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112 articles found for “Gentiles”

• Court of the Gentiles

  The Court of the Gentiles was the large outermost court of the Jerusalem temple as enlarged by Herod, a space that non-Jews were also permitted to enter. It is commonly understood as the site where Jesus cleansed the temple.

• Light to the Gentiles

  "Light to the Gentiles" is an expression in the Book of Isaiah indicating that the Servant of God was given a mission to bring the light of salvation beyond Israel to all nations. The New Testament applies it to Jesus Christ and to the preaching of the gospel.

• Gentile

  In the Bible, "Gentile" refers to a people or nation other than Israel (the Jews), or to a person belonging to such a people. In the New Testament, the inclusion of Gentiles in the people of God through faith is a major theme.

• Romans 11:25–26

  This passage states that "blindness in part is happened to Israel, until the fulness of the Gentiles be come in. And so all Israel shall be saved." Interpretations of who constitutes "all Israel" differ sharply, reflecting divergent views of eschatology and of Israel.

• Middle Wall of Partition

  The "middle wall of partition" is an expression from Ephesians 2:14 that refers to the barrier between Jews and Gentiles that Christ broke down through the cross. Korean churches frequently cite it when speaking of reconciliation and unity.

• Isaiah 49:6

  A verse in which God tells his servant that, beyond restoring Israel, he will make him "a light to the Gentiles" so that salvation may reach "unto the end of the earth." It is frequently discussed because of questions about the servant's identity and because the Book of Acts cites it as a basis for the mission to the Gentiles.

• Didache

  The Didache, meaning "the Teaching (of the Twelve Apostles)," is an early church document generally thought to have been written in the late first or early second century. It contains instructions on baptism, the Eucharist, fasting, prayer, and church offices.

• God-fearers

  "God-fearers" is a term for Gentiles in the New Testament era who believed in the God of the Jews and took part in synagogue worship but did not convert to Judaism by receiving circumcision. The expression appears frequently in the Book of Acts.

• Romans 3

  Romans 3 concludes that Jews and Gentiles alike are under sin and declares that the righteousness of God is received not by the works of the law but by faith in Jesus Christ.

• Galatians 2

  Galatians 2 recounts how the apostles in Jerusalem recognized Paul as the apostle to the Gentiles and how Paul rebuked Cephas (Peter) at Antioch. The chapter declares that a person is justified not by the works of the law but by faith in Christ.

• Romans 3:10-12

  A passage in which Paul weaves together Old Testament texts, chiefly from the Psalms, to show that Jews and Gentiles alike are under sin. As a key text on the universal sinfulness of humanity, it is frequently cited in discussions of total depravity and prevenient grace and in evangelistic preaching.

• Ephesians 3

  Ephesians 3 is the chapter in which Paul explains "the mystery of Christ" (that through the gospel the Gentiles are fellow heirs) and describes his own ministry of proclaiming it. He then closes the first half of the letter with a prayer for the believers and a doxology.

• Paul

  Paul was an apostle of the early church. A Jewish Pharisee who had persecuted the church, he was converted and devoted himself to mission among the Gentiles. Thirteen letters bearing his name are included in the New Testament.

• Ephesians 2:14-17

  A passage stating that Christ, through the cross, broke down "the middle wall of partition" between Jews and Gentiles, made the two into "one new man," and reconciled both together to God. It is frequently cited in discussions of church unity and reconciliation, and interpreters differ over the scope of the law said to have been abolished.

• Matthew 4:15–16

  A passage in which the Gospel of Matthew presents the beginning of Jesus' Galilean ministry as the fulfillment of Isaiah 9:1–2. Because it speaks of a people sitting in darkness who saw a "great light," it is frequently cited in discussions of the fulfillment of messianic prophecy and of the mission to the Gentiles.

• Galatians 1:15–16

  In this passage, Paul reflects on his calling, saying that God set him apart before he was born and called him by grace to preach the gospel to the Gentiles. It is frequently cited in discussions of vocation, predestination, and Paul's conversion.

• Romans 11:33–36

  A doxology in which the apostle Paul, concluding his discussion in Romans 9–11 of the salvation of Israel and the Gentiles, praises the unsearchable wisdom and sovereignty of God. It is frequently cited in discussions of God-centered faith and in debates over predestination.

• Galatians 3:6–9

  In this passage Paul quotes Genesis 15:6 to argue that, just as Abraham was counted righteous by faith, Gentiles who believe are likewise Abraham's children and share in his blessing. It is frequently cited as a key text on justification by faith and on the salvation of the Gentiles.

• Conversion of Paul

  The conversion of Paul is the event in which Saul, a persecutor of the church, encountered the risen Jesus on the road to Damascus, became a Christian, and was called to be the apostle to the Gentiles. It is recorded three times in the Book of Acts.

• New Perspective on Paul

  The New Perspective on Paul is an approach to interpreting Paul that emerged in Anglo-American New Testament scholarship in the late 1970s. It reads the "works of the law" that Paul criticized not as an attempt to earn merit but as identity markers that separated Jews from Gentiles.