The English word “obey” translates both Hebrew and Greek words that express parallel ideas: listening and being attentive to someone who possesses authority. Thus, the words suggest an active respo...

This word derives from the Greek — pan (“all”) and theos (“God”). Traditionally, the term reflects a religious theory that suggests the entire Universe is endowed with the nature of God. 

God is ...

A careful consideration of the various texts in the Old Testament that mention the “angel of the LORD” (KJV) or the “angel of Jehovah” (ASV) reveals that this being was not of the ordinary angel cl...

Apostasy is an English term based on the Greek apotasia. Originally, it meant to desert one’s post; it was used for political revolt.

In the Old Testament, the word implies a turning away from Go...

In the Old Testament, anointing with oil was used ceremonially to set apart special roles, especially those of prophets (1 Kgs. 19:16), priests (Ex. 28:41), and kings (1 Sam. 9:16).

The most comm...

The doctrine of “annihilation” is the idea that eventually, after a sufficient period of punishment, the souls of the wicked will go out of existence. This dogma is without biblical support. 

The ...

The term “brother” is from the Greek adelphos. It technically signifies “from the same womb.” The word is used in different senses in the New Testament. 
• It is employed literally to identify sibl...

The term “sovereign” denotes the right that God has to rule the Universe. Note that the word “reign” is contained within “sovereign.”

Jehovah has this “right” because he is the Creator, and theref...

This is the name of a figure of speech whereby things are described in human terms. The word derives from the Greek anthropos (man) and morphe (form), hence man-form. 

Because God is “spirit” (Jn....

This word derives from a Latin term meaning “unmarried.”

In the divine scheme of things, the ideal is for human beings to marry (Gen. 2:18; 1 Tim. 5:14). Sometimes, however, it is not advisable t...

Infallibility means “without error.”

In theology, it signifies the belief that the Scriptures, in their original form (the autographs), were without error. Furthermore, the divine documents were ...

The “church” is a body of baptized believers, called by the gospel from the “world” into a special fellowship with Christ. 

We must acknowledge, however, that the church exists in the modern world...

The title “Christ” was applied to Jesus of Nazareth because he fulfilled Old Testament prophecies about the coming Messiah. 

The prophets previewed Jesus as the Messiah (Psa. 2:1ff; Dan. 9:25-27)....

The English word “church” is derived from the Greek kurikon, meaning “belonging to the Lord.”

The actual word in the Greek text, which stands behind the modern rendition, “church,” is ekklesia, "...

The Greek term presbuteros is rendered “elder.” It can refer simply to an older person (cf. Acts 2:17; Heb. 11:2) or take on a technical sense—an officer in the church, equivalent to a bishop or pa...

Critics are fond of claiming that the Bible cannot be the word of God because, supposedly, it contains multiple contradictions. Such allegations reveal that these critics are oblivious to the natur...

“Confession” means “to say the same thing.” 

In connection with our salvation, confession is the personal acknowledgment of the transgressions in our lives that God has spoken of and condemned thr...

Idolatry is the worship of any being or object other than the true God, or the worship of supposed images of Jehovah himself (Ex. 20:3-6).

A more subtle form of idolatry is the slavish yielding t...

Amos was a prophet in the northern kingdom of Israel in those days before the fall of Samaria, the capital city (722/21 B.C.). He cries out against the idolatry and wickedness of his people. He war...

This book aims to re-acquaint the Jews who had been released from Babylonian captivity with the history of David’s administration, which lasted about forty years. The book focuses on the temple and...