Semantic Analysis
Semantic Analysis — 1 John (Full Book) | Koine Greek → Assamese
Curriculum: 1 John Core passage: 1 John 4:7–21 Doctrines in scope: God is Light and God is Love; Fellowship with God and One Another; Confession and Forgiveness of Sin; Love for the Brethren as Evidence of New Birth; The Incarnation and Antichrist; Assurance of Salvation and Eternal Life; Overcoming the World; Testing the Spirits
Methodology
This analysis follows the baseline Romans Language Package (assamese) methodology. Every load-bearing term is given: original Koine Greek word, transliteration, literal meaning, semantic range, English variants used across translations, contextual theological meaning in 1 John, and the destination-language (Assamese) rendering risk. Where a term is already recorded in the baseline translation_memory.json or bible_term_registry.json, that exact rendering is reused and marked [REUSED FROM ROMANS TM]. New terms proposed here must be reviewed before being written into an updated translation memory in a later step; they are marked [NEW TERM].
1 John has 5 chapters. The core passage (4:7–21) receives full verse-by-verse treatment first. The remainder of the book — including the rest of chapter 4 — is then treated chapter by chapter, first to last, so that the whole book is covered.
PART A — CORE PASSAGE: 1 John 4:7–21 (Verse-by-Verse)
4:7 — “Beloved, let us love one another, for love is from God, and whoever loves has been born of God and knows God.”
| Terms | Variants | Contextual theological meaning | Assamese rendering | Risk |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| beloved ἀγαπητοί agapētoi those who are loved | term of affectionate address among believers beloved, dear friends | Pastoral address grounding the exhortation in the community’s shared experience of being loved by God | প্ৰিয়জন / প্ৰিয় ভাই-ভনী (priyôjôn) | Low |
| love (verb) ἀγαπῶμεν (ἀγαπάω) agapōmen to love with committed, self-giving intent | volitional, covenantal love; distinct from φιλέω (affectionate fondness) or ἔρως (romantic desire) love | The command to love one another as the outworking of the new birth — [NEW TERM] | প্ৰেম কৰা (prem kôra) | Critical |
| love (noun) ἀγάπη agapē committed, self-giving love | God’s own character; the love shown at the cross love, charity | Source: love “is from God” — grounds the ethic in God’s nature, not human sentiment — [NEW TERM] | প্ৰেম (prem) | Critical |
| born of God γεγέννηται ἐκ τοῦ θεοῦ (γεννάω) gegennētai ek tou theou begotten/brought forth from God | regeneration; new spiritual origin born of God, begotten of God | New birth as the origin of a capacity to love — evidence of regeneration, not moral self-improvement — [NEW TERM] | ঈশ্বৰৰ পৰা জন্ম হৱা (Iswôror pora jônmô howa) | Critical |
| knows γινώσκει (γινώσκω) ginōskei to know experientially/relationally | relational knowledge, not mere intellectual assent knows, has come to know | Personal, relational knowledge of God demonstrated by loving conduct — [NEW TERM] | (ঈশ্বৰক) জানে (Iswôrok jane) | High |
| God θεός theos God | — God | [REUSED FROM ROMANS TM] | ঈশ্বৰ (Iswôr) | Critical |
Translator note: ἀγάπη/ἀγαπάω is rendered প্ৰেম/প্ৰেম কৰা, the established Assamese Bible Society rendering (cf. John 3:16). This rendering must always carry a distinguishing note on first use in any document: biblical agape is self-giving, sacrificial, covenantal love demonstrated definitively at the cross (4:10), not the romantic, longing, viraha-inflected prema-bhakti devotional love for a chosen deity (Radha–Krishna prema) central to Assamese Vaishnavite Borgeet and Ankiya Naat literature in the Sankardev tradition. Never allow প্ৰেম here to be read as devotional passion toward an ista-devata.
4:8 — “Anyone who does not love does not know God, because God is love.”
| Terms | Variants | Contextual theological meaning | Assamese rendering | Risk |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| God is love ὁ θεὸς ἀγάπη ἐστίν ho theos agapē estin God love is (predicate identity) | Not “God has love” or “God is loving” as one attribute among many — a defining predication of God’s very nature God is love | Central doctrinal statement of the curriculum: love is not a quality God possesses alongside others but names his essential character, inseparable from his holiness (God is Light, 1:5) | ঈশ্বৰ প্ৰেম (Iswôr prem [hoi]) | Critical |
| know γινώσκω ginōskō see 4:7 | — know | Failure to love reveals a failure to actually know God relationally, regardless of profession | জানা (jana) | High |
Translator note: This is the single highest-stakes doctrinal sentence in the curriculum’s core passage. The predicate structure (“God IS love,” not “God HAS love” or “God DOES loving things”) must be preserved exactly — অনুবাদত “ঈশ্বৰ প্ৰেম” গঠনটো দুর্বল কৰি “ঈশ্বৰ প্ৰেমময়” (God is loving, an adjectival softening) হিসাপে কেতিয়াও ৰূপান্তৰ কৰিব নালাগে, since this would demote an ontological claim to a descriptive one.
4:9 — “In this the love of God was made manifest among us, that God sent his only Son into the world, so that we might live through him.”
| Terms | Variants | Contextual theological meaning | Assamese rendering | Risk |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| manifested ἐφανερώθη (φανερόω) ephanerōthē was made visible/plain | to disclose what was hidden; make publicly evident manifested, revealed, shown | God’s love is not abstract but historically enacted and made visible in the sending of the Son — connects directly to the Incarnation doctrine — [NEW TERM] | প্ৰকাশিত হ’ল (prôkaxit hôl) | High |
| only Son / only begotten τὸν υἱὸν αὐτοῦ τὸν μονογενῆ (μονογενής) ton huion autou ton monogenē his one-and-only, unique Son | uniqueness, not merely “beloved” or “firstborn among many” only begotten Son, one and only Son, his unique Son | Reinforces the Critical baseline doctrine Sonship of Christ (ঈশ্বৰৰ পুত্ৰ) with the specific nuance of exclusivity — there is no other, and no repeatable series of such sendings — [NEW TERM, extends TM entry son_of_god] | একমাত্ৰ পুত্ৰ (ekmatrô putrô) | Critical |
| sent ἀπέστειλεν (ἀποστέλλω) apesteilen sent forth with commission | commissioned sending, cf. ἀπόστολος apostle sent, has sent | Divine initiative — the Father sends the Son; God’s love is demonstrated by his own action, not human seeking | পঠিয়ালে (pôthiyale) | Medium |
| world κόσμον (κόσμος) kosmon the world, humanity, the created/fallen order | (i) the created order (ii) humanity (iii) the moral system in rebellion against God world | Here: the object of God’s saving love — the world as the arena of mission, not (as elsewhere in 1 John) the world as system opposed to God — [NEW TERM] | জগত (jôgôt) | High |
| live ζήσωμεν (ζάω) zēsōmen to live | physical life; here, spiritual/eternal life granted through Christ live, have life | Connects to the doctrine Assurance of Salvation and Eternal Life — life is received “through him,” not achieved | জীৱ থাকিব (jib thakib) / জীয়াই থাকিব | High |
Translator note (mandatory, incarnation doctrine): “God sent his only Son into the world” must be read together with the baseline term দেহধাৰণ (incarnation, Critical). This is the eternal, unique Son’s once-for-all sending in human nature — never a repeatable, cyclical dharma-restoring avatar-descent as in the Ekasarana Dharma’s Krishna theology. একমাত্ৰ (only/unique) is the operative safeguard word here and must never be dropped even when space is tight.
4:10 — “In this is love, not that we have loved God but that he loved us and sent his Son to be the propitiation for our sins.”
| Terms | Variants | Contextual theological meaning | Assamese rendering | Risk |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| propitiation ἱλασμόν (ἱλασμός) hilasmon that which turns away wrath; an atoning offering | atoning sacrifice that satisfies divine justice and removes wrath propitiation, atoning sacrifice, sacrifice of atonement | Christ’s death as God’s own provision to deal with sin’s guilt and wrath — grace-initiated, not human-initiated appeasement — [NEW TERM] | প্ৰায়শ্চিত্তৰ বলিদান (prayaxcittôr bolidan) | Critical |
| loved ἠγάπησεν (ἀγαπάω) ēgapēsen see 4:7 | — loved | God’s love precedes and causes ours — grace priority | প্ৰেম কৰিলে (prem kôrile) | Critical |
| sin(s) ἁμαρτιῶν (ἁμαρτία) hamartiōn see baseline | — sins | [REUSED FROM ROMANS TM] | পাপ (pap) | High |
Translator note (mandatory, Critical): প্ৰায়শ্চিত্ত is the standard Assamese word for expiation/penance, and in ordinary Hindu-Assamese religious usage (প্ৰায়শ্চিত্ত, prayaschitta) it denotes a self-performed penitential rite by which a sinner works off karmic guilt or ritual pollution through his own austerity, pilgrimage, or offering. The Christian doctrine here inverts that entirely: it is God who provides and sends the propitiatory sacrifice; the sinner performs no penance and contributes no merit. Every occurrence of প্ৰায়শ্চিত্তৰ বলিদান in 1 John material must carry a note stating this reversal explicitly — the sacrifice is offered by God’s initiative on the sinner’s behalf, not performed by the sinner to satisfy a deity or clear karmic debt.
4:11 — “Beloved, if God so loved us, we also ought to love one another.”
| Terms | Variants | Contextual theological meaning | Assamese rendering | Risk |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| ought ὀφείλομεν (ὀφείλω) opheilomen are obligated/indebted | moral debt, obligation flowing from a prior gift, not law-earning ought, are obligated, owe it | Obligation grounded in gratitude for grace received, not in duty-based religious compliance that earns standing (cf. baseline obedience_of_faith doctrine) — [NEW TERM] | …কৰিব লাগে (দায়িত্ব হিসাপে) (kôribô lage) | Medium |
4:12 — “No one has ever seen God; if we love one another, God abides in us and his love is perfected in us.”
| Terms | Variants | Contextual theological meaning | Assamese rendering | Risk |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| seen τεθέαται (θεάομαι) tetheatai has seen/gazed upon | direct visual perception seen, beheld | God’s invisibility; love for the brethren is the visible proof of the invisible God’s presence | দেখিছে (dekhice) | Low |
| abides μένει (μένω) menei remains, dwells, continues | continuing relational presence/union; not a one-time visit abides, remains, lives in, dwells | Mutual indwelling between God and believer — core to the Fellowship with God doctrine — [NEW TERM] | স্থিৰে থাকা (sthire thaka) | High |
| perfected τετελειωμένη (τελειόω) teteleiōmenē brought to completeness/goal | reaching full, intended expression; not moral perfectionism perfected, made complete, brought to full expression | God’s love reaches its intended, full expression through believers loving one another — [NEW TERM] | পৰিপূৰ্ণ হয় (poripurnô hôy) | High |
Translator note: স্থিৰে থাকা (μένω, abide) must be distinguished from the meditative absorption or merging (samadhi, union with Brahman) sought through yogic contemplative practice. Biblical “abiding” is a relational, covenantal, ongoing communion between two distinct persons (God and the believer) — never a dissolving of personal identity into an impersonal Absolute. পৰিপূৰ্ণ (perfected/complete) was deliberately chosen over সিদ্ধ (siddha), which in Assamese carries the strong sense of a yogic/ascetic-attained spiritual perfection through one’s own disciplined practice — exactly the self-achieved category this verse excludes.
4:13 — “By this we know that we abide in him and he in us, because he has given us of his Spirit.”
| Terms | Variants | Contextual theological meaning | Assamese rendering | Risk |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| abide μένομεν / μένει (μένω) menomen / menei see 4:12 | — abide, remain | Mutual indwelling confirmed by the Spirit’s presence | স্থিৰে থাকা (sthire thaka) | High |
| his Spirit ἐκ τοῦ πνεύματος αὐτοῦ (πνεῦμα) ek tou pneumatos autou of his Spirit | The Holy Spirit given to believers of his Spirit | [REUSED FROM ROMANS TM] — must render as পবিত্ৰ আত্মা (with possessive), not a generic impersonal “spirit” | পবিত্ৰ আত্মা (pobitrô atma) | Critical |
4:14 — “And we have seen and testify that the Father has sent his Son to be the Savior of the world.”
| Terms | Variants | Contextual theological meaning | Assamese rendering | Risk |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| testify μαρτυροῦμεν (μαρτυρέω) martyroumen bear witness | legal/testimonial witness to observed fact testify, bear witness, witness | Apostolic eyewitness testimony grounding the historical incarnation claim — [NEW TERM] | সাক্ষ্য দিছোঁ (xakkhyô dicho) | Medium |
| Savior σωτῆρα (σωτήρ) sōtēra one who saves/rescues | deliverer; here, in the specifically Christian salvific sense Savior, deliverer, rescuer | Connects to the baseline salvation doctrine (পৰিত্ৰাণ, Critical); Jesus alone, not one deliverer-figure among several avatar-heroes who rescue dharma — [NEW TERM] | ত্ৰাণকৰ্তা (tranôkôrta) | High |
| world κόσμου (κόσμος) kosmou see 4:9 | — world | Universal scope of the gospel — echoes baseline doctrine universal_scope_of_gospel | জগত (jôgôt) | High |
4:15 — “Whoever confesses that Jesus is the Son of God, God abides in him, and he in God.”
| Terms | Variants | Contextual theological meaning | Assamese rendering | Risk |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| confesses ὁμολογήσῃ (ὁμολογέω) homologēsē to speak the same thing; publicly acknowledge | public, doctrinally precise acknowledgment/affirmation confesses, acknowledges, affirms | Doctrinal confession as the visible marker distinguishing true believers from antichrist-influenced false teachers (cf. 4:2-3) — [NEW TERM] | স্বীকাৰ কৰে (swikar kôre) | High |
| Son of God υἱὸς τοῦ θεοῦ huios tou theou see baseline | — Son of God | [REUSED FROM ROMANS TM], Critical | ঈশ্বৰৰ পুত্ৰ (Iswôror putrô) | Critical |
| abides μένει (μένω) menei see 4:12 | — abides | — | স্থিৰে থাকা | High |
4:16 — “So we have come to know and to believe the love that God has for us. God is love, and whoever abides in love abides in God, and God abides in him.”
| Terms | Variants | Contextual theological meaning | Assamese rendering | Risk |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| know / believe ἐγνώκαμεν / πεπιστεύκαμεν (γινώσκω / πιστεύω) egnōkamen / pepisteukamen have come to know / have believed | Relational knowledge and settled trust, held together, not opposed know and believe | Knowledge and faith are not opposed epistemic categories here but companion responses to God’s revealed love — πιστεύω reuses the baseline faith term | জানিছোঁ আৰু বিশ্বাস কৰিছোঁ (janiso aru biswax kôriso) | High |
| God is love ὁ θεὸς ἀγάπη ἐστίν see 4:8 — | — God is love | Restated for emphasis — the passage’s doctrinal center | ঈশ্বৰ প্ৰেম (হয়) | Critical |
| abides in love / abides in God μένων ἐν τῇ ἀγάπῃ … μένει … καὶ ὁ θεὸς ἐν αὐτῷ μένει menōn en tē agapē … remaining in love … God remains in him | — abides in love, remains in love | Union with God is entered and continued through a life characterized by love, not through ritual, lineage, or mystical technique | প্ৰেমত স্থিৰে থাকা (prem-ot sthire thaka) | Critical |
4:17 — “By this is love perfected with us, so that we may have confidence for the day of judgment, because as he is so also are we in this world.”
| Terms | Variants | Contextual theological meaning | Assamese rendering | Risk |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| perfected τετελείωται (τελειόω) teteleiōtai see 4:12 | — perfected, made complete | — | পৰিপূৰ্ণ হয় | High |
| confidence παρρησίαν (παρρησία) parrēsian boldness, freedom of speech | confident, unashamed access; not arrogance confidence, boldness | Assurance before God at final judgment, grounded in union with Christ, not accumulated merit or uncertain karmic outcome — connects to baseline doctrine assurance_of_salvation — [NEW TERM] | সাহস / নিশ্চয়তা (xahôx / nixcôyôta) | High |
| the day of judgment ἡμέρᾳ τῆς κρίσεως (ἡμέρα κρίσεως) hēmera tēs kriseōs day of the judgment/verdict | Final, singular eschatological day, not a repeating cosmic-age judgment (yuga cycle) day of judgment | Linear, once-for-all final judgment — [NEW TERM] | বিচাৰৰ দিন (bicaror din) | Medium |
| world κόσμῳ (κόσμος) kosmō see 4:9 | — world | The present sphere in which believers live out Christlike character | জগত (jôgôt) | High |
Translator note: সাহস/নিশ্চয়তা here echoes the baseline doctrine name পৰিত্ৰাণৰ নিশ্চয়তা (Assurance of Salvation, High risk in the Romans registry). Maintain that same vocabulary root for consistency across curricula — assurance rests on God’s character and Christ’s finished work, never on an uncertain reckoning of accumulated merit toward one’s next rebirth.
4:18 — “There is no fear in love, but perfect love casts out fear, for fear has to do with punishment, and whoever fears has not been perfected in love.”
| Terms | Variants | Contextual theological meaning | Assamese rendering | Risk |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| fear φόβος phobos fear, dread | servile dread of punishment (here), distinct from reverent awe (φόβος can also mean reverence elsewhere in Scripture) fear, dread, terror | Dread of condemnation is expelled by mature, secure love — [NEW TERM] | ভয় (bhôy) | Low |
| perfect (love) τελεία (τέλειος) teleia complete, full-grown, mature | full development/maturity, not flawless sinlessness perfect, mature, complete | Love that has reached its mature, God-given expression drives out servile dread — [NEW TERM] | পৰিপূৰ্ণ (poripurnô) | High |
| punishment κόλασιν (κόλασις) kolasin punishment, chastisement | penal consequence punishment, torment | The dread specifically in view is dread of divine penal judgment, resolved through assurance in Christ, not appeased through personal penance — [NEW TERM] | দণ্ড (dondô) | Low |
4:19 — “We love because he first loved us.”
| Terms | Variants | Contextual theological meaning | Assamese rendering | Risk |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| first πρῶτος prōtos first, before | temporal/causal priority first | Grace precedes and produces response — God’s initiative, not human merit or devotion, is the ground of love, echoing the baseline Grace doctrine’s insistence on unmerited priority | প্ৰথমে (prôthôme) | High |
4:20 — “If anyone says, ‘I love God,’ and hates his brother, he is a liar; for he who does not love his brother whom he has seen cannot love God whom he has not seen.”
| Terms | Variants | Contextual theological meaning | Assamese rendering | Risk |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| hates μισῇ (μισέω) misē to hate | active ill-will, opposite of ἀγαπάω hates | Hatred toward a brother falsifies any profession of loving God — evidence-of-new-birth doctrine | ঘিণায় / বিদ্বেষ কৰে (ghinay / bidwex kôre) | Medium |
| liar ψεύστης pseustēs liar, one who speaks falsely | one who contradicts truth by word or by inconsistent life liar | Strong moral-theological indictment; consistent with 1 John’s repeated “liar” language for false profession (2:4, 22; 4:20) — [NEW TERM] | মিছলিয়া (micholiya) | Medium |
| brother ἀδελφόν (ἀδελφός) adelphon brother | fellow believer within the covenant community brother | Central to the doctrine Love for the Brethren as Evidence of New Birth — [NEW TERM] | ভাই (bhai) | Medium |
4:21 — “And this commandment we have from him: whoever loves God must also love his brother.”
| Terms | Variants | Contextual theological meaning | Assamese rendering | Risk |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| commandment ἐντολήν (ἐντολή) entolēn command, instruction | Authoritative directive from God, not human-devised religious duty commandment | Love for God and love for brother are bound together as a single, non-optional command — [NEW TERM] | আজ্ঞা (agya) | Medium |
| brother ἀδελφόν adelphon see 4:20 | — brother | — | ভাই (bhai) | Medium |
PART B — WHOLE-BOOK CHAPTER-BY-CHAPTER ANALYSIS
Chapter 1 (1:1–10): The Word of Life, Fellowship, Light, and Confession
| Terms | Variants | Contextual theological meaning | Assamese rendering | Risk |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| word of life ὁ λόγος τῆς ζωῆς ho logos tēs zōēs the word/message of life | the eternal message/Christ himself, apprehended by eyewitness senses (heard, seen, touched) Word of Life, message of life | Opens the letter with an eyewitness, embodied testimony to Christ — directly undergirds the Incarnation doctrine (real flesh, seen and touched, not illusory appearance) — [NEW TERM] | জীৱনৰ বাক্য (jibônor bakyô) | Critical |
| life ζωή zōē life | physical life; here primarily the eternal life embodied in Christ life | See Chapter 5 for the fuller doctrinal term “eternal life” | জীৱন (jibôn) | Medium |
| manifested/made known ἐφανερώθη (φανερόω) ephanerōthē see 4:9 | — manifested, appeared, was revealed | The eternal life “was made manifest” in a real, sensorily perceptible way — anti-docetic emphasis | প্ৰকাশিত হ’ল (prôkaxit hôl) | High |
| fellowship κοινωνία koinōnia see baseline | — fellowship | [REUSED FROM ROMANS TM] Central to the Fellowship with God and One Another doctrine; here explicitly fellowship “with the Father and with his Son” and “with one another” | সহভাগিতা (xohobhagita) | Low (per baseline); note contextual weight is higher here since it is a named curriculum doctrine |
| God is light ὁ θεὸς φῶς ἐστιν ho theos phōs estin God light is (predicate identity) | Moral purity, truth, self-revealing holiness — not physical or mystical luminosity God is light | Parallel predicate-identity statement to “God is love” (4:8); names God’s holy, self-consistent, truth-revealing character — [NEW TERM] | ঈশ্বৰ পোহৰ (Iswôr pohor [hoi]) | Critical |
| light φῶς phōs light | moral/spiritual purity and truth; divine self-revelation light | Must be distinguished from a deity’s inherent divine luster/radiance (tej, prabha, jyoti) described in Puranic narrative, following the same caution the baseline gives for “glory” (মহিমা) — light here is ethical-relational, not a physical-mystical energy emanating from a divine body — [NEW TERM] | পোহৰ (pohor) | High |
| darkness σκότος skotos darkness | moral corruption, separation from God, falsehood; NOT a metaphysical “illusion” (māyā) to be dispelled by enlightenment/realization darkness | Distinguish from the Vedantic avidyā (ignorance/illusion) framework in which “darkness” is dispelled through self-realization of one’s identity with Brahman; biblical darkness is moral rebellion requiring cleansing by Christ’s blood, not philosophical insight — [NEW TERM] | আন্ধাৰ (andhar) | High |
| walk (in light/darkness) περιπατῶμεν (περιπατέω) peripatōmen to walk about | ethical lifestyle/conduct, a whole manner of life walk, live, conduct oneself | Ongoing lived conduct, not a single ritual state | জীয়াই থাকো / চলাফুৰা কৰো (jiyai thako) | Medium |
| sin ἁμαρτία / ἁμαρτάνω hamartia / hamartanō see baseline | — sin | [REUSED FROM ROMANS TM] | পাপ (pap) | High |
| confess ὁμολογῶμεν (ὁμολογέω) homologōmen see 4:15 | — confess | Here specifically confessing sin to God directly, not to a human priestly mediator or through a ritual act — key to the Confession and Forgiveness of Sin doctrine — [NEW TERM] | স্বীকাৰ কৰো (swikar kôro) | High |
| faithful and just πιστός καὶ δίκαιος pistos kai dikaios trustworthy and righteous | God’s reliable character in forgiving, consistent with his own justice (satisfied by Christ’s atoning work) faithful and just | God’s forgiveness is not an arbitrary act of mercy but consistent with his justice, because propitiation (see 4:10) has been made | বিশ্বাসী আৰু ন্যায়ী (biswaxi aru nyayi) | High |
| forgive ἀφῇ (ἀφίημι) aphē to release, let go, forgive | releasing a debt/guilt forgive | Legal-relational release of guilt, distinct from removal of ritual impurity | ক্ষমা কৰা (kхôma kôra) | Medium |
| cleanse καθαρίσῃ (καθαρίζω) katharisē to make clean | moral/forensic cleansing through Christ’s blood, not ritual bathing/purification cleanse | Must be distinguished from Hindu ritual purification practices (snan, shuddhikaran) that remove external/ritual impurity; here cleansing is total, moral, accomplished once through Christ’s blood, received by confession — [NEW TERM] | শুচি কৰা (xuci kôra) | High |
| unrighteousness ἀδικία adikia wrongdoing, injustice | moral wrong, opposite of δικαιοσύνη unrighteousness, wrongdoing | Direct antonym-pair with the baseline term ধাৰ্মিকতা (righteousness); confirms ধাৰ্মিকতা must never be rendered with ধৰ্ম-family vocabulary — [NEW TERM] | অধাৰ্মিকতা (odharmikôta) | Medium |
Chapter 2 (2:1–29): Advocate, Propitiation, Commandment, Love vs. World, Antichrist, Anointing, Abiding
| Terms | Variants | Contextual theological meaning | Assamese rendering | Risk |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| advocate παράκλητον (παράκλητος) paraklēton one called alongside to help; legal advocate, intercessor | helper, comforter, advocate, intercessor (same root used of the Holy Spirit in John 14–16) advocate, comforter, helper | Christ’s unique heavenly intercessory role before the Father on behalf of believers who sin — must not be collapsed into a human priestly or guru-mediator role, nor into ritual intermediation through a Satradhikar or purohit — [NEW TERM] | সহায়ক (xohayôk) | Critical |
| propitiation ἱλασμός hilasmos see 4:10 | — propitiation, atoning sacrifice | Explicitly stated here as being “not for our sins only but also for the sins of the whole world” — universal scope | প্ৰায়শ্চিত্তৰ বলিদান (prayaxcittôr bolidan) | Critical |
| commandment ἐντολή entolē see 4:21 | — commandment | Both “old” (from the beginning) and “new” commandment language regarding love — [NEW TERM] | আজ্ঞা (agya) | Medium |
| love (of the world) ἀγαπᾶτε τὸν κόσμον (ἀγαπάω) agapate ton kosmon see 4:7 | — love | Warns against loving “the world” — a different, negative use of ἀγαπάω pointing to disordered attachment | জগতক প্ৰেম কৰা (jôgôtôk prem kôra) | High |
| world κόσμος kosmos see 4:9 | Here specifically: the world-system in rebellion against God, opposed to the Father’s will — not the physical creation, nor the Hindu cosmological jagat understood as māyā (illusory manifestation of Brahman) world | The world here is real (not illusory) but morally corrupted and to be renounced in loyalty, not escaped through metaphysical realization — [NEW TERM] | জগত (jôgôt) | High |
| desire/lust ἐπιθυμία epithymia strong desire, craving | (i) “desire of the flesh” (ii) “desire of the eyes” — disordered craving desire, lust, craving | Distinguish from কাম (kama) as a legitimate life-goal within some Hindu ethical frameworks (one of the four puruṣārthas); here it names a disordered, passing craving set against obedience to God’s will | কামনা / অভিলাষ (kamona / obhilax) | Medium |
| antichrist ἀντίχριστος antichristos against/instead-of Christ | one who denies that Jesus is the Christ (2:22) and that he came in the flesh (4:2-3); also a plural, ongoing phenomenon (“many antichrists,” 2:18) antichrist | Central to the Incarnation and Antichrist doctrine: a specifically Christological heresy denying Christ’s true identity and incarnation, not a generic mythological adversary or demon-figure (Ravana, Hiranyakashipu) opposing dharma in Puranic narrative — [NEW TERM] | খ্ৰীষ্টাৰি (Khristari) | Critical |
| anointing χρῖσμα chrisma an anointing, that which is smeared/applied | the Holy Spirit given to all believers, teaching them truth (contrasted with false teachers) anointing | Must be distinguished from the ritual consecration/anointing (অভিষেক) of a deity’s image (murti abhisheka) or a king’s coronation rite; here it names the Holy Spirit’s teaching presence given to every believer, not a ritual act performed on an object of worship — [NEW TERM] | অভিষেক (obhishek) | High |
| abide/remain μένω menō see 4:12 | — abide, remain, continue | Repeated exhortation to abide “in him” and to let the Word/teaching abide in the believer — [NEW TERM] | স্থিৰে থাকা (sthire thaka) | High |
| coming/appearing παρουσία parousia arrival, presence, coming | Christ’s future return coming, appearing, second coming | Singular, future, personal return of Christ — not a repeated cyclical divine descent — [NEW TERM] | আগমন (agômôn) | Medium |
| born of him / practicing righteousness γεγέννηται ἐξ αὐτοῦ / δικαιοσύνην ποιῶν gegennētai ex autou / dikaiosynēn poiōn begotten of him / doing righteousness | New birth evidenced by a righteous manner of life born of him, does what is right | Practicing righteousness (reusing baseline ধাৰ্মিকতা root) is evidence of new birth, not its cause | ধাৰ্মিকতা কৰা / ঈশ্বৰৰ পৰা জন্ম হৱা | High |
Chapter 3 (3:1–24): Children of God, New Birth, the Devil, Love for the Brethren, Assurance
| Terms | Variants | Contextual theological meaning | Assamese rendering | Risk |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| children of God τέκνα θεοῦ tekna theou children of God | A specific status granted only to those who believe/are born again — not a universal claim that all humanity, by virtue of cosmic origin, are inherently “children of God/Brahman” children of God, sons of God | Must be distinguished from a universalist framing in which all beings are held to be intrinsically divine offspring by nature; here it is a granted status (“that we should be called…”, 3:1) received through faith, evidenced by righteous conduct and love — [NEW TERM] | ঈশ্বৰৰ সন্তান (Iswôror xôntan) | High |
| appeared/manifested ἐφανερώθη (φανερόω) ephanerōthē see 4:9 | — appeared, was manifested | Used both of Christ’s first appearing (to take away sins, destroy the devil’s works) and of his future appearing | প্ৰকাশিত হ’ল (prôkaxit hôl) | High |
| devil διάβολος diabolos slanderer, accuser | Personal spiritual being, originator of sin “from the beginning” devil, the evil one | Must be distinguished from mythological demon/asura-rakshasa adversary figures (e.g., Ravana, Mahishasura) who require a fresh avatar-intervention each age to be defeated; the biblical devil’s decisive defeat is already accomplished in Christ’s work, and his ongoing activity is deception/temptation, not a repeating cosmic battle — [NEW TERM] | শয়তান (xoytan) | Critical |
| lawlessness ἀνομία anomia without law; transgression | Sin defined relationally as opposition to God’s revealed character/law lawlessness | Extends baseline law term (বিধান); “sin is lawlessness” (3:4) confirms sin must not be reduced to ritual impurity or impersonal karmic imbalance but is defined against God’s own revealed will — [NEW TERM] | বিধান লঙ্ঘন (bidhan lônghôn) | Medium |
| seed (of God) σπέρμα sperma seed | Metaphor for God’s own life/nature implanted in the believer at new birth (God’s) seed, nature, life | Distinguish from the baseline term “seed of David” (দায়ূদৰ বংশৰ, physical lineage); here it is God’s own regenerating life-principle abiding in the believer, given at new birth — not an inherent divine spark (ātman-fragment of Brahman) present in every soul by nature — [NEW TERM] | বীজ (bij) | High |
| brother ἀδελφός adelphos see 4:20 | — brother | Central to Love for the Brethren doctrine; Cain/Abel referenced as the negative paradigm (3:12) | ভাই (bhai) | Medium |
| heart καρδία kardia heart | seat of conscience and inner conviction heart | Confidence/condemnation of the heart before God, not fear of ritual impurity | হৃদয় (hridôy) | Low |
| confidence παρρησία parrēsia see 4:17 | — confidence, boldness | Confidence before God in prayer grounded in obedience empowered by love, not merit-accumulation | সাহস / নিশ্চয়তা | High |
| commandment ἐντολή entolē see above | — commandment | Summarized as believing in Christ’s name and loving one another (3:23) | আজ্ঞা (agya) | Medium |
| Spirit πνεῦμα pneuma see baseline | — Spirit | Given as the confirming sign that God abides in the believer (3:24) — [REUSED FROM ROMANS TM] | পবিত্ৰ আত্মা (pobitrô atma) | Critical |
Chapter 4 (4:1–6): Testing the Spirits, Confessing the Incarnation
(Note: 4:7–21, the core passage, has already received full verse-by-verse treatment in Part A above. This section covers only 4:1–6, the opening of the chapter.)
| Terms | Variants | Contextual theological meaning | Assamese rendering | Risk |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| spirits (plural, to be tested) τὰ πνεύματα (πνεῦμα) ta pneumata spirits | Spiritual/prophetic influences behind human prophets/teachers — true or false; not the single, personal Holy Spirit spirits | High syncretism risk: must not be conflated with folk spirit-possession or oracle traditions found in some Assamese animist/Shakta folk practice (e.g., deodhwa trance-possession); these are the influences behind competing religious claims to be discerned by a specific Christological test, not literal ancestor-spirits or possessing deities — [NEW TERM] | আত্মাসমূহ (atmaxômuh) | High |
| test δοκιμάζετε (δοκιμάζω) dokimazete examine, put to the test | discernment against a fixed doctrinal standard test, discern, examine | Discernment is doctrinal (confession of Christ come in the flesh), not experiential/charismatic feeling alone — [NEW TERM] | পৰীক্ষা কৰা (porikxa kôra) | Medium |
| false prophet ψευδοπροφήτης pseudoprophētēs false prophet | One who claims prophetic authority falsely; pairs with baseline term ভাববাদী (prophet) false prophet | Distinguish from a genuine ভাববাদী; the marker of falsehood is precisely Christological denial — [NEW TERM] | ভূৱা ভাববাদী (bhuwa bhabôbadi) | High |
| confess Jesus Christ come in the flesh ὁμολογεῖ Ἰησοῦν Χριστὸν ἐν σαρκὶ ἐληλυθότα homologei Iēsoun Christon en sarki elēlythota confesses Jesus Christ having come in flesh | The doctrinal test-confession distinguishing the Spirit of God from deceiving spirits confesses Jesus Christ come in the flesh | Directly grounds the Incarnation and Antichrist doctrine; denial of real, physical incarnation (a docetic heresy) is itself the mark of antichrist’s spirit — [NEW TERM] | যীচু খ্ৰীষ্ট মাংসত আহিল বুলি স্বীকাৰ কৰা (Yisu Khristô mangxôt ahil buli swikar kôra) | Critical |
| flesh σάρξ sarx flesh, physical body | Genuine human physicality, not illusion or temporary appearance flesh | Reinforces the baseline term দেহধাৰণ (incarnation, Critical); the eternal Son assumed genuine human flesh once, permanently — not a temporary, apparition-like divine appearance as in some Puranic avatar narratives describing an assumed illusory body — [NEW TERM] | মাংস (mangxô) | Critical |
| overcome νενικήκατε (νικάω) nenikēkate have conquered, have overcome | Victory already accomplished in believers over the spirit of antichrist/false teachers, grounded in “he who is in you” (the indwelling Spirit) have overcome, have conquered | Introduces the Overcoming the World doctrine, developed fully in ch. 5 — [NEW TERM] | জয় কৰিছে (jôy kôrice) | High |
Chapter 5 (5:1–21): Overcoming the World, Threefold Witness, Eternal Life, Idols
| Terms | Variants | Contextual theological meaning | Assamese rendering | Risk |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| believes πιστεύων (πιστεύω) pisteuōn see baseline | — believes | [REUSED FROM ROMANS TM — faith root] | বিশ্বাস কৰে (biswax kôre) | High |
| born of God γεγέννηται (γεννάω) gegennētai see 4:7 | — born of God | Repeated grounding of the whole letter’s ethic in new birth | ঈশ্বৰৰ পৰা জন্ম হৱা | Critical |
| overcome/conquer νικάω nikaō to conquer, prevail, win the victory | Victory over “the world” (the world-system opposed to God) accomplished through faith, not personal spiritual attainment overcome, conquer, be victorious | Central to the Overcoming the World doctrine: victory is granted through faith in Christ’s finished work and the new birth, not through ascetic self-discipline, karma-yoga effort, or renunciate detachment (vairāgya) as cultivated in some Hindu ascetic traditions — [NEW TERM] | জয় কৰা (jôy kôra) | High |
| testimony/witness μαρτυρία martyria testimony, witness | Legal/testimonial evidence establishing truth testimony, witness | The Father’s testimony to the Son, received by faith — [NEW TERM] | সাক্ষ্য (xakkhyô) | Medium |
| water, blood, and Spirit τὸ ὕδωρ καὶ τὸ αἷμα … τὸ πνεῦμα to hydōr kai to haima … to pneuma the water and the blood … the Spirit | Three coordinated witnesses to the reality and saving significance of Jesus Christ (his baptism/ministry, his atoning death, and the Spirit’s ongoing testimony) water and blood, the Spirit bearing witness | Threefold testimonial confirmation of the incarnate, atoning, Spirit-attested Christ — a doctrinally dense passage requiring careful, literal (not symbolic-substitution) rendering — [NEW TERM SET] | পানী, তেজ, আৰু আত্মা (pani, tez, aru atma) | High |
| eternal life ζωὴ αἰώνιος zōē aiōnios life without end; the age-to-come’s life | Unending, personal, relational life with God through the Son — the letter’s climactic assurance (5:11-13, 20) eternal life, everlasting life | Central to the Assurance of Salvation and Eternal Life doctrine; must not be conflated with mokṣa/mukti — the impersonal liberation of the ātman from the rebirth cycle and its merging into an undifferentiated Brahman — the baseline package already forbids মুক্তি/মোক্ষ for “salvation,” and the same prohibition applies here: eternal life is knowing and being known by the personal God through the Son (cf. John 17:3), a continuing relationship, not a dissolving of personal identity — [NEW TERM, Critical] | অনন্ত জীৱন (ônôntô jibôn) | Critical |
| confidence παρρησία parrēsia see 4:17 | — confidence | Boldness in prayer, grounded in God’s revealed will | সাহস / নিশ্চয়তা | High |
| request αἴτημα aitēma that which is asked, a petition | Specific prayer request request, petition | Prayer according to God’s will is heard — direct petition to a personal God, not ritual intermediation | নিবেদন (nibedôn) | Low |
| sin that leads to death ἁμαρτία πρὸς θάνατον hamartia pros thanaton sin toward death | A specific, unspecified category of sin for which John does not instruct intercessory prayer (5:16-17) sin unto death, mortal sin | Requires careful handling: must not be assimilated to a karma-and-rebirth causal chain in which particular sins mechanically determine a person’s next death/rebirth; the category remains a matter of God’s own governance, not a calculable karmic ledger — [NEW TERM] | মৃত্যুজনক পাপ (mrityujônôk pap) | High |
| the evil one ὁ πονηρός ho ponēros the evil one | The devil, as in ch. 3; the world “lies in the power of” him, but the believer is kept safe the evil one, the wicked one | Consistent with the devil term above (শয়তান); “the evil one does not touch him” affirms the Assurance of Salvation doctrine even amid the devil’s ongoing activity | সেই মন্দ জন (xei môndô jôn) | Medium |
| idols εἴδωλα eidōla images, idols | Any object or figure that displaces exclusive devotion/worship of the one true God idols | CRITICAL — highest cultural collision point in the book. মূৰ্তি is the standard Assamese word for a consecrated deity-image at the center of daily Hindu and Shakta worship (e.g., the Kamakhya temple’s Shakta tradition, prominent in Guwahati/Assam), and is also historically the specific practice Sankardev’s aniconic Ekasarana Dharma naam tradition itself reformed against in favor of formless devotion through scripture and congregational chanting. The command in 5:21 must be rendered so as to reinforce exclusive, undivided devotion to the one true God/Christ revealed in this letter — the letter’s own theological argument, not an entry point into existing intra-Hindu debates between iconic (murti-based) and aniconic (naam-based) worship traditions. A mandatory translator note is required on every occurrence — [NEW TERM] | মূৰ্তি (murti) | Critical |
Summary of Full-Book Coverage
| Chapter | New load-bearing terms introduced | Notes |
|---|---|---|
| 1 | word of life, life, manifested, God is light, light, darkness, walk, confess, faithful and just, forgive, cleanse, unrighteousness | Reuses fellowship, sin from baseline TM |
| 2 | advocate, propitiation, commandment, world (negative sense), desire/lust, antichrist, anointing, abide/remain, coming/appearing | Reuses righteousness root |
| 3 | children of God, appeared/manifested, devil, lawlessness, seed (of God), brother, heart, confidence, commandment | Reuses Holy Spirit, faith |
| 4:1–6 | spirits (plural), test, false prophet, confess…come in the flesh, flesh, overcome | Sets up core-passage terms (love, propitiation, only Son) fully treated in Part A |
| 4:7–21 (core) | love/agape, born of God, God is love, manifested, only Son, sent, world, propitiation, ought, abides, perfected, testify, Savior, confesses, confidence, day of judgment, fear, perfect, punishment, liar | Fully treated verse-by-verse in Part A above |
| 5 | overcome/conquer, testimony, water/blood/Spirit, eternal life, sin unto death, the evil one, idols | Reuses faith, born of God |
No chapter in 1 John is without load-bearing theological vocabulary; all five chapters and the core passage are represented above.
See 08_core_glossary.md for the consolidated per-term glossary table with finalized risk tiers and rationale for every term identified in this analysis.