Semantic Analysis

Semantic Analysis: Acts 1–28 (Koine Greek → Maithili)

Scope and Method

This document analyzes every chapter of Acts, first to last, in the original Koine Greek. The core passage (Acts 2:1–41) receives verse-by-verse treatment. Every other chapter receives a chapter-section covering its load-bearing theological terms with the same analytical fields: original word, transliteration, literal meaning, semantic range, English variants, contextual theological meaning, and destination-language (Maithili) rendering risk.

Governing rule: Any term already recorded in the baseline Romans translation_memory.json is reused here EXACTLY as recorded, with no re-litigation of the rendering. Such terms are marked (reuse: baseline) and given only brief contextual notes. New terms required by Acts’ distinctive doctrines (Pentecost, repentance, baptism, the Way, apostolic signs, idols, exorcism, sorcery, elders/overseers, circumcision-controversy vocabulary, etc.) are analyzed in full, with special attention to collision risk against Mithila’s living Vaishnava/Shaiva devotional practice, Shakta goddess worship (as already flagged in the baseline for शक्ति), Vedic fire/wind ritual (havan/yagna), ojha/tantra-mantra exorcism and divination practice, Panjikaran caste-lineage consciousness, murti-puja (image worship), and pan-Indian epic/Puranic narrative (Ramayana, Mahabharata) — the same class of risk the baseline documents for Romans.

PART 1 — Core Passage: Acts 2:1–41 (Verse-by-Verse)

Acts 2:1

Greek: Πεντηκοστή (Pentēkostē) | Literal: “fiftieth [day]”

Semantic range: The Jewish Feast of Weeks (Shavuot), fifty days after Passover, originally a harvest/covenant-renewal festival; in Acts it becomes the historical setting of the Spirit’s outpouring.
English variants: Pentecost, Feast of Weeks, Feast of Harvest.
Contextual theological meaning: Names a specific, one-time, historically datable feast day on which God fulfilled Joel’s promise and the Church was born. Not a recurring seasonal ritual to be re-enacted.
Maithili rendering & risk: पिन्तेकुस्त (pintekust) — transliterated proper name, following established North Indian Bible-translation convention. Risk: Medium-High. Mithila has its own rich calendar of harvest and seasonal festivals (e.g., Sama-Chakeva, Chhath). A translator note must clarify Pentecost is a specific historical Jewish feast fulfilled once in redemptive history, not a Maithili-style seasonal harvest observance to be assimilated or paralleled devotionally.

Acts 2:2

Greek: πνοὴ βιαία (pnoē biaia) | Literal: “a violent breath/wind”

Semantic range: πνοή = breath, wind, blowing; related to πνεῦμα (spirit/wind) but here a natural-sounding phenomenon.
English variants: rushing mighty wind, violent wind, forceful blast.
Contextual theological meaning: An audible, physical sign accompanying (but not identical to) the Spirit’s coming — echoes Ezekiel 37 and Genesis 2:7’s breath-of-life imagery.
Maithili rendering & risk: प्रचण्ड आँधी सन आवाज (pracaṇḍ āँdhī san āvāj, “a sound like a fierce storm-wind”). Risk: High. The Sanskrit-tatsama word “पवन” is also the name of the Vedic wind-deity Vayu/Pavan, still ritually invoked in Mithila’s active Vedic-Brahmanical tradition. A translator note must state explicitly that this is a physical sign of God’s power, not a manifestation or visitation of the deity Vayu/Pavan.

Acts 2:3

Greek: γλῶσσαι ὡσεὶ πυρός (glōssai hōsei pyros) | Literal: “tongues as of fire”

Semantic range: πῦρ = fire, in this case a visible, divided, flame-like appearance resting on each person.
English variants: tongues of fire, flames, fire-like tongues.
Contextual theological meaning: A visible theophanic sign marking the individual empowering of each believer by the Spirit — parallels OT fire-theophanies (burning bush, pillar of fire, Sinai).
Maithili rendering & risk: आगि सन जीभ (āgi san jībh, “tongue-shaped [things] like fire”) using the native Maithili word आगि rather than the Sanskrit tatsama अग्नि. Risk: Critical. अग्नि is the name of the Vedic fire-deity central to the havan/yagna ritual fire still actively performed in Mithila’s Brahmanical tradition. A mandatory translator note must state this is a visible sign accompanying the Spirit’s descent, categorically not a manifestation of Agni or a sacrificial fire ritual.

Acts 2:4

Greek: ἐπλήσθησαν πάντες Πνεύματος Ἁγίου καὶ ἤρξαντο λαλεῖν ἑτέραις γλώσσαις (eplēsthēsan… Pneumatos Hagiou… heterais glōssais) | Literal: “they were all filled with Holy Spirit and began to speak with other tongues”

Holy Spirit — (reuse: baseline) पवित्र आत्मा. No deviation permitted.
γλῶσσα (glōssa) — Literal: tongue, language. Semantic range: the physical organ; by extension, a human language/dialect; in this passage, real, recognizable human languages the hearers understood natively (confirmed by v.6, 8, 11), not unintelligible ecstatic speech.
English variants: tongues, languages, other tongues.
Contextual theological meaning: A miracle of real, known human languages, given as a reversal-sign of Babel’s confusion (Genesis 11) and as proof the gospel is for every nation.
Maithili rendering & risk: अन्य भाषासभ (anya bhāṣāsabh, “other languages”). Risk: High. Mithila has active folk traditions of spirit-possession trance speech (during ojha exorcism, or devi-avesh at village shrines) in which a possessed person utters unintelligible or altered speech. A translator note must sharply distinguish Acts 2’s miracle — real, recognizable human languages understood by hearers — from trance-utterance/possession phenomena, which this passage does not describe or endorse.

Acts 2:5

Greek: ἄνδρες εὐλαβεῖς (andres eulabeis) | Literal: “devout/reverent men”

Semantic range: εὐλαβής = cautious, reverent, devoutly observant of God’s commands (used of Simeon in Luke 2:25).
English variants: devout, God-fearing, pious.
Contextual theological meaning: Faithful Jews from the diaspora gathered for the feast, sincere in their devotion to the God of Israel.
Maithili rendering & risk: श्रद्धालु (śraddhālu, “devout/reverent”). Risk: Medium. श्रद्धालु and भक्त both carry strong regional bhakti-devotion connotations (devotion to a chosen personal deity). A brief clarifying gloss should mark this as sincere reverence toward the one true God of Israel, not devotional bhakti toward a chosen deity among many.

Acts 2:5–6

Greek: ἔθνος (ethnos, “nation”), διάλεκτος (dialektos, “dialect/own language”)

Semantic range: ἔθνος here means simply “nation/people-group” in the neutral geographic-ethnic sense (distinct from its technical Pauline sense “Gentile,” already covered by baseline gentiles = अन्यजाति). διάλεκτος = native tongue/dialect.
English variants: nation, people, native language.
Contextual theological meaning: Universal reach — devout Jews “from every nation under heaven” each hear in their own native tongue, foreshadowing the gospel’s later expansion to Gentiles as such.
Maithili rendering & risk: राष्ट्र/देश (rāṣṭra/deś, “nation/country”) for ἔθνος in this generic sense; मातृभाषा/बोली (mātṛbhāṣā/bolī) for διάλεκτος. Risk: Medium. Avoid जाति for “nation” here — जाति in Maithili carries heavy caste-lineage weight (per baseline’s gentiles note on Panjikaran); use राष्ट्र/देश to keep the geographic-ethnic sense clear and unconfused with caste categories.

Acts 2:7–11

Greek: τὰ μεγαλεῖα τοῦ θεοῦ (ta megaleia tou theou) | Literal: “the great/mighty things of God”

Semantic range: μεγαλεῖος = great, magnificent, mighty; used of God’s praiseworthy acts (cf. Luke 1:49).
English variants: the mighty works of God, the wonderful works of God, the great things God has done.
Contextual theological meaning: The content of the Spirit-enabled speech is not ecstatic nonsense but praise/proclamation of God’s saving acts — a preview of apostolic preaching.
Maithili rendering & risk: परमेश्वरक महान कार्य (parameśvarak mahān kārya). Risk: Low-Medium. Standard doxological phrase; ensure “परमेश्वर” (baseline god) is used, not भगवान.

Acts 2:12–13

Greek: γλεῦκος (gleukos) | Literal: “sweet new wine”

Semantic range: Unfermented or freshly fermented grape juice/wine, proverbially associated with intoxication when abundant.
English variants: new wine, sweet wine.
Contextual theological meaning: The mocking crowd’s accusation of drunkenness, which Peter directly refutes in v.15 — establishes the credibility-defense structure of the sermon.
Maithili rendering & risk: नव अंगूर रस/मीठ दाखरस (nav aṅgūr ras). Risk: Low. No significant doctrinal collision; render as ordinary sweet wine.

Acts 2:14–15

No new load-bearing theological term; narrative transition (Peter standing with the Eleven, addressing “Men of Judea,” refuting the drunkenness charge, “it is only the third hour of the day”). Continues witness theme introduced at 1:8 (see Chapter 1 below).

Acts 2:16

Greek: τοῦτό ἐστιν τὸ εἰρημένον διὰ τοῦ προφήτου Ἰωήλ (touto estin to eirēmenon dia tou prophētou Iōēl) | Literal: “this is what was spoken through the prophet Joel”

prophet — (reuse: baseline) भविष्यद्वक्ता.
Contextual theological meaning: Establishes that Pentecost is the fulfillment of a specific, named Old Testament prophecy — anchoring the event in linear salvation-history, not spontaneous religious experience.
Maithili rendering & risk: Reuse भविष्यद्वक्ता exactly. Risk: Low (per baseline).

Acts 2:17

Greek: ἐν ταῖς ἐσχάταις ἡμέραις (en tais eschatais hēmerais); ἐκχεῶ ἀπὸ τοῦ Πνεύματός μου ἐπὶ πᾶσαν σάρκα (ekcheō apo tou Pneumatos mou epi pasan sarka) | Literal: “in the last days… I will pour out from my Spirit upon all flesh”

ἔσχαται ἡμέραι (“last days”): Semantic range: The final eschatological era inaugurated by the Messiah’s first coming, running until his return — a bounded, linear epoch, not an endlessly repeating cycle.
English variants: last days, final days, the end times.
Contextual theological meaning: Pentecost marks the dawning of the promised eschatological age.
Maithili rendering & risk: अन्तिम दिनसभ (antim dinsabh). Risk: High. Must be sharply distinguished from the Hindu cyclical concept of Kali Yuga (the present, degenerating cosmic age within an endlessly repeating four-yuga cycle). A translator note is required: biblical “last days” describes a single, linear, unrepeated era moving toward a definite consummation, not a phase in a recurring cosmic cycle.
ἐκχέω (“pour out”): Semantic range: to pour out abundantly, lavishly — an image of generous, unearned outpouring. Maithili rendering: उझलाएब/ढ़ारि देब (ujhalāeb, “to pour out abundantly”). Risk: Medium. Reinforce that this outpouring is a sovereign gift of grace (reuse grace अनुग्रह concept), not a boon dispensed in exchange for ritual merit.

Acts 2:18

Greek: καὶ προφητεύσουσιν (kai prophēteusousin) — “and they will prophesy.” prophecy — (reuse: baseline) भविष्यवाणी. No new risk beyond baseline note.

Acts 2:19

Greek: τέρατα … καὶ σημεῖα (terata… kai sēmeia) | Literal: “wonders… and signs”

Semantic range: τέρας = a portent/wonder that provokes awe; σημεῖον = a sign that points to, and authenticates, a divine message or messenger.
English variants: wonders and signs, miracles, marvels.
Contextual theological meaning: God-given authenticating acts accompanying the last-days outpouring; recurring pair throughout Acts (2:22, 43; 4:30; 5:12; 14:3; 15:12) marking apostolic ministry as divinely validated.
Maithili rendering & risk: अद्भुत कार्य आ चिन्ह (adbhut kārya ā chinha). Risk: High. Must be clearly distinguished, with a translator note at first occurrence, from (a) siddhi — supernatural powers attained through yogic/tantric austerity in regional devotional practice, and (b) the miracle-narratives of Puranic avatars (Ram, Krishna). These are God’s own authenticating acts through his apostles, not powers earned by human spiritual achievement.

Acts 2:20

Greek: ἡ ἡμέρα Κυρίου (hē hēmera Kyriou) | Literal: “the day of the Lord”

Semantic range: The OT prophetic concept of God’s decisive intervention in judgment and salvation.
English variants: the Day of the Lord, the great and glorious day.
Contextual theological meaning: Cosmic-scale eschatological judgment/salvation event; Lord here reuses baseline lord (प्रभु).
Maithili rendering & risk: प्रभुक दिन (prabhuk din). Risk: Medium. Ensure “प्रभु” retains the baseline’s exclusive, supreme sense; do not let “दिन” (day) drift toward an astrologically auspicious-day (मुहूर्त) framing common in regional almanac culture.

Acts 2:21

Greek: πᾶς ὃς ἂν ἐπικαλέσηται τὸ ὄνομα Κυρίου σωθήσεται (pas hos an epikalesētai to onoma Kyriou sōthēsetai) | Literal: “everyone who calls upon the name of the Lord will be saved”

ἐπικαλέω (“call upon”): Semantic range: to invoke, appeal to, call upon for help — a personal, trusting appeal, not a repeated incantation.
English variants: call upon, invoke, appeal to.
σῴζω (“save”) — (reuse: baseline salvation) उद्धार.
Contextual theological meaning: The universal, no-exception scope of salvation’s offer — the thesis verse for the sermon’s altar-call in v.38–40.
Maithili rendering & risk: प्रभुक नाम पुकारब (prabhuk nām pukārab, “to call upon the Lord’s name”). Risk: High. Regional devotional practice includes nām-japa/nām-smaran — repetitive chanting of a chosen deity’s name to accrue merit or spiritual power. A translator note must clarify that “calling on the Lord’s name” here means a single, trusting, saving appeal to Christ specifically, not repetitive meritorious chanting.

Acts 2:22

Greek: Ἰησοῦν τὸν Ναζωραῖον, ἄνδρα ἀποδεδειγμένον ἀπ�ὸ τοῦ Θεοῦ εἰς ὑμᾶς δυνάμεσι καὶ τέρασι καὶ σημείοις (Iēsoun ton Nazōraion, andra apodedeigmenon…) | Literal: “Jesus the Nazarene, a man attested to you by God through mighty works and wonders and signs”

Ναζωραῖος (Nazōraios): proper-name designation, “of Nazareth.” jesus — (reuse: baseline) यीशु.
ἀποδεδειγμένος (“attested/publicly accredited”): Semantic range: demonstrated, proven, publicly certified.
δύναμις — (reuse: baseline power_of_god) सामर्थ्य, here applied specifically to Christ’s own attesting works.
Contextual theological meaning: Jesus’ human ministry was itself divinely certified by observable, public acts — grounding the sermon’s claim in verifiable history, not private religious experience.
Maithili rendering & risk: परमेश्वरद्वारा प्रमाणित मनुष्य (parameśvardvārā pramāṇit manuṣya). Risk: Medium. Emphasize “attested by God” as historical-public verification, distinguishing from claims of personal charismatic authority common to regional guru-figures.

Acts 2:23

Greek: τῇ ὡρισμένῃ βουλῇ καὶ προγνώσει τοῦ Θεοῦ (tē hōrismenē boulē kai prognōsei tou Theou) | Literal: “by the determined plan and foreknowledge of God”

Semantic range: ὁρίζω = to determine, fix, appoint beforehand; πρόγνωσις = foreknowledge.
English variants: definite plan, set purpose, predetermined counsel.
Contextual theological meaning: God’s sovereign purpose stood behind the crucifixion even as human agents acted with real guilt (reuse providence परमेश्वरक विधान).
Maithili rendering & risk: परमेश्वरक निश्चित योजना आ पूर्वज्ञान (parameśvarak niścit yojanā ā pūrvajñān). Risk: High. Same caution as baseline’s providence entry: must not collapse into प्रारब्ध/भाग्य (fate/karma-determined destiny). This is personal, purposive divine planning, not impersonal predetermined destiny.
ἄνομος (“lawless”): describing the executioners’ hands. Maithili: व्यवस्थाहीन/अधर्मी (byavasthāhīn, lit. “without व्यवस्था/law” — reuse baseline law). Risk: Low-Medium.

Acts 2:24

Greek: ὃν ὁ Θεὸς ἀνέστησεν, λύσας τὰς ὠδῖνας τοῦ θανάτου (hon ho Theos anestēsen, lysas tas ōdinas tou thanatou) | Literal: “whom God raised up, loosing the birth-pangs/pains of death”

ἀνίστημι (“raise up”) — (reuse: baseline resurrection) पुनरुत्थान. This is the first of many occurrences of Christ’s bodily resurrection in Acts; establish the term firmly here per baseline’s mandatory CRITICAL distinction from पुनर्जन्म (reincarnation).
ὠδῖνες θανάτου (“pangs of death”): Semantic range: literally “birth-pains,” a vivid image of death’s grip being broken as if in labor released.
Maithili rendering & risk: पुनरुत्थान (reuse, no deviation) + मृत्युक पीड़ा तोड़ि देल (mṛtyuk pīṛā toṛi del, “broke the pains of death”). Risk: Critical (per baseline resurrection entry — mandatory distinguishing note from reincarnation at every occurrence).

Acts 2:25–28

Greek: (Psalm 16 quotation) οὐδὲ ἐγκαταλείψεις τὴν ψυχήν μου εἰς ᾅδην (oude enkataleipseis tēn psychēn mou eis hadēn) | Literal: “you will not abandon my soul to Hades”

ᾅδης (Hadēs): Semantic range: the Greek term for the realm/state of the dead, used in the Septuagint to translate Hebrew Sheol — the abode of the dead generally, not a place of torment per se in this usage.
English variants: Hades, the grave, the realm of the dead, Sheol.
Contextual theological meaning: David’s prophetic confidence that God’s Holy One would not remain in death — a resurrection prophecy fulfilled in Christ.
Maithili rendering & risk: हेडेस (transliteration) rather than पाताल or अधोलोक. Risk: High. पाताल/अधोलोक are richly mythologized Puranic cosmological realms (home of nagas, part of the triloka cosmic structure) with extensive independent narrative traditions in the region. Transliterating as हेडेस, with a clarifying gloss (“the realm/state of the dead in Jewish thought”), avoids importing unrelated Puranic underworld mythology into the text.

Acts 2:29

Greek: πατριάρχης (patriarchēs) | Literal: “patriarch, family-head/ancestor”

English variants: patriarch, forefather.
Contextual theological meaning: Honors David as revered ancestor while making clear his tomb (unlike Christ’s) still holds his body — the argument’s rhetorical hinge.
Maithili rendering & risk: कुलपति/पूर्वज (kulapati/pūrvaj). Risk: Low. Resonates naturally, and helpfully, with Mithila’s own strong lineage-consciousness (Panjikaran); no collision, simply a genealogical honorific.

Acts 2:30

Greek: ὅρκῳ (horkō) | Literal: “with an oath” — referencing God’s oath to David regarding his throne.

seed of David / Davidic covenant — (reuse: baseline) दाऊदक वंशसँ / वाचा.
Maithili rendering & risk: शपथ (śapath, oath). Risk: Low-Medium. Standard covenant-oath vocabulary; reinforce baseline’s covenant note that this is God’s own binding promise, distinct from marriage-vow imagery.

Acts 2:31

Greek: προϊδὼν ἐλάλησεν περὶ τῆς ἀναστάσεως τοῦ Χριστοῦ (proidōn elalēsen peri tēs anastaseōs tou Christou) | Literal: “having foreseen, he spoke concerning the resurrection of the Christ”

resurrection (reuse: baseline) पुनरुत्थान; Christ/Messiah (reuse: baseline) मसीह.
Contextual theological meaning: David’s prophecy specifically named the Messiah’s resurrection — Critical doctrinal convergence point.
Risk: Critical (compound of two baseline Critical terms; no deviation permitted).

Acts 2:32

Greek: τούτου πάντες ἡμεῖς ἐσμεν μάρτυρες (toutou pantes hēmeis esmen martyres) | Literal: “of this we are all witnesses”

μάρτυς (martys): Semantic range: one who testifies to what they have personally seen/experienced; legal/evidentiary sense of “witness,” later (Acts 7, 22:20) developing toward “one who testifies even unto death” (the root of English “martyr,” though that developed sense is not yet primary in Acts).
English variants: witness, testifier.
Contextual theological meaning: The apostles’ authority rests on eyewitness testimony to the historical, bodily resurrection — first introduced as a core commissioning term at Acts 1:8.
Maithili rendering & risk: साक्षी (sākṣī). Risk: Medium. साक्षी is a standard legal/evidentiary term in Maithili and carries no significant syncretism risk, but translators should be alert that its sense narrows toward “martyr” (one testifying at the cost of life) by Acts 7 and 22:20 — flag the semantic shift at Stephen’s death (Chapter 7 below).

Acts 2:33

Greek: τῇ δεξιᾷ οὖν τοῦ Θεοῦ ὑψωθείς (tē dexia oun tou Theou hypsōtheis) | Literal: “having been exalted, then, at the right hand of God”

ὑψόω (“exalt”): Semantic range: to lift up, elevate to a position of highest honor.
English variants: exalted, lifted up, enthroned.
Contextual theological meaning: Christ’s post-resurrection enthronement in supreme authority (reuse lord प्रभु; connects to son_of_god, glory).
Maithili rendering & risk: परमेश्वरक दहिना हाथ दिस उच्च कएल गेला (parameśvarak dahinā hāth dis ucca kael gelā). Risk: Medium. Standard enthronement imagery; no major regional collision, but ensure translation preserves this as a unique, historical, one-time exaltation of the God-man, not a recurring pattern of divine ascent found in Puranic narrative (cf. Chapter 1’s Ascension note).

Acts 2:34–35

(Psalm 110 quotation: “The Lord said to my Lord… until I make your enemies your footstool.”) Reuses lord प्रभु (baseline, Critical). Contextual theological meaning: A second messianic proof-text establishing Christ’s supreme, seated authority. Risk: Critical (per baseline lordship_of_christ doctrine entry) — no deviation permitted in either occurrence of “Lord.”

Acts 2:36

Greek: καὶ Κύριον αὐτὸν καὶ Χριστὸν ἐποίησεν, τοῦτον τὸν Ἰησοῦν ὃν ὑμεῖς ἐσταυρώσατε (kai Kyrion auton kai Christon epoiēsen…) | Literal: “God has made him both Lord and Christ, this Jesus whom you crucified”

Reuses lord प्रभु and messiah मसीह exactly.
Contextual theological meaning: The sermon’s climactic christological claim and the pivot into the call to respond. Risk: Critical. This sentence is the doctrinal center of the passage; per the AI Translation Requirements’ cross-document consistency rule, this verse’s rendering must remain identical across all future curriculum documents.

Acts 2:37

Greek: κατενύγησαν τὴν καρδίαν (katenygēsan tēn kardian) | Literal: “they were pierced/stabbed in the heart”

κατανύσσομαι (“cut/pierce”): Semantic range: a vivid idiom for being deeply, painfully struck with conviction.
English variants: cut to the heart, pierced in heart, deeply convicted.
Contextual theological meaning: The Spirit-produced conviction of sin that precedes genuine repentance — the emotional/spiritual hinge of the whole sermon.
Maithili rendering & risk: हृदयमे तीव्र रूपसँ बिझा गेला (hṛdaymẽ tīvra rūpsã bijhā gelā, “were deeply struck/pierced in heart”). Risk: Low-Medium. A natural idiom rendering is preferred over a literal word-for-word calque; ensure the sense of Spirit-wrought conviction (not mere emotional guilt) is clear.

Acts 2:38

Greek: Μετανοήσατε, καὶ βαπτισθήτω ἕκαστος ὑμῶν ἐπὶ τῷ ὀνόματι Ἰησοῦ Χριστοῦ εἰς ἄφεσιν τῶν ἁμαρτιῶν ὑμῶν, καὶ λήμψεσθε τὴν δωρεὰν τοῦ Ἁγίου Πνεύματος (Metanoēsate, kai baptisthētō…) | Literal: “Repent, and let each of you be baptized upon the name of Jesus Christ for forgiveness of your sins, and you will receive the gift of the Holy Spirit”

This verse is the single most doctrinally load-bearing verse in the passage, containing four major new terms plus one reused Critical term:

μετανοέω/μετάνοια (“repent/repentance”): Literal: “change of mind,” from μετά (change) + νοῦς (mind). Semantic range: a genuine, God-granted inward reorientation of mind and will away from sin toward God — not mere regret, and not a ritual act performed to remove guilt. English variants: repent, turn, change one’s mind. Contextual theological meaning: The first response demanded of the crowd; inseparable from faith and baptism as the doorway into salvation. Maithili rendering & risk: मन फेराव (man pherāv, “turning of the mind/heart”) as the primary rendering, with पश्चाताप (paśchātāp, remorse/regret) usable as a secondary gloss for the felt sorrow-component. Risk: High — NEW term not yet in baseline translation memory, now established as canonical for this curriculum. Must be sharply distinguished from प्रायश्चित (prāyaśchit), the Hindu ritual act of penance/expiation performed to cancel ritual or karmic guilt through a prescribed rite (pilgrimage, fasting, donation). Biblical repentance is an inward turning granted by grace, not a merit-earning ritual performance; this distinction must be flagged at every occurrence (also Acts 3:19; 17:30; 26:20).
βαπτίζω/βάπτισμα (“baptize/baptism”): Literal: to dip, immerse. Semantic range: ritual immersion in water as a public identification with a person or message; in Acts specifically, immersion “in/upon the name of Jesus Christ” marking public identification with his death and resurrection following repentance and faith. English variants: baptize, immerse, baptism. Contextual theological meaning: The public, once-for-all rite of entry into the believing community, inseparably linked to repentance, faith, and receiving the Spirit. Maithili rendering & risk: बपतिस्मा (transliteration, established North Indian Christian-Bible convention) — verb form बपतिस्मा लेब/देब. Risk: High — NEW term, now canonical. Must be clearly distinguished from ritual purificatory bathing (स्नान, snān) in sacred rivers/tanks — a living, frequently-practiced regional custom (e.g., ritual bathing associated with Kosi and Bagmati river festivals, and pilgrimage bathing at Ganga Sagar). A translator note is required: Christian baptism is a single, unrepeatable act of public identification with Christ following repentance and faith, not a repeatable ritual purification removing accumulated ritual impurity.
ἄφεσις ἁμαρτιῶν (“forgiveness of sins”): Literal: “release/sending-away of sins.” Semantic range: judicial pardon, the cancellation of a debt or charge. English variants: forgiveness of sins, remission of sins, pardon. Contextual theological meaning: God’s judicial pardon secured through Christ’s death, received through repentance and faith. Maithili rendering & risk: पापक क्षमा (pāpak kṣamā), reusing baseline sin (पाप) + क्षमा (forgiveness/pardon). Risk: Medium-High. Ensure क्षमा is understood as God’s judicial pardon through Christ’s atoning work specifically, not merely as interpersonal reconciliation, and not as the automatic dissolution of karmic debt through the passage of time or ritual action.
δωρεά (“gift” — of the Holy Spirit): Literal: a gift, freely given. Semantic range: distinct from χάρισμα (charisma, ministry-gift, already covered by baseline spiritual_gifts आत्मिक वरदान); δωρεά here names the gift of the Spirit’s own indwelling presence given at conversion, not a ministry-enablement. English variants: gift, free gift. Contextual theological meaning: Every believer, without exception or ritual merit, receives the Spirit himself as God’s unearned gift upon repentance/faith/baptism. Maithili rendering & risk: पवित्र आत्माक उपहार (pavitra ātmāk uphār) — using उपहार (uphār, “gift/present,” a religiously neutral word) rather than वरदान (rejected here because of its Puranic boon-for-austerity connotation, per baseline’s spiritual_gifts note) or दान (rejected because दान is the standard word for meritorious religious giving/almsgiving, dāna, which would wrongly imply the believer earns or reciprocates this gift). Risk: High — NEW term; must be kept terminologically distinct from आत्मिक वरदान (spiritual gifts for ministry, baseline Medium risk) to preserve the difference between receiving the Spirit himself (conversion) and receiving Spirit-given ministry-enablements (sanctification/service).
Holy Spirit — reuse baseline पवित्र आत्मा exactly; sin — reuse baseline पाप exactly. jesus/christ — reuse यीशु/मसीह/ख्रीष्ट exactly.

Acts 2:39

Greek: ὑμῖν γάρ ἐστιν ἡ ἐπαγγελία καὶ τοῖς τέκνοις ὑμῶν καὶ πᾶσιν τοῖς εἰς μακράν, ὅσους ἂν προσκαλέσηται Κύριος ὁ Θεὸς ἡμῶν (hymin gar estin hē epangelia…) | Literal: “for the promise is to you and to your children and to all who are far off, as many as the Lord our God calls to himself”

ἐπαγγελία (“promise”): Semantic range: a formally announced pledge, especially God’s covenant pledge. English variants: promise, pledge. Maithili rendering: प्रतिज्ञा (pratijñā). Risk: Medium. Standard covenant-promise vocabulary, coheres with baseline covenant (वाचा).
προσκαλέομαι (“call to himself”): reuse baseline called/calling (बजाओल/बजाओल जाएब). Contextual theological meaning: God’s sovereign, effectual call extends to every generation and to those “far off” (Gentiles) — the doctrinal seed of the Gentile mission that unfolds through the rest of Acts. Risk: High (per baseline divine_calling doctrine entry).

Acts 2:40

Greek: σώθητε ἀπὸ τῆς γενεᾶς τῆς σκολιᾶς ταύτης (sōthēte apo tēs geneas tēs skolias tautēs) | Literal: “be saved from this crooked generation”

γενεὰ σκολιά (“crooked generation”): Semantic range: a morally twisted, deviant contemporary generation (echoes Deuteronomy 32:5). Maithili rendering & risk: कुटिल पीढ़ी (kuṭil pīṛhī). Risk: Low-Medium. Standard moral-exhortation idiom; reuse salvation (उद्धार) exactly for “be saved.”

Acts 2:41

Greek: οἱ μὲν οὖν ἀποδεξάμενοι τὸν λόγον αὐτοῦ ἐβαπτίσθησαν, καὶ προσετέθησαν ἐν τῇ ἡμέρᾳ ἐκείνῃ ψυχαὶ ὡσεὶ τρισχίλιαι (hoi men oun apodexamenoi ton logon autou ebaptisthēsan, kai prosetethēsan…) | Literal: “those who received his word were baptized, and there were added on that day about three thousand souls”

ἀποδέχομαι (“receive”): to accept/welcome favorably. Maithili: वचन ग्रहण कएलनि (vacan grahaṇ kaelani).
προστίθημι (“added”): reuse church (मण्डली) concept — being joined/added to the believing community. Maithili: मण्डलीमे जोड़ल गेला (maṇḍalīmẽ joṛal gelā).
ψυχή (“souls” — headcount idiom): Semantic range: here simply “persons/individuals” in a counting idiom, not a technical statement about the metaphysical soul. English variants: souls, people, persons. Contextual theological meaning: A concrete historical report of conversion growth.
Maithili rendering & risk: जन/व्यक्ति (jan/vyakti, “persons”) — NOT आत्मा. Risk: Medium. आत्मा is reserved in this curriculum for “Spirit” (पवित्र आत्मा) and would also risk invoking the Hindu ātman — the eternal, transmigrating self central to reincarnation doctrine. Render as “तीन हजार जन” (three thousand persons) to avoid this collision entirely.
βαπτίζω — reuse बपतिस्मा (see v.38 above).

PART 2 — Chapter-by-Chapter Study of the Whole Book

Chapter 1

ἀναλαμβάνω / ἐπήρθη (“taken up” — the Ascension), Acts 1:9–11. Literal: to be lifted/taken up. Semantic range: Christ’s own bodily, visible, historical, and — critically — permanent departure into heaven in glorified body, to return the same way (1:11). English variants: ascension, taken up, received up. Contextual theological meaning: The final, unrepeatable exaltation-event of the incarnate, resurrected Son; distinct in kind from any mythic ascent narrative. Maithili rendering & risk: HIGH. Avoid the single Sanskrit-tatsama noun स्वर्गारोहण (svargārohaṇ) as a primary rendering, because this exact term/motif is strongly associated regionally with the Mahabharata’s account of the Pandavas’ final ascent to heaven (the Himalayan trek and peak literally named “Swargarohini” in the epic tradition, well known across North India). Prefer a descriptive verb-phrase — ऊपर उठाओल गेला आ बादर हुनका आँखिसँ ओझल कऽ देलक (“he was taken up, and a cloud hid him from their sight”) — reserving स्वर्गारोहण, if used at all, strictly with an explicit translator note distinguishing Christ’s unique, bodily, glorified ascension from the Pandavas’ mythic departure.
μάρτυς (“witnesses”), Acts 1:8 — first occurrence of this key term (see full analysis at 2:32 above); here paired with the Great Commission’s geographic scope (“Jerusalem… Judea and Samaria… to the end of the earth”). Risk: High — this verse anchors the “Great Commission Fulfilled” doctrine across the whole book; ensure साक्षी is used consistently at every subsequent occurrence (2:32; 3:15; 5:32; 10:39; 13:31; 22:15; 26:16).
βασιλεία (“kingdom” — “will you at this time restore the kingdom to Israel?”), Acts 1:6 — reuse baseline kingdom_of_god (परमेश्वरक राज्य). Risk: Medium (per baseline kingdom_mission entry). The disciples’ question itself illustrates the very political-kingdom misunderstanding the baseline flags as sensitive in a region (Mithila) with its own historic royal-kingdom identity (the House of Janak); Jesus’ answer (1:7–8) redirects from political restoration to Spirit-empowered witness — the corrective should be preserved clearly in translation.
κλῆρος (“lot,” casting lots for Judas’ replacement), Acts 1:26. Semantic range: a lot (stone/token) cast to determine God’s choice, an accepted pre-Pentecost means of discerning God’s will. Maithili rendering & risk: गोटी फेकब/चिट्ठी डारब (goṭī phekab, “casting lots”). Risk: Medium. Must be distinguished from regional astrological or fortune-telling divination (ज्योतिष) used for personal guidance; this is a one-time, Spirit-superseded apostolic-era practice (notably, lot-casting is never repeated after Pentecost in Acts).
ἐπισκοπή (“office”), Acts 1:20 (quoting Psalm 109, “let another take his office/position”). Maithili: पद/सेवा-पद (pad, “office/position”). Risk: Low-Medium. Foreshadows the fuller “overseer” (ἐπίσκοπος) term at Acts 20:28.

Chapter 2

Covered in full in Part 1 above (Acts 2:1–41), plus the following remaining verses (2:42–47), which lie outside the core passage but complete the chapter:

κοινωνία (“fellowship”), 2:42 — reuse baseline fellowship (सङ्गति). Risk: Low (per baseline).
κλάσις τοῦ ἄρτου (“breaking of bread”), 2:42, 46. Literal: the breaking of bread. Semantic range: a shared communal meal, including the Lord’s Supper. Maithili rendering & risk: रोटी तोड़ब (roṭī toṛab). Risk: Medium. Distinguish from the regional custom of prasad-sharing (food first ritually offered to a deity image, then distributed as blessed food) — the breaking of bread here commemorates Christ’s broken body and shared fellowship, not an offering first presented to and sanctified by an image.
προσευχή (“the prayers”), 2:42. Maithili: प्रार्थना (prārthanā). Risk: Low.
ἅπαντα κοινά (“all things in common”), 2:44–45. Maithili: सभटा वस्तु मिलिकेँ राखब (sabhṭā vastu milikẽ rākhab). Risk: Low-Medium. Note this is voluntary, Spirit-motivated sharing among believers, not a caste-based communal obligation or forced redistribution.
χάριν πρὸς ὅλον τὸν λαόν (“favor with all the people”), 2:47 — a non-salvific use of χάρις (contrast with baseline’s salvific grace अनुग्रह). Maithili rendering: सबहक सद्भाव/लोकप्रियता (sabhak sadbhāv, “goodwill of the people”) — using कृपा/सद्भाव, never अनुग्रह, per baseline’s own note that कृपा is reserved for ordinary, non-salvific favor. Risk: Low.

Chapter 3

ἐν τῷ ὀνόματι (“in the name” — of Jesus), 3:6, 16. Semantic range: invoking Christ’s own authority and person as the ground of the healing act. Maithili: यीशुक नाममे (Yīśuk nāmmẽ). Risk: Medium. Must not read as a magical incantation-formula (a live concern given regional tantra-mantra practice where a deity’s or spirit’s name is invoked as a verbal-power device); the “name” here designates Christ’s own authority and person, not a mechanical formula.
ὁ ἅγιος καὶ ὁ δίκαιος (“the Holy and Righteous One”), 3:14. Reuse baseline holy (पवित्र) + righteous/righteousness root (धार्मिकता family) → adjectival धर्मी for “righteous [one].” Maithili: पवित्र आ धर्मी जन (pavitra ā dharmī jan). Risk: Medium (compound of two High-risk baseline terms; ensure neither collapses into ritual purity or dutiful conduct senses).
ὁ ἀρχηγὸς τῆς ζωῆς (“the Author/Prince of life”), 3:15. Literal: ἀρχηγός = leader, originator, pioneer, founder. Semantic range: one who both originates and leads the way into something (cf. Hebrews 2:10, 12:2). English variants: Author of life, Prince of life, Founder of life, Pioneer of life. Contextual theological meaning: A unique Christological title naming Jesus as both the source and the forerunner of resurrection life. Maithili rendering & risk: जीवनक स्रोत आ अगुआ (jīvanak sroत ā aguā, “the source and leader of life”). Risk: High. A genuinely new, non-obvious Christological title with no ready one-word Maithili equivalent; must not be flattened to a generic “great teacher” or “guru” title, which would understate its unique claim that Jesus is the very origin of life itself.
καιροὶ ἀναψύξεως (“times of refreshing”), 3:19. Maithili: ताजगीक समय (tājagīk samay). Risk: Low-Medium.
ἀποκατάστασις πάντων (“the restoration of all things”), 3:21. Semantic range: the final, comprehensive setting-right of creation at Christ’s return. Maithili rendering & risk: सभ वस्तुक पूर्ण पुनर्स्थापना (sabh vastuk pūrṇa punarsthāpanā). Risk: Medium-High. Must be distinguished from the Hindu cyclical cosmology of periodic cosmic dissolution and re-creation (pralaya, within the endless yuga cycle); biblical restoration is a single, final, linear event, not a recurring cosmic pattern.
σπέρμα Ἀβραάμ (“seed of Abraham”), 3:25. Grammatical pattern reused from baseline seed_of_david (दाऊदक वंशसँ). Maithili: अब्राहमक वंशसँ (Abrāhamak vanśasã̃). Risk: Medium — standard Abrahamic-covenant vocabulary.
μετάνοια (“repent”), 3:19 — reuse the term established at Acts 2:38 above. Risk: High (as established).

Chapter 4

παρρησία (“boldness”), 4:13, 29, 31. Literal: freedom/openness of speech. Semantic range: fearless, Spirit-given openness in proclaiming the gospel, especially under threat, distinct from social defiance or aggression for its own sake. English variants: boldness, confidence, outspokenness. Contextual theological meaning: A defining mark of Spirit-filled apostolic witness under persecution — a major recurring term through the whole book (4:13, 29, 31; 9:27–28; 13:46; 14:3; 18:26; 19:8; 26:26; 28:31). Maithili rendering & risk: निडरता (nirḍartā, “fearlessness/boldness”). Risk: High. Must be framed explicitly as Spirit-given courage in gospel proclamation under threat, tied to the doctrine “Persecution and Bold Witness,” not to social confrontation for its own sake.
οὐδεμία σωτηρία ἐν ἄλλῳ (“no salvation in any other”), 4:12 — reuse baseline salvation (उद्धार), Critical, no deviation.
ἦν καρδία καὶ ψυχὴ μία (“one heart and soul”), 4:32. Maithili: एक हृदय आ एक प्राण (ek hṛday ā ek prāṇ). Risk: Low-Medium. Community-unity idiom; distinguish from caste-community solidarity, which this doctrine (Church as Community) intentionally transcends.
υἱὸς παρακλήσεως (“son of encouragement” — Barnabas), 4:36. Reuse baseline exhort (उत्साहित करब). Maithili: उत्साहक पूत (utsāhak pūt). Risk: Low.

Chapter 5

φόβος μέγας (“great fear”) came upon the church, 5:5, 11. Semantic range: reverent, awe-struck fear provoked by an unmistakable act of God’s holiness (the deaths of Ananias and Sapphira), not superstitious terror. Maithili rendering & risk: ठूल डर (ṭhūl ḍar). Risk: Medium. Should be distinguished from ordinary regional fear of ghosts/malevolent spirits (bhoot-pret) common in folk belief — this is reverent fear of the living God’s holiness, prompted by his own direct judgment, not fear of a wandering spirit.
πειθαρχέω (“obey,” 5:29 “we must obey God rather than men”). Maithili: मनुष्यक बजाय परमेश्वरक आज्ञा मानब आवश्यक अछि. Risk: Medium. Anchors “Persecution and Bold Witness” doctrine; reuse obedience_of_faith framework from baseline where relevant, ensuring this is principled obedience to God’s authority, not mere civil defiance.
σημεῖα καὶ τέρατα (5:12) — reuse term established at 2:19.

Chapter 6

διακονία (“service/ministry” — distribution to widows, appointment of the Seven), 6:1–4. Semantic range: practical, Spirit-empowered service within the believing community (distinct from ritual devotional service to an image or guru). English variants: service, ministry, distribution. Maithili rendering & risk: सेवा (sevā). Risk: High. सेवा carries strong regional devotional connotation — guru-sevā and temple/deity-sevā are central devotional practices in Mithila’s Vaishnava and Shaiva traditions. A translator note is required distinguishing diaconal सेवा (practical service to fellow believers within the church) from devotional सेवा rendered to a deity’s image or a living guru.
σοφία (“wisdom” — “full of the Spirit and of wisdom”), 6:3, 10. Maithili rendering & risk: बुद्धि (buddhi, practical wisdom/discernment) preferred over ज्ञान (jñān). Risk: Medium. ज्ञान carries strong Vedantic weight as the “knowledge” of one of the three classical yogas (jñāna-mārga, the path of liberating knowledge) — using बुद्धि instead keeps this Spirit-given practical wisdom distinct from that soteriological framework.
ψευδομάρτυς (“false witness”), 6:13. Reuse μάρτυς root (साक्षी) + negation. Maithili: झूठ गवाह/झूठ साक्षी. Risk: Low.

Chapter 7

σκληροτράχηλος (“stiff-necked”), 7:51. Semantic range: an OT idiom (Exodus 32:9 etc.) for stubborn resistance to God despite evidence and warning. Maithili: हठी/जिद्दी (haṭhī, stubborn). Risk: Low-Medium.
λιθοβολέω (“stone/stoning”), 7:58–59. Maithili: पाथर मारि मारब (pāthar māri mārab). Risk: Low.
μάρτυς — semantic development toward “martyr,” 7:58–60; cf. 22:20 (“the blood of your witness/martyr Stephen”). Contextual theological meaning: Stephen becomes the prototype of a witness who testifies unto death — the term’s sense visibly shifts from courtroom “witness” toward the developed sense “martyr” here, though the Greek word itself is unchanged. Risk: Medium. Flag this shift for translators/reviewers so साक्षी is not misunderstood in later church history as always meaning simply “eyewitness” — in 7:58–60 and 22:20 the sacrificial, life-costing dimension is primary.
“Lord Jesus, receive my spirit,” 7:59 — a prayer addressed directly to Jesus. Contextual theological meaning: Direct prayer to Christ reinforces his full deity (reuse lord प्रभु, deity_of_christ doctrine). Risk: Critical (per baseline lordship_of_christ entry — no deviation).

Chapter 8

μαγεία / μάγος (“sorcery/magician” — Simon), 8:9, 11. Semantic range: occult practice claiming supernatural power for personal gain/prestige, sharply distinguished in the narrative from the Spirit’s freely-given power (the very point of the Simon Magus episode — 8:18–24, condemning the attempt to purchase spiritual power with money). English variants: sorcery, magic, magic arts. Maithili rendering & risk: जादू-टोना/तंत्र-मंत्र (jādū-ṭonā/tantra-mantra). Risk: Critical. Mithila has an actively practiced regional tantra-mantra and ojha (folk-healer/exorcist) tradition. A mandatory translator note must state that Simon’s condemned “sorcery” and his attempt to buy the Spirit’s power (simony) stand in direct, deliberate contrast to God’s freely-given gift (reuse grace अनुग्रह and gift उपहार) — the text itself condemns treating spiritual power as a purchasable commodity, a live temptation given regional tantric fee-for-power practices.
εὐνοῦχος (“eunuch” — the Ethiopian court official), 8:27, 34, 36, 38–39. Semantic range: a castrated court official managing a royal treasury; by biblical era also loosely used of high court officials generally. Maithili: खोजा/नपुंसक अधिकारी (khojā, court official). Risk: Low-Medium. Use respectfully as a historical court-title, not a demeaning term; note his social marginalization (per Deuteronomy 23:1) is precisely what the gospel’s universal reach in this episode overturns.
gospel (susamācār) preached to Samaritans, 8:4–25. Reuse baseline gospel सुसमाचार. Contextual theological meaning: First major boundary-crossing of the “Gospel to Jews and Gentiles” doctrine, extending across the entrenched Jewish-Samaritan ethnic-religious enmity — a template for later Gentile inclusion. Risk: High (per baseline gospel entry, extended here to a new cultural-boundary context).

Chapter 9

διωγμός (“persecution”), 9:1, 4 (implicit). Maithili: सतावनी/उत्पीड़न (satāwanī/utpīṛan). Risk: Low-Medium.
λεπίδες (“scales,” “something like scales fell from his eyes”), 9:18. Maithili: आँखिसँ छिलका सन खसल (āँkhisã chilkā san khasal). Risk: Low. Idiom for restored spiritual/physical sight.
ἡ ὁδός (“the Way” — the earliest self-designation of the Christian movement), 9:2 (also 19:9, 23; 22:4; 24:14, 22). Literal: the road, path, way. Semantic range: used as a proper, capitalized designation for the Christian movement itself — “belonging to the Way.” English variants: the Way, this Way, the sect of the Way. Contextual theological meaning: Names the early church’s self-understanding as followers of the one true way to God through Christ, not one path among several. Maithili rendering & risk: मार्ग (mārg, “the Way”). Risk: Critical. मार्ग is deeply embedded in Hindu soteriological vocabulary — bhakti-mārg, karma-mārg, jñāna-mārg (the three classical “paths” to liberation), each considered a valid route to the same ultimate goal (moksha). Rendering “the Way” as मार्ग without a strong clarifying translator note risks the reader hearing Christianity presented as merely one more mārg among the three (or many) already recognized paths, rather than as Paul’s own emphatic, exclusive claim (cf. John 14:6, echoed throughout Acts) that Christ alone is the way to God. A mandatory translator note at every occurrence must state: “the Way” names the one true path revealed in Christ, not one alternative spiritual path among several equally valid options.
σκεῦος ἐκλογῆς (“chosen instrument/vessel”), 9:15. Reuse baseline election (परमेश्वरक चुनाव). Maithili: चुनल पात्र (cunal pātra, “chosen vessel”). Risk: High (per baseline election entry) — describes Paul’s unique apostolic calling; anchors the “Conversion of Paul” doctrine.
ἀνίστημι (“raised” — Tabitha/Dorcas restored to life), 9:40–41. Contextual theological meaning: A genuine miracle of restoration to mortal life (she will die again later), categorically distinct from Christ’s own once-for-all resurrection to immortal, glorified life and from the future final resurrection of believers. Maithili rendering & risk: जियाओल गेली (jiyāol gelī, “was made alive again”) — explicitly NOT पुनरुत्थान. Risk: High. Using पुनरुत्थान here would dilute its reserved, Critical, once-for-all theological weight (per baseline resurrection entry); a clear terminological distinction must be maintained between resuscitation-to-mortal-life (Tabitha here; Eutychus at 20:9–12) and the unique, permanent resurrection of Christ (and the future resurrection of all believers).

Chapter 10

φοβούμενος τὸν Θεόν (“God-fearer” — Cornelius), 10:2, 22, 35. Semantic range: a technical designation for Gentiles who worshipped and revered the God of Israel without undergoing full proselyte conversion (circumcision). English variants: God-fearer, one who fears God, devout Gentile. Maithili rendering & risk: परमेश्वरसँ डरनिहार (parameśvarsã̃ ḍaranihār). Risk: Medium. Clarify that “fear” here means reverent worship and awe, not terror, and that Cornelius represents the very category the gospel’s universal scope reaches without requiring prior conversion to Judaism.
κοινός (“common/unclean” — dietary vision), 10:14–15, 28. Semantic range: ritually unclean according to Mosaic dietary law, here declared abolished by God’s own voice. Maithili rendering & risk: अशुद्ध (aśuddh, “ritually unclean”). Risk: Medium. Note this deliberately differs from baseline’s caution against अशुद्ध for holy (which reserves पवित्र for moral/relational set-apartness); here अशुद्ध is contextually correct because the passage is precisely about the OT ritual-purity food-category system being set aside in Christ — the two uses are not in tension, but translators must understand why the same root-concept is handled differently in each doctrine.
προσωπολημψία (“partiality/favoritism”), 10:34 (“God shows no partiality”). Semantic range: literally “receiving [judging by] the face” — favoritism based on external status. Maithili rendering & risk: पक्षपात (pakṣapāt). Risk: Critical. This verse is the doctrinal center of “Gospel to Jews and Gentiles” and directly confronts caste-and-lineage-based spiritual hierarchy, a live social reality in Mithila given the Panjikaran genealogical-registry system (per baseline’s universal_scope_of_gospel and unity_of_jews_and_gentiles entries). The universal, no-exception force of “no partiality” must be preserved without softening.

Chapter 11

Χριστιανός (“Christian” — first used at Antioch), 11:26. Semantic range: a name (likely initially applied by outsiders) meaning “belonging to/follower of Christ.” Maithili rendering & risk: मसीही (masīhī, “follower of Masih/Christ”) — built on baseline messiah (मसीह), consistent with established regional Christian community self-designation. Risk: Medium. Standard, low-collision term; note it should not be confused with “Christian” as merely a birth-caste or community-membership label (a risk given the region’s strong lineage-based social categorization), but rather a designation of personal faith-allegiance to Christ.
grace at Antioch, 11:23 — reuse baseline अनुग्रह exactly. Risk: High (per baseline).

Chapter 12

ηὔξανεν (“the word of God increased/grew”), 12:24. Maithili: परमेश्वरक वचन बढ़ल (parameśvarak vacan baṛhal). Risk: Low. Growth-of-the-gospel metaphor; no significant collision. Chapter otherwise narrates Herod’s persecution and death (illustrating providence परमेश्वरक विधान, reuse) and Peter’s angelic deliverance — no additional new load-bearing theological vocabulary.

Chapter 13

ἀφορίζω (“set apart” — Barnabas and Saul), 13:2. Reuse baseline doctrine separation_unto_gods_service. Maithili: अलग कएल गेला (alag kael gelā). Risk: High (per baseline entry) — the Spirit’s own initiative in setting apart these two for a specific mission, not human self-selection.
δικαιόω (“justified” — 13:38–39: “by him everyone who believes is freed/justified from everything from which you could not be freed by the law of Moses”). Reuse baseline justification (धर्मी घोषित कएल जाएब) EXACTLY. Risk: Critical. This is the single most important Acts anchor-verse for the “Justification apart from the Law” doctrine — Paul’s first recorded sermon explicitly contrasts justification through faith in Christ against the Law of Moses’ inability to justify. The baseline’s compound phrase must be used without abbreviation, and the contrast with law (व्यवस्था, reuse) must be preserved with full force, paralleling Romans 3–4’s argument now placed in Acts’ narrative context.
φῶς ἐθνῶν (“a light for the Gentiles”), 13:47 (quoting Isaiah 49:6). Reuse baseline gentiles (अन्यजाति). Maithili: अन्यजातिक हेतु ज्योति. Risk: Low-Medium. ज्योति (light) here is literal, not the baseline’s rejected “glory” light-imagery; minor residual risk of regional light-imagery association (Puranic divine luster) should still be flagged for reviewer awareness.
τεταγμένοι εἰς ζωὴν αἰώνιον (“as many as were appointed to eternal life believed”), 13:48. Reuse baseline election (परमेश्वरक चुनाव). Maithili: अनन्त जीवनक हेतु ठहराओल गेल लोक (anant jīvanak hetu ṭhaharāol gel lok). Risk: High (per baseline election entry — must not read as impersonal fate/प्रारब्ध).

Chapter 14

θεὸς ζῶν (“the living God” — contrasted with Zeus and Hermes), 14:15. Semantic range: the one true, personal, ever-living God, contrasted explicitly with the lifeless or mythic pagan deities the Lystrans mistake Paul and Barnabas for. Maithili rendering & risk: जीवित परमेश्वर (jīvit parameśvar). Risk: Critical. This episode — crowds concluding that “the gods have come down to us in the likeness of men” (14:11) — is the single most direct New Testament parallel to the exact category of risk the baseline flags for incarnation/देहधारण: the idea of a deity temporarily descending in human form, exactly the avatar pattern culturally “owned” in Mithila through the Ramayana. A mandatory translator note must draw this connection explicitly: Paul and Barnabas emphatically REJECT being worshipped as gods appearing in human form (tearing their clothes, 14:14) — the very reaction that distinguishes the true, unique incarnation of the eternal Son (a permanent, one-time event, affirmed rather than refused) from the pagan/mythic pattern of temporary divine appearances the Lystrans assumed (and which the text itself repudiates).
θλῖψις (“tribulation”), 14:22 (“through many tribulations we must enter the kingdom of God”). Reuse baseline kingdom_of_god. Maithili: क्लेश/दुःख (kleś/duḥkh). Risk: Low-Medium.

Chapter 15

περιτομή (“circumcision”), 15:1, 5, 24. Semantic range: the Mosaic covenant-sign rite; here, the central point of controversy — whether Gentile believers must be circumcised and keep the law of Moses to be saved. Maithili rendering & risk: खतना (khatanā, established regional term). Risk: High. This chapter’s entire debate is the narrative anchor for “Justification apart from the Law” — the apostolic decision (15:11, “we believe that we will be saved through the grace of the Lord Jesus, just as they will”) must be rendered with baseline grace (अनुग्रह) and salvation (उद्धार) preserved exactly, making unmistakably clear that circumcision and law-keeping are NOT added requirements for salvation.
εἰδωλόθυτον (“food sacrificed to idols”), 15:20, 29. Reuse idol term (see Chapter 17 below, εἴδωλον). Maithili rendering & risk: मूर्तिकेँ चढ़ाओल भोजन (mūrtikẽ caṛhāol bhojan). Risk: High. Directly parallels the living regional practice of prasad — food ritually offered to a deity’s image and then distributed and eaten as blessed. A translator note should clarify the apostolic decree’s pastoral concern: association with idol-worship practices, out of respect for both Jewish scruples and the exclusivity of worshipping the one true God, not a claim that food itself is spiritually contaminated.
συνδοκέω (“it seemed good,” 15:22, 25, 28 — “it seemed good to the Holy Spirit and to us”). Maithili: पवित्र आत्मा आ हमरा सभकेँ नीक लागल. Risk: Low-Medium. Models corporate, Spirit-guided church discernment (Church as Community doctrine).

Chapter 16

πνεῦμα πύθωνα (“spirit of divination,” literally “a Python spirit”), 16:16. Literal: referencing the Greek mythic serpent Python associated with the Delphic oracle’s prophetic trance. Semantic range: an evil, divining spirit that grants a slave-girl fortune-telling ability, exploited for profit by her owners; explicitly identified in the text as a source Paul commands out “in the name of Jesus Christ” (16:18), not something to be tolerated or consulted. English variants: spirit of divination, python spirit, fortune-telling spirit. Maithili rendering & risk: भविष्यवाणी करएबला दुष्ट आत्मा (bhaviṣyavāṇī karaebalā duṣṭ ātmā, “an evil spirit that gives predictions”). Risk: Critical. This episode directly parallels living regional practices of village oracle-possession and devī-āveś (spirit/goddess possession used for divination and guidance) and ojha-mediated fortune-telling. A mandatory translator note must state that Paul’s response is exorcism/expulsion in Christ’s authority, NOT veneration, consultation, or negotiation with the spirit — modeling the correct Christian response to any comparable regional oracular-possession practice, in sharp contrast to practices that seek out or honor such a spirit for guidance.
household baptism (Lydia, the jailer), 16:15, 33 — reuse बपतिस्मा exactly; note the household (oikos) dimension, Risk: Medium.
Ῥωμαῖος/πολίτης (“Roman citizen”), 16:37–38. Maithili: रोमी नागरिक (romī nāgarik). Risk: Low. Legal-status term relevant to Paul’s later appeals (chs. 22, 25).

Chapter 17

εἴδωλον (“idol”), 17:16, 29 (also 15:20; 19:26). Literal: an image, likeness, especially a cult image. Semantic range: a manufactured representation of a deity, here explicitly contrasted with the living God who cannot be rightly represented by “gold or silver or stone, an image formed by the art and imagination of man” (17:29). English variants: idol, image, graven image. Contextual theological meaning: Paul’s Areopagus argument directly confronts image-worship as a category error about the nature of the true God. Maithili rendering & risk: मूर्ति (mūrti). Risk: Critical. Mithila has a deeply embedded and continuously practiced murti-pūjā (image-worship) tradition across its Vaishnava, Shaiva, and Shakta devotional life (household shrines, temple images of Durga, Kali, Shiva, Ram-Sita). This is one of the most culturally sensitive terms in the entire curriculum. Translators must render Paul’s argument with full theological clarity and fidelity to the text’s own logic (the true God cannot be represented by a crafted image), while avoiding gratuitously inflammatory phrasing not present in the source text itself; a translator/theologian review note should accompany every occurrence.
ἄγνωστος θεός (“unknown god”), 17:23. Semantic range: an altar inscription Paul uses as a rhetorical bridge; his argument is that the ONE true God (not one deity among many) was unknown to the Athenians and is now being proclaimed. Maithili rendering & risk: अज्ञात देवता (agyāt devatā). Risk: High. Given Mithila’s living tradition of numerous village/family/regional deities (grām devatā), there is real risk this altar could be read as simply one more deity to add to an existing devotional roster, rather than Paul’s actual point — that the true God, previously unknown to them, is not one deity among many but the sole Creator of all. A translator note must make this distinction explicit at this verse.
γένος (“offspring,” 17:28 — “we are indeed his offspring,” quoting Greek poets). Maithili: सन्तान (santān). Risk: Medium. This is Paul’s use of general revelation (all humanity as God’s creation), distinct from the specific soteriological doctrine of adoption (पुत्रत्व प्रदान, baseline) into God’s family through faith — keep these two concepts terminologically distinct so general creaturely “offspring” is not confused with the specific gift of adoption as sons.
μετανοέω (“repent”), 17:30 — reuse term established at 2:38. resurrection, 17:31–32 — reuse पुनरुत्थान exactly; note the Athenian mockery of bodily resurrection (17:32) as a live illustration of the doctrine’s countercultural force, relevant also to regional reincarnation-based worldviews.

Chapter 18

βῆμα (“judgment seat/tribunal” — Gallio’s), 18:12, 16–17. Maithili: न्याय आसन (nyāya āsan). Risk: Low. Standard legal-proceeding term.
εὐχή (“vow” — Paul’s vow, likely Nazirite-related), 18:18. Semantic range: a formal, OT-rooted vow of dedication to God, historically the Nazirite vow (cf. Numbers 6). Maithili rendering & risk: मन्नत/संकल्प (mannat/sankalp). Risk: Medium. संकल्प carries strong regional ritual-vow connotation (a vrat-sankalp made before a chosen deity for a specific request); while functionally a useful bridge concept, a translator note should clarify Paul’s vow is rooted in OT Nazirite practice directed to the one true God, not a devotional vrat to a chosen personal deity.
John’s baptism vs. Christian baptism (Apollos), 18:25. Reuse बपतिस्मा; note the narrative distinguishes a repentance-only baptism (John’s) from Christian baptism marked by the Spirit’s reception (developed further in Acts 19:1–7). Risk: Medium.

Chapter 19

δαιμόνιον / πνεῦμα πονηρόν (“demon/evil spirit” — the sons of Sceva), 19:12–16. Semantic range: a malevolent spiritual being under Satan’s authority, here shown overpowering those who attempt to use “the name of Jesus” as a magical formula without genuine faith or authority (19:13–16). English variants: demon, evil spirit, unclean spirit. Maithili rendering & risk: दुष्ट आत्मा (duṣṭ ātmā) — avoid the colloquial भूत-प्रेत (bhūt-pret) as the primary rendering where possible, since भूत-प्रेत is saturated with specific regional folk-exorcism (ojha jhāṛ-phūँk) associations and remedies (amulets, mantras, ritual objects). Risk: Critical. This narrative itself warns against imitative, technique-based use of Jesus’ name as a power-formula — directly relevant to, and implicitly critiquing, regional exorcism practices that rely on ritual technique, mantra, or object-based binding rather than genuine authority in Christ. A mandatory translator note should make this parallel explicit.
magic books burned, 19:19 — reuse μαγεία/तंत्र-मंत्र established at 8:9. Risk: Critical (as established).
Ἄρτεμις (“Artemis/Diana of the Ephesians”), 19:24–41. Contextual theological meaning: A city-wide riot defending devotion to a great mother-goddess whose temple and cult income the gospel’s exclusivity claim threatens. Risk: Critical. This is the single clearest real-world New Testament parallel to the baseline’s own flagged risk regarding शक्ति and regional Shakta-goddess devotion (e.g., the baseline’s cited Ugratara shrine, and the wider Durga/Kali worship tradition). A translator/theologian note should draw this parallel explicitly: the narrative’s portrayal of fierce civic devotion to a goddess figure threatened by an exclusive gospel claim is directly analogous to the pastoral sensitivity required whenever this curriculum addresses goddess-devotion themes in Mithila.

Chapter 20

πρεσβύτεροι (“elders”), 20:17. Semantic range: appointed spiritual leaders/overseers of a local congregation, exercising pastoral authority and care. Maithili rendering & risk: प्राचीन (prācīn, “elder/ancient one” — established North Indian church-office term). Risk: Medium. Must be distinguished from the regional village/caste-council institution of “panch”/panchayat elders (a body with social and customary-legal, not spiritual-pastoral, authority) and from a generic honorific for an elderly person; this is a specific appointed church office.
ἐπίσκοπος (“overseer/bishop”), 20:28. Semantic range: the same office as “elder” viewed from the angle of oversight/guardianship, rather than seniority. Maithili rendering & risk: अध्यक्ष/निरीक्षक (adhyakṣ/nirīkṣak, “overseer”). Risk: Medium. Should be presented alongside प्राचीन as two aspects (seniority; oversight) of one and the same local-church leadership office, per Acts 20:17, 28’s own usage.
ποιμαίνω (“shepherd,” verb — “shepherd the church of God”), 20:28. Reuse baseline church (मण्डली). Maithili: मण्डलीक रखबारी करब (maṇḍalīk rakhbārī karab, “to care for/shepherd the church”). Risk: Low-Medium. Standard pastoral metaphor.
Eutychus raised, 20:9–12 — reuse जियाओल गेल (resuscitation term established at 9:40), explicitly NOT पुनरुत्थान. Risk: High (as established at ch.9).

Chapter 21

ἁγνισμός (“purification rite”), 21:24, 26. Semantic range: a Jewish ceremonial purification act (associated with completing a vow, likely Nazirite) Paul undergoes at the Jerusalem temple for relational/cultural reasons among Jewish believers. Maithili rendering & risk: शुद्धिकरण (śuddhikaraṇ). Risk: High. The baseline’s sanctification entry explicitly REJECTS शुद्धिकरण as a rendering for the NT doctrine of sanctification (to avoid confusion with regional संस्कार purification rites). Here, however, शुद्धिकरण is contextually the historically accurate description of a literal, one-time, OT/Temple-era Jewish ceremonial rite Paul performs for cultural-relational reasons — NOT a description of how Christian sanctification works. A mandatory translator note must prevent readers from concluding that biblical sanctification is achieved through ritual purification, which would directly contradict the baseline’s own sanctification doctrine entry.
prophecy by Agabus, 21:10–11 — reuse baseline भविष्यवाणी exactly. Risk: Low (per baseline).

Chapter 22

ζηλωτής (“zealous”), 22:3 (“zealous for God as you all are today”). Maithili: उत्साही/जोशी (utsāhī/jośī). Risk: Low-Medium.
“the God of our fathers,” 22:14 — reuse baseline father (पिता) in its patriarchal/covenantal sense. Chapter otherwise retells Paul’s conversion (see ch.9 terms above) before the Jerusalem crowd — Risk: High, per baseline messianic_promise/conversion-related entries, since this is Paul’s own testimony of the “Conversion of Paul” doctrine.

Chapter 23

resurrection controversy (Pharisees vs. Sadducees), 23:6–8. Reuse baseline resurrection (पुनरुत्थान) exactly. Contextual theological meaning: The Sadducees’ denial of resurrection, angels, and spirits becomes a live doctrinal fault-line Paul strategically exploits in his defense. Risk: Critical (per baseline resurrection_of_christ entry) — even though this verse concerns the general resurrection doctrine rather than Christ’s own resurrection specifically, the same term and the same CRITICAL prohibition against पुनर्जन्म applies without exception.
No other new load-bearing terms; chapter otherwise narrates the assassination plot and Paul’s transfer to Caesarea using previously established vocabulary (witness, persecution).

Chapter 24

αἵρεσις (“sect” — “the sect of the Nazarenes”), 24:5, 14. Semantic range: a named religious party or faction; used here pejoratively by Paul’s accuser (Tertullus), then reclaimed by Paul himself in v.14 (“according to the Way, which they call a sect, I worship the God of our fathers”). English variants: sect, party, faction (later develops into “heresy” in church history, though that pejorative sense is not primary here). Maithili rendering & risk: सम्प्रदाय/पंथ (sampradāy/panth). Risk: High. सम्प्रदाय is the standard Maithili/Hindi term for a recognized Hindu religious tradition or lineage (e.g., Vaishnav sampradāya, Shaiva sampradāya) — contextually appropriate here since it captures precisely how outsiders dismissively categorized the early church (as one sect among many recognized religious traditions), but a translator note must clarify that this is the accusers’ outside framing, not the church’s own self-understanding, which claims to be the fulfillment of God’s promises rather than one sampradāya among equally valid others (contrast with the Way term at ch.9, which the church itself uses).
κρίσις/κρίμα (“judgment to come”), 24:25 (“as he reasoned about righteousness and self-control and the judgment to come”). Reuse baseline righteousness (धार्मिकता) exactly. Maithili (judgment): न्याय (nyāy). Risk: Medium. Distinguish God’s forensic future judgment from impersonal karmic reckoning (a live conceptual competitor in the regional worldview).

Chapter 25

ἐπικαλέομαι Καίσαρα (“I appeal to Caesar”), 25:11–12. Maithili: कैसरक दरबारमे अपील करब. Risk: Low. Legal-procedural term; no doctrinal collision. Chapter otherwise reuses witness/gospel-defense vocabulary established earlier (Persecution and Bold Witness doctrine).

Chapter 26

ὀπτασία (“heavenly vision”), 26:19 (“I was not disobedient to the heavenly vision”). Semantic range: a divinely-given visionary appearance/revelation, here referring back to Paul’s Damascus-road encounter with the risen Christ. English variants: vision, heavenly vision, revelation. Maithili rendering & risk: स्वर्गीय दर्शन (svargīya darśan). Risk: High. दर्शन carries a very specific and centrally important meaning in regional devotional practice: the reciprocal “seeing and being seen” of a deity’s image at a temple, a core devotional act throughout Mithila’s temple culture. A translator note is required clarifying that Paul’s “vision” names a unique, unrepeatable revelatory appearance of the risen, glorified Christ to establish his apostleship — not a devotional temple-viewing (darshan) practice open to ongoing repetition by worshippers.
ἐξουσία τοῦ Σατανᾶ (“the power/authority of Satan”), 26:18 (“turn them from darkness to light, and from the power of Satan to God”). Maithili rendering & risk: शैतानक अधिकारसँ परमेश्वर दिस (śaitānak adhikārsã̃ parameśvar dis) — using अधिकार (authority/dominion) rather than सामर्थ्य or शक्ति to keep the baseline’s doctrinal vocabulary for God’s power (सामर्थ्य, never शक्ति) uncontaminated by association with Satan’s dominion. Risk: Medium. Reuse sanctification (पवित्रीकरण) exactly for “those who are sanctified by faith in me” in the same verse.

Chapter 27

No new load-bearing theological vocabulary. This chapter (Paul’s sea voyage and shipwreck) reuses providence (परमेश्वरक विधान, baseline High risk) as its governing doctrinal theme — God’s personal governance preserving Paul and all aboard through the storm — and reuses established witness/gospel-proclamation themes in Paul’s reassurance to the ship’s company (27:22–25). Reviewed explicitly; no new terms to register.

Chapter 28

Δίκη (“Justice,” personified as a Greek goddess), 28:4 (“the Maltese islanders, seeing the snake, said, ‘No doubt this man is a murderer… Justice has not allowed him to live’”). Contextual theological meaning: A reported pagan/mythological assumption of the Maltese islanders — the narrator records their superstitious inference, without the text endorsing it as true. Maithili rendering & risk: न्याय-देवी (nyāya-devī, “the goddess Justice”) with an explanatory gloss. Risk: Medium. Low doctrinal weight in itself, but a translator note is useful so this is not misread as Scripture affirming a goddess of cosmic justice (a concept with regional resonance in dharmic/karmic cosmic-order thinking) — it is simply an accurate report of the islanders’ own (mistaken) inference.
παρρησία (“boldness”) and ἀκωλύτως (“without hindrance/unhindered”), 28:31 — the book’s climactic closing verse: Paul in Rome “proclaiming the kingdom of God and teaching about the Lord Jesus Christ with all boldness and without hindrance.” Reuse baseline kingdom_of_god (परमेश्वरक राज्य), lord (प्रभु), and the boldness (निडरता) term established at 4:13. Maithili (unhindered): निर्बाध/बिना रोक-टोकक (nirbādh). Risk: High (compound of Critical/High baseline terms) — this verse is the doctrinal climax of “The Great Commission Fulfilled,” and its rendering should be treated with the same cross-document consistency discipline the baseline requires for Romans 1:16–17, 8:28, and 10:9–10.

End of semantic analysis. See analysis/08_core_glossary.md for the consolidated per-term glossary table drawn from this analysis.

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