Tag Archives: gads

Elephant

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Elephant. No elephants lived in Palestine. But they were native to the neighboring continents of Africa and Asia. Wealthy Jews sometimes imported the ivory which came from their great tusks. King Solomon “made a great throne of ivory, and overlaid it with pure gold” (1 Kin. 10:18). And King Ahab built an “ivory house” (1 Kin. 22:39).
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cormorant

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Cormorant. Both the prophets Isaiah and Zephaniah linked the cormorant or “the pelican” (NKJV) with the bittern to describe the ruin God brings in judgment upon man’s proud cities (Is. 34:11; Zeph. 2:14). The cormorant (or “the fisher owl,” NKJV) was listed among the few birds the Israelites were not to eat (Lev. 11:17; Deut. 14:17).
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Crocodile

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Crocodile. The land crocodile appears as an unclean beast in the RSV rendering of (Leviticus 11:30). Many scholars assume that the crocodile is the mysterious “Leviathan” (whale, NEB) praised by Job (Job 41:1-34) and mentioned in (Psalm 74:14; 104:26); and (Isaiah 27:1).
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Dog

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Dog. In ancient Israel, the dog was not “man’s best friend.” In fact, calling someone a dog was one of the most offensive ways of insulting that person. The Bible mentions dogs frequently; most of the references are derogatory. Even in New Testament times, Jews called Gentiles “dogs” (Matt. 15:26). The term “dog” also referred to a male prostitute (Deut. 23:18). Unbelievers who were shut out of the New Jerusalem were also termed “dogs” (Rev. 22:15)– probably a reference to their sexual immorality. Moslems later applied the insult to Christians.
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Satan

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1. Definition of the concept of “Satan”

Meaning of the word “Satan.”

The root meaning of the word “Satan” is someone who is an antagonizer or opponent. In this sense, the concept of an “anti-Christ” is very close to being Satan, with the focus of who the “Satan” is against being against God and all His people in Satan, and against Christ in the concept of the Anti-Christ. TWOT points out that the verbal form of this word means to bear a grudge or cherish animosity. The principle concept here is a person who opposes.
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Lion

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Lion. The lion was the most awesome and dangerous wild beast in Palestine. His tawny hide blended into the golden fields and sandy wastes. Lions hid in forests and sometimes pounced from the thickets near the Jordan River (Jer. 49:19).

The Bible contains many references to lions. Daniel miraculously survived a night in a lions’ den (Daniel 6). Samson and David killed lions singlehandedly (Judg. 14:5-6; 1 Sam. 17:34-37). Kings hunted lions for sport. According to (Ezekiel 19:1-9), lions were also captured with pits and nets.
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Lizard

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Lizard. Lizards receive little attention in the Bible, although they are common in Palestine. They appeared on the list of unclean animals (Lev. 11:30) and were thus forbidden as food to the Israelites.

The lizard comes in many species. Some of the small lizards often pass for snakes, while larger versions of this animal resemble the crocodile. All lizards are cold-blooded reptiles. Since their body temperature depends on their surroundings, they thrive in the tropics and in deserts. But when the sun gets too hot even for them, they lie in the shade or burrow into the sand. One species is even called a sand lizard (Lev. 11:30); (skink, NIV).
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