Question 1

What does "Altar" mean in the King James Bible?

Accepted Answer

In the KJV, "Altar" means "church furniture." The blood and the meeting. Mizbeach meant 'place of slaughter' -- altars were soaked in blood because life was being given to enable encounter with God. When Noah built an altar after the flood, he was not decorating -- he was establishing the intersection point between heaven and earth. The altar was not furniture but a portal.

Question 2

Why did the word "Altar" disappear from modern English?

Accepted Answer

Hebrew mizbeach ('place of slaughter/the meeting point between heaven and earth') reduced to 'church furniture' -- a decorative table at the front of a building rather than the blood-soaked meeting point between God and humanity. The word was at peak usage around 1611 and declined by still used but ceremonialized (~1800).

Question 3

What modern word replaced "Altar"?

Accepted Answer

"Altar" was replaced by: "communion table" (though this furniture; the altar was where life was given and heaven met earth); "prayer rail" (though this a place to kneel; the altar was where blood was shed and covenant ratified); "platform" (though this performance space; the altar was the most dangerous and sacred spot in the universe).

What Does “Altar” Mean in the Bible?

What Was Lost