“What is the Rose of Sharon?”……Answer: The Hebrew word sharon means a plain or a level place. The Plain of Sharon is the coastal plain between the mountains of central Palestine and the Mediterranean Sea, north of Joppa to Mt.Carmel. The area is mentioned in Acts 9:35 in conjunction with the town of Lydda, which […]

“What was the Sanhedrin?”……Answer: The term Sanhedrin is from a Greek word that means “assembly” or “council” and dates from the Hellenistic period, but the concept is one that goes back to the Bible. In the Torah, God commands Moses to “bring me seventy of Israel‘s elders who are known to you as leaders and […]

“Is there a difference between joy and happiness?”……A dictionary definition of happiness is “a state of well-being, a pleasurable or satisfying experience.” The definition of the word “rejoice,” from which our word “joy” comes, is “to feel great delight, to welcome or to be glad.” Depending on the translation, the Bible uses the words “happy” […]

“What is the star of David and is it biblical?”……Answer: There is no reference to the star (or shield) of David in the Bible. There are several rabbinical tales as to the origin of the Star of David. These range from the star being the shape of King David’s shield, to being the symbol on […]

The Danger of Wilful Sin November 22, 2011   “Because he hath despised the word of the Lord, and hath broken his commandment, that soul shall utterly be cut off; his iniquity shall be upon him.” (Numbers 15:31)   Under the Mosaic law, there was ample provision for forgiveness of sins committed unintentionally. “If any […]

The Bride of Christ – The church “What does it mean that the church is the bride of Christ?”……Answer: The imagery and symbolism of marriage is applied to Christ and the body of believers known as the church. These are those who have trusted in Jesus Christ as their personal savior and have received eternal […]

“What is source criticism?”……Source criticism is a specialized field of biblical studies that seeks to determine the sources used to develop the final form of the biblical text. The source critic reads the book of Genesis, for example, and asks, “Where did the author get this information? What written documents and/or oral traditions contributed to […]