Shemoth (Exodus) 25:17-20: "Make a kaporeth (a cover) of pure gold (for the Ark of the Covenant)... Make two golden keruvim; hammer them out from the two ends of the kaporeth... The keruvim will spread their wings upward, covering with their wings over the kaporeth, and they shall face each other..."
The Ark of the Covenant was a guilded wooden box, 1.5 cubits (~2.5 feet) wide, 2.5 cubits (~4.5 feet) in length, and another 1.5 cubits in height, as described in v. 10. Its purpose was containment of the Stone Tablets of the Law that were given to Mosheh (Moses) upon Mt. Sinay. The opening verses of this post detail the instructions for making the cover of the Ark, including the formation of two winged images, called keruvim out of the very gold of the cover itself. What were these keruvim? Rashi explains (v. 18), based on the gemara in Sukah (5B):
"'keruvim' - They had the facial appearance of a baby."
Apparently, there were two baby-faced winged images which stood atop the Ark of the Covenant. In English, we use the same word for similarly winged baby-like creatures -- cherubs! It is clear that the English "cherub" is the same word and creature as the Hebrew keruv!
Similarly, the word for the cover of the Ark, the kaporeth, is remarkably similar to its meaning in English, "cover."
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