MESSIAH
| Biblical DN | 1. | A HEBREW word meaning "the anointed one." (1 Nephi 1:19; 10:4, 5, 7, 9, 10, 11, 14, 17; 12:18; 15:13 (x2); 2 Nephi 1:10; 2:6, 8, 26; 3:5 (x2); 6:13, 14; 25:14, 16, 18 (x5), 19; 26:3; Jarom 1:11; Mosiah 13:33; Helaman 8:13) |
Etymology
MESSIAH is the transliteration of the HEBREW word māšîaḥ that may be translated as “anointed one.” Already in the Greek translation of the Old Testament, the Septuagint, it is translated as christos. In the Book of Mormon this title refers to the future mortal JESUS CHRIST (2 Nephi 25:19), a descendant of the tribe of JUDAH (2 Nephi 3:5), or the “Savior” (1 Nephi 10:4) or “Redeemer of the world.” (1 Nephi 10:5; cf. 1 Nephi 1:19).
The English convention of spelling MESSIAH with e instead of the /a/ of the HEBREW no doubt comes from the Latin, which derives from the Greek, which itself probably renders the schwa of the Aramaic mĕšīḥā. See John 1:41 in the various languages and Daniel 9:25.
See also Messiah / Masiah / Jesus Christ / Mosiah Variants
Variants
Deseret Alphabet: 𐐣𐐇𐐝𐐌𐐂 (mɛsaɪɑː)
Notes
