Language
Summary
The means of human communication through speech, with Scripture recording both its divine origin and the confusion of tongues at Babel.
☩Origin and Diversity
Scripture indicates that speech was coeval with human creation, with Adam naming the animals in Genesis 2:19. The diversity of human languages is connected with the tower of Babel and dispersion of mankind (Genesis 11:1-9). Later Jewish tradition inferred from Genesis 10 that there were seventy nations and languages on earth. Individual languages mentioned in Scripture include Canaanite (Isaiah 19:18), Chaldean (Daniel 1:4), Aramaic, Hebrew (2 Kings 18:26; Nehemiah 13:24), and Ashdodite (Nehemiah 13:24).
☩Languages in Palestine
In New Testament times, Palestine was multilingual. The common people spoke Aramaic as their vernacular, while Greek served as the lingua franca of commerce and public communication throughout the Roman world. Hebrew continued as the language of sacred literature and synagogue Scripture reading, with Aramaic translations (Targums) provided for understanding. Latin was the official language of the Romans, as evidenced by the trilingual inscription on Christ's cross (John 19:20).
☩Language of Christ
The question of what language Jesus primarily spoke has been extensively debated. The evidence strongly supports Aramaic as His vernacular tongue. Three Aramaic expressions of Jesus are preserved in the Gospels: 'Talitha cumi' (Mark 5:41), 'Ephphatha' (Mark 7:34), and 'Eloi, Eloi, lama sabachthani' (Mark 15:34). These were preserved because they were associated with moments of exceptional emotion. Jesus likely also knew Greek, which was widely spoken, and possibly Hebrew, the language of the Scriptures.
Related Verses47 mentions
References
- 1.John McClintock and James Strong, "Language," in Cyclopedia of Biblical, Theological and Ecclesiastical Literature, vol. V (Harper & Brothers, 1867–1887).
- 2.James Hastings (ed.), "Language of Christ," in Dictionary of Christ and the Gospels, vol. II (T. & T. Clark, 1906–1908).