which certainly 'faileth,' become to us treasure in the world to come, welcome us there, and, so far from 'failing,' prove permanent, welcome us in everlasting tabernacles. Thus, also, shall we have made friends of the 'Mamon of unrightousness,' and that, which from its nature must fail, become eternal gain, or, to translate it into Talmudic phraseology, it will be of the things of which a man enjoys the interest in this world, while the capital remains for the world to come.

It cannot now be difficult to understand the Parable. Its object is simply to show, in the most striking manner, the prudence of a worldly man, who is unrestrained by any other consideration than that of attaining his end. At the same time, with singular wisdom, the illustration is so chosen as that its matter (materia), 'the Mamon of unrighteousness,' may serve to point a life-lesson to those newly converted publicans and sinners, who had formerly sacrificed all for the sake, or in the enjoyment of, that Mamon. All else, such as the question, who is the master and who the steward, and such like, we dismiss, since the Parable is only intended as an illustration of the lesson to be afterwards taught.

The connection between this Parable and what the Lord had previously said concerning returning sinners, to which our remarks have already pointed, is further evidenced by the use of the term 'wasting' ( ), in the charge against the steward, just as the prodigal son had 'wasted' ( ) his substance. [a St. Luke xv. 13.] Only, in the present instance, the property had been entrusted to his administration. As regards the owner, his designation as 'rich' seems intended to mark how large was the property committed to the steward. The 'steward' was not, as in St. Luke xii. 42-46, a slave, but one employed for the administration cf the rich man's affairs, subject to notice of dismissal. [b St. Luke xvi. 2, 3.] He was accused,the term implying malevolence, but not necessarily a false charge, not of fraud, but of wasting, probably by riotous living and carelessness, his master's goods. And his master seems to have convinced himself that the charge was true, since he at once gives him notice of dismissal. The latter is absolute, and not made dependent on the 'account of his stewardship,' which is only asked as, of course, necessary, when he gives up his office. Nor does the steward either deny the charge or plead any extenuation. His great concern rather is, during the time still left of his stewardship, before he gives up his accounts, to provide for his future support. The only alternative before him in the future is that of manual labour or mendicancy. But for the former he has not strength; from the latter he is restrained by shame.

Then it is that his 'prudence' suggests a device by which, after his dismissal, he may, without begging, be received into the houses of those whom he has made friends. [1 A somewhat similar parable occurs in Vayyik. R. 5 (towards the close) about a 'prudent' farmer. When matters go badly with his farm, he dresses himself in his best, puts on a cheerful mien, and so appears before his landlord. By well turned, flattering replies to the inquiries about the cattle and the crops, he so conciliates favour, that when the landlord finally inquires what he wished, and he requests a loan, he receives double the sum he had asked.] It must be borne in mind, that he is still steward, and, as such, has full power of disposing of his master's affairs. When, therefore, he sends for one after another of his master's debtors, and tells each to alter the sum in the bond, he does not suggest to them forgery or fraud, but, in remitting part of the debt, whether it had been incurred as rent in kind, or as the price of produce purchased, he acts, although unrighteously, yet strictly within his rights. Thus, neither the steward nor the debtors could be charged with criminality, and the master must have been struck with the cleverness of a man who had thus secured a future provision by making friends, so long as he had the means of so doing (ere his Mamon of unrighteousness failed).

A few archaeological notices may help the interpretation of details. From the context it seems more likely, that the 'bonds,' or rather 'writings,' of these debtors were written acknowledgements of debt, than, as some have supposed that they were, leases of farms. The debts over which the steward variously disposed, according as he wished to gain more or less favour, were considerable. In the first case they are stated at 'a hundred Bath of oil,' in the second as 'a hundred Cor of wheat.' In regard to these quantities we have the preliminary difficulty, that three kinds of measurement were in use in Palestine, that of the 'Wilderness,' or, the original Mosaic; that of 'Jerusalem,' which was more than a fifth larger; and that of Sepphoris, probably the common Galilean measurement, which, in turn, was more than a fifth larger than the Jerusalem measure. To be more precise, one Galilean was equal to 3/2 'Wilderness' measures. Assuming the measurement to have been the Galilean, one Bath [2 The writer in Smith's Bibl. Dict., vol. iii. p. 1740 b, is mistaken in saying that 'the Bath is the largest of liquid measures.' According to Ezek. xlv. 11, the Chomer or Cor = ten bath or ephah, was equally applied to liquid and dry measures. The Bath (one-tenth of the Chomer or Cor) = three seah; the seah = two hin; the hin = twelve log; the log = space of six eggs. Further, one thirty-secondth of a log is reckoned equal to a large (table), one sixty-fourth to a small (dessert) spoon.] would have been equal to an Attic Metretes, or about 39 litres. On the other hand, the so-called 'Wilderness measurement' would correspond with the Roman measures, and, in that case, the 'Bath' would be the same as the Amphora, or amount to a little less than 26 litres. [3 This difference between the 'Wilderness,' or 'Mosaic,' and the 'Galilean measure removes the difficulty (raised by Thenius) about the capacity of the 'brazen sea' in Solomon's Temple (1 Kings vii. 23, 26). The Bath should be calculated, not according to the Galilean ( = Metretes = about thirty-nine litres), but according to the 'Wilderness' measure ( = amphora = about twenty-six litres).] The latter is the measurement adopted by Josephus.' [a Ant. viii. 2, 9; comp. ix. 4, 5.] In the Parable, the first debtor was owing 100 of these 'Bath,' or, according to the Galilean measurement, about 3,900 litres of oil. As regards the value of a Bath of oil, little information can be derived from the statements of Josephus, since he only mentions prices under exceptional circumstances, either in particularly plentiful years, [b Jewish War. ii. 21.] or else at a time of war and siege. [c Life, 13.] In the former, an Amphora, or 26 litres, of oil seems to have fetched about 9d.; but it must be added, that, even in such a year, this represents a rare stroke of business, since the oil was immediately afterwards re-sold for eight times the amount, and this, 3s. for half an Amphora of about 13 litres, would probably represent an exceptionally high war-price. The fair price for it would probably have been 9d. For the Mishnah informs us, that the ordinary 'earthenware casks' (the Gerabh) held each 2 Seah, or 48 Log, or about 26 litres. [a Terum. x. 8.] Again, according toa notice in the Talmud, [b Jer. Baba M. iv. 2, p. 9 d.] 100 such 'casks,' or, 200 Seah, were sold for 10 (presumably gold) dinars, or 250 silver dinars, equal to about 7l. 10s. of our money. And as the Bath (= 3 Seah) held a third more than one of those 'casks,' or Gerabhin, the value of the 100 Bath of oil would probably amount to about 10l. of our money, and the remission of the steward, of course, to 5l.

The second debtor owed 'a hundred Cor of wheat.', that is, in dry measure, ten times the amount of the oil of the first debtor, since the Cor was ten Ephah or Bath, the Ephah three Seah, the Seah six Qabh, and the Qabh four Log. This must be borne in mind, since the dry and the fluid measures were precisely the same; and here, also, their threefold computation (the 'Wilderness,' the 'Jerusalem,' and the 'Galilean') obtained. As regards the value of wheat, we learn [c from Baba M. 105 b, about the middle.] that, on an average, four Seah of seed were expected to produce one Cor, that is, seven and a half times their amount; and that a field 1,500 cubits long and 50 wide was expected to grow a Cor. The average price of a Cor of wheat, bought uncut, amounted to about 25 dinars, or 15s. Striking an average between the lowest prices mentioned [d Peah viii. 7; Erub. viii. 2; Baba B. 91b.] and the highest, [e Baba B 91 a.] we infer that the price of 3 Seah or an Ephah would be from two shillings to half-a-crown, and accordingly of a Cor (or 10 Ephah) from 20 to 25 shillings (probably this is rather more than it would cost). On this computation the hundred Cor would represent a debt of from 100l. to 125l., and the remission of the steward (of 20 Cor), a sum of from 20l. to 25l. Comparatively small as these sums may seem, they are in reality large, remembering the value of money in Palestine, which, on a low computation, would be five times as great as in our own country. [1 This will appear from the cost of living, labour, &c.] These two debtors are only mentioned as instances, and so the unjust steward would easily secure for himself friends by the 'Mamon of unrighteousness,' the term Mamon, [2 The word should be written with one m. See Grimm s. v.] we may note, being derived from the Syriac and Rabbinic word of the same kind ( , from , , to apportion). [3 Grimm (after Drusius) derives it from , but this is most unlikely. The derivation of Lagarde (ap. Kautzsch, p. 173) seems very difficult. Buxtorf (s. v.) largely, but not very satisfactorily, discusses its etymology. The view in the text has the sanction of Levy.]

Another point on which acquaintance with the history and habits of those times throws light is, how the debtors could so easily alter the sum mentioned in their respective bonds. For, the text implies that this, and not the writing of a new bond, is intended; since in that case the old one would have been destroyed, and not given back for alteration. It would be impossible, within the present limits, to enter fully on the interesting subject of writing, writing-materials, and written documents among the ancient Jews. [1 I must here refer generally to the monograph of Low (Graphische Requis. u. Erzeugn., 2 vols.). Its statements require, however, occasionally to be rectified. See also Herzfeld, Handelsgesch. pp. 113 &c., and Note 17.] Suffice it to give here the briefest notices.

The materials on which the Jews wrote were of the most divers kind: leaves, as of olives, palms, the carob, &c.; the rind of the pomegranate, the shell of walnuts, &c.; the prepared skins of animals (leather and parchment); and the product of the papyrus, used long before the time of Alexander the Great for the manufacture of paper, and known in Talmudic writings by the same name, as Papir [a Sot. 49 b.] or Apipeir, [b Kel. xxiv. 7.] but more frequently by that of Nayyar, probably from the stripes (Nirin) of the plant of which it was made. [2 Low, u. s. vol. i. pp.97, 98. It is curious to learn that in those days also waste paper went to the grocer. (Baba M. 56 b.)] But what interests us more, as we remember the 'tablet' ( ) on which Zacharias wrote the name of the future Baptist, [c St. Luke i. 63.] is thecircumstance that it bears not only the same name, Pinaqes or Pinqesa, but that it seems to have been of such common use in Palestine. [3 From earlier times comes to us notice of the Gillayon (Is. viii. 1), a smooth tablet of wood, metal, or stone, and of the Cheret, or stylus (Is. viii. 1), and the Et, which means probably not only a stylus but also a calamus (Ps. xlv. 2; Jer. viii. 8.)]. It consisted of thin pieces of wood (the Luach) fastened or strung together. The Mishnah [d Kel. xxiv. 7.] enumerates three kinds of them: those where the wood was covered with papyrus, [4 So Sachs, Beitr. z. Sprach u. Alterth. Forsch. vol. i. p. 165; but Low (u. s.) seems of different opinion.] those where it was covered with wax, and those where the wood was left plain to be written on with ink. The latter was of different kinds. Black ink was prepared of soot (the Deyo), or of vegetable or mineral substances. [5 The Deyo seems to have been a dry substance which was made into black ink. Ink from gall-nuts appears to be of later invention.] Gum Arabic and Egyptian (Qumos and Quma) and vitriol (Qanqanthos) seem also to have been used [e Shabb. xii. 4.] in writing. It is curious to read of writing in colours and with red ink or Siqra, [f u. s.] and even of a kind of sympathetic ink, made from the bark of the ash, and brought out by a mixture of vitriol and gum. [g Jer. Shabb 13 d. about the middle.] We also read of a gold-ink, as that in which the copy of the Law was written which, according to the legend, the High-Priest had sent to Ptolemy Philadelphus for the purpose of being translated into Greek by the LXX. [a Jos. Ant. xii. 2. 10.]But the Talmud prohibits copies of the Law in gold letters, [1 But the learned Relandus asserts that there were in his country such texts written in gold letters, and that hence the Talmudic prohibition could have only applied to the copies used in the Synagogues (Havercamp's ed. of Josephus, vol. i. p. 593, Note e.)] or more probably such in which the Divine Name was written in gold letters. [b Shabb. 103 b; Sopher. i. 9.] [2 Not to make a distinction between any portions of Scripture, and also from the curious Kabbalistic idea that somehow every word in the Bible contained the Divine Name.] In writing, a pen, Qolemos, made of reed (Qaneh [c Shabb. viii. 5.] was used, and the reference in an Apostolic Epistle [d 3 John 13.] to writing 'with ink and pen' ( ) finds even its verbal counterpart in the Midrash, which speaks of Milanin and Qolemin (ink and pens). Indeed, the public 'writer', a trade very common in the East [3 We read of one, Ben Qamtsar, who wrote four letters (the Tetragram) at once, holding four reeds (Qolemosin) at the same time between his four fingers (Yoma 38 b). The great R. Meir was celebrated as a copyist, specially of the Bible, at which work he is said to have made about 8s. weekly, of which, it is stated, he spent a third on his living, a third on his dress, and a third on charity to Rabbis (Midr. on Eccles. ii. 18, ed. Warsh. p. 83 b, last two lines). The codices of R. Meir seem to have embodied some variations of the common text. Thus, in the Psalms he wrote Halleluyah in one word, as it it had been an interjection, and not in the orthodox way, as two words: Hallelu Yah (Jer. Meg. 72 a). His codices seem also to have had marginal notes. Thus, on the words 'very good' ( ), Gen. i. 31, he noted 'death is good' ( ), a sort of word-play, to support his view, that death was originally of God and created by Him, a natural necessity rather than a punishment (Ber. R. 9.). Similarly, on Gen. iii. 21, he altered in the margin the 'skin,' of the text into 'light,' thus rendering 'garments of light' (u. s. 20). Again, in Gen. xlvi. 23, he left out the from, rendering it 'And the son of Dan was Chushim' (u. s. 94.). Similarly, he altered the words, Is. xxi. 11, 'the burden of Dumah' into Roma, (Jer. Taan. p. 64 a, line 10 from top.)]. went about with a Qolemos, or reed-pen, behind his ear, as a badge of his employment. [e Shabb. i. 3.] [4 Similarly, the carpenter carried a small wooden rule behind his ear.] With the reed-pen we ought to mention its necessary accompaniments: the penknife, [f Already mentioned in Jer. xxxvi. 23, and in theMishnah called Olar. Kel. xii. 8.] the inkstand (which, when double, for black and red ink, was sometimes made of earthenware, Qalamarim [g Kel. ii. 7.]), and the ruler [h Kel. xii. 8.], it being regarded bythe stricter set as unlawful to write any words of Holy Writ on any unlined material, no doubt to ensure correct writing and reading. [i Meg. 16 b.] [5 Letters, other documents, or bales of merchandise, were sealed with a kind of red clay.]

In all this we have not referred to the practice of writing on leather specially prepared with salt and flour, [k Meg. 17 a; 19 a.] nor to the Qelaph, or parchment in the stricter sense. [m Shabb. viii. 3.] For we are here chiefly interested in the common mode of writing, that on the Pinaqes, or 'tablet,' and especially on that covered with wax. Indeed, a little vessel holding wax was generally attached to it (Pinaqes sheyesh bo beth Qibbul shaavah [n Kel. xvii. 17.] On such a tablet they wrote, of course, not with a reed-pen, but with a stylus, generally of iron. This instrument consisted of two parts, which might be detached from each other: the hard pointed 'writer' (Kothebh), and the 'blotter' (Mocheq) which was flat and thick for smoothing out letters and words which had been written or rather graven in the wax. [a Kel. xiii. 2.] There can be no question that acknowledgments of debt, and other transactions, were ordinarily written down on such wax-covered tablets; for not only is direct reference made to it, [b Ab. iii. 16.] but there are special provisions in regard to documents where there are such erasures, or rather effacements: such as, that they require to be noted in the document, [c Baba B. 161 b.] under what conditions and how the witnesses are in such cases to affix their signatures, [d u. s. 163 a, b; 164 a.] just as there are particular injunctions how witnesses who could not write are to affix their mark.

But although we have thus ascertained that 'the bonds' in the Parable must have been written on wax, or else, possibly, on parchment, where the Mocheq, or blotter, could easily efface the numbers, we have also evidence that they were not, as so often, written on 'tablets' (the Pinaques). For, the Greek term, by which these 'bonds' or 'writings' are designated in the Parable ( [e St. Luke xvi. 7.]), is the same as is sometimes used in Rabbinic writings (Gerammation) for an acknowledgment of debt; [f Shem. R. 15] [1 The designations for the general formulary (Tophos, or Tiphos (Gitt. iii. 2), = typos), and for the special clauses (Toreph = Tropos) were of Greek derivation. For the full draft of the various legal documents we refer the reader to Note ix. at the end of Sammter's edition of Baba Mets. pp. 144-148. How many documents of this kind Jewish legalism must have invented, may be gathered from the circumstance that Herzfeld (u. s. p. 314) enumerates not fewer than thirty-eight different kinds of them! It appears that there were certain forms of these and similar documents, prepared with spaces left blank to be filled in (Gitt. iii. .2)] the Hebraised Greek word corresponding to the more commonly used (Syriac) term Shitre (Shetar), which also primarily denotes 'writings,' and is used specifically for such acknowledgments. [g Baba M. i. 8.] [2 The more full designation was Shetar Chobh, a writing of debt (Baba M. i. 6), or Shetar Milvah (Gitt. iii. 2), a writing of loan.] Of these there were two kinds. The most formal Shetar was not signed by the debtor at all, but only by the witnesses, who were to write their names (or marks) immediately (not more than two lines) below the text of the document, to prevent fraud. Otherwise, the document would not possess legal validity. Generally, it was further attested by the Sanhedrin [3 The attestation of the court was called Qiyum Beth Din, 'the establishment of the court,' Ashra, or Asharta, strengthening, or Henpheq (Baba Mez. 7 b), literally, the production, viz. before the court.] of three, who signed in such manner as not to leave even one line vacant. [h Baba B. 163 a, b.] Such a document contained the names of creditor and debtor, the amount owing, and the date, together with a clause attaching the property of the debtor. In fact, it was a kind of mortgage; all sale of property being, as with us, subject to such a mortgage, [a Babha B. x. 8.] which bore thename Acharayuth (probably, 'guarantee' [1 For the derivation and legal bearing of the term, see Low, vol. ii. p. 82.]) When the debt was paid, the legal obligation was simply returned to the debtor; if paid in part, either a new bond was written, or a receipt given, which was called Shobher [b Babha M. 7.] or Tebhara, because it 'broke' the debt.

But in many respects different were those bonds which were acknowledgements of debt for purchases made, such as we suppose those to have been which are mentioned in the Parable. In such cases it was not uncommon to dispense altogether with witnesses, and the document was signed by the debtor himself. In bonds of this kind, the creditor had not the benefit of a mortgage in case of sale. We have expressed our belief that the Parable refers to such documents, and we are confirmed in this by the circumstance that they not only bear a different name from the more formal bonds (the Shitre), but one which is perhaps the most exact rendering of the Greek term ( , [c Babha B. x. 8.] a 'writing of hand,' 'note of hand' [2 Although it is certain that letters of credit were used by the Jews of old, there is sufficient reason for believing that 'bills' were first introduced into commerce by the Italians, and not by Jews.]). For completeness' sake we add, in regard to the farming of land, that two kinds of leases were in use. Under the first, called Shetar Arisuth, the lessee (Aris= ) [3 But Guisius (in Surenhusius' Mishna, vol. i. pp. 56, 57) gives a different derivation and interpretation, which the learned reader may consult for himself.] received a certain portion of the produce. He might be a lessee for life, for a specified number of years, or even a hereditary tiller of the ground; or he might sub-let it to another person. [d Babha B 46 b.] Under the second kind of lease, the farmer, or Meqabbel, entered into a contract for payment either in kind, when he undertook to pay a stipulated and unvarying amount of produce, in which case he was called a Chokher (Chakhur or Chakhira [4 The difference between the Aris and the Chokher is stated in Jer. Bikkur. 64 b.]), or else a certain annual rental in money, when he was called a Sokher. [5 The difference between the Chokher and the Sokher is expressed in Tos. Demai vi. 2. Ugolini (Thes. vol. xx. pp. cxix., cxx.) not only renders but copies this passage wrongly. A more composite bargain of letting land and lending money for its better cultivation is mentioned in B. Mez. 69 b.]