/mətsəˈbɒt/, U.S. /ˌmətsəˈbɔt/.mazzebahn.
/mətˈseɪbə/, U.S. /mətˈseɪbə//mətsəˈbɒt/, U.S. /ˌmətsəˈbɔt/. Jewish History.
In patriarchal times: a sacred stone pillar.
ΚΠ
1874 A. Kuenen Relig. of Israel I. v. 391 (note) In this passage we must read, by the oak of the maççeba, i.e. of the stone placed erect... Abram builds an altar between Beth-el and Hai (Gen. xii. 8).
1905 Jewish Encycl. XI. 556/2 The ‘stone of help’ (‘Eben-ezer’) set up by Samuel (I Sam. vii. 12) was such a ‘maẓẓebah’.
1905 Jewish Encycl. XI. 557/1 Jachin and Boaz, the two columns of the Temple (I Kings vii. 15 et seq.), were such maẓẓebot, not intended as supporters for the building, but possessing an independent purpose as shown by their names. The Phenician temples also contained such columns, and maẓẓbot long served as legitimate symbols of Yhwh.
1921 G. A. F. Knight Nile & Jordan xxv. 340 The temple..and the small brazen fire-altar, as well as the mazzeba or sacred pillar, are similarly non-Nilotic.
This is a new entry (OED Third Edition, March 2001; most recently modified version published online March 2022).
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n.1874