the Week of Proper 26 / Ordinary 31
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Bible Encyclopedias
Creature
The 1901 Jewish Encyclopedia
or A loose rendering in the A. V. of:
- "Nefesh" ("a breathing thing"; Genesis 1:20 et seq., 2:19, 9:10 et seq.; Leviticus 11:46).
- "Beri'ah" ("creation"; R. V. better, "a new thing"; Numbers 16:30).
- "Ḥayyot" ("heavenly animals"; Ezekiel 1:5 et seq., 10:15; Septuagint, ζῶον).
In Apocryphal literature "creature" is the translation of κÏίÏμα or κÏίÏÎ¹Ï (
or 
), and denotes either creation in general (Wisdom. 5:17, 19:6; Judith 9:12, 16:14; III Macc. 2:2) or mankind (Ecclus. [Sirach] 16:16; Wisdom 16:24). In rabbinical literature "beriyyot" is the regular term for fellow creatures or mankind (Abot 1:12, "Love the creatures"; ib. 2:10, 3:11; Ber. 19b, "Respect of the creatures"). Hence, also, Mark 16:15; Colossians 1:23; Romans 8:19; and 2:13 (A. V. renders, incorrectly, "every human ordinance"; see Taylor, "Sayings of the Jewish Fathers," 2d ed., pp. 21, 141).
The phrase "a new creature," in the sense of "regeneration," which occurs in 2 Corinthians 5:17, and Galatians 6:15, represents the rabbinical "beriyyah ḥadashah." See BAPTISM.
These files are public domain.
Singer, Isidore, Ph.D, Projector and Managing Editor. Entry for 'Creature'. 1901 The Jewish Encyclopedia. https://www.studylight.org/encyclopedias/eng/tje/c/creature.html. 1901.
