The word Gentile is an anglicised version of the Latin word gentilis, meaning of or belonging to a clan or tribe. In the King James and various other versions of the Bible it is used to refer to non-Israelite tribes or nations, as an English translation of the Hebrew words goy / גוי and nochri / נכרי. he-Latn '''Goy''' (גוי regular plural he-Latn ''goyim'' he גויים is a transliterated Hebrew word which translates as " Nation " or " people " The term Gentile (from Latin, gentilis, meaning of or belonging to a clan or tribe refers to non- Israelite tribes or nations in the Bible. It is also used to translate the New Testament Greek word ἔθνη (éthnē). Greek (el ελληνική γλώσσα or simply el ελληνικά — "Hellenic" is an Indo-European language, spoken today by 15-22 million people mainly Today, the primary meaning of gentile is ‘non-Jew’.
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Latin etymology
Gentile derives from Latin gens (from which, together with forms of the cognate Greek word genos, also derive gene, general, genus and genesis). In Ancient Rome, a gens (pl gentes) was a Clan, Caste, or group of Families, that shared a common name (the Genos ( γένος) (plural gene ( γένη) "clan" was the ancient Greek term for small kinship groups which History See also History of genetics The existence of genes was first suggested by Gregor Mendel (1822-1884 who in the 1860s studied inheritance A genus (plural genera from Γένος Latin genus "descent family type gender" is a low-level Taxonomic The original meaning of "clan" or "family" was extended in post-Augustan Latin to acquire the wider meaning of belonging to a distinct nation or ethnicity. Later still the word came to mean "foreign," i. e. non-Roman. After the Christianization of the empire it could also be used of pagan or barbarian cultures.
In the Bible
In Saint Jerome's Latin version of the Bible, the Vulgate, gentilis was used in this wider sense, along with gentes, to translate Greek and Hebrew words with similar meanings that referred to the non-Israelite peoples. Jerome (c 347 – September 30, 420) ( Latin: Eusebius Sophronius Hieronymus; Εὐσέβιος Σωφρόνιος Ἱερώνυμος The Vulgate is an early Fifth Century version of the Bible in Latin, and largely the result of the labours of Jerome, who was commissioned by
The most important of such Hebrew words was goyim (singular, goy), a term with the broad meaning of "peoples" or "nations" which was sometimes used to refer to Israelites, but most commonly as a generic label for other peoples. he-Latn '''Goy''' (גוי regular plural he-Latn ''goyim'' he גויים is a transliterated Hebrew word which translates as " Nation " or " people " Strong's Concordance defines goy as "nation, people usually of non-Hebrew people, or of descendants of Abraham of Israel, or of a swarm of locusts or other animals (fig. Strong's Exhaustive Concordance of the Bible, generally known as Strong's Concordance, is a concordance of the King James Bible ) Goyim = ‘nations’. Strongs #1471[1]
In the KJV Gentile is only one of several words used to translate goy or goyim. It is translated as "nation" 374 times, "heathen" 143 times, "Gentiles" 30 times, and "people" 11 times. Some of these verses, such as Genesis 12:2 and Genesis 25:23 refer to Israelites or descendants of Abraham. Other verses, such as Isaiah 2:4 and Deuteronomy 11:23 are generic references to any nation. Isaiah (; Greek:, Ēsaiās; Arabic: اشعیاء, Ash-ee-yaa; "Salvation of/is YHWH " is Deuteronomy (Greek deuteronomion, Δευτερονόμιον "second law" is the fifth book of the Hebrew Bible and of the Old Testament Typically the KJV restricts the use of Gentile as a translation when the text is specifically referring to non-Israelites. For example, the only use of the word in Genesis is in chapter 10, verse 5, referring to the peopling of the world by descendents of Japheth, "By these were the isles of the Gentiles divided in their lands; every one after his tongue, after their families, in their nations. Japheth (ˈdʒeɪfɪθ Hebrew. יפת Greek Ιάφεθ, Iapheth, Latin Iafeth or Iapetus Arabic يافث "[2]
In the New Testament, the word translates Greek terms for peoples in general, and is used specifically to indicate non-Jewish peoples, as in Jesus's command to the apostles in Matthew chapter 10,
These twelve Jesus sent forth, and commanded them, saying, Go not into the way of the Gentiles, and into any city of the Samaritans enter ye not: But go rather to the lost sheep of the house of Israel. PLEASE TAKE NOTE************ [3]
Here Gentiles becomes a synonym for pagan cultures of the period.
Altogether, the word is used 123 times in the King James Version of the Bible[4] and 168 times in the New Revised Standard Version[5].
Modern usage
As in the King James Bible, from the 17th century onwards gentile was most commonly used to refer to non-Jews. This was in the context of European Christian societies with a Jewish minority. For this reason Gentile commonly meant persons brought up in the Christian faith, as opposed to the adherents of Judaism, and was not typically used to refer to non-Jews in non-Western cultures. Judaism (from the Greek Ioudaïsmos, derived from the Hebrew יהודה Yehudah, " Judah " in Hebrew יַהֲדוּת Yahedut
Latter-day Saints Church usage
- Main article Mormonism and Judaism. Latter-day Saints believe themselves to be either direct descendants of the House of Israel, or adopted into it
In the terminology of The Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints ("LDS Church"; see also Mormon) the word Gentile takes on different meanings in different contexts, which may confuse some and alienate others. The Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints is the fourth largest Christian denomination in the United States and the largest and most well-known TalkMormon#Latter Day Saint vs Latter-day Saint --> Mormon Members of the LDS church regard themselves as regathered Israelites, and so sometimes use the word "Gentile" to refer to non-members. In such usage Jews may be colloquially referred to as "Gentiles" because they are not members of the LDS Church. However, the traditional meaning is also to be found in the introduction to the Book of Mormon, in the statement that it is written to both "Jew" (literal descendants of the House of Israel) and "Gentile" (those not descended from the House of Israel or those of the tribe of Ephraim scattered among the "Gentiles" throughout the earth). The Book of Mormon is a Sacred text of the churches in the Latter Day Saint movement. See also History of ancient Israel and Judah According to the Bible, the Israelites were the dominant group living in the Land of Israel. The Tribe of Ephraim (} was one of the Tribes of Israel; together with the Tribe of Manasseh, Ephraim also formed the House of Joseph
In order to avoid confrontation and pejorative connotations, Latter-day Saints in the 21st century avoid using the term "Gentile" in everyday matters, preferring "non-member". "Gentile" is usually reserved for discussions of scriptural passages.
Footnotes and References
- ^ Searched [1] for goy.
- ^ Genesis 10:5
- ^ Matthew chapter 10
- ^ Did a search for "Gentile" in KJV. Used BibleGateway.com. It returned 123 results of the word "Gentile". Accessed 11-Feb-2007.
- ^ Kohlenberger, John. The NRSV Concordance Unabridged. Grand Rapids, MI:Zondervan, 1991
See also
External links
he-Latn '''Goy''' (גוי regular plural he-Latn ''goyim'' he גויים is a transliterated Hebrew word which translates as " Nation " or " people " A Shabbat goy, Shabbos goy or Shabbes goy ( Yiddish: שבת גוי Modern Hebrew: גוי של שבת goy shel shabat) is an individual See also History of ancient Israel and Judah According to the Bible, the Israelites were the dominant group living in the Land of Israel. B'nei Noah ( Hebrew: בני נוח) or Children of Noah or Noahides is a modern monotheistic movement which observes the Seven Laws of NoahDapyx Software network: MP3 Explorer | Ebook Manager | Zenithic