A
Atonement
A payment or offering to remove or forgive sins.
B
Baptize
To wash, dip or immerse in water.
C
Canaan
The land God promised to give to Israel, located at the eastern end of the Mediterranean Sea.
Cherubim
Heavenly creatures who serve God.
Covenant
An agreement usually between God and his people.
Crucify
To nail or tie a person to a cross until that person dies. A cross was made of rough beams of wood nailed together.
D
Deacon
A leader of the church who serves others.
Denarius
A small silver coin used in the Roman empire.
Disciple
Someone who believes and does what his or her leader teaches.
E
Elders
Older men who are leaders of a church, town or nation.
F
Fasting
Going without food for a period of time.
G
Galilee
The northern part of the land of Palestine.
Gentile
A non-Jew.
H
Holy
Pure, set apart for God.
Holy Spirit
One of the three persons of God.
Hosanna
A word used in praising God, means "please save us now."
Hyssop
A plant used to sprinkle water or blood to make something pure.
I
Idol
Anything worshiped instead of the true God.
Israel
The name God gave to Jacob; also refers to the nation that came from the family line of Jacob.
J
Jacob
Grandson of Abraham, and the father of the twelve tribes of Israel.
Justification
Made right in the sight of God.
L
Lamb of God
Jesus is called the Lamb of God, sacrificed to take away the sins of the world.
Leprosy
The word used in the Bible for different skin diseases and infections.
Lord's Supper
A meal shared together by the disciples of Jesus. Christians commemorate this event by sharing "Holy Communion" in church.
M
Manna
Means "what is it?" Manna was the name the Israelites gave the special food God provided to them in the desert.
Messiah
Hebrew word meaning "chosen one".
O
Offering
Something given to God to worship Him.
P
Parable
A story told to show how one thing is like another.
Passover
A Jewish celebration that reminds the people how God saved them from slavery in Egypt.
Pentecost
A Jewish feast that was celebrated fifty days after Passover. For Christians it commemorates the day when Christ's disciples were filled with the Holy Spirit for the first time.
Pharisees
In New Testament times they were the main religious leaders of the Jews.
Psalm
Means "song."
R
Rabbi
Teacher of the law.
Repentance
To be sorry for the sins you've committed.
Resurrection
The act of rising from the dead.
S
Sabbath
A time of rest or ceasing to work.
Sadducees
A small but powerful group of religious leaders at the time of Jesus.
Samaritan
A person from the country of Samaria, hated by the Jews because they had married non-Jews.
Sanctify
To make holy.
Sanhedrin
The most important Jewish court of law in Jesus' time.
Shekel
In weight was about 11.5 grams. Six gold shekels were equal in value to fifty silver ones.
Sin
Breaking God's law.
Son of Man
A title Jesus used for Himself during His ministry.
Synagogue
A building where Jews gathered to worship.
T
Talent
A talent of silver contained 3,000 shekels and was equal to about 34 kg. A talent of gold was double that of silver.
Tithe
Means "a tenth," and refers to God's people giving a portion of their income to God.
Z
Zion
A hill within the city of Jerusalem on which the temple was built.