What words are basic to your understanding of the Bible and how do you define them?
This is my little list of Bible words from an easy English perspective. The teacher in me always wants to begin with simple definitions before becoming more complex. We go from known to unknown.The definitions in this blog, obviously, are partial and incomplete. This is intentional and is why I am calling it a “starter list.” Resource materials will be suggested for more traditional, comprehensive, advanced, and theologically accurate definitions at the end of this material.
Marlene (my wife and best friend) and I have led many Bible study classes and small groups. We do this, realizing that there are many words that we assume participants know and understand but we often do not take time to define these terms. Also, there was a time when we were responsible for an English literacy program. We learned that new English speakers often lack a basic knowledge of everyday words and are especially clueless about Bible-related terms. Following is my starter list of Bible words. I may add new words later and welcome your comments and suggestions. The definitions are my own but probably, at some time in my life, have been read in commentaries, Bible dictionaries, or other reference works. Here they are.
A
Abraham, Isaac, and Jacob: Three important people from the Old Testament who are like the founding fathers of the Jewish people.
Adam and Eve: The very first humans created by God.
Angles: Messengers of God.
B
Baptize: When you get baptized, it is like celebrating that you have been cleaned and are starting fresh in your faith because of Jesus Christ. Baptism can be done by putting you in water, sprinkling water on you, or pouring it on you.
Believe (in Jesus): It means that you have faith and trust in Jesus for your salvation from sin and life everlasting.
Bible: A book made up of 66 documents, also called "books." It is all about God and how people should live with God and each other.
Born again (saved, converted): Becoming a new person through faith in Jesus Christ.
C
Christ: The word means "anointed one.".
Christian: Someone who follows Jesus.
Church: A group of people who meet together for worship, follow the teachings of the Bible, and have faith in Jesus.
Covenant: An agreement or promise that God makes with people.
D
Disciple: A person who is learning from someone else, especially from Jesus.
David: The most well-known king of Israel. He wrote many of the Psalms (a book of the Bible).
E
Eternal life: Living forever. It is a special gift from God, for both now and in the future, for those who have faith in Jesus.
Emmanuel: Another name for Jesus, meaning "God with us."
F
Faith (saving faith): Trusting in Jesus alone to save you.
Forgive: To wipe clean.
God: God is all-powerful and knows everything. Christians learn about God through the Bible, and they believe in God as the Creator and the one who saves. God is the ruler of everything in heaven and on earth.
G
Gospel: The good news about Jesus Christ.
Grace: A special gift from God that you did not earn or deserve.
H
Heaven (paradise): The perfect place where God, angels, and people who are saved live.
Hell: A really bad place where people who rebel against God are punished forever.
Holy: To be set apart, pure, spiritually whole, or complete.
Holy Spirit: The Holy Spirit is God. The Spirit is the third person of the Trinity, which includes the Father, Son (Jesus), and the Holy Spirit.
I
Israel: The name given to Jacob, the father of the 12 tribes, the name of God’s chosen people. Other similar names are Jewish and Hebrew.
J
Jerusalem: A very holy city.
Jesus: The one who saves people from their sins and gives eternal life.
K
Kingdom (of God): The rule of Jesus over everything.
L
Lamb: A symbol for Jesus because He sacrificed Himself for us, like a baby sheep being sacrificed as an offering.
M
Messiah: The Savior. A special leader sent by God.
Mercy: Being kind and forgiving.
Miracle: Something amazing that happens that we cannot explain with our regular rules. It shows the incredible power of God.
Moses: An important person in the first part of the Bible. He led the Israelites out of Egypt.
N
Nazareth: The town where Jesus grew up.
New Testament: The second part of the Bible with stories and letters about Jesus and the early church.
O
Obedience: Doing what God wants and following the teachings of Jesus.
Old Testament: The first part of the Bible with stories from creation until about 400 years before the coming of Christ.
P
Passover: A special Jewish holiday that celebrates when the Israelites left Egypt.
Pharisee: A leader in the Jewish religion.
Prayer: Talking to God.
Q
Quail: A kind of bird that God sent to give food to the Israelites after they left Egypt.
R
Redeemer: Someone who saves, and it is also a name for Jesus.
Repent (Repentance): To change direction and turn away from doing bad things.
Resurrection: When Jesus came back to life after He died. Christians celebrate it on Easter Sunday.
Righteousness (Righteous): Being right with God.
S
Satan (the devil): An angel who turned bad and tries to make people do wrong things.
Salvation: Being saved from the punishment for your sins.
Sin: When you miss the mark by doing something wrong or not doing what you should.
Son: Another name for Jesus. He is also called the Son of God and the Son of man.
T
Temple: A special place where people went to worship God in the Old Testament.
Trinity: One God in three persons: the Father, the Son (Jesus), and the Holy Spirit.
Truth: That which is real and right. Jesus is also called the Truth.
U
Unconditional love: God loves us completely and perfectly.
V
Vineyard: A place where grapes are grown. Jesus talked about vineyards in His stories.
W
Wisdom: Having knowledge and using it in the right ways.
Worship: Showing love and praise to God.
X
Xerxes: A king in a story in the Old Testament.
Y
Yoke: A wooden bar that goes on animals like oxen when they work together to pull heavy things.
Z
Zion: Another word for the city of Jerusalem. A special place for God's people
As mentioned in the introduction, this is a starter list. It is intentionally brief and basic and intended as a beginning frame of reference. I hope that it will generate creative expressions of English speech for educators who are blessed with the privilege of connecting biblical words to the thought processes of those for whom these words are new. The following are selected resource materials that are related to Bible words and their meanings.
Resources
Baker’s Evangelical Dictionary of Biblical Theology:
Free online:https://www.biblestudytools.com/dictionaries/bakers-evangelical-dictionary/
Purchase from Amazon: https://amzn.to/46MlvKG
Bridgeway Bible Dictionary:
Free online: http://www.bridgeway.org.au/books/BibleDictionary.pdf
Purchase from Amazon: https://amzn.to/3Fefef2
Easy English Bible: https://www.easyenglish.bible/bible/easy/
This blog is also available as a narrated video at https://youtu.be/CJTJ3XaL9Lw
Note
“Easy English" documents are often aimed at a grade level between 4th and 6th grade in the United States, which would typically correspond to ages 9 to 12. This level of writing aims to simplify vocabulary, sentence structure, and overall readability to make the content more accessible to a wider audience.
M
Messiah: The Savior. A special leader sent by God.
Mercy: Being kind and forgiving.
Miracle: Something amazing that happens that we cannot explain with our regular rules. It shows the incredible power of God.
Moses: An important person in the first part of the Bible. He led the Israelites out of Egypt.
N
Nazareth: The town where Jesus grew up.
New Testament: The second part of the Bible with stories and letters about Jesus and the early church.
O
Obedience: Doing what God wants and following the teachings of Jesus.
Old Testament: The first part of the Bible with stories from creation until about 400 years before the coming of Christ.
P
Passover: A special Jewish holiday that celebrates when the Israelites left Egypt.
Pharisee: A leader in the Jewish religion.
Prayer: Talking to God.
Q
Quail: A kind of bird that God sent to give food to the Israelites after they left Egypt.
R
Redeemer: Someone who saves, and it is also a name for Jesus.
Repent (Repentance): To change direction and turn away from doing bad things.
Resurrection: When Jesus came back to life after He died. Christians celebrate it on Easter Sunday.
Righteousness (Righteous): Being right with God.
S
Satan (the devil): An angel who turned bad and tries to make people do wrong things.
Salvation: Being saved from the punishment for your sins.
Sin: When you miss the mark by doing something wrong or not doing what you should.
Son: Another name for Jesus. He is also called the Son of God and the Son of man.
T
Temple: A special place where people went to worship God in the Old Testament.
Trinity: One God in three persons: the Father, the Son (Jesus), and the Holy Spirit.
Truth: That which is real and right. Jesus is also called the Truth.
U
Unconditional love: God loves us completely and perfectly.
V
Vineyard: A place where grapes are grown. Jesus talked about vineyards in His stories.
W
Wisdom: Having knowledge and using it in the right ways.
Worship: Showing love and praise to God.
X
Xerxes: A king in a story in the Old Testament.
Y
Yoke: A wooden bar that goes on animals like oxen when they work together to pull heavy things.
Z
Zion: Another word for the city of Jerusalem. A special place for God's people
As mentioned in the introduction, this is a starter list. It is intentionally brief and basic and intended as a beginning frame of reference. I hope that it will generate creative expressions of English speech for educators who are blessed with the privilege of connecting biblical words to the thought processes of those for whom these words are new. The following are selected resource materials that are related to Bible words and their meanings.
Resources
Baker’s Evangelical Dictionary of Biblical Theology:
Free online:https://www.biblestudytools.com/dictionaries/bakers-evangelical-dictionary/
Purchase from Amazon: https://amzn.to/46MlvKG
Bridgeway Bible Dictionary:
Free online: http://www.bridgeway.org.au/books/BibleDictionary.pdf
Purchase from Amazon: https://amzn.to/3Fefef2
Easy English Bible: https://www.easyenglish.bible/bible/easy/
This blog is also available as a narrated video at https://youtu.be/CJTJ3XaL9Lw
Note
“Easy English" documents are often aimed at a grade level between 4th and 6th grade in the United States, which would typically correspond to ages 9 to 12. This level of writing aims to simplify vocabulary, sentence structure, and overall readability to make the content more accessible to a wider audience.
