Digital JesusEverything you need to know about Jesus.

Glossary

Every unfamiliar word on this site, defined in plain language. One to three sentences each — no jargon without explanation.

Disciple

A student-follower of a teacher. Jesus gathered many disciples, with a close circle of twelve — the apostles — traveling with him full-time.

Apostle

Literally “one sent out.” In the Gospels, the twelve disciples Jesus chose and commissioned (Matthew 10:2–4; Mark 3:16–19; Luke 6:14–16); after the resurrection the title broadens to those sent to spread the message.

Parable

A short, earthy story Jesus told to illustrate a truth about the kingdom of God — drawn from farming, fishing, feasts, and family life. The research catalogues 43 of them; the most famous are the Good Samaritan and the Prodigal Son.

Pharisee

“Separated ones.” The popular lay religious party — Torah scholars influential with ordinary people. They held to both the written Torah and oral tradition, believed in the resurrection of the dead and angels, and were Jesus’ most frequent dialogue partners — and sharpest critics.

Sadducee

The priestly aristocracy centered on the Jerusalem Temple; they supplied the high priests and dominated the Sanhedrin. They accepted only the written Torah, denied the resurrection and angels, and cooperated with Rome to protect their position. They faded after the Temple’s destruction in AD 70.

Essene

A separatist, purity-focused Jewish sect that withdrew to desert communities — most famously Qumran by the Dead Sea, associated with the Dead Sea Scrolls. They are not named anywhere in the New Testament.

Zealot

The anti-Roman resistance movement: Jews who held that submitting to Gentile rule violated God’s sole kingship and backed armed revolt. Simon the Zealot, one of the Twelve, likely came from this milieu.

Sanhedrin

The Jewish council in Jerusalem — seventy-one members plus the high priest — composed of chief priests, elders, and scribes. It handled religious and civil law under Roman oversight but could not carry out capital punishment, which is why, on the Gospel accounts, Jesus’ case had to go to Pilate.

Kingdom of God

Jesus’ central teaching theme: God’s long-promised reign, arriving in and through him. He announced it as “at hand” (Mark 1:15), illustrated it with parables (the Mustard Seed, the Treasure in the Field), and told Pilate it was “not of this world” (John 18:36).

Messiah / Christ

Messiah is Hebrew, Christ (Christos) is Greek — both mean “anointed one,” the promised king from David’s line whom many Jews expected. Christians confess Jesus as that promised one; hence “Jesus Christ” is a title (“Jesus the Messiah”), not a surname.

Son of Man

Jesus’ characteristic self-designation in the Gospels — used over 80 times, almost always by Jesus about himself. It draws on Daniel 7’s vision of a heavenly figure given eternal dominion, and he applies it both to his suffering (“the Son of Man came… to give his life as a ransom for many,” Mark 10:45) and to his coming glory.

Atonement

In Christian doctrine, what Jesus’ death accomplishes: the reconciliation of sinful humanity to God. The Nicene Creed puts it as “for us and for our salvation.” It is the single most-asked newcomer question the community research found.

Incarnation

The Christian doctrine that the eternal Son of God became truly human — “by the power of the Holy Spirit He became incarnate from the Virgin Mary, and was made man” (Nicene Creed). Christians teach he is fully God and fully man, one person with two natures (defined at Chalcedon, 451).

Resurrection

Christians believe Jesus rose bodily from the dead on the third day after his crucifixion — “On the third day He rose again in accordance with the Scriptures” (Nicene Creed). It is distinct from the ascension (below): newcomers often conflate the two.

Ascension

Christians believe that forty days after the resurrection, Jesus was taken up into heaven from the Mount of Olives in the presence of the disciples (Luke 24:50–53; Acts 1:6–11).

Parousia

Greek for “presence” or “arrival” — the theological term for Christ’s Second Coming in glory to judge the living and the dead (Nicene Creed: “He will come again in glory… and His kingdom will have no end”).

Theotokos

Greek for “Godbearer” or “Mother of God” — the Eastern Orthodox (and Catholic) title for Mary, affirming that the child she bore is truly God incarnate. It is about Jesus’ identity, not about elevating Mary to divinity.

Tekton

The Greek word for Jesus’ trade (Mark 6:3) — a craftsman or builder working in wood, stone, or metal, not “carpenter” in the modern narrow sense. Stone-masonry is considered as likely as woodwork given Galilean building materials.

Synagogue

The local Jewish house of gathering for prayer, Scripture reading, and teaching — distinct from the single Temple in Jerusalem. Jesus regularly taught in synagogues across Galilee (e.g., Luke 4:16).

Temple

The great sanctuary in Jerusalem — the center of Jewish worship, sacrifice, and priestly life, rebuilt on a grand scale by Herod the Great. Jesus’ controversy about the Temple is one of Sanders’ “bedrock” historical facts; it was destroyed by Rome in AD 70.

Torah

The first five books of the Hebrew Bible (Genesis through Deuteronomy), containing God’s law given through Moses. Pharisees interpreted it through oral tradition as well; Sadducees accepted only this written text.

Gentile

Any non-Jew. Jesus confined his own ministry largely to Israel (Sanders’ bedrock point 4), while the early church — beginning with Peter’s reception of Cornelius (Acts 10) — carried the message to the Gentile world.

Samaritan

Not a Jewish sect but a separate Israelite people, descended from the northern kingdom’s population intermingled with Assyrian settlers (2 Kings 17). They accepted only the Pentateuch and worshiped on Mount Gerizim, and Jews of Jesus’ day regarded them with religious hostility — which is why the Good Samaritan (Luke 10:25–37) and the Samaritan woman (John 4) were so provocative.

Baptism

The rite of immersion in (or washing with) water signifying repentance and entry into new life. John the Baptist baptized Jesus in the Jordan (c. AD 28–29); the church then made baptism the entry rite for believers (about three thousand at Pentecost, Acts 2).

Eucharist / Communion

The Christian sacrament of bread and wine instituted at the Last Supper (“this is my body… this is my blood,” Matthew 26:26–28; Mark 14:22–24; Luke 22:19–20). Catholics teach transubstantiation, the Orthodox affirm real presence as mystery, Lutherans teach consubstantiation, and many other Protestants hold a spiritual-presence or memorial view.

Creed

A concise, authoritative statement of Christian belief. The Nicene Creed (325/381) is shared by Catholic, Orthodox, and many Protestant churches; the shorter Apostles’ Creed is widely used in Protestant worship.

Gospel (genre + message)

As a genre, a Gospel is one of the four New Testament narratives of Jesus’ life, death, and resurrection (Matthew, Mark, Luke, John). As a message, “gospel” (euangelion, “good news”) is what Jesus proclaimed: “The time is fulfilled, and God’s Kingdom is at hand! Repent, and believe in the Good News” (Mark 1:15 WEB).

Miracle

An event Christians attribute to divine power breaking into ordinary experience. The Gospels record 37 of Jesus’ miracles — healings, exorcisms, nature miracles (stilling the storm), and raisings from the dead. Historians agree he had a contemporary reputation as a healer and exorcist, while verifying any individual event lies outside historical method.

Prophecy

In the biblical sense, Spirit-inspired speech conveying God’s message — including (but not limited to) foretelling. Christians read Jesus’ birth in Bethlehem as fulfilling Micah 5:2, and his “before Abraham was, I AM” (John 8:58) as the climax of his self-revelation.

Trinity

The Christian doctrine of one God in three co-equal, co-eternal persons — Father, Son, and Holy Spirit. Christians teach each person is fully God, not a third of God; the word “Trinity” itself does not appear in the Bible.

Sola scriptura

Latin for “Scripture alone” — the Protestant teaching that the Bible is the ultimate, infallible authority for faith and practice, with church tradition subordinate and testable against it. Catholics instead teach Scripture plus Sacred Tradition interpreted by the magisterium; the Orthodox teach Scripture within Holy Tradition.

Transubstantiation

The Catholic teaching that at the consecration in the Eucharist, the substance of bread and wine becomes the body and blood of Christ (body, blood, soul, and divinity), while the outward properties remain unchanged.

Passover

The Jewish festival commemorating the Exodus from Egypt, celebrated each spring with a sacrificial meal. All four Gospels place Jesus’ crucifixion at Passover season; the Synoptics present the Last Supper as the Passover meal, while John places the crucifixion on the day of Preparation (14 Nisan) — a genuine, unresolved chronological tension.

Sabbath

The seventh day of the week, commanded as a day of rest in the Torah. Jesus’ Sabbath healings and his disciples’ Sabbath actions sparked repeated controversies with the Pharisees — and his reply, “The Sabbath was made for man, and not man for the Sabbath” (Mark 2:27 WEB), became one of his most quoted principles.

Crucifixion

The Roman penalty for rebels, slaves, and political criminals — public, slow, and deliberately degrading. That Rome, not the Sanhedrin, executed Jesus (the charge: “King of the Jews,” Mark 15:26) indicates he was perceived as a political threat. The Gospels agree it happened on a Friday at Passover under Pontius Pilate; the year (AD 30 or 33) is disputed.

Sermon on the Mount

Jesus’ great discourse in Matthew 5–7 — the Beatitudes, the Lord’s Prayer, the Golden Rule, and his ethical teaching (“love your enemies,” “turn the other cheek”). Luke’s parallel “Sermon on the Plain” (Luke 6:20–49) draws on the same material; scholars treat it as a compilation of teaching rather than a single datable event.

Beatitudes

The opening blessings of the Sermon on the Mount: “Blessed are the poor in spirit… those who mourn… the gentle… those who hunger and thirst after righteousness… the merciful… the pure in heart… the peacemakers… those persecuted for righteousness’ sake” (Matthew 5:3–10 WEB). They invert the world’s values: blessedness belongs to the humble and merciful, not the powerful.

Lord’s Prayer

The model prayer Jesus gave his disciples: “Our Father in heaven, may your name be kept holy. Let your Kingdom come. Let your will be done on earth as it is in heaven. Give us today our daily bread. Forgive us our debts, as we also forgive our debtors. Bring us not into temptation, but deliver us from the evil one” (Matthew 6:9–13 WEB).

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