Dictionary Entries: N

• 144,000 — In Revelation 7 and 14, the 144,000 are the sealed servants of God, presented as belonging to the Lamb; Christians differ on wheth
• 666 — In Revelation, 666 is "the number of the beast," a symbol of blasphemous, God-opposing power associated with the beast and its dem
• NA28 — NA28 is the twenty-eighth edition of a major scholarly Greek New Testament.
• Naarah — A woman named in the Judah genealogy in 1 Chronicles 4:5, identified as one of Ashhur’s wives.
• Naarai — Naarai is a biblical personal name associated with David’s mighty men.
• Naaran — A place in the tribal territory of Ephraim, mentioned in the Old Testament as east of Bethel.
• Nabal — A wealthy man of Maon in 1 Samuel 25 whose harsh, foolish refusal to help David nearly brought disaster on his household.
• Naboth — Naboth was a Jezreelite whose vineyard was taken by King Ahab through Jezebel’s false charges and murder. His account highlights t
• Nachon — The threshing floor named in 2 Samuel 6:6, where Uzzah reached out to steady the ark and was struck down by the Lord during David’
• Nadab — Nadab is an Old Testament personal name borne by more than one man, most notably Aaron’s eldest son and a king of Israel.
• Nadab, Baasha, Elah, and Zimri — A grouped entry for four early kings of the northern kingdom of Israel whose brief and violent reigns illustrate dynastic instabil
• Nag Hammadi Library — A collection of ancient writings discovered near Nag Hammadi, Egypt, in 1945. Many texts are associated with Gnostic or other non-
• Nag Hammadi Tractates — The Nag Hammadi Tractates are a collection of writings linked mainly with Gnostic and related movements.
• Nagge — Nagge is a minor biblical person named in Luke’s genealogy of Jesus. Scripture gives no further biographical details about him.
• Nahash — Nahash is a biblical personal name best known for the Ammonite king who opposed Israel in Saul's day; the name may also refer to a
• Nahath — Nahath is a biblical proper name borne by more than one Old Testament man, including figures in genealogical and Levitical records
• Nahbi — Nahbi was the representative from the tribe of Naphtali among the twelve spies sent by Moses to survey Canaan.
• Nahor — Nahor is a biblical personal name used for Abraham’s grandfather and Abraham’s brother in Genesis.
• Nahshon — Nahshon was a Judahite leader in Israel’s wilderness generation and an ancestor in the line leading to King David and Jesus.
• Nahum — Nahum is a minor prophetic book that declares the downfall of Nineveh and the justice of God.
• Nail — A nail is a metal peg or spike used for fastening. In Scripture it is usually an ordinary object, though it can also appear in fig
• Nain — Nain is a town in Galilee mentioned in Luke 7:11–17 as the setting where Jesus raised a widow’s only son from the dead.
• Naive realism — Naive realism is the view that ordinary sense perception presents the external world largely as it really is.
• Nakedness — In Scripture, nakedness can refer simply to being unclothed, but it often carries meanings of shame, vulnerability, humiliation, o
• Name — In Scripture, a name often signifies more than a label; it can express a person’s identity, character, reputation, or authority. G
• Name of God — In Scripture, the name of God refers both to the titles and personal names used for Him and to the revelation of His character, au
• Names and titles of God — The names and titles of God in Scripture reveal his character, works, and covenant relationship with his people. They identify the
• Names and titles of the Spirit — Biblical expressions such as Spirit of God, Holy Spirit, Spirit of truth, and Spirit of Christ that refer to the one Holy Spirit a
• names of God — The names of God are the revealed titles and designations by which God makes aspects of His character and action known.
• Names of the Hebrew months — The calendar names used for the months of Israel’s year in the Old Testament and later Jewish practice. In Scripture they mainly s
• Naphish — Naphish is a biblical proper name used for a son of Ishmael and for an Ishmaelite clan in Old Testament genealogical lists.
• Naphtali — Naphtali is the sixth son of Jacob and the name of one of the tribes of Israel descended from him. The term can also refer to the
• Naphtuhim — Naphtuhim is a biblical people group listed among the descendants of Mizraim in the Table of Nations. Scripture names them genealo
• Napoleon and Hegel — A phrase in intellectual history that points to Hegel’s association of Napoleon with world-historical change, often summarized by
• Narcissus — Narcissus is a personal name mentioned in Romans 16:11. Paul greets believers associated with his household, but Scripture does no
• narrative — Narrative is story-form communication. In Scripture, it refers to passages that recount real events in the history of God’s dealin
• Narrative Christology — Narrative Christology is the approach that studies how the Gospels and Acts present Jesus through plot, action, characterization,
• narrative criticism — Narrative criticism reads a biblical text as a coherent story, asking how plot, characters, setting, pacing, and point of view wor
• Narrative interpretation — An interpretive approach that pays careful attention to plot, characters, setting, dialogue, and theme so the Bible’s stories are
• Narrative sequencing — The order in which a biblical writer presents events in a passage or book, often shaped to highlight meaning, emphasis, or theme w
• Narrative Techniques — Narrative techniques are the literary features biblical authors use to tell real historical events, such as plot, dialogue, repeti
• Narrative time — Narrative time describes how a biblical story presents the sequence, pace, and timing of events within the account. It is a litera
• Nathan — Nathan was a prophet who ministered in King David’s court and delivered the Lord’s word with both rebuke and promise, especially c
• Nathan the prophet — Nathan was a prophet in David’s time who delivered God’s word, confronted David over sin, and announced the promise of David’s hou
• Nathan-melech — Nathan-melech is a biblical person named in 2 Kings 23:11, probably a royal official connected with King Josiah’s reforms.
• Nations — In Scripture, “the nations” usually refers to the peoples of the world, often distinguished from Israel in the Old Testament, whil
• Nativity — The nativity is the birth of Jesus Christ, especially the biblical accounts of His conception by the Holy Spirit, birth to the vir
• natural law — Natural law is the moral order built into creation and human nature by God.
• natural order — Natural order is the created pattern and regularity by which the world operates under God.
• Natural philosophy — Natural philosophy is the older term for the study of the natural world through reasoned observation and reflection, especially be
• Natural revelation — Natural revelation is God's self-disclosure through the created order and human moral awareness.
• Natural science — Natural science is the systematic study of the physical world through observation, measurement, experimentation, and theory.
• Natural theology — The attempt to know something about God from creation, reason, conscience, and the order of the world apart from special revelatio
• naturalism — Naturalism is the worldview that nature is all that exists and that reality can be explained without God or any supernatural cause
• Naturalistic fallacy — The naturalistic fallacy is the error of treating what is merely natural as if it were automatically morally good, or of trying to
• Nature — Nature usually means the essential qualities or character that make something what it is. In theology it can refer to God’s nature
• Nature and extent of sin — The biblical teaching that sin is both a corrupted condition of fallen humanity and the wrong thoughts, words, and deeds that flow
• Nature and origin of angels — Angels are created spiritual beings who serve God and carry out his will. Scripture presents them as distinct from God and from hu
• Nature miracles — Nature miracles are extraordinary acts in which God shows his power over the created order, such as stilling storms, providing foo
• Nature of sin — The nature of sin is what sin is at its core: rebellion against God, falling short of his holiness, and corruption of the human he
• Nature of the Church — The biblical doctrine of what the church is: the people of God united to Christ, gathered by the gospel, and expressed in both the
• Nature of the Lord's Supper — The theological question of what the Lord’s Supper means, why Christ instituted it, and how believers should understand Christ’s p
• Nature of theology — The nature of theology is the study of what theology is, how it is done, and what authority it has. In evangelical Christianity, t
• Nazarene — A term for someone from Nazareth, especially Jesus; in Acts it can also refer to His followers.
• Nazareth — Nazareth is a town in Galilee where Jesus grew up and from which he was commonly identified as Jesus of Nazareth.
• Nazarite — A Nazarite was an Israelite man or woman set apart to God by a special vow for a period of time, or in some cases for life. The vo
• Nazarites — Nazarites were Israelites set apart to the Lord by a special vow of consecration.
• Neah — Neah is an Old Testament place name listed in the boundary description of Zebulun’s inheritance.
• Neapolis — Neapolis was a Macedonian port city near Philippi, mentioned in Acts as the point of Paul’s arrival in Europe on his second missio
• Nearness of God — The nearness of God is the biblical truth that God is truly present with His people to bless, help, hear, guide, and save. Scriptu
• Nebai — Nebai is a biblical proper name, likely connected with a postexilic name list, but the exact referent and occurrence need verifica
• Nebaioth — Nebaioth is the firstborn son of Ishmael and, by extension, the Ishmaelite people or tribal group descended from him.
• Neballat — A postexilic settlement in Benjamin mentioned in Nehemiah 11:34.
• Nebat — Nebat is the father of Jeroboam I, the first king of the northern kingdom of Israel after the division of the united monarchy.
• Nebo — Nebo is a biblical place-name used for Mount Nebo in Moab, where Moses viewed the Promised Land before his death, and also for a M
• Nebuchadnezzar — Nebuchadnezzar was the Babylonian king who conquered Judah, destroyed Jerusalem and the temple, and carried many Jews into exile.
• Nebuchadnezzar II — Nebuchadnezzar II was the Babylonian king whom God used in Judah’s fall and exile. He appears prominently in Kings, Chronicles, Je
• Nebuzaradan — Nebuzaradan was the Babylonian captain of the guard who carried out the destruction of Jerusalem and the deportation of many Judea
• necessity of Scripture — necessity of Scripture is a doctrine or study term about how God's written Word is recognized, understood, and received.
• Neck — The neck is a body part that Scripture uses literally and figuratively to depict strength, stubbornness, submission, honor, and vu
• Nedabiah — Nedabiah is a biblical personal name. He is listed among the sons of King Jehoiachin in the post-exilic genealogy of Judah’s royal
• Negative natural theology — Negative natural theology is the use of reasoned reflection about God that emphasizes what cannot be rightly predicated of him, wh
• Negev — The Negev is the arid southern region of the biblical land, especially associated with Judah and the southern hill country. In som
• Neglect — Neglect is the culpable failure to give proper attention, care, or obedience to what God requires. In Scripture it often appears a
• Nehelamite — A designation attached to Shemaiah in Jeremiah 29:24, 31–32. Its exact meaning is uncertain, but it likely identifies him by origi
• Nehemiah — Nehemiah is an Old Testament history book that records Jerusalem's rebuilding and covenant reform after exile.
• Nehemiah's wall-building — The rebuilding of Jerusalem’s walls under Nehemiah after the exile. It highlights God’s faithfulness, wise leadership, prayer, and
• Nehushta — Nehushta was the mother of King Jehoiachin and a royal woman in Judah during the final years before the Babylonian exile.
• Nehushtan — The name Hezekiah gave to the bronze serpent Moses had made in the wilderness. When Judah later treated it as an object of worship
• Neiel — Neiel is a place name mentioned in the boundary description of the tribe of Asher in Joshua 19:27.
• neighbor-love — Neighbor love is active care that seeks the true good of others in ways shaped by God’s commands.
• Neko — Variant spelling of Necho, the Egyptian pharaoh mentioned in the Old Testament.
• Nemuel — Nemuel is a biblical personal name borne by more than one Old Testament figure, including a Simeonite and a Reubenite.
• Neo-Calvinism — Neo-Calvinism is a modern Kuyperian stream of Reformed thought that stresses Christ’s lordship over every area of life. It is know
• neo-orthodoxy — Neo-orthodoxy is a modern movement that uses Christian language but weakens the full authority and inerrancy of Scripture.
• Neoplatonism — A later stream of Greek philosophy that taught reality flows from a highest source, often called the One. It is not a biblical doc
• Nepheg — A biblical personal name borne by more than one man in Old Testament genealogies, including one of David’s sons.
• Nephilim — A biblical term for the mysterious figures mentioned in Genesis 6:4 and again in Numbers 13:33. Scripture associates them with ext
• Nephtoah — Nephtoah is a biblical place name, probably a spring or water source on the border of Judah and Benjamin. It serves as a geographi
• Ner — Ner is a biblical person in the Old Testament, associated with the family line of Saul and with Abner.
• Nereus — Nereus is a Christian in Rome greeted by Paul in Romans 16:15. Scripture gives no further certain information about him.
• Nergal — Nergal was a Mesopotamian deity named in Scripture as one of the false gods introduced into Samaria during the Assyrian resettleme
• Nergal-sharezer — Nergal-sharezer is a Babylonian official named in Jeremiah’s account of Jerusalem’s fall.
• Neri — Neri is a biblical person named in Jesus’ genealogy in Luke 3:27 as the father of Shealtiel. Scripture gives no further clear info
• Neriah — Neriah is a biblical man best known as the father of Baruch, Jeremiah’s scribe, and of Seraiah. Scripture mentions him briefly in
• Nero — Nero was a Roman emperor (AD 54–68) whose reign is important New Testament background and is often associated with early Christian
• Nero's persecution of Christians — The reported persecution of Christians under the Roman emperor Nero, especially in Rome after the fire of AD 64. It is an importan
• Nestle-Aland and UBS Greek texts — Standard modern critical editions of the Greek New Testament used for study, translation, and textual criticism.
• Nestorianism — Nestorianism is the error that separates Christ's humanity and deity so strongly that his person is effectively divided.
• Net — A net is a biblical tool for fishing or trapping, and it is also used figuratively in Scripture for entrapment, judgment, or gathe
• Netophah — Netophah was a town or settlement in Judah, likely near Bethlehem, remembered for its people among David’s warriors and the exiles
• Netophathites — The Netophathites were inhabitants of Netophah, a town in Judah associated with the Bethlehem area. In Scripture they appear in ge
• Nets — Nets were common tools for fishing in biblical times and are sometimes used figuratively for entrapment, judgment, or gathering.
• Nevi'im (Prophets) — Nevi'im (Prophets) is a Hebrew Bible division that the Prophets section of the Tanakh, including Former and Latter Prophets.
• New Age — New Age is a diffuse modern spiritual movement that blends esoteric, therapeutic, monistic, and self-realization themes. It differ
• New Age spirituality — A broad modern spiritual movement that blends ideas such as inner divinity, hidden knowledge, energy healing, and self-realization
• New American Standard Bible — An English Bible translation designed to closely reflect the wording and structure of the Hebrew, Aramaic, and Greek biblical text
• New and Old Treasures — A phrase from Matthew 13:52 describing a scribe trained for the kingdom who brings out both old and new treasures from his storeho
• new birth — The new birth is the Spirit-given beginning of new life in a sinner who is brought to God.
• new covenant — new covenant is a biblical term describing covenant order, covenant response, or covenant judgment under God.
• new creation — new creation is a term about God's creating, ordering, sustaining, or governing work.
• New creation as cosmic temple — A biblical-theology theme that describes the renewed creation as the final dwelling place of God with His people, with temple-like
• New creation imagery — Biblical language for God’s renewing work in Christ. It describes both the believer’s new life now and the future renewal of creat
• New Exodus — New Exodus is a biblical-theological motif in which God frames later redemption and restoration, including Christ's saving work, i
• new heavens and new earth — The new heavens and new earth is the final renewed creation in which God's righteousness fully dwells.
• New humanity — New humanity is a Pauline and especially Ephesian theme for the one renewed people brought into reconciled corporate life in Chris
• New International Version — A modern English Bible translation first published in the late twentieth century, known for combining readability with close atten
• New Jerusalem — New Jerusalem is the final holy city in Revelation, representing consummated fellowship between God and His people.
• New King James Version — A 1982 English Bible translation that updates the King James Version’s language while preserving much of its style and traditional
• New Moon — In the Old Testament, the new moon marked the beginning of a month and was observed with special offerings and trumpet blowing. It
• New moon festivals — Monthly observances in Israel marking the beginning of each new month, associated in Scripture with sacrifices, worship, and the o
• New Perspective on Paul — A modern school of Pauline interpretation that reexamines Second Temple Judaism, covenant membership, and Paul’s language about ju
• New temple — New temple is an access label for renewed or eschatological temple expectation and for New Testament discussions that connect Jesu
• New Testament — The New Testament is the second major division of the Christian Bible, consisting of twenty-seven books centered on Jesus Christ a
• New Testament Canon — The New Testament canon is the recognized collection of twenty-seven books received by the church as inspired Scripture and author
• New Testament Figures — A broad category for the people and groups appearing in the New Testament narrative and letters, rather than a single bounded theo
• New Testament Sites — A biblical-geography overview of the places named in the New Testament and the historical settings in which the Gospels, Acts, and
• New Testament Use of the Decalogue — The ways the New Testament cites, summarizes, and applies the Ten Commandments, affirming their moral authority while placing beli
• New Wine — Freshly made wine in biblical usage, and in Jesus’ teaching a metaphor for the new reality of His ministry and kingdom work.
• Newness of Life — Newness of life is the believer’s new way of living that flows from union with Christ in His death and resurrection. It refers to
• Nicanor — Nicanor is a biblical man mentioned in Acts as one of the seven chosen to oversee practical ministry in the early church.
• Nicene — Nicene describes the orthodox Christian confession that the Son is fully divine and of one essence with the Father.
• Nicene and Post-Nicene Fathers — A standard title for a multi-volume English collection of early Christian writings from the Nicene and post-Nicene eras. It is a h
• Nicene Creed — A fourth-century Christian creed that summarizes biblical teaching on the Trinity and the full deity of Jesus Christ; important in
• Nicodemus — A Pharisee and Jewish ruler in John’s Gospel who comes to Jesus by night, later defends him, and helps prepare his burial.
• Nicolaitans — The Nicolaitans were a group mentioned in Revelation whose teaching and practices were condemned by Christ. Scripture links them w
• Nicopolis — Nicopolis is the city Paul mentioned in Titus 3:12 as the place where he planned to spend the winter and asked Titus to meet him.
• Night — Night is the dark portion of the day. In Scripture it appears both as a normal part of creation and as a flexible image for danger
• Night Watches — The night watches were recognized divisions of the night used for guard duty, travel, and time-marking in the Bible.
• nihilism — Nihilism is the view that objective meaning, truth, morality, or purpose has no real foundation. In biblical perspective, it confl
• Nile — The Nile is Egypt’s great river and an important biblical setting, especially in the Exodus account and related prophecies about E
• Nile River — Egypt’s great river, central to the setting of several biblical events, especially in Exodus and in prophetic judgments against Eg
• Nimrah — Nimrah is a biblical place-name associated with the Transjordan region and the tribal inheritance of Gad.
• Nimrod — A post-Flood biblical figure in Genesis described as a mighty man and an early kingdom-builder associated with Babel, Shinar, and
• Nineveh — Nineveh was the chief city of ancient Assyria. In Scripture it is remembered for Jonah’s preaching, the city’s temporary repentanc
• Ninevites — The Ninevites were the inhabitants of Nineveh, the great Assyrian city, best known in Scripture for their repentance at Jonah’s wa
• Nisan — Nisan is the first month of the Jewish religious calendar, roughly corresponding to March–April. In Scripture it is associated wit
• Nissi — A Hebrew expression from Exodus 17:15 meaning “The LORD is my banner.” It refers to the altar name Moses gave after Israel’s victo
• Nitre — A biblical cleansing substance, probably a natural alkali or soda-like mineral rather than modern saltpeter.
• No bones broken — The phrase points to the biblical pattern that none of the Passover lamb’s bones were to be broken and that Jesus’ bones were not
• No-True-Scotsman Fallacy — A fallacy in which a speaker protects a general claim by redefining the group so counterexamples are excluded without principled j
• Noadiah — Noadiah is a biblical personal name borne by at least two Old Testament figures: a prophetess who opposed Nehemiah and a Levite co
• Noah — Noah is the righteous man preserved through the flood.
• Noah, Covenant of — The covenant with Noah is God’s post-flood promise to preserve the earth from another worldwide flood and to sustain the regular o
• Noahic covenant — Noahic covenant is a biblical term describing covenant order, covenant response, or covenant judgment under God.
• Nob — Nob was a priestly town in Benjamin, near Jerusalem, known for David’s visit to Ahimelech and the later slaughter of its priests u
• Nobleman — A nobleman is a man of rank, wealth, or official standing, often connected with a royal court or government service in biblical na
• Nod — Nod is the land east of Eden where Cain settled after the Lord judged him for killing Abel.
• Noetic effects of sin — Noetic effects of sin is a theological term describing some aspect of sin's ruin, bondage, or brokenness.
• Nominalism — Nominalism is the philosophical view that universals exist only as names or concepts rather than as real shared entities.
• Nomos — Nomos is the Greek word for law, but in the New Testament and especially in Paul its force depends on context and does not always
• Non sequitur — A non sequitur is an argument in which the conclusion does not logically follow from the premises.
• Non-miraculous gifts — A theological label for Spirit-given abilities and ministries that usually operate through ordinary Christian service rather than
• Nonmaleficence — Nonmaleficence is the ethical principle that one should avoid causing harm or injury to others. It is often summarized as a duty t
• Noosphere — A philosophical term for the sphere of human thought, culture, and consciousness considered as a collective layer of reality. It i
• North — North is a geographic direction used throughout Scripture to locate places, describe movements, and frame prophetic language about
• Northern Kingdom — The Northern Kingdom was the northern half of the divided monarchy after Solomon, usually called Israel in the Old Testament, and
• Nose Jewel — A nose jewel is a piece of ancient personal adornment mentioned in Scripture, usually understood as a ring or ornament worn on the
• Notable Women — An overview of significant women in the Bible whose lives, faith, and actions play important roles in redemptive history.
• Nouthetic counseling — A modern Christian counseling model, popularized by Jay E. Adams, that stresses biblical admonition, repentance, personal responsi
• Novatianism — Novatianism was a third-century Christian rigorist movement associated with Novatian that denied restoration to some baptized beli
• NT canon recognition — NT canon recognition is the church’s historical acknowledgment of the New Testament books God had already given as Scripture. It d
• NT manuscript families — A scholarly term for proposed groupings of New Testament manuscripts that share similar patterns of readings.
• Numbers — Numbers is an Old Testament wilderness book that records Israel's failures, wanderings, and God's preserving faithfulness.
• Numismatics — Numismatics is the study of coins, currency, and related monetary objects. In Bible study, it helps explain the economic, politica
• Nunc Dimittis — The traditional Latin title for Simeon’s song in Luke 2:29–32, celebrating God’s salvation in Jesus Christ.
• nurture — Nurture is the patient cultivation of growth, maturity, and well-being in those under one’s care.
• Nymphas — Nymphas is a Christian mentioned in Colossians 4:15 in connection with a church that met in this person’s home. The name is a prop
• Stater / Shekel — A stater was a silver coin mentioned in Matthew 17:27, commonly understood as worth about a shekel and sufficient to pay the templ
• Thousand — In Scripture, “thousand” is usually a literal number, but in some poetic, proverbial, or apocalyptic settings it can function as a