Hebrew · Aramaic · Greek
The words Yeshua's first hearers heard, and what they carried in their world.
חֶסֶד
Chesed
ḥesed · KHEH-sed
Covenant loyalty; steadfast kindness
The faithful love that keeps covenant and comes to the rescue of kin. The LXX renders it eleos.
Hebrew bedrock
A kinsman bound by covenant who will not abandon his own.
Where English flattens it
"Mercy" sounds like a judge withholding a blow; chesed is a family bond kept at a cost.
אֱמֶת
Emet
ʾĕmet · eh-MET
Firmness, faithfulness, truth
From aman, to stand firm, to support. Truth is what holds when leaned upon.
Hebrew bedrock
A tent peg driven into a sure place (Isaiah 22:23).
Where English flattens it
"Truth" became a statement to argue over; emet is someone you can lean your whole weight on.
שָׁלוֹם
Shalom
šālôm · shah-LOHM
Wholeness, completeness
From shalam, to make whole or repay. Nothing missing, nothing broken.
Hebrew bedrock
A wall with every missing stone restored.
Where English flattens it
"Peace" means only no fighting or a calm mood; shalom is full restoration.
קָדוֹשׁ
Qadosh
qādôš · kah-DOHSH
Set apart
Separated to the Lord for His use, as the vessels of the Mishkan. The LXX renders it hagios.
Hebrew bedrock
A vessel taken out of common use and set aside for the King's house.
Where English flattens it
"Holy" now sounds like pious manners; qadosh is belonging wholly to the Lord.
נֶפֶשׁ
Nephesh
nepeš · NEH-fesh
Throat; breathing creature; living being
Man does not have a nephesh; he became one when the Lord God breathed into him. The LXX renders it psychē.
Hebrew bedrock
The throat that breathes, thirsts and longs.
Where English flattens it
"Soul" suggests a ghost inside a body; nephesh is the whole living person.
רַחֲמִים
Rachamim
raḥămîm · rah-khah-MEEM
Compassion (from rechem, womb)
The tender love of a mother for the child of her womb (Isaiah 49:15).
Hebrew bedrock
A mother sheltering the child she carries.
Where English flattens it
"Compassion" is a passing feeling; rachamim is a mother's bodily care.
תּוֹרָה
Torah
tôrâ · toh-RAH
Instruction, teaching (from yarah, to shoot or aim)
Not merely "law" but the Father's instruction that aims a life toward its mark. The LXX rendered it nomos.
Hebrew bedrock
An archer aiming at the mark; a father pointing out the road.
Where English flattens it
"Law" sounds like courts and penalties; Torah is a Father's instruction.
πληρῶσαι
Plērōsai
plērōsai · play-ROH-sigh
To fill, to fill up, to complete
In first-century Torah teaching, to interpret the Torah rightly so it stands ("fulfil"), the opposite of katalysai, to loosen or cancel it.
עוֹל מַלְכוּת שָׁמַיִם
Ol Malkhut Shamayim
ʿôl malkût šāmayim · OHL mal-KHOOT sha-MAI-eem
The yoke of the Kingdom of Heaven
Taking on God's reign as one's own, spoken of when reciting the Shema. Echoed in "Take My yoke upon you."
יוֹבֵל
Yovel
yôbēl · yoh-VEL
Ram's horn; the Jubilee year
Every fiftieth year, land returned and slaves went free. Yeshua's Nazareth reading proclaims this release.