Cherethim
(Ezek. 25:16), more frequently Cherethites, the inhabitants of Southern Philistia, the Philistines (Zeph. 2:5). The Cherethites and the Pelethites were David's life-guards (1 Sam. 30:14; 2 Sam. 8:18; 20:7, 23; 23:23). This name is by some interpreted as meaning "Cretans," and by others "executioners," who were ready to execute the king's sentence of death (Gen. 37:36, marg.; 1 Kings 2:25).
Passages cited in this entry
Ezekiel 25:16 · Zephaniah 2:5 · 1 Samuel 30:14 · 2 Samuel 8:18 · Genesis 37:36 · 1 Kings 2:25
M. G. Easton, Illustrated Bible Dictionary, 3rd edition (1897). Public domain; text from the Christian Classics Ethereal Library. A nineteenth-century Protestant reference: its dates, archaeology and judgements reflect the scholarship of its time and are not Imago Dei's editorial position.