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1000 articles found for “the Holy Spirit”
Sign of Jonah
[Bible]The sign of Jonah is Jesus' reply to those who demanded a sign, that no sign would be given "but the sign of the prophet Jonas." The saying appears in the Gospels of Matthew and Luke.
Maccabean Revolt
[History]The Maccabean Revolt was a Jewish uprising begun in 167 BC by the priest Mattathias and his sons after Antiochus IV of the Seleucid dynasty outlawed the practice of Judaism. It led to the rededication of the Jerusalem temple and the establishment of the Hasmonean dynasty.
Shekel
[Bible]The shekel was a unit of weight used in ancient Israel and also a unit of value reckoned by that weight of silver. It later became the name of a silver coin. The shekel appears frequently in the Bible, notably in the half-shekel temple tax and the thirty pieces of silver.
Church Fathers
[History]The Church Fathers are the leaders and theologians of the early church who, from the late first century to around the eighth century, helped establish the framework of Christian doctrine, biblical interpretation, and worship.
Negev
[Bible]The Negev is a biblical place name for the arid region of southern Judah around Beersheba. The Hebrew word is also used to mean "south," so many passages render it simply as "the south."
Cave of Machpelah
[Bible]The Cave of Machpelah was the cave in a field before Mamre, near Hebron, that Abraham bought from Ephron the Hittite in order to bury his wife Sarah. It became the burial place of the patriarchs and their wives.
Olive Tree
[Bible]The olive tree is an evergreen fruit tree of the Mediterranean world and the land of Canaan. In Scripture it serves as an image of anointing, of the flourishing of God's people, and of the relationship between Israel and the Gentiles.
Rock
[Bible]A rock is a large, solid mass of stone. In the Bible it appears as the actual rock that gave water in the wilderness, and it also serves as a figure for God's unchanging protection, for Christ, and for the foundation of the church.
Levitical Cities
[Bible]The Levitical cities were the forty-eight cities, together with their surrounding pasturelands, that the tribes of Israel set aside as dwelling places for the tribe of Levi, which received no land as an inheritance. The six cities of refuge were among them.
Riot at Ephesus
[Bible]The riot at Ephesus took place while Paul was staying in Ephesus during his third missionary journey. Demetrius, a silversmith who made silver models of the goddess Artemis, stirred up his fellow craftsmen, and the whole city rushed into the theater (Acts 19:23–41).
Perpetual Virginity of Mary
[Doctrine & Theology]The perpetual virginity of Mary is the teaching that Mary, the mother of Jesus, remained a virgin throughout her life, not only before but also after giving birth to Jesus. The Catholic Church and the Orthodox Church profess it as doctrine, while Protestants generally do not accept it.
Seventy Weeks
[Bible]The seventy weeks are a period named in the prophecy that the angel Gabriel delivered to Daniel in Daniel 9:24-27. They are commonly understood as "seventy sevens," that is, 490 years. Interpreters differ widely over whether the passage should be read as a messianic prophecy, an eschatological prophecy, or a prediction of specific historical events.
Negev
[Bible]The Negev is an Old Testament place name for the arid region south of the hill country of Judah, extending around Beersheba and Arad. In Hebrew the word can also denote the compass direction "south."
Book of Jasher
[Bible]The Book of Jasher is an ancient Israelite record cited in the Old Testament. It is named in Joshua 10:13 and 2 Samuel 1:18, and the original has not survived.
Shulamite Woman
[People]The Shulamite woman is the woman called "the Shulamite" in the Old Testament book of the Song of Songs. She is commonly understood to be the female speaker who exchanges songs of love with her beloved in the book.
Covenant of Salt
[Bible]The covenant of salt is an Old Testament expression that uses salt as an image of the eternal, unchanging nature of a covenant made with God. It appears in Numbers 18:19 and 2 Chronicles 13:5, and Leviticus 2:13 contains the related phrase "the salt of the covenant."
Historical Jesus
[Doctrine & Theology]The historical Jesus is the portrait of Jesus of Nazareth, a first-century figure, as reconstructed through the methods of historical scholarship, as distinct from confessions of faith. The scholarly effort to recover this portrait is known as the "quest for the historical Jesus."
Pastoral Epistles
[Bible]The Pastoral Epistles is the collective name for three New Testament books: 1 Timothy, 2 Timothy, and Titus. They are presented as letters in which Paul instructs his coworkers Timothy and Titus on caring for and teaching the church.
Salt Sea
[Bible]The Salt Sea is the biblical name for the lake into which the Jordan River flows, known today as the Dead Sea. In the Old Testament it appears as a place name marking the eastern boundary of the land of Canaan.
King's Highway
[Bible]The King's Highway is the road the Israelites under Moses named when they asked Edom and Sihon king of the Amorites for permission to pass through their lands. It is known as an ancient trade route running north and south across the plateau east of the Jordan River.