(1) In the Old Testament "dwell" is a translation of 9 words, of
which by far the most frequent is yashabh, "to sit down,"
translated "dwell" over 400 times (Genesis 4:20 Joshua 20:4 1
Chronicles 17:1, 4, 5, etc.); also very frequently "sit," and
sometimes "abide," "inhabit," "remain." Another word often
rendered "dwell" is shakhan or shakhen ("to settle down"), from
which is derived the rabbinic word shekhinah (literally, "that
which dwells"), the light on the mercy-seat which symbolized the
Divine presence (Exodus 25:8, etc.). In order to avoid appearing
to localize the Divine Being, wherever God is said to "dwell" in
a place, the Targum renders that He "causes His Shekinah to
dwell" there. (2) In the New Testament "dwell" most frequently
stands for oikeo, or one of its compounds; also skenoo, and
(chiefly in the Johannine writings) meno, which, however, is
always translated "abide" in the Revised Version (British and
American), and generally in the King James Version. Mention may
be made of the mystical si