teraphim

American  

[ter-uh-fim] / ˈtɛr ə fɪm /

plural noun

1. idols or images reverenced by the ancient Hebrews and kindred peoples, apparently as household gods.

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Etymology

Origin of teraphim

1350–1400; < Hebrew tərāphīm; replacing Middle English theraphym < Late Latin theraphim (Vulgate) < Greek theraphín (Septuagint) < Hebrew, as above

Example Sentences

And forgive too,' she breathed, 'that I stole the teraphim.'

From Time Magazine Archive

And the priest's heart was glad, and he took the ephod, and the teraphim, and the graven image, and went in the midst of the people.'

From By the Christmas Fire by Crothers, Samuel McChord

The home of the average Israelite had its teraphim and other domestic divinities.

From The Right and Wrong Uses of the Bible by Newton, R. Heber

Rachel, it appears, believed that the teraphim of her father Laban were capable of giving her information concerning things hidden and to come.

From The Phantom World or, The philosophy of spirits, apparitions, &c, &c. by Christmas, Henry

With regard to the teraphim which Rachel took with her when Jacob fled from her father, there is not much that can be said.

From The Old Testament In the Light of The Historical Records and Legends of Assyria and Babylonia by Pinches, Theophilus Goldridge