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Tyndale Open Bible Dictionary

Intro ← Index → ©

HOUSE OF GOD

Common phrase used in the ancient Near Eastern world for a structure used to accommodate a deity or his servants. In the OT it referred to the tabernacle (Dt 23:18; 1 Chr 6:31-32), Solomon’s temple (1 Kgs 8:11-20; 12:27; Jer 20:1), national shrines, or pagan temples (Jgs 9:4; 2 Kgs 10:21).

In NT times the OT custom of referring to the temple as the “house of God” was still employed (Mt 12:4; Mk 2:26; 11:17; Lk 6:4; Jn 2:16-17), but with some significant changes. After Christ’s ascension, the church viewed itself as the house of God (1 Cor 3:9; Heb 3:6; 1 Pt 2:5; 4:17). God no longer dwelt in buildings made by human hands but in the lives of those who confess Jesus as Lord.

See also Tabernacle; Temple.