Core Glossary
Core Glossary: 2 Corinthians — English → Malay
This glossary lists every load-bearing theological term surfaced in 07_semantic_analysis.md, drawn from all 13 chapters of 2 Corinthians. Terms marked (baseline reuse) already exist in the Romans translation_memory.json/bible_term_registry.json and MUST be rendered exactly as recorded there — no alternative spellings or substitutions are permitted. Terms marked (NEW) are proposed additions for this curriculum’s translation memory, pending Phase 1 Step 2+ confirmation. Risk tiers follow the baseline’s four-tier framework (Critical/High/Medium/Low) and the same review-routing logic (Critical/High → human theologian; Medium → native speaker; Low → automated).
Section A — Terms Reused Exactly from the Romans Baseline
| English term | Malay rendering | Transliteration | Risk | Doctrine (2 Cor context) | Key 2 Cor passages | Malay-specific risk notes |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| God | Allah | ahl-LAHH | Critical | Reconciliation with God; Deity of Christ | 1:2-3; 5:18-21; 13:14 | Same legal/political sensitivity as baseline; unchanged. |
| Jesus | Yesus | YEH-soos | Critical | throughout | 1:1-5; 4:5-14; 5:18 | Never Isa. |
| Christ/Messiah | Kristus | KRIS-toos | Critical | Genuine Apostleship; Deity of Christ | throughout | Never Al-Masih. |
| Lord | Tuhan | TOO-hahn | Critical | Fear of the Lord; Lordship | 1:2-3; 4:5; 5:11 | Never Tuan. |
| Holy Spirit | Roh Kudus | ROHKH KOO-doos | Critical | New Covenant; Trinitarian benediction | 1:22; 3:6-18; 13:14 | 3:17 “the Lord is the Spirit” needs theologian-level care. |
| Father | Bapa | BAH-pah | Critical | Reconciliation; sonship | 1:3; 6:18 | As baseline. |
| Son of God | Anak Allah | AH-nahk ahl-LAHH | Critical | Deity/Sonship of Christ | 1:19 | Never a euphemism. |
| Gospel | Injil | IN-jeel | High | Reconciliation; Sincerity/Authority | 2:12; 4:3-4; 9:13; 11:4 | As baseline. |
| Grace | Kasih kurnia | KAH-sih KOOR-nee-ah | High | Generosity and Grace in Giving | 8:1-9; 9:8,14; 12:9 | Extended note: same word covers saving grace and grace-enabled generosity — guard against amal-soleh/zakat-merit framing (see Section B). |
| Faith | Iman | ee-MAHN | High | Sincerity; assurance | 1:24; 4:13; 5:7; 13:5 | Object of faith (Christ) must stay explicit. |
| Righteousness | Kebenaran | keh-beh-NAH-rahn | Critical | Reconciliation (5:21); New Covenant | 3:9; 5:21; 6:7,14; 9:9-10; 11:15 | Core-passage climax term; never amal soleh. |
| Salvation | Keselamatan | keh-seh-lah-MAH-tahn | Critical | Reconciliation; day of salvation | 1:6; 6:2; 7:10 | Present-tense reality; never deferred-syurga framing. |
| Sin | Dosa | DOH-sah | High | Reconciliation (5:19,21) | 5:19,21; 11:7; 12:21 | Ties to imputation/non-imputation logic. |
| Apostle | Rasul | RAH-sool | High | Genuine vs. False Apostleship | 1:1; 11:5,13; 12:11-12 | Central to this curriculum’s signature doctrine; see false-apostle entry Section B. |
| Holy | Kudus | KOO-doos | High | Sanctification | 1:1; 7:1 | As baseline. |
| Saints | Orang kudus | OH-rahng KOO-doos | High | Church; giving | 1:1; 8:4; 9:1,12; 13:13 | As baseline; not an elite class. |
| Sanctification | Pengudusan | peng-goo-DOO-sahn | High | Godly Sorrow/Repentance | 7:1 | As baseline. |
| Resurrection | Kebangkitan | keh-bahng-KIT-ahn | Critical | Reconciliation; hope | 4:14; 5:4,15 | Death-then-resurrection sequence must stay intact. |
| Covenant | Perjanjian | per-jahn-jee-AHN | Medium→High (as “new covenant”) | New Covenant vs. Old | 3:6,14 | See Section B “new covenant” for the Perjanjian Baru ambiguity risk. |
| Law | Hukum Taurat | HOO-koom tow-RAHT | High | New Covenant vs. Old | 3:6-15 | Never Syariah. |
| Glory | Kemuliaan | keh-moo-lee-AH-ahn | High | New Covenant; false apostles’ disguise | 3:7-18; 4:4,6; 11:14 | Never “nur”; see 11:14 “angel of light” Section B entry. |
| Church | Gereja | geh-REH-jah | Medium | Church as God’s people | 1:1; 8:1,18-19,23-24; 11:8,28; 12:13 | Distinguish from “temple of God” (naos) — Section B. |
| Fellowship | Persekutuan | per-seh-koo-TOO-ahn | Low (Critical in 13:14 Trinitarian context) | Christian Fellowship; Trinitarian benediction | 6:14; 13:14 | Elevated risk specifically in the 13:14 triadic formula. |
| Thanksgiving | Kesyukuran | keh-shoo-KOO-rahn | Low | Thanksgiving | 2:14; 4:15; 9:11-12 | As baseline; genuine resonance point. |
| Exhort/appeal | Menasihati / Merayu | meh-NAH-see-HAH-tee | Low | Mutual edification; reconciliation appeal | 1:4; 2:7-8; 5:20; 6:1; 7:6-7,13; 8:6; 9:5; 10:1; 12:8; 13:11 | Context-sensitive per baseline note: merayu (pleading, e.g. 5:20) vs. menasihati (building up). Very frequent in 2 Cor. |
| Power of God | Kuasa Allah | KOO-ah-sah ahl-LAHH | High (Critical in 12:9-10 context) | Power in Weakness | 4:7; 6:7; 12:9; 13:4 | Elevated to Critical at 12:9 “power made perfect in weakness” — see Section B. |
Section B — New Terms Proposed for This Curriculum
| English term | Original (Greek) | Malay rendering | Transliteration | Risk | Doctrine | Key passages | Alternatives rejected | Malay-specific risk notes |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Reconciliation | καταλλαγή / καταλλάσσω | Pendamaian / Mendamaikan | pen-dah-MAI-ahn | Critical | Reconciliation with God | 5:18-20 | ”muhibbah” (generic social/interethnic harmony, too weak and non-theological) | Risk of being read as interfaith social peace-building rather than God’s specific reconciling act toward guilty sinners through Christ’s death; must be distinguished from baseline’s “Damai sejahtera” (the resulting relational state) as the achieving act/means. |
| New creation | καινὴ κτίσις | Ciptaan baru | chi-PTAH-ahn BAH-roo | Critical | New Creation in Christ | 5:17 | — | Must not read as reincarnation/rebirth-cycle; collides with Islamic fitrah doctrine (humans born inherently pure, needing guidance not re-creation) — teach as decisive, once-for-all re-making of one already spiritually dead. |
| Ambassador | πρεσβεύω / πρεσβευτής | Duta | DOO-tah | High | Genuine vs. False Apostleship | 5:20 | ”utusan” (generic messenger, too weak — cf. baseline’s rejection of “utusan” for “apostle”) | Modern diplomatic sense is a good structural match, but must convey Paul’s personally invested, authoritative representation of Christ, not a neutral message-carrier role. |
| Comfort | παράκλησις | Penghiburan | peng-hee-BOO-rahn | High | Suffering and Comfort in Ministry | 1:3-7; 7:6-7 | — | Shares root with everyday “hiburan” (entertainment); must be firmly anchored to affliction/consolation context to avoid a light-amusement register drift. |
| Affliction/tribulation | θλῖψις | Kesengsaraan / Penderitaan | keh-seng-sah-RAH-ahn | Medium | Suffering and Comfort in Ministry | 1:4,8; 4:17; 6:4; 8:2 | — | No direct religious collision; pairs with Kuasa Allah — God’s power revealed through, not by removing, affliction; cuts against honor-shame expectation of visible triumph. |
| Guarantee/deposit (of the Spirit) | ἀρραβών | Jaminan / Cagaran | jah-MEE-nahn | Medium-High | Adoption; assurance | 1:22; 5:5 | — | Commercial-financial term in Greek; Malay financial vocabulary is an accurate bridge, but must be taught as an irrevocable divine guarantee, not a conditional financial pledge. |
| Seal | σφραγίζω | Meterai | meh-TEH-rai | Medium | Assurance | 1:22 | — | Straightforward; low risk. |
| Sincerity | εἰλικρίνεια / ἁπλότης | Ketulusan | keh-too-LOO-sahn | High | Sincerity and Apostolic Authority | 1:12; 2:17; 11:3 | ”ikhlas” (the specific Islamic virtue-term for intention purely for Allah’s sake, operating within a merit-and-validity framework for worship acts) | Never use ikhlas; Paul’s sincerity is evidence of an already-grace-grounded apostleship, not a condition earning validity. |
| New covenant | καινὴ διαθήκη | Perjanjian Baru | per-jahn-jee-AHN BAH-roo | High | New Covenant versus the Old | 3:6 | — | “Perjanjian Baru” is also the established name for the New Testament book collection; must disambiguate the corpus-of-books sense from the theological covenant-relationship sense on first use. |
| Letter and Spirit | γράμμα / πνεῦμα | Tulisan/huruf / Roh | too-LEE-sahn / ROHKH | High | New Covenant versus the Old | 3:6 | — | Risk of flattening into a literal-vs-figurative hermeneutics debate rather than Paul’s point about the law’s written code lacking transformative power apart from the Spirit. |
| Veil | κάλυμμα | Tabir / Kain penudung | TAH-beer | High/Critical | New Covenant versus the Old | 3:13-16 | ”tudung” (explicitly rejected — in contemporary Malaysian usage this specifically denotes the Muslim women’s headscarf/hijab) | Using “tudung” would create an unintended, strongly loaded association with Islamic female modesty practice entirely absent from Paul’s argument about Moses’ veil and veiled hearts. |
| Transformed | μεταμορφόω | Diubah (menjadi serupa) | dee-OO-bah | High | New Covenant; Sanctification | 3:18 | avoid “menjelma”/“penjelmaan”-root words | Must avoid the “jelma” root shared with baseline’s Hindu-Buddhist avatar caution (Penjelmaan) and with Malay were-tiger (harimau jadian) shape-shifting folklore; teach as gradual, Spirit-wrought moral transformation. |
| Lord is the Spirit | ὁ κύριος τὸ πνεῦμά ἐστιν | Tuhan itu Roh | — | Critical | New Covenant; Trinity | 3:17 | — | Requires careful framing against both a modalist misreading (erasing person-distinctions) and an impersonal-agency misreading of the Spirit. |
| Image of God | εἰκὼν τοῦ θεοῦ | Rupa Allah | ROO-pah ahl-LAHH | Critical | Deity of Christ | 4:4 | ”gambar Allah” (picture/drawing — implies a literal visual depiction, colliding with Islamic aniconism regarding representations of God) | Use “rupa” (form/likeness) to avoid implying a crafted visual icon or idol. |
| Treasure in jars of clay | θησαυρὸς ἐν ὀστρακίνοις σκεύεσιν | Harta di dalam bekas tanah liat | — | Medium | Power in Weakness | 4:7 | — | Straightforward metaphor; reinforces the ch.12 power/weakness doctrine. |
| Inner man / outer man | ἔσω / ἔξω ἄνθρωπος | Manusia batiniah / lahiriah | mah-NOO-shah bah-tee-nee-AH | Medium | Sanctification | 4:16 | — | “Batiniah” resonates with Malay Sufi ilmu batin tradition — helpful bridge but requires care not to invite an esoteric-mystical reading distinct from Spirit-wrought renewal. |
| Judgment seat of Christ | βῆμα τοῦ Χριστοῦ | Takhta pengadilan Kristus | TAHKH-tah peng-ah-DEE-lahn | Critical | Suffering and Comfort; Assurance | 5:10 | — | Must be distinguished from Islamic Yaumul Hisab/Mizan framework: this is a reward/evaluation tribunal for the already-saved, not a re-litigation of salvation status. |
| Workers together (with God) | συνεργοῦντες | Bekerjasama dengan Allah | — | Medium | Church partnership | 6:1 | — | Risk of implying synergistic contribution to salvation itself; clarify this concerns ministry partnership, not justification. |
| Temple of God | ναὸς θεοῦ | Bait Allah | BAH-eet ahl-LAHH | High | Sanctification; Church | 6:16 | — | Distinguish from Gereja (institution/building); teach corporate Spirit-indwelling carefully given tawhid transcendence concerns. |
| Unequally yoked | ἑτεροζυγοῦντες | Berkuk sama dengan (yang tidak sepadan) | — | Medium-High | Sincerity; Church boundaries | 6:14 | — | Agrarian-metaphor comprehension gap plus real pastoral weight given Malaysian interfaith-relationship legal/social sensitivities. |
| Belial | Βελίαρ | Belial (transliterated) | BEH-lee-ahr | Medium | Church boundaries | 6:15 | ”Iblis” (imports specific Islamic demonological narrative details) | Retain transliteration or gloss as “kuasa jahat,” parallel to the Yesus/Isa naming-distinctness principle. |
| Godly sorrow / worldly sorrow | λύπη κατὰ θεόν / τοῦ κόσμου λύπη | Dukacita mengikut kehendak Allah / Dukacita dunia | doo-kah-CHEE-tah | High | Repentance | 7:10 | — | Sets up the repentance entry below; diagnostic distinction must be preserved. |
| Repentance | μετάνοια | Pertobatan | per-toh-BAH-tahn | High | Godly Sorrow / Repentance | 7:9-10 | — | Islamic tawbah operates within a merit-earning turn-and-be-forgiven framework; teach 2 Cor 7’s repentance as fruit of grace already given, not a meritorious act securing pardon. |
| Perfecting holiness | ἐπιτελοῦντες ἁγιωσύνην | Menyempurnakan kekudusan | — | High | Sanctification | 7:1 | — | Reuses Pengudusan/Kudus roots exactly. |
| Generosity/liberality | ἁπλότης (giving sense) | Kemurahan hati | keh-moo-RAH-hahn HAH-tee | High | Generosity and Grace in Giving | 8:2; 9:11,13 | — | Same Greek word as “sincerity” (1:12) — context-sensitive rendering required; do not conflate the two Malay renderings. |
| Equality | ἰσότης | Kesaksamaan | keh-sahk-sah-MAH-ahn | Low-Medium | Generosity and Grace in Giving | 8:13-14 | — | Straightforward economic-equity concept. |
| Poverty/riches of Christ | ἐπτώχευσεν / πλούσιος | Kemiskinan-Nya / Kekayaan-Nya | — | High | Generosity; Incarnation | 8:9 | — | Ties to Penjelmaan (Incarnation, Critical); teach as voluntary self-giving grace, not cessation of deity. |
| Cheerful giver | ἱλαρὸν δότην | Penderma yang rela hati/bersukacita | pen-DER-mah | High | Generosity and Grace in Giving | 9:7 | — | Resonates with zakat/sedekah niyyah (pure intention) requirement; clarify this is grace-fruit, not merit-condition. |
| Sufficiency | αὐτάρκεια | Kecukupan | keh-choo-KOO-pahn | Medium | Generosity; Providence | 9:8 | — | Positive resonance with Sufi/Islamic qana’ah (contentment); low collision risk. |
| Weapons of warfare | ὅπλα τῆς στρατείας | Senjata peperangan rohani | sen-JAH-tah peh-peh-RAHNG-ahn | Medium-High | Sincerity and Apostolic Authority | 10:4 | — | Risk of conflation with the Islamic concept of jihad (esp. its contested political-military public connotations); anchor firmly as metaphorical/intellectual warfare. |
| Strongholds | ὀχυρώματα | Kubu pertahanan | KOO-boo per-tah-HAH-nahn | Medium | Sincerity and Apostolic Authority | 10:4 | — | Pairs with weapons-of-warfare entry above. |
| False apostles | ψευδαπόστολοι | Rasul-rasul palsu | RAH-sool RAH-sool PAHL-soo | Critical | Genuine versus False Apostleship | 11:13 | — | Compounds baseline’s Rasul High-risk note; must be distinguished from Islamic polemical categories of false-prophet claimants (e.g., historical mutanabbi’ figures). |
| Angel of light | ἄγγελος φωτός | Malaikat cahaya | mah-LAI-kaht chah-HAH-yah | Critical | Genuine versus False Apostleship | 11:14 | avoid “nur”-based renderings | Directly intersects with baseline’s Kemuliaan/nur caution (Nur Muhammad Sufi devotional associations); doubly serious given this describes a figure of deception. |
| Super-apostles | ὑπερλίαν ἀπόστολοι | Rasul-rasul yang paling hebat | — | Medium | Genuine versus False Apostleship | 11:5; 12:11 | — | Sarcastic/ironic label; tone must be preserved in translation and teaching notes. |
| Third heaven | τρίτος οὐρανός | Langit ketiga | LAH-ngeet keh-TEE-gah | Critical | Genuine versus False Apostleship (visionary authentication) | 12:2 | avoid resolving directly as “syurga” without qualification | Strong parallel to the foundational Islamic Isra’ and Mi’raj (seven-heavens night journey) narrative; must distinguish Paul’s brief, uncertain account from that far more doctrinally central Islamic tradition. |
| Paradise | παράδεισος | Firdaus | feer-DOWS | Critical | Power in Weakness (context of 12:1-10) | 12:4 | — | Al-Firdaus is the highest, merit-graded level of Jannah in Islamic tradition; clarify this is heavenly presence entered by grace/union with Christ, not a merit-tiered paradise system. |
| Power made perfect in weakness | ἡ δύναμις ἐν ἀσθενείᾳ τελεῖται | Kuasa disempurnakan dalam kelemahan | KOO-ah-sah dee-sem-poor-NAH-kahn | Critical | Power in Weakness | 12:9-10 | — | Cuts against honor-shame cultural expectations and mainstream Islamic prophetology’s triumphalist vindication paradigm; parallels the historically scandalous “stumbling block” of the crucified Messiah. |
| Thorn in the flesh | σκόλοψ τῇ σαρκί | Duri dalam daging | DOO-ree dah-lahm DAH-ging | Low-Medium | Power in Weakness | 12:7 | — | Workable idiom-calque; reinforces weakness/power paradox. |
| Messenger of Satan | ἄγγελος Σατανᾶ | Utusan Iblis | OO-too-sahn EEB-lees | Medium | Power in Weakness | 12:7 | — | Satan/Iblis is broadly shared across Malay religious traditions; low friction, but teach the sanctifying (not random) purpose. |
| Revelations (personal) | ἀποκαλύψεις | Penyataan | pen-yah-TAH-ahn | High | Genuine versus False Apostleship | 12:1,7 | ”wahyu” (reserved for prophetic revelation via a rasul, and for the Book of Revelation’s title) | Avoid over-elevating Paul’s private visionary experience to formal canonical/prophetic-revelation status. |
| Examine yourselves | δοκιμάζετε / πειράζετε | Ujilah dirimu | OO-jee-lah DEE-ree-moo | High | Genuine versus False Apostleship; Assurance | 13:5 | — | Reconcile with Romans 8’s present-tense assurance doctrine — examining fruit of a secured faith, not casting doubt on its security. |
| Holy kiss | φίλημα ἅγιον | Ciuman kudus | chee-OO-mahn KOO-doos | Medium (cultural adaptation) | Church fellowship | 13:12 | — | Malaysian cross-gender touch/khalwat sensitivities; recommend a culturally equivalent greeting for practical application while retaining the literal text with a footnote. |
| Trinitarian benediction (grace/love/fellowship) | χάρις / ἀγάπη / κοινωνία (triadic formula) | Kasih kurnia / Kasih / Persekutuan | — | Critical | Trinity (implicit); closing doctrine of all named 2 Cor doctrines | 13:14 | — | One of the NT’s clearest implicit Trinitarian formulas; must be taught as naming three co-equal divine Persons as one source of blessing, not softened into an undifferentiated single-source blessing. |
| Love (agape) | ἀγάπη | Kasih | KAH-sih | Medium | Reconciliation (5:14); Trinitarian benediction | 5:14; 13:11,14 | — | Generic Malay affection word must be unpacked to carry the specifically sacrificial, self-giving sense Paul intends. |
| Substitutionary death (“one died for all”) | εἷς ὑπὲρ πάντων ἀπέθανεν | Seorang telah mati untuk semua orang | — | Critical | Reconciliation with God | 5:14-15 | — | Direct collision with the Qur’anic no-bearer-of-another’s-burden principle (Q6:164; 17:15; 35:18); route to human theologian review. |
| ”Made him to be sin” (imputation of sin/righteousness) | ἁμαρτίαν ἐποίησεν / λογιζόμενος | Dijadikan-Nya dosa / Tidak memperhitungkan | — | Critical | Reconciliation with God | 5:19,21 | — | Highest-sensitivity term in the core passage; must be taught as judicial/representative, not a claim Christ became morally sinful; direct link to the same Qur’anic burden-bearing objection above. |
| Trespass | παράπτωμα | Pelanggaran | peh-lahng-GAH-rahn | Medium | Reconciliation with God | 5:19 | — | Near-synonym of Dosa (sin); distinguish as a narrower category if taught alongside it. |
| Ministry | διακονία | Pelayanan | peh-lah-YAH-nahn | Low-Medium | Reconciliation; New Covenant | 3:7-9; 4:1; 5:18 | — | Standard church-service term; distinguish from a formal diaconal office where relevant. |
| Message/word of reconciliation | λόγος τῆς καταλλαγῆς | Firman pendamaian / Berita pendamaian | — | High | Reconciliation with God | 5:19 | — | Teach as identical in substance to Injil (gospel), not a separate message. |
| Flesh (worldly evaluation sense) | κατὰ σάρκα | Menurut daging | meh-NOO-root DAH-ging | Medium | Reconciliation; New Creation | 5:16; 10:2-3 | — | Context-sensitive: “worldly point of view” (5:16) vs. behavioral “walking according to the flesh” (10:2-3); gloss per occurrence. |
| Ecstasy / sound mind | ἐξίστημι / σωφρονέω | Tidak siuman / Siuman | — | Medium-High | Sincerity and Apostolic Authority | 5:13 | — | Risk of conflation with Malay folk-animist trance/possession practice (kerasukan); clarify Paul is not endorsing ecstatic trance ritual. |
| Fear of the Lord | φόβος τοῦ κυρίου | Takut akan Tuhan | tah-KOOT ah-kahn TOO-hahn | Medium | Suffering and Comfort in Ministry; Assurance | 5:11 | — | Potential positive bridge to Islamic takwa, but must be tied to grace/bema accountability, not an uncertain works-ledger standing. |
| Boasting | καύχησις / καυχάομαι | Bermegah | ber-meh-GAH | Low-Medium | Sincerity and Apostolic Authority | 1:12; 5:12; chs. 10-12 | — | Honor-shame register makes boasting sound distasteful by default; clarify Paul’s is defensive/ironic boasting. |
| Fragrance/aroma | ὀσμή | Bau harum / Aroma | — | Medium | Suffering and Comfort in Ministry | 2:14-16 | — | Ritual-incense associations in Malay folk practice (kemenyan); anchor to OT sacrificial-aroma background. |
| Triumphal procession | θριαμβεύω | Perarakan kemenangan | peh-rah-RAH-kahn keh-meh-NAHNG-ahn | Medium (cultural literacy) | Suffering and Comfort in Ministry | 2:14 | — | Comprehension gap (Roman military triumph unfamiliar), not a doctrinal-collision risk. |
| Sufficient | ἱκανός | Layak / Memadai | — | Low-Medium | Suffering and Comfort; Power in Weakness | 2:16; 3:5 | — | Straightforward; answered by “sufficiency is from God” (3:5). |
| Ministry of death / of the Spirit | διακονία τοῦ θανάτου / πνεύματος | Pelayanan yang membawa maut / Pelayanan Roh | — | High | New Covenant versus the Old | 3:7-8 | — | Sharpens the letter/Spirit contrast into contrasting covenant ministries. |
Risk Summary (2 Corinthians-Specific New Terms)
| Risk Tier | Count (Section B new terms) | Review Routing |
|---|---|---|
| Critical | 12 | Human theologian (mandatory, every occurrence) |
| High | 17 | Human theologian |
| Medium | 15 | Native speaker review |
| Low / Low-Medium | 4 | Automated / native speaker spot-check |
Combined with the baseline’s already-Critical/High terms reused in Section A (God, Jesus, Christ, Lord, Holy Spirit, Father, Son of God, Gospel, Grace, Faith, Righteousness, Salvation, Sin, Apostle, Holy, Saints, Sanctification, Resurrection, Law, Glory, Power of God), this curriculum’s translation memory update carries a very high proportion of Critical/High terms, consistent with 2 Corinthians’ intensely polemical and doctrinally dense character (apostolic authority disputes, atonement theology, and the reconciliation/new-creation core passage). All Critical and High entries above must be loaded into Phase 2’s translation_memory.json update and flagged for human theologian review per the escalation rules already established in 12_ai_translation_requirements.md.
Critical Risk Terms
Righteousness
Approved rendering: Kebenaran
Transliteration: keh-beh-NAH-rahn
Doctrine: Salvation
Rejected alternatives: amal soleh (righteous deeds, as the ground itself)
Original: δικαιοσύνη
Category: Salvation
Inherited from Romans package (exact reuse). 2 Corinthians extension: climactic core-passage term at 5:21 (‘so that in him we might become the righteousness of God’); also 3:9; 6:7,14; 9:9-10; 11:15. Never amal soleh, even in the giving context of 9:9-10.
Salvation
Approved rendering: Keselamatan
Transliteration: keh-seh-lah-MAH-tahn
Doctrine: Salvation
Rejected alternatives: masuk syurga (entering paradise, as the whole content)
Original: σωτηρία
Category: Salvation
Inherited from Romans package (exact reuse). 2 Corinthians extension: 6:2 (‘now is the day of salvation’) and 7:10 reinforce the present-tense reality of salvation against a deferred-Judgment-Day reading; must not be diluted by everyday ‘selamat’ (safe/well) associations.
Resurrection
Approved rendering: Kebangkitan
Transliteration: keh-bahng-KIT-ahn
Doctrine: Resurrection of Christ
Rejected alternatives: diangkat naik ke syurga (being raised up to heaven, without dying)
Original: ἀνάστασις / ἐγερθέντι
Category: Eschatology
Inherited from Romans package (exact reuse). 2 Corinthians extension: the death-then-resurrection participle order in 5:15 (‘the one having died and having been raised’) must be preserved without exception; also 4:14; 5:4.
Lord
Approved rendering: Tuhan
Transliteration: TOO-hahn
Doctrine: Lordship of Christ
Rejected alternatives: tuan (master/sir, non-divine)
Original: κύριος
Category: Christology
Inherited from Romans package (exact reuse). 2 Corinthians extension: 1:2-3; 4:5; 5:11 (‘fear of the Lord’ as ministry motive); 10:17-18. Never Tuan.
Son Of God
Approved rendering: Anak Allah
Transliteration: AH-nahk ahl-LAHH
Doctrine: Sonship of Christ
Rejected alternatives: kekasih Allah (God’s beloved one), wakil Allah (God’s representative)
Original: υἱὸς θεοῦ
Category: Christology
Inherited from Romans package (exact reuse). 2 Corinthians extension: 1:19. Never softened; full phrase always required.
Jesus
Approved rendering: Yesus
Transliteration: YEH-soos
Doctrine: Lordship of Christ
Rejected alternatives: Isa (the Qur’anic name, deliberately avoided by established Alkitab convention)
Original: Ἰησοῦς
Category: Christology
Inherited from Romans package (exact reuse). 2 Corinthians extension: used throughout, e.g. 1:1-5; 4:5-14; 5:18. Never Isa.
Messiah
Approved rendering: Kristus
Transliteration: KRIS-toos
Doctrine: Messianic Promise
Rejected alternatives: Al-Masih (the Qur’anic title, deliberately avoided in favor of the Greek-derived Alkitab convention)
Original: Χριστός
Category: Christology
Inherited from Romans package (exact reuse). 2 Corinthians extension: used throughout. Never Al-Masih.
God
Approved rendering: Allah
Transliteration: ahl-LAHH
Doctrine: Deity of Christ
Rejected alternatives: Tuhan (used for ‘Lord’ in this Language Package; reserving Allah for ‘God’ keeps the two terms distinct as Alkitab does)
Original: θεός
Category: God
Inherited from Romans package (exact reuse). Same legal/political sensitivity as baseline; unchanged. 2 Corinthians extension: 1:2-3; 5:18-21; 13:14.
Holy Spirit
Approved rendering: Roh Kudus
Transliteration: ROHKH KOO-doos
Doctrine: Sanctification
Rejected alternatives: Jibril (the archangel Gabriel), roh halus (a generic nature/subtle spirit in traditional Malay animist belief)
Original: πνεῦμα ἅγιον
Category: God
Inherited from Romans package (exact reuse). 2 Corinthians extension: 1:22; 3:6-18; 13:14. 3:17’s ‘the Lord is the Spirit’ requires theologian-level care beyond the baseline note — see lord_is_the_spirit entry below.
Father
Approved rendering: Bapa
Transliteration: BAH-pah
Doctrine: Adoption into God’s Family
Rejected alternatives: Pencipta (Creator, as a substitute to avoid relational language)
Original: πατήρ
Category: God
Inherited from Romans package (exact reuse). 2 Corinthians extension: 1:3; 6:18 (‘I will be a father to you, and you shall be sons and daughters’) — relational-adoptive sense, not literal offspring.
Imputed Righteousness
Approved rendering: Kebenaran yang diperhitungkan
Transliteration: keh-beh-NAH-rahn yahng dee-per-hee-TOONG-kahn
Doctrine: Justification by Faith
Rejected alternatives: kebenaran yang diusahakan (earned/worked-for righteousness)
Inherited from Romans package (exact reuse). 2 Corinthians extension: the shared accounting-metaphor logic (‘diperhitungkan’) runs through both the positive crediting of righteousness (5:21) and the non-imputation of sin (5:19) — see sin_bearing_imputation entry below.
Incarnation
Approved rendering: Penjelmaan
Transliteration: pen-jel-MAHN
Doctrine: Incarnation
Rejected alternatives: Tuhan yang menyamar sebagai manusia (God disguising himself as a human)
Inherited from Romans package (exact reuse). 2 Corinthians extension: underlies the poverty_riches_of_christ entry (8:9) and the caution against ‘jelma’-root words for the transformed entry (3:18) — the eternal Son’s permanent, unique human nature, never an avatar-style episodic appearance.
Reconciliation
Approved rendering: Pendamaian
Transliteration: pen-dah-MAI-ahn
Doctrine: Reconciliation with God
Rejected alternatives: muhibbah (Malaysia’s national interethnic/interreligious-harmony ideology, too weak and non-theological, and risks reframing this as social peace-building)
Original: καταλλαγή / καταλλάσσω
Category: Salvation
God’s own act of restoring guilty, hostile sinners to favor with himself through Christ’s death, received (not achieved) by the sinner. Must always be bound to an explicit object (‘…dengan Allah’) and never left standing alone. Must be distinguished from baseline’s Damai sejahtera (peace with God) as the resulting relational state, not the achieving act itself. Central to 5:18-20; route every occurrence to human theologian review.
New Creation
Approved rendering: Ciptaan baru
Transliteration: chi-PTAH-ahn BAH-roo
Doctrine: New Creation in Christ
Rejected alternatives: kelahiran baru (rebirth-flavored, worsens the risk of a reincarnation/rebirth-cycle misreading)
Original: καινὴ κτίσις
Category: Salvation
A decisive, present-tense, once-for-all re-creation of the believer’s identity through union with Christ. Must not be read through a reincarnation/rebirth-cycle lens (parallel to baseline’s Kebangkitan caution). Collides with Islamic fitrah anthropology (humans born inherently pure, needing guidance rather than re-creation) — same underlying tension baseline flags for universal_human_accountability. Central to 5:17; route every occurrence to human theologian review.
Substitutionary Death
Approved rendering: Seorang telah mati untuk semua orang
Transliteration: seh-OH-rahng teh-lah MAH-tee OON-took seh-MOO-ah OH-rahng
Doctrine: Substitutionary Atonement
Original: εἷς ὑπὲρ πάντων ἀπέθανεν
Category: Salvation
Christ’s representative death, counted as the death of all for whom he died. Direct collision with the Qur’anic principle that no soul bears another’s burden (Q6:164; 17:15; 35:18), which denies the very possibility of substitutionary atonement. Ties to baseline’s resurrection_of_christ collision note. Central to 5:14-15; route every occurrence to human theologian review.
Sin Bearing Imputation
Approved rendering: Dijadikan-Nya dosa / tidak memperhitungkan pelanggaran mereka
Transliteration: dee-jah-DEE-kahn-nyah DOH-sah
Doctrine: Imputation of Righteousness and Non-Imputation of Sin
Original: ἁμαρτίαν ἐποίησεν / μὴ λογιζόμενος
Category: Salvation
Christ, sinless, was judicially made/reckoned to be sin on behalf of sinners, so that sinners might be reckoned as God’s righteousness in him. Highest-sensitivity term in the core passage: (1) risk of being misheard as Christ becoming morally sinful — must be taught as judicial/representative, not a character change; (2) direct collision with the Qur’anic no-bearer-of-another’s-burden principle, same as substitutionary_death. Reuses baseline’s diperhitungkan exactly. Central to 5:19,21; route every occurrence to human theologian review.
False Apostles
Approved rendering: Rasul-rasul palsu
Transliteration: RAH-sool RAH-sool PAHL-soo
Doctrine: Genuine versus False Apostleship
Original: ψευδαπόστολοι
Category: Church
Counterfeit teachers falsely claiming apostolic, gospel-founding authority, disguised as servants of Christ. Compounds baseline’s Rasul High-risk note: because rasul is precisely the Islamic category for a scripture-bearing prophet-messenger, this concept risks being read through Islamic polemical categories about false-prophet claimants (e.g., historical mutanabbi’ figures) rather than Paul’s specific concern. Central to 11:13; route every occurrence to human theologian review.
Veil
Approved rendering: Tabir
Transliteration: TAH-beer
Doctrine: The New Covenant versus the Old
Rejected alternatives: tudung (explicitly rejected — in contemporary Malaysian usage this specifically and almost exclusively denotes the Muslim women’s headscarf/hijab)
Original: κάλυμμα
Category: Covenant
The covering over Moses’ radiant face, and the veil over hearts/minds remaining when the old covenant is read apart from Christ, removed only in Christ. Using ‘tudung’ would create an unintended, strongly loaded association with Islamic female modesty practice entirely absent from Paul’s argument. Central to 3:13-16; route every occurrence to human theologian review.
Image Of God
Approved rendering: Rupa Allah
Transliteration: ROO-pah ahl-LAHH
Doctrine: Deity of Christ
Rejected alternatives: gambar Allah (picture/drawing — implies a literal visual depiction, colliding with Islamic aniconism regarding representations of God)
Original: εἰκὼν τοῦ θεοῦ
Category: Christology
Christ as the visible representation of the invisible God, whose glory the gospel reveals. ‘Rupa’ (form/likeness/nature) conveys essential representation without implying a crafted visual icon or idol. Ties directly to baseline’s deity_of_christ and son_of_god entries. Central to 4:4; route every occurrence to human theologian review.
Lord Is The Spirit
Approved rendering: Tuhan itu Roh
Transliteration: TOO-hahn EE-too ROHKH
Doctrine: Deity of Christ
Original: ὁ κύριος τὸ πνεῦμά ἐστιν
Category: Christology
A dense Trinitarian-identity statement identifying the exalted Christ/Lord with the Spirit’s present life-giving activity, without collapsing the distinct persons. Requires careful framing against both (a) a modalist misreading that erases the distinction of Persons, and (b) an Islamic-lens misreading of the Spirit as merely an impersonal divine agency. Central to 3:17; route every occurrence to human theologian review.
Trinitarian Benediction
Approved rendering: Kasih kurnia Tuhan Yesus Kristus, dan kasih Allah, dan persekutuan Roh Kudus
Transliteration: n/a — full liturgical formula
Doctrine: Trinitarian Benediction
Original: ἡ χάρις τοῦ κυρίου Ἰησοῦ Χριστοῦ, καὶ ἡ ἀγάπη τοῦ θεοῦ, καὶ ἡ κοινωνία τοῦ ἁγίου πνεύματος
Category: God
The closing triadic formula naming Lord Jesus Christ, God, and the Holy Spirit distinctly and equally as the source of grace, love, and fellowship. Reuses Kasih kurnia, Kasih, and Persekutuan exactly. Directly confronts tawhid’s strict unitarian monotheism; must be taught explicitly as Trinitarian, not softened into three separate blessings from an undifferentiated single source. Central to 13:14; route every occurrence to human theologian review.
Angel Of Light
Approved rendering: Malaikat cahaya
Transliteration: mah-LAI-kaht chah-HAH-yah
Doctrine: Genuine versus False Apostleship
Rejected alternatives: nur-based renderings (Sufi Nur Muhammad devotional pre-existent-light association)
Original: ἄγγελος φωτός
Category: Apostleship
Satan’s deceptive disguise as a being of divine light, warning that false spiritual appearances can mimic true glory. Directly intersects with baseline’s Kemuliaan/nur caution; doubly serious here since this describes a figure of deception. Central to 11:14; route every occurrence to human theologian review.
Third Heaven
Approved rendering: Langit ketiga
Transliteration: LAH-ngeet keh-TEE-gah
Doctrine: Visionary Experience and Apostolic Authentication
Rejected alternatives: syurga unqualified (never resolve directly into unqualified ‘syurga’)
Original: τρίτος οὐρανός
Category: Eschatology
Paul’s reluctant account of an ecstatic vision-journey, offered under pressure and immediately relativized. Strongly parallels the foundational Islamic Isra’ and Mi’raj (Muhammad’s night journey through seven heavens), a cornerstone of Islamic prophetology. Teaching notes must distinguish Paul’s brief, uncertain, deliberately unelaborated account from this far more doctrinally central Islamic tradition. Central to 12:2; route every occurrence to human theologian review.
Paradise
Approved rendering: Firdaus
Transliteration: feer-DOWS
Doctrine: Visionary Experience and Apostolic Authentication
Original: παράδεισος
Category: Eschatology
The location of Paul’s vision, associated with the heavenly presence of God. Al-Firdaus names the highest, merit-graded level of Jannah in Islamic tradition, reserved for the most righteous. Must clarify Paul’s ‘paradise’ here refers to God’s heavenly presence entered by grace and union with Christ, not a merit-tiered paradise system, and that this describes a personal visionary experience, not a full eschatology. Central to 12:4; route every occurrence to human theologian review.
Power Made Perfect In Weakness
Approved rendering: Kuasa disempurnakan dalam kelemahan
Transliteration: KOO-ah-sah dee-sem-poor-NAH-kahn DAH-lahm keh-leh-MAH-hahn
Doctrine: Power in Weakness
Original: ἡ δύναμις ἐν ἀσθενείᾳ τελεῖται
Category: Eschatology
God’s power is most fully displayed precisely through, not despite, human weakness. Cuts sharply against (1) Malaysian honor-shame cultural expectations that religious leaders display visible strength and vindication, and (2) mainstream Islamic prophetology’s emphasis on the Prophet’s eventual political/military vindication as a sign of divine favor. Central to 12:9-10; route every occurrence to human theologian review.
Judgment Seat Of Christ
Approved rendering: Takhta pengadilan Kristus
Transliteration: TAHKH-tah peng-ah-DEE-lahn KRIS-toos
Doctrine: Judgment Seat of Christ (Eschatological Accountability)
Original: τὸ βῆμα τοῦ Χριστοῦ
Category: Eschatology
The judicial tribunal before which every believer will appear to receive what is due for deeds done in the body — an evaluation of ministry/works, not a determination of salvation status. Must be sharply distinguished from the Islamic Yaumul Hisab (Day of Reckoning) and Mizan (scales of deeds) framework, where final salvation outcome remains undetermined until that Day. Central to 5:10; route every occurrence to human theologian review.
High Risk Terms
Gospel
Approved rendering: Injil
Transliteration: IN-jeel
Doctrine: Gospel
Rejected alternatives: berita baik (generic ‘good news’, without the proclamation weight)
Original: εὐαγγέλιον
Category: Salvation
Inherited from Romans package (exact reuse). Injil is the established Alkitab term, shared with the Qur’anic name for the revelation given to Isa, treated as historically altered (tahrif) in Islamic doctrine. 2 Corinthians extension: in 2:12; 4:3-4; 9:13; 11:4, Injil must be distinguished from ‘a different gospel’ preached by rival teachers (11:4) and from Injil as a merely contested/allegedly-corrupted book.
Grace
Approved rendering: Kasih kurnia
Transliteration: KAH-sih KOOR-nee-ah
Doctrine: Grace
Rejected alternatives: rahmat (mercy, an Arabic-loan term operating within a deeds-and-mercy Islamic judgment framework)
Original: χάρις
Category: Salvation
Inherited from Romans package (exact reuse). 2 Corinthians extension: chapters 8-9 use the identical word for Spirit-enabled generosity in giving (8:1-9; 9:8,14) as well as saving grace (12:9); must not be read as a zakat/sedekah-style meritorious deed but as fruit of grace already received (8:9).
Faith
Approved rendering: Iman
Transliteration: ee-MAHN
Doctrine: Faith
Rejected alternatives: kepercayaan (generic belief/trust)
Original: πίστις
Category: Faith
Inherited from Romans package (exact reuse). 2 Corinthians extension: 1:24; 4:13; 5:7; 13:5 — object of faith (Christ) must remain explicit; 13:5’s ‘examine yourselves, whether you are in the faith’ must not be read as casting doubt on assurance already secured.
Sin
Approved rendering: Dosa
Transliteration: DOH-sah
Doctrine: Universal Human Accountability
Rejected alternatives: kesilapan (mistake/error)
Original: ἁμαρτία
Category: Sin
Inherited from Romans package (exact reuse). 2 Corinthians extension: central to the imputation/non-imputation logic of 5:19,21; also 11:7; 12:21.
Apostle
Approved rendering: Rasul
Transliteration: RAH-sool
Doctrine: Apostleship
Rejected alternatives: utusan (a lower-weight, purely secular ‘envoy/messenger’)
Original: ἀπόστολος
Category: Church
Inherited from Romans package (exact reuse). 2 Corinthians extension: elevated handling required given this letter’s extensive genuine-vs-false-apostleship polemic (1:1; 11:5,13; 12:11-12); every occurrence still requires explicit teaching distinguishing NT apostleship from the Islamic rasul (scripture-bearing prophet-messenger) category.
Holy
Approved rendering: Kudus
Transliteration: KOO-doos
Doctrine: Sanctification
Rejected alternatives: suci (ritually/physically clean)
Original: ἅγιος
Category: Sanctification
Inherited from Romans package (exact reuse). 2 Corinthians extension: 1:1; 7:1.
Saints
Approved rendering: Orang kudus
Transliteration: OH-rahng KOO-doos
Doctrine: Sainthood
Rejected alternatives: wali (Sufi saints venerated at keramat sites in traditional Malay Islam)
Original: ἅγιοι
Category: Church
Inherited from Romans package (exact reuse). 2 Corinthians extension: 1:1; 8:4; 9:1,12; 13:13 — corporate designation, not an ascetic/wali elite.
Sanctification
Approved rendering: Pengudusan
Transliteration: peng-goo-DOO-sahn
Doctrine: Sanctification
Rejected alternatives: penyucian (ritual purification)
Original: ἁγιασμός / ἐπιτελοῦντες ἁγιωσύνην
Category: Sanctification
Inherited from Romans package (exact reuse). 2 Corinthians extension: 7:1’s ‘perfecting holiness’ (menyempurnakan kekudusan) reuses the Kudus/Pengudusan roots exactly.
Law
Approved rendering: Hukum Taurat
Transliteration: HOO-koom tow-RAHT
Doctrine: Fulfillment of Prophecy
Rejected alternatives: Syariah / Hukum Syariat (Islamic religious law, an operative parallel legal system in Malaysia)
Original: νόμος
Category: Covenant
Inherited from Romans package (exact reuse). 2 Corinthians extension: underlies chapter 3’s letter/Spirit and old/new covenant argument (3:6-15). NEVER Syariah.
Glory
Approved rendering: Kemuliaan
Transliteration: keh-moo-lee-AH-ahn
Doctrine: Deity of Christ
Rejected alternatives: nur (divine light, associated with Nur Muhammad devotion in the historic Malay Sufi tradition, e.g. the writings of Hamzah Fansuri)
Original: δόξα
Category: God
Inherited from Romans package (exact reuse). 2 Corinthians extension: 3:7-18; 4:4,6, and doubly important at 11:14’s ‘angel of light’ warning — never nur, especially where the referent is a deceiver.
Power Of God
Approved rendering: Kuasa Allah
Transliteration: KOO-ah-sah ahl-LAHH
Doctrine: Power of God for Salvation
Rejected alternatives: kuasa ghaib (occult/supernatural power, associated with traditional Malay bomoh shamanic practice and animistic belief in semangat, life-force)
Original: δύναμις θεοῦ
Category: God
Inherited from Romans package (exact reuse). 2 Corinthians extension: 4:7; 6:7; 13:4, elevated to Critical significance specifically at 12:9-10 (‘my power is made perfect in weakness’) — see power_made_perfect_in_weakness entry below.
Message Of Reconciliation
Approved rendering: Firman pendamaian
Transliteration: FEER-mahn pen-dah-MAI-ahn
Doctrine: Reconciliation with God
Rejected alternatives: berita pendamaian (acceptable secondary rendering, but firman better preserves the authoritative-proclamation weight shared with Injil)
Original: λόγος τῆς καταλλαγῆς
Category: Salvation
The gospel content entrusted for proclamation, defined specifically as the message of reconciliation. Must be taught as identical in substance to Injil (gospel), not a separate message. Appears in 5:19.
Ambassador
Approved rendering: Duta
Transliteration: DOO-tah
Doctrine: Genuine versus False Apostleship
Rejected alternatives: utusan (generic messenger, too weak — cf. baseline’s rejection of utusan for apostle)
Original: πρεσβεύω
Category: Church
To act as an authoritative, officially delegated representative of Christ. The modern diplomatic sense is a reasonably good structural match, but teaching must stress Paul’s personally invested, authoritative representation of Christ, not a neutral message-carrier role; connects to the Rasul entry’s need to distinguish apostolic authority from Islamic rasul categories. Central to 5:20.
Ministry Of Death And Spirit
Approved rendering: Pelayanan yang membawa maut / Pelayanan Roh
Transliteration: peh-lah-YAH-nahn yahng mem-BAH-wah MOWT
Doctrine: The New Covenant versus the Old
Original: διακονία τοῦ θανάτου / τοῦ πνεύματος
Category: Covenant
The old covenant’s written-code ministry that brings condemnation, contrasted with the new covenant ministry of the life-giving Spirit. Sharpens the letter/Spirit contrast of chapter 3 into two contrasting covenant ministries (Moses’ vs. Paul’s); reuses Pelayanan and Roh Kudus. Central to 3:7-9.
Temple Of God
Approved rendering: Bait Allah
Transliteration: BAH-eet ahl-LAHH
Doctrine: Church as the Temple of God
Original: ναὸς θεοῦ
Category: Church
Believers corporately as the dwelling place of God’s own presence. Risk: (1) ‘Bait Allah’ is the standard Malay/Arabic name for the Kaaba (Baitullah), extremely prominent via Hajj/Umrah discourse — never let the phrase stand bare/unqualified; always bind it grammatically into a predicate clause about believers (e.g. ‘kamu adalah Bait Allah, iaitu tempat kediaman Roh Allah…’). (2) Touches the same tawhid-sensitive transcendence-vs-indwelling territory as Roh Kudus. Must be distinguished from Gereja (the institution/building). Central to 6:16; recommend human theologian review given the Baitullah/Kaaba collision identified in linguistic gap analysis.
Unequally Yoked
Approved rendering: Berkuk sama dengan yang tidak sepadan
Transliteration: ber-KOOK SAH-mah deng-ahn yahng TEE-dahk seh-PAH-dahn
Doctrine: Unequal Partnership and Separation from Compromise
Original: ἑτεροζυγέω
Category: Church
A call to avoid mismatched, compromising partnership between believers and unbelievers. Beyond an agrarian-metaphor comprehension gap, carries real pastoral weight given Malaysian legal and social complexity around interfaith marriage/partnership and restrictions on religious conversion. Central to 6:14; flag for careful, non-inflammatory pastoral framing.
Godly Sorrow
Approved rendering: Dukacita mengikut kehendak Allah
Transliteration: doo-kah-CHEE-tah meng-EE-koot keh-HEHN-dahk ahl-LAHH
Doctrine: Godly Sorrow and Repentance
Original: λύπη κατὰ θεόν / ἡ τοῦ κόσμου λύπη
Category: Sanctification
Grief according to God’s will, which produces repentance leading to salvation, contrasted with worldly grief (dukacita dunia) producing death. Establishes the diagnostic distinction feeding directly into the repentance entry below. Central to 7:10.
Repentance
Approved rendering: Pertobatan
Transliteration: per-toh-BAH-tahn
Doctrine: Godly Sorrow and Repentance
Original: μετάνοια
Category: Sanctification
Spirit-produced turning that flows from and evidences salvation already secured by grace. Islamic tawbah is likewise a major category, but operates within a framework where sincere turning plus renewed deeds may secure Allah’s forgiveness as a meritorious response — echoing baseline’s obedience_of_faith caution. Must be taught as fruit of grace, not a meritorious act earning pardon. Central to 7:9-10.
Transformed
Approved rendering: Diubah menjadi serupa dengan Kristus
Transliteration: dee-OO-bah men-JAH-dee seh-ROO-pah deng-ahn KRIS-toos
Doctrine: The New Covenant versus the Old
Rejected alternatives: menjelma / penjelmaan-root renderings (share the root flagged in the baseline’s Penjelmaan Hindu-Buddhist avatar caution, and also intersect with Malay were-tiger/harimau jadian shape-shifting folklore)
Original: μεταμορφούμεθα
Category: Sanctification
Believers’ progressive, Spirit-wrought moral transformation into Christ’s likeness through beholding his glory. Must avoid the ‘jelma’ root entirely. Teach as gradual moral transformation, never physical shape-shifting or magical transformation. Central to 3:18.
New Covenant
Approved rendering: Perjanjian Baru
Transliteration: per-jahn-jee-AHN BAH-roo
Doctrine: The New Covenant versus the Old
Original: καινὴ διαθήκη
Category: Covenant
The covenant of the Spirit inaugurated in Christ, contrasted with the old, letter-based Mosaic covenant. ‘Perjanjian Baru’ is also the established Alkitab name for the entire New Testament book collection; readers may hear the phrase primarily as a reference to a corpus of books rather than the theological covenant-relationship category. Must disambiguate on first use each lesson. Central to 3:6.
Letter And Spirit
Approved rendering: Tulisan / Roh
Transliteration: too-LEE-sahn / ROHKH
Doctrine: The New Covenant versus the Old
Original: γράμμα / πνεῦμα
Category: Covenant
The old covenant’s written code, which kills apart from the Spirit, contrasted with the Spirit, who gives life. Risk of flattening into a literal-vs-figurative hermeneutics debate rather than Paul’s actual point about the law’s inability to transform the heart apart from the Spirit’s accompanying work. Connects to baseline’s Hukum Taurat entry. Central to 3:6.
Poverty Riches Of Christ
Approved rendering: Kemiskinan-Nya / Kekayaan-Nya
Transliteration: keh-MIS-kin-ahn-nyah / keh-KAH-yah-ahn-nyah
Doctrine: Generosity and Grace in Giving
Original: ἐπτώχευσεν … πλούσιος ὤν
Category: Christology
Christ’s voluntary self-impoverishment for believers’ spiritual enrichment, while remaining fully rich/divine. Ties to baseline’s Penjelmaan (Incarnation, Critical) and Kasih kurnia (Grace, High). Must be taught as voluntary self-giving grace, not as Christ ceasing to be divine. Central to 8:9.
Sincerity
Approved rendering: Ketulusan
Transliteration: keh-too-LOO-sahn
Doctrine: Sincerity and Apostolic Authority
Rejected alternatives: ikhlas (the specific, technical Islamic virtue-term for intention purely for Allah’s sake, foundational to the validity of Islamic worship acts, operating within a merit-and-intention framework)
Original: εἰλικρίνεια / ἁπλότης
Category: Faith
Singleness and purity of motive in ministry, transparent before God. Never ikhlas. Paul’s sincerity here is evidence of an apostleship already grace-grounded, not a condition earning validity. Appears in 1:12; 2:17; 11:3.
Generosity
Approved rendering: Kemurahan hati
Transliteration: keh-moo-RAH-hahn HAH-tee
Doctrine: Generosity and Grace in Giving
Original: ἁπλότης (giving sense)
Category: Faith
Single-minded, open-handed liberality in giving — the same underlying Greek word (haplotēs) as sincerity (1:12) but requiring a distinct, non-interchangeable Malay rendering; do not conflate the two. Appears in 8:2; 9:11,13.
Cheerful Giver
Approved rendering: Penderma yang rela hati
Transliteration: pen-DER-mah yahng REH-lah HAH-tee
Doctrine: Generosity and Grace in Giving
Original: ἱλαρὸν δότην
Category: Faith
One who gives joyfully, not from compulsion or calculated obligation. Strongly resonates with the Islamic zakat/sedekah requirement of pure niyyah (intention) ‘for Allah’s sake alone’ for a charitable act’s religious validity — a genuine positive cultural bridge, but must be taught as Spirit-produced fruit of grace already received, not a condition determining acceptability or reward-value. Central to 9:7.
Examine Yourselves
Approved rendering: Ujilah dirimu
Transliteration: OO-jee-lah DEE-ree-moo
Doctrine: Self-Examination and Assurance of Salvation
Original: ἑαυτοὺς πειράζετε / ἑαυτοὺς δοκιμάζετε
Category: Faith
A call to test whether Christ is truly evidenced in the believer’s life — evidentiary self-examination, not salvation-uncertainty. Risk of being read through an Islamic-adjacent lens of ongoing uncertainty about final standing before God; must be reconciled with the baseline’s Critical assurance_of_salvation doctrine — examines the fruit of a secured faith, not the security itself. Central to 13:5.
Comfort
Approved rendering: Penghiburan
Transliteration: peng-hee-BOO-rahn
Doctrine: Suffering and Comfort in Ministry
Original: παράκλησις
Category: Suffering and Comfort
God’s own consoling, sustaining action toward the suffering, shared onward through the church. Shares its root with everyday ‘hiburan’ (entertainment, e.g. pusat hiburan = entertainment venue); readers may subconsciously associate the word-family with light amusement rather than God’s deep, sober consolation in real affliction. Must be firmly anchored to its 1:3-7 affliction context on first use.
Ecstasy Sound Mind
Approved rendering: Tidak siuman / Siuman
Transliteration: TEE-dahk see-OO-mahn / see-OO-mahn
Doctrine: Sincerity and Apostolic Authority
Original: ἐξίστημι / σωφρονέω
Category: Suffering and Comfort
Rare, God-given ecstatic experience contrasted with Paul’s ordinary, sober-minded ministry for the church’s benefit. Risk of conflation with trance/spirit-possession practice (kerasukan) still present in traditional Malay folk-animist and bomoh ritual contexts; teaching notes must clarify Paul is not describing or endorsing possession-trance phenomena. Central to 5:13.
Guarantee Deposit Of The Spirit
Approved rendering: Jaminan
Transliteration: jah-MEE-nahn
Doctrine: Assurance and Present Reality of Salvation
Rejected alternatives: cagaran (acceptable secondary rendering, financial-collateral flavor)
Original: ἀρραβών
Category: Sanctification
The Spirit given to believers as God’s own down payment guaranteeing the final inheritance. Commercial-financial term in Greek; Malay financial vocabulary is an accurate structural bridge, but must be taught as an irrevocable divine guarantee, not a conditional, revocable financial pledge. Appears in 1:22; 5:5.
Weapons Of Warfare
Approved rendering: Senjata peperangan rohani
Transliteration: sen-JAH-tah peh-peh-RAHNG-ahn roh-HAH-nee
Doctrine: Spiritual Warfare and Apostolic Conflict
Original: ὅπλα τῆς στρατείας
Category: Apostleship
Paul’s divinely powerful, non-fleshly ministry weapons for destroying strongholds of false argument. Risk of conflation with the Islamic concept of jihad (including its contested political-military public connotations in Malaysian discourse); must be anchored firmly as metaphorical, intellectual/spiritual warfare against false arguments, never physical or political conflict. The qualifier ‘rohani’ must never be dropped. Central to 10:4.
Revelations Personal
Approved rendering: Penyataan
Transliteration: pen-yah-TAH-ahn
Doctrine: Genuine versus False Apostleship
Rejected alternatives: wahyu (the specific, technical Islamic term for prophetic revelation delivered through a rasul, and also, by established Alkitab convention, reserved as the title of the Book of Revelation, Kitab Wahyu)
Original: ἀποκαλύψεις
Category: Apostleship
Paul’s personal visionary experiences, distinct from the closed canon of Scripture. Never wahyu — would over-elevate Paul’s private visionary experience to formal canonical/prophetic-revelation status. Appears in 12:1,7.
Medium Risk Terms
Covenant
Approved rendering: Perjanjian
Transliteration: per-jahn-jee-AHN
Doctrine: Davidic Covenant
Rejected alternatives: kontrak (bare commercial contract)
Original: διαθήκη
Category: Covenant
Inherited from Romans package (exact reuse). 2 Corinthians extension: underlies the new_covenant entry (3:6,14) and must retain its relational-promise sense, not a bare kontrak.
Church
Approved rendering: Gereja
Transliteration: geh-REH-jah
Doctrine: Church as God’s People
Rejected alternatives: jemaah (a term also used broadly for a mosque congregation or generic religious assembly)
Original: ἐκκλησία
Category: Church
Inherited from Romans package (exact reuse). 2 Corinthians extension: 1:1; 8:1,18-19,23-24; 11:8,28; 12:13; must be kept distinct from Bait Allah (temple of God, 6:16), a different image for the same community.
Peace
Approved rendering: Damai sejahtera
Transliteration: DAH-mai seh-jah-TEH-rah
Doctrine: Peace with God
Rejected alternatives: ketenangan (inner calm)
Inherited from Romans package (exact reuse). 2 Corinthians extension: must be kept distinct from the new Pendamaian (reconciliation) entry below — Damai sejahtera is the resulting relational state; Pendamaian is God’s achieving act (5:18-21).
Trespass
Approved rendering: Pelanggaran
Transliteration: peh-lahng-GAH-rahn
Doctrine: Reconciliation with God
Original: παράπτωμα
Category: Sin
NEW TERM (2 Corinthians). A near-synonym of Dosa (sin) emphasizing a specific falling/stumbling act. Distinguish from the broader category Dosa if taught alongside it; low risk of confusion. Central to 5:19’s non-imputation statement.
Super Apostles
Approved rendering: Rasul-rasul yang paling hebat
Transliteration: RAH-sool RAH-sool yahng PAH-ling HEH-baht
Doctrine: Genuine versus False Apostleship
Original: ὑπερλίαν ἀπόστολοι
Category: Church
Paul’s sarcastic label for rival teachers claiming superior apostolic status. The ironic/sarcastic tone must be preserved in translation and teaching notes, not read as a sincere honorific. Appears in 11:5; 12:11.
Ministry
Approved rendering: Pelayanan
Transliteration: peh-lah-YAH-nahn
Doctrine: Reconciliation with God
Original: διακονία
Category: Church
Service or stewardship entrusted by God, especially the ministry of proclaiming reconciliation. Standard church-service term; should be distinguished from a formal diaconal office where that sense is intended elsewhere in the NT. Appears in 3:7-9; 4:1; 5:18.
Belial
Approved rendering: Belial
Transliteration: BEH-lee-ahr
Doctrine: Unequal Partnership and Separation from Compromise
Rejected alternatives: Iblis (imports specific Qur’anic demonological narrative details attached to that name)
Original: Βελίαρ
Category: Church
A name for Satan used to sharpen the contrast between Christ and opposing forces. Retain the transliterated ‘Belial’ (or gloss as kuasa jahat) rather than substituting the standard Islamic name Iblis, paralleling the Yesus/Isa naming-distinctness principle. Appears in 6:15.
Holy Kiss
Approved rendering: Ciuman kudus
Transliteration: chee-OO-mahn KOO-doos
Doctrine: Holy Kiss and Church Greeting Practice
Original: φίλημα ἅγιον
Category: Church
A customary physical greeting expressing genuine familial affection among believers. Cultural-adaptation, not doctrinal, risk: Malaysian norms around cross-gender physical touch (including khalwat-related sensitivities) call for a culturally equivalent greeting recommendation (e.g. a warm handshake or ‘salam mesra’) in application notes, while the literal text is retained with an explanatory footnote. Appears in 13:12.
Workers Together
Approved rendering: Bekerjasama dengan Allah
Transliteration: beh-ker-jah-SAH-mah deng-ahn ahl-LAHH
Doctrine: Working Together with God in Ministry
Original: συνεργοῦντες
Category: Church
Partnership with God in gospel ministry, not co-achievement of salvation itself. Risk of being misread as implying human effort contributes to securing salvation; clarify this concerns ministry partnership and receiving grace fruitfully, not co-achieving justification. Appears in 6:1.
Inner Outer Man
Approved rendering: Manusia batiniah / Manusia lahiriah
Transliteration: mah-NOO-shah bah-tee-nee-AH / mah-NOO-shah lah-hee-ree-AH
Doctrine: Sanctification
Original: ὁ ἔσω ἄνθρωπος / ὁ ἔξω ἄνθρωπος
Category: Sanctification
The decaying outward, physical person contrasted with the inward person renewed daily by the Spirit. ‘Batiniah’ resonates with the Malay Sufi ilmu batin (esoteric inner-knowledge) tradition — a helpful bridge, but requires care not to invite a Sufi esoteric-mystical reading distinct from Paul’s Spirit-wrought renewal. Appears in 4:16.
Love Agape
Approved rendering: Kasih
Transliteration: KAH-sih
Doctrine: Reconciliation with God
Original: ἀγάπη
Category: Faith
Christ’s self-giving, sacrificial love, the motivating center of apostolic ministry. Generic Malay affection word (romantic/familial love included) must be unpacked to carry the specifically sacrificial, self-giving sense intended, so it is not flattened to sentiment. Central to 5:14; also 13:11,14 (Trinitarian benediction).
Equality
Approved rendering: Kesaksamaan
Transliteration: keh-sahk-sah-MAH-ahn
Doctrine: Generosity and Grace in Giving
Original: ἰσότης
Category: Faith
Fair, equitable sharing among churches, not reversal of wealth/poverty. Straightforward economic-equity concept; low collision risk. Appears in 8:13-14.
Sufficiency
Approved rendering: Kecukupan
Transliteration: keh-choo-KOO-pahn
Doctrine: Generosity and Grace in Giving
Original: αὐτάρκεια
Category: Faith
God’s provision as the ground of contentment and generosity. Positive resonance with the Sufi/Islamic virtue of qana’ah (contentment); low collision risk, a genuine bridge point. Central to 9:8.
Boasting
Approved rendering: Bermegah
Transliteration: ber-meh-GAH
Doctrine: Sincerity and Apostolic Authority
Original: καύχησις / καυχάομαι
Category: Faith
Confident, sometimes ironic, glorying — Paul’s defensive testimony against boastful rivals. Malaysian honor-shame register makes ‘boasting’ sound distasteful by default; clarify Paul’s boasting is defensive/ironic, not self-glorification. Appears in 1:12; 5:12; chapters 10-12.
Fear Of The Lord
Approved rendering: Takut akan Tuhan
Transliteration: tah-KOOT ah-kahn TOO-hahn
Doctrine: Suffering and Comfort in Ministry
Original: φόβος τοῦ κυρίου
Category: Faith
Reverential accountability before Christ’s coming evaluation of ministry, motivating apostolic integrity. Potential positive bridge to Islamic takwa (God-consciousness), but must be tied to grace and the bema’s reward-evaluation for the already-saved, not an uncertain works-ledger standing before Allah. Central to 5:11.
Affliction
Approved rendering: Kesengsaraan
Transliteration: keh-seng-sah-RAH-ahn
Doctrine: Suffering and Comfort in Ministry
Original: θλῖψις
Category: Suffering and Comfort
Severe pressure, distress, or suffering, especially Paul’s own in ministry. No direct religious-collision risk, but pairs with Kuasa Allah since God’s power is disclosed precisely through, not by removing, affliction — cutting against honor-shame expectations of visible triumph. Appears in 1:4,8; 4:17; 6:4; 8:2.
Treasure In Jars Of Clay
Approved rendering: Harta di dalam bekas tanah liat
Transliteration: HAR-tah dee DAH-lahm BEH-kahs TAH-nah LEE-aht
Doctrine: Power in Weakness
Original: θησαυρὸς ἐν ὀστρακίνοις σκεύεσιν
Category: Suffering and Comfort
The gospel’s surpassing power displayed through frail, unimpressive human ministers. Straightforward metaphor; reinforces the chapter 12 power-in-weakness doctrine. Central to 4:7.
Fragrance Aroma
Approved rendering: Bau harum
Transliteration: BAH-oo HAH-room
Doctrine: Suffering and Comfort in Ministry
Original: ὀσμή
Category: Suffering and Comfort
The aroma of Christ, life-giving to some and death-signaling to others, describing gospel proclamation. Fragrance/incense (kemenyan) carries ritual-spiritual associations in traditional Malay folk-religious and bomoh practice; anchor the metaphor to Paul’s OT sacrificial-aroma background rather than leave it open to folk-ritual reading. Appears in 2:14-16.
Triumphal Procession
Approved rendering: Perarakan kemenangan
Transliteration: peh-rah-RAH-kahn keh-meh-NAHNG-ahn
Doctrine: Suffering and Comfort in Ministry
Original: θριαμβεύοντι
Category: Suffering and Comfort
God as the victorious general publicly displaying Christ’s servants in a Roman military triumph. The Greco-Roman triumph ritual has no cultural equivalent in the Malay Archipelago; requires an explanatory note — a comprehension gap, not a syncretism risk. Appears in 2:14.
Sufficient
Approved rendering: Layak
Transliteration: LAH-yahk
Doctrine: Suffering and Comfort in Ministry
Original: ἱκανός
Category: Suffering and Comfort
Adequate or competent for the weight of gospel ministry, ultimately answered by God’s provision. The rhetorical question of 2:16 is answered by ‘our sufficiency is from God’ in 3:5.
Flesh Worldly Evaluation
Approved rendering: Menurut daging
Transliteration: meh-NOO-root DAH-ging
Doctrine: Christian Identity in Union with Christ
Original: κατὰ σάρκα
Category: Suffering and Comfort
Evaluating people, even Christ, by merely external, worldly standards rather than in the Spirit. Context-sensitive: the ‘worldly point of view’ sense (5:16) differs from the behavioral ‘walking according to the flesh’ sense (10:2-3); requires contextual glossing per occurrence.
Seal
Approved rendering: Meterai
Transliteration: meh-TEH-rai
Doctrine: Assurance and Present Reality of Salvation
Original: σφραγισάμενος
Category: Sanctification
God’s sealing mark of ownership placed on believers. Straightforward; low risk. Appears in 1:22.
Strongholds
Approved rendering: Kubu pertahanan
Transliteration: KOO-boo per-tah-HAH-nahn
Doctrine: Spiritual Warfare and Apostolic Conflict
Original: ὀχυρώματα
Category: Apostleship
Rebellious arguments and pretensions raised against the knowledge of God, destroyed through Christ’s power. Pairs with the weapons-of-warfare entry. Central to 10:4.
Thorn In The Flesh
Approved rendering: Duri dalam daging
Transliteration: DOO-ree DAH-lahm DAH-ging
Doctrine: Power in Weakness
Original: σκόλοψ τῇ σαρκί
Category: Eschatology
A persistent, unremoved affliction given to keep Paul humble. Workable idiom-calque; low doctrinal risk, but reinforces the weakness/power paradox. Central to 12:7.
Messenger Of Satan
Approved rendering: Utusan Iblis
Transliteration: OO-too-sahn EEB-lees
Doctrine: Power in Weakness
Original: ἄγγελος Σατανᾶ
Category: Eschatology
The agent of Paul’s thorn, permitted by God for a sanctifying purpose. Satan/Iblis is a broadly shared adversarial figure across Malay religious traditions, generally low-friction, but ensure the specific purpose (humbling, not random torment) is taught. Central to 12:7.
Low Risk Terms
Fellowship
Approved rendering: Persekutuan
Transliteration: per-seh-koo-TOO-ahn
Doctrine: Christian Fellowship
Rejected alternatives: persaudaraan (brotherhood, generic/ethnic)
Original: κοινωνία
Category: Church
Inherited from Romans package (exact reuse). 2 Corinthians extension: ordinary Low-risk sense at 6:14, but risk is elevated to Critical specifically in the 13:14 Trinitarian benediction context — see trinitarian_benediction entry below.
Thanksgiving
Approved rendering: Kesyukuran
Transliteration: keh-shoo-KOO-rahn
Doctrine: Thanksgiving
Original: εὐχαριστία
Category: Faith
Inherited from Romans package (exact reuse). 2 Corinthians extension: 1:11; 2:14; 4:15; 9:11-12 — genuine resonance point, low doctrinal risk.
Exhort
Approved rendering: Menasihati
Transliteration: meh-NAH-see-HAH-tee
Doctrine: Mutual Edification
Original: παρακαλέω
Category: Faith
Inherited from Romans package (exact reuse). 2 Corinthians extension: context-sensitive per baseline note — use Merayu (pleading/entreat) for 2:7-8 and 5:20’s appeal; use Menasihati (building up) for 1:4; 7:6-7,13; 13:11. Very frequent in this letter.
Referenced passages