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This is the title of a sovereign who exercises regal authority over a certain territory. The term is used in the following senses in Scripture. (a) Jehovah God is king over the entire earth (1 Sam. 12:12; Mt. 22:7; 1 Tim. 6:16). (b) The title is sometimes used of the political rule of certain ear...
The English word "atonement" derives from an Anglo-Saxon term that practically signifies "a making at one." Though the English term "atonement" is common to the Old Testament, it is found only once in the New Testament (Rom. 5:11 KJV). There, the original term (katallage) is better rendered as "r...
The Bible is filled with affirmations of our Creator's generosity. Every good and perfect gift is from him (Jas. 1:17). Surely our gratitude must be lavishly expressed for his graciousness. God has given us life itself (Acts 17:25; 1 Tim. 6:13). Human life, therefore, is sacred. Jehovah gives us ...
There are three kindred words in the Greek N.T. that represent the idea of "propitiation." Two are nouns -- hilasmos (1 Jn. 2:2; 4:10) and hilasterion (Rom. 3:25; Heb. 9:5), and the third is the verb hilaskomai (Lk. 18:13; Heb. 2:17). The terms are designed to provide an explanation as to how God...
In the Old Testament, this term denoted the firstborn offspring of humans or animals. The firstborn was accorded a place of special prominence (cf. Gen. 48:13-18; Dt. 21:15-17; 2 Chron. 21:3). The word also came to be used figuratively. The "firstborn" of death signified a particularly deadly dis...
The term "sabbath" is derived from the Hebrew shabath, to "cease." The use of this word for the "seventh day" reflects the Genesis account of creation, when, after six days of creative activity, Jehovah "ceased" his labor (cf. Ex. 20:8-11). There is no astronomical phenomenon to explain a seven-d...
The term "grace" occurs about 155 times in the New Testament. The word relates to the Greek term chairo, meaning "to rejoice," and grace itself comes to mean favor, gratification, or gratitude -- depending on the context. The New Testament emphasizes that salvation is the result of God's grace (E...
Paul's second preserved letter to the Corinthian brethren was designed to be corrective. It urged the saints to be forgiving to the brother who had been disciplined because of his fornication (2:1ff; cf. 1 Cor. 5:1ff). It also pressed for a correct perspective regarding the law of Moses (3:1ff), ...
The Greek word eirene ("peace") may derive from an original term meaning, "to weave together." This is a very significant Bible word. (a) There is a peace to be sought with God. Sin has separated man from his Creator (Isa. 59:1-2), so that rebellious man has become an enemy to God (Rom. 5:10; Jas...
The most common word in the Greek New Testament that conveys the idea of "forgiveness" is aphesis, a compound term meaning "to send away from." Forgiveness is a divine response to human sin, flowing from the loving and merciful disposition of God (Jn. 3:16; Eph. 2:4). Forgiveness is possible beca...
The term devil means one who slanders or accuses (cf. Rev. 12:9-10). This word is used thirty-three times in the New Testament of the arch-enemy of man, Satan (Mt. 13:28). Since only the deity is characterized by underived immortality (1 Tim. 6:16), Satan was obviously created (Col. 1:16). But si...
There are three basic words in the Greek N.T. that convey the idea of "ministering" in one way or another. (a) Diakonos, occurs about thirty times in the N.T. Generally it simply means "to serve." In the KJV it is rendered "servant" seven times and "minister" twenty times. Three times it is used ...
By virtue of man's transgression, death and all its attendant evils, including illness, have become a part of the human experience. It is not surprising, therefore, that "healing" is a biblical theme. Healing is spoken of in several senses in Scripture. In the inspired Scriptures, many regulation...
A "redeemer" is one who is qualified to effect "redemption" on behalf of one in need of the same. The term "redeem" means "to buy out of," (Grk. exagorazo -- ek "out of" and agorazo, "buy"), as in the case of a slave who is bought out of the state of bondage. When Jehovah delivered his people fro...
The original words that are rendered by the English "tempt" are employed in two broad senses in the Scriptures, depending upon the context in which they are found. First, the concept may be that of putting something to the "test" to determine its character. David did not want to use Saul's armor ...
Praise, in the highest sense of the term, is a feeling toward, and/or outward expression of, devotion to deity. It acknowledges thanksgiving for Heaven's glorious creation, beneficent providence, and redemptive mercy (cf. Ex. 15:1-19; Rev. 4:8, 11; 5:9, 12-13). Deity, because of his very nature, ...
The term "restoration" conveys a number of ideas in the Scriptures, depending upon the immediate context. (a) It may refer to the restitution of property or money in compliance to law (Dt. 22:2), or it may be a reflection of one's repentance (Lk. 19:8). (b) The term may be used of a spiritual inv...
The English word "bible" means "scroll" or "book" and refers to the sixty-six documents that comprise the book of Scripture -- thirty-nine Old Testament documents and twenty-seven New Testament books. These two divisions are sometimes called the two covenants (Ex. 24:7; Mt. 26:28; Heb. 8:7). The ...
The Greek term for "man" is anthropos. Plato suggested that the word reflects the idea of an "upward looking" one, hinting, perhaps, that man finds no rest upon this planet. He is ever searching for his Maker. The term "man" is used generically -- for human kind. "Let us make man in our image mal...
The church in Thessalonica was established on Paul's second missionary journey (Acts 17:1ff). After he left the region, he received a report regarding the congregation in Thessalonica, containing both positive and negative news. This letter, written from Corinth (Acts 18:1, 5), is a response to t...
