BIBLE DICTIONARY + WORD STUDY
How to read this: there is rarely one magic “true meaning” hidden behind an English word. A lexicon records a word’s semantic range. The intended meaning is narrowed by grammar, sentence, author, historical usage and context.
HEBREW / ARAMAIC · H3742
ke.ruv — cherub
1) cherub, cherubim (pl) 1a) an angelic being 1a1) as guardians of Eden 1a2) as flanking God's throne 1a3) as an image form hovering over the Ark of the Covenant 1a4) as the chariot of Jehovah (fig.)
44 tagged verse occurrences · see every occurrence →HEBREW / ARAMAIC · H3743
ke.ruv — Cherub
§ Cherub = "blessing" an apparent exilic settlement in Babylonia from which some persons of doubtful extraction returned with Zerubbabel
2 tagged verse occurrences · see every occurrence →GREEK · G5502
cheroubim — Cherub
Χερουβείν (Rec. -βίμ), τά (Heb. כְּרוּב), Cherubim: Heb.9:6 (cf. Exo.25:17 (18), al.; see DB, i, 377 ff.).† (AS)
1 tagged verse occurrence · see every occurrence →HEBREW / ARAMAIC · H6440
pa.neh — face: before
: before/to/front 1) face 1a) face, faces 1b) presence, person 1c) face (of seraphim or cherubim) 1d) face (of animals) 1e) face, surface (of ground) 1f) as adv of loc/temp 1f1) before and behind, toward, in front of, forward, formerly, from beforetime, before 1g) with prep 1g1) in front of, before, to the front of, in the presence of, in the face of, at the face or front of, from the presence of, from before, from before the face of
1752 tagged verse occurrences · see every occurrence →HEBREW / ARAMAIC · H7272
re.gel — foot
1) foot 1a) foot, leg 1b) of God (anthropomorphic) 1c) of seraphim, cherubim, idols, animals, table 1d) according to the pace of (with prep) 1e) three times (feet, paces) Aramaic equivalent: re.gal (רְגַל "foot" H7271)
214 tagged verse occurrences · see every occurrence →HEBREW / ARAMAIC · H3727
kap.po.ret — mercy seat
1) mercy-seat, place of atonement 1a) the golden plate of propitiation on which the High Priest sprinkled the seat 7 times on the Day of Atonement symbolically reconciling Jehovah and His chosen people 1a1) the slab of gold on top of the ark of the covenant which measured 2.5 by 1.5 cubits; on it and part of it were the two golden cherubim facing each other whose outstretched wings came together above and constituted the throne of God
22 tagged verse occurrences · see every occurrence →HEBREW / ARAMAIC · H5353
ne.qo.da — Nekoda
A man living at the time of Exile and Return, first mentioned at Ezr.2.48 § Nekoda = "distinguished" 1) head of a family of temple slaves returning from exile to Jerusalem with Zerubbabel 2) head of a family of exiles who were from Tel Melah, Tel Harsha, Cherub, Addan, and Immer and who could not identify their father's house or their genealogy being of Israel and who returned with Zerubbabel
4 tagged verse occurrences · see every occurrence →GREEK · G9717
cheroub — a cherub
a cherub
0 tagged verse occurrences · see every occurrence →Plural cherubim, the name of certain symbolical figures frequently mentioned in Scripture. They are first mentioned in connection with the expulsion of our first parents from Eden (Gen. 3:24). There is no intimation given of their shape or form. They are next mentioned when Moses was commanded to provide furniture for the tabernacle (Ex. 25:17-20; 26:1, 31). God promised to commune with Moses “from between the cherubim” (25:22). This expression was afterwards used to denote the Divine abode and presence (Num. 7:89; 1 Sam. 4:4; Isa. 37:16; Ps. 80:1; 99:1). In Ezekiel’s vision (10:1-20) they appear as living creatures supporting the throne of God. From Ezekiel’s description of them (1;10; 41:18, 19), they appear to have been compound figures, unlike any real object in nature; artificial images possessing the features and properties of several animals. Two cherubim were placed on the mercy-seat of the ark; two of colossal size overshadowed it in Solomon’s temple. Ezekiel (1:4-14) speaks of four; and this number of “living creatures” is mentioned in Rev. 4:6. Those on the ark are called the “cherubim of glory” (Heb. 9:5), i.e., of the Shechinah, or cloud of glory, for on them the visible glory of God rested. They were placed one at each end of the mercy-seat, with wings stretched upward, and their faces “toward each other and toward the mercy-seat.” They were anointed with holy oil, like the ark itself and the other sacred furniture. The cherubim were symbolical. They were intended to represent spiritual existences in immediate contact with Jehovah. Some have regarded them as symbolical of the chief ruling power by which God carries on his operations in providence (Ps. 18:10). Others interpret them as having reference to the redemption of men, and as symbolizing the great rulers or ministers of the church. Many other opinions have been held regarding them which need not be referred to here. On the whole, it seems to be most satisfactory to regard the interpretation of the symbol to be variable, as is the symbol itself. Their office was, (1) on the expulsion of our first parents from Eden, to prevent all access to the tree of life; and (2) to form the throne and chariot of Jehovah in his manifestation of himself on earth. He dwelleth between and sitteth on the cherubim (1 Sam. 4:4; Ps. 80:1; Ezek. 1:26, 28).
Source: Easton’s Bible Dictionary (1897). Historical dictionary wording reflects the scholarship and language of its era.
