Churchsermon.org: Website Lexicon

Faith is the substance of things hoped for, the evidence of things not seen. Hebrews 11
For we walk by faith, and not by sight. 2Cor. 5.
With the heart man believeth to righteousness. Rom. 10.

Rapture

F'ASTING, ppr. Abstaining from food.

Webmaster Note: "food" can take the form of different contexts, depending on what you're "addicted" to or gives your body the most pleasure: I.e., computers, video games, your car; The purpose of fasting is to deny your fleshly/worldly desires so you may spiritually focus on God

FATE

FEL'LOWSHIP, n.
1. Companionship; society; consort; mutual association of persons on equal and friendly terms; familiar intercourse. Men are made for society and mutual fellowship.
Have no fellowship with the unfruitful works of darkness. Eph. 5.
2. Association; confederacy; combination.
Most of the other

christian

fellowship in pain.

The great contention of the sea and skies parted our fellowship.

1John 1.

FORNICA'TION, n. [L. fornicatio.]
1. The incontinence or lewdness of unmarried persons, male or female; also, the criminal conversation of a married man with an unmarried woman.
2. Adultery. Matt. 5.
3. Incest. 1 Cor. 5.
4. Idolatry; a forsaking of the true God, and worshipping of idols. 2 Chron. 21; Rev. 19.

GENEAL'OGY, n. [L. genealogia; Gr. race, and discourse; Eng. kind.]
1. An account or history of the descent of a person or family from an ancestor; enumeration of ancestors and their children in the natural order of succession.

GEN'TILE, n. [L. gentilis; from L. gens, nation, race; applied to pagans.]
In the scriptures, a pagan; a worshipper of false gods; any person not a

Jew

Christian

Jews

GLO'RIFIED, pp. Honored; dignified;

exalted

GOS'PEL, (also the "Good News") n. [L. evangelium, a good or joyful message.]
The history of the birth, life, actions, death, resurrection, ascension and doctrines of Jesus Christ; or a revelation of the grace of God to fallen man through a mediator, including the character, actions, and doctrines of Christ, with the whole scheme of salvation, as revealed by Christ and his apostles. This gospel is said to have been preached to Abraham, by the promise, "in thee shall all nations be blessed." Ga.3.8.
It is called the gospel of God. Rom.1.1.
It is called the gospel of Christ. Rom.1.16.
It is called the gospel of salvation. Eph. 1.13.
1. God's word.
2. Divinity;

theology

GRACE, n. [L. gratia, which is formed on the Celtic]
2. Appropriately, the free unmerited love and favor of God, the spring and source of all the benefits men receive from him.
And if by grace,then it is no more of works. Rom.11.
3. Favorable influence of God; divine influence or the influence of the spirit, in renewing the heart and restraining from sin.
My grace is sufficient for thee. 2 Cor.12.
4. The application of Christ's righteousness to the sinner.
Where sin abounded, grace did much more abound. Rom.5.
10. Favor; mercy; pardon. Grace is an undeserved pardon from receiving punishment for sins
19. A short prayer before or after meat; a blessing asked, or thanks rendered.

H`ARLOT, n.
1. A woman who prostitutes her body for hire; a prostitute; a common woman.
2. In Scripture, one who forsakes the true God and worships idols. Is.1.
3. A servant; a rogue; a cheat.

HE'ATHEN, n. [Gr. from heath, that is, one who lives in the country or woods, as pagan from pagus, a village.]
1. A pagan; a Gentile; one who worships idols, or is unacquainted with the true God. In the Scriptures, the word seems to comprehend all nations except the Jews or Israelites, as they were all strangers to the true religion, and all addicted to idolatry. The word may now be applied perhaps to all nations, except to Christians and Mohammedans.
Ask of me, and I will give thee the heathen for thine inheritance. --Psalm 2

HE'BREW, n. [Heb. Eber, either a proper name, or a name denoting passage, pilgrimage, or coming from beyond the Euphrates.]
One of the descendants of Eber, or Heber; but particularly, a descendant of Jacob, who was a descendant of Eber; an Israelite; a

Jew

HO'LY, a. 1. Properly, whole, entire or perfect, in a moral sense. Hence, pure in heart, temper or dispositions; free from sin and sinful affections. Applied to the Supreme Being, holy signifies perfectly pure, immaculate and complete in moral character; and man is more or less holy, as his heart is more or less sanctified, or purified from evil dispositions. We call a man holy,when his heart is conformed in some degree to the image of God, and his life is regulated by the divine precepts. Hence, holy is used as nearly synonymous with good, pious, godly.
Be ye holy; for I am holy. 1 Pet.1.
2. Hallowed; consecrated or set apart to a sacred use, or to the service or worship of God; a sense frequent in Scripture; as the holy sabbath; holy oil; holy vessels; a holy nation; the holy temple; a holy priesthood.
4. Perfectly just and good; as the holy law of God.
5. Sacred; as a holy witness.

Holy of holies, in Scripture, the innermost apartment of the Jewish tabernacle or temple, where the ark was kept,and where no person entered, except the high priest, once a year.
Holy Ghost, or Holy Spirit, the Divine Spirit; the third person in the Trinity; the sanctifier of souls.

Holy war, a war undertaken to rescue the holy land, the ancient Judea, from the infidels; a crusade; an expedition carried on by christians against the Saracens in the eleventh, twelfth and thirteenth centuries; a war carried on in a most unholy manner.

HOPE, n. [L. cupio.; Greek: certainty]
1. A desire of some good, accompanied with at least a slight expectation of obtaining it, or a belief that it is obtainable. Hope differs from wish and desire in this, that it implies some expectation of obtaining the good desired, or the possibility of possessing it. Hope therefore always gives pleasure or joy; whereas wish and desire may produce or be accompanied with pain and anxiety. He that lives upon hope, will die fasting.
The hypocrite's hope shall perish. Job.8.
2. Confidence in a future event; the highest degree of well founded expectation of good; as a hope founded on God's gracious promises; a scriptural sense. A well founded scriptural hope,is, in our religion, the source of ineffable happiness.
3. That which gives hope; he or that which furnishes ground of expectation, or promises desired good. The hope of Israel is the Messiah.
The Lord will be the hope of his people. Joel 3.

HYPOC'RISY, n. [L. hypocrisis; Gr. simulation; to feign; to separate, discern or judge.]
1. Simulation; a feigning to be what one is not; or dissimulation, a concealment of one's real character or motives. More generally, hypocrisy is simulation, or the assuming of a false appearance of virtue or religion; a deceitful show of a good character, in morals or religion; a counterfeiting of religion.
Beware ye of the leaven of the Pharisees, which is hypocrisy. Luke 12.
2. Simulation; deceitful appearance; false pretence. Hypocrisy is the necessary burden of villainy.

HYPOTH'ESIS, n. [L. from Gr. a supposition; to suppose.]
1. A supposition; a proposition or principle which is supposed or taken for granted, in order to draw a conclusion or inference for proof of the point in question; something not proved,but assumed for the purpose of argument.
2. A system or theory imagined or assumed to account for what is not understood.

IDOL'ATRY, n. [L. idololatria. Gr. idol, and to worship or serve.]
1. The worship of idols, images, or any thing made by hands, or which is not God. Idolatry is of two kinds; the worship of images, statues, pictures, &c. made by hands; and the worship of the heavenly bodies,the sun, moon and stars, or of demons, angels, men and animals.
2. Excessive attachment or veneration for any thing, or that which borders on adoration.

IMMOR'TAL, a. [L. immortalis. See Mortal.]
1. Having no principle of alteration or corruption; exempt from death; having life or being that shall never end; as an immortal soul
To the King eternal, immortal, invisible, the only wise God, be honor and glory forever. 1 Tim.1.
2. Never ending; everlasting; continual. I have Immortal longings in me.
3. Perpetual; having unlimited existence. A corporation is called an immortal being.
4. Destined to live in all the ages of this world; imperishable; as immortal fame. So Homer is called the immortal bard.

IMP`ART, v.t. [L. impertior; in and partio, to divide; from pars, a part.]
1. To give, grant or communicate; to bestow on another a share or portion of something; as, to impart a portion of provisions to the poor.
3. To communicate the knowledge of something; to make known; to show by words or tokens.

IMPI'ETY, n. [L. impietas;in and pietas, pius.]
1. Ungodliness; irreverence towards the Supreme being; contempt of the divine character and authority; neglect of the divine precepts. These constitute different degrees of impiety.
2. Any act of wickedness, as blasphemy and scoffing at the Supreme Being, or at his authority; profaneness. Any expression of contempt for God or his laws, constitutes an impiety of the highest degree of criminality. Disobedience to the divine commands or neglect of duty implies contempt for his authority,and is therefore impiety. Impiety, when it expresses the temper or disposition, has no plural; but it is otherwise when it expresses an act of wickedness, for all such acts are impieties.

IMPU'TE, v.t. [L. imputo; in and puto, to think, to reckon; properly, to set, to put, to throw to or on.]
1. To charge; to attribute; to set to the account of; generally ill, sometimes good.
We impute crimes,sins, trespasses, faults, blame, &c., to the guilty persons. We impute wrong actions to bad motives, or to ignorance, or to folly and rashness.
And therefore it was imputed to him for righteousness. Rom.4.
2. To attribute; to ascribe. I have read a book imputed to lord Bathurst.

INCARNA'TION, n. The act of clothing with flesh.
1. The act of assuming flesh, or of taking a human body and the nature of man; as the incarnation of the Son of God.

IN'DIGENT, a. [L. indigens.]
Destitute of property or means of comfortable subsistence; needy; poor. Charity consists in relieving the indigent.

IN'FIDEL, a. [L. infidelis; in and fidelis; faithful.]
Unbelieving; disbelieving the inspiration of the Scriptures, or the divine institution of Christianity. The infidel writer is a great enemy to society.

IN'FIDEL, n.
One who disbelieves the inspiration of the Scriptures, and the divine origin of .

INFIRMITY, n. inferm'ity. [L. infirmitas.]
1. An unsound or unhealthy state of the body; weakness; feebleness. Old age is subject to infirmities.
2. Weakness of mind; failing; fault; foible. A friend should bear a friend's infirmities.

INTERCES'SION, n. [L. intercessio, from intercedo. See Intercede.]
The act of interceding; mediation; interposition between parties at variance, with a view to reconciliation; prayer or solicitation to one party in favor of another, sometimes against another. Your intercession now is needless grown; Retire and let me speak with her alone.
He bore the sin of many, and made intercession for the transgressors. Is. 53.

IN'TERCOURSE, n. [L. intercursus, intercurro; inter and curro, to run.] Literally, a running or passing between.
1. Communication; commerce; connection by reciprocal dealings between persons or nations, either in common affairs and civilities, in trade, or correspondence by letters. We have an intercourse with neighbors and friends in mutual visits and in social concerns; nations and individuals have intercourse with foreign nations or individuals by an interchange of commodities, by purchase and sale, by treaties, contracts...
2. Silent communication or exchange. This sweet intercourse Of looks and smiles.

IN'TIMATE,a. [L. intimus, superl. of intus, or interus, within.]
1. Inmost; inward; internal; as intimate impulse.
2. Near; close. He was honored with an intimate and immediate admission.
3. Close in friendship or acquaintance; familiar; as an intimate friend; intimate acquaintance.

INTRIGUE, n. intree'g. [Low L. intrico, intricor,to enwrap; tricor, to trifle, to show tricks; Gr. hair or a lock of hair, as we should say, a plexus.]
1. A plot or scheme of a complicated nature, intended to effect some purpose by secret artifices. An intrigue may be formed and prosecuted by an individual, and we often hear of the intrigues of a minister or a courtier, but often several projectors are concerned in an intrigue. The word is usually applied to affairs of love or of government.

IS'RAELITE, n.
A descendant of Israel or Jacob; a Jew.

JEW, n. [a contraction of Judas of Judah.]
A Hebrew or Israelite.

JU'DAISM, n.
1. The religious doctrines and rites of the Jews, as enjoined in the laws of Moses. Judaism was a temporary dispensation.
2. Conformity to the Jewish rites and ceremonies.

LASCIV'IOUSNESS, n.
1. Looseness; irregular indulgence of animal desires; wantonness; lustfulness.
Who, being past feeling, have given themselves over to lasciviousness. Eph. 4.
2. Tendency to excite lust, and promote irregular indulgences.
The reason pretended by Augustus was, the lasciviousness of his Elegies and his Art of Love.

LEAVEN, n. lev'n. [L. levo, Eng. to lift.]
1. A mass of sour dough, which, mixed with a larger quantity of dough or paste, produces fermentation in it and renders it light.
During the seven days of the passover, no leaven was permitted to be in the houses of the Jews. Ex. 12.
2. Any thing which makes a general change in the mass. It generally means something which corrupts or depraves that with which it is mixed.
Beware of the leaven of the Pharisees and of the Sadducees. Matt. 16:6

WEBMASTER INJECT: Note that leaven symbolizes sin. Ever wonder why Jewish people eat unleavened bread for seven days on "Passover"? Consider the following Biblical passages:
Exodus 12:11-15, Leviticus 2:11, Leviticus 10:2, 1 Corinthians 5:6-8

LEP'ROSY, n. [See Leper.]
A foul cutaneous disease, appearing in dry, white, thin, scurfy scabs, attended with violent itching. It sometimes covers the whole body, rarely the face. One species of it is called elephantiasis. The term leprosy is applied to two very distinct diseases, the scaly and the tuberculated, or the proper leprosy and the elephantiasis. The former is characterized by smooth laminated scales, sometimes livid, but usually whitish; in the latter, the skin is thickened, livid and tuberculated. It is called the black leprosy, but this term is also applied to the livid variety of the scaly leprosy.

LUKEWARM, a.
2. Not ardent; not zealous; cool; indifferent; as lukewarm obedience;
Lukewarm patriots. Rev. 3.

LUST, n.
1. Longing desire; eagerness to possess or enjoy; as the lust of gain.
My lust shall be satisfied upon them. Ex. 15
2. Concupiscence; carnal appetite; unlawful desire of carnal pleasure.
Romans 1. 2Peter 2.
3. Evil propensity; depraved affections and desires.
James 1. Ps. 81.

MA'GI, n. plu. [L.]
Wise men or philosophers of the East.

MANGER, n. [L. mando.]
1. A trough or box in which fodder is laid for cattle, or the place in which horses and cattle are fed.

MAN'IFEST, a. [L. manifestus.]
1. Plain, open, clearly visible to the eye or obvious to the understanding; apparent; not obscure or difficult to be seen or understood. From the testimony, the truth we conceive to be manifest. Thus manifest to sight the god appeared.
That which may be known of God is manifest in them. Rom.1.
2. Detected; with of. Calistho there stood manifest of shame. [Unusual.]

MAN'NA, n.
1. A substance miraculously furnished as food for the Israelites in their journey through the wilderness of Arabia. Ex.16.

KJV description of manna: "...behold, upon the face of the wilderness there lay a small round thing, as small as the hoar (meaning: "white" or "gray, white with age") frost on the ground." (Exodus 16:14)
NIV description of manna: "...thin white flakes that covered the ground like frost." (Exodus 16:14)
Josephus, Ant.B.3.1. considers the Hebrew word man, to signify what.
- In conformity with this idea, the seventy translate the passage, Ex.16.15. "what is this?" which rendering seems to accord with the following words, for they knew not what it was.
- And in the Encyclopedia, the translators are charged with making Moses fall into a plain contradiction. Art. Manna. But Christ and his apostles confirm the common version: "Not as your fathers ate manna, and are dead." John 6.58. Heb.9.4.
- And we have other evidence, that the present version is correct; for in the same chapter, Moses directed Aaron to "take a pot and put a homer full of manna therein." Now it would be strange language to say, put an homer full of what, or what is it. So also verse 35. "The children of Israel ate manna forty years, &c." In both verses, the Hebrew word is the same as in verse 15.

M`ARTYR, n. [Gr. a witness.] One who, by his death, bears witness to the truth of the gospel. Stephen was the first christian martyr. To be a martyr signifies only to witness the truth of Christ.
1. One who suffers death in defense of any cause. We say, a man dies a martyr to his political principles or to the cause of liberty.

! MAUNDY <m-awn-dee> THURSDAY, n.
The Thursday before Easter, observed in commemoration of the Last Supper of Jesus. Also called Holy Thursday.

MED'ITATE, v.i. [L. meditor.]
1. To dwell on any thing in thought; to contemplate; to study; to turn or revolve any subject in the mind; appropriately but not exclusively used of pious contemplation, or a consideration of the great truths of religion.
His delight is in the law of the Lord, and in his law doth he meditate day and night. --Psalm 1
2. To intend; to have in contemplation. I meditate to pass the remainder of life in a state of undisturbed repose.

Notice this word is not in the worldly sense of affixing your body in a certain position, closing your eyes, and chanting. Simply put, to meditate is to think about something, at length. (I.e., when you studying for an exam, you're meditating on that subject)

MEEK, a. [L. mucus; Eng. mucilage; Heb. to melt.]
1. Mild of temper; soft; gentle; not easily provoked or irritated; yielding; given to forbearance under injuries.
Now the man Moses was very meek, above all men. Num.12.
2. Appropriately,humble, in an evangelical sense; submissive to the divine will; not proud, self-sufficient or refractory; not peevish and apt to complain of divine dispensations.
Christ says, "Learn of me, for I am meek and lowly in heart, and ye shall find rest to your souls." Matt.11.
Blessed are the meek, for they shall inherit the earth. Matt.5.

MER'CY, n. [L. misericordia.]
1. That benevolence, mildness or tenderness of heart which disposes a person to overlook injuries, or to treat an offender better than he deserves; the disposition that tempers justice, and induces an injured person to forgive trespasses and injuries, and to forbear punishment, or inflict less than law or justice will warrant. In this sense, there is perhaps no word in our language precisely synonymous with mercy. That which comes nearest to it is grace. It implies benevolence, tenderness, mildness, pity or compassion, and clemency, but exercised only towards offenders. Mercy is a distinguishing attribute of the Supreme Being.
The Lord is long-suffering and of great mercy, forgiving iniquity and transgression, and by no means clearing the guilty. Num.14.
2. An act or exercise of mercy or favor. It is a mercy that they escaped.
I am not worthy of the least of all thy mercies. Gen.32.
3. Pity; compassion manifested towards a person in distress.
And he said, he that showed mercy on him. Luke.10.
4. Clemency and bounty.
Mercy and truth preserve the king; and his throne is upheld by mercy. Prov.28.
5. Charity, or the duties of charity and benevolence.
I will have mercy and not sacrifice. Matt.9.
6. Grace; favor. 1 Cor.7. Jude 2.
9. The act of sparing, or the forbearance of a violent act expected. The prisoner cried for mercy.

MESSI'AH, a. [Heb. anointed.]
Christ, the anointed; the Savior of the world.
I know that when Messiah cometh, who is called Christ, he will tell us all things. Jesus answered her, I that speak to thee am he. John 4.

MIN'ISTER, n. [L.]
1. Properly, a chief servant; hence, an agent appointed to transact or manage business under the authority of another; in which sense, it is a word of very extensive application.
Moses rose up and his minister Joshua. Ex.24.
2. One to whom a king or prince entrusts the direction of affairs of state; as minister of state; the prime minister. In modern governments, the secretaries or heads of the several departments or branches of government are the ministers of the chief magistrate.
3. A magistrate; an executive officer.
For he is the minister of God to thee for good. Rom.13.

MON'ASTERY, n. [Low L. monasterium; Gr. from sole, separate.]
A house of religious retirement, or of seclusion from ordinary temporal concerns, whether an abbey, a priory or a nunnery. The word is usually applied to the houses of monks, mendicant friars and nuns.

MOR'BID, a. [L. morbidus, form morbus, a disease, from the root of morior, to die.]
Diseased; sickly; not sound and healthful; as morbid humors; a morbid constitution; a morbid state of the juices of a plant; a morbid sensibility.

MUR'MUR, v.i. [L. murmuro.]
1. To make a low continued noise, like the hum of bees, a stream of water, rolling waves, or like the wind in a forest; as the murmuring surge. The forests murmur and the surges roar.
2. To grumble; to complain; to utter complaints in a low,half articulated voice; to utter sullen discontent; with at, before the thing which is the cause of discontent; as, murmur not at sickness; or with at or against, before the active agent which produces the evil.
The Jews murmured at him. John 6.
The people murmured against Moses. Ex.13.

NIGH, adv. ni.
1. Near; at a small distance in place or time, or in the course of events.
He was sick, nigh to death. Philippians 2.
2. Near to a place. He drew nigh.
3. Almost; near. He was nigh dead.

OBSERVE, v.t. obzerv'. [L. observo; ob and servo, to keep or hold. The sense is to hold in view, or to keep the eyes on.]
4. To keep religiously; to celebrate.
A night to be much observed to the Lord. Ex. 12.
Ye shall observe the feast of unleavened bread. Ex. 12.
Ye observe days, and months, and times, and years. Gal. 4.
5. To keep or adhere to in practice; to comply with; to obey; as, to observe the laws of the state; to observe the rules and regulations of a society.
Teaching them to observe all things whatsoever I have commanded you. Matt. 28.

OMNIP'OTENT, a. [supra.]
1. Almighty; possessing unlimited power; all powerful. The being that can create worlds must be omnipotent.
2. Having unlimited power of a particular kind; as omnipotent love.

PA'GAN, n. [L. paganus, a peasant or countryman, from pagus, a village.]
A heathen; a Gentile; an idolater; one who worships false gods. This word was originally applied to the inhabitants of the country, who on the first propagation of the Christian religion adhered to the worship of false gods, or refused to receive christianity, after it had been received by the inhabitants of the cities. In like manner, heather signifies an inhabitant of the heath or woods, and caffer, in Arabic, signifies the inhabitant of a hut or cottage, and one that does not receive the religion of Mohammed. Pagan is used to distinguish one from a Christian and a Mohammedan.

PA'GAN, a.
Heathen; heathenish; Gentile; noting a person who worships false gods.
1. Pertaining to the worship of false gods.

PECU'LIAR, a. [L. peculiaris, from peculium, one's own property, from pecus, cattle.]
1. Appropriate; belonging to a person and to him only. Almost every writer has a peculiar style. Most men have manners peculiar to themselves.
2. Singular; particular. The man has something peculiar in his deportment.
3. Particular; special. My fate is Juno's most peculiar care.
[Most cannot, in strict propriety, be prefixed to peculiar, but it is used to give emphasis to the word.]

PEN'ITENT, n. One that repents of sin; one sorrowful on account of his transgressions.
1. One under church censure, but admitted to penance.
2. One under the direction of a confessor.

Penitents is an appellation given to certain fraternities in catholic countries, distinguished by their habits and employed in charitable acts.

Order of penitents, a religious order established by one Bernard of Marseilles, about the year 1272, for the reception of reformed courtezans. The congregation of penitents at Paris, was founded with a similar view.

PERDI'TION, n. [L. perditio, from perdo, to lose, to ruin.]
1. Entire loss or ruin; utter destruction; as the perdition of the Turkish fleet. [In this sense, the word is now nearly or wholly obsolete.]
2. The utter loss of the soul or of final happiness in a future state; future misery or eternal death. The impenitent sinner is condemned to final perdition. If we reject the truth, we seal our own perdition.

PER'FECT, a. [L. perfectus, perficio, to complete; per and facio, to do or make through, to carry to the end.]
1. Finished; complete; consummate; not defective; having all that is requisite to its nature and kind; as a perfect statue; a perfect likeness; a perfect work; a perfect system
2. Fully informed; completely skilled; as men perfect in the use of arms; perfect in discipline
3. Complete in moral excellencies.
Be ye therefore perfect, even as your Father who is in heaven is perfect. --Matt.5.
4. Manifesting perfection. My strength is made perfect in weakness. 2 Cor.12.

Def. 3's Biblical quote by Jesus is the key to this definition: while we cannot be perfect people, we should strive with all our heart, mind and soul (Matthew 22:37) to be as obedient to God, according to the Bible, as possible

PER'SECUTE, v.t. [L. persequor; per and sequor, to pursue. See Seek and Essay.]
1. In a general sense, to pursue in a manner to injure, vex or afflict; to harass with unjust punishment or penalties for supposed offenses; to inflict pain from hatred or malignity.
2. Appropriately, to afflict, harass, or destroy for adherence to a particular creed or system of religious principles, or to a mode of worship.
Thus Nero persecuted the Christians by crucifying some, burning others, and condemning others to be worried by dogs. Acts.22.

PHAR'ISEE, n. [Heb. to separate.]
One of a sect among the Jews, whose religion consisted in a strict observance of rites and ceremonies and of the traditions of the elders,and whose pretended holiness led them to separate themselves as a sect, considering themselves as more righteous than other Jews.

PHILOS'OPHY, n. [L. philosophia; Gr. love, to love, and wisdom.]
1. In modern acceptation, philosophy is a general term denoting an explanation of the reasons of things; or an investigation of the causes of all phenomena both of mind and of matter. When applied to any particular department of knowledge, it denotes the collection of general laws or principles under which all the subordinate phenomena or facts relating to that subject, are comprehended. Thus, that branch of philosophy which treats of God, &c. is called theology; that which treats of nature, is called physics or natural philosophy; that which treats of man is called logic and ethics, or moral philosophy; that which treats of the mind is called intellectual or mental philosophy, or metaphysics.
2. Hypothesis or system on which natural effects are explained. We shall in vain interpret their words by the notions of our philosophy and the doctrines in our schools.
3. Reasoning; argumentation.
4. Course of sciences read in the schools.

PI'OUS, a. [L. pius.]
1. Godly; reverencing and honoring the Supreme Being in heart and in the practice of the duties he has enjoined; having due veneration and affection for the character of God, and habitually obeying his commands; religious; devoted to the service of God; applied to persons.
2. Dictated by reverence to God; proceeding from piety; applied to things; as pious awe; pious services of affections; pious sorrow.
3. Having due respect and affection for parents or other relatives; practicing the duties of respect and affection towards parents or other near relatives.
4. Practiced under the pretense of religion; as pious frauds.

PRE'CEPT, n. [L. proeceptum, from proecipio, to command; proe, before, and capio, to take.]
1. In a general sense, any commandment or order intended as an authoritative rule of action; but applied particularly to commands respecting moral conduct. The ten commandments are so many precepts for the regulation of our moral conduct. No arts are without their precepts.
2. In law, a command or mandate in writing.

PRE-EM'INENT, a. [L. proe, before, and eminens, emineo. See Menace.]
1. Superior in excellence; distinguished for something commendable or honorable. In goodness and in power preeminent.
2. Surpassing others in evil or bad qualities; as pre-eminent in crime or guilt.

PROMUL'GATION, n.
The act of promulgating; publication; open declaration; as the promulgation of the law or of the gospel.

PROPH'ECY, n. [Gr. to foretell, before and to tell. This ought to be written prophesy.]
1. A foretelling; prediction; a declaration of something to come. As God only knows future events with certainty, no being but God or some person informed by him, can utter a real prophecy. The prophecies recorded in Scripture, when fulfilled, afford most convincing evidence of the divine original of the Scriptures, as those who uttered the prophecies could not have foreknown the events predicted without supernatural instruction. --2 Peter 1
2. In Scripture, a book of prophecies; a history;
As the prophecy of Ahijah. --2 Chronicles 9
3. Preaching; public interpretation of Scripture; exhortation or instruction. --Proverbs 31

PROPH'ET, n. [L. propheta.]
1. One that foretells future events (prophecies); a predicter; a foreteller.
2. In Scripture, a person illuminated, inspired or instructed by God to announce future events; as Moses, Elijah, David, Isaiah
3. An interpreter; one that explains or communicates sentiments. Ex.7.

! PRO'TO'COL (pro-te-k�l), n. (courtesy of www.dictionary.com)
1. The forms of ceremony and etiquette observed by diplomats and heads of state.
2. A code of correct conduct: safety protocols; academic protocol.

PRU'DENT, a.
Cautious; circumspect; practically wise; careful of the consequences of enterprises, measures or actions; cautious not to act when the end is of doubtful utility, or probably impracticable.
The prudent man looketh well to his going. Prov.14.
A prudent man foreseeth the evil and hideth himself. Prov.22.
1. Dictated or directed by prudence; as prudent behavior.
2. Foreseeing by instinct; as the prudent crane.
4. Wise; intelligent.

PUB'LICAN, n. [L.publicanus, from publicus.]
1. A collector of toll or tribute. Among the Romans, a publican was a farmer of the taxes and public revenues,and the inferior officers of this class were deemed oppressive.
As Jesus sat at meat in the house, behold, many publicans and sinners came and sat down with him and his disciples. --Matthew 9.
2. The keeper of a public house; an innkeeper.

PURG'ATORY, n.
Among catholics, a supposed place or state after death, in which the souls of persons are purified, or in which they expiate such offenses committed in this life, as do not merit eternal damnation. After this purgation from the impurities of sin, the souls are supposed to be received into heaven.

PU'RITAN, n. [from pure.]
A dissenter from the church of England. The puritans were so called in derision, on account of their professing to follow the pure word of God, in opposition to all traditions and human constitutions. Hume gives this name to three parties; the political puritans, who maintained the highest principles of civil liberty; the puritans in discipline, who were averse to the ceremonies and government of the episcopal church; and the doctrinal puritans, who rigidly defended the speculative system of the first reformers.

RAP'TURE, n. [L. raptus, rapio.]
2. Transport; ecstasy; violence of a pleasing passion; extreme joy or pleasure. Music when thus applied, raises in the mind of the hearer great conceptions; it strengthens devotion and advances praise into rapture.
3. Rapidity with violence; a hurrying along with velocity; as rolling with torrent rapture.

1 Thessalonians 4:15-17: While the above is the objective definition, "The Rapture" is also the name of the event-to-be where God, whom we the saved believers await for today, will return to take us away--in a rapturing manner--to Heaven forever.

REC'OMPENSE, n.
1. An equivalent returned for any thing given, done or suffered; compensation; reward; amends; as a recompense for services, for damages, for loss, &c.
2. Requital; return of evil or suffering or other equivalent; as a punishment.
To me belongeth vengeance and recompense. Deut. 32.
And every transgression and disobedience received a just recompense of reward. Heb. 2.

REGENERA'TION, n.
1. Reproduction; the act of producing anew.
2. In theology, new birth by the grace of God; that change by which the will and natural enmity of man to God and his law are subdued, and a principle of supreme love to God and his law, or holy affections, are implanted in the heart.
He saved us by the washing of regeneration and renewing of the Holy Spirit. Titus 3.

REBU'KE, v.t. [See Pack and Impeach.]
1. To chide; to reprove; to reprehend for a fault; to check by reproof.
Thou shalt in any wise rebuke thy neighbor. Lev. 19.
2. To check or restrain.
The Lord rebuke thee, O Satan. Zech. 3. Is. 17.
3. To chasten; to punish; to afflict for correction.
O Lord, rebuke me not in thine anger. Ps. 6.
4. To check; to silence.
Master, rebuke thy disciples. Luke 19.
5. To check; to heal.
And he stood over her and rebuked the fever. Luke 4.
6. To restrain; to calm.
He arose and rebuked the winds and the sea. Matt. 8.

RECONCI'LE, v.t. [L. reconcilio; re and concilio; con and calo, to call, Gr. The literal sense is to call back into union.]
1. To conciliate anew; to call back into union and friendship the affections which have been alienated; to restore to friendship or favor after estrangement; as, to reconcile men or parties that have been at variance.
Go thy way; first be reconciled to thy brother - Matt. 5.
We pray you in Christ's stead, be ye reconciled to God. 2Cor. 5. Eph. 2. Col. 1.
4. To adjust; to settle; as, to reconcile differences or quarrels.

REDEE'M, v.t. [L. redimo; red, re, and emo, to obtain or purchase.]
1. To purchase back; to ransom; to liberate or rescue from captivity or bondage, or from any obligation or liability to suffer or to be forfeited, by paying an equivalent; as, to redeem prisoners or captured goods; to redeem a pledge.
2. To repurchase what has been sold; to regain possession of a thing alienated, by repaying the value of it to the possessor.
If a man [shall] sell a dwelling house in a walled city, then he may redeem it within a whole year after it is sold. --Lev. 25.
3. To rescue; to recover; to deliver from.
Th' Almighty from the grave hath me redeem'd. Redeem Israel, O God, out of all his troubles. --Ps. 25. Deut. 7.

REJOICE, v.i. rejois'.
To experience joy and gladness in a high degree; to be exhilarated with lively and pleasurable sensations; to exalt.
When the righteous are in authority, the people rejoice; but when the wicked beareth rule, the people mourn. Prov. 29.
I will rejoice in thy salvation. Ps. 9.

RELIN'QUISH, v.t. [L. relinquo, re and linquo, to leave, to fail or faint; from the same root as liqueo, liquo, to melt or dissolve, deliquium, a fainting. Hence the sense is to withdraw or give way; to relinquish is to recede from.]
1. To withdraw from; to leave; to quit. It may be to forsake or abandon, but it does not necessarily express the sense of the latter. A man may relinquish an enterprise for a time, or with a design never to resume it. In general, to relinquish is to leave without the intention of resuming, and equivalent to forsake, but is less emphatical than abandon and desert. They placed Irish tenants on the lands relinquished by the English.
2. To forbear; to withdraw from; as, to relinquish the practice of intemperance; to relinquish the rites of a church.
3. To give up; to renounce a claim to; as, to relinquish a debt.
To relinquish back, or to, to give up; to release; to surrender; as, to relinquish a claim to another.

REPENT'ANCE, n.
1. Sorrow for any thing done or said; the pain or grief which a person experiences in consequence of the injury or inconvenience produced by his own conduct.
3. Real penitence; sorrow or deep contrition for sin, as an offense and dishonor to God, a violation of his holy law, and the basest ingratitude towards a Being of infinite benevolence. This is called evangelical repentance, and is accompanied and followed by amendment of life. Repentance is a change of mind, or a conversion from sin to God.
Godly sorrow worketh repentance to salvation. 2 Cor. 7:10

REPROACH, v.t. [L. prox, in proximus.]
2. To charge with a fault in severe language. That shame there sit not, and reproach us as unclean.
3. To upbraid; to suggest blame for any thing. A man's conscience will reproach him for a criminal, mean or unworthy action.
4. To treat with scorn or contempt. Luke 6.

RESPONS'IBLE, a. [from L. responsus, respondeo.]
1. Liable to account; accountable; answerable; as for a trust reposed, or for a debt. We are all responsible for the talents entrusted to us by our Creator. A guardian is responsible for the faithful discharge of his duty to his ward. The surety is responsible for the debt of his principal.
2. Able to discharge an obligation; or having estate adequate to the payment of a debt. In taking bail, the officer will ascertain whether the proposed surety is a responsible man.

RESURREC'TION, n. s as z. [L. resurrectus, resurgo; re and surgo, to rise.]
A rising again; chiefly, the revival of the dead of the human race, or their return from the grave, particularly at the general judgment.
By the resurrection of Christ we have assurance of the future resurrection of men. 1Peter 1.
In the resurrection, they neither marry, nor are given in marriage. Matt. 22.

REVI'VAL, n. [from revive.]
1. Return, recall or recovery to life from death or apparent death; as the revival of a drowned person.
2. Return or recall to activity from a state of languor; as the revival of spirits.
4. Renewed and more active attention to religion; an awakening of men to their spiritual concerns.

! RHETOR'ICAL (as in "rhetorical question") n.
A question to which no answer is expected.

RIGHTEOUSNESS, n. ri'chusness.
1. Purity of heart and rectitude of life; conformity of heart and life to the divine law. Righteousness, as used in Scripture and theology, in which it is chiefly used, is nearly equivalent to holiness, comprehending holy principles and affections of heart, and conformity of life to the divine law. It includes all we call justice, honesty and virtue, with holy affections; in short, it is true religion.
2. Applied to God, the perfection or holiness of his nature; exact rectitude; faithfulness.
3. The active and passive obedience of Christ, by which the law of God is fulfilled. Daniel 9.
4. Justice; equity between man and man. Luke 1.
5. The cause of our justification.
The Lord our righteousness. Jer. 23.

SABBATH, n.
1. The day which God appointed to be observed by the Jews as a day of rest from all secular labor or employments, and to be kept holy and consecrated to his service and worship. This was originally the seventh day of the week, the day on which God rested from the work of creation; and this day is still observed by the Jews and some christians, as the sabbath. But the christian church very early begun and still continue to observe the first day of the week, in commemoration of the resurrection of Christ on that day, by which the work of redemption was completed. Hence it is often called the Lords day. The heathen nations in the north of Europe dedicated this day to the sun, and hence their christian descendants continue to call the day Sunday. But in the United States, christians have to a great extent discarded the heathen name, and adopted the Jewish name sabbath.
2. Intermission of pain or sorrow; time of rest. Peaceful sleep out the sabbath of the tomb.
3. The sabbatical year among the Israelites. Lev. 25.

WEBMASTER NOTE: The sabbath was only a dispensation set by God--a temporary ruleset meaning that after a period of time, it no longer applied. Some in today's society believe it still applies today but it no longer does. You will not be penalized by God for working on Sunday however you will not find favor with Him, either, for not working on Sunday

! SAC'RAMENT (Catholic), n. [L. sacramentum, an oath, from sacer, sacred.] (Source: nationmaster.com encyclopedia)
The practice of the Catholic Church (and also of the Eastern Orthodox and Oriental Orthodox churches) consists of seven sacraments:
- Eucharist,
- Holy Matrimony,
- Holy Orders,
- Anointing of the Sick (also called Extreme Unction),
- Reconciliation (also called Confession),
- Baptism, and
- Confirmation (See also Chrismation.)

#1: Eucharist (Communion), is the unbloody sacrifice of Christ, marked by partaking in the Body and Blood of Christ, which replace bread and wine. The changing of the bread and wine into the Body and Blood of Jesus Christ, held by Roman Catholic dogma to occur, is called transubstantiation. Viaticum is the Eucharist administered to a dying person.

#2: Matrimony is one of two sacraments that Catholics hold can be validly performed without the mystical powers of a priest (the other is baptism), because the ministers of the sacrament are the two parties to the marriage.

#3: Holy Orders is the entering into the priesthood and involves a vow of celibacy in the Latin Rite, though in Eastern Rites men who married before they were ordained to the diaconate may be ordained; the sacrament of Holy Orders is given in three degrees: that of the deacon (even in the Latin Rite a permanent deacon may be married before becoming a deacon), that of the priest, and that of the bishop.

#4: The Anointing of the Sick is also known as extreme unction or the last rites and involves the anointing with oil of the sick and dying. It is held that in some cases this sacrament effects a miraculous cure, but only if there are things God wishes the recipient of the sacrament to do before dying.

#5: Reconciliation, also called Confession, involves admitting sins to a priest (but not through any electronic communications medium -- email has been specifically excluded in early 21st century decisions) and receiving penance (a task to complete in order to achieve absolution or forgiveness from God).

#6: Baptism is given to infants in the Church and upon entering adulthood, the baptised make a personal commitment in the sacrament of Confirmation. Adult converts may be baptized and confirmed. If they have been baptized using a formula naming "The Father, the Son, and the Holy Spirit" in another Christian church with the intention of that church in doing what the Catholic church does, they may be simply received into the Church and confirmed.

#7: Confirmation is a sacrament commonly given to young people; the age for the reception of confirmation varies from nation to nation, and even from diocese to diocese in some countries; in Latin-rite Catholic churches it ranges from about 7 to about 15. In Eastern-rite Catholic churches, as in other Eastern churches, neonates are confirmed immediately after baptism, via the rite of chrismation. Adult converts from Protestantism who were previously baptized with a trinitarian formula are received into communion in the Catholic Church by confirmation. Converts from Eastern Orthodoxy or Oriental Orthodoxy who were chrismated in those Eastern churches are not confirmed, because their chrismation in an Eastern church, unlike confirmation in Protestant churches, is held to be a valid confirmation, and confirming someone who has already been confirmed is forbidden by one of the dogmas of the Council of Trent.

WEBMASTER INJECT: Because Isaiah 64:6 says all man does in life accumlates to "filthy rags" in God's eyes and because Galatians 2:16 says man is justified by God by believing in Christ and not working for it, we can conclude the Catholic sacrament system is a man-made system which will not save you

SADDUCEE, n.
A sect among the ancient Jews, who denied the resurrection, a future state, and the existence of angels. Acts 2

SAINT, n. [L. sanctus.]
1. A person sanctified; a holy or godly person; one eminent for piety and virtue. It is particularly applied to the apostles and other holy persons mentioned in Scripture.
A hypocrite may imitate a saint. Psalm 16
2. One of the blessed in heaven. Revelation 18
3. The holy angels are called saint. Deuteronomy 33. Jude 14.
4. One canonized by the church of Rome.

SALVA'TION, n. [L. salvo, to save.]
1. The act of saving; preservation from destruction, danger or great calamity.
2. Appropriately in theology, the redemption of man from the bondage of sin and liability to eternal death, and the conferring on him everlasting happiness. This is the great salvation.
Godly sorrow worketh repentance to salvation. 2 Corinthians 7.
3. Deliverance from enemies; victory. Ex. 14.
4. Remission of sins, or saving graces. Luke 19.
5. The author of man's salvation. Ps. 27.
6. A term of praise or benediction. Rev. 19.
Click here to reference the term "SAVED"

SAMAR'ITAN, a.
1. Pertaining to Samaria, the principal city of the ten tribes of Israel, belonging to the tribe of Ephraim, and after the captivity of those tribes, repeopled by Cuthites from Assyria or Chaldea.
2. Denoting the ancient characters and alphabet used by the Hebrews.

SAMAR'ITAN, n.
1. An inhabitant of Samaria, or one that belonged to the sect which derived their appellation from that city. The Jews had no dealings with the Samaritans.
2. The language of Samaria, a dialect of the Chaldean.

SAMARITAN BACKGROUND:
Samarians, from Samaria, were the most hated people by the rest of the world--especially the Jewish people because Samarians were only half Jewish. If a Jew set foot in Samaria, he was "ceremonially disqualified" back at his home Jewish people didn't like non-Jewish people and called them Gentiles (Definition of Galilee: "circle of Gentiles") Pharisees didn't even look upon other women in public!

SANC'TIFY, v.t. [Low L. sanctifico; from sanctus, holy, and facio, to make.]
1. In a general sense, to cleanse, purify or make holy.
2. To separate, set apart or appoint to a holy, sacred or religious use.
God blessed the seventh day and sanctified it. Gen. 2.
3. To purify; to prepare for divine service, and for partaking of holy things. Ex. 19.
4. To separate, ordain and appoint to the work of redemption and the government of the church. John 10.
5. To cleanse from corruption; to purify from sin; to make holy be detaching the affections from the world and its defilements, and exalting them to a supreme love to God.
Sanctify them through thy truth; thy word is truth. John 17. Eph. 5.
6. To make the means of holiness; to render productive of holiness or piety. Those judgments of God are the more welcome, as a means which his mercy hath sanctified so to me, as to make me repent of that unjust act.

SAVED (Also known as "believer", "born again", "eternal salvation"), v.t. [L. salvo. As salve is used in Latin for salutation or wishing health, as hail is in English, I suspect this word to be from the root of heal or hail, the first letter being changed. Gr. See Salt.]
1. To preserve from injury, destruction or evil of any kind; to rescue from danger; as, to save a house from the flames; to save a man from drowning; to save a family from ruin; to save a state from war.
He cried, saying Lord, save me. Matt 14. Gen. 45.
2. To preserve from final and everlasting destruction; to rescue from eternal death.
Christ Jesus came into the world to save sinners. 1Tim. 1.
3. To deliver; to rescue from the power and pollution of sin.
He shall save his people from their sins. Matt. 1.

WARNING: Being baptized does not save you or give eternal life

These are the only two forms the word "saved" that apply here. When you are born, you are spiritually dead--forever in sin and not in the family of Christ. Once you realize and admit you are a sinner, you must confess your sins and ask Christ in your heart. Once you do this, you will have entered the family of God and have been saved. This is also where the term "born again Christian" comes from. (With the word "Christian" meaning "little Christ"--a meant-to-be demeaning term conceived after Jesus' crucifixion to portray those who still believe in Him.)

2 Corinthians 6:2:
"behold, now is the accepted time; behold, now is the day of salvation"
TO BE SAVED, CLICK HERE.

SAVIOR, n. savyur. (or "Saviour")
One that saves or preserves; but properly applied only to Jesus Christ, the Redeemer, who has opened the way to everlasting salvation by his obedience and death, and who is therefore called the Savior, by way of distinction, the Savior of men, the Savior of the world. General Washington may be called the saver, but not the savior of his country.
Click here to reference the term "SAVED"

SCOURGE, v.t. skurj.
1. To whip severely; to lash.
Is it lawful for you to scourge a man that is a Roman? --Acts 22.
2. To punish with severity; to chastise; to afflict for sins or faults, and with the purpose of correction.
He will scourge us for our iniquities, and will have mercy again. Whom the Lord loveth he chasteneth, and scourgeth every son whom he receiveth. --Heb. 12.
3. To afflict greatly; to harass, torment or injure.

SEC'ULAR, a . [L. secularis , from seculum , the world or an age.]
1. Pertaining to the present world, or to things not spiritual or holy; relating to things not immediately or primarily respecting the soul, but the body; worldly. The secular concerns of life respect making making provision for the support of life, the preservation of health, the temporal prosperity of men, of states. Secular power is that which superintends and governs the temporal affairs of men, the civil or political power; and is contradistinguished from spiritual or ecclesiastical power.
2. Among catholics: not regular; not bound by monastic vows or rules; not confines to a monastery or subject to the rules of a religious community. Thus we say, the secular clergy and the regular clergy.

WEBMASTER REMARK: In other words, someone who is secular has no religion and is consumed by the temporal, earthly things of this world.

SIN, n.
1. The voluntary departure of a moral agent from a known rule of rectitude or duty, prescribed by God; any voluntary transgression of the divine law, or violation of a divine command; a wicked act; iniquity.

Sin comprehends not action only, but neglect of known duty, all evil thoughts purposes, words and desires, whatever is contrary to God's commands or law. 1 John 3. Matt. 15. James 4.

Unpardonable sin, or blasphemy against the Holy Spirit, is supposed to be a malicious and obstinate rejection of Christ and the gospel plan of salvation, or a contemptuous resistance made to the influences and convictions of the Holy Spirit. Matt.12.

SCRU'PLE, n. [L. scrupulus, a doubt; scrupulum, the third part of a dram, from scrupus, a chess-man; probably a piece, a small thing, from scrapping, like scrap.]
1. Doubt; hesitation from the difficulty of determining what is right or expedient; backwardness; reluctance to decide or to act. A man of fashionable honor makes no scruple to take another's life, or expose his own. He has no scruples of conscience, or he despises them.

STEADFAST, STEDFAST, a. [stead and fast.]
1. Fast fixed; firm; firmly fixed or established; as the stedfast globe of earth.
2. Constant; firm; resolute; not fickle or wavering. Abide stedfast to thy neighbor in the time of his trouble.
Him resist, sted fast in the faith. 1 Peter 5.
3. Steady; as stedfast sight.

STEWARD, n. [G., a room. The steward was then originally a chamberlain or a butler.]
1. A man employed in great families to manage the domestic concerns, superintend the other servants, collect the rents or income, keep the accounts, &c. See Genesis 15:2 and 43:19.
2. An officer of state; as lord high steward; steward of the household, &c.
5. In Scripture and theology, a minister of Christ, whose duty is to dispense the provisions of the gospel, to preach its doctrines and administer its ordinances.
It is required in stewards, that a man be found faithful. 1 Corinthians 4.

STRIFE, n. [See Strive.]
1. Exertion or contention for superiority; contest of emulation, either by intellectual or physical efforts. Strife may be carried on between students or between mechanics. Thus Gods contended, noble strife, who most should ease the wants of life.
2. Contention in anger or enmity; contest; struggle for victory; quarrel or war. These vows thus granted, raisd a strife above betwixt the god of war and queen of love.
I and my people were at great strife with the children of Ammon. Judges 12.
3. Opposition; contrariety; contrast. Artificial strife lives in these touches livelier than life.

SUPER'FLUOUS, a. [L. superfluus, overflowing; super and fluo, to flow.]
1. More than is wanted; rendered unnecessary by superabundance; as a superfluous supply of corn.
2. More than sufficient; unnecessary; useless; as a composition abounding with superfluous words. Superfluous epithets rather enfeeble than strengthen description. If what has been said will not convince, it would be superfluous to say more.

SUPPLICA'TION, n. [L. supplicatio.]
1. Entreaty; humble and earnest prayer in worship. In all our supplications to the Father of mercies, let us remember a world lying in ignorance and wickedness.
2. Petition; earnest request.

SU'RETY, n. Certainty; indubitableness.
1. Security; safety. Yet for the more surety they looked round about.
2. Foundation of stability; support.
3. Evidence; ratification; confirmation. She call'd the saints to surety.
5. In law, one that is bound with and for another; one who enters into a bond or recognizance to answer for another's appearance in court, or for his payment of a debt or for the performance of some act, and who, in case of the principal debtor's failure, is compellable to pay the debt or damages; a bondsman; a bail.
Thy servant became surety for the lad to my father. Gen.44.
6. In Scripture, Christ is called "the surety of a better testament." Heb.7.22. He undertook to make atonement for the sins of men, and thus prepare the way to deliver them from the punishment to which they had rendered themselves liable.

SUS'TENANCE, n.
1. Support; maintenance; subsistence; as the sustenance of the body; the sustenance of life.
2. That which supports life; food; victuals; provisions. This city has ample sustenance.

SYNAGOGUE, n. syn'agog. [Gr. together, and to drive; properly an assembly.]
1. A congregation or assembly of Jews, met for the purpose of worship or the performance of religious rites.
2. The house appropriated to the religious worship of the Jews.
3. The court of the seventy elders among the Jews, called the great synagogue.

SYNON'YMOUS,
a. Expressing the same thing; conveying the same idea. We rarely find two words precisely synonymous.
Wave and billow are sometimes synonymous, but not always. When we speak of the large rolling swell of the sea, we may call it a wave or a billow; but when we speak of the small swell of a pond, we may call it a wave, but we may not call it a billow.

TAB'ERNACLE, n. [L. tabernaculum, a tent, from taberna, a shop or shed, from tabula, a board; or rather from its root. See Table.]
1. A tent. Num.24. Matt.17.
3. Among the Jews, a movable building, so contrived as to be taken to pieces with ease and reconstructed, for the convenience of being carried during the wanderings of the Israelites in the wilderness. It was of a rectangular figure, thirty cubits long, ten broad, and ten high. The interior was divided into two rooms by a vail or curtain, and it was covered with four different spreads or carpets.
4. A place of worship; a sacred place
5. Our natural body. 2 Cor.5. 2 Pet. 1.

TAB'ERNACLE, v.i. To dwell; to reside for a time; to be housed; as we say, Christ tabernacled in the flesh.

TAL'ENT, n. [L. talentum; Gr. to bear, allied to L. tollo. The word is said to have originally signified a balance or scales.]
1. Among the ancients, a weight, and a coin. The true value of the talent cannot well be ascertained, but it is known that it was different among different nations. The Attic Talent, the weight, contained 60 Attic minae, or 6000 Attic drachmae, equal to 56 pounds, eleven ounces, English troy weight. The mina being reckoned equal to f3 4s.7d. sterling, or fourteen dollars and a third nearly, the talent was of the value of f193 15s sterling, about $861 dollars. Other computations make it f225 sterling. The Romans had the great talent and the little talent; the great talent is computed to be equal to f99 6s. 8d. sterling, and the little talent to f75 sterling.
2. Talent, among the Hebrews, was also a gold coin, the same with a shekel of gold; called also stater, and weighing only four drachmas. But the Hebrew talent of silver, called cicar, was equivalent to three thousand shekels, or one hundred and thirteen pounds, ten ounces and a fraction, troy weight.
4. Eminent abilities; superior genius; as, he is a man of talents.
5. Particular faculty; skill. He has a talent at drawing.

TAN'GIBLE, a. [from L. tango, to touch.]
1. Perceptible by the touch; tactile.
2. That may be possessed or realized.

TEM'PERAMENT, n. [L. temperamentum.]
2. Medium; due mixture of different qualities. The common law--has reduced the kingdom to its just state and temperament.

TEM'PEST, n. [L. tempestas; tempus, time, season.
1. An extensive current of wind, rushing with great velocity and violence; a storm of extreme violence. We usually apply the word to a steady wind of long continuance; but we say also of a tornado, it blew a tempest. The currents of wind are named, according to their respective degrees of force or rapidity, a breeze, a gale, a storm, a tempest; but gale is also used as synonymous with storm, and storm with tempest. Gust is usually applied to a sudden blast of short duration. A tempest may or may not be attended with rain, snow or hail.

TEST'IMONY, n. [L. testimonium.]
A solemn declaration or affirmation made for the purpose of establishing or proving some fact. Such affirmation in judicial proceedings,may be verbal or written, but must be under oath. Testimony differs from evidence; testimony is the declaration of a witness, and evidence is the effect of that declaration on the mind, or the degree of light which it affords.
3. Witness; evidence; proof of some fact.
Shake off the dust under your feet, for a testimony against them. Mark 6.
6. The gospel, which testifies of Christ and declares the will of God. 1 Cor. 2. 2 Tim.1.
8. The word of God; the Scriptures.
The testimony of the Lord is sure, making wise the simple Ps.19.
12. Attestation; confirmation.

THEOL'OGY, n. [Gr. God, and discourse.]
Divinity; the science of God and divine things; or the science which teaches the existence, character and attributes of God, his laws and government, the doctrines we are to believe,and the duties we are to practice. Theology consists of two branches, natural and revealed. Natural theology is the knowledge we have of God from his works, by the light of nature and reason. Revealed theology is that which is to be learned only from revelation.

Moral theology, teaches us the divine laws relating to our manners and actions, that is, our moral duties.

Scholastic theology, is that which proceeds by reasoning, or which derives the knowledge of several divine things from certain established principles of faith.

TITHE, n.
The tenth part of any thing; but appropriately, the tenth part of the increase annually arising from the profits of land and stock, allotted to the clergy for their support. Tithes are personal, predial, or mixed; personal, when accruing from labor, art, trade and navigation; predial, when issuing from the earth, as hay, wood and fruit; and mixed, when accruing from beasts, which are fed from the ground.

Just as everything else in this world, all money belongs to God. God demands the first 10% of your goods (income) to go to his storehouse--the church. It is God's money and not yours.
Proof: Malachi 3:10 "Bring ye all the tithes into the storehouse, that there may be meat in mine house..." Tithe = 10% of your gross income, meat = the Word of God, "mine house" = the church. Therefore, to tithe is to give 10% of all your earnings to the church so it may grow and preach the Word of God. Donating money to honorable charities and to television evalgelists is good but not tithing. First, give God is rightful 10% and anything beyond that which you give (charities, other ministries) is called an "offering."

! TRACT n.
A brief pamphlet, usually on a religious or political topic.

NOTE: Someone who witnesses for God always is mindful to carry with them a pack of tracts so they give one to the person. The tract contains the most powerfully important verses of scripture in the bible to attempt to sway the unbeliever or doubter to Christ. It also contains a point of contact and phone number to bring that person to the local church and is usually no bigger than two credit cards side-by-side.

TRANSGRESS', v.t. [L. transgressus, transgredior; trans and gradior, to pass.]
1. To pass over or beyond any limit; to surpass.
2. In a moral sense, to overpass any rule prescribed as the limit of duty; to break or violate a law, civil or moral. To transgress a divine law, is sin. Legislators should not transgress laws of their own making.

TRANSGRESS', v.i.
To offend by violating a law; to sin. Chron 2.

UNC'TION, n. [L. unctio, from ungo, to anoint.]
1. The act of anointing.
3. The act of anointing medically; as mercurial unction.
5. That which excites piety and devotion.
6. Richness of gracious affections.
7. Divine or sanctifying grace. 1 John 1.
Extreme unction, the rite of anointing in the last hours; or the application of sacred oil to the parts where the five senses reside.

UNSCRU'PULOUS, a. Not scrupulous; having no scruples.

UNTA'MABLE, a.
1. That cannot be tamed or domesticated; that cannot be reclaimed from a wild state.
2. Not to be subdued or reduced to control.

VAT'ICAN, n.
In Rome, the celebrated church of St. Peter; and also, a magnificent palace of the pope; situated at the foot of one of the seven hills on which Rome was built. Hence the phrase, the thunders of the Vatican, meaning the anathemas or denunciations of the pope.

VICA'RIOUS, a. [L. vicarius.]
1. Deputed; delegated; as vicarious power or authority.
2. Acting for another; filling the place of another; as a vicarious agent or officer.
3. Substituted in the place of another; as a vicarious sacrifice. The doctrine of vicarious punishment has occasioned much controversy.

VOCA'TION, n. [L. vocatio, from voco, to call. See Voice.]
1. Among divines, a calling by the will of God; or the bestowment of God's distinguishing grace upon a person or nation, by which that person or nation is put in the way of salvation; as the vocation of the Jews under the old dispensation, and of the Gentiles under the gospel.
3. Designation or destination to a particular state or profession. None is to enter the ecclesiastic or monastie state, without a particular vocation.

WITCHCRAFT, [witch and craft.]
1. The practices of witches; sorcery; enchantments; intercourse with the devil.
2. Power more than natural. He hath a witchcraft over the king ins tongue.

ZEAL, n. [Gr., L.]
Passionate ardor in the pursuit of any thing. In general, zeal is an eagerness of desire to accomplish or obtain some object, and it may be manifested either in favor of any person or thing, or in opposition to it, and in a good or bad cause. Zeal, the blind conductor of the will.
They have a zeal of God, but not according to knowledge. Romans 10.

ZEALOUS, a. Zelus.
Warmly engaged or ardent in the pursuit of an object. Being thus saved himself, he may be zealous in the salvation of souls.

! indicates the definition came from a dictionary other than the 1828 Noah Webster
(most likely because the word wasn't conceived yet during the mid-19th century)