Chapter 5: Synonyms

In the process of time words take on different meanings and are used in different ways. Different words are often used to convey a general idea or concept but carry slightly different shades of meaning. For example, the words wonder, surprise, admiration, astonishment, and amazement all carry the same general idea yet slightly different meanings. When interpreting the Scriptures it is helpful to possess the skill to be able to discover Hebrew and Greek synonyms. This area of scholarship is rarely touched upon by scholars. Both spiritual and intellectual discipline is needed to discern synonymous terms of Scripture. Yet, the patient exercise in this field is worth the effort.

For example, there are several words in Hebrew that convey the idea of killing or putting to death. One Hebrew word means a cutting off as found in Psalm 139:19, “Surely thou wilt slay the wicked, O God…” Another Hebrew word that conveys the general idea of killing is found in Joshua 10:26, “And afterward Joshua smote them, and slew them…” where in this case the shade of meaning is the causing of the death, in this case, Joshua. In the former Hebrew word the idea of a death occurring is present, but the cause of it is not found in the meaning of the term. This usage of the word is found over two hundred times in Scripture and is never used for murder. It is the soldier, governor, or the Lord that causes one to die. The Hebrew word ratsach is yet another word used for killing, but in this case the meaning is the act of murder or manslaughter. It is this word that we find in Exodus 20:13, “Thou shalt not kill.” Too often those uninformed in the synonymous Hebrew words for killing have misinterpreted or misunderstanding Exodus 20:13.

The same can be found in the Greek language of the New Testament. There are two Greek terms translated life in our English Bibles. The first is bios and commonly refers to the means of living for the present life. The widow in Mark 12:44 cast into the treasury her whole living, or all that was necessary for her present life. In Luke 8:14 we see that this women spent her whole living on physicians. The second term is zoe is mainly used in the New Testament to mean essential life possessed by man, whether in this life or the next. Jesus give eternal zoe, life, not eternal bios. It should be clear that by gaining some understanding of the synonyms of words may yield much profit to the biblical interpreter.