Mariners(sailors, salt man)
Summary
Sailors who navigated ancient vessels, essential to maritime commerce but subject to the perils of the sea.
☩Terminology
The Hebrew term mallach means 'salt man,' referring to those whose lives were spent upon the sea. Another term, shatim ('rowers'), appears in Ezekiel 27:8, 26. The Greek halieus similarly suggests an 'old salt'—one seasoned by maritime experience.
☩Skilled Sailors
King Solomon employed mariners from Tyre, experienced sailors who 'had knowledge of the sea,' to serve alongside his servants in the navy at Ezion-geber (1 Kings 9:27; 2 Chronicles 8:18). The Phoenicians of Tyre were renowned throughout the ancient world for their seafaring expertise. Ezekiel describes Tyre's maritime glory: 'Thy wise men, O Tyrus, that were in thee, were thy pilots. The ancients of Gebal and the wise men thereof were in thee thy calkers' (Ezekiel 27:8-9, 27).
☩Perils of the Sea
Psalm 107:23-30 vividly describes mariners' experience: 'They that go down to the sea in ships, that do business in great waters; these see the works of the LORD, and his wonders in the deep.' When storms arise, 'they mount up to the heaven, they go down again to the depths: their soul is melted because of trouble.' The mariners in Jonah's ship cried 'every man unto his god' as the tempest raged (Jonah 1:5). Paul's shipwreck account (Acts 27:17-44) provides detailed insight into ancient seamanship during crisis.
☩Human Weakness
Scripture notes the cowardice that can overtake mariners in desperate circumstances. During Paul's voyage, the sailors attempted to abandon the ship under pretense of casting anchors, prompting Paul's warning to the centurion (Acts 27:30). Isaiah's prophecy mentions inhabitants of the coast and mariners of Sidon among those who would be ashamed at God's judgment (Isaiah 23:2-6).
Related Verses12 mentions
References
- 1.John McClintock and James Strong, "Mariner," in Cyclopedia of Biblical, Theological and Ecclesiastical Literature, vol. V (Harper & Brothers, 1867–1887).