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Zipporah
[People]Zipporah, a figure in the Book of Exodus, was the daughter of Jethro, the priest of Midian, and the wife of Moses. She is known for circumcising her son on the way back to Egypt.
The Good Shepherd
[Bible]The Good Shepherd is a figurative expression Jesus used of himself in John 10. It portrays the true leader as a shepherd who lays down his life for the sheep, in contrast to the hireling and the thief.
Luke 2:10-11
[Bible Verses]A passage in which an angel announces the birth of Jesus to the shepherds in the fields near Bethlehem, calling him "Savior," "Christ," and "Lord." Because it contains the heart of the Christmas message, it is one of the texts most frequently read in Christmas services and sermons.
Luke 2
[Bible]Luke 2 records the birth of Jesus in Bethlehem, the visit of the shepherds, the encounter with Simeon and Anna in the temple, and the twelve-year-old Jesus questioning and answering the teachers in the temple.
Swaddling Clothes
[Bible]Swaddling clothes are the cloths or bands used to wrap a newborn infant. In the Bible they are best known from Luke 2, where Mary wraps the newborn Jesus in swaddling clothes and lays him in a manger.
Genesis 47
[Bible]Genesis 47 is the chapter in which Joseph presents his father and brothers to Pharaoh and settles them in the land of Goshen. During the famine he acquires, in turn, the Egyptians' money, livestock, and land for Pharaoh, and the aged Jacob makes Joseph swear to bury him in Canaan.
Jethro
[People]Jethro is a priest of Midian in the Book of Exodus, the father-in-law of Moses and the father of Zipporah. In Exodus 2 he appears under the name Reuel. He is known for advising Moses to appoint leaders over the people and to share the work of judging with them.
Goshen
[Bible]Goshen was the land in Egypt where Jacob's family settled after going down there in the time of Joseph. In Exodus it appears as the land that God set apart as the dwelling place of the Israelites when He sent the plagues.
Amos 5:21–23
[Bible Verses]In this oracle addressed by Amos to the northern kingdom of Israel, God declares that he rejects the feasts, sacrifices, and songs of a people who have abandoned justice. The passage teaches that worship and life must be consistent, and it is frequently cited together with verse 24, which immediately follows.
John 10:16
[Bible Verses]In the Good Shepherd discourse, Jesus says that he has "other sheep... which are not of this fold" whom he must also bring, so that there will be "one flock" (KJV: "one fold") under one shepherd. The verse is often cited in support of the mission to the Gentiles and of church unity, and interpreters differ over the identity of the "other sheep."
Matthew 18:15–17
[Bible Verses]Matthew 18:15–17 sets out a step-by-step procedure for when a brother sins: one should first admonish him privately, then with one or two witnesses, and, if he still refuses to listen, tell it to the church. It is the foundational text for church discipline, and its scope of application is debated when it is applied to conflicts and crimes within the church.
Three Uses of the Law
[Doctrine & Theology]The three uses of the law is a teaching of Reformation theology that organizes the work of God's law into three functions: restraining evil in society, bringing people to recognize their sin, and guiding the life of the believer.
The Fiery Furnace
[Bible]The fiery furnace episode, recorded in Daniel 3, is the account of Shadrach, Meshach, and Abednego, who refused to bow down to the golden image set up by King Nebuchadnezzar, were thrown into a burning furnace, and came out alive and unharmed.
Puritan Revolution
[History]The Puritan Revolution refers to the civil wars fought in England from 1642 to 1651 between the Royalist supporters of Charles I and the Parliamentarians, whose core was made up of Puritans, together with the political upheaval that followed. The king was executed, a republic was established, and the Westminster Confession of Faith was produced during this period.
Eliphaz (the Temanite)
[People]Eliphaz the Temanite appears in the Book of Job as one of the three friends who came to comfort Job after disaster struck him, and he was always the first of them to speak. He interpreted Job's suffering as the result of sin and was rebuked by God.
1 Corinthians 13:13
[Bible Verses]The verse reads, "And now abideth faith, hope, charity, these three; but the greatest of these is charity" (KJV). It is widely known as a summary of the three Christian virtues, and several explanations have been offered for why love (rendered "charity" in the KJV) is the greatest.
Shadrach, Meshach, and Abednego
[People]Shadrach, Meshach, and Abednego were young men of Judah taken captive to Babylon and the three companions of Daniel. They refused to bow down to King Nebuchadnezzar's golden image, were thrown into a fiery furnace, and came out alive.
Writings (Hebrew Bible)
[Bible]The Writings are the third of the three divisions of the Hebrew Bible (Tanakh), following the Law and the Prophets. Called Ketuvim ("things written") in Hebrew, the division comprises eleven books by Jewish reckoning, including Psalms, Job, and Proverbs.
Daniel 3:24–28
[Bible Verses]This passage describes how the three men cast into King Nebuchadnezzar's fiery furnace walk out unharmed and how the king then praises their God. It is frequently cited in discussions of the identity of the "fourth" figure who appears in the fire and of faithfulness under persecution.
Feast of Weeks
[Bible]The Feast of Weeks was one of Israel's three pilgrimage festivals, at which the firstfruits of the wheat harvest were offered. It was observed after counting seven weeks from the day the first sheaf of grain was presented, and in the New Testament it is called Pentecost.