Words

Let’s take a break from the political columns and talk about something that’s not controversial. How about religion?

A lot of phrases from the Bible are in common use today.

• My cup runneth over (Psalm 23:5)

• Turn the other cheek (Matthew 5:39)

• By the sweat of your brow (Genesis 3:19)

• How the mighty have fallen. (2 Samuel 1:25)

Most folks with a rudimentary Christian education know those sayings are from the Bible. But of course, we know them from the English translations.

Just a warning at this point. This was going to be a simple straightforward column about some common words that you might not realize came from the Bible. As I was investigating, I got sidetracked (Squirrel!!). Before you get to the words, there’s a wee bit of a detour…

The early translators of the Bible sometimes faced challenges. Some things would translate easily. For example, in Hebrew, a goat is commonly called a 'ez. In Greek, it’s tragos and in Latin, it is caper (capra if it is a female goat). So, when the early translators came to goat, they had an English word for it. But some of the biblical concepts were new to the language.

Time for the left turn at this point. I stumbled on a rabbit hole of information that I never knew. It has to do with English translations of the Bible. I had heard of William Tyndale and thought his translation work in the early sixteenth century was groundbreaking work. Then I read the following from Wikipedia:

Partial Old English translations [of the Bible] had been made from the 7th century onwards, and by the 14th Century contemporary vernacular translations were available in most other major European languages.

What?

So, there was this John Wycliffe guy. He was born some time in the mid 1320’s. By 1345, he was attending Oxford (Oxford was wild in those days. I wrote a chapter about it in my book Rabbit Hole). In 1351, he became a priest. It was around 1368 when he started translating the Bible into English.

Time for a rabbit hole in a rabbit hole. Wycliffe was writing in “Middle English”

At that point I realized I knew nothing about the evolution of the English Language. And, I’m curious. This sounds like a perfect topic for Wikipedia.

Old English (Englisc or Ænglisc, pronounced [ˈeŋɡliʃ] or [ˈæŋɡliʃ]), or Anglo-Saxon,[1] is the earliest recorded form of the English language, spoken in England and southern and eastern Scotland in the Early Middle Ages. It developed from the languages brought to Great Britain by Anglo-Saxon settlers in the mid-5th century, and the first Old English literature dates from the mid-7th century.

Middle English is a form of the English language that was spoken after the Norman Conquest of 1066, until the late 15th century. The English language underwent distinct variations and developments following the Old English period.

Early Modern English or Early New English (ENE) is the stage of the English language from the beginning of the Tudor period to the English Interregnum and Restoration, or from the transition from Middle English, in the late 15th century, to the transition to Modern English, in the mid-to-late 17th century.

Modern English, sometimes called New English (NE), or present-day English (PDE) as opposed to Middle and Old English, is the form of the English language that has been spoken since the Great Vowel Shift in England, which began in the late 14th century and was completed by the 17th century.

Cool. Now I know at least a little bit. But of course, now, I’ve gotta know, what the heck was the “Great Vowel Shift”?

The Great Vowel Shift was a series of pronunciation changes in the vowels of the English language that took place primarily between the 1400s and 1600s (the transition period from Middle English to Early Modern English), beginning in southern England and today having influenced effectively all dialects of English. Through this massive vowel shift, the pronunciation of all Middle English long vowels altered. Some consonant sounds also changed, specifically becoming silent;

Okay, back to our original rabbit hole.

As mentioned previously, Wycliffe wrote in Middle English. The Plowman’s Tale is a poem written around 1400. It was written in Middle English. Here’s a comparison between the poem in Middle English vs. Modern English.

Middle English I say sothe thorowe trewe rede His flesh and blode, through his mastry Is there/ in the forme of brede Howe it is there/ it nedeth not stryve Whether it be subgette or accident But as Christ was/ when he was on-lyve So is he there verament.

Modern English I say the truth through true understanding: His flesh and blood, through his subtle works, Is there in the form of bread. In what manner it is present need not be debated, Whether as subject or accident, But as Christ was when he was alive, So He is truly there.

Obviously, it was quite different. The Wycliffe’s Bibles appeared in 1382. The printing press wasn’t invented until 1440, so there were very few copies.

In 1384, Wycliffe was saying Mass on December 28^th, 1384, when he suffered a stroke and passed away a few days later.

Then came Thomas Arundel, an English clergyman who detested John Wycliffe. In 1407, Arundel convened the third Synod of Oxford. Arundel was able to get a few things passed in the constitution of 1408-1409:

• Banning unauthorized Bible translations (Constitution 7), requiring approval from ecclesiastical authorities for any scriptural translation

• Prohibiting the teaching or possession of Wyclif’s writings without prior examination by Oxford or Cambridge authorities (Constitution 6)

• Restricting theological disputations in schools and public forums, mandating monthly inspections of Oxford colleges to root out heresy (Constitution 11)

Arundel would die from a stroke in 1414, reportedly caused by his exertions putting down a rebellion by Wycliffe followers (the Lollard uprising of 1414).

In 1415, the Holy Roman Church convened the Council of Constance. On May 4, they declared Wycliffe a heretic and banned his writings. They also decreed Wycliffe's works should be burned and his bodily remains removed from consecrated church ground.

This order, confirmed by Pope Martin V, was eventually carried out in 1428. Wycliffe's corpse, was exhumed, on the orders of the bishop the remains were burned and the ashes drowned in the River Swift, which flows through Lutterworth.

Enter William Tyndale. Tyndale was born in 1494 and was an English Biblical scholar.

One of Tyndale’s books, The Obedience of a Christian Man, was used by King Henry VIII to justify creating the Church of England.

By the early 16^th century, English was transitioning from Middle English to Early Modern English. This transition was rendering Wycliffe’s translations fairly incomprehensible. Tyndale tarted translating the Hebrew and Greek Bibles into English in 1523. After church reminded him that was illegal, he migrated to Germany, where he would meet Martin Luther in 1524.

By 1525, his translation of the New Testament was completed and printed in Cologne and later in Worms. Copies would be smuggled into England. If the Church found them, they would be burned. It’s estimated that more than three quarters of the King James Bible would use Tyndale’s work.

Tyndale kept writing. He drew the ire of Henry VIII when he opposed Henry VIII’s divorce from Catherine of Aragon. Eventually, he annoyed the wrong church elder.

In 1536, he would be convicted of Lutheran heresy. In October of 1536, he would be strangled to death and his body burned at the stake.

In 1539, King Henry VIII legalized English Translations of the Bible. That would lead to the release of the King James Bible in 1611.

Okay, I think that’s enough background. Now let’s take a look at how some modern words came to be.

Scapegoat: “one that bears the blame for other”

Let’s go way back. Leviticus 16:8-26 is an instruction manual from God to Moses, explaining how Mose’s brother Aaron is to properly perform a sacrifice. In essence, God requests that two goats be selected. One will be sacrificed. Verses 20:22 describes what is to happen to the other goat.

When Aaron has finished making atonement for the Most Holy Place, the tent of meeting and the altar, he shall bring forward the live goat. He is to lay both hands on the head of the live goat and confess over it all the wickedness and rebellion of the Israelites—all their sins—and put them on the goat’s head. He shall send the goat away into the wilderness in the care of someone appointed for the task. The goat will carry on itself all their sins to a remote place; and the man shall release it in the wilderness.

In the original Hebrew, the word used to describe the goat that will be released into the wild is described as aza'zel. BibleHub gives aza'zel this definition:

Derived from the Hebrew roots עֵז (ez, meaning "goat") and אָזַל (azal, meaning "to go away" or "to disappear").

During the third century BC, the pharaoh of Egypt, Ptolemy II Philadelphus, requested that the Hebrew Bible be translated into Greek. It would take a hundred years in all, but eventually, the Septuagint Bible was done. Here’s what perplexity.ai had to say about the translation of aza'zel:

The term ἀποπομπαίῳ is a Greek word used in the Septuagint (the Greek translation of the Hebrew Bible) to translate the Hebrew term Azazel (עֲזָאזֵל) in Leviticus 16. It is derived from the Greek root ἀποπομπή and is generally understood to mean "the one who carries away evil" or "the one who wards off evil"

The Septuagint was then translated into Latin in the Vulgate Bible. Here’s how perplexity.ai interprets the Latin translation of Leviticus 16:8:

The Latin Vulgate translation of Leviticus 16:8 reads:

"mittensque super utrumque sortem, unam Domino, alteram capro emissario."

This translates to: "And casting lots upon them both, one for the Lord and the other for the emissary goat"

In 1530, William Tyndale was translating Leviticus. When he came to the word aza'zel, he was going to translate it to “escape goat”. Then he decided to turn it into a single word. He dropped the first “e” and coined the term “scapegoat”

Since the role of the scapegoat was to take on the burden of someone else’s sins, the usage morphed into how we use it today.

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Martyr: “a person who voluntarily suffers death as the penalty of witnessing to and refusing to renounce a religion”

John 18:37: “You are a king, then!” said Pilate. Jesus answered, “You say that I am a king. In fact, the reason I was born and came into the world is to testify to the truth. Everyone on the side of truth listens to me.”

The Greek word used for testify was martureō. The noun form of martureō is martus As Christianity spread, martus began to take on a new usage. It was used to describe Christians who faced persecution and execution. As Christianity spread into Latin-speaking regions, martus was translated into martyr

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Charisma: “a special magnetic charm or appeal.

Here are a few Bible passages:

• Luke 1:30: Gabriel tells Mary, "Do not be afraid, Mary, for you have found favor with God."

• Luke 2:52: And Jesus grew in wisdom and stature and in favor with God

• Titus 2:11: "For the grace of God has appeared that offers salvation to all people."

• Ephesians 2:8: "For by grace you have been saved through faith."

• 2 Corinthians 12:9: "My grace is sufficient for you."

• Titus 2:11: "For the grace of God has appeared that offers salvation to all people."

In the Septuagint, the Greek word used for the bolded favor and grace words is charis. In the Vulgate Bible, charis was translated to charismata. Over time, it morphed into the term charisma.

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Ecstasy: a state of overwhelming emotion

Back to the Bible verses, with the Greek translation in parenthesis

• Luke 5:26: Everyone was amazed and gave praise to God. They were filled with awe (ekstasis) and said, “We have seen remarkable things today.”

• Acts 3:10: “they recognized him as the same man who used to sit begging at the temple gate called Beautiful, and they were filled with wonder and amazement (thambos kai ekstasis) at what had happened to him.”

• Acts 22:17: “When I returned to Jerusalem and was praying at the temple, I fell into a trance (ekstasis)”

When it came time to translate these into Latin, ekstasis became extasis or ecstasis. From that we got the English word ecstasy.

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Exorcist: someone who forces an evil spirit to leave a person or place by using prayers or magic.

That sure was a scary movie. It’s probably not surprising that the word exorcist has a biblical meaning.

Acts 19:13: Some Jews who went around driving out evil spirits tried to invoke the name of the Lord Jesus over those who were demon-possessed. They would say, “In the name of the Jesus whom Paul preaches, I command you to come out.”

The Greek word used for driving out spirits was exorkizein. It was translated into Latin as exorcizare. Exorcizare was then translated into English as Exorcise.

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Zeal: Enthusiastic devotion to a cause, ideal, or goal

John 2:17: His disciples remembered that it is written: “Zeal for your house will consume me

2 Corinthians 9:2: For I know the forwardness of your mind, for which I boast of you to them of Macedonia, that Achaia was ready a year ago; and your zeal hath provoked very many.

The Greek word translated into zeal in English was zelos. Zelos was then translated in zelus in Latin and then Zeal in English

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Mansion: a large imposing residence

John 14:23: Jesus replied, “Anyone who loves me will obey my teaching. My Father will love them, and we will come to them and make our home with them.”

John 14:2: My Father’s house has many rooms; if that were not so, would I have told you that I am going there to prepare a place for you?

The Greek word for used for “home” in 14:23 is μονήν (monēn), which can be translated as “dwelling,” “abode,” or “home.”

In 14:23, the plural is used for “rooms”, μοναί (monai)

When it came time to translate monai into Latin, the Vulgate authors used the Latin word mansio which was originally coined to denote the official stopping points on Roman roads which were used as rest stations. It then evolved to mean “a staying, dwelling, or abiding”. It was the perfect word to use for monai.

In the early 14^th century, the word mansion made it into middle English, meaning "a stop or stage of a journey.”. By the mid-14^th century, mansion was used to refer to a lord’s chief residence. Then by the early 16^th century, it referred to any large stately house, similar to how we use it now.

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I hope the roundabout path it took to get here was entertaining. I didn’t put in any links. Most of the information came either from Wikipedia or from the AI I use, perplexity.ai.

Salvation comes from God freely by grace alone, through faith in Christ Jesus – John Tyndale