Glossary

adultery ~ when a married person has sex with someone that is not the persons husband or wife. almighty ~ when someone has enough power to defeat all his enemies; the Person who is better than everyone else; the *Lord over everything; the Person who has power over everything. almond ~ a kind of tree with pink flowers; a nut that this tree produces. altar ~ a table that people made out of stone or metal. People burned gifts to God (*sacrifices) on it. Amorites ~ a group of people that lived in the country called Canaan. ancestor ~ a relative that lived a long time ago. A persons parents are *descendants of such a relative. angels ~ Gods servants from *heaven, who sometimes bring Gods messages to people. ark ~ the big boat that Noah built; or a box that someone has made out of wood. arrow ~ a stick with a point on it. People shoot it from a bow. backward ~ when people go in the direction where their back is; the opposite direction to forward. balm ~ an oily, sticky substance from a tree. It smells good. People used it to cure troubles in peoples skin. And they used it to make the skin feel comfortable. barren ~ a description of a married woman who has no children. birthright ~ the oldest son had the birthright in the *Old Testament. He would be the leader of his family when his father died. And he would get a double share of the things that had belonged to his father. Sometimes in the Book of Genesis, a younger son actually received the birthright. Each time, there were special reasons why the birthright did not belong to the oldest son. bless ~ to give someone a *blessing; or to be kind to someone; or to do good things for someone; or to promise good things to someone. blessing ~ a good thing that God does for us; or when we ask God to help a person; or when we ask God to do something good in that person. In the Book of Genesis, blessings were often a type of *prophecy. bony ~ so thin that people can see where the bones are, under the skin. bow ~ to bend ones body over to respect someone else. To bow ones head means to bend ones head forward. bracelets ~ large rings that women put round their arms to make them beautiful. buds ~ they grow on a plant or tree. Then they open out and they become flowers (or leaves). burnt offering ~ something that someone burns as a gift in order to please God. butler ~ a male servant that serves wine in a *household. And maybe he arranges the table and he does other such things there. Canaanites ~ people that were living in Canaan, the country that God had promised to the *Israelites. The Canaanites were already living in that country before the *Israelites went there. cattle ~ animals that people look after in order to get milk or meat from them. They include cows.

chariot ~ a kind of car that horses pulled. Soldiers could ride in it when they fought. Or important people could ride in it. cherubim ~ special *angels that live with God in *heaven. circumcise ~ to cut off the loose skin from the end of a boys or mans sex part. circumcision ~ when someone cuts off the loose skin from the end of the male sex part; something that specially reminds people about Gods agreement with Israel. For *Israelites, it was a proof that a man agreed to obey Gods laws. Or it might show that a person had a good, innocent spirit. clay ~ a kind of earth. When it is dry, it is heavy and firm. When it is wet, it is stiff but also fairly soft. clean ~ a clean animal was an animal that God allowed the *Jews to eat. cloak ~ a large piece of warm cloth. People wore it on top of other clothes. And they used it as a blanket at night. concubine ~ a woman that lives with a man but she is not his wife; or people do not know her as his wife. confirm ~ say something again so that people will certainly believe it. covenant ~ an agreement between two or more people, in which they all have responsibilities; such an agreement between God and a person (or people). creation ~ when God made the world; and when he made everything that exists; everything that God has made. creatures ~ many things that live are creatures. They include all animals, insects and things that crawl. They do not include people, trees, plants or things similar to plants. God made all creatures. cubit ~ a measurement that people used to measure length. It is equal to 18 inches (about 45 centimetres). curse ~ say that something bad will happen to a person or thing by Gods (or a false gods) power; when someone curses a person or thing; what someone says when they curse a person or thing. In the Book of Genesis, the word curse often means a *prophecy about future troubles. deer ~ a graceful animal that can run fast. A male deer has two hard bony things like branches that grow on top of its head. descendant ~ a child, grandchild, and so on; a person in your family who lives after you are dead. dew ~ water on the ground at night. It comes from the air. dome ~ a roof with a round top. Here, it means a very big roof over the whole earth. donkey ~ an animal like a small horse. It carries things or people. dove ~ a kind of bird. People consider it a gentle bird. drunk ~ a description of a person who has had too much alcohol. Such a person cannot think clearly. And that person does not behave in a sensible manner. ear (of corn) ~ in a corn plant, the part that contains the grains. It is at the top of the stem. Edomites ~ the *descendants of Jacobs brother Esau, who was also called Edom. Egyptian ~ a person from the country called Egypt; when someone or something is from Egypt. faithful ~ loyal; when someone does what they promise. famine ~ a time when plants for food do not grow, so people cannot eat food from them.

feast ~ a very big, special meal; a special time when people eat a lot and they drink a lot. People usually have a feast for a certain special reason. flesh ~ the soft material that covers a persons bones. flock ~ a large group of such animals as sheep. flute ~ something like a tube that has holes in it. People blow into it in order to make music. foreskin ~ the loose skin at the end of a boys or mans sex part.