Friday Facts - Quiz Question

I decided to mix things up a bit this week and post a Friday Fact in the form of a quiz. If you know the answer or even if you're not sure and want to take a guess, leave your answer in the comments. Next Friday, stop by and find out the answer. Good luck!


The fruit of the spirit is made up of how many traits?

a. Seven
b. Eight
c. Nine
d. Ten

Friday Facts - Fun with Words #5

I know I have not been consistent with my Friday posts over the last month or two. Seems like some weeks I meet myself both coming and going, which doesn't make for extra time for blogging. I think we all go thru those times... blogging is great for so many reasons, but sometimes we just have to take a step back... sometimes drop back a post a week or take a complete break for a few weeks.


So, anyway.... on to this week's post. I thought I'd go back to a theme I started a few months ago where I look at the meaning of words that are found in the Bible. Words that maybe we aren't familiar with (or, at least, I am not familiar with) and provide a little info on them.

Here are the words for today:

Ague

"I also will do this unto you; I will even appoint over you terror, consumption, and the burning ague, that shall consume the eyes, and cause sorrow of heart: and ye shall sow your seed in vain, for your enemies shall eat it. " Leviticus 26:16

What does this word mean? Ague is an Old English word that means "fever".


Seething Pot

"Out of his nostrils goeth smoke, as [out] of a seething pot or caldron." Job 41:20

Any idea what this words means? A seething pot was a large vessel that was used for boiling provisions.


Firkin

"And there were set there six waterpots of stone, after the manner of the purifying of the Jews, containing two or three firkins apiece." John 2:6

What might a firkin be? It was a measure for liquids of about 8 7/8 gallons of water. Or, about the equivalent of a bath.



I pray you all have a wonderful weekend... full of laughter, relaxation, fun, worship, and joy!

Friday Facts - More About Colossians

Since we've been looking at the book of Colossians, I wanted to share some more about the history and circumstances around the writing of this letter by Paul. I always enjoying knowing more of the background and what was going on during the time when an event took place. So, here's hoping that you do, too! :) Have a great weekend!

The city of Colossae was about 12 miles nort of Laodicea and near the road from Ephesus to the Euphrates River. Being this close to the Euphrates made it of some mercantile importance. Today, this site is where we find Anatolia, a region in Western Asia. It makes up the majority of the Republic of Turkey. It is surrounded by the Black Sea to the north, the Caucasus (the region between Europe, Asia. and the Middle East) to the northeast, the Iranian plateau to the southeast, the Mediterranean Sea to the south, and the Aegean Sea to the west.

It was hit by an earthquake sometime around when Paul wrote to the Colossians (it is thought in the same year) and the city declined from there. Today the city lies buried under an unexcavated hill.


Colossians was written during Paul's first imprisonment in Rome; probably around the spring of A.D. 57. It wasn't too long after he had written the letter to the Ephesians.

Paul wrote this letter to the Colossians in an effort to counteract false teachings that were being taught. There were persons that attempted to combine the doctrines of Oriental mysticism and asceticism with Christianity. This promised a higher spiritual life and deeper insight into the world of spirits. In Paul's letter to the Colossians, he argues against these teachings and shows them that Jesus brings them ALL these things.

There are two parts to Colossians -- a doctrinal part and a practical part.

The doctrinal part is made up of the first two chpaters with the main theme being a warning against being drawn from Christ. He asked if they were truly united in Christ, why did they need more?

The practical part of Colossians (chapters 3-4) reminds them to focus on things above and to remove from themselves all things of which are evil.


The letter was taken to the Colossians by a man named Tychicus. This man accompanied Paul on part of his journey from Macedonia to Jerusalem, as well as spending some time with Paul in Rome. Tychicus also delivered the letters Paul wrote to the Ephesians and to Philemon.

Friday Facts - Colossae

This last week I started posting on the book of Colossians. This will be the theme on Monday for quite a few weeks to come as I study this book in the Bible and share these studies with you thru my posts.

As I've begun this study time and prepared myself I have been searching for additional information on the city of Colossae. I found a website that has pictures of the area where this city once stood. The photos are beautiful and it offers some interesting facts about the city and general information relating to Paul and the book of Colossians.

When I get more time, I'm going to sit down and look thru this website in more detail. It looks like a great place to go to see more and learn more about many of the places we read about in the Bible. But, for now, I'll leave you with this link for more info on Colossians.

Praying you all have a great weekend! I'll see you back here on Monday!

Friday Facts - New Testament Writers

HAPPY FRIDAY!!!

Have you ever wondered who wrote the most books in the New Testament? At first guess, I would say Paul. Upon doing a little research, though, I found that this isn't exactly correct. It depends on how you look at it. Here's what I mean.....

~ Paul wrote the greatest number of books in the New Testament (13 books, 2,033 verses)

-- BUT --

-- Luke wrote the Gospel of Luke and the book of Acts. These two books take up one-third of the New Testament (2 books, 2,158 verses)


Who comes in third place?

~ John, the apostle, wrote a gospel, the book of Revelation, and 3 letters (5 books, 1,414 verses)



Have a great weekend!!

Friday Facts - The Cross and The Crucifixion

As we enter into this weekend of recognition of the gift given to us thru the crucifixion of Jesus, I wanted to continue in sharing information related to this event.

I decided to take a look at the cross and the death of Jesus. The cross on which Jesus was crucified and the suffering He endured as He died for you and for me.


Let's first look at the type of cross on which Jesus was crucified....
There were three types of crosses that were most commonly used by the Roman army in the first century A.D. Each type carried an inscription stating the victim's capital offense and a seat-like projection. This projection towards the bottom of the cross not designed for the victim's comfort, but instead to prolong their agony. Nails and ropes held the victim's legs and arms in place.

The first type of cross was called a “high tau” cross due to its shape which was similar to the capital Greek letter tau (“T”). The second type was known as a “low tau” cross, as it was shaped like the lower case tau (“t”). In both cases the central post was set permanently in the ground while the cross bar was carried to the site by the victim. The third type of cross was an actual tree that was still in the ground (dead or alive) with its limbs serving as the cross bar. Most likely, Jesus was crucified on a “low tau” type cross.

____________________________

Let's now take a moment to look at how Jesus died.....

The death of Jesus endured involved severe stress. He was tortured by the beating brought on by the Roman soldiers.

At the time of crucifixion He was hung completely naked in front of the crowd. The pain and damage caused by crucifixion so intense that the victim would continually long for death, but could linger for days with no relief.

According to Dr. Frederick Zugibe, piercing of the nerve in the hands with a nail can cause pain so incredible that no pain medication could assist, “severe, excruciating, burning pain, like lightning bolts traversing the arm into the spinal cord.” Rupturing the foot's nerve with a nail would have a similar effect.


May we never forget, may we always be thankful, and may we never fail to share and to love..... to love as Christ first showed His love to us.

Friday Facts - The Letters on the Cross

Happy Friday! I don't know about you, but I am really glad it is Friday and we are just a few short hours from the weekend. I am ready for some time to play and rest and enjoy my family.

Since we are so close to Easter, I thought I would dig up some facts surrounding the crucifixion and burial of Jesus. For this week, let's take a look at the letters that were on the crucifix...


The letters were "INRI" and Pontius Pilate had these written over the head of Jesus on the cross. These letters stand for "Iesvs Nazarenvs Rex Ivdaeorvm." Translated to English this means "Jesus of Nazareth, the King of the Jews."

Pilate had these words written in three different languages:

"And Pilate wrote a title, and put [it] on the cross. And the writing was, JESUS OF NAZARETH THE KING OF THE JEWS. This title then read many of the Jews: for the place where Jesus was crucified was nigh to the city: and it was written in Hebrew, [and] Greek, [and] Latin. Then said the chief priests of the Jews to Pilate, Write not, The King of the Jews; but that he said, I am King of the Jews." John 19:19-22



Today I am thankful beyond words for "Jesus, the King of the Jews". Through his suffering on the cross, he gave us a gift that I'm not sure we will ever fully comprehend until we are home with him someday.

Friday Facts - Fun with Words #4

Hi, everyone.... Happy Friday!!

I'm back this week with another fun post about words. Words we see in the Bible, but might not know what they mean. So, here are the words for this week.....

Caul

"And thou shalt take all the fat that covereth the inwards, and the caul [that is] above the liver, and the two kidneys, and the fat that [is] upon them, and burn [them] upon the altar." Exodus 29:13

What is this? This would be the membrane that covers the upper part of the liver.


Harsha

"The children of Bazlith, the children of Mehida, the children of Harsha..." Nehemiah 7:54

The meaning of this word? A worker or enchanter.


Satyr

"But wild beasts of the desert shall lie there; and their houses shall be full of doleful creatures; and owls shall dwell there, and satyrs shall dance there." Isaiah 13:21

What does this word mean? In Greek mythology this is a creature composed of a man and a goat and is supposed to inhabit wild and desolate regions. When used in this scripture in Isaiah the meaning is that the place referenced shall become a desolate waste.


I hope you enjoyed a little fun with words today. And, if you're up to it, go ahead and see if you can use any of them in a sentence. I'll come back next Friday with my attempt to use them in a sentence.

Have a great weekend!

Friday Facts - Feasts in the Bible

As we saw in last weeks 'Friday Facts' the Bible records a number of famines. However, there were also a number of feasts recorded in the Bible. Check these out.....

* Samson's wedding feast (Judges 14:10-18)

* The feast Solomon held at the dedication of the temple in Jerusalem (1 Kings 8:65)

* The feast held by Belshazzar at which God wrote his judgment on the palace wall (Daniel 5).

* The story of the father's feast for his returning runaway son (Luke 15:23)

* The marriage feast that will be held by God in his future kingdom (Revelation 19:9)

* The account of the gruesome feast for the birds recorded in the book of Revelation (Revelation 19:17-18)


May you all have many feasts in your future! Have a great weekend!

Friday Facts - Famines in the Bible

We're going to take a little change in direction this week with Friday Facts. However, I love the "new words facts" so that will be back in the future. I just thought it would be fun to scatter them around a bit.

So, this week I thought we would look at famines in the Bible. Currently, I am studying (and posting) the book of Ruth. At the beginning of this book we find that Naomi and her family initially moved to Moab due to a famine in their hometown of Bethlehem.

But, this particular famine is not the only one we read about in the Bible. Here are some others.....

* A famine caused Jacob's sons to go to Egypt to buy grain. It is there there they re-unite with their brother Joseph. (Genesis 41:56-42:6)

* Elijah the prophet told of the message he received from God that rain would be withheld from Israel because of the sin's of the people. A famine was the result of the long period of time without rain. (1 Kings 17)

* Famine came to the city of Jerusalem when the Babylonians beseiged the city. (2 Kings 25:1-3)

* During the time of the New Testament, there was a famine in Palestine as had been predicted by the prophet Agabus. (Acts 11:28)

* In the book of Revelation we find "famine" pictured as one of the four horsemen that stalks the earth just before the return of Jesus. (Revelation 6:5-8)


Now that you are armed with info regarding famine in the Bible.. go out and enjoy your weekend! I know... you just couldn't have moved forward without all that info, could you now? :)

Seriously, though, may you all have a great weekend spending time with family and friends and full of many blessings from God!

Friday Facts - Fun with Words #3

Welcome Back for another fun-filled, word-filled Friday!

I've not been feeling real great these last few days and almost didn't get this new list of words up, but I seem to have gained my 2nd wind tonight-- and probably last :). So here goes, the new words for this week are:

Potters Field

We find this reference in Matthew 27:7-10, "And they took counsel, and bought with them the potter's field, to bury strangers in. Wherefore that field was called, The field of blood, unto this day. Then was fulfilled that which was spoken by Jeremy the prophet, saying, And they took the thirty pieces of silver, the price of him that was valued, whom they of the children of Israel did value; And gave them for the potter's field, as the Lord appointed me."

"Potter's field" is the name that was given to the piece of ground which was bought with the money given to Judas.


Phylacteries

This word is found in Matthew 23:5, "But all their works they do for to be seen of men: they make broad their phylacteries, and enlarge the borders of their garments."

Phylacteries consisted of strips of parchment which had inscribed on them text from Exodus 13:1-10, Exodus 11-16, Deutoronomy 6:4-9 and Deutoronomy 11:18-21. They were enclosed in a leather case which had one side inscribed the Hebrew letter shin. The case was fastened by straps to the forehead just between the eyes. By "making broad the phylacteries" they were enlarging the case so it would be conspicuous.



Have a great weekend!

Friday Facts - More Fun with Words

Well, I must just first say this, "You guys crack me up!"

Last Friday I shared a few words and their meanings and then challenged you to use them in a sentence. The sentences you left in my comments just had me in stitches. If you missed any of these, check out the comments from this post.

If you all keep this up, we may have to continue with these "word" posts until I just can't find anymore words to share. ;)

Here are the words for this week:

Inkhorn

This word is used in Ezekial 9:2 - "And suddenly six men came from the direction of the upper gate, which faces north, each with his battle-ax in his hand. One man among them was clothed with linen and had a writer's inkhorn at his side. They went in and stood beside the bronze altar."

The meaning? An inkhorn is a round vessel or cup for containing ink. It was usually worn by writers on their clothing at their waist. They got their name because in earlier times ink was contained in horns.

Cotes

We find this word used in 2 Chronicles 32:28 - "Storehouses also for the increase of corn, and wine, and oil; and stalls for all manner of beasts, and cotes for flocks."

It is a pen or enclosure for flocks.

Sackbut

This word can be found in Daniel 3:5 - "[That] at what time ye hear the sound of the cornet, flute, harp, sackbut, psaltery, dulcimer, and all kinds of musick, ye fall down and worship the golden image that Nebuchadnezzar the king hath set up:

This word is a a Syrian stringed instrument resembling a harp.

So, is anyone up to the same challenge as last week? Can you use one or all of these words in a sentence? I'll be watching my comments closely. ;)

Friday Facts - Words and Their Meanings #1

Happy Friday everyone!

So, this week I promised some fun with words. And, I'm a wordy kind of gal (both in that I like to find out what they mean and that I like to speak them... which is a nice way of saying I can sometimes talk a bit much.. ha!), so I may continue this for awhile. Let me know what you think, too. I want to find something that interests more than just me. :)

Anyway, do you ever read a verse (particularly in the King James Version of the Bible) and think, "Huh? What does that mean?" Well, I do. It's put me on a mission to find out what some of them mean.

Here's a few to think about this week.....

Cogitations
We find this word in Daniel 7:18 - Hitherto is the end of the matter. As for me Daniel, my cogitations much troubled me, and my countenance changed in me: but I kept the matter in my heart.

The meaning? "Thoughts" or earnest meditations.


Dropsy
This word is found in Luke 14:2 - And there, in front of Him was a certain man suffering from dropsy.

What is the definition of this word? It is a disease and only mentioned in the Bible one time -- in this scripture.


Bake-meats
This word is in Genesis 40:7 - And in the uppermost basket there was of all manner of bakemeats for Pharaoh; and the birds did eat them out of the basket upon my head.

Bake-meats are baked provisions. The literal meaning of the word is "works of the baker".



My challenge to you this weekend? See if you can use one of these in a sentence when speaking to someone. And, if you do, let me know. I'm trying to figure out how I'm going to nonchalantly drop the word "dropsy" into a sentence without giggling. :)


Have a good one filled with many blessings from the Lord!

Friday Facts - The Apocrypha - The Book of Baruch

Here we are at another Friday. End of the week. Time for more Friday Facts. We're continuing this week with more info about the Apocrypha. I'm finding that this information has been very helpful to me. Now, I know, there is nothing in the Apocrypha that I should use as a basis for my faith in God. However, what is helpful to me is that now I know some of they reasons WHY I shouldn't be turning to it as I seek the Lord. Now I know why I should only read my Bible and not be including the Apocrypha. I have a basis of information to pull from should I ever find myself in a conversation about the Apocrypha. For me, that's good stuff!

So, anyway, today's post will focus on the Book of Baruch. Here's some general information I learned this week about this book in the Apocrypha.....

This book is considered a canonical book of the Bible by the Roman Catholics. In their Bible it follows the Book of Lamentations. This book is NOT included in the Hebrew Bible.

It is a compilation of verses from the books of Job, Daniel, Isaiah, and Jeremiah. This book is named after Baruch who was a secretary of the prophet Jeremiah. It was addressed to the Jews exiled in Babylon and was written partly in prose and partly in poetry. The prose portion includes an admission of sin, a promise of deliverance after repentance, and a prayer asking mercy and praising God. The poetry portion includes verses in praise of wisdom and of God's commandments and of verses urging the exiles to be courageous and comforted. The sixth chapter of Baruch claims to be a letter of Jeremiah addressed to the exiles in Babylon and is a warning against idolatry.

Most likely, these three parts were written at different times. It may have been compiled as late as the 1st or 2nd century AD by an Alexandrian editor using the original Hebrew manuscripts.

It is thought that it's exclusion from the Hebrew is due, in large part, to the fact that there is no proof of prophetic authority. Its value is only as a mirror of time and as a keeper of many liturgical and poetical passages of great beauty and power.

Next week we'll look at the book of Judith from the Apocrypha.

Friday Facts - Books of the Maccabees

I received several comments and emails expressing an interest in what I shared last week about the Apocrypha. I'm so glad you found this interesting..... I did, too. So, since several of us are looking for more, I decided that I would continue with a bit more over the next few weeks.

This week is a brief overview of the Books of the Maccabees, which are included in the Apocrypha.

Originally there were 5 books of the Maccabees. The first was a history of the war of independence (approximately B.C. 175) that was a series of patriotic struggles against Antiochus Epiphanes. This war ended about B.C. 135. This book became part of the Vulgate Version of the Bible, so was retained among the Apocrypha.

The second book is a history of the Maccabees' struggle from B.C. 176 to B.C. 161. Its purpose was to both encourage and admonish the Jews to be faithful to the religion of their fathers.

The third book doesn't have a place in the Apocrypha, but is read in the Greek Church. Its purpose was to comfort the Alexandrian Jews in their persecution.

The fourth book was found in the Library of Lyons, but then later burned.

The fifth book contains a history of the Jews from B.C. 184 to B.C. 86. It was written by a Jew after the destruction of Jerusalem. It is made up of ancient memoirs.

None of these books has any divine authority.


Next week we'll take a brief look at the Book of Baruch. See you then!

Friday Facts - The Apocrypha

Wow! It has been quite awhile since I posted a "Friday Facts". I don't know about you, but I've missed it. I'm really enjoying looking up all the info that I share on Fridays.

This week I thought I would post a brief description about the Apocrypha. Over the years, I've heard much about these books and never really understood, until recently, what they contained. There is quite a bit of information out there about the Apocrypha. I may share additional information over the next few weeks.


The Apocrypha

The books of the Apocrypha have incorrectly been referred to as "the Lost Books of the Bible". These books, in fact, are not lost. Both Christians and Jews have always known about them.

The name "Apocrypha" was given to certain ancient books which found a place in Latin Vulgate versions of the Old Testament that is used by Catholics today. Protestants and Jews do not accept them as Scripture. In the sixteenth century they were appended to all the great Bible translations. However, they should never in any sense be regarded as parts of the inspired Word of God.

Why shouldn't we consider them part of the inspired Word of God? For several reasons....

1. Not one of these books is written in the Hebrew language. Hebrew alone was used by the inspired historians and poets of the Old Testament.

2. None of the writers of the Apocrypha claimed to be inspired by God.

3. These books have never been acknowledged by Jews as sacred scriptures. The Jews actually rejected and destroyed the Aprocrypha after the overthrow of Jerusalem in 70 AD.

4. They were not permitted among the sacred books during the first four centuries of the Christian church.

5. It contains statements which only contradict the "canonical" scriptures.

6. It includes doctrines that are in variance with the Bible.

7. The Apocrypha teaches immoral practices including lying and magical incantation.

8. No apocryphal book is referred to in the New Testatment. However, the New Testament refers hundreds of times to the Old Testament.

9. Due to all the reasons noted above, the books of the Apocrypha are only valuable as ancient documents to illustrate the manners, language, opinions and history of the East.


The Old Testament Apocrypha consists of 14 books.
~ Books of the Maccabees
~ Books of Esdras
~ Book of Wisdom
~ Book of Baruch
~ Book of Esther
~ Ecclesiasticus
~ Tobit
~ Judith

Others included are:
~ Bel and the Dragon (addition to Daniel)
~ Daniel and Susanna (addition to Daniel)
~ Additions to Esther
~ Letter of Jeremiah
~ Prayer of Azariah (addition to Daniel)
~ Prayer of Manasseh
~ Psalm 151
~ Sirach
~ Tobit
~ Wisdom of Solomon


The New Testament Apocrypha is very extensive and bears strong evidence of its non-apostolic origin. According to the source I found it is completely unworthy of any regard.

Friday Facts - Unusual Gifts in the Bible

Friday afternoon comment: I agree with several commentors that one of these below is rather gross. I almost didn't include it, but decided to go ahead as it was an event actually recorded in the Bible and, while gross, was..er...uhmmm... interesting. It also shows the great difference between the culture of that time and ours now. And, oh, how I am thankful our culture has changed in that particular regard! :)


Still looking for the perfect Christmas gift for that special someone? Check these out! How would you like 4.5 tons of gold under your Christmas tree this year? Or, maybe 220 goats?


~ Jacob, afraid that his brother Esau might be holding a grudge against him, surprised his twin with a gift of 220 goats, 220 sheep, 30+ camels, 40 cows, 10 bulls and 30 donkeys (Genesis 32:13-21).

~ For a wedding gift, Caleb's daughter Acsah asked for (and received) some springs of water in southern Israel (Joshua 15:16-19).

~ Believe it or not, the Queen of Sheba brought King Solomon 4.5 tons of gold plus "large quantities of spices, and precious stones" (1 Kings 10:10).

~ At a big party to celebrate the end of Job's suffering, each of his friends and relatives brought exactly the same gift: a piece of silver and a gold ring (Job 42:11).

~ David killed 200 Philistines and brought their foreskins to King Saul so that he could marry Saul's daughter Michal (1 Samuel 18:18-27).

~ Probably the most familiar of all Bible gifts are the gold, incense and myrrh the Magi brought to Jesus when he was a baby (Matthew 2:11).

Friday Facts - Unusual Facts and Trivia from the Bible

For today's Friday Facts we've got a random assortment of facts and trivia from the Bible. Enjoy and have a great weekend!


~ Engaged men were exempted from military service.
"And who is the man that is engaged to a woman and has not married her? Let him depart and return to his house, otherwise he might die in the battle and another man would marry her. " Deuteronomy 20:7.

~ In early Old Testament times, whenever two Israelites finalized a real estate transaction, one of the men would take off his sandal and give it to the other to seal the deal.
"Now this was the custom in former times in Israel concerning the redemption and the exchange of land to confirm any matter: a man removed his sandal and gave it to another; and this was the manner of attestation in Israel." Ruth 4:7

~ Newborn babies were rubbed with salt.
"And as for thy nativity, in the day thou wast born thy navel was not cut, neither wast thou washed in water to supple thee; thou wast not salted at all, nor swaddled at all." Ezekiel 16:4

~ To symbolize his desire for a permanent working relationship, a slave would have his master take an awl and stick it through the slave's ear into the master's doorpost.
"Then his master shall bring him unto the judges; he shall also bring him to the door, or unto the door post; and his master shall bore his ear through with an aul; and he shall serve him for ever." Exodus 21:6

~ Thomas Cranmer (1489-1556), Archbishop of Canterbury, reportedly memorized the entire Bible! Some historians record that it took him only three months to accomplish this amazing feat!

~ An Ephesian mob chanted for two hours in unison, "Great is Artemis of the Ephesians!"
"But when they knew that he was a Jew, all with one voice about the space of two hours cried out, Great is Diana of the Ephesians." Acts 19:34

~ If two million Israelites took part in the exodus out of Egypt (a conservative estimate based on Numbers 1:45-46), the procession would have been an incredible sight. Marching 50 abreast, the column of departing Jews would have stretched for 23 miles into the desert. Walking at a comfortable pace of 2.5 miles per hour, the people would have required almost 10 hours to pass the same point.

~ King Solomon's salary was 666 talents--or 25 tons-- of gold per year. At modern gold prices of $460 per once, he received $368 million per year.
"Now the weight of gold that came to Solomon in one year was six hundred threescore and six talents of gold." 1 Kings 10:14

Friday Facts - Random Bits of Info

For today's post I'm pulling together a number of random facts from the Bible. I hope you enjoy and maybe learn something new. I pray you all have a superb Friday and an even better weekend!

~ Abraham is the first person in the Bible to be called a Hebrew

~ The greatest warrior in the Bible is Gideon. He defeated the 135,000 Midianites with 300 men, 300 trumpets, and God.

~ King Solomon had 700 wives and 300 concubines.

~ The number 7 appears many times in the Bible. It is often linked to perfection or completion.

~ There were 12 tribes of Israel and 12 disciples.

~ The number 40 is used many times in the Bible. It often means God is about to usher in a new event or era. For example, rain during the flood lasted 40 days, spies explored Canaan for 40 days, Jonah warned Nineveh for 40 days, and Jesus fasted in the wilderness for 40 days.

~ The first bok of the Bible tells of a serpent tempting Eve. The last book of the Bible calls Satan "that serpen of old, who is the Devil." (Genesis3; Revelation 20:2).

~ "Do not be afraid" appears 365 times in the Bible. Interestingly enough, that is the number of days in a year!

~ Two men in the Bible never died. They were Enoch and Elijah. God brought them right up to heaven.

Friday Facts - Origin of the Word "Bible"

I've just got one item for today's post, but I thought this was kind of neat!

The word Bible is from the Greek word Biblia. Biblia literally means "books". Hmmmm... isn't the Bible made up of 66 books? And, wasn't the Bible written by over 40 different authors? So, reading the Bible is really like reading multiple books written by multiple writers. Pretty neat, huh?