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Genesis 2:18
[Bible Verses]Genesis 2:18 records God's declaration, "It is not good that the man should be alone; I will make him an help meet for him" (KJV). It is one of the passages most frequently read at weddings, and interpretations of "help meet" diverge on the roles of men and women.
Genesis 3:15
[Bible Verses]Genesis 3:15 is God's declaration to the serpent that the seed of the woman "shall bruise thy head." The church has called this verse the Protoevangelium, the first announcement of Christ's victory, and interpreters differ over the identity of the seed.
Numbers 6:24–26
[Bible Verses]Numbers 6:24–26 is the Aaronic Blessing, the words God instructed Aaron and his sons to use in blessing the people of Israel. One of the oldest prayers in the Bible, it is widely used today as a benediction at the close of worship.
Psalm 23:1–6
[Bible Verses]A psalm of David that begins, "The LORD is my shepherd; I shall not want." Portraying God as a shepherd and as the host of a banquet, it confesses His lifelong care and is among the most widely known and beloved psalms in the Bible.
Aaron
[People]Aaron, a Levite who appears in the Old Testament books from Exodus through Deuteronomy, was the elder brother of Moses and the first high priest of Israel. His descendants inherited Israel's priesthood.
Deborah
[People]Deborah was a prophetess and judge in the Old Testament Book of Judges, known for defeating the army of Jabin, king of Canaan, together with Barak, and for the Song of Deborah, which commemorates the victory.
Samson
[People]Samson was a judge of Israel in the Old Testament book of Judges. Born a Nazarite, he fought against the Philistines. Renowned for his great strength, he was captured after revealing the secret of his strength to Delilah, and he died when he brought down the temple of Dagon.
Rahab
[People]Rahab is a woman of Jericho in the Old Testament book of Joshua (chapters 2 and 6) who hid the Israelite spies and was saved together with her family. The New Testament names her in the genealogy of Jesus and presents her as an example of both faith and works.
Miriam
[People]Miriam was the sister of Moses and Aaron and a prophetess who, according to Exodus, took up a timbrel and sang with the women after the crossing of the Red Sea. Numbers records that she was struck with a skin disease after speaking against Moses, and that she died at Kadesh.
Ruth
[People]Ruth is a Moabite woman and the central figure of the Old Testament Book of Ruth. She followed her mother-in-law Naomi to Bethlehem, married Boaz, and became the great-grandmother of King David.
Samuel
[People]Samuel was the last judge of Israel and a prophet whose life is recounted in 1 Samuel. Born in answer to Hannah's prayer and raised under the priest Eli, he anointed Saul and David and ushered in the era of the monarchy.
Eli
[People]Eli was an Israelite priest who served at the sanctuary in Shiloh at the close of the period of the judges. He raised the boy Samuel but failed to restrain the wickedness of his two sons, and his house came under judgment. His story is told in 1 Samuel 1–4.
Nathan (Prophet)
[People]Nathan was a prophet of Israel during the reigns of King David and King Solomon. He delivered the promise that David's dynasty would endure forever, used a parable to confront David with his sin after the Bathsheba affair, and played a part in Solomon's accession to the throne.
Ezekiel (Prophet)
[People]Ezekiel was an Old Testament priest and prophet who ministered during the Babylonian exile. He proclaimed to the exiles of Judah both the judgment of Jerusalem and the restoration of Israel, and his prophecies are preserved in the Book of Ezekiel.
Jeremiah (Prophet)
[People]Jeremiah was an Old Testament prophet who ministered from the final years of the Kingdom of Judah into the early period of the Babylonian exile. He warned of the destruction of Jerusalem, prophesied the "new covenant," and is known as "the weeping prophet."
Philip
[People]Philip is the name of two figures in the New Testament: Philip the Apostle, one of the twelve disciples of Jesus, and Philip the Evangelist, one of the seven men appointed by the church in Jerusalem.
James (Son of Zebedee)
[People]James, the son of Zebedee, was one of the twelve disciples of Jesus and the brother of the apostle John. According to the Book of Acts, he was killed with the sword by King Herod, and he is the only one of the Twelve whose martyrdom is recorded in Scripture.
Cyrus
[People]Cyrus, known in general history as Cyrus II or Cyrus the Great, was a king of the ancient Persian Empire. The Bible records him as the ruler who permitted the people of Judah held captive in Babylon to return to their homeland and rebuild the temple in Jerusalem.
Nicodemus
[People]Nicodemus is a Pharisee and a ruler of the Jews who appears only in the Gospel of John. He came to Jesus by night and spoke with him about being born again, and after Jesus' death he joined Joseph of Arimathea in burying him.
Joseph of Nazareth
[People]In the New Testament, Joseph is the husband of Mary and the legal father of Jesus. He is presented as a descendant of David and is recorded as having worked as a carpenter in Nazareth of Galilee.