ACROSTIC - a writing in which the first or last letters of each line create a word or the sequence of the alphabet. Most poems in the Hebrew Bible which are acrostics (e.g., Ps. 119, Lam. 1, 2, 3, 4) are constructed so that the first letters of lines create the Hebrew alphabet in proper order.

Why might an acrostic have been used?

• Helps to memorize the poem since each succeeding line begins with the next letter of the alphabet - but this may help the eye more than the ear
• Has magical power - no real evidence of this understanding in Israel
• Represents completion - by using every letter of the Hebrew alphabet in sequence as the first letters of lines, the completeness of joy or grief would be symbolically demonstrated - most probablt explanation

ANTHROPOMORPHIC - a term referring to describing non-human beings in human terms. In the Hebrew Bible God is often described in human terms as having human features and emotions. While God and humanity are similar since humans are made in God's image, we must be careful not to conceive of God as simply a greater human being. See also Creation

`APIRU - the designation used for a group of nomadic people who were present all over the Ancient Near East in the 2nd millennium B.C.E. Since the word `Apiru (sometimes "Habiru") is so similar to the word "Hebrew," some scholars at first believed the `Apiru were identical to the Hebrews. Now we know the `Apiru were not an ethnic group but a class of people who lived on the fringes of the dominant society. Often the `Apiru were enslaved, while at other times they were employed for menial labor or as common mercenaries. At times the `Apiru were associated with outlaws who were also outside the dominant social structure. Individuals who had become burdened by debt could fairly easily escape the small city-states of the day to flee to other locations where they might find work (even menial) or live as outlaws. The `Apiru ceased to exist as a class after 1000 B.C.E. See also the Call of Moses

APOCRYPHA - a term referring to thirteen books or additions to Hebrew Bible books not included in the canon of the Hebrew Bible. The Septuagint and most current translations of the Apocrypha include these books. The thirteen books are Epistle of Jeremiah, Tobit, Judith, 3 Ezra, Additions to Esther, Additions to Daniel (The Prayer of Azariah and the Song of the Three Young Men, Susanna, and Bel and the Dragon), 1 Baruch, Ben Sira, Wisdom of Solomon, and 1 and 2 Maccabees. Sometimes 4 Ezra and Prayer of Manasseh are included but it is doubtful that these two were ever part of the Apocrypha. With the exception of Wisdom of Solomon and 2 Maccabees, all of the books were originally written in a Semitic language somewhere in Palestine. Wisdom of Solomon and 2 Maccabees were written in Greek probably in Alexandria. The word apocrypha means "hidden." The designation may refer to the fact that the books were not considered part of the canon by the Jews and were thus to be hidden and not used as scripture.

APODICTIC LAW - a term referring to a type of law in which some action is either prohibited or mandated but no penalty is noted for infractions of the law. Often apodictic law is phrased as "Do" or "Don't do." The Ten Commandments (Exod. 20:1-17, Deut. 5:6-21) provide excellent examples of apodictic law.

APOTROPAIC - intending to avert evil. An apotropaic ritual would be a ritual performed in the hopes of avoiding evil that might come upon the worshiper by providing a sacrifice or vow that would placate a deity/deities or assure the deity/deities of the worshiper's loyalty.

ARCHAEOLOGY - the science of studying the material remains of ancient cultures in an effort to understand ancient peoples and their cultures better. Material remains include broken pottery, materials found in ancient garbage dumps, buildings, and, more rarely, written materials. The most frequent remains encountered are everyday utensils such as pottery. Most of the digging of archaeology continues to be performed using hand tools like trowels and brushes. The work is painstaking as archaeologists slowly dig into a tell sifting through what is found. When material is discovered the expertise of anthropologists, botanists, zoologists, and others may be needed to interpret the findings properly. Materials and settlements can be dated through pottery, writing style, and carbon-14 testing among other methods. Interpretation of findings can be difficult which can lead to various opinions based on the same findings, but archaeology continues to illuminate the ancient world. See also Methods of Studying the Hebrew Bible

ARK OF THE COVENANT - a rectangular box made in the time of Moses which held a copy of the Ten Commandments and was enshrined in the Holy of Holies in the Tabernacle and later Solomon's Temple. The Ark of the Covenant was also referred to as the Ark of God/the Lord, Ark of the Testimony (Josh. 4:16), Ark of the Covenant of the Lord (1 Sam. 4:3-5), or the Ark (Num. 10:35). The Hebrew word used for the Ark means "chest" (cf. 2 Kings 12:9-10) or "coffin" (cf. Gen. 50:26). A different Hebrew word is used for the ark constructed by Noah (Gen. 6:14).

The longest account of the origin of the Ark is in Exod. 37:1-15. A craftsman named Bezalel constructed the Ark out of acacia according to God's specific instructions. The Ark was 1.5 cubits wide and deep and 2.5 cubits in length. The box was overlaid with gold. Four feet were created for the Ark with each foot having a golden ring. Two wooden poles overlaid with gold were slipped through these rings so the Ark could be carried. The poles remained constantly in the Ark. The top of the Ark was crafted of pure gold and featured two cherubim, one on each end, facing one another with wings outstretched toward one another. The account in Deut. 10:1-5 is not as elaborate and focuses on the Ark as the container of the stone tablets on which the Ten Commandments were written.

According to Hebrews 9:4 states that the Ark contained not only the stone tablets upon which the Ten Commandments had been written but also a golden jar containing manna and Aaron's rod which had blossomed. The Hebrew Bible mentions these two latter objects but states they were placed before the covenant (Ark?) and not inside the Ark (Exod. 16:32-34, Num. 17:8-10)

Israelites conceived of the Ark in a variety of ways. For some the Ark represented the very presence of God (Num. 10:35-36). For some God was enthroned upon the cherubim (1 Sam. 4:4) while for others the Ark was merely His footstool (1 Chron. 28:2, Pss. 99:5, 132:7). The Ark was a place where Moses met God (Lev. 16:2, Num. 7:89) but God was not confined to the Ark. At other times the Ark had no mystical significance at all but was simply a container for the Ten Commandments (Deut. 10:1-5).

No one knows what happened to the Ark. The Hebrew Bible does not provide any answer to the question. Some believe the Ark was taken by Shishak in the 10th century B.C.E. (1 Kings 14:25-28). Others think King Jehoash of Israel took it when he plundered the Temple (2 Kings 14:8-14) or that Manasseh removed it when he was "reforming" Temple worship (2 Kings 21:4-6). The Ark existed in Josiah's time, however (2 Chron. 35:3), but seemed to have been moved from place to place before it found its home again in the Temple. The fact that the Ark is not mentioned among the spoils Nebuchadnezzar took from the Temple further complicates the matter (2 Kings 25:13-17, Jer. 52:17-23).

Varying traditions have evolved to explain the Ark's disappearance. One tradition credits Jeremiah with taking the Ark and hiding it. Variations of this tradition have Jeremiah taking the Ark, the tent, and the altar of incense, and hiding them either at Mt. Sinai or below the Temple. Still another tradition stated that an angel descended and rescued the sacred items of the Temple from the invading Babylonian army. Modern claims are that the Ark is buried in Egypt, hidden under the Temple mount, or hidden in a monastery in Ethiopia. Probably the Ark was destroyed. Jeremiah stated the Ark would no longer be needed (Jer. 3:16). Perhaps he knew it had been destroyed or at least hidden never to be found or used again. In any event, the Second Temple and Herod's Temple did not contain the Ark.