Core Glossary
08 Core Glossary — Colossians — English → Bengali
This glossary extends the baseline Romans translation_memory.json and bible_term_registry.json. Section 1 lists terms reused exactly from the baseline (no renegotiation permitted). Section 2 lists new terms introduced by Colossians, organized by doctrine risk tier, with full fields matching the baseline schema (translation, transliteration, doctrine risk, doctrine, alternatives rejected, notes). All new entries must be added to translation_memory.json and bible_term_registry.json before Phase 2 processing begins, per the Translation Memory Load and Enforcement Instructions in 12_ai_translation_requirements.md.
Section 1 — Terms Reused Exactly from the Romans Baseline (No Change)
| English Term | Bengali (established) | Baseline Risk | Colossians Occurrences (representative) |
|---|---|---|---|
| gospel | সুসমাচার | High | 1:5,23; 1:28 |
| grace | অনুগ্রহ | High | 1:2,6; 3:16; 4:18 |
| faith | বিশ্বাস | High | 1:4,23; 2:5,7,12; 2:12 |
| holy | পবিত্র | High | 1:22; 3:12 |
| saints | পবিত্র লোক | High | 1:2,4,12,26; 3:12 |
| church | মণ্ডলী | Medium | 1:18,24; 4:15,16 |
| sin | পাপ | High | 1:14; 2:11,13 |
| gentiles | পরজাতি | Medium | (implicit, 3:11 “no Greek and Jew”) |
| glory | মহিমা | High | 1:11,27; 3:4 |
| lord | প্রভু | Critical | 1:3,10; 2:6; 3:17,18,20,22-24; 4:1,7,17 |
| son_of_god | ঈশ্বরের পুত্র | Critical | 1:13 (“kingdom of his beloved Son”) |
| resurrection | পুনরুত্থান | Critical | 1:18; 2:12; 3:1 |
| father | পিতা | Critical | 1:2,3,12; 3:17 |
| peace | শান্তি | Medium | 1:2,20; 3:15 |
| thanksgiving | ধন্যবাদ | Low | 1:3,12; 2:7; 3:15,16,17; 4:2 |
| kingdom_of_god | ঈশ্বরের রাজ্য | Medium | 1:13; 4:11 |
| called | আহুত | High | 3:15 |
| god | ঈশ্বর | Critical | throughout |
| holy_spirit | পবিত্র আত্মা | Critical | 1:8 (“love in the Spirit”) |
| jesus | যীশু | Critical | throughout |
| apostle | প্রেরিত | Medium | 1:1 |
| power_of_god | ঈশ্বরের সামর্থ্য | High | 1:11,29 (reuse সামর্থ্য for δύναμις/ἐνέργεια; NEVER শক্তি) |
| paul (proper name) | পৌল | — | 1:1,23; 4:18 |
| david (proper name convention n/a) | — | — | not applicable in Colossians |
Any deviation from the above renderings anywhere in Colossians materials must be flagged and rejected at validation, per baseline enforcement rules.
Section 2 — New Terms Introduced in Colossians
Critical Risk (Human theologian review mandatory for every occurrence)
| Term | Original (Greek) | Transliteration | Bengali Translation | Doctrine | Alternatives Rejected | Notes |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| image (of God) | εἰκών | eikōn | প্রতিমূর্তি | Supremacy of Christ / Deity of Christ | প্রতিরূপ (weaker, loses “exact representation” force) | Root shares মূর্তি with Hindu idol-imagery (Durga/Kali মূর্তি). Mandatory translator note distinguishing Christ as living, personal exact representation of God from idol-worship. Must be cross-referenced with the negative term মূর্তিপূজা (idolatry, 3:5) so the two are never conflated. Col 1:15; 3:10. |
| firstborn | πρωτότοκος | prōtotokos | প্রথমজাত | Supremacy of Christ over Creation | প্রথম সৃষ্ট বস্তু (explicitly rejected — means “first created thing,” an Arian/JW-adjacent reading) | Denotes rank/heirship, NOT chronological first-created status. Must be read with “before all things” (1:17) to foreclose a creaturely reading. Col 1:15, 1:18 (“firstborn from the dead”). |
| fullness (of deity) | πλήρωμα | plērōma | পূর্ণতা | Fullness of Deity in Christ Bodily | আংশিক প্রকাশ (rejected — “partial manifestation,” contradicts the doctrine) | Christ possesses the entire, undivided fullness of God’s nature, not one divine emanation among several (contra Gnostic-adjacent “pleroma” cosmologies). Col 1:19; 2:9-10. |
| deity | θεότης | theotēs | ঈশ্বরত্ব | Fullness of Deity in Christ Bodily | ঐশ্বরিক গুণ (rejected — “divine quality,” weaker than full Godhood) | Christ’s complete divine nature, co-equal with the Father. Sharpest single Christological claim in the book; no softening permitted. Col 2:9. |
| bodily | σωματικῶς | sōmatikōs | দৈহিকভাবে | Fullness of Deity in Christ Bodily / Incarnation | আকারে (rejected — “in form/shape,” too weak, allows a docetic/illusory reading) | Must be read with baseline’s দেহধারণ (incarnation) entry; permanent, unique, real bodily indwelling, never an avatar-style temporary appearance. Col 2:9. |
| redemption | ἀπολύτρωσις | apolytrōsis | উদ্ধার (or মুক্তিমূল্য দ্বারা উদ্ধার) | Reconciliation through the Cross / Salvation | মুক্তি (CRITICAL — explicitly rejected; carries the Hindu moksha/liberation-from-rebirth association exactly as with baseline’s “salvation” entry); মোক্ষ (rejected, same reason) | Extends baseline’s পরিত্রাণ logic to this closely related soteriological term. NEVER মুক্তি. Col 1:14. |
| knowledge (gnosis) | γνῶσις / ἐπίγνωσις | gnōsis / epignōsis | জ্ঞান | Warning against False Teaching and Syncretism | আত্মিক অন্তর্দৃষ্টি (considered but rejected as insufficiently standard) | জ্ঞান directly overlaps with the Sanskrit/Vedantic jñāna, the liberating self-realization knowledge central to Hindu jnana-yoga soteriology. Every occurrence requires context anchoring this knowledge specifically to Christ (cf. 2:2-3, “the mystery of God, in which are hidden all the treasures of wisdom and knowledge”), not self-attained enlightenment. Col 1:9-10; 2:3; 3:10. |
| elemental spirits / elements of the world | στοιχεῖα τοῦ κόσμου | stoicheia tou kosmou | জগতের মূলতত্ত্ব | Warning against False Teaching and Syncretism | ভূত (CRITICAL — explicitly rejected; colloquial Bengali primary meaning is “ghost,” severely misleading); পঞ্চভূত-adjacent renderings (rejected — risks direct equation with the named Hindu five-elements cosmology) | Highest-risk new term in the book. Requires mandatory translator note and theologian review at every occurrence. Col 2:8, 2:20. |
High Risk (Human theologian review required)
| Term | Original (Greek) | Transliteration | Bengali Translation | Doctrine | Alternatives Rejected | Notes |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| creation | κτίσις | ktisis | সৃষ্টি | Supremacy of Christ over Creation | জগৎ (rejected as too narrow — “world,” loses the totality of “all things” scope) | Standard term; risk is doctrinal (creation as object of Christ’s rule, not merely his context), not lexical. Col 1:15,16,23. |
| rulers and authorities / cosmic powers | θρόνοι, κυριότητες, ἀρχαί, ἐξουσίαι | thronoi, kyriotētes, archai, exousiai | সিংহাসন (thrones), কর্তৃত্ব (dominions), আধিপত্য (rulers), ক্ষমতা (authorities) | Supremacy of Christ over Creation | শক্তি for any of these (rejected — Shakta goddess-power association, per baseline power_of_god logic) | Fourfold list of created spiritual powers, all subordinate to Christ. Directly confronts veneration of intermediary spiritual beings. Col 1:16; 2:10,15. |
| reconciliation | ἀποκαταλλάσσω / καταλλαγή | apokatallassō / katallagē | মিলন / মিলিত করা | Reconciliation through the Cross | সমঝোতা (rejected — “compromise/settlement,” too transactional, loses relational restoration sense) | Must retain cosmic (“all things”) scope of Col 1:20, not narrowed to interpersonal reconciliation only. Col 1:20-22. |
| cross | σταυρός | stauros | ক্রুশ | Reconciliation through the Cross | কাঠ/গাছ (rejected — generic “wood/tree,” loses the specific instrument-of-execution and atonement force) | Established Bengali Christian loanword (via Portuguese cruz); no viable substitute. Col 1:20; 2:14. |
| body (of Christ / church) | σῶμα | sōma | দেহ | Christ as Head of the Church | শরীর (acceptable for generic physical body in non-doctrinal contexts only) | Same word carries three distinct senses in Colossians (church-body 1:18/24; physical body 2:11/23,3:5; “substance/reality” 2:17) — each occurrence needs contextual disambiguation. |
| head (headship) | κεφαλή | kephalē | মস্তক | Christ as Head of the Church | নেতা (rejected — “leader,” too weak, loses organic life-source sense) | Must be rendered consistently across ecclesial (1:18) and cosmic (2:10) uses. |
| mystery | μυστήριον | mystērion | নিগূঢ়তত্ত্ব (or accessible variant গোপন সত্য) | Warning against False Teaching and Syncretism | তন্ত্র/গুপ্তবিদ্যা (rejected — directly invokes Bengal’s Tantric esoteric-knowledge tradition) | God’s previously hidden plan, now openly disclosed to all — the opposite of an esoteric secret for initiates. Col 1:26-27; 2:2; 4:3. |
| philosophy | φιλοσοφία | philosophia | দর্শনশাস্ত্র | Warning against False Teaching and Syncretism | কুতর্ক (considered, rejected as too narrow — “sophistry,” loses the systematic-teaching sense) | Mandatory note: condemns a specific syncretistic system, not philosophical inquiry or Indian darshan traditions generally. Col 2:8. |
| asceticism / self-made religion | ἐθελοθρησκία | ethelothrēskia | স্ব-রচিত উপাসনা | Warning against False Teaching and Syncretism | স্বধর্ম (rejected per baseline’s general caution against ধর্ম-root ambiguity) | Structural parallel to Hindu ascetic self-mortification (tapasya) and some Sufi devotional practice. Col 2:23. |
| worship of angels | θρησκεία τῶν ἀγγέλων | thrēskeia tōn angelōn | স্বর্গদূতদের উপাসনা | Warning against False Teaching and Syncretism | পীর/দেবতা উপাসনা (rejected as too narrowly localized; the general principle must be stated, with cultural application left to native-speaker teaching notes) | Parallels veneration of intermediary spiritual beings (pirs, minor deities, ancestor-spirits) in Bengali folk religion. Col 2:18. |
| old self | ὁ παλαιὸς ἄνθρωπος | ho palaios anthrōpos | পুরাতন মানুষ | Putting Off the Old Self and Putting On the New | পুরনো স্বভাব (rejected — “old nature/temperament,” too weak, loses “entire former person” force) | Distinguish from a Hindu-philosophical “shedding the illusory self (maya)” framework; the old self is real, not illusory, and is put to death, not merely transcended. Col 3:9. |
| new self | ὁ νέος / καινὸς ἄνθρωπος | ho neos / kainos anthrōpos | নতুন মানুষ | Putting Off the Old Self and Putting On the New; Union with Christ | নতুন স্বভাব (rejected for the same reason as “old self” above) | Renewed “after the image of its creator” (3:10) — deliberate echo of প্রতিমূর্তি (1:15). Col 3:10. |
| love (agape) | ἀγάπη | agapē | প্রেম | Household Codes / Putting On the New Self | ভালোবাসা (acceptable for general/secular affection; not preferred for the doctrinal virtue-list occurrences) | Bengal’s Vaishnava bhakti tradition saturates প্রেম with romantic-devotional connotation; context must anchor this as covenantal, self-giving, communal love. Col 1:4,8; 3:14. |
| submission (household code) | ὑποτάσσω | hypotassō | বশীভূত হওয়া / বশ্যতা স্বীকার করা | Household Codes | আনুগত্য প্রকাশ করা (acceptable secondary option, milder connotation) | Must retain the qualifying phrase “as is fitting in the Lord” alongside the paired command to husbands to love, to avoid overstating unqualified patriarchal subjugation. Col 3:18. |
| master (human, slave-owner) | κύριος (of human owners, distinct occurrence from κύριος of Christ) | kyrios | মালিক | Household Codes | প্রভু (CRITICAL — explicitly rejected for this referent; reserved exclusively for Christ per baseline lord entry) | Direct baseline-collision term: same Greek word, two referents. Human masters = মালিক; Christ (even within the same passage, e.g. “you also have a Master in heaven”) = প্রভু. Col 3:22-4:1. |
| inheritance | κληρονομία | klēronomia | উত্তরাধিকার | Adoption into God’s Family (baseline) / full inheritance in Christ | ধন-সম্পত্তি (rejected — “wealth/property,” loses the covenantal-heirship sense) | Read alongside baseline’s দত্তকপুত্রতা (adoption) entry; full, not partial, inheritance-status. Col 1:12; 3:24. |
| circumcision (spiritual) | περιτομή | peritomē | ত্বকছেদ | Union with Christ | সুন্নত/খাতনা (rejected — the Islamic-idiom cultural term, tied to Muslim male identity-marking, not the spiritual sense Paul intends) | Note required distinguishing Paul’s spiritual “circumcision of Christ” from the physical Jewish rite and from Islamic khatna practice. Col 2:11. |
| handwriting of debt | χειρόγραφον | cheirographon | ঋণের দলিল | Reconciliation through the Cross | দলিল alone (acceptable shorthand once ঋণের established in context) | Legal/forensic image of the cross cancelling humanity’s debt of sin. Col 2:14. |
| sabbath / festival / new moon | σάββατα / ἑορτή / νεομηνία | sabbata / heortē / neomēnia | বিশ্রামবার / পর্ব / অমাবস্যা | Warning against False Teaching and Syncretism (obsolescence of ceremonial shadow) | — | অমাবস্যা carries strong independent ritual significance in Bengali Hindu lunar-calendar practice (e.g., Kali Puja); note required to keep the reference anchored to the Jewish ceremonial calendar. Col 2:16. |
| wisdom | σοφία | sophia | প্রজ্ঞা | Warning against False Teaching and Syncretism | জ্ঞান alone (rejected as sole rendering — see knowledge entry; the two terms are paired, not interchangeable) | Some Buddhist/Vedantic philosophical resonance (prajñā); context must anchor to Christ (2:3) not self-attained insight. Col 1:9,28; 2:3,23; 4:5. |
| sufferings (Christ’s, shared in ministry) | παθήματα (τοῦ Χριστοῦ) | pathēmata (tou Christou) | খ্রীষ্টের দুঃখভোগ | Supremacy and Sufficiency of Christ (guarding against misreading) | যন্ত্রণাভোগের পূরণ করা alone without qualification (rejected — risks implying Christ’s atonement is deficient) | Mandatory translator note: Paul shares in gospel-ministry affliction, not atoning merit; Christ’s atonement is complete and sufficient. Col 1:24. |
Medium Risk (Native speaker review recommended)
| Term | Original (Greek) | Transliteration | Bengali Translation | Doctrine | Alternatives Rejected | Notes |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| baptism | βάπτισμα | baptisma | বাপ্তিস্ম | Union with Christ | স্নান (rejected — “ritual bath,” risks conflation with Hindu ritual purification bathing) | Established Bengali Christian loanword. Col 2:12. |
| humility (dual sense) | ταπεινοφροσύνη | tapeinophrosynē | নম্রতা | Warning against False Teaching (2:18,23, negative) / Putting On the New Self (3:12, positive) | — | Same word is used both for false ascetic self-abasement (negative, ch.2) and genuine Christian virtue (positive, ch.3); context notes required at each occurrence. |
| forgiveness | ἄφεσις / χαρίζομαι | aphesis / charizomai | ক্ষমা | Reconciliation through the Cross | — | Must not be collapsed with baseline’s justification entry (ধার্মিক বলে গণ্য হওয়া); forgiveness and forensic justification are distinct. Col 1:14; 2:13; 3:13. |
| shadow | σκιά | skia | ছায়া | Warning against False Teaching and Syncretism | — | Linear historical-fulfillment sense (OT shadow → NT reality in Christ); note distinguishing from any cyclical/illusory (māyā) philosophical reading. Col 2:17. |
| hope | ἐλπίς | elpis | প্রত্যাশা | Supremacy and Sufficiency of Christ | আশা (acceptable secondary synonym) | Confident, certain future reality secured by God’s character, not wishful thinking or karmic hope. Col 1:5,23,27. |
| idolatry | εἰδωλολατρία | eidōlolatria | মূর্তিপূজা | Putting Off the Old Self | — | Root-collision cross-reference with the positive term প্রতিমূর্তি (image, 1:15/3:10) — must never be conflated. Col 3:5. |
| bond of perfection | σύνδεσμος (τῆς τελειότητος) | syndesmos (tēs teleiotētos) | পরিপূর্ণতার বন্ধন | Putting On the New Self | — | Love as the unifying ligament of all other virtues. Col 3:14. |
| no partiality | προσωπολημψία | prosōpolēmpsia | মুখাপেক্ষিতা | Household Codes / Universal Human Accountability (baseline) | পক্ষপাতিত্ব (acceptable synonym) | Col 4:1. |
| fellow servant / servant of Christ (honorific) | σύνδουλος / δοῦλος Χριστοῦ | syndoulos / doulos Christou | সহদাস / খ্রীষ্টের দাস | Household Codes (contrast with institutional slavery) | — | দাস used positively as an honorific self-designation of total devotion, contrasted with its institutional-slavery use in 3:22ff.; clarifying gloss recommended. Col 4:7,12. |
Low Risk (Automated review sufficient)
| Term | Original (Greek) | Transliteration | Bengali Translation | Doctrine | Notes |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| kindness | χρηστότης | chrēstotēs | সৌজন্য / দয়া | Putting On the New Self | Col 3:12. |
| patience / forbearance | μακροθυμία | makrothymia | দীর্ঘসহিষ্णুতা | Putting On the New Self | Col 3:12. |
| meekness | πραΰτης | prautēs | মৃদুতা | Putting On the New Self | Col 3:12. |
| psalms, hymns, spiritual songs | ψαλμοί, ὕμνοι, ᾠδαὶ πνευματικαί | psalmoi, hymnoi, ōdai pneumatikai | গীত, স্তোত্র, আত্মিক সঙ্গীত | Christian Fellowship (baseline) | Col 3:16. |
| walk (conduct) | περιπατέω | peripateō | চলা / জীবনযাপন করা | Sanctification (baseline framework) | Col 1:10; 2:6; 4:5. |
| salt (seasoned speech) | ἅλας | halas | লবণ | Christ-Centered Ministry (baseline) | Col 4:6. |
| zeal | ζῆλος | zēlos | উদ্যম | Christ-Centered Ministry (baseline) | Col 4:13. |
| stewardship | οἰκονομία | oikonomia | ব্যবস্থাপনা | Christ-Centered Ministry (baseline) | Col 1:25. |
| disarmed / triumphed | ἀπεκδυσάμενος / θριαμβεύσας | apekdysamenos / thriambeusas | নিরস্ত্র করা / বিজয় প্রদর্শন করা | Reconciliation through the Cross | Col 2:15. |
| fellow prisoner | συναιχμάλωτος | synaichmalōtos | সহবন্দি | Christ-Centered Ministry (baseline) | Col 4:10. |
Risk Summary
| Risk Tier | Count (new terms) | Review Routing |
|---|---|---|
| Critical | 7 | Human theologian, mandatory every occurrence |
| High | 17 | Human theologian |
| Medium | 8 | Native speaker |
| Low | 9 | Automated |
| Total new terms | 41 | — |
Combined with the 23 reused baseline terms in Section 1, this glossary provides full-book terminological coverage for Colossians 1–4, anchored on the core passage Colossians 1:15–20.
Critical Risk Terms
Bodily
Approved rendering: দৈহিকভাবে
Transliteration: dehikvabe
Doctrine: Fullness of Deity in Christ Bodily
Rejected alternatives: আকারে
Original: σωματικῶς
Category: Christology
NEW — Colossians-specific (Col 2:9). The fullness of deity resides in Christ’s actual physical body — real incarnation, not illusion, and not a temporary avatar-style appearance. Must be read with incarnation (দেহধারণ, above), which explicitly forbids অবতার. আকারে (‘in form/shape’) explicitly rejected — attested in at least one circulating older-print Bengali edition and doctrinally weaker, permitting a docetic reading.
Deity
Approved rendering: ঈশ্বরত্ব
Transliteration: Ishshorotto
Doctrine: Fullness of Deity in Christ Bodily
Rejected alternatives: ঐশ্বরিক গুণ
Original: θεότης
Category: Christology
NEW — Colossians-specific. Colossians’ sharpest single Christological claim (Col 2:9). Christ’s complete, undivided nature of being God, co-equal with the Father. No softening toward ‘godlike’ or ‘divine-ish’ permitted — ঐশ্বরিক গুণ (‘divine quality’) explicitly rejected as too weak.
Elemental Spirits
Approved rendering: জগতের মূলতত্ত্ব
Transliteration: jogoter mulotutto
Doctrine: Subordination of Cosmic Powers to Christ
Rejected alternatives: ভূত, পঞ্চভূত-adjacent renderings
Original: στοιχεῖα τοῦ κόσμου
Category: Faith
NEW — Colossians-specific and the single highest-risk new term in the book (Col 2:8,20). ভূত’s ordinary colloquial meaning is ‘ghost’ — explicitly rejected. Any echo of Hindu cosmology’s named পঞ্চভূত (‘five elements’) doctrine is also explicitly rejected. Mandatory translator note and theologian review at every occurrence.
Father
Approved rendering: পিতা
Transliteration: Pita
Doctrine: Adoption into God’s Family
Rejected alternatives: ব্রহ্মা, সৃষ্টিকর্তা
Original: πατήρ
Category: God
Inherited from Romans package, unchanged. Occurs at Col 1:2,3,12; 3:17. Col 3:21 also uses ‘fathers’ of ordinary human parents; render plainly as পিতা/বাবা in that verse and do not confuse with the doctrinal title used of God — translator note recommended at 3:21.
Firstborn
Approved rendering: প্রথমজাত
Transliteration: prothomjato
Doctrine: Supremacy of Christ over Creation
Rejected alternatives: প্রথম সৃষ্ট বস্তু
Original: πρωτότοκος
Category: Christology
NEW — Colossians-specific. Denotes rank/heirship (supreme sovereign over a category), NOT chronological first-created status (Col 1:15, 1:18). Must always be anchored to 1:17’s ‘before all things’ in surrounding context/notes. প্রথম সৃষ্ট বস্তু explicitly rejected as the Arian/Jehovah’s-Witness-adjacent reading; documented as an attested Bengali Watchtower New World Translation proof-text exploit — mandatory theologian review at every occurrence of Col 1:15 and 1:18.
Fullness Of Deity
Approved rendering: পূর্ণতা
Transliteration: purnota
Doctrine: Fullness of Deity in Christ Bodily
Rejected alternatives: আংশিক প্রকাশ
Original: πλήρωμα
Category: Christology
NEW — Colossians-specific. The entire, undivided fullness of God’s own being, permanently residing in Christ alone (Col 1:19, expanded at 2:9 with θεότης). Must never be presented in isolation from ঈশ্বরত্ব (deity, below) in any teaching pull-quote — isolated, it opens a Gnostic-style/avatar-among-many misreading, precisely the heresy Paul refutes. আংশিক প্রকাশ (‘partial manifestation’) explicitly rejected.
God
Approved rendering: ঈশ্বর
Transliteration: Ishshor
Doctrine: Deity of Christ
Rejected alternatives: ভগবান, আল্লাহ
Original: θεός
Category: God
Inherited from Romans package, unchanged. Occurs throughout Colossians.
Holy Spirit
Approved rendering: পবিত্র আত্মা
Transliteration: Pobitro Attha
Doctrine: Sanctification
Rejected alternatives: ব্রহ্ম, পরমাত্মা
Original: πνεῦμα
Category: God
Inherited from Romans package, unchanged. Col 1:8 references ‘love in the Spirit.‘
Image Of God
Approved rendering: প্রতিমূর্তি
Transliteration: protimurti
Doctrine: Supremacy of Christ over Creation
Rejected alternatives: প্রতিরূপ
Original: εἰκών
Category: Christology
NEW — Colossians-specific. Christ is the exact, personal, living manifestation of God’s own invisible being (Col 1:15; 3:10), not a symbolic copy. Root shares মূর্তি with the Hindu worshipped idol/statue (দুর্গা মূর্তি, কালী মূর্তি). Mandatory translator note at every occurrence distinguishing Christ as living exact representation from মূর্তিপূজা (idolatry, 3:5); the two roots must never be conflated. প্রতিরূপ rejected as too weak, losing the ‘exact representation’ force.
Incarnation
Approved rendering: দেহধারণ
Transliteration: dehodharon
Doctrine: Incarnation
Rejected alternatives: অবতার, দেহ প্রকাশ
Original: σωματικῶς (cf. John 1:14 ὁ λόγος σὰρξ ἐγένετο)
Category: Christology
Inherited from Romans package, unchanged. Directly load-bearing for Colossians 2:9’s ‘fullness of deity dwells in him bodily’ — must be read together with the new bodily (দৈহিকভাবে) entry below. NEVER অবতার.
Jesus
Approved rendering: যীশু
Transliteration: Jishu
Doctrine: Lordship of Christ
Rejected alternatives: ঈসা
Original: Ἰησοῦς
Category: Christology
Inherited from Romans package, unchanged.
Knowledge Gnosis
Approved rendering: জ্ঞান
Transliteration: gyan
Doctrine: Warning against False Teaching and Syncretism
Rejected alternatives: আত্মিক অন্তর্দৃষ্টি
Original: γνῶσις / ἐπίγνωσις
Category: Faith
NEW — Colossians-specific (Col 1:9-10; 2:3; 3:10). Knowledge of God’s will and of Christ, given by the Spirit — NOT self-attained esoteric enlightenment. জ্ঞান directly overlaps with Sanskrit/Vedantic jñāna, the liberating self-realization knowledge central to Hindu jnana-yoga soteriology. Every occurrence requires context anchoring to Christ specifically (cf. 2:2-3).
Lord
Approved rendering: প্রভু
Transliteration: provu
Doctrine: Lordship of Christ
Rejected alternatives: মালিক, ঈশ্বর
Original: κύριος
Category: Christology
Inherited from Romans package, unchanged. CRITICAL Colossians-specific complication: κύριος is also used of human slave-masters in 3:22-4:1. প্রভু must be reserved exclusively for Christ throughout Colossians (1:3,10; 2:6; 3:17,18,20,23-24; 4:1,7,17); human masters must instead be রেন্ডার্ড মালিক (see master_human entry below) so Christ’s exclusive Lordship is never diluted.
Messiah
Approved rendering: খ্রীষ্ট
Transliteration: Khrishto
Doctrine: Messianic Promise
Rejected alternatives: মশীহ, অবতার পুরুষ
Original: Χριστός
Category: Christology
Inherited from Romans package, unchanged. Used constantly throughout Colossians (e.g., 1:2,3,4,7,24,27,28; 2:5,6,8,9,11,17,20; 3:1,3,4,11,13,15,16,17,24; 4:3,12). Never মশীহ or অবতার পুরুষ.
Reconciliation
Approved rendering: মিলন
Transliteration: milon
Doctrine: Reconciliation through the Cross
Rejected alternatives: সমঝোতা
Original: ἀποκαταλλάσσω / καταλλαγή
Category: Salvation
NEW — Colossians-specific. Christ’s reconciling work restoring the entire disrupted created order to right relationship with God through the cross alone (Col 1:20-22). Must retain the cosmic (‘all things,’ τὰ πάντα) scope — recommended explicit phrasing ‘সব কিছুর মিলন’ rather than leaving scope to context alone — never narrowed to interpersonal reconciliation only, and never assimilated to a Shakta blood-sacrifice-to-appease-a-deity framework. সমঝোতা (‘compromise/settlement’) explicitly rejected as too transactional.
Redemption
Approved rendering: উদ্ধার
Transliteration: uddhar
Doctrine: Reconciliation through the Cross
Rejected alternatives: মুক্তি, মোক্ষ
Original: ἀπολύτρωσις
Category: Salvation
NEW — Colossians-specific (Col 1:14). Extends the baseline salvation entry’s logic to this closely related soteriological term: NEVER মুক্তি or মোক্ষ, since ἀπολύτρωσις carries the identical Hindu-moksha/liberation-from-rebirth collision risk. Where the ‘ransom-price’ nuance is doctrinally load-bearing, expand to মুক্তিমূল্য দ্বারা উদ্ধার.
Resurrection
Approved rendering: পুনরুত্থান
Transliteration: punorutthan
Doctrine: Resurrection of Christ
Rejected alternatives: পুনর্জন্ম, পুনর্জীবন
Original: ἀνάστασις / συνηγέρθητε
Category: Eschatology
Inherited from Romans package, unchanged. Col 1:18 (‘firstborn from the dead’), 2:12 and 3:1 (‘raised with Christ’) require পুনরুত্থান, never পুনর্জন্ম. The compound ‘raised with him’ must use a সহ- (co-/together-) prefix on পুনরুত্থান’s verb form to preserve the union-with-Christ sense — see union_with_christ doctrine notes.
Salvation
Approved rendering: পরিত্রাণ
Transliteration: poritran
Doctrine: Salvation
Rejected alternatives: মুক্তি, মোক্ষ, নাজাত
Inherited from Romans package, unchanged. Not directly lexicalized in Colossians’ Greek text, but its NEVER-মুক্তি/মোক্ষ/নাজাত logic is directly extended to the new Colossians-specific term redemption (উদ্ধার, see below), which sits in the same soteriological field.
Son Of God
Approved rendering: ঈশ্বরের পুত্র
Transliteration: Ishshorer Putro
Doctrine: Sonship of Christ
Rejected alternatives: দেবপুত্র, ঈশ্বরের অংশ
Original: υἱὸς θεοῦ / ὁ υἱὸς τῆς ἀγάπης αὐτοῦ
Category: Christology
Inherited from Romans package, unchanged. Col 1:13 speaks of ‘the kingdom of his beloved Son’ (τοῦ υἱοῦ τῆς ἀγάπης αὐτοῦ). দেবপুত্র remains rejected as it wrongly places Christ within a Hindu pantheon of lesser divine beings.
High Risk Terms
Adoption
Approved rendering: দত্তকপুত্রতা
Transliteration: dattaka-putrota
Doctrine: Adoption into God’s Family
Rejected alternatives: দত্তক নেওয়া
Inherited from Romans package, unchanged. Read alongside the new Colossians inheritance entry (উত্তরাধিকার, Col 1:12; 3:24) to guard against any reading implying a partial or provisional inheritance-share.
Asceticism Self Made Religion
Approved rendering: স্ব-রচিত উপাসনা
Transliteration: sworochito upasona
Doctrine: Warning against False Teaching and Syncretism
Rejected alternatives: স্বধর্ম
Original: ἐθελοθρησκία
Category: Faith
NEW — Colossians-specific (Col 2:23). Human-invented religious rules and ascetic body-discipline with an appearance of wisdom but no power to restrain sinful desire. Deliberately avoids the ধর্ম root cautioned in the baseline. Directly parallels ascetic self-mortification (tapasya) among Hindu sadhus and some Sufi devotional practice in Bengal.
Authorities
Approved rendering: ক্ষমতা
Transliteration: khomota
Doctrine: Subordination of Cosmic Powers to Christ
Rejected alternatives: শক্তি
Original: ἐξουσίαι
Category: Christology
NEW — Colossians-specific (Col 1:16; 2:10,15). Completes the fourfold list, directly confronting Bengali readers who venerate intermediary spiritual beings — deities, pirs, ancestor-spirits, astrological powers — by subordinating all such beings to Christ as Creator. শক্তি forbidden per baseline power_of_god logic extended to this entire list.
Body Soma
Approved rendering: দেহ
Transliteration: deho
Doctrine: Christ as Head of the Church
Original: σῶμα
Category: Church
NEW — Colossians-specific. Carries three distinct senses in this letter: the church as Christ’s organic corporate body (1:18,24); the literal physical body (2:11,23; 3:5); and ‘substance/reality’ as opposed to shadow (2:17). Each occurrence requires contextual disambiguation, not a uniform gloss. শরীর acceptable only for generic non-doctrinal physical-body contexts.
Called
Approved rendering: আহুত
Transliteration: ahuto
Doctrine: Divine Calling
Rejected alternatives: আমন্ত্রিত, নিমন্ত্রিত
Original: κλητός / ἐκλήθητε
Category: Salvation
Inherited from Romans package, unchanged. Col 3:15: ‘to which indeed you were called in one body’ — must convey an effectual, not merely optional, summons.
Calling
Approved rendering: আহ্বান
Transliteration: ahban
Doctrine: Divine Calling
Inherited from Romans package, unchanged. Noun form; retained in translation memory for consistency wherever the noun sense of God’s summons recurs in Colossians teaching material.
Circumcision Spiritual
Approved rendering: ত্বকছেদ
Transliteration: twokchhed
Doctrine: Spiritual Circumcision and New Covenant Identity
Rejected alternatives: সুন্নত, খাতনা
Original: περιτομή
Category: Sanctification
NEW — Colossians-specific (Col 2:11). Believers’ spiritual ‘circumcision of Christ’ — union with his death — replacing the physical rite as the marker of covenant identity. সুন্নত/খাতনা explicitly rejected as the primary term; those carry strong Bengali Muslim male religious-identity-marking associations distinct from Paul’s spiritual sense.
Covenant
Approved rendering: নিয়ম
Transliteration: niyom
Doctrine: Davidic Covenant
Rejected alternatives: চুক্তি, অঙ্গীকার
Inherited from Romans package, unchanged. Underlies the Colossians doctrine name ‘নতুন নিয়মের পরিচয়’ (new covenant identity, associated with 2:11’s spiritual circumcision).
Creation
Approved rendering: সৃষ্টি
Transliteration: srishti
Doctrine: Supremacy of Christ over Creation
Rejected alternatives: জগৎ
Original: κτίσις / κτίζω
Category: Christology
NEW — Colossians-specific. The entire created cosmic order, over which Christ holds supreme rank and of which he is sole source, not a member (Col 1:15,16,23). Must be held in tension with প্রথমজাত so the genitive reads ‘over creation,’ never ‘within creation.’ জগৎ rejected as too narrow, losing the totality of ‘all things.‘
Cross
Approved rendering: ক্রুশ
Transliteration: krush
Doctrine: Reconciliation through the Cross
Rejected alternatives: কাঠ/গাছ
Original: σταυρός
Category: Salvation
NEW — Colossians-specific (Col 1:20; 2:14). Established Bengali Christian loanword (via Portuguese cruz); no viable substitute exists. Risk is doctrinal dilution (generic martyrdom/suffering imagery), not lexical ambiguity.
Dominions
Approved rendering: কর্তৃত্ব
Transliteration: kortritto
Doctrine: Subordination of Cosmic Powers to Christ
Original: κυριότητες
Category: Christology
NEW — Colossians-specific (Col 1:16). Shares semantic space with প্রভু (Lord); must not be confused with Christ’s own exclusive, uncreated Lordship — these are created, derivative ‘lordships.‘
Faith
Approved rendering: বিশ্বাস
Transliteration: bishwas
Doctrine: Faith
Rejected alternatives: ঈমান, শ্রদ্ধা
Original: πίστις
Category: Faith
Inherited from Romans package, unchanged. Colossians pairs faith with being ‘rooted and built up’ in Christ (2:7) and ‘stable and steadfast’ (1:23) against the pull of syncretistic philosophy; object of বিশ্বাস must remain recoverable as Christ.
Glory
Approved rendering: মহিমা
Transliteration: mohima
Doctrine: Deity of Christ
Rejected alternatives: জ্যোতি, তেজ
Original: δόξα
Category: God
Inherited from Romans package, unchanged. Col 1:27 identifies ‘Christ in you’ as ‘the hope of glory’; 3:4 anticipates appearing ‘with him in glory.‘
Gospel
Approved rendering: সুসমাচার
Transliteration: susomachar
Doctrine: Gospel
Rejected alternatives: খুশ খবর, ইঞ্জিল
Original: εὐαγγέλιον
Category: Salvation
Inherited from Romans package, unchanged. Occurs in Colossians 1:5,23; 1:28 — the gospel ‘bearing fruit in the whole world’ and the ground of the hope ‘laid up for you in heaven.‘
Grace
Approved rendering: অনুগ্রহ
Transliteration: anugroho
Doctrine: Grace
Rejected alternatives: কৃপা, পুণ্য, ভাগ্য
Original: χάρις
Category: Salvation
Inherited from Romans package, unchanged. Occurs in Colossians 1:2 (greeting), 1:6 (thanksgiving), 4:18 (closing benediction).
Handwriting Of Debt
Approved rendering: ঋণের দলিল
Transliteration: riner dolil
Doctrine: Reconciliation through the Cross
Original: χειρόγραφον
Category: Salvation
NEW — Colossians-specific (Col 2:14). The legal record of humanity’s debt of sin, cancelled and nailed to the cross — legal/forensic image of the cross’s effect.
Head Kephale
Approved rendering: মস্তক
Transliteration: mostok
Doctrine: Christ as Head of the Church
Rejected alternatives: নেতা
Original: κεφαλή
Category: Church
NEW — Colossians-specific. The organic, life-giving ruling authority Christ exercises over the church (1:18,24; 2:19) and over every cosmic power (2:10). নেতা (‘leader’) explicitly rejected as too weak, losing the organic life-source sense.
Holy
Approved rendering: পবিত্র
Transliteration: pobitro
Doctrine: Sanctification
Rejected alternatives: শুচি, নির্মল
Original: ἅγιος
Category: Sanctification
Inherited from Romans package, unchanged. Occurs at Col 1:22 (‘holy and blameless’) and 3:12 (‘holy and beloved’).
Inheritance
Approved rendering: উত্তরাধিকার
Transliteration: uttoradhikar
Doctrine: Adoption and Inheritance in Christ
Rejected alternatives: ধন-সম্পত্তি
Original: κληρονομία
Category: Covenant
NEW — Colossians-specific (Col 1:12; 3:24). Full, secure inheritance-status of the saints. Read alongside baseline দত্তকপুত্রতা (adoption); guard against a reading shaped by traditional Bengali family hierarchy in which an heir’s share could be assumed partial or provisional. ধন-সম্পত্তি rejected as losing the covenantal-heirship sense.
Love Agape
Approved rendering: প্রেম
Transliteration: prem
Doctrine: Household Codes / Putting On the New Self
Original: ἀγάπη
Category: Sanctification
NEW — Colossians-specific (Col 1:4,8; 3:14; 3:19 marital application). Distinctively Christian, selfless, covenantal, other-directed love. Bengal’s Vaishnava bhakti tradition (Radha-Krishna devotional literature) saturates প্রেম with romantic-devotional connotation; context must anchor this as covenantal, self-giving, communal love, never romantic sentiment alone. ভালোবাসা acceptable for general/secular affection only.
Master Human
Approved rendering: মালিক
Transliteration: malik
Doctrine: Household Codes
Rejected alternatives: প্রভু
Original: κύριος (of human slave-owners)
Category: Household
NEW — Colossians-specific and a direct baseline-collision term (Col 3:22-4:1). κύριος names both a human slave-owner and Christ within the same passage. প্রভু is explicitly rejected for this referent and is reserved exclusively for Christ per the baseline lord entry — even within the same unit (e.g., 4:1’s ‘you also have a Master in heaven’ still renders as প্রভু, referring to Christ).
Mystery
Approved rendering: নিগূঢ়তত্ত্ব
Transliteration: nigurhotutto
Doctrine: Mystery of the Gospel Revealed
Rejected alternatives: তন্ত্র, গুপ্তবিদ্যা, গোপন সত্য (acceptable accessible variant)
Original: μυστήριον
Category: Faith
NEW — Colossians-specific (Col 1:26-27; 2:2; 4:3). God’s previously hidden plan, NOW OPENLY DISCLOSED to every believer — the opposite of an esoteric secret for initiates. Bengal’s Tantric tradition (গুপ্ত সাধনা, তন্ত্র-মন্ত্র) makes this term prone to a false-equivalence reading; তন্ত্র/গুপ্তবিদ্যা explicitly rejected as primary renderings.
New Self
Approved rendering: নতুন মানুষ
Transliteration: notun manush
Doctrine: Putting Off the Old Self and Putting On the New
Rejected alternatives: নতুন স্বভাব
Original: ὁ νέος / καινὸς ἄνθρωπος
Category: Sanctification
NEW — Colossians-specific (Col 3:10), deliberately echoing প্রতিমূর্তি (image) from 1:15 — the believer is ‘renewed in knowledge after the image of its creator.’ This intertextual echo is intentional and should be flagged in teaching material, not treated as coincidental repetition.
Old Self
Approved rendering: পুরাতন মানুষ
Transliteration: puratan manush
Doctrine: Putting Off the Old Self and Putting On the New
Rejected alternatives: পুরনো স্বভাব
Original: ὁ παλαιὸς ἄνθρωπος
Category: Sanctification
NEW — Colossians-specific (Col 3:9). The believer’s former, unregenerate identity, decisively put to death in union with Christ. Must be distinguished from a Hindu-philosophical ‘shedding the illusory self (māyā)’ framework and from Buddhist anatta — the biblical old self is real, not illusory, and is genuinely put to death, not merely transcended or dissolved.
Philosophy
Approved rendering: দর্শনশাস্ত্র
Transliteration: dorshonshastro
Doctrine: Warning against False Teaching and Syncretism
Rejected alternatives: কুতর্ক
Original: φιλοσοφία
Category: Faith
NEW — Colossians-specific (Col 2:8). Names the specific syncretistic false teaching threatening Colossae, not philosophical inquiry as such. দর্শনশাস্ত্র also names the great Indian philosophical schools (Vedanta, Sankhya, Nyaya darshan); mandatory translator note clarifying scope every occurrence.
Power Of God
Approved rendering: ঈশ্বরের সামর্থ্য
Transliteration: Ishshorer shamorthyo
Doctrine: Power of God for Salvation
Rejected alternatives: শক্তি
Original: δύναμις / ἐνέργεια
Category: God
Inherited from Romans package, unchanged. Col 1:11 (‘strengthened with all power’), 1:29 (‘his energy that he powerfully works within me’). NEVER শক্তি — extended in Colossians to also forbid শক্তি for the fourfold cosmic-powers list (thrones/dominions/rulers/authorities, see below).
Rulers Principalities
Approved rendering: আধিপত্য
Transliteration: adhipotyo
Doctrine: Subordination of Cosmic Powers to Christ
Original: ἀρχαί
Category: Christology
NEW — Colossians-specific (Col 1:16; 2:10,15). Chief cosmic/angelic power-structures, later shown ‘disarmed’ by the cross (2:15).
Sabbath Festival New Moon
Approved rendering: বিশ্রামবার / পর্ব / অমাবস্যা
Transliteration: bishrambar / porbo / amabosya
Doctrine: Warning against False Teaching and Syncretism
Original: σάββατα / ἑορτή / νεομηνία
Category: Faith
NEW — Colossians-specific (Col 2:16). বিশ্রামবার and পর্ব are safe; অমাবস্যা (‘new moon/dark-moon day’) independently names a day with strong ritual significance in Bengali Hindu practice (e.g., Kali Puja). Mandatory translator note anchoring the reference strictly to the Jewish ceremonial calendar.
Saints
Approved rendering: পবিত্র লোক
Transliteration: pobitro lok
Doctrine: Sainthood
Rejected alternatives: সাধু, সাধুগণ
Original: ἅγιοι
Category: Church
Inherited from Romans package, unchanged. Colossians addresses the whole congregation as পবিত্র লোক (1:2,4,12,26; 3:12), not an ascetic elite — important given the book’s later polemic against self-devised asceticism (2:23).
Sanctification
Approved rendering: পবিত্রীকরণ
Transliteration: pobitrikoron
Doctrine: Sanctification
Rejected alternatives: শুদ্ধিকরণ
Inherited from Romans package, unchanged. Underlies Colossians’ ‘holy and blameless’ (1:22), ‘put to death what is earthly’ / ‘seek the things above’ (3:1-5) teaching.
Sin
Approved rendering: পাপ
Transliteration: pap
Doctrine: Universal Human Accountability
Rejected alternatives: অধর্ম, অশুচিতা
Original: ἁμαρτία
Category: Sin
Inherited from Romans package, unchanged. Occurs at Col 1:14 (‘forgiveness of sins’) and 2:11,13.
Submission Household Code
Approved rendering: বশীভূত হওয়া
Transliteration: boshibhuto howa
Doctrine: Household Codes
Original: ὑποτάσσω
Category: Household
NEW — Colossians-specific (Col 3:18). A Christ-qualified, voluntary household ethic — NOT absolute patriarchal subjugation. Must preserve the qualifying phrase ‘as is fitting in the Lord’ and the paired command to husbands to love (3:19). বশ্যতা স্বীকার করা and আনুগত্য প্রকাশ করা are acceptable secondary options with milder connotation.
Sufferings Of Christ Shared
Approved rendering: খ্রীষ্টের দুঃখভোগ
Transliteration: Khrishṭer dukkhobhog
Doctrine: Sufficiency of Christ’s Atonement
Original: παθήματα (τοῦ Χριστοῦ)
Category: Church
NEW — Colossians-specific (Col 1:24, ‘filling up what is lacking in Christ’s afflictions’). Mandatory translator note in every occurrence distinguishing Paul’s shared gospel-ministry affliction from atoning merit — Christ’s atonement is complete and sufficient (cf. 1:19; 2:9-10). Must not be rendered or footnoted in a way compatible with a reading that human suffering supplements the cross.
Thrones
Approved rendering: সিংহাসন
Transliteration: shinghason
Doctrine: Subordination of Cosmic Powers to Christ
Original: θρόνοι
Category: Christology
NEW — Colossians-specific. First of the fourfold list of created spiritual/angelic powers, all subordinate to Christ (Col 1:16). Low lexical risk but high doctrinal weight: must not imply Christ shares rank with these powers.
Wisdom
Approved rendering: প্রজ্ঞা
Transliteration: progya
Doctrine: Warning against False Teaching and Syncretism
Rejected alternatives: জ্ঞান alone (not interchangeable)
Original: σοφία
Category: Faith
NEW — Colossians-specific (Col 1:9,28; 2:3,23; 4:5). Spirit-given insight into God’s will, contrasted with worldly/philosophical ‘wisdom’ that puffs up (2:23). প্রজ্ঞা carries Buddhist/Vedantic philosophical resonance (prajñā); context must anchor it to Christ (2:3).
Worship Of Angels
Approved rendering: স্বর্গদূতদের উপাসনা
Transliteration: shorgoduter upasona
Doctrine: Warning against Worship of Angels / Intermediary Spiritual Beings
Rejected alternatives: পীর/দেবতা উপাসনা (too narrowly localized as primary term)
Original: θρησκεία τῶν ἀγγέλων
Category: Faith
NEW — Colossians-specific (Col 2:18). Directly parallels Bengali folk-religious practices of venerating intermediary spiritual beings (pirs’ shrines in folk Islam, minor deities and ancestor-spirits in folk Hinduism) as intercessors. Requires native-speaker cultural framing alongside theological correction.
Medium Risk Terms
Apostle
Approved rendering: প্রেরিত
Transliteration: prerito
Doctrine: Apostleship
Rejected alternatives: দূত, বার্তাবাহক
Original: ἀπόστολος
Category: Church
Inherited from Romans package, unchanged. Col 1:1 opens with Paul’s apostolic self-designation.
Baptism
Approved rendering: বাপ্তিস্ম
Transliteration: baptisma
Doctrine: Baptism as Union with Christ’s Death and Resurrection
Rejected alternatives: স্নান
Original: βάπτισμα
Category: Sanctification
NEW — Colossians-specific (Col 2:12). Established Bengali Christian loanword. স্নান rejected — risks conflation with Hindu ritual purification bathing.
Bond Of Perfection
Approved rendering: পরিপূর্ণতার বন্ধন
Transliteration: poripurnotar bondhon
Doctrine: Putting On the New Self
Original: σύνδεσμος (τῆς τελειότητος)
Category: Sanctification
NEW — Colossians-specific (Col 3:14). Love as the unifying ligament holding all other virtues together in completeness; deliberately echoes the body-metaphor vocabulary already established for church-as-body (মস্তক/দেহ).
Church
Approved rendering: মণ্ডলী
Transliteration: mondoli
Doctrine: Church as God’s People
Rejected alternatives: মন্দির, গির্জা
Original: ἐκκλησία
Category: Church
Inherited from Romans package, unchanged. Colossians uniquely develops ἐκκλησία as Christ’s σῶμα (‘body’) of which he is κεφαλή (‘head’) — 1:18,24; 4:15,16.
Fellow Servant Honorific
Approved rendering: সহদাস / খ্রীষ্টের দাস
Transliteration: shohodas / Khrishṭer das
Doctrine: Household Codes
Original: σύνδουλος / δοῦλος Χριστοῦ
Category: Household
NEW — Colossians-specific (Col 4:7,12). দাস used for actual institutional slaves in the household code (3:22ff.), but when Paul or Epaphras applies it to themselves in relation to Christ, it is a term of highest honor. Clarifying gloss recommended so the honorific self-designation is not misread as demeaning.
Forgiveness
Approved rendering: ক্ষমা
Transliteration: kshoma
Doctrine: Reconciliation through the Cross
Original: ἄφεσις / χαρίζομαι
Category: Salvation
NEW — Colossians-specific (Col 1:14; 2:13; 3:13). Full release from guilt and penalty of sin. Must not be collapsed with the baseline justification entry (ধার্মিক বলে গণ্য হওয়া) — forgiveness and forensic justification remain distinct.
Gentiles
Approved rendering: পরজাতি
Transliteration: porojati
Doctrine: Unity of Jews and Gentiles
Rejected alternatives: বিদেশী
Original: ἔθνη
Category: Church
Inherited from Romans package, unchanged. Colossians 3:11’s ‘no Greek and Jew’ reuses the baseline’s universal-scope logic, applied to abolition of ethnic/social hierarchy in the church.
Hope
Approved rendering: প্রত্যাশা
Transliteration: prottyasha
Doctrine: Supremacy and Sufficiency of Christ
Original: ἐλπίς
Category: Faith
NEW — Colossians-specific (Col 1:5,23,27). A certain future reality laid up in heaven, guaranteed by God’s character — not wishful thinking, and not karmic hope tied to merit accumulation. আশা acceptable secondary synonym.
Humility Dual Sense
Approved rendering: নম্রতা
Transliteration: nomrota
Doctrine: Warning against False Teaching / Putting On the New Self
Original: ταπεινοφροσύνη
Category: Sanctification
NEW — Colossians-specific, dual-sense term. False, self-imposed ascetic self-abasement (2:18,23, negative) versus genuine Christian humility as a virtue (3:12, positive). Context notes required at each occurrence so the term is not assumed uniformly positive.
Idolatry
Approved rendering: মূর্তিপূজা
Transliteration: murtipuja
Doctrine: Putting Off the Old Self and Putting On the New
Original: εἰδωλολατρία
Category: Sin
NEW — Colossians-specific (Col 3:5). Covetousness named outright as a form of idolatry. Transparent, low independent lexical risk, but must be actively distinguished from the positive, root-related প্রতিমূর্তি used of Christ (1:15) and the believer (3:10) so readers do not subconsciously associate ‘image of God’ with the pejorative ‘idol.‘
Intercession
Approved rendering: মধ্যস্থতা
Transliteration: moddhosthota
Doctrine: Prayer and Intercession
Rejected alternatives: সুপারিশ
Inherited from Romans package, unchanged. Underlies Colossians 4:12’s ‘struggling in prayer’ (Epaphras) — earnest intercession, not ritual petition or shrine-based pir/saint intercession-seeking.
Kingdom Of God
Approved rendering: ঈশ্বরের রাজ্য
Transliteration: Ishshorer Rajyo
Doctrine: Kingdom Mission
Rejected alternatives: ঈশ্বরের দেশ
Original: βασιλεία
Category: Kingdom
Inherited from Romans package, unchanged. Col 1:13 specifies ‘the kingdom of his beloved Son’ rather than ‘kingdom of God’ as such; 4:11 uses the general form.
No Partiality
Approved rendering: মুখাপেক্ষিতা
Transliteration: mukhapekkhita
Doctrine: Universal Accountability and No Partiality
Original: προσωπολημψία
Category: Household
NEW — Colossians-specific (Col 4:1; extends to 3:11, 3:25). পক্ষপাতিত্ব acceptable synonym. Connects to the baseline’s universal_human_accountability doctrine.
Peace
Approved rendering: শান্তি
Transliteration: shanti
Doctrine: Peace with God
Rejected alternatives: সুখ, স্বস্তি
Original: εἰρήνη
Category: Salvation
Inherited from Romans package, unchanged. Col 1:20 uses the verb form εἰρηνοποιήσας (‘making peace… by the blood of his cross’); 3:15 exhorts ‘let the peace of Christ rule in your hearts.‘
Shadow
Approved rendering: ছায়া
Transliteration: chhaya
Doctrine: Warning against False Teaching and Syncretism
Original: σκιά
Category: Faith
NEW — Colossians-specific (Col 2:17). Old covenant ceremonial regulations as a foreshadowing outline; Christ is the substance/reality they pointed to. Linear, historical fulfillment sense; must be distinguished from any cyclical/illusory (māyā) philosophical reading.
Low Risk Terms
Disarmed Triumphed
Approved rendering: নিরস্ত্র করা / বিজয় প্রদর্শন করা
Transliteration: nirostro kora / bijoy prodorshon kora
Doctrine: Reconciliation through the Cross
Original: ἀπεκδυσάμενος / θριαμβεύσας
Category: Salvation
NEW — Colossians-specific (Col 2:15). The cross as Christ’s decisive public victory over the rulers and authorities, not a defeat of Christ.
Exhort
Approved rendering: উৎসাহিত করা
Transliteration: utshahito kora
Doctrine: Mutual Edification
Inherited from Romans package, unchanged. Relevant to Col 3:16’s ‘teaching and admonishing one another’ within corporate worship.
Fellow Prisoner
Approved rendering: সহবন্দি
Transliteration: shohobondi
Doctrine: Christ-Centered Ministry
Original: συναιχμάλωτος
Category: Church
NEW — Colossians-specific (Col 4:10). Descriptive term for one imprisoned together with Paul for the gospel; no doctrinal risk.
Kindness
Approved rendering: সৌজন্য
Transliteration: soujonyo
Doctrine: Putting On the New Self
Original: χρηστότης
Category: Sanctification
NEW — Colossians-specific (Col 3:12). A positive relational virtue in the new-self virtue list. দয়া acceptable synonym.
Meekness
Approved rendering: মৃদুতা
Transliteration: mridutā
Doctrine: Putting On the New Self
Original: πραΰτης
Category: Sanctification
NEW — Colossians-specific (Col 3:12). Strength under control, not weakness.
Patience Forbearance
Approved rendering: দীর্ঘসহিষ্ণুতা
Transliteration: dirghoshohishnuta
Doctrine: Putting On the New Self
Original: μακροθυμία
Category: Sanctification
NEW — Colossians-specific (Col 3:12). Enduring wrong from others without retaliation, modeled on God’s own patience.
Psalms Hymns Songs
Approved rendering: গীত / স্তোত্র / আত্মিক সঙ্গীত
Transliteration: git / stotro / attik sangeet
Doctrine: Christian Fellowship and Corporate Worship
Original: ψαλμοί, ὕμνοι, ᾠδαὶ πνευματικαί
Category: Church
NEW — Colossians-specific (Col 3:16). Forms of corporate, Spirit-filled worship music.
Salt Seasoned Speech
Approved rendering: লবণ
Transliteration: lobon
Doctrine: Christ-Centered Ministry
Original: ἅλας
Category: Church
NEW — Colossians-specific (Col 4:6). Gracious, discerning, winsome speech toward outsiders; purely metaphorical, no syncretism risk.
Stewardship
Approved rendering: ব্যবস্থাপনা
Transliteration: bebosthapona
Doctrine: Christ-Centered Ministry
Original: οἰκονομία
Category: Church
NEW — Colossians-specific (Col 1:25). The administrative commission given to Paul to fully preach God’s word. Must remain anchored to gospel proclamation rather than drifting toward an NGO-style humanitarian-development register.
Thanksgiving
Approved rendering: ধন্যবাদ
Transliteration: dhonnobad
Doctrine: Thanksgiving
Original: εὐχαριστία
Category: Faith
Inherited from Romans package, unchanged. Prominent recurring motif in Colossians (1:3,12; 2:7; 3:15,16,17; 4:2).
Zeal
Approved rendering: উদ্যম
Transliteration: uddyom
Doctrine: Christ-Centered Ministry
Original: ζῆλος
Category: Church
NEW — Colossians-specific (Col 4:13). Ardent devotion and effort in ministry (Epaphras).
Referenced passages