Core Glossary
Core Glossary: 2 Corinthians (English/Greek → Ndebele)
This glossary extends the baseline Romans Language Package for the 2 Corinthians curriculum. Terms already present in the baseline translation_memory.json are marked Reused (baseline) and carry their recorded Ndebele rendering forward unchanged — they are not re-litigated here, only cross-referenced. New terms proposed by this curriculum are marked New and are candidates for translation_memory.json / bible_term_registry.json / doctrine_risk_registry.json extension in Phase 2.
Risk tiers follow the baseline doctrine_risk_registry.json definitions (Critical / High / Medium / Low).
Part 1 — Baseline Terms Reused Exactly (as they recur in 2 Corinthians)
| Term | Ndebele Rendering | Risk (baseline) | Chapters Recurring | Status |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| gospel | ivangeli | High | 2, 4, 9, 10, 11 | Reused (baseline) |
| grace | umusa | High/Critical | 1, 4, 6, 8, 9, 12, 13 | Reused (baseline) |
| faith | ukholo | High | 1, 4, 5, 13 | Reused (baseline) |
| righteousness | ukulunga | Critical | 3, 5, 6, 9, 11 | Reused (baseline) |
| sin | isono | High | 5, 11 | Reused (baseline) |
| glory | udumo | High | 1, 3, 4, 8 | Reused (baseline) |
| apostle | umphostoli | Medium | 1, 11, 12 | Reused (baseline) |
| holy | -ngcwele | High | 1, 6, 7, 13 | Reused (baseline) |
| saints | abangcwele | High | 1, 8, 9, 13 | Reused (baseline) |
| church | ibandla | Medium | 1, 8, 11, 12 | Reused (baseline) |
| god | uNkulunkulu | Critical | all chapters | Reused (baseline) |
| jesus | uJesu | Critical | all chapters | Reused (baseline) |
| lord | iNkosi | Critical | all chapters | Reused (baseline) |
| holy_spirit | uMoya oNgcwele | Critical | 1, 3, 6, 13 | Reused (baseline) |
| father | uBaba | High | 1, 6, 13 | Reused (baseline) |
| covenant | isivumelwano | High | 3 | Reused (baseline) — base for new compound “new covenant” |
| power_of_god | amandla kaNkulunkulu | High | 6, 12, 13 | Reused (baseline) — base for new compound “power in weakness” |
| thanksgiving | ukubonga | Low | 1, 4, 9 | Reused (baseline) |
| fellowship | ubudlelwano | Low | 6, 8, 13 | Reused (baseline) |
| law | umthetho | High | 3 | Reused (baseline) — contrast partner for “new covenant” |
| exhort | ukukhuthaza | Low | 1, 2, 13 | Reused (baseline) — distinct from new term “comfort” |
| resurrection | ukuvuka kwabafileyo | Critical | 4, 5 | Reused (baseline) |
| son_of_god | iNdodana kaNkulunkulu | Critical | 1, 11 | Reused (baseline) |
| imputed_righteousness | ukubalelwa ukulunga | Critical | 5 | Reused (baseline) — direct doctrinal precedent for 5:19,21 |
Part 2 — New Terms Introduced by 2 Corinthians
| # | Term | Original (Greek) | Transliteration | Ndebele Rendering | Category / Doctrine | Risk | Primary Passages | Risk Reasoning |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1 | Reconciliation | καταλλαγή / καταλλάσσω | katallagē / katallassō | ukubuyisana | Reconciliation with God | Critical | 5:18-20 | Collides with the traditional ritual vocabulary of “buyisa” — returning a deceased relative’s spirit to the ancestral fold, or ritually appeasing an offended idlozi to restore family harmony. Must be taught as God-initiated, Christ-accomplished, once-for-all, with no ritual-propitiation component and no ancestral intermediary. Extends baseline’s “Christ as Sole Mediator” doctrine. |
| 2 | Ministry of reconciliation | διακονία τῆς καταλλαγῆς | diakonia tēs katallagēs | inkonzo yokubuyisana | Reconciliation with God | Critical | 5:18 | Inherits risk from #1; the apostolic commission to proclaim reconciliation must not be read as ritual specialist function (cf. #4 ambassador). |
| 3 | Word of reconciliation | λόγος τῆς καταλλαγῆς | logos tēs katallagēs | ilizwi lokubuyisana | Reconciliation with God | Critical | 5:19 | Same collision as #1; this is the gospel’s specific content-form. |
| 4 | Ambassador | πρεσβεύω | presbeuō | isithunywa | Reconciliation / Genuine vs False Apostleship | High | 5:20 | Must be distinguished from an isangoma (spirit-medium) who likewise claims to “represent” and “speak for” unseen powers to the living. Apostolic ambassadorship is a verifiable, Christ-given commission tied to the historical gospel, not a mediumistic channel. |
| 5 | New creation | καινὴ κτίσις | kainē ktisis | isidalwa esitsha | New Creation in Christ | Critical | 5:17 | Risk of conflation with (a) a deceased person’s transition to the amadlozi, or (b) traditional initiation/rite-of-passage renewal. This is God’s own re-creative act constituting new identity in Christ, received once by faith, not a status attained through rite. |
| 6 | Fear of the Lord | φόβος (τοῦ κυρίου) | phobos (tou kyriou) | ukwesaba iNkosi | Sincerity and Apostolic Authority | High | 5:11 | ”Ukwesaba” alone can register as dread of ancestral wrath requiring appeasement; must be anchored as reverent submission to Christ as Judge, not propitiatory terror. |
| 7 | Conscience | συνείδησις | syneidēsis | unembeza | Sincerity and Apostolic Authority | High | 1:12; 4:2; 5:11 | Must be taught as inward accountability directly before God, not social shame or fear of ancestral offense, both strong drivers of everyday Ndebele moral reasoning. |
| 8 | Sincerity | ἁπλότης / εἰλικρίνεια | haplotēs / eilikrineia | ukuqotho | Sincerity and Apostolic Authority | High | 1:12; 2:17; 4:2 | Must convey inner integrity of motive before God, not merely outward social harmony or the appearance of propriety valued in honor-culture settings. |
| 9 | Boasting (in the Lord) | καύχησις / καυχάομαι | kauchēsis / kauchaomai | ukuzincoma / ukuziqhenya | Genuine vs False Apostleship | High | 5:12; 10:17-18; 11:16-30; 12:1-11 | Ndebele oral tradition (izibongo, praise poetry of chiefs and lineage) strongly values boasting in status, ancestry, and exploits; the qualifier “in the Lord” (10:17) must be non-negotiably retained wherever this term appears. |
| 10 | Weakness | ἀσθένεια | astheneia | ubuthakathaka | Power in Weakness | High | 11:30; 12:5-10; 13:4 | Counters both the historic Ndebele association of legitimate power with military/political strength and the traditional link between spiritual authority and the visible potency of izinyanga/izangoma. |
| 11 | Power made perfect in weakness | ἡ δύναμις … ἐν ἀσθενείᾳ τελεῖται | hē dynamis … en astheneia teleitai | amandla kaNkulunkulu apheleliswa ebuthakathakeni | Power in Weakness | Critical | 12:9-10 | Central doctrinal paradox of the curriculum; requires explicit teaching, not just lexical accuracy, given strong cultural association of power with visible strength/status. |
| 12 | New covenant | καινὴ διαθήκη | kainē diathēkē | isivumelwano esitsha | The New Covenant versus the Old | High | 3:6 | Must be held in explicit fulfillment/contrast relationship to the Mosaic covenant (umthetho), not as two parallel, competing paths to God. |
| 13 | Letter (of the law) | γράμμα | gramma | umbhalo | The New Covenant versus the Old | High | 3:6-7 | Contrast pair with Spirit (uMoya); must not be flattened into “law = bad, Spirit = no rules,” but taught as law’s condemning power vs. the Spirit’s life-giving power. |
| 14 | Veil | κάλυμμα | kalymma | isigubuzelo | The New Covenant versus the Old | Medium | 3:13-16 | Spiritual blindness imagery; must not be confused with literal ceremonial veils in Ndebele mourning or bridal custom. |
| 15 | Transformed | μεταμορφούμεθα | metamorphoumetha | ukuguqulwa (isimo) | New Creation / Sanctification | High | 3:18 | Risk of conflation with occult shape-shifting associated with witchcraft belief; must be anchored as the Spirit’s Christ-ward transformation of character, not magical transformation of form. |
| 16 | Image (of Christ/God) | εἰκών | eikōn | umfanekiso | New Creation in Christ | Medium-High | 3:18; 4:4 | Must convey inward moral/relational likeness to Christ, not a physical representation carrying idol-like connotations. |
| 17 | Seal (of the Spirit) | σφραγίζω / σφραγίς | sphragizō / sphragis | uphawu | Sanctification / Assurance | High | 1:22 | Risk of conflation with protective amulets/medicine (imithi) that mark and guard a person; must be God’s own mark of ownership and guarantee, not magical protection. |
| 18 | Guarantee/pledge (of the Spirit) | ἀρραβών | arrabōn | isibambiso | Sanctification / Assurance | Medium | 1:22; 5:5 | Must convey a binding divine down-payment guaranteeing future fulfillment, not a superstitious token. |
| 19 | Comfort | παράκλησις / παρακαλέω | paraklēsis / parakaleō | induduzo / ukududuza | Suffering and Comfort in Ministry | High | 1:3-7; 7:4-13 | Distinct sense from baseline exhort. Traditional practice often seeks comfort/explanation for suffering via consultation of amadlozi through izangoma; must be taught as direct comfort from God through Christ and the Spirit. |
| 20 | Affliction/suffering | θλῖψις / πάθημα | thlipsis / pathēma | inhlupheko / ukuhlupheka | Suffering and Comfort in Ministry | Medium | 1:4-9; 4:17; 6:4 | Standard suffering vocabulary; principal risk lies downstream in comfort-seeking practice, not the term itself. |
| 21 | Earthly tent / heavenly dwelling | σκῆνος / οἰκοδομὴ ἐκ θεοῦ | skēnos / oikodomē ek theou | ithente lomhlaba / indlu evela kuNkulunkulu | Suffering and Comfort / Eschatology | High | 5:1-4 | Resurrection-body hope; must not be conflated with the traditional belief that the departed take up new existence among the amadlozi. |
| 22 | False apostles | ψευδαπόστολοι | pseudapostoloi | abaphostoli bamanga | Genuine vs False Apostleship | High | 11:13 | Must be taught, like baseline prophet vs. isangoma, as counterfeits that closely resemble genuine apostleship rather than obviously foreign figures — the danger is precisely their plausibility. |
| 23 | Super-apostles | ὑπερλίαν ἀπόστολοι | hyperlian apostoloi | abaphostoli abakhulukazi | Genuine vs False Apostleship | Medium | 11:5; 12:11 | Paul’s ironic term for rival teachers; moderate risk of losing the irony in translation. |
| 24 | Angel of light | ἄγγελος φωτός | angelos phōtos | ingilosi yokukhanya | Genuine vs False Apostleship | High | 11:14 | Traditional belief that ancestral spirits can appear benevolently to guide descendants (sometimes via light/dream imagery) makes this warning about satanic disguise especially sensitive; must reinforce vigilance against all spirit-mediated guidance claiming divine origin apart from Christ and Scripture. |
| 25 | Messenger of Satan | ἄγγελος Σατανᾶ | angelos Satana | isithunywa saSathane | Power in Weakness | High | 12:7 | Risk of assimilation into the traditional framework of avenging/offended-spirit affliction (cf. ngozi-type concepts) requiring ritual appeasement; Paul’s affliction is resolved by God’s sufficient grace, not ritual placation. |
| 26 | Visions and revelations | ὀπτασίαι καὶ ἀποκαλύψεις | optasiai kai apokalypseis | imibono lokwambulelwa | Power in Weakness / Apostolic Authority | High | 12:1-7 | Izangoma likewise claim authoritative visions from amadlozi; Paul’s visions must be framed as exceptional, largely undisclosed, and never the basis of his authority — reinforcing rather than legitimating visionary-authority claims generally. |
| 27 | Strongholds | ὀχύρωμα | ochyrōma | izinqaba | Genuine vs False Apostleship | High | 10:4 | Spiritual-warfare language risks assimilation into traditional witchcraft-combat frameworks (protective medicine, ritual counter-measures via an inyanga); must be framed as warfare against deceptive reasoning opposed to the knowledge of God, not a contest of competing ritual powers. |
| 28 | Repentance | μετάνοια | metanoia | ukuphenduka | Reconciliation with God | High | 7:9-10; 12:21 | Must be distinguished from ritual appeasement of an offended ancestral spirit; this is a change of heart and direction toward God himself, producing salvation. |
| 29 | Godly sorrow / worldly sorrow | λύπη κατὰ θεόν / λύπη τοῦ κόσμου | lypē kata theon / lypē tou kosmou | ukudabuka ngendlela kaNkulunkulu / ukudabuka kwelizwe | Reconciliation with God | Medium | 7:8-11 | Must distinguish sorrow leading to repentance from mere regret, shame, or fear of social/ancestral consequence. |
| 30 | Generosity/liberality | ἁπλότης (giving sense) | haplotēs | ukuphana | Generosity and Grace in Giving | Medium | 8:2; 9:11, 13 | Same Greek root as #8 “sincerity”; translators must apply the giving-sense rendering (ukuphana) distinctly from the motive-sense rendering (ukuqotho) and flag the shared root to avoid inconsistent handling. |
| 31 | Equality/fairness | ἰσότης | isotēs | ukulingana | Generosity and Grace in Giving | Low | 8:13-14 | Low ambiguity; standard fairness vocabulary. |
| 32 | Cheerful giver | ἱλαρὸς δότης | hilaros dotēs | umuphi ojabulayo | Generosity and Grace in Giving | Low | 9:7 | Low ambiguity. |
| 33 | Sufficiency/contentment | αὐτάρκεια | autarkeia | ukwaneliseka | Generosity and Grace in Giving | Medium | 9:8 | Must be anchored as sufficiency supplied by God’s grace, not self-reliant sufficiency or sufficiency attributed to ancestral blessing on household and harvest. |
| 34 | Temple of God | ναὸς θεοῦ | naos theou | ithempeli likaNkulunkulu | Sanctification | High | 6:16 | Must be sharply distinguished from a traditional ancestral shrine (idumba) where amadlozi are venerated; believers are the exclusive dwelling of God himself through the Spirit. |
| 35 | Unequally yoked | ἑτεροζυγέω | heterozygeō | ukubotshelwa ndawonye lomuntu ongakholwayo | Sanctification | Medium | 6:14 | Distinct from clan/totem avoidance customs; keep focus on spiritual incompatibility between belief and unbelief specifically. |
| 36 | Unclean | ἀκάθαρτος | akathartos | okungcolileyo | Sanctification | Medium | 6:17 | Must convey moral defilement before God, not ritual impurity remediable by traditional cleansing rites. |
| 37 | Examine yourselves / test | πειράζω / δοκιμάζω | peirazō / dokimazō | zihlolе / ukulinga | Sincerity and Apostolic Authority | Medium | 13:5 | Self-examination of one’s own standing in the faith before God; must not be confused with divinatory self-diagnosis practices. |
| 38 | Disqualified / failing the test | ἀδόκιμος | adokimos | ongaphumeleliyo ukuhlolwa | Sincerity and Apostolic Authority | Medium | 13:5-7 | Low-moderate ambiguity beyond consistency with #37. |
| 39 | According to the flesh (worldly viewpoint) | κατὰ σάρκα | kata sarka | ngokwenyama | New Creation in Christ | Medium-High | 5:16; 10:2-3; 11:18 | Must be distinguished from the physical-descent sense of the same phrase reused via baseline seed_of_david; context must establish which sense is active. |
| 40 | Made him to be sin | ἁμαρτίαν ἐποίησεν | hamartian epoiēsen | wamenza isono (reusing isono) | Reconciliation with God / Justification | Critical | 5:21 | The startling substitutionary predication of isono onto the sinless Christ; must not be resolved into a softer “sin offering” gloss without a translator’s note, since the term-for-term echo of baseline sin is theologically deliberate. |
| 41 | Trinitarian benediction (grace, love, fellowship of the Spirit) | ἡ χάρις … ἡ ἀγάπη … ἡ κοινωνία τοῦ ἁγίου πνεύματος | hē charis … hē agapē … hē koinōnia tou hagiou pneumatos | umusa … uthando … ubudlelwano bomoya oNgcwele | Sonship of Christ / Holy Spirit / Sovereignty of God | Critical | 13:14 | Fully reuses baseline terms but as a set; grammatical parallelism across all three clauses must be preserved so the Holy Spirit’s “fellowship” is not diminished relative to the Father’s love or the Son’s grace. |
| 42 | Christ in you | Χριστὸς ἐν ὑμῖν | Christos en hymin | uKristu ekini | Christian Identity in Christ | High | 13:5 | Indwelling language must not be read through a possession/mediumship lens; this is Christ’s abiding presence by the Spirit, not temporary spirit-indwelling. |
| 43 | Beside ourselves / sound mind | ἐξίστημι / σωφρονέω | existēmi / sōphroneō | sihlanya ngenxa kaNkulunkulu / siqonda kahle | Sincerity and Apostolic Authority | High | 5:13 | Must not be read as spirit-possession-like ecstasy associated with mediumship trance states; this is single-minded devotion to God. |
| 44 | One died for all (substitution) | εἷς ὑπὲρ πάντων ἀπέθανεν | heis hyper pantōn apethanen | wafa esikhundleni sabo bonke | Reconciliation with God | Critical | 5:14-15 | Foundational substitutionary/representative logic; must not be softened to merely exemplary or sympathetic death. |
| 45 | Fragrance of Christ | ὀσμή | osmē | iphunga likaKristu | Apostolic Ministry | Low | 2:15-16 | Low ambiguity. |
| 46 | Triumphal procession | θριαμβεύω | thriambeuō | umkhosi wokunqoba | Apostolic Ministry | Medium | 2:14 | Cultural-distance risk (no direct Ndebele institutional equivalent); requires explanatory framing around Christ’s decisive victory. |
| 47 | Boldness/confidence | παρρησία | parrēsia | isibindi | New Covenant / Apostolic Authority | Medium | 3:12; 7:4 | Standard confidence vocabulary; low-moderate ambiguity. |
| 48 | Jars of clay | ὄστρακινα σκεύη | ostrakina skeuē | izitsha zobumba | Suffering and Comfort in Ministry | Low | 4:7 | Familiar household image; low risk. |
| 49 | Signs of an apostle | σημεῖα τοῦ ἀποστόλου | sēmeia tou apostolou | izibonakaliso zomphostoli | Genuine vs False Apostleship | Medium | 12:12 | Moderate ambiguity; must not be read as equivalent to izangoma’s claimed signs/wonders. |
| 50 | Holy kiss | ἅγιον φίλημα | hagion philēma | ukwangana okungcwele | Fellowship of Believers | Low | 13:12 | First-century greeting custom; may be footnoted as culturally adapted without altering doctrinal content. |
Part 3 — Risk Summary for This Curriculum’s New Terms
| Risk Tier | Count (new terms) | Review Routing |
|---|---|---|
| Critical | 7 | Human theologian (mandatory) |
| High | 20 | Human theologian (mandatory) |
| Medium | 19 | Native speaker review recommended |
| Low | 4 | Automated review sufficient |
Note on cross-cutting risk pattern: Consistent with the baseline Romans Language Package, the dominant risk pattern across 2 Corinthians’ new vocabulary is the mediated-access syncretism risk — traditional Ndebele religion’s structure of approaching uNkulunkulu through amadlozi (ancestral spirits) as intermediaries, and of resolving affliction, impurity, and misfortune through ritual specialists (izangoma, izinyanga) and appeasement rites. This pattern surfaces with particular force around reconciliation (#1-3), ambassador (#4), temple of God (#34), messenger of Satan (#25), angel of light (#24), visions and revelations (#26), and strongholds (#27) — all recommended for the highest-priority theologian review queue in Phase 2.
A secondary, curriculum-specific risk pattern not present in Romans is the honor/status culture collision around boasting (#9), weakness (#10), and power made perfect in weakness (#11) — where Ndebele historical memory of a warrior kingdom and traditional linkage of spiritual authority to visible potency actively resist the Pauline paradox that God’s power is displayed through, not despite, weakness. This pattern should be flagged as a distinct doctrinal teaching point in Phase 2 curriculum notes, not merely a lexical risk.
This glossary extends translation_memory.json and bible_term_registry.json from the baseline Romans Language Package. All 50 new terms above are candidates for formal registry entries (with doctrine_risk_registry.json doctrine mappings) in Phase 2 Step 17 review routing.
Critical Risk Terms
Righteousness
Approved rendering: ukulunga
Transliteration: ukulunga
Doctrine: Righteousness of God
Original: δικαιοσύνη
Category: Salvation
Must convey right standing before uNkulunkulu through Christ, not merely good moral or social conduct. Inherited from Romans package. Central to 2 Corinthians 5:21’s climactic ‘righteousness of God’ believers become in Christ.
God
Approved rendering: uNkulunkulu
Transliteration: uNkulunkulu
Doctrine: Sovereignty of God
Original: θεός
Category: God
CRITICAL: the established Nguni term for the Supreme Being. Inherited from Romans package. 2 Corinthians 5:18-19 emphasizes God himself as the direct initiator of reconciliation through Christ, reinforcing rather than easing the baseline mediated-access risk.
Jesus
Approved rendering: uJesu
Transliteration: uJesu
Doctrine: Lordship of Jesus Christ
Original: Ἰησοῦς
Category: Christology
Standard, well-established Nguni Bible transliteration. Inherited from Romans package. 2 Corinthians 11:4 warns against ‘another Jesus,’ so consistent exclusive use of this form is doctrinally load-bearing here.
Lord
Approved rendering: iNkosi
Transliteration: iNkosi
Doctrine: Lordship of Jesus Christ
Original: κύριος
Category: Christology
Must convey exclusive, supreme lordship exceeding the historical Ndebele royal title. Inherited from Romans package. Governs the new compound ‘fear of the Lord’ (ukwesaba iNkosi, 5:11) in this curriculum.
Holy Spirit
Approved rendering: uMoya oNgcwele
Transliteration: uMoya oNgcwele
Doctrine: Spiritual Gifting
Original: πνεῦμα ἅγιον
Category: God
The third Person of the Trinity, personal and divine; must not be conflated with amadlozi. Inherited from Romans package. Central to the letter/Spirit contrast of chapter 3 and the Trinitarian benediction of 13:14.
Resurrection
Approved rendering: ukuvuka kwabafileyo
Transliteration: ukuvuka kwabafileyo
Doctrine: Resurrection of Jesus Christ
Original: ἀνάστασις
Category: Eschatology
Bodily, historical, once-for-all rising; must not be conflated with joining the amadlozi. Inherited from Romans package. Appears in 4:14 and underlies 5:15’s ‘rose again.‘
Son Of God
Approved rendering: iNdodana kaNkulunkulu
Transliteration: iNdodana kaNkulunkulu
Doctrine: Sonship of Christ
Original: υἱὸς θεοῦ
Category: Christology
Christ’s unique, eternal, co-equal divine sonship. Inherited from Romans package. Underlies 1:19’s description of Christ and the warning against ‘another Jesus’ in 11:4.
Imputed Righteousness
Approved rendering: ukubalelwa ukulunga
Transliteration: ukubalelwa ukulunga
Doctrine: Justification by Faith
Original: ἐλογίσθη … εἰς δικαιοσύνην
Category: Salvation
Righteousness credited by faith, not earned. Inherited from Romans package. Provides the direct doctrinal precedent for the accounting-metaphor language in 5:19 (‘not imputing their trespasses’) and 5:21’s ‘righteousness of God’ believers become in Christ.
Reconciliation
Approved rendering: ukubuyisana
Transliteration: ukubuyisana
Doctrine: Reconciliation with God
Original: καταλλαγή / καταλλάσσω
Category: Reconciliation
New term. The root -buyisa- is also the everyday verb for returning a deceased relative’s spirit to the ancestral fold, or for diviner-brokered appeasement of an offended idlozi. No safer lexical alternative exists in Ndebele; the word must be retained but must always be taught, at every occurrence, as God-initiated, Christ-accomplished, once-for-all, with no ongoing propitiatory rite and no ancestral intermediary. Extends baseline Christ-as-Sole-Mediator doctrine into new territory. Primary passages 5:18-20; 7:9-10.
Ministry Of Reconciliation
Approved rendering: inkonzo yokubuyisana
Transliteration: inkonzo yokubuyisana
Doctrine: Reconciliation with God
Original: διακονία τῆς καταλλαγῆς
Category: Reconciliation
New term. Inherits the risk of ukubuyisana; the apostolic commission to proclaim reconciliation must not be read as a ritual-specialist function comparable to an isangoma’s mediating role. Primary passage 5:18.
Word Of Reconciliation
Approved rendering: ilizwi lokubuyisana
Transliteration: ilizwi lokubuyisana
Doctrine: Reconciliation with God
Original: λόγος τῆς καταλλαγῆς
Category: Reconciliation
New term. The specific gospel content entrusted to the apostles; ties directly to baseline gospel (ivangeli) as its content and must not be diluted into general good advice. Primary passage 5:19.
New Creation
Approved rendering: isidalwa esitsha
Transliteration: isidalwa esitsha
Doctrine: New Creation in Christ
Original: καινὴ κτίσις
Category: Salvation
New term. Must not be understood through the lens of a deceased person’s transition into the amadlozi, or of traditional initiation/rite-of-passage renewal. This is God’s own re-creative act constituting a wholly new identity in Christ, received once by faith, not a status attained through ritual passage. Must always be paired with the qualifier ‘kuKristu’ to anchor timing and agency. Primary passage 5:17.
Power Made Perfect In Weakness
Approved rendering: amandla kaNkulunkulu apheleliswa ebuthakathakeni
Transliteration: amandla kaNkulunkulu apheleliswa ebuthakathakeni
Doctrine: Power in Weakness
Original: ἡ δύναμις … ἐν ἀσθενείᾳ τελεῖται
Category: Power in Weakness
New term. Central doctrinal paradox of this curriculum; requires explicit doctrinal framing beyond lexical accuracy, since Ndebele cultural memory and traditional religious practice both strongly associate legitimate spiritual power with visible strength or ritual potency. Primary passage 12:9-10.
Made Him To Be Sin
Approved rendering: wamenza isono
Transliteration: wamenza isono
Doctrine: Reconciliation with God
Original: ἁμαρτίαν ἐποίησεν
Category: Reconciliation with God
New term, reusing baseline isono exactly. The startling substitutionary predication of sin onto the sinless Christ; must not be resolved into a softer ‘sin offering’ gloss without a translator’s note, since the term-for-term echo of baseline sin is theologically deliberate. Primary passage 5:21.
Trinitarian Benediction
Approved rendering: umusa … uthando … ubudlelwano bomoya oNgcwele
Transliteration: umusa … uthando … ubudlelwano bomoya oNgcwele
Doctrine: Trinitarian Fellowship
Original: ἡ χάρις … ἡ ἀγάπη … ἡ κοινωνία τοῦ ἁγίου πνεύματος
Category: God
Fully reuses baseline grace, holy_spirit, and fellowship as a set. Grammatical parallelism across all three clauses must be preserved so the Holy Spirit’s fellowship is not diminished relative to the Father’s love or the Son’s grace. Primary passage 13:14.
One Died For All
Approved rendering: wafa esikhundleni sabo bonke
Transliteration: wafa esikhundleni sabo bonke
Doctrine: Reconciliation with God
Original: εἷς ὑπὲρ πάντων ἀπέθανεν
Category: Reconciliation with God
New term. Foundational substitutionary/representative logic; must not be softened to merely exemplary or sympathetic death; cross-references baseline imputed_righteousness’s substitutionary logic. Primary passages 5:14-15.
High Risk Terms
Grace
Approved rendering: umusa
Transliteration: umusa
Doctrine: Grace
Original: χάρις
Category: Salvation
Well-established Nguni Bible term for unmerited favor. Inherited from Romans package. In 2 Corinthians 8-9 also grounds Generosity and Grace in Giving (8:9); must not be softened into a general ‘generous spirit’ divorced from God’s own gracious initiative in Christ.
Faith
Approved rendering: ukholo
Transliteration: ukholo
Doctrine: Faith
Original: πίστις
Category: Faith
Standard term for belief/trust; context must anchor the object of ukholo specifically to Christ. Inherited from Romans package.
Sin
Approved rendering: isono
Transliteration: isono
Doctrine: Humanity’s Sinfulness
Original: ἁμαρτία
Category: Sin
Moral transgression before a personal God; distinguish from ritual impurity or offense against ancestors. Inherited from Romans package. 2 Corinthians 5:21 startlingly predicates this exact term of the sinless Christ (see made_him_to_be_sin); its full baseline weight must be retained even there.
Glory
Approved rendering: udumo
Transliteration: udumo
Doctrine: Sovereignty of God
Rejected alternatives: inkazimulo
Original: δόξα
Category: God
Preferred over inkazimulo for its stronger established Nguni Bible use. Inherited from Romans package. Central to 2 Corinthians 3:7-18’s fading/increasing glory contrast and 4:17’s ‘eternal weight of glory’.
Holy
Approved rendering: -ngcwele
Transliteration: ngcwele
Doctrine: Sanctification
Original: ἅγιος
Category: Sanctification
Standard adjective root for set-apart purity before uNkulunkulu. Inherited from Romans package.
Saints
Approved rendering: abangcwele
Transliteration: abangcwele
Doctrine: The Church as Believers in Christ
Original: ἅγιοι
Category: Church
All believers, not a small class of especially holy figures. Inherited from Romans package. Recurs in 2 Corinthians 8-9’s collection for ‘the saints’.
Father
Approved rendering: uBaba
Transliteration: uBaba
Doctrine: Sonship of Christ
Original: πατήρ
Category: God
God as personal Father; strong relational resonance in Ndebele kinship structures. Inherited from Romans package. Appears in the opening greeting (1:2-3, ‘Father of mercies’) and closing benediction (13:14).
Covenant
Approved rendering: isivumelwano
Transliteration: isivumelwano
Doctrine: God’s Calling and Election
Original: διαθήκη
Category: Covenant
A binding, relational agreement. Inherited from Romans package. Serves as the base for the new compound ‘new covenant’ (isivumelwano esitsha), central to chapter 3.
Power Of God
Approved rendering: amandla kaNkulunkulu
Transliteration: amandla kaNkulunkulu
Doctrine: God’s Saving Power
Original: δύναμις θεοῦ
Category: God
God’s power for salvation and sustaining ministry; keep distinct from spiritual power associated with izinyanga/izangoma. Inherited from Romans package. Serves as the base for the new compound ‘power made perfect in weakness’ (12:9), the doctrinal center of this curriculum.
Law
Approved rendering: umthetho
Transliteration: umthetho
Doctrine: Righteousness of God
Original: νόμος
Category: Covenant
The Mosaic Law; must not be rendered with a term for customary law or ancestral taboo. Inherited from Romans package. Serves as the explicit contrast partner for ‘new covenant’ in chapter 3; must NOT be used to render ‘letter’ (gramma) in 3:6, which uses the distinct new term umbhalo instead.
Ambassador
Approved rendering: isithunywa
Transliteration: isithunywa
Doctrine: Genuine versus False Apostleship / Christ as Sole Mediator (Extended)
Original: πρεσβεύω
Category: Apostolic Ministry
New term. Must be sharply distinguished from an isangoma who likewise claims to represent and speak for unseen ancestral powers to the living; apostolic ambassadorship is a verifiable, historically anchored, Christ-given commission tied to the finished gospel event, not a mediumistic channel open to ongoing spirit-inquiry. Primary passage 5:20.
Fear Of The Lord
Approved rendering: ukwesaba iNkosi
Transliteration: ukwesaba iNkosi
Doctrine: Sincerity and Apostolic Authority
Original: φόβος (τοῦ κυρίου)
Category: Sincerity and Apostolic Authority
New term. ‘Ukwesaba’ alone can register as dread of ancestral wrath requiring appeasement; must be anchored as reverent submission to the Lord Jesus specifically as coming Judge, not propitiatory terror of amadlozi. Never leave ‘fear’ unqualified. Primary passage 5:11.
Conscience
Approved rendering: unembeza
Transliteration: unembeza
Doctrine: Sincerity and Apostolic Authority
Original: συνείδησις
Category: Sincerity and Apostolic Authority
New term. Must be taught as inward accountability directly before uNkulunkulu, not social shame or fear of ancestral offense, both strong drivers of everyday Ndebele moral reasoning. Primary passages 1:12; 4:2; 5:11.
Sincerity
Approved rendering: ukuqotho
Transliteration: ukuqotho
Doctrine: Sincerity and Apostolic Authority
Original: ἁπλότης / εἰλικρίνεια
Category: Sincerity and Apostolic Authority
New term. Must convey inner integrity of motive before God, not merely outward social harmony valued in honor-culture settings. Distinct from the giving-sense rendering ‘ukuphana’ applied to the same Greek root (haplotēs) in chapter 8; the two must never be used interchangeably. Primary passages 1:12; 2:17; 4:2.
Boasting
Approved rendering: ukuzincoma / ukuziqhenya
Transliteration: ukuzincoma / ukuziqhenya
Doctrine: Genuine versus False Apostleship
Original: καύχησις / καυχάομαι
Category: Genuine vs False Apostleship
New term. Ndebele oral tradition (izibongo, praise poetry of chiefs and lineage) strongly values boasting in status, ancestry, and exploits; the qualifier ‘in the Lord’ (10:17) must be non-negotiably retained wherever this term describes legitimate boasting. Primary passages 5:12; 10:17-18; 11:16-30; 12:1-11.
Weakness
Approved rendering: ubuthakathaka
Transliteration: ubuthakathaka
Doctrine: Power in Weakness
Original: ἀσθένεια
Category: Power in Weakness
New term. Counters both the historic Ndebele association of legitimate power with military/political strength (Mzilikazi/Lobengula kingdom) and the traditional link between spiritual authority and the visible potency of izinyanga/izangoma. Primary passages 11:30; 12:5-10; 13:4.
New Covenant
Approved rendering: isivumelwano esitsha
Transliteration: isivumelwano esitsha
Doctrine: The New Covenant versus the Old
Original: καινὴ διαθήκη
Category: New Covenant
New term, built from baseline covenant + ‘new’. Must be held in explicit fulfillment/contrast relationship to the Mosaic covenant (umthetho), not presented as two parallel, competing paths to God. Primary passage 3:6.
Letter Of The Law
Approved rendering: umbhalo
Transliteration: umbhalo
Doctrine: The New Covenant versus the Old
Rejected alternatives: umthetho
Original: γράμμα
Category: New Covenant
New term. Umthetho was deliberately rejected here to reserve it exclusively for the Mosaic Law itself; umbhalo (‘the writing/document’) forms the letter/Spirit contrast pair with uMoya. Must not be flattened into ‘law is bad, Spirit-led freedom means no rules,’ but taught as the written code’s condemning power versus the Spirit’s life-giving power. Primary passages 3:6-7.
Transformed
Approved rendering: ukuguqulwa (isimo)
Transliteration: ukuguqulwa (isimo)
Doctrine: New Creation in Christ
Original: μεταμορφούμεθα
Category: New Creation
New term. Risk of conflation with occult shape-shifting associated with witchcraft belief (ukuphenduka kwesimo through malevolent power); must be anchored as the Spirit’s gradual, Christ-ward transformation of character, the structural opposite of occult shape-change. Primary passage 3:18.
Seal
Approved rendering: uphawu
Transliteration: uphawu
Doctrine: Assurance of the Spirit
Original: σφραγίζω / σφραγίς
Category: Sanctification
New term. Risk of conflation with protective amulets/medicine (imithi) that mark and guard a person; must be taught as God’s own mark of ownership and guarantee, categorically different from magical protection. Primary passage 1:22.
Comfort
Approved rendering: induduzo / ukududuza
Transliteration: induduzo / ukududuza
Doctrine: Suffering and Comfort in Ministry
Rejected alternatives: ukukhuthaza
Original: παράκλησις / παρακαλέω
Category: Suffering and Comfort in Ministry
New term, distinct sense from baseline exhort (ukukhuthaza). Traditional practice often seeks comfort and explanation for suffering through consultation of amadlozi via izangoma; must be taught as direct comfort from uNkulunkulu himself through Christ and the Spirit, requiring no ancestral consultation. Primary passages 1:3-7; 7:4-13.
Earthly Tent Heavenly Dwelling
Approved rendering: ithente lomhlaba / indlu evela kuNkulunkulu
Transliteration: ithente lomhlaba / indlu evela kuNkulunkulu
Doctrine: Suffering and Comfort in Ministry
Original: σκῆνος / οἰκοδομὴ ἐκ θεοῦ
Category: Suffering and Comfort in Ministry
New term. Resurrection-body hope; must not be conflated with the traditional belief that the departed take up new existence among the amadlozi. The believer’s future dwelling is bodily, God-given, and Christ-secured. Primary passages 5:1-4.
False Apostles
Approved rendering: abaphostoli bamanga
Transliteration: abaphostoli bamanga
Doctrine: Genuine versus False Apostleship
Original: ψευδαπόστολοι
Category: Genuine vs False Apostleship
New term, built from baseline apostle + ‘false’. Must be taught with the same rigor as baseline’s prophet-versus-isangoma distinction: false apostles claim genuine Christian authority while teaching ‘another Jesus’ (11:4); the danger is precisely that they look legitimate. Primary passage 11:13.
Angel Of Light
Approved rendering: ingilosi yokukhanya
Transliteration: ingilosi yokukhanya
Doctrine: Spiritual Deception and Warfare
Original: ἄγγελος φωτός
Category: Genuine vs False Apostleship
New term. Traditional belief holds that amadlozi can appear benevolently to guide or warn descendants, sometimes described via light, dream, or vision imagery; this warning must reinforce vigilance against ALL spirit-mediated guidance claiming divine origin apart from Christ and Scripture, not seem to validate such guidance elsewhere. Primary passage 11:14.
Messenger Of Satan
Approved rendering: isithunywa saSathane
Transliteration: isithunywa saSathane
Doctrine: Power in Weakness
Original: ἄγγελος Σατανᾶ
Category: Power in Weakness
New term. Risk of assimilation into the traditional framework of avenging or offended-spirit affliction (concepts resembling ngozi) requiring ritual resolution; Paul’s affliction is resolved by God’s sufficient grace, not ritual placation. Primary passage 12:7.
Visions And Revelations
Approved rendering: imibono lokwambulelwa
Transliteration: imibono lokwambulelwa
Doctrine: Spiritual Deception and Warfare / Genuine versus False Apostleship
Original: ὀπτασίαι καὶ ἀποκαλύψεις
Category: Genuine vs False Apostleship
New term. Izangoma likewise claim authoritative visions from amadlozi; Paul’s visions must be framed as exceptional, largely undisclosed, and never the basis of his authority, reinforcing rather than legitimating visionary-authority claims generally. Primary passages 12:1-7.
Strongholds
Approved rendering: izinqaba
Transliteration: izinqaba
Doctrine: Spiritual Deception and Warfare
Original: ὀχύρωμα
Category: Genuine vs False Apostleship
New term. Spiritual-warfare language risks assimilation into traditional witchcraft-combat frameworks (protective medicine, ritual counter-measures via an inyanga); must be framed as warfare against deceptive reasoning opposed to the knowledge of God, not a ritual contest of competing spiritual powers. Primary passage 10:4.
Repentance
Approved rendering: ukuphenduka
Transliteration: ukuphenduka
Doctrine: Repentance and Godly Sorrow
Original: μετάνοια
Category: Reconciliation with God
New term. Must be distinguished from ritual acts of appeasement performed to restore favor with an offended ancestral spirit; biblical repentance is a change of heart and direction toward uNkulunkulu himself, producing salvation. Primary passages 7:9-10; 12:21.
Temple Of God
Approved rendering: ithempeli likaNkulunkulu
Transliteration: ithempeli likaNkulunkulu
Doctrine: Sanctification (Extended: Temple and Purity)
Original: ναὸς θεοῦ
Category: Sanctification
New term. Must be sharply distinguished from a traditional ancestral shrine (idumba) where amadlozi are venerated and consulted; believers, individually and corporately, are the exclusive dwelling of uNkulunkulu himself through the Holy Spirit, admitting no other spirit’s residence. Primary passage 6:16.
Christ In You
Approved rendering: uKristu ekini
Transliteration: uKristu ekini
Doctrine: Christian Identity in Christ (Extended: Christ in You)
Original: Χριστὸς ἐν ὑμῖν
Category: Christian Identity in Christ
New term. Indwelling language must not be read through a possession/mediumship lens (cf. baseline incarnation caution); this is Christ’s abiding presence by the Spirit, not temporary spirit-indwelling. Primary passage 13:5.
Beside Ourselves Sound Mind
Approved rendering: sihlanya ngenxa kaNkulunkulu / siqonda kahle
Transliteration: sihlanya ngenxa kaNkulunkulu / siqonda kahle
Doctrine: Sincerity and Apostolic Authority
Original: ἐξίστημι / σωφρονέω
Category: Sincerity and Apostolic Authority
New term. Must not be read as spirit-possession-like ecstasy associated with mediumship trance states recognized in traditional Ndebele religious practice; this is single-minded devotion to God. Primary passage 5:13.
Medium Risk Terms
Gospel
Approved rendering: ivangeli
Transliteration: ivangeli
Doctrine: Gospel
Original: εὐαγγέλιον
Category: Salvation
Standard Nguni loanword, consistent with Zulu Bible usage. Inherited from Romans package. Recurs in 2 Corinthians as the content of the word/ministry of reconciliation (5:19) and in the ‘different gospel’ warning of 11:4.
Apostle
Approved rendering: umphostoli
Transliteration: umphostoli
Doctrine: Apostleship
Original: ἀπόστολος
Category: Church
Standard loanword; the New Testament office of one sent with delegated authority. Inherited from Romans package. Forms the base of new compounds false_apostles and super_apostles in this curriculum.
Church
Approved rendering: ibandla
Transliteration: ibandla
Doctrine: The Church as Believers in Christ
Rejected alternatives: isonto
Original: ἐκκλησία
Category: Church
Keeps emphasis on the gathered people, not the structure. Inherited from Romans package. Addressed directly as ‘ibandla lakuKhorinte’ in 2 Corinthians 1:1.
Veil
Approved rendering: isigubuzelo
Transliteration: isigubuzelo
Doctrine: The New Covenant versus the Old
Original: κάλυμμα
Category: New Covenant
New term. Spiritual blindness imagery removed only in Christ; must not be confused with literal ceremonial veils used in Ndebele mourning or bridal custom. Primary passages 3:13-16.
Image
Approved rendering: umfanekiso
Transliteration: umfanekiso
Doctrine: New Creation in Christ
Original: εἰκών
Category: New Creation
New term. Must convey inward moral/relational likeness to Christ, not a physical representation carrying idol-like (izithombe) connotations historically viewed with suspicion in Ndebele Protestant tradition. Primary passages 3:18; 4:4.
Guarantee Pledge
Approved rendering: isibambiso
Transliteration: isibambiso
Doctrine: Assurance of the Spirit
Original: ἀρραβών
Category: Sanctification
New term. Must convey a binding divine down-payment from God himself guaranteeing future fulfillment, not a superstitious token; carries no inherent religious resonance on its own and must be explicitly taught. Primary passages 1:22; 5:5.
Affliction
Approved rendering: inhlupheko / ukuhlupheka
Transliteration: inhlupheko / ukuhlupheka
Doctrine: Suffering and Comfort in Ministry
Original: θλῖψις / πάθημα
Category: Suffering and Comfort in Ministry
New term. Standard suffering vocabulary; principal risk lies downstream in traditional comfort-seeking practice, not the term itself. Primary passages 1:4-9; 4:17; 6:4.
Super Apostles
Approved rendering: abaphostoli abakhulukazi
Transliteration: abaphostoli abakhulukazi
Doctrine: Genuine versus False Apostleship
Original: ὑπερλίαν ἀπόστολοι
Category: Genuine vs False Apostleship
New term. Paul’s ironic term for rival teachers who boasted of superior credentials; must not be rendered as a straightforward compliment. Primary passages 11:5; 12:11.
Godly Sorrow
Approved rendering: ukudabuka ngendlela kaNkulunkulu / ukudabuka kwelizwe
Transliteration: ukudabuka ngendlela kaNkulunkulu / ukudabuka kwelizwe
Doctrine: Repentance and Godly Sorrow
Original: λύπη κατὰ θεόν / λύπη τοῦ κόσμου
Category: Reconciliation with God
New term. Must distinguish sorrow that leads to repentance and life from mere regret, shame, or fear of social/ancestral consequence. Primary passages 7:8-11.
Generosity
Approved rendering: ukuphana
Transliteration: ukuphana
Doctrine: Generosity and Grace in Giving
Original: ἁπλότης (giving sense)
Category: Generosity and Grace in Giving
New term. Shares a Greek root (haplotēs) with ‘sincerity’; this giving-sense rendering must be applied distinctly from the motive-sense rendering ukuqotho, and the shared root must be flagged to avoid inconsistent handling. Primary passages 8:2; 9:11, 13.
Sufficiency
Approved rendering: ukwaneliseka
Transliteration: ukwaneliseka
Doctrine: Generosity and Grace in Giving
Original: αὐτάρκεια
Category: Generosity and Grace in Giving
New term. Must be anchored as sufficiency supplied by God’s grace for every good work, not self-reliant sufficiency or sufficiency attributed to ancestral blessing on household and harvest. Primary passage 9:8.
Unequally Yoked
Approved rendering: ukubotshelwa ndawonye lomuntu ongakholwayo
Transliteration: ukubotshelwa ndawonye lomuntu ongakholwayo
Doctrine: Sanctification (Extended: Temple and Purity)
Original: ἑτεροζυγέω
Category: Sanctification
New term. Distinct from clan/totem avoidance customs in Ndebele culture around inappropriate unions; must keep focus specifically on spiritual incompatibility between belief and unbelief, not ethnic or clan boundary-marking. Primary passage 6:14.
Unclean
Approved rendering: okungcolileyo
Transliteration: okungcolileyo
Doctrine: Sanctification (Extended: Temple and Purity)
Original: ἀκάθαρτος
Category: Sanctification
New term. Must convey moral defilement before God, not merely ritual impurity remediable by traditional cleansing rites (ukugeza). Primary passage 6:17.
Examine Yourselves
Approved rendering: zihlolе / ukulinga
Transliteration: zihlolе / ukulinga
Doctrine: Sincerity and Apostolic Authority
Original: πειράζω / δοκιμάζω
Category: Sincerity and Apostolic Authority
New term. Must not be confused with divinatory self-diagnosis practices (e.g., consulting an isangoma to determine the spiritual cause of one’s troubles); this is examination of one’s own faith and conduct against the gospel, before God. Primary passage 13:5.
Disqualified
Approved rendering: ongaphumeleliyo ukuhlolwa
Transliteration: ongaphumeleliyo ukuhlolwa
Doctrine: Sincerity and Apostolic Authority
Original: ἀδόκιμος
Category: Sincerity and Apostolic Authority
New term. Low-moderate ambiguity beyond consistency with examine_yourselves. Primary passages 13:5-7.
Triumphal Procession
Approved rendering: umkhosi wokunqoba
Transliteration: umkhosi wokunqoba
Doctrine: Apostolic Ministry
Original: θριαμβεύω
Category: Apostolic Ministry
New term. Cultural-distance risk since there is no direct Ndebele institutional equivalent to a Roman victory parade; requires explanatory framing that this pictures Christ’s decisive triumph, with Paul as a willing participant, not a captive. Primary passage 2:14.
Boldness
Approved rendering: isibindi
Transliteration: isibindi
Doctrine: The New Covenant versus the Old
Original: παρρησία
Category: New Covenant
New term. Standard confidence vocabulary contrasted with Moses’ veiled ministry; low-moderate ambiguity. Primary passages 3:12; 7:4.
Signs Of An Apostle
Approved rendering: izibonakaliso zomphostoli
Transliteration: izibonakaliso zomphostoli
Doctrine: Genuine versus False Apostleship
Original: σημεῖα τοῦ ἀποστόλου
Category: Genuine vs False Apostleship
New term. Moderate ambiguity; must not be read as equivalent to izangoma’s claimed signs and wonders as evidence of spiritual authority. Primary passage 12:12.
Low Risk Terms
Thanksgiving
Approved rendering: ukubonga
Transliteration: ukubonga
Doctrine: Christian Encouragement
Original: εὐχαριστία
Category: Faith
Standard, low-ambiguity term. Inherited from Romans package. Recurs in 1:11, 4:15, 9:11-12.
Fellowship
Approved rendering: ubudlelwano
Transliteration: ubudlelwano
Doctrine: Fellowship of Believers
Original: κοινωνία
Category: Church
Shared relationship/participation in Christ and with other believers. Inherited from Romans package. Extended in 8:4 to shared financial participation in the collection, and appears in the Trinitarian benediction of 13:14.
Exhort
Approved rendering: ukukhuthaza
Transliteration: ukukhuthaza
Doctrine: Christian Encouragement
Original: παρακαλέω
Category: Faith
To encourage or urge. Inherited from Romans package. Must be kept distinct in sense from the new term ‘comfort’ (induduzo), which renders the same Greek root (parakaleō) in its consolation-in-suffering sense dominant in chapters 1 and 7.
Equality
Approved rendering: ukulingana
Transliteration: ukulingana
Doctrine: Generosity and Grace in Giving
Original: ἰσότης
Category: Generosity and Grace in Giving
New term. Low ambiguity; standard fairness vocabulary. Primary passages 8:13-14.
Cheerful Giver
Approved rendering: umuphi ojabulayo
Transliteration: umuphi ojabulayo
Doctrine: Generosity and Grace in Giving
Original: ἱλαρὸς δότης
Category: Generosity and Grace in Giving
New term. Low ambiguity. Primary passage 9:7.
Fragrance Of Christ
Approved rendering: iphunga likaKristu
Transliteration: iphunga likaKristu
Doctrine: Apostolic Ministry
Original: ὀσμή
Category: Apostolic Ministry
New term. Low ambiguity; standard sacrificial/reputational aroma imagery. Primary passages 2:15-16.
Jars Of Clay
Approved rendering: izitsha zobumba
Transliteration: izitsha zobumba
Doctrine: Suffering and Comfort in Ministry
Original: ὄστρακινα σκεύη
Category: Suffering and Comfort in Ministry
New term. A helpful cultural bridge, since clay vessels are a familiar Ndebele household image; low risk of confusion. Primary passage 4:7.
Holy Kiss
Approved rendering: ukwangana okungcwele
Transliteration: ukwangana okungcwele
Doctrine: Fellowship of Believers
Original: ἅγιον φίλημα
Category: Fellowship of Believers
New term. A first-century greeting custom; may be footnoted as culturally adapted to an equivalent formal greeting of holy affection among believers (e.g., a warm handshake or embrace) without altering doctrinal content. Primary passage 13:12.
Medium-High Risk Terms
According To The Flesh
Approved rendering: ngokwenyama
Transliteration: ngokwenyama
Doctrine: New Creation in Christ
Original: κατὰ σάρκα
Category: New Creation
New term/sense. Must be distinguished from the physical-descent sense of the same phrase already carried by baseline seed_of_david (inzalo kaDavida); context must establish which sense is active per occurrence. Primary passages 5:16; 10:2-3; 11:18.
Referenced passages