FREE-WILL OFFERING
a spontaneous gift (Exo 35:29), a voluntary sacrifice (Lev. 22:23; Ezra 3:5), as opposed to one in consequence of a vow, or in expiation of some offence. ......
WILLOWS
(1.) Heb. 'arabim (Lev. 23:40; Job 40:22; Isa. 15:7;44:3, 44: 4; Psa 137:1, Psa 137: 2). This was supposed to be the weeping willow, called by Linnaeus Salix Babylonica, from the reference in Ps. 137. This tree is frequently found "on the coast, overhanging wells and pools. There is a conspicuous tree of this species over a pond in the plain of Acre, and others on the Phoenician plain." There are ......
FORGIVENESS OF SIN
one of the constituent parts of justification. In pardoning sin, God absolves the sinner from the condemnation of the law, and that on account of the work of Christ, i.e., he removes the guilt of sin, or the sinner's actual liability to eternal wrath on account of it. All sins are forgiven freely (Acts 5:31;13:38; 1-John 1:6). The sinner is by this act of grace for ever freed from the guilt and pe......
ADRAMYTTIUM
a city of Asia Minor on the coast of Mysia, which in early times was called AEolis. The ship in which Paul embarked at Caesarea belonged to this city (Acts 27:2). He was conveyed in it only to Myra, in Lycia, whence he sailed in an Alexandrian ship to Italy. It was a rare thing for a ship to sail from any port of Palestine direct for Italy. It still bears the name Adramyti, and is a place of some ......
ARMY
The Israelites marched out of Egypt in military order (Exo 13:18, Exo 13: "harnessed;" marg., "five in a rank"). Each tribe formed a battalion, with its own banner and leader (Num. 2:2;10:14). In war the army was divided into thousands and hundreds under their several captains (Num. 31:14), and also into families (Num. 2:34; 2-Chr 25:5;26:12). From the time of their entering the land of Canaan to ......
ASTRONOMY
The Hebrews were devout students of the wonders of the starry firmanent (Amos 5:8; Ps. 19). In the Book of Job, which is the oldest book of the Bible in all probability, the constellations are distinguished and named. Mention is made of the "morning star" (Rev. 2:28; comp. Isa. 14:12), the "seven stars" and "Pleiades," "Orion," "Arcturus," the "Great Bear" (Amos 5:8; Job 9:9;38:31), "the crooked s......
BLASPHEMY
In the sense of speaking evil of God this word is found in Psa 74:18; Isa. 52:5; Rom. 2:24; Rev. 13:1, Rev. 13: 6;16:9, 16: 11, 21. It denotes also any kind of calumny, or evil-speaking, or abuse (1-Kings 21:10; Acts 13:45;18:6, 18: etc.). Our Lord was accused of blasphemy when he claimed to be the Son of God (Matt. 26:65; comp. Matt. 9:3; Mark 2:7). They who deny his Messiahship blaspheme Jesus (......
DEUTERONOMY
In all the Hebrew manuscripts the Pentateuch (q.v.) forms one roll or volume divided into larger and smaller sections called _parshioth_ and _sedarim_. It is not easy to say when it was divided into five books. This was probably first done by the Greek translators of the book, whom the Vulgate follows. The fifth of these books was called by the Greeks Deuteronomion, i.e., the second law, hence our......
MYRA
one of the chief towns of Lycia, in Asia Minor, about 2 1/2 miles from the coast (Acts 27:5). Here Paul removed from the Adramyttian ship in which he had sailed from Caesarea, and entered into the Alexandrian ship, which was afterwards wrecked at Melita (27:39). ......
MYRRH
Heb. mor. (1.) First mentioned as a principal ingredient in the holy anointing oil (Exo 30:23). It formed part of the gifts brought by the wise men from the east, who came to worship the infant Jesus (Matt. 2:11). It was used in embalming (John 19:39), also as a perfume (Esther 2:12; Psa 45:8; Prov. 7:17). It was a custom of the Jews to give those who were condemned to death by crucifixion "wine m......
MYRTLE
(Isa. 41:19; Neh. 8:15; Zech. 1:8), Hebrew hadas, known in the East by the name _as_, the Myrtus communis of the botanist. "Although no myrtles are now found on the mount (of Olives), excepting in the gardens, yet they still exist in many of the glens about Jerusalem, where we have often seen its dark shining leaves and white flowers. There are many near Bethlehem and about Hebron, especially near......
MYSIA
a province in the north-west of Asia Minor. On his first voyage to Europe (Acts 16:7, Acts 16: 8) Paul passed through this province and embarked at its chief port Troas. ......
MYSTERY
the calling of the Gentiles into the Christian Church, so designated (Eph. 1:9, Eph. 1: 10;3:8; Col. 1:25); a truth undiscoverable except by revelation, long hid, now made manifest. The resurrection of the dead (1-Cor 15:51), and other doctrines which need to be explained but which cannot be fully understood by finite intelligence (Matt. 13:11; Rom. 11:25; 1-Cor 13:2); the union between Christ and......
SMYRNA
myrrh, an ancient city of Ionia, on the western coast of Asia Minor, about 40 miles to the north of Ephesus. It is now the chief city of Anatolia, having a mixed population of about 200,000, of whom about one-third are professed Christians. The church founded here was one of the seven addressed by our Lord (Rev. 2:8). The celebrated Polycarp, a pupil of the apostle John, was in the second century ......