Why Names and Key Terms Matter for the Reader of the Septuagint

The Septuagint stands at the crossroads where Israel’s Hebrew Scriptures meet the Greek-speaking world of the Third–First centuries B.C.E. It is not merely a translation; it is the stable vehicle that carried the Hebrew text into the synagogue and household in Alexandria, Antioch, and beyond. How the translators handled proper names and key theological terms shaped how Greek-speaking Jews heard Scripture before the Messiah’s ministry (29–33 C.E.) and how the early church read Scripture when the Apostles wrote (49–96 C.E.). When a Hebrew name passes into Greek letters, the choices signal what sounds could or could not be represented. When a covenant term—“covenant,” “glory,” “righteousness,” “salvation”—receives a fixed Greek equivalent, that decision trains the ear for doctrine. And when particular renderings intersect with the New Testament’s proclamation, the result is more than vocabulary continuity; it becomes a line of sight from Moses and the Prophets to the Gospel.

Transliteration of Hebrew Names: The System Behind the Surface

Transliteration from Hebrew into Greek is governed by phonology, morphology, and congregational usability. Greek lacked certain Semitic sounds; the translators compensated with approximations that became standardized. Once set in synagogue practice, these forms remained stable across centuries, which is why New Testament spellings match the Septuagint’s spellings so closely.

Initial yod became iota. Hence Yehoshua‘ becomes Ἰησοῦς (Iēsous), and Yirmeyahu becomes Ἰερεμίας (Ieremias). The same rule yields Ἰακώβ (Iakōb) for Jacob, Ἰσαάκ (Isaak) for Isaac, and Ἰωσήφ (Iōsēph) for Joseph. There is no letter “J” in Greek; iota carried the sound.

The gutturals either disappear or receive the nearest Greek device. Hebrew ’aleph is usually left unmarked and influences the neighboring vowel; ʿayin is often unrepresented or, in a few old place-names, appears to have pushed a following stop toward a voiced value already known in Greek tradition (Γάζα for ʿAzzah). Ḥet frequently appears as χ when it has strong friction (as in Χετταῖοι for Hittites), while heh at word-end usually drops, leaving a final -a that Greek writes naturally.

Sibilants collapse to sigma. Shin and sin both become σ. Ṣade also often becomes σ; in some names ζ occurs where an affricate impression was strong in the tradition. Thus Moses is Μωυσῆς (Mōusēs), not with sh, and Isaiah is Ἠσαΐας (Ēsaias), without the native “sh.”

Stop consonants converge. Kaph and qoph both become κ; ṭet often becomes θ in older transliteration habits while taw is τ, with the feminine noun ending -āh typically rendered -α. Hence Hannah is Ἄννα (Anna), and Deborah is Δεββώρα (Debbōra). Beta carries both b and v of Hebrew/Aramaic tradition in the Koine period; Π appears for p, Γ for g, and Δ for d without special complications.

Vowels are reshaped to Greek patterns. Long ā becomes α; ō becomes ῶ or ου depending on position; ē becomes η or ει. Diphthongs move over as αι, οι, ου when they can be heard as such in Greek ears. The translators are not trying to imitate Attic elegance; they are giving Greek congregations a way to say Hebrew names consistently.

Masculine names receive Greek nominative endings. This is why prophets and kings so often end with -ας or -ίας. Yirmeyahu becomes Ἰερεμίας, Yesha‘yahu becomes Ἠσαΐας, Hizqiyahu becomes Ἐζεκίας (Ezekias), Zekaryah becomes Ζαχαρίας (Zacharias), and Obadyah becomes Ἀβδίας (Abdias). The Isaian and Jeremian -yahu element is thus heard as -ίας in Greek. Where a name ends with -el, Greek usually preserves -ηλ, because the -el theophoric element is easily pronounced: Μιχαήλ (Michaēl), Γαβριήλ (Gabriēl), Ἰσραήλ (Israēl). The -yah truncation also receives -ια: Ἀβιά, Ἐζεκία, and related forms appear where the Hebrew short form is used.

Theophoric elements remain legible. Names bearing the divine element -el are transparent in Greek, retaining their theological root. Names in -yahu/-yah keep their theophoric force in the standardized -ίας/-ια endings that Greek speakers associate with prophet-names. Nothing in this shift erases the theophoric content; it is the normal Greek mold for Hebrew names.

Composite place-names maintain their components in Greek. “Beth-” becomes Βαιθ- or Βηθ-, as in Βηθλεέμ (Bethlehem) for “House of Bread” and Βαιθσαϊδά (Bethsaida) for “House of Fishing.” “En-/Ain-” for spring appears as Αἰν-; “Gath-” is Γεθ-; “Kirjath-/Qiryat-” becomes Καριαθ-; “Baal-” becomes Βάαλ-. The translators typically transliterate rather than translate the components to keep continuity with the Hebrew map in synagogue reading.

Tribal and ethnonym patterns are uniform. Ἰούδας serves for Judah as a person and tribe, Ἰουδαῖος for a Jew, Ἰουδαία for the territory. Ἐφραΐμ keeps the -im ending as -ιμ in transliteration because it functions as a proper name. Ἰδουμαία stands for Edom in later usage, signaling the Greek habit of forming regional gentilic names.

Royal and priestly names demonstrate the same regularities. Δαυίδ (Dauid), Σαλωμών (Salōmōn), Ἐζεκίας (Ezekias), Ἰωάς/Ἰωάχαζ/Ἰωακείμ/Ἰωαχίν (Ioas/Ioachaz/Ioakeim/Ioachin) all reflect the same mapping rules. Ἀαρών (Aarōn) and Ἐλεάζαρ (Eleazar) show that priestly names with ’aleph and zayin are handled without strain.

Female names keep feminine vowels with minimal endings. Σάρρα (Sarra), Ῥεβέκκα (Rebekka), Ῥαχήλ (Rachēl), Ἐλισάβετ (Elisabet), Μιριάμ (Miriam), Ἐσθήρ (Esthēr), and Ἰουδίθ (Ioudith) preserve Hebrew forms with natural Greek adaptation.

The translators avoid mythic contamination. Greek mythic names are not imported to naturalize Hebrew persons; rather, Hebrew persons are kept distinct in Greek dress. That sobriety marks the whole onomasticon.

Exceptions and Special Cases That Teach the System

Some names reveal purposeful choices tied to clarity. Yehoshua‘ appears as Ἰησοῦς both for Joshua son of Nun and, in the New Testament, for Jesus the Messiah. The identity is not confusion; it is the ordinary Greek form for the same Hebrew name. When an author needs to prevent ambiguity, he adds context (“Joshua son of Nun”) rather than creating a new spelling for Jesus.

“Emmanuel” is transliterated Ἐμμανουήλ in Isaiah and again in Matthew’s Gospel, not translated into Greek until the context explains the meaning. Retaining the form protects the prophetic sign while allowing exposition to do its work.

“Lord of Hosts” (Jehovah ṣĕbāʾōth) is rendered in two ways: κύριος σαβαώθ, which keeps the Hebrew “Sabaoth” as a reverent transliteration, and κύριος παντοκράτωρ (“Lord Almighty”), which gives the theological sense. Both streams run through the Greek tradition and enter the New Testament.

“Aram” frequently appears as Συρία in the historical books, since Greek-speaking hearers already knew Syria as the regional name. The choice is not a late imposition but a contemporary geographical equivalence that kept the narrative intelligible in the diaspora.

“Sheol” is most often ᾅδης (Hades), a conventional Greek term used here to carry the Hebrew concept of the realm of the dead, distinct from pagan mythology by the biblical context in which it appears.

“Ge-Hinnom” becomes Γέεννα (Gehenna), a transparent transliteration that carries the prophetic symbolism of judgment into Greek without losing the Jerusalem geography behind it.

Key Theological Terms: The Lexical Backbone of the Greek Old Testament

The translators fixed a core set of Greek equivalents for Israel’s theological vocabulary. These decisions were not casual; they were forged to let synagogue instruction map directly to the Hebrew text and to ensure that Law, worship, wisdom, and prophecy could be taught with accuracy in Greek.

“God” is ὁ θεός for the true God, with the article signaling the definite reference in context, and θεοί for false gods when the Hebrew plural points to idols. The Divine Name, JHVH, was handled with reverence: earliest Jewish Greek copies often wrote the Name in Hebrew letters inside the Greek line; later Greek codices used κύριος as a reverential surrogate. English translation that honors the Hebrew should use “Jehovah” wherever the Name appears; in Greek reading, κύριος must be heard as a conventional surrogate, not a denial of the Name.

“Covenant” is διαθήκη. This choice is decisive. Rather than the mutual-contract flavor of συνθήκη, διαθήκη carries the range needed by the Hebrew berith: a divinely initiated, promissory bond with stipulations, blessings, and curses. Because διαθήκη became fixed, both the “old” and the “new” covenant are naturally expressed in Greek with the same term, guarding canonical unity.

“Law” is νόμος, not a vague “principle” but the concrete Torah that commands, blesses, and curses. This stable mapping lets historical narrative and wisdom literature refer back to the same revealed will without lexical drift.

“Righteousness” is δικαιοσύνη, the judicial and covenantal rightness God requires and gives. The verb δικαιόω renders the hiphil of “justify,” matching the forensic flavor of Hebrew usage in legal contexts. The family of δίκαιος and δικαίωμα keeps the web of rightness intact.

“Justice” is κρίσις for judicial decision and mishpat; “judgment” as act also uses κρίμα; “judge” as the person is κριτής. These keep courtroom imagery stable across historical narrative and prophecy.

“Mercy,” especially covenant loyalty grounded in ḥesed, is ἔλεος, supplemented by ἀλήθεια (truth/faithfulness) when Hebrew couples them. The pairing protects the covenantal dimension of mercy from becoming a mere emotion.

“Glory” is δόξα, expanded to carry the radiance of Jehovah’s presence and honor. δόξα in the Septuagint is not mere reputation; it bears the weight of theophany from Exodus through the Prophets.

“Holiness” is ἅγιος for the attribute and persons, ἁγιάζω for consecrate, ἁγιασμός for sanctification. The semantic field covers sacred space, sacred time, and consecrated people with consistency.

“Purity” and “cleanness” are καθαρός and καθαρισμός; “unclean” is ἀκάθαρτος; these terms are fixed so that priestly instruction can be carried out in Greek with precision.

“Sin” is ἁμαρτία, “iniquity” ἀνομία or ἀδικία depending on context; “transgression” παράπτωμα in many settings. The distribution tracks Hebrew distinctions without creating artificial Greek nuance.

“Spirit” is πνεῦμα, matching rûaḥ in its range from wind and breath to the Spirit of God. “Soul” is ψυχή for nephesh’s “life” or “person,” not a detachable immaterial substance imported from philosophy; the context governs.

“Heart” is καρδία; “flesh” is σάρξ in the ordinary biblical sense of human frailty and mortality; “life” is ζωή; “death” is θάνατος.

“Salvation” is σωτηρία; “Savior” is σωτήρ; “to save” is σῴζειν. “Redeem” is λυτροῦσθαι; “redemption” λύτρωσις or ἀπολύτρωσις; “Redeemer” λυτρωτής. These renderings carry the Exodus pattern into Greek, anchoring later preaching about redemption in a settled lexicon.

“Atonement” is expressed with ἐξιλάσκομαι (“make atonement”) and, crucially, ἱλαστήριον for the kapporet, the mercy seat. This term becomes the bridge to New Testament teaching on the Messiah’s propitiatory work.

“Truth” is ἀλήθεια; “faith/faithfulness” is πίστις, carrying the covenantal reliability of ’emunah. “Wisdom” is σοφία; “fear of Jehovah” is φόβος κυρίου; “knowledge” is γνῶσις when the covenantal context requires knowing God, and ἐπίγνωσις where recognition and acknowledgment are in view.

“Word” is λόγος for dabar in many contexts, with ῥῆμα widely used for utterance. Because λόγος is the ordinary term, it can be employed without importing speculative philosophy; the Hebrew context governs.

“Anointed” is χριστός, the standard rendering of māšîaḥ. The Greek noun becomes the title “Christ” without loss of its Old Testament force.

“Assembly” is ἐκκλησία for qāhāl, while ʿēdāh is commonly συναγωγή. This distribution explains why the New Testament can speak of the ἐκκλησία without novelty; it is the established biblical word for the gathered people.

“Name” is ὄνομα, and “call on the Name of Jehovah” is ἐπικαλεῖσθαι τὸ ὄνομα κυρίου, a phrase that carries straight into Apostolic preaching. The idiom is fixed, not invented ad hoc in the first century C.E.

“Lord of Hosts” is either κύριος σαβαώθ or κύριος τῶν δυνάμεων; “Almighty” is παντοκράτωρ, a title used widely in prophetic contexts. These renderings give the church a doxological vocabulary rooted in Israel’s Scriptures.

How Proper Names and Terms Travel Into the New Testament

Because the Septuagint formed the Greek Bible of the synagogues of the empire, the New Testament’s diction is saturated with these names and terms. The continuity is not accidental; it is the fruit of deliberate translational choices made centuries earlier to preserve Hebrew meaning in Greek.

Joshua and Jesus share one Greek name, Ἰησοῦς. This is not a problem; it is providential clarity. When the Letter to the Hebrews speaks once of “Joshua” leading Israel into the land and everywhere else of “Jesus” the Messiah, the context distinguishes them effortlessly. The shared form teaches hearers the link between the name “Jehovah is salvation” and the One Who saves His people from their sins.

“Christ” in the New Testament is not an imported title. It comes directly from the Septuagint’s χριστός as the standard way to speak of the anointed King and Priest promised in Law and Prophets. Every time the Gospels say “Jesus Christ,” they are speaking in the Bible’s own Greek.

“Lord” language builds on the Septuagint’s κύριος as the conventional surrogate for the Divine Name. When New Testament writers apply Jehovah-texts to Jesus—“Everyone who calls on the Name of Jehovah shall be saved” becoming “Everyone who calls on the Name of the Lord”—they are not playing games with vocabulary. They are proclaiming that the prerogatives, honors, and saving actions attributed to Jehovah in the Hebrew Scriptures belong to the Son in the economy of salvation. The bridge exists because κύριος already functioned everywhere the Name appeared in Greek reading.

“Covenant” as διαθήκη frames all New Testament talk of the New Covenant. Jesus speaks over the cup at the Passover in 33 C.E. using the settled Old Testament term; Paul and the writer of Hebrews elaborate this same lexicon; the church did not need to invent covenant terminology, because the Septuagint had fixed it.

“Righteousness” and “justify” in Paul arise from δικαιοσύνη and δικαιόω, the settled courtroom and covenant terms of the Greek Old Testament. Understanding these words in Paul requires first hearing them in Moses, the Psalms, and the Prophets in the Septuagint’s usage.

“Propitiation” in Romans 3:25 is ἱλαστήριον, the Septuagint’s term for the mercy seat in Exodus. The New Testament writer is not borrowing a pagan ritual concept; He is naming the place of atonement in the Tabernacle to explain the Messiah’s sacrificial work.

“Gospel” and “evangelize” arise from the prophetic usage of εὐαγγελίζεσθαι in Isaiah, where good news of God’s reign and salvation is proclaimed to Zion. The Apostles use the same verb because the Septuagint had already taught God’s people to hear the promise that way.

“Church” is ἐκκλησία because the assembly of the people of God was called that in the Greek Scriptures long before Pentecost. The novelty is not the word; it is the outpouring of blessing after the resurrection in 33 C.E.

“Firstborn” as πρωτότοκος is Old Testament vocabulary for the heir who represents the family in inheritance and consecration. When the New Testament speaks of the Messiah as “firstborn,” it stands inside that Septuagint meaning, not a speculative philosophy.

“Servant” is both δοῦλος and παῖς. The Servant Songs of Isaiah use παῖς in the Greek; that term reappears in the Gospels and Acts when Jesus is called God’s Servant. The lexical continuity directs readers to Isaiah’s prophecy without typological embellishment.

“Immanuel” remains Ἐμμανουήλ, and Matthew expressly explains it for Greek readers. The retention of the Hebrew form honors the sign’s specificity.

“Lord of Hosts” in Greek passes into the New Testament as κύριος σαβαώθ. The preservation of the Hebrew element in Greek equips Christian doxology with the ancient title unaltered.

“Sheol” as ᾅδης and “Gehenna” as Γέεννα clarify categories in the New Testament. ᾅδης is the realm of the dead, Γέεννα marks the imagery of final judgment, and both are already framed by the Septuagint.

How Theophoric Names Catechize Greek-Speaking Readers

The theophoric elements in Hebrew names continue to instruct when voiced in Greek. Names in -el announce God’s involvement in the life of His people: Michaēl (“Who is like God?”), Gabriēl (“God is my warrior”), Israēl (“God strives” or “He strives with God”), Immanouēl (“God with us”). Names in -ias carry the “Yah(u)” element silently, but Greek hearers learned to associate prophetic authority with these endings, because the synagogue read these names constantly. The repetition teaches that Jehovah’s identity saturates the story line—from Abraham’s call to the return from exile in 537 B.C.E.—and that every major figure stands in relation to Him.

Place-Name Conventions and the Reliability of the Map

Geographical forms are not trivial. They make the narrative teachable in a diaspora world. Αἴγυπτος (Egypt), Ἀσσυρία (Assyria), Βαβυλών (Babylon), Νινευή (Nineveh), Τύρος (Tyre), Σιδών (Sidon), Ἀραβία (Arabia), Μωάβ (Moab), Ἀμμών (Ammon), Ἰδουμαία (Idumaea), Περσία (Persia), and Μηδία (Media) keep the international setting of Israel’s history legible in Greek. Βηθλεέμ, Ἱεροσόλυμα/Ἰερουσαλήμ, Ναζαρέτ/Ναζαρέθ, Ἰεριχώ, Ἀιθιοπία, Γαλιλαία, and Σαμάρεια demonstrate the same care. Because these forms were fixed well before the first century C.E., the Gospels and Acts could write for mixed audiences without constantly reintroducing the map.

Why Some Renderings Are Transliteration Rather Than Translation

The translators often chose transliteration for cultic institutions to protect sanctity and precision. Σάββατον is not paraphrased as “rest day”; Πάσχα is not reduced to “spring festival”; Ἀμήν and Ἁλληλουϊά are carried over intact. This restraint teaches reverence and guards against dilution. It also means that a Gentile convert to Israel’s God learned the actual biblical words of the covenant household, rather than replacing them with cultural equivalents that would blur meaning.

Hebrew Semantics Governing Greek Extension: A Caution for Readers

The Septuagint regularly stretches common Greek words to carry Hebrew content. δόξα moves beyond “reputation” to the radiance of Jehovah’s presence. ψυχή maps nephesh’s whole-person life rather than a detachable soul-substance. πίστις includes covenantal loyalty and trust, not mere assent. σοφία carries moral skill under the fear of Jehovah, not speculative wisdom. Because the Hebrew governs these expansions, doctrinal teaching in Greek must keep the Hebrew context in view. The translators were not borrowing from philosophy; they were disciplining Greek to serve Scripture.

Proper Names Inside Legal and Genealogical Frames

In genealogies, census lists, and land allotments, names are not ornamental; they are legal identifiers. The translators therefore refused to normalize Hebrew forms into Greek fashion or to delete repeated elements for elegance. Ναχορ, Θάρα, Ἄβραμ/Ἀβραάμ, Ἰσαάκ, Ἰακώβ appear in fixed order with predictable spellings so that hearers could memorize the covenant line. Boundary lists keep town names steady even when they sound foreign in Greek, because Israel’s inheritance in the land is recorded by name. This precision shows why the Septuagint is invaluable for legal and historical preaching: it faithfully preserves identity across languages.

Key Terms That Foreshadow New Testament Usage

Several Septuagint renderings form direct lines into the New Testament’s argument.

“Christos” as “Anointed” prepares readers to hear “Jesus Christ” as the promised Davidic and priestly figure. The word’s Old Testament usage controls the title’s New Testament meaning.

“Kyrios” as the surrogate for the Name makes the Apostolic application of Jehovah-texts to Jesus both natural and theologically precise. When the early church confesses “Jesus is Lord,” it is not adopting a mere honorific; it is placing Jesus within the Name’s sphere as revealed in Scripture.

“Diathēkē” allows Jesus’ words over the cup, “this is My blood of the covenant,” to be heard as the fulfillment of prophetic new-covenant promises without introducing a new term. The vocabulary guarantees continuity.

“Hilasthērion” in Exodus equips Romans 3 to speak of the Messiah as the place of propitiation. The connection would be opaque without the Septuagint’s fixed temple vocabulary.

“Ekklesia” for Israel’s assembly means that the Apostolic writers can call the redeemed community the ἐκκλησία without novelty. The term carries the whole weight of covenant assembly into the new era.

“Euangelizesthai” in Isaiah primes readers to hear “gospel” as the announcement of God’s saving reign. When Jesus proclaiming “good news” appears in Greek, synagogue readers already know the verb’s prophetic use.

“Dikaiosynē” and “pistis” fix the categories of right standing and faith/faithfulness that dominate Apostolic exposition. Paul’s doctrine is not a lexical novelty; it is the outflow of the Law and the Prophets in Greek.

“Pais” for the Servant in Isaiah aligns seamlessly with the New Testament’s reference to Jesus as God’s Servant in the early chapters of Acts, guiding readers to the Servant Songs without confusion.

“Prototokos” for firstborn in the Law and Psalms provides the legal and honor background for New Testament references to the Messiah as Firstborn—preeminent Heir rather than a creature.

“Sōtēr” for God in the Psalms and Prophets becomes a title applied also to Jesus in the New Testament. The term’s weight is theological, not political flattery.

A Focused Word on Jehovah’s Name and the Title “Lord”

Because the Tetragrammaton appears thousands of times in the Hebrew Scriptures, its handling shapes an entire theological horizon. Early Jewish Greek practice of writing the Name inside Greek lines in Hebrew characters shows that the translators did not replace or discard the Name. Later, κύριος functioned as a reverential surrogate in church copies. When the New Testament uses κύριος for Jehovah-texts and applies them to Jesus, it does so inside a long-established convention. English translation today ought to let readers hear “Jehovah” where the Hebrew bears the Name, and then to explain with precision how Apostolic preaching uses Jehovah-passages to confess the Son’s majesty without confusing the Persons. The Septuagint’s vocabulary makes that teaching coherent.

Chronological Anchors That Frame the Vocabulary’s History

The words and names treated here live in time. The Exodus took place in 1446 B.C.E.; the united monarchy of David and Solomon ran from 1010–931 B.C.E.; Samaria fell to Assyria in 722 B.C.E.; Jerusalem fell to Babylon in 587 B.C.E.; and Jews returned beginning in 537 B.C.E. The Pentateuch was rendered into Greek in the 200s B.C.E.; the Prophets and Writings followed across the second and first centuries B.C.E. When Jesus ministered in 29–33 C.E., the diaspora had long been trained by this Greek. When the Apostles wrote between 49–96 C.E., their churches already spoke this biblical Greek. The result is stable continuity: proper names sounded in Greek with disciplined regularity; key terms carried covenant theology without dilution; and Christological confession drew on vocabulary that had served Israel for centuries.

Practical Guidance for Pastors and Students Working With Names and Terms

When teaching a passage, say Hebrew names in their settled Greek forms if you are reading the Septuagint or the New Testament in Greek; explain the theophoric elements as you go so the congregation learns how names teach theology. When you encounter κύριος where the Hebrew has the Name, voice “Jehovah” in English exposition and show how synagogue Greek handled the Name reverently. When key terms appear in your text—διαθήκη, δικαιοσύνη, ἔλεος, δόξα, σωτηρία—trace them backward into the Law, Psalms, and Prophets in the Septuagint to let the Old Testament teach your definitions. Where the New Testament uses a term already heavy with Old Testament meaning (ἱλαστήριον, ἐκκλησία, εὐαγγελίζεσθαι), insist that the Old Testament set the terms of the discussion. This method honors the Masoretic Hebrew as the base while using the Septuagint to carry that base into Greek with fidelity.

Representative Name-Paths That Illuminate Exegesis

Hannah, Samuel, and David appear as Ἄννα, Σαμουήλ, and Δαυίδ. The sound may be different to an English ear, but the stability of these forms across the Greek Bible lets the lector read history aloud without confusing hearers. The same holds for prophets—Ἠσαΐας (Isaiah), Ἰερεμίας (Jeremiah), Ἰεζεκιήλ (Ezekiel), Ὡσηέ (Hosea), Ἀμώς (Amōs), Μιχαίας (Michaias), Ναούμ (Naoum), Ἀβακούμ (Habakkuk), Σοφονίας (Sophonias), Ἀγγαῖος (Aggaios), Ζαχαρίας (Zacharias), and Μαλαχίας (Malachias)—whose endings help Greek hearers recognize their prophetic authority at once.

Priestly and Levitical names—Ἀαρών, Ἐλεάζαρ, Ἀβιαθάρ, Ἀχιμέλεχ, Λευί, Κορέ—carry temple history and cultic order into Greek without ambiguity. This is why Gospel narratives and Acts can speak of these figures plainly in Greek; the Septuagint had already fixed their sound.

Toponyms used in prophecy—Βαβυλών, Ἀσσυρία, Περσία, Ἰδουμαία, Μωάβ—let expositors preach judgment or hope to a Greek-speaking congregation with the same specificity that the prophets used in Hebrew.

Titles and epithets—ὁ ἅγιος τοῦ Ἰσραήλ (the Holy One of Israel), ὁ ποιμὴν Ἰσραήλ (the Shepherd of Israel), κύριος σαβαώθ—move unaltered from the Greek Old Testament into New Testament doxology and pastoral care. Their doctrinal freight belongs to the Old Testament; their church usage is continuous.

How Key Terms Guard Doctrine in Teaching and Polemics

Because διαθήκη, δικαιοσύνη, ἔλεος, δόξα, and related terms were settled long before the church began to write its catechesis and apologetics, doctrinal arguments could be built on words already sanctified by Scripture. When Paul speaks of “the righteousness of God,” he speaks inside the covenant courtroom of the Law and the Prophets in Greek. When Luke calls Jesus “Savior,” he invokes the Psalms and Prophets where God alone is Savior and Deliverer. When Hebrews proclaims the New Covenant, it quotes Jeremiah in the Greek that diaspora synagogues already cherished. When the church defends the virgin conception from Isaiah 7:14, the Greek παρθένος is not a Christian novelty; it is the Septuagint’s settled rendering of the prophetic sign. This continuity is an ally to preaching and a defense against skepticism.

The Pastoral Payoff: Teaching Congregations to Hear the Old Testament in the New

When congregations learn that “Jesus” bears the same name as “Joshua,” that “Christ” is the Bible’s “Anointed,” that “church” is the Bible’s “assembly,” that “gospel” echoes Isaiah’s good news, that “propitiation” stands on the Tabernacle’s mercy seat, and that “Lord” in New Testament lips is the reverent surrogate for Jehovah’s Name, their confidence in Scripture rises. The Masoretic Hebrew remains the base for establishing the original wording; the Septuagint shows how that wording was faithfully voiced in Greek for centuries. Proper names and key terms are the rails on which that faithfulness runs.

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