Semantic Analysis

07 Semantic Analysis — Acts (Full Book) | English → Malayalam

Purpose and Method

This document analyzes every chapter of Acts in the original Koine Greek, first to last, for load-bearing theological vocabulary relevant to Malayalam translation. The core passage, Acts 2:1–41 (Pentecost and Peter’s sermon), receives verse-by-verse treatment. Every other chapter receives chapter-level treatment of its load-bearing terms. Chapters that introduce no new theological vocabulary state this explicitly and cite which earlier chapter’s terms are reused.

Governing rule: any term already recorded in the baseline Romans translation_memory.json MUST be reused with its exact recorded Malayalam rendering. This document does not re-derive those terms; it cites them by their established rendering and flags only Acts-specific contextual nuances. New terms proposed here are candidates for addition to the translation memory in Phase 1 Step 8 syntheses.

Field key for each term: Original word (Greek) → Transliteration → Literal meaning → Semantic range → English variants (major EN translations) → Contextual theological meaning in Acts → Destination-language rendering risk (Malayalam term + risk tier + rationale).

PART A — Core Passage: Acts 2:1–41, Verse by Verse

Acts 2:1

πεντηκοστή (pentēkostē) — “fiftieth [day]”

Semantic range: the Jewish harvest festival Shavuot, fifty days after Passover; by metonymy, the day itself.
English variants: “Pentecost” (all major versions retain the transliteration).
Theological meaning: The feast on which the Spirit is poured out, fulfilling Christ’s promise (1:5) and inaugurating the church’s mission.
Malayalam rendering: പെന്തക്കോസ്ത് (penthakkosthu). Risk: Low. Established transliterated loanword across all Malayalam Christian traditions; no competing indigenous concept.

συμπληρόω (symplēroō) — “to be fully completed”

“when the day … had fully come” — emphasizes divine timing.
Malayalam: പൂർത്തിയായപ്പോൾ (poorthiyayappol, “when it was completed”). Risk: Low.

Acts 2:2

ἦχος (ēchos) — “sound, noise” and πνοή (pnoē) — “breath, blowing” (cognate with πνεῦμα)

Semantic range: πνοή here is a natural-world “rushing wind,” not yet the Spirit-word πνεῦμα, but the wordplay (breath/wind/spirit) is intentional.
English variants: “sound… like a mighty rushing wind” (ESV); “noise like a violent wind” (NIV).
Theological meaning: An audible, physical sign accompanying the Spirit’s arrival, echoing OT theophany imagery (wind, fire).
Malayalam: ശബ്ദം (shabdam, sound) + കാറ്റ് (kattu, wind). Risk: Low. Straightforward; no competing religious association with generic “wind.”

Acts 2:3

γλῶσσαι ὡσεὶ πυρός (glōssai hōsei pyros) — “tongues as of fire”; διαμερίζω (diamerizō) — “to distribute, divide”

Semantic range: γλῶσσα (tongue) here is a visible flame-shape, distinct from its later sense in v.4 (language).
Theological meaning: Fire signifies divine presence and purifying, empowering power (cf. Sinai, the burning bush).
Malayalam: അഗ്നിജ്വാലകൾ പോലെയുള്ള നാവുകൾ (agnijwalakal pole ulla naavukal, “tongues like flames of fire”). Risk: Low, but a translator note should clarify these are visible flame-shapes, not the gift of tongues itself (avoid conflating v.3’s sign with v.4’s speech-gift).

Acts 2:4

πλησθέντες πνεύματος ἁγίου (plēsthentes pneumatos hagiou) — “having been filled with the Holy Spirit”; ἑτέραις γλώσσαις (heterais glōssais) — “other tongues”; ἀποφθέγγομαι (apophthengomai) — “to declare, utter forth (with authority/solemnity)”

Semantic range: “filled” (πίμπλημι) denotes total, Spirit-controlled empowerment, distinct from Greco-Roman ecstatic possession vocabulary.
English variants: “filled with the Holy Spirit… began to speak in other tongues” (all major versions).
Theological meaning: Establishes the doctrine of The Holy Spirit and Pentecost — the Spirit personally, sovereignly indwells and enables witness; the “other tongues” are real human languages (confirmed by vv.6, 8, 11), not unintelligible ecstatic speech.
Malayalam rendering: പരിശുദ്ധാത്മാവിനാൽ നിറഞ്ഞ് (parishudhathmavinaal niranju, reusing baseline പരിശുദ്ധാത്മാവ്) + അന്യഭാഷകളിൽ (anya bhashakalil, “in other/foreign languages”). Risk: High. Kerala’s living folk-religious landscape includes ritual spirit-possession traditions (e.g., theyyam, mudiyettu, veshamkettu performers “entered” by a deity). “Filled with the Spirit” must never be allowed to read as ആവേശം (avesham, ecstatic possession/trance), which would recast Pentecost as a folk-possession event rather than the personal indwelling of God the Spirit producing intelligible, Christ-exalting speech (v.11, “the mighty works of God”). Translator notes required at every occurrence of “filled with the Spirit” (also 4:8, 4:31, 9:17, 13:9, 13:52).

Acts 2:5

Ἰουδαῖοι εὐλαβεῖς (Ioudaioi eulabeis) — “devout Jews”

εὐλαβής: reverent, God-fearing, careful in religious observance.
Malayalam: ഭക്തിയുള്ള യെഹൂദന്മാർ (bhakthiyulla yehoodanmar). Note: ഭക്തി here describes devout Jewish piety (a legitimate description of reverence toward the true God), distinct from the baseline’s caution against ഭക്തി as a rendering of “faith” (trust in Christ). Risk: Low, used descriptively not as a doctrinal-term substitution.

Acts 2:6–8

συγχέω (sygcheō) — “to confuse, throw into disorder”; διάλεκτος (dialektos) — “language, dialect (one’s own tongue)”

Confirms the miracle is intelligible human languages, not glossolalic gibberish — an important interpretive anchor for Malayalam readers from Pentecostal/charismatic traditions where “speaking in tongues” carries a specific contemporary devotional meaning.
Malayalam: സ്വന്തഭാഷയിൽ (svantha bhashayil, “in [their] own language”). Risk: Medium. Denominational sensitivity: Pentecostal/Charismatic Malayalam readers may assume this describes ecstatic prayer-tongues as practiced today; Orthodox/Catholic/Mainline readers may not. Translator note should state Acts 2 describes real, known human languages, while leaving 1 Corinthians’ distinct usage for its own curriculum.

Acts 2:9–11

List of nations (Parthians, Medes, Elamites…) and προσήλυτοι (prosēlytoi) — “proselytes” (Gentile converts to Judaism).

Malayalam: nation names retained in established transliterated forms; മതപരിവർത്തിതർ (mathaparivarthithar, “religious converts”) or transliterated പ്രോസെലിറ്റുകൾ. Risk: Low. Establishes the global reach of the audience — foundational for the Great Commission doctrine.

Acts 2:12–13

διαπορέω (diaporeō) — “to be thoroughly perplexed”; γλεῦκος (gleukos) — “sweet new wine”; mocking accusation of drunkenness.

Malayalam: വിഭ്രമിച്ചു (vibhramichu, perplexed); പുതുവീഞ്ഞ് (puthuveenju, new wine). Risk: Low.

Acts 2:14–15

Peter’s address; μεθύω (methyō) — “to be drunk.” Rhetorical rebuttal. Risk: Low.

Acts 2:16–21 — Joel Quotation (Fulfillment of Prophecy; The Holy Spirit and Pentecost)

ἐν ταῖς ἐσχάταις ἡμέραις (en tais eschatais hēmerais) — “in the last days.” Semantic range: the whole inaugurated new-covenant era, not merely an imminent end-time countdown. Malayalam: അന്ത്യനാളുകളിൽ (anthyanaalukalil). Risk: Medium — must convey the “already begun, not yet consummated” era Paul later assumes in Romans, not popular Malayalam apocalyptic-only usage (e.g. associations with astrology-driven doomsday talk).
ἐκχεῶ (ekcheō) — “I will pour out.” Malayalam: പകരും / ചൊരിയും (pakarum/choriyum). Risk: Medium — must retain personal divine agency (God pouring out himself, via the Spirit), not an impersonal outpouring of generic spiritual energy (cf. baseline’s caution on ശക്തി as impersonal force).
πᾶσαν σάρκα (pasan sarka) — “all flesh.” Malayalam: സകലജഡത്തിന്മേലും (sakala jadathinmelum). Risk: High — this universal, class-and-status-erasing outpouring (sons/daughters, young/old, “servants” male and female, v.18) is the Acts-2 anchor for the doctrine Universal Human Accountability / Universal Scope of the Gospel already flagged as High in the baseline Romans registry regarding Kerala’s own caste-heritage stratification (Syrian Christian vs. Dalit-convert communities); the Spirit’s outpouring across every social rank must not be softened.
προφητεύσουσιν (prophēteusousin) — “they will prophesy.” Reuse baseline പ്രവചനം/പ്രവചിക്കുക. Risk: Low.
ὁράσεις (horaseis) — “visions”; ἐνύπνια (enypnia) — “dreams.” Malayalam: ദർശനങ്ങൾ (darshanangal); സ്വപ്നങ്ങൾ (swapnangal). Risk: High for ദർശനം — this is the standard, established Malayalam Bible word for a God-given revelatory vision, but ദർശനം is also the central technical term for Hindu temple darshan (seeing and being seen by a deity’s image, the devotional heart of temple worship in Kerala). Translator notes should clarify a biblical “vision” is an unbidden divine revelatory disclosure to a person (often in dream-state or trance of address), not a devotee’s ritual approach to view a deity’s form.
τέρατα (terata) — “wonders”; σημεῖα (sēmeia) — “signs.” Malayalam: അത്ഭുതങ്ങൾ (athbhuthangal), അടയാളങ്ങൾ (adayalangal). Risk: Medium — അത്ഭുതം is also the generic word for any marvel, including stories of Hindu ascetics/gurus and folk-deity miracle legends prevalent in Malayalam devotional literature and cinema; must anchor these wonders to God’s specific redemptive-historical action, not generic supernatural spectacle.
ἡμέρα Κυρίου (hēmera Kyriou) — “the day of the Lord.” Reuse baseline കര്‍ത്താവ്. Risk: Low (established eschatological phrase).
v.21 — ἐπικαλέσηται τὸ ὄνομα Κυρίου σωθήσεται — “whoever calls upon the name of the Lord shall be saved.” KEY VERSE. Malayalam: കര്‍ത്താവിന്‍റെ നാമം വിളിച്ചപേക്ഷിക്കുന്ന ഏവനും രക്ഷിക്കപ്പെടും (reusing baseline കര്‍ത്താവ് and രക്ഷ exactly). Risk: Critical — this is Acts’ first articulation of the doctrine also anchored at Romans 10:9-13 in the baseline; the “obedience of faith / salvation confession” consistency rule from the Romans package applies directly here and must be rendered identically in register.

Acts 2:22

δυνάμεσι καὶ τέρασι καὶ σημείοις (dynamesi kai terasi kai sēmeiois) — “by mighty works and wonders and signs”; ἀποδεδειγμένον (apodedeigmenon) — “attested, demonstrated, proven.”

Theological meaning: establishes the doctrine Apostolic Authority and Miracles at its Christological root — Jesus himself, not merely the apostles later, is attested by God through these signs.
Malayalam: ശക്തിപ്രവൃത്തികളാലും അത്ഭുതങ്ങളാലും അടയാളങ്ങളാലും തെളിയിക്കപ്പെട്ടവൻ. Risk: Medium.

Acts 2:23

τῇ ὡρισμένῃ βουλῇ καὶ προγνώσει τοῦ θεοῦ (tē hōrismenē boulē kai prognōsei tou theou) — “by the determined plan and foreknowledge of God”; verb ἀνείλατε (aneilate) — “you put to death,” with προσπήξαντες (prospēxantes), “having nailed/fastened.”

Theological meaning: God’s sovereign plan (providence/election family) encompasses even the crucifixion without removing human moral responsibility (“you… killed”).
Malayalam: ദൈവത്തിന്‍റെ നിശ്ചയമായ പദ്ധതിയും മുന്നറിവും (reusing baseline ദൈവത്തിന്‍റെ പരിപാലനം/തിരഞ്ഞെടുപ്പ് word-family for “plan/foreknowledge”). Risk: High — must not soften into fatalism (baseline’s warning against വിധി, “fate,” applies directly); God’s determined plan operated through, not despite, genuine human culpability.

Acts 2:24

ἀνέστησεν (anestēsen) — “raised up”; λύσας τὰς ὠδῖνας τοῦ θανάτου (lysas tas ōdinas tou thanatou) — “having loosed the pains/pangs of death.”

Reuse baseline ഉയിര്‍ത്തെഴുന്നേല്‍പ്പ് exactly. Risk: Critical — same forbidden-substitution rule as Romans applies without exception: NEVER പുനര്‍ജന്മം (reincarnation).

Acts 2:25–28

Psalm 16 quotation; πρόσωπον (prosōpon) — “presence/face.” Malayalam: reuse established Psalm-citation vocabulary; സാന്നിധ്യം (saannidhyam, presence). Risk: Low.

Acts 2:29

πατριάρχης (patriarchēs) — “patriarch”; μνῆμα (mnēma) — “tomb.”

Malayalam: ഗോത്രപിതാവ് (gothrapithavu, patriarch); ശവക്കല്ലറ (shavakkallara, tomb). Risk: Low. Anchors David’s historical, bodily death — the necessary contrast that makes Christ’s bodily resurrection distinctive (v.31).

Acts 2:30–31

ὅρκος (horkos) — “oath”; προϊδών (proidōn) — “having foreseen”; ἀνάστασις τοῦ Χριστοῦ (anastasis tou Christou) — “the resurrection of the Christ”; ᾅδης (Hadēs) — “Hades,” the realm of the dead.

Reuse baseline ഉയിര്‍ത്തെഴുന്നേല്‍പ്പ് + ക്രിസ്തു. Risk: Critical for both. ᾅδης: Malayalam പാതാളം (pathalam) or മൃതരുടെ ലോകം (the realm of the dead) — risk Medium, since പാതാളം also carries an underworld connotation from Hindu cosmology (Patala as one of the fourteen lokas); a brief note clarifying this denotes the state/place of the dead generally, not a mythological underworld realm, is advisable.

Acts 2:32

μάρτυρες (martyres) — “witnesses.” New term for the glossary (see Part B/Glossary); foundational for the doctrine Persecution and Bold Witness. Malayalam: സാക്ഷികൾ (sakshikal). Risk: Medium — an eyewitness-testimony term, later developing (post-Acts) toward the “martyr” (one who dies for testimony) sense; at this point in Acts it must be kept in its primary eyewitness-testimony sense.

Acts 2:33

ὑψωθεὶς (hypsōtheis) — “having been exalted”; τῇ δεξιᾷ τοῦ θεοῦ (tē dexia tou theou) — “at/by the right hand of God”; ἐξέχεεν (execheen) — “he poured out.”

Theological meaning: the exalted, reigning Christ is the active agent pouring out the Spirit — a Lordship-of-Christ and Deity-of-Christ claim (reuse baseline കര്‍ത്താവ്, ദൈവപുത്രന്‍ doctrine family).
Malayalam: ഉയർത്തപ്പെട്ട്… ദൈവത്തിന്‍റെ വലങ്കൈയിൽ. Risk: High (Christological exaltation claim; theologian review warranted per baseline escalation rules for any Deity/Lordship-of-Christ segment).

Acts 2:34–35

Psalm 110 quotation; ὑποπόδιον (hypopodion) — “footstool.” Malayalam: പാദപീഠം (paadapeetham). Risk: Low.

Acts 2:36 — KEY VERSE

Κύριον καὶ Χριστόν (Kyrion kai Christon) — “Lord and Christ.” γνωσκέτω πᾶς οἶκος Ἰσραήλ (ginōsketō pas oikos Israēl) — “let all the house of Israel know for certain.”

Malayalam: ദൈവം അവനെ കര്‍ത്താവും ക്രിസ്തുവും ആക്കിയിരിക്കുന്നു എന്ന് യിസ്രായേൽ ഗൃഹം മുഴുവനും അറിഞ്ഞുകൊള്ളട്ടെ (reusing baseline കര്‍ത്താവ്, ക്രിസ്തു, യിസ്രായേല്‍ exactly). Risk: Critical. Cross-document consistency rule from the baseline applies: this verse functions in Acts the way Romans 10:9 functions in Romans, and must be rendered with the same doctrinal precision — no qualification of Christ’s supreme Lordship.

Acts 2:37

κατενύγησαν τὴν καρδίαν (katenygēsan tēn kardian) — “they were pierced/stabbed to the heart” (idiom for deep conviction); τί ποιήσωμεν (ti poiēsōmen) — “what shall we do?”

Malayalam idiom handling: do not render literally as “pierced”; use the natural Malayalam equivalent ഹൃദയത്തിൽ കുത്തുകൊണ്ടു (hridayathil kuthukondu) — already a naturalized biblical idiom in Malayalam, or മനസ്സലിഞ്ഞു (manassalinju, “the heart melted/was moved”). Risk: Low, provided the idiom-handling rule (meaning over literalism) is followed.

Acts 2:38 — KEY MULTI-TERM VERSE (anchors Repentance and Baptism doctrine)

μετανοήσατε (metanoēsate) — “repent!”; βαπτισθήτω (baptisthētō) — “let him be baptized”; εἰς ἄφεσιν τῶν ἁμαρτιῶν ὑμῶν (eis aphesin tōn hamartiōn hymōn) — “for/unto the forgiveness of your sins”; λήμψεσθε τὴν δωρεὰν τοῦ ἁγίου Πνεύματος (lēmpsesthe tēn dōrean tou hagiou Pneumatos) — “you will receive the gift of the Holy Spirit.”

μετάνοια/μετανοέω: literally “change of mind,” but biblically a whole-person turning from sin toward God, not mere regret. Malayalam: മാനസാന്തരപ്പെടുവിൻ (manasantharappeduvin), from established term മാനസാന്തരം (manasantharam). Risk: High — Malayalam has a second, non-identical word, പശ്ചാത്താപം (pashchathapam, remorse/contrition), which is closer to emotional sorrow alone; translators must consistently use മാനസാന്തരം for the doctrinal turning-and-transformation sense throughout Acts, reserving പശ്ചാത്താപം (if used at all) for emotional contrition language, to avoid readers hearing repentance as mere regret without transformed direction.
βαπτίζω/βάπτισμα: Malayalam established term സ്നാനം (snanam) / സ്നാനപ്പെടുക (snanappeduka). Risk: High — Kerala’s religious landscape includes prominent ritual-bathing practices (temple tank/pond bathing, holy-river bathing traditions, and Hindu purification bathing more broadly); translators must ensure സ്നാനം is understood as a one-time act of public identification with Christ’s death and resurrection and entry into the covenant community, not a repeatable ritual purification bath. Denominational note: differing traditions’ modes and timing of baptism (infant vs. believer’s baptism) are an internal Malayalam-church distinctive, not a doctrinal error to correct in translation.
ἄφεσις ἁμαρτιῶν — “forgiveness of sins”: NOT currently in the baseline translation memory; new term required. Malayalam: പാപമോചനം (papamochanam, “release from sin”). Risk: High — this is the pipeline’s clearest Malayalam-specific phonetic/etymological hazard: മോചനം (mochanam, “release/liberation”) shares its Sanskrit root with the explicitly FORBIDDEN salvation-term മോക്ഷം (moksha, liberation from the cycle of rebirth). പാപമോചനം itself is the correct, established, and doctrinally sound Malayalam Christian term (forgiveness specifically of sin, a moral-relational category, not liberation from samsara), but the root-proximity to a forbidden term makes this an elevated AI-drift risk: a generically trained system could plausibly generalize from “moksham is forbidden” to over-correcting away from the legitimate and necessary മോചനം root, or conversely could drift toward pairing മോചനം with reincarnation-adjacent language in surrounding sentences. Requires explicit translator note at every occurrence.
δωρεὰ τοῦ ἁγίου Πνεύματος — “the gift of the Holy Spirit”: new term. Malayalam: പരിശുദ്ധാത്മാവിന്‍റെ ദാനം (parishudhathmavinte danam), building on established പരിശുദ്ധാത്മാവ്. Risk: Medium — parallels the baseline’s ആത്മീയവരങ്ങള്‍ caution (a bare “boon” reading); ദാനം (gift/donation) is preferred here over bare വരം to avoid the deity-grants-a-boon folklore framing, while still needing a clarifying phrase that the “gift” IS the personal Spirit himself, not merely a benefit the Spirit distributes.

Acts 2:39

ἐπαγγελία (epangelia) — “promise”; μακράν (makran) — “far off”; ὅσους ἂν προσκαλέσηται (hosous an proskalesētai) — “as many as the Lord… calls.”

Reuse baseline ഉടമ്പടി-adjacent promise vocabulary and വിളിക്കപ്പെട്ട/വിളി (called/calling). Malayalam: വാഗ്ദത്തം (vagdattham, promise). Risk: Medium — this verse extends the covenant promise to Gentiles (“all who are far off”), directly launching the doctrine The Gospel to Jews and Gentiles; must retain full inclusivity.

Acts 2:40

διεμαρτύρετο (diemartyreto) — “he solemnly testified”; παρεκάλει (parekalei) — reuse baseline exhort (പ്രോത്സാഹിപ്പിക്കുക/അപേക്ഷിക്കുക family); σκολιᾶς γενεᾶς (skolias geneas) — “crooked generation.”

Malayalam: വളഞ്ഞ ഈ തലമുറ (valanja ee thalamura). Risk: Low.

Acts 2:41

ἀποδεξάμενοι (apodexamenoi) — “having received/welcomed”; προσετέθησαν (prosetethēsan) — “were added”; ψυχαί (psychai) — “souls.”

Malayalam: വാക്ക് സ്വീകരിച്ചവർ സ്നാനം ഏറ്റു, ആ ദിവസം ഏകദേശം മൂവായിരം പേർ കൂട്ടിച്ചേർക്കപ്പെട്ടു (reusing സ്നാനം). Risk: Low, but doctrinally marks the church’s numerical/organic growth — the narrative hinge into the community-life summary of 2:42–47 (treated in Part B, Chapter 2 continuation).

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

Chapter 1

ἀνελήμφθη / ἀνάληψις (anelēmphthē / analēpsis) — “was taken up / ascension.” Malayalam: സ്വർഗ്ഗാരോഹണം (swargarohanam). Risk: High. Hindu cosmology contains numerous mythological “ascents to svarga” (heaven) by sages and semi-divine figures; translator notes must clarify this is Christ’s unique, historical, bodily ascension to the Father’s throne of universal authority, not one ascent-narrative among many comparable religious ascension myths.
δύναμις (dynamis) — “power” (1:8, “you will receive power”). Reuse baseline ദൈവത്തിന്‍റെ ശക്തി word-family. Risk: Medium (per baseline, comparatively low-risk in Malayalam’s general register).
μάρτυρες (martyres) — “witnesses” (1:8). See glossary entry. Risk: Medium.
ἕως ἐσχάτου τῆς γῆς (heōs eschatou tēs gēs) — “to the end/uttermost part of the earth.” Malayalam: ഭൂമിയുടെ അറ്റത്തോളം. Risk: Low. Anchors the doctrine The Great Commission Fulfilled, realized narratively by Acts 28.
κλῆρος (klēros) — “lot” (casting lots for Judas’s replacement, 1:26). Malayalam: ചീട്ടിടൽ (cheettidal). Risk: Medium — must be distinguished from Malayalam popular fatalism idioms (cf. baseline’s warning re: തലയെഴുത്ത് under “election”); this is a specific, prayerful, Spirit-guided discernment practice, not fate-divination.
Kingdom of God (reuse ദൈവരാജ്യം), baptism with the Holy Spirit (reuse സ്നാനം + പരിശുദ്ധാത്മാവ്, distinct sense from water baptism), apostleship (reuse അപ്പോസ്തലന്‍).

Chapter 2 (continuation, vv. 42–47 — not part of core-passage range 2:1–41)

προσκαρτερέω (proskartereō) — “to devote oneself steadfastly.” Malayalam: സ്ഥിരമായി തുടർന്നു / തീവ്രമായി പറ്റിനിന്നു. Risk: Low, but must convey persevering commitment, not casual attendance.
κοινωνία (koinōnia) — reuse baseline കൂട്ടായ്മ. Risk: Low.
κλάσις τοῦ ἄρτου (klasis tou artou) — “the breaking of bread.” Malayalam: അപ്പം നുറുക്കൽ. Risk: High — denominational sensitivity: Kerala’s Syro-Malabar, Malankara Orthodox, and Latin Catholic traditions carry a rich sacramental vocabulary for the Eucharist, principally the Syriac-derived term കുർബാന (Qurbana, “offering”), while Protestant/Evangelical/Pentecostal traditions more often use കർത്തൃമേശ (“the Lord’s Table”) or വിശുദ്ധ അത്താഴം (“Holy Supper”). Acts 2:42’s plain phrase itself is ambiguous between an ordinary shared fellowship meal and a proto-Eucharistic rite; a neutral, non-liturgically-loaded rendering (അപ്പം നുറുക്കൽ) is recommended for the base translation, with a translator/teaching note flagging the term’s connection to (but formal distinction from) each tradition’s Eucharistic vocabulary, so that no single denomination’s liturgical register is imposed on the biblical text.
ἅπαντα κοινά (hapanta koina) — “all things in common” (2:44–45). Malayalam: സകലവും പൊതുവായി വച്ചു. Risk: High — a distinctively Kerala-specific political-resonance risk: Kerala elected the world’s first democratically-elected Communist government (1957) and retains a strong communist political tradition and vocabulary (കമ്യൂണിസം, പൊതുവുടമ). A modern Malayalam reader may hear Acts 2:44–45 as endorsing a specific 20th-century political-economic ideology rather than the text’s own point: a voluntary, Spirit-generated, temporary and localized generosity flowing from love, not a mandated redistributive system. Translator/teaching notes are required to prevent both over-politicization and under-appreciation of the passage’s genuine radicality.
ἀγαλλίασις καὶ ἀφελότης καρδίας (agalliasis kai apheletēs kardias) — “gladness and sincerity/simplicity of heart.” Malayalam: സന്തോഷത്തോടും ഹൃദയലാളിത്യത്തോടും. Risk: Low.
προσετίθει… τοὺς σωζομένους (prosetithei… tous sōzomenous) — “added… those being saved.” Reuse baseline രക്ഷ. Risk: High (per baseline salvation doctrine tier).

Chapter 3

ἀρχηγός (archēgos) — “author, pioneer, founder-leader” (3:15, “Author of life”; also 5:31, “Prince/Author”). Malayalam: ജീവന്‍റെ നായകൻ (jeevante nayakan) or ആദികാരണൻ. Risk: High — must not flatten this Christological title into a generic “founder of a religion” role (as one might describe a guru or the historical founder of any faith tradition); ἀρχηγός claims Christ as the divine source and originator of life itself.
τὸν ἅγιον καὶ δίκαιον (ton hagion kai dikaion) — “the Holy and Righteous One” (3:14). Built from established പരിശുദ്ധ + നീതി. Risk: Low (compositional, built on settled roots).
παῖς (pais) — “servant” (of God, referring to Jesus, 3:13, 3:26; also 4:27, 4:30). Malayalam: ദാസൻ (dasan). Risk: High — this Isaianic Servant title carries an unexpected Kerala-specific social-history sensitivity: ദാസ്/ദാസൻ has historically also functioned as a name-suffix associated with certain lower-caste and Dalit-convert Christian communities in Kerala (paralleling the baseline’s documented caste-heritage sensitivity for “saints” and “no distinction” doctrines). Translator notes should affirm that “Servant” here is an exalted Christological title drawn from Isaiah (the Suffering Servant), not a social-status descriptor, precisely so it cannot be misheard as reinforcing any caste-linked association with the word.
ἀνάψυξις (anapsyxis) — “refreshing, relief” (3:20). Malayalam: ആശ്വാസകാലം. Risk: Low.
ἀποκατάστασις / ἀποκαθιστάνω (apokatastasis) — “restoration” (3:21). Malayalam: പുനഃസ്ഥാപനം. Risk: Medium — Hindu cosmology includes cyclical cosmic renewal concepts (yuga cycles, creation-dissolution-recreation/pralaya); the biblical “restoration of all things” is a single, linear, consummating event tied to Christ’s return, not a repeating cosmic cycle. A brief clarifying note prevents conflation.
ἐπιστρέψατε (epistrepsate) — “turn back, be converted” (3:19). Related to repentance family; reuse മാനസാന്തരം vocabulary with തിരിഞ്ഞുവരുവിൻ (turn back). Risk: Medium.

Chapter 4

παρρησία (parrēsia) — “boldness, freedom of speech” (4:13, 4:29, 4:31). Malayalam: ധൈര്യം (dhairyam) / പരസ്യമായി (parasyamayi, “openly”). Risk: Medium. Central to the doctrine Persecution and Bold Witness; must convey Spirit-given confidence before hostile authority, not mere social assertiveness.
οὐκ ἔστιν ἐν ἄλλῳ οὐδενὶ ἡ σωτηρία (ouk estin en allō oudeni hē sōtēria) — “there is salvation in no one else” (4:12). Reuse baseline രക്ഷ. Risk: Critical — exclusivity claim parallel to Romans 10:9’s Lordship confession; must not be softened into “a” salvation among options.
ἀγράμματοι (agrammatoi) — “unlearned, without formal training” (4:13). Malayalam: അക്ഷരാഭ്യാസമില്ലാത്തവർ. Risk: Low.
κεφαλὴ γωνίας (kephalē gōnias) — “cornerstone” (4:11). Malayalam: മൂലക്കല്ല്. Risk: Low. Established Christological metaphor.
χάρις μεγάλη (charis megalē) — “great grace” (4:33). Reuse baseline കൃപ. Risk: High (per baseline grace-doctrine tier; must remain tied to the apostles’ Christ-centered testimony, not read as a bhakti-style abundant blessing accruing from the community’s own devotion).

Chapter 5

ψεύσασθαι τὸ Πνεῦμα τὸ Ἅγιον (pseusasthai to Pneuma to Hagion) — “to lie to the Holy Spirit” (5:3). Reuse പരിശുദ്ധാത്മാവ്. Risk: Critical (any Holy Spirit segment). Establishes the Spirit’s full personhood and deity — lying to the Spirit is lying to God (5:4).
φόβος μέγας (phobos megas) — “great fear” (5:5, 5:11). Malayalam: വലിയ ഭയം. Risk: Low-Medium — a reverential, judicial awe before God’s holiness, not superstitious terror.
συνέδριον (synedrion) — “council, Sanhedrin” (5:21, etc.). Malayalam: ന്യായാധിപസംഘം or transliterated സൻഹെദ്രിൻ. Risk: Low (institutional proper term).
Signs and wonders, apostolic authority — reuse 2:22, 2:43 vocabulary.

Chapter 6

διακονία (diakonia) — “service, ministry” (6:1, 6:4). Malayalam: ശുശ്രൂഷ (shushrusha) — consistent with the baseline doctrine registry’s existing use of ശുശ്രൂഷ for “Christ-Centered Ministry.” Risk: Medium. Anchors the doctrine The Church as Community; the appointment of the Seven models the church organizing practical care without dividing it from spiritual authority.
πλήρης πνεύματος καὶ σοφίας (plērēs pneumatos kai sophias) — “full of the Spirit and wisdom” (6:3). Reuse പരിശുദ്ധാത്മാവ് + established wisdom vocabulary. Risk: High (Spirit-filling family; see 2:4 note on avesham).

Chapter 7

ὁ υἱὸς τοῦ ἀνθρώπου (ho huios tou anthrōpou) — “the Son of Man” (7:56, Stephen’s vision). Malayalam: മനുഷ്യപുത്രൻ (manushyaputhran). Risk: Critical — a distinct Christological title (the Danielic apocalyptic figure, Daniel 7:13-14) not currently in the baseline Romans package; must not be read as a mere circumlocution for “a human being” but as Stephen’s climactic vision of Christ’s divine glory and authority at the Father’s right hand. Requires the same theologian-review escalation as “Son of God” and “Lordship of Christ.”
σκληροτράχηλος (sklērotrachēlos) — “stiff-necked” (7:51, idiom). Malayalam idiom handling: render meaning, not literal anatomy — ദുശ്ശാഠ്യമുള്ള (dushyshadyamulla, “obstinate”) or മുരട്ടുസ്വഭാവമുള്ള. Risk: Low.
ἀντιπίπτετε τῷ Πνεύματι (antipiptete tō Pneumati) — “you resist/oppose the Spirit” (7:51). Reuse പരിശുദ്ധാത്മാവ്. Risk: High.
λιθοβολέω (lithoboleō) — “to stone” (martyrdom of Stephen, 7:58-59). Malayalam: എറിഞ്ഞുകൊല്ലുക. Risk: Low, but doctrinally establishes the first Christian martyrdom, foundational for Persecution and Bold Witness.

Chapter 8

μαγεία / γοητεία (mageia / goēteia) — “sorcery, magic” (Simon the sorcerer, 8:9-11). Malayalam: ആഭിചാരം (abhicharam) / മന്ത്രവാദം (manthravadam). Risk: High — Kerala retains living folk-practice traditions of manthravadam (ritual sorcery, exorcism-for-hire, charm-craft) in parts of its religious landscape; the text’s point (the Spirit’s power is categorically different from, not merely stronger than, occult power-for-sale) must be preserved clearly, not read as one power source competing within the same magical marketplace as Simon’s.
κωλύω (kōlyō) — “to prevent, hinder” (8:36, “what prevents me from being baptized?”). Malayalam: തടസ്സം (thadassam). Risk: Low. Note thematic link forward to 28:31’s ἀκωλύτως (“unhindered”).
Reuse: gospel, kingdom of God, name of Jesus Christ, baptism (established terms).

Chapter 9

ἡ ὁδός (hē hodos) — “the Way,” as the self-designation of the early Christian movement (9:2; recurring 19:9, 19:23, 22:4, 24:14, 24:22). Malayalam: മാർഗ്ഗം (margam). Risk: High, with an unusually significant positive dimension: മാർഗ്ഗം is historically the Saint Thomas Christian (Nasrani) community’s own ancient self-designation for their faith (“Nasrani Margam”), giving this rendering deep, positive rootedness unique to Kerala among world Christian communities. The risk lies elsewhere: in Hindu philosophical usage, “marga” denotes one of several legitimate parallel paths to liberation (bhakti-marga, jnana-marga, karma-marga in the Bhagavad Gita’s schema). Translator notes must make clear that Acts’ “the Way” is not one path among several equally valid options but, per 4:12, the exclusive way of salvation — even while celebrating the term’s authentic, ancient Kerala Christian heritage.
σκεῦος ἐκλογῆς (skeuos eklogēs) — “a chosen vessel/instrument” (9:15). Malayalam: തിരഞ്ഞെടുക്കപ്പെട്ട പാത്രം, built on baseline ദൈവത്തിന്‍റെ തിരഞ്ഞെടുപ്പ് (election). Risk: High (election-doctrine family; anchors Conversion of Paul).
μαθητής (mathētēs) — “disciple” (9:1, 9:10, 9:19, 9:26, etc.). Malayalam: ശിഷ്യൻ (shishyan). Risk: Medium — an established Malayalam Bible term, but Indian religious culture’s dominant guru-shishya paradigm (a disciple’s ritual initiation and personal transmission-lineage from a living human guru) sits in the cultural background; translators should ensure ശിഷ്യൻ is understood as a follower of the risen, exalted Lord Jesus specifically, in the same family of concern already flagged for “apostle” (never ഗുരു) in the baseline.
Reuse: persecution, filled with the Holy Spirit, resurrection (Tabitha, 9:36-42), name of the Lord Jesus (healing).

Chapter 10

κοινός / ἀκάθαρτος (koinos / akathartos) — “common/unclean” (10:14, 10:28); contrasted with καθαρίζω (katharizō) — “to cleanse, make clean” (10:15, “what God has made clean, do not call common”). Malayalam: അശുദ്ധം / ശുദ്ധം (ashudham/shudham). Risk: High — this is one of the most historically loaded pairs of words available in Malayalam, given Kerala’s own documented social history of ritual-purity-based exclusion (temple-entry restrictions, caste-linked pollution rules, and the 1924-25 Vaikom Satyagraha fought specifically over ritual-purity access). Peter’s vision subverting clean/unclean categories is theologically perfect for the doctrine The Gospel to Jews and Gentiles, but translators and reviewers must be alert that Malayalam readers carry heavy lived and historical resonance with ശുദ്ധി/അശുദ്ധി as caste-purity categories — this connection should be surfaced explicitly and positively (the gospel truly does overturn purity-caste boundaries) rather than left as an unexamined echo.
προσωπολήπτης (prosōpolēptēs) — “one who shows partiality/favoritism” (10:34, “God is no respecter of persons/shows no partiality”). Malayalam: പക്ഷഭേദം കാണിക്കുന്നവൻ (pakshabhedam kanikkunnavan) / negated: ദൈവം പക്ഷഭേദം കാണിക്കുന്നില്ല. Risk: High — directly continues the baseline’s “Unity of Jews and Gentiles” / “Universal Scope of the Gospel” doctrine notes regarding Kerala’s internal caste-heritage church history; must be rendered with full force, not softened.
Reuse: forgiveness of sins (10:43), Holy Spirit falling on Gentiles with tongues (parallels 2:4).

Chapter 11

μετάνοιαν εἰς ζωήν (metanoian eis zōēn) — “repentance unto/leading to life” (11:18). Reuse മാനസാന്തരം + established life/salvation vocabulary. Risk: High (repentance-doctrine family; explicitly extended here to Gentiles, a key hinge for The Gospel to Jews and Gentiles).
Χριστιανός (Christianos) — “Christian” (11:26, the first occurrence of the name). Malayalam: ക്രിസ്ത്യാനി (kristyani). Risk: Low. Long-established, ecumenically shared Malayalam term across all denominations.

Chapter 12

Persecution (Herod’s execution of James, imprisonment of Peter), angelic deliverance (ἄγγελος, angelos). Malayalam: ദൂതൻ (doothan, “messenger”) preferred in Bible-register text over the colloquial മാലാഖ (malakha, an Arabic/Islamic-influenced loanword common in Kerala’s shared multi-religious vocabulary for “angel”). Risk: Medium — not a doctrinal error either way, but ദൂതൻ keeps the Bible-translation register consistent and avoids importing distinct Islamic angelological associations that മാലാഖ can carry in Kerala’s plural religious context.
No other new theological vocabulary; reuses persecution and providence terms from earlier chapters.

Chapter 13

ἀφορίζω (aphorizō) — “to set apart” (13:2, Barnabas and Saul set apart by the Holy Spirit). Reuse doctrine “separation unto God’s service” from the baseline registry. Risk: High (per baseline tier for that doctrine).
νηστεία (nēsteia) — “fasting” (13:2-3). Malayalam: ഉപവാസം (upavasam). Risk: Medium — a spiritual discipline shared in name across Kerala’s religions (Hindu vratam-fasting, e.g. before Sabarimala pilgrimage; Islamic Ramadan fasting, often locally termed നോമ്പ്). Positively, this makes fasting an easily understood practice; translators should still clarify that Christian fasting here expresses dependence on God for guidance, not a vow-based transaction for merit or a deity’s favor (parallel caution to the baseline’s grace/bhakti note).
δικαιωθῆναι… ἀπὸ πάντων ὧν οὐκ ἠδυνήθητε ἐν νόμῳ Μωϋσέως δικαιωθῆναι (13:38-39) — “to be justified… from all the things from which you could not be justified by the law of Moses.” KEY DOCTRINAL VERSE for Justification apart from the Law. Reuse baseline നീതീകരണം and ന്യായപ്രമാണം exactly. Risk: Critical — this is Acts’ clearest anticipation of Romans’ central argument (justification by faith, not law); consistency with the Romans-package rendering of “justification” is mandatory, and this segment must be escalated for theologian review per the baseline’s escalation rules (any justification/law-contrast segment).
φῶς ἐθνῶν (phōs ethnōn) — “a light for the Gentiles” (13:47, quoting Isaiah). Reuse baseline ജനതകള്‍ (never ജാതികള്‍). Risk: Medium.
τεταγμένοι εἰς ζωὴν αἰώνιον (tetagmenoi eis zōēn aiōnion) — “appointed/ordained to eternal life” (13:48). Malayalam: നിത്യജീവനായി നിയമിക്കപ്പെട്ടവർ, built on baseline ദൈവത്തിന്‍റെ തിരഞ്ഞെടുപ്പ്. Risk: High (election/predestination family; per baseline escalation rules, any election/predestination-language segment requires theologian review).

Chapter 14

θεὸς ζῶν (theos zōn) — “the living God” (14:15), contrasted with idols. Malayalam: ജീവനുള്ള ദൈവം, reusing baseline ദൈവം. Risk: Medium.
εἴδωλον (eidōlon) — “idol” (implicit in the Zeus/Hermes episode, 14:11-18). Malayalam: വിഗ്രഹം (vigraham) / വിഗ്രഹാരാധന (vigraharadhana, idol-worship). Risk: High — this is the standard, doctrinally necessary Malayalam Bible term, but it directly names the central devotional object of Hindu temple worship (the murti/vigraha) practiced by the majority of Kerala’s population; while the term itself is settled and unavoidable in faithful translation, tone and context notes should ensure the narrative’s descriptive/polemical force targets the specific first-century episode rather than reading as a gratuitous, decontextualized statement about contemporary neighbors’ practice.
πρεσβύτερος (presbyteros) — “elder” (14:23, appointing elders). Malayalam: മൂപ്പൻ (moopan). Risk: Medium — an established Malayalam church-office term (used across Orthodox/Protestant traditions), but മൂപ്പൻ also generically means “elder/senior person” in secular and tribal-community contexts; context should make the ecclesial office sense clear.
Reuse: gospel, kingdom of God (“through many tribulations,” 14:22).

Chapter 15 — Jerusalem Council (Justification apart from the Law)

περιτομή (peritomē) — “circumcision” (15:1, 15:5). Malayalam: പരിച്ഛേദനം (parichchedanam). Risk: Medium — requires Old Testament covenant-sign background explanation; the doctrinal point (Gentiles are not required to be circumcised/keep the law of Moses to be saved) is the Acts-narrative embodiment of “Justification apart from the Law,” paired directly with 13:38-39.
ζυγός (zygos) — “yoke” (15:10). Malayalam: നുകം (nukam), a familiar Kerala agricultural image (the ox-yoke). Risk: Low.
διὰ τῆς χάριτος τοῦ Κυρίου Ἰησοῦ σωθῆναι (15:11) — “saved through the grace of the Lord Jesus.” Reuse baseline കൃപ, രക്ഷ, കര്‍ത്താവ് exactly. Risk: Critical (grace-contrasted-with-law/works segment; escalate per baseline rule).

Chapter 16

v.31 — πίστευσον ἐπὶ τὸν Κύριον Ἰησοῦν καὶ σωθήσῃ σὺ καὶ ὁ οἶκός σου — “believe in the Lord Jesus, and you will be saved, you and your household.” KEY VERSE, parallel in weight to Romans 10:9. Reuse baseline വിശ്വാസം, കര്‍ത്താവ്, രക്ഷ exactly. Risk: Critical.
οἶκος (oikos) — “household” (16:31, 16:33-34). Malayalam: ഭവനം / കുടുംബം. Risk: Low-Medium — should be understood as the extended household (all who lived under the jailer’s authority coming to faith and being baptized together), a corporate-household conversion pattern; not to be misread as automatic/inherited salvation apart from each household member’s own faith.
Holy Spirit guiding/forbidding travel plans (16:6-7) — reuse providence and Holy Spirit vocabulary.

Chapter 17 — Areopagus

ἄγνωστος θεός (agnōstos theos) — “unknown god” (17:23). Malayalam: അജ്ഞാത ദൈവം. Risk: Medium — Kerala’s own religious landscape includes numerous village/folk shrines to unnamed or locally-named deities; Paul’s rhetorical move (naming what they worship in ignorance) has a natural point of contact here that a translator note can usefully surface, provided it does not imply doctrinal equivalence between the “unknown god” and the God Paul proclaims — Paul’s point is discontinuity-through-fulfillment, not syncretistic continuity.
χρόνοι τῆς ἀγνοίας (chronoi tēs agnoias) — “the times/seasons of ignorance” (17:30). Malayalam: അജ്ഞാനകാലം. Risk: Low-Medium.
μετανοεῖν (metanoein) — “to repent,” here universalized: “God commands all people everywhere to repent” (17:30). Reuse മാനസാന്തരം. Risk: High (repentance-doctrine family; universal scope reinforces the Universal Human Accountability doctrine).
Resurrection mocked by philosophers (17:32) — reuse ഉയിര്‍ത്തെഴുന്നേല്‍പ്പ്; Critical-tier term, must not soften Paul’s claim even where the narrative shows it being mocked.

Chapter 18

No new load-bearing theological vocabulary; reuses established terms: “the Way” (18:25-26, of Apollos being “instructed in the Way of the Lord”), baptism, teaching the word of the Lord. Chapter is narratively significant (Corinth, Gallio’s tribunal, Aquila and Priscilla, Apollos) but introduces no terms beyond those already analyzed in chapters 1–17.

Chapter 19

Distinguishing John’s baptism of repentance from baptism in the name of the Lord Jesus (19:1-5) — reuse മാനസാന്തരം, സ്നാനം; important teaching point (not a new term) that these are related but distinct: John’s baptism anticipated the Messiah, Christian baptism unites the believer with the already-crucified-and-risen Christ and is accompanied by receiving the Spirit.
πνεῦμα πονηρόν (pneuma ponēron) — “evil spirit” (19:12-16, the sons of Sceva). Malayalam: ദുഷ്ടാത്മാവ് (dushtatmavu), formed as the deliberate antonym-pairing to established പരിശുദ്ധാത്മാവ്. Risk: High — parallels the sorcery/exorcism risk noted in Chapter 8 (manthravadam); the episode’s point is that Jesus’ name cannot be wielded as a magical formula by imitators lacking genuine relationship with him, a distinction worth preserving carefully against folk-magic framings.
Idol-economy riot at Ephesus (Artemis/Diana, 19:23-41) — reuse വിഗ്രഹം/idol-worship vocabulary from Chapter 14; “the Way” causing “no small disturbance” — reuse Chapter 9 term.

Chapter 20

ἐπίσκοπος (episkopos) — “overseer” (20:28), used interchangeably with πρεσβύτερος (elder, 20:17) for the same office. Malayalam: മേൽവിചാരകൻ (melvicharakan, “overseer/supervisor”) is recommended over the institutionally loaded transliteration ബിഷപ്പ് (Bishop). Risk: High — Kerala’s churches have well-developed, historically distinct episcopal structures (Malankara Orthodox, Syro-Malabar, Latin Catholic dioceses with their own apostolic-succession claims and administrative hierarchies) alongside Protestant/Evangelical traditions with elder-led polities and no bishops at all. Rendering ἐπίσκοπος as ബിഷപ്പ് risks importing a reader’s specific denomination’s entire modern institutional structure into a first-century text that in Acts 20 uses “overseer” and “elder” as synonyms for the same local pastoral function. മേൽവിചാരകൻ keeps the functional sense without denominational institutional freight; a translator/teaching note should address the terminological overlap directly for cross-denominational clarity.
ποιμαίνειν (poimainein) — “to shepherd” (20:28, “shepherd the church of God”). Malayalam: മേയ്ക്കുക / ഇടയനായി പരിപാലിക്ക. Risk: Low.
κληρονομία (klēronomia) — “inheritance” (20:32, “among all those who are sanctified”). Malayalam: അവകാശം. Risk: Low-Medium; must retain the spiritual, eschatological sense (inheritance among God’s sanctified people), not a merely legal-property sense.
Resurrection (Eutychus, 20:9-12) — reuse; testimony to “the gospel of the grace of God” (20:24) — reuse gospel, grace exactly.

Chapter 21

προφητεύω (prophēteuō) — Agabus’s prophecy (21:10-11) — reuse established prophecy vocabulary.
Minor OT-background term: Nazirite vow (21:23-24, εὐχή, “vow”). Malayalam: നാസീർ വ്രതം or descriptive ശപഥം (oath/vow). Risk: Low — requires a brief Old Testament background note but carries no significant doctrinal risk.
No other new load-bearing terms; “bound in the Spirit” language reuses established Holy Spirit vocabulary.

Chapter 22

No new load-bearing theological vocabulary beyond Chapter 9’s Conversion-of-Paul terms (the Way, chosen instrument, light from heaven), which recur here in Paul’s retelling before the Jerusalem crowd. Roman citizenship material (22:25-29) is legal/civic, not theological.

Chapter 23

συνείδησις (syneidēsis) — “conscience” (23:1, “I have lived my life before God in all good conscience”). Malayalam: മനസ്സാക്ഷി (manassakshi). Risk: Low — a well-established, doctrinally uncomplicated Malayalam term with no significant competing religious association in Kerala’s context.
Pharisee/Sadducee dispute over the resurrection (23:6-8) — reuse ഉയിര്‍ത്തെഴുന്നേല്‍പ്പ്; Critical-tier consistency required even in this polemical, third-party-dispute context.

Chapter 24

αἵρεσις (hairesis) — “sect, faction” (24:5, 24:14; also 28:22), used of “the Way” by its opponents. Malayalam: വിഭാഗം (vibhagam, “division/sect”). Risk: Medium — descriptive of outsiders’ hostile framing of the Christian movement as one sect among Judaism’s factions; translator notes may clarify Paul’s own reframing (24:14) that he serves the God of his fathers according to everything written in the Law and the Prophets, i.e., the fulfillment, not a deviant faction, of the ancestral faith.
δικαιοσύνη… ἐγκράτεια… τὸ κρίμα τὸ μέλλον (24:25) — “righteousness… self-control… the judgment to come.” Reuse baseline നീതി for righteousness (Risk: High per baseline). New terms: ἐγκράτεια — Malayalam ആത്മനിയന്ത്രണം (atmaniyantranam), Risk: Low; κρίμα — Malayalam ന്യായവിധി (nyayavidhi), Risk: Medium (an established Malayalam Bible term for divine judgment, built on the ന്യായ- root shared with ന്യായപ്രമാണം/law, so context should keep the eschatological-judgment sense distinct from ordinary legal judgment).

Chapter 25

No new load-bearing theological vocabulary. Paul’s appeal to Caesar (25:11) and the Festus/Agrippa proceedings are primarily legal-narrative; the resurrection remains the substantive theological point at issue (25:19), reusing the Critical-tier term established in Chapters 2, 4, 17, and 23.

Chapter 26

Σατανᾶς (Satanas) — “Satan” (26:18, “turn… from the power of Satan to God”). New term, not in the baseline Romans package. Malayalam: സാത്താൻ (transliterated). Risk: High — Satan must be understood as a singular, personal, defeated spiritual enemy, distinct from Kerala’s folk-religious category of numerous local evil spirits/ghosts (ഭൂതം, പ്രേതം) addressed through exorcism rituals and manthravadam still practiced in parts of Kerala; collapsing Satan into this generic folk-spirit category would understate both his singular personal reality and his defeat by Christ.
ἐξουσία (exousia) — “authority/power” (26:18, “the authority of Satan”), distinct in nuance from δύναμις (raw power/ability). Malayalam: അധികാരം (adhikaram). Risk: Medium.
ὀπτασία (optasia) — “vision” (26:19, “the heavenly vision”). Reuse the ദർശനം caution already flagged at 2:17. Risk: High.
Sanctification, inheritance (26:18) — reuse established terms.

Chapter 27

No significant new theological vocabulary. The shipwreck narrative develops the doctrine of Providence (reuse baseline ദൈവത്തിന്‍റെ പരിപാലനം) through Paul’s assurance (“I must stand before Caesar,” 27:24) and angelic reassurance; no new terms are required beyond this established rendering.

Chapter 28

v.31 — μετὰ πάσης παρρησίας ἀκωλύτως (meta pasēs parrēsias akōlytōs) — “with all boldness, unhindered.” KEY FINAL VERSE, closing the doctrine The Great Commission Fulfilled begun at 1:8. Reuse ധൈര്യം/പരസ്യമായി (boldness, established in Chapter 4). New term: ἀκωλύτως — Malayalam തടസ്സം കൂടാതെ (thadassam koodathe, “without hindrance”), thematically linked to κωλύω at 8:36. Risk: Medium — the phrase’s rhetorical force (the gospel now reaches “the end of the earth,” 1:8, entirely without obstruction, even from within a Roman prison) should not be lost to a flat, merely administrative rendering of “unhindered.”
Signs on Malta (viper bite, healing of Publius’s father, 28:1-10) — reuse established signs-and-wonders vocabulary.

Summary

This survey confirms the baseline Romans package’s core finding extends to Acts: Malayalam’s nearly two-millennia-old, continuous Christian vocabulary tradition renders most theological terms in Acts low-risk and already settled. The elevated risks specific to this book cluster around: (1) the Spirit’s “filling”/outpouring colliding with Kerala’s folk spirit-possession traditions; (2) baptism/repentance colliding with ritual-bathing and mere-regret readings; (3) “the Way,” “clean/unclean,” and “no partiality” intersecting Kerala’s own caste and social history in ways that make Acts’ inclusion narrative a live internal-church matter, not only an interfaith one; (4) sorcery/exorcism episodes intersecting living manthravadam folk practice; and (5) the phonetic proximity of the correct term for “forgiveness” (മോചനം root) to the forbidden term for “salvation” (മോക്ഷം). See 08_core_glossary.md for the consolidated, citable term list.

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