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Leaven
[Bible]Leaven is fermented dough used to make bread rise. In the Old Testament it appears in the regulations for the Feast of Unleavened Bread and for sacrificial offerings. In the New Testament it serves as an image both of the kingdom of God and of evil teaching and sin.
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.
Queen Mother
[Bible]The queen mother is a biblical term for a woman who, as the mother of the king, held an official position at the royal court. It is best known from the account of King Asa of Judah removing his mother Maachah from this position.
Perez
[People]Perez was one of the twin sons born to Judah and Tamar. He is recorded in the genealogies of Ruth and Matthew 1 as an ancestor of David and of Jesus Christ.
Mesha Stele
[History]The Mesha Stele is a basalt monument erected in the mid-ninth century BC by Mesha, king of Moab, to commemorate his victory over Israel. It is known as an ancient extrabiblical record that mentions persons and events connected with 2 Kings 3.
El-bethel
[Bible]El-bethel, meaning "God of Bethel," is the name Jacob gave to the place when he returned to Bethel and built an altar there (Genesis 35:7).
Polycarp
[People]Polycarp (c. 69–c. 155) was a second-century bishop of the church at Smyrna in Asia Minor and a martyr. He was an Apostolic Father, traditionally regarded as a disciple of the apostle John.
Massacre of the Innocents
[Bible]The Massacre of the Innocents was the killing, ordered by King Herod, of all male children two years old and under in Bethlehem and its surrounding region in an attempt to eliminate the newborn "King of the Jews." It is recorded only in Matthew 2.
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.
Betrothal
[Bible]In the Bible, betrothal (espousal) is the stage before marriage in which a man and a woman become legally bound to each other. It appears in Old Testament law and in the account of Mary and Joseph, and it also serves as an image of the relationship between God and his people and between Christ and the church.
Marian Veneration
[Doctrine & Theology]Marian veneration is the devotional practice of giving special honor and reverence to Mary, the mother of Jesus Christ. It is a tradition of the Catholic Church and the Orthodox Church. Most Protestants respect Mary as an example of faith but do not make her an object of prayer or veneration.
Rhema
[Bible]Rhema (ῥῆμα) is a Greek word used in the New Testament meaning "word" or "saying." Some churches, including many in Korea, distinguish it from logos and use it in the sense of "a word God gives to an individual." This distinction is disputed.
Four Living Creatures
[Bible]The four living creatures are four beings who appear beside the throne of God in the visions of Ezekiel and Revelation. They bear the likeness of a lion, an ox, a man, and an eagle, and the book of Ezekiel calls them cherubim.
Mesha
[People]Mesha was a king of Moab around the ninth century BC. He paid tribute to the northern kingdom of Israel but rebelled after the death of Ahab. He appears in 2 Kings 3, and his name is also preserved on an extrabiblical artifact, the Mesha Stele.
Elah (King of Israel)
[People]Elah was a king of the northern kingdom of Israel and the son of Baasha. According to 1 Kings 16, he reigned for two years and was killed by his servant Zimri while drunk. His death brought the dynasty of Baasha to an end.
Zechariah (King of Israel)
[People]Zechariah was a king of the northern kingdom of Israel and the son of Jeroboam II. He reigned for six months before he was assassinated by Shallum, and his death brought the dynasty of Jehu to an end.
Ashkelon
[Bible]Ashkelon was one of the five principal cities of the Philistines, located on the Mediterranean coast. It appears in the account of Samson and in David's lament, and several prophetic books name it as an object of judgment.
Hezekiah's Tunnel
[Bible]Hezekiah's Tunnel is a rock-cut tunnel that Hezekiah, king of Judah, is believed to have dug to bring the waters of the Gihon Spring into Jerusalem in preparation for an Assyrian invasion. Today it is also called the Siloam Tunnel.
Stephanas
[People]Stephanas was a believer in the church at Corinth, mentioned in 1 Corinthians, and the head of a household baptized by Paul. Paul calls his household "the firstfruits of Achaia" and presents it as an example of devoted service to the saints.
Revised Common Lectionary
[Worship & Rites]The Revised Common Lectionary (RCL) is a table of Scripture readings that assigns the biblical texts to be read in worship on each Sunday and festival according to a three-year cycle. It was published in 1992 by an ecumenical consultation of North American denominations.