Core Glossary
Core Glossary — Hebrews — Romanian Language Package
This glossary covers every load-bearing theological term identified in 07_semantic_analysis.md, citing terms from every chapter of Hebrews (1-13). Terms already established in the Romans baseline translation_memory.json are marked [REUSE] and carry forward their exact recorded Romanian rendering unchanged; only new terms introduced by Hebrews receive a fresh risk assessment here. This glossary is the required Phase 2 input alongside the Romans baseline TM — it does not replace it.
A. Reused Baseline Terms (Romans TM) Appearing in Hebrews
| Term | Romanian | Risk (baseline) | Key Hebrews citations | Note |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| faith | credință | High | 3:12,19; 4:2; 6:1,12; 10:22,38-39; ch. 11 throughout; 12:2; 13:7 | Doctrine “Faith of the Old Testament Saints” is Hebrews 11’s structural refrain |
| grace | har | Critical | 2:9; 4:16; 10:29; 12:15,28; 13:9,25 | ”Throne of grace” (4:16) is a key pastoral phrase |
| salvation | mântuire | Critical | 1:14; 2:3,10; 5:9; 6:9; 9:28; 11:7 | 9:28 closes the core passage on this term |
| holy | sfânt | Medium | 3:1; 6:10; 12:10,14 | ”Holy brethren,” “share in his holiness” |
| saints/holy ones | sfinți | Critical | 6:10; 13:24 (implied “all the saints”) | Same corporate-vs-canonized risk as Romans 1:7 |
| sanctification | sfințire | High | 2:11; 10:10,14; 12:14; 13:12 | Distinguish Hebrews’ Spirit/blood-accomplished sanctification from ongoing theosis-integration |
| adoption/sonship (conceptual field) | înfiere | Medium | 2:10-13 (brethren); 12:5-8 (sons receiving discipline) | Related but distinct from κληρονομία (inheritance) — see new-term entries |
| resurrection | înviere | Critical | 6:2; 11:19,35; 13:20 | 11:35 “better resurrection” ties to κρείσσων motif |
| Lord | Domnul | Critical | 1:10; 2:3; 7:14; 13:20 | |
| Son of God | Fiul lui Dumnezeu | Critical | 1:2,5,8; 4:14; 5:5,8; 6:6; 7:3,28 | Central Christological thread of chs. 1, 5, 7 |
| incarnation (theological category) | întrupare | High | 2:14,17; 5:7 (implied) | “He himself likewise partook of flesh and blood” (2:14) |
| covenant | legământ | High | 7:22; 8:6-13; 9:4,15-20; 10:16,29; 12:24; 13:20 | Combined with “nou” for “new covenant” — see new-term entry |
| election/calling (conceptual field) | chemare / chemat | High | 3:1 (“holy brethren, partakers of a heavenly calling”); 9:15 (“those who are called”) | |
| intercession | mijlocire | High | 7:25 | Sharpened risk: Christ’s continuous personal intercession, see entry below |
| law | lege | High | 7:5,12,16,19,28; 8:4,10; 9:19,22; 10:1,8,16,28 | Mosaic law/Torah as the “shadow” superseded by the new covenant |
| sin | păcat | Medium | 1:3; 2:17; 3:13; 4:15; 5:1,3; 6:6; 7:27; 9:26,28; 10:2-26; 11:25; 12:1,4; 13:11 | Ubiquitous; core passage 9:26,28 |
| glory | slavă | Medium | 1:3; 2:7,9,10; 3:3; 9:5 (implied, cherubim of glory); 13:21 | Asset term, as in Romans |
| power of God | puterea lui Dumnezeu | Medium | 1:3 (“upholding all things”); 6:5; 7:16 | |
| Messiah/Christ | Mesia / Hristos | Critical | Throughout | ”Hristos” used as name-title; see new entry below |
| prophet(s) | proroc(i) | Low | 1:1 | ”God spoke through the prophets” |
| David | David | Low | 4:7 (Psalm quotation), 11:32 | |
| Israel | Israel | Low | 8:8,10; 11:22 | |
| Jesus | Iisus | Critical | 2:9; 3:1; 4:14; 6:20; 7:22; 10:19; 12:2,24; 13:12,20 | Orthodox Synodal spelling standardized per baseline |
| God | Dumnezeu | Critical | Throughout | |
| Holy Spirit | Duhul Sfânt | Critical | 2:4; 3:7; 6:4; 9:8; 10:15 | Distinct from 9:14’s disputed “eternal Spirit” (Πνεῦμα αἰώνιον) — see new entry |
| Father | Tată | Critical | 1:5; 12:7,9 | |
| exhort | a îndemna | Low | 3:13; 10:25; 13:19,22 | |
| Moses (proper name convention) | Moise | Low | 3:2-16; 7:14; 8:5; 9:19; 11:23-24; 12:21 | |
| Aaron (proper name convention, new to this book) | Aaron | Low | 5:4; 7:11; 9:4 | Standard Romanian Bible form |
B. New Terms Introduced by Hebrews
| Term (English) | Original / Transliteration | Romanian rendering | Doctrine | Risk | Primary citations | Alternatives rejected | Notes |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| High Priest | ἀρχιερεύς / archiereus | arhiereu | Christ as the Great High Priest | Critical | 2:17; 3:1; 4:14-15; 5:1,5,10; 6:20; 7:26-28; 8:1,3; 9:7,11,25 | ”mare preot” (Cornilescu-tradition variant, acceptable in Evangelical-facing material) | Direct collision with the contemporary Orthodox ecclesiastical title for a bishop (“arhiereu”). Every occurrence applied to Christ requires a standing note distinguishing his unique, non-transferable heavenly priesthood from the ongoing episcopal office bearing the identical title. |
| priest (Levitical) | ἱερεύς / hiereus | preot | Superiority of Christ over the Levitical Priesthood | Medium | 5:6; 7:1-3,11,14-15,20-23; 8:4; 9:6; 10:11 | — | Standard term, but note contemporary parish clergy are also called “preoți”; context (OT sacrificial system) must stay explicit. |
| tabernacle | σκηνή / skēnē | cort | New Covenant vs. Old / Access to God | High | 8:2,5; 9:2-3,6,8,11,21; 13:10 | ”tabernacol” (more literal loanword, less natural in running Romanian prose) | The “greater and more perfect tabernacle” (9:11) is the heavenly original; must be clearly distinguished from the earthly copy in every occurrence. |
| the Holy Place / Holy of Holies | ἅγια / ἅγια ἁγίων / hagia / hagia hagiōn | Locul Sfânt / Sfânta Sfintelor | Access to God through Christ’s Blood | High | 9:2-3,8,12,24-25; 10:19 | — | 9:12’s bare τὰ ἅγια is contextually ambiguous between “the sanctuary” generally and “the Most Holy Place” specifically; teaching notes should flag the ambiguity rather than resolve it silently. |
| blood | αἷμα / haima | sânge | The Once-for-All Atoning Sacrifice | Critical | 9:7,12-14,18-22,25; 10:4,19,29; 11:28; 12:24; 13:11-12,20 | — | The central material term of the entire atonement argument; consistency across all occurrences is essential. |
| redemption | λύτρωσις / ἀπολύτρωσις / lytrōsis / apolytrōsis | răscumpărare | The Once-for-All Atoning Sacrifice | Critical | 9:12,15 | ”eliberare” (release only — rejected for losing the costly-ransom dimension) | Carries kinsman-redeemer background; must not be flattened into a purely legal release without cost. |
| mediator | μεσίτης / mesitēs | mijlocitor | The New Covenant versus the Old | Critical | 8:6; 9:15; 12:24 | — | Shares a root with baseline “mijlocire” (intercession); collision risk with Orthodox saint/Marian mediation is sharper here since this names Christ’s unique mediating office directly. Must be paired with 7:25’s teaching that Christ himself, personally, mediates and intercedes. |
| conscience | συνείδησις / syneidēsis | conștiință | The Once-for-All Atoning Sacrifice | Critical | 9:9,14; 10:2,22; 13:18 | — | Core-passage 9:14’s key term: Christ’s blood cleanses conscience, not merely ritual status; distinguish from, but do not contradict, ongoing sacramental confession practice. |
| forgiveness / remission | ἄφεσις / aphesis | iertare | The Once-for-All Atoning Sacrifice | Critical | 9:22; 10:18 | — | States the chapter’s governing axiom: no forgiveness without bloodshed. |
| better (comparative) | κρείσσων / κρεῖττον / kreissōn | mai bun / mai bună | Superiority of Christ (structural, all doctrines) | High | 1:4; 6:9; 7:7,19,22; 8:6; 9:23; 10:34; 11:16,35,40; 12:24 | — | The epistle’s organizing comparative motif; requires lexical consistency across the whole curriculum, not just single verses. |
| promise | ἐπαγγελία / epangelia | făgăduință | The New Covenant versus the Old / Faith of the OT Saints | Medium | 4:1; 6:12-17; 7:6; 8:6; 9:15; 10:23,36; 11:9,11,13,17,33,39 | ”promisiune” (acceptable secondary variant) | Formal covenantal pledge-language; ties chapters 6, 8, 9, and 11 together. |
| inheritance | κληρονομία / klēronomia | moștenire | The New Covenant versus the Old | Medium | 1:4 (heir); 6:12,17; 9:15; 11:7-8 | — | Related to, but distinct from, baseline “înfiere” — inheritance is the content received, adoption is the status granting it. |
| copy / antitype | ἀντίτυπος / antitypos | închipuire / chip corespunzător | Christ as the Great High Priest / New Covenant vs. Old | High | 9:24 | ”antitip” (transliteration — rejected; collides with the distinct technical Orthodox liturgical use of “antitip” for the Eucharistic elements) | Do not transliterate; the Hebrews sense (earthly copy vs. heavenly original) runs in a different direction from Orthodox liturgical “antitip” usage. |
| copy / pattern | ὑπόδειγμα / hypodeigma | chip / pildă | New Covenant vs. Old | Medium | 4:11 (different sense, “example”); 8:5; 9:23 | — | Earthly sanctuary as a mere sketch of the heavenly reality. |
| true / genuine | ἀληθινός / alēthinos | adevărat | New Covenant vs. Old | Medium | 8:2; 9:24; 10:22 | — | Contrasts the heavenly reality with its earthly shadow. |
| service / ministry | λειτουργία / leitourgia | slujire | Christ as the Great High Priest | Critical | 8:2,6; 9:1,6,21; 10:11 | ”liturghie” (rejected — the fixed proper term for the contemporary Divine Liturgy; using it here would import Eucharistic sacramental categories into OT/Christ’s-heavenly-ministry contexts Hebrews never intends) | Apply consistently: “slujire/slujitor,” never “liturghie/liturgh,” throughout Hebrews. |
| sacrifice | θυσία / thysia | jertfă | The Once-for-All Atoning Sacrifice | Critical | 5:1; 7:27; 8:3; 9:9,23,26; 10:1,5,8,11-12,26; 11:4; 13:15-16 | — | Note the metaphorical extension at 13:15 (“sacrifice of praise”) must be clearly distinguished from the atoning sacrifices of chs. 9-10. |
| to offer | προσφέρω / prospherō | a aduce / a se aduce (ca jertfă) | The Once-for-All Atoning Sacrifice | Medium | 5:1,3,7; 8:3-4; 9:7,14,25,28; 10:1-2,8,11-12; 11:4,17 | — | Priestly, cultic offering-verb applied both to Levitical priests and, uniquely, to Christ offering himself. |
| to make propitiation | ἱλάσκομαι / hilaskomai | a ispăși | The Once-for-All Atoning Sacrifice | Critical | 2:17 | ”a împăca” (to reconcile — acceptable as a complementary gloss but insufficient alone; loses the specifically sin-bearing, wrath-averting dimension) | Foundational atonement verb; must convey costly, God-ward dealing-with-sin, not merely subjective reconciliation of feelings. |
| mercy seat / atonement cover | ἱλαστήριον / hilastērion | capacul ispășirii | The Once-for-All Atoning Sacrifice | Critical | 9:5 | ”altarul îndurării” (acceptable secondary variant) | Identical Greek word used of Christ himself in Romans 3:25 (flagged for escalation there but not resolved in the Romans TM); the cross-reference between the physical object and Christ’s person should be made explicit in teaching material. |
| angel | ἄγγελος / angelos | înger | Superiority of Christ over Angels | High | 1:4-13; 2:2,5,7,9,16; 12:22; 13:2 | — | Contemporary Orthodox angel veneration (feast days, akathists to Michael/Gabriel) requires the distinction between veneration and the worship reserved for Christ alone (1:6) to be taught explicitly. |
| pioneer / founder / author | ἀρχηγός / archēgos | Începător | Christ as the Great High Priest | High | 2:10; 12:2 | ”Căpetenie” (acceptable secondary variant) | Unique soteriological title; not to be confused with baseline “apostol.” |
| rest | κατάπαυσις / katapausis | odihnă | New Covenant / Perseverance | High | 3:11,18; 4:1,3,5,10-11 | — | God’s promised eschatological rest, not mere relaxation; foundational to ch. 4’s argument. |
| Sabbath rest | σαββατισμός / sabbatismos | odihnă de Sabat | New Covenant / Perseverance | Medium | 4:9 | — | Distinct from, though related to, κατάπαυσις above. |
| boldness / confidence | παρρησία / parrēsia | încredere / îndrăzneală | Access to God through Christ’s Blood | High | 3:6; 4:16; 10:19,35 | — | Must convey confident, granted access — not presumption, not timidity. |
| to draw near | προσέρχομαι / proserchomai | a se apropia | Access to God through Christ’s Blood | High | 4:16; 7:25; 10:1,22; 11:6; 12:18,22 | — | Key access-verb; consistent rendering required across all occurrences. |
| order of Melchizedek | τάξις Μελχισέδεκ / taxis Melchisedek | rânduiala lui Melchisedec | Superiority over the Levitical Priesthood | High | 5:6,10; 6:20; 7:11,17 | — | Names the epistle’s central priestly-typology argument, developed fully in ch. 7. |
| to perfect / make perfect | τελειόω / teleioō | a desăvârși | Christ as the Great High Priest / Perseverance | High | 2:10; 5:9; 7:19,28; 9:9; 10:1,14; 11:40; 12:2,23 | — | Distinguish Christ’s completed, unique perfecting as High Priest from believers’ ongoing, communal, still-future perfecting; avoid collapsing into open-ended Orthodox theosis-language without this distinction. |
| repentance | μετάνοια / metanoia | pocăință | Danger of Apostasy | High | 6:1,6; 12:17 | — | Distinguish foundational, initial repentance from the ongoing sacramental rite of Confession, without opposing the two. |
| to fall away / apostatize | παραπίπτω / ἀφίστημι / parapiptō / aphistēmi | a se abate / a se lepăda | Danger of Apostasy and Warning Passages | Critical | 3:12; 6:6 | ”a păcătui” (too generic — loses the sense of decisive defection from the faith) | Core vocabulary of the epistle’s warning passages; must convey decisive defection, not a minor lapse. |
| veil | καταπέτασμα / katapetasma | catapeteasmă | Access to God through Christ’s Blood | Critical | 6:19; 9:3; 10:20 | — | Identical Romanian word denotes the iconostasis in every Orthodox church today. Genuinely resonant (the veil separating Holy Place from Most Holy) but doctrinally double-edged: Hebrews’ point is that the veil is now torn/opened (10:20), granting direct access — the opposite of an enduring architectural separation. Requires sustained, coordinated teaching notes at all three occurrences. |
| oath | ὅρκος / horkos | jurământ | New Covenant / Superiority over the Levitical Priesthood | Medium | 6:16-17; 7:20-21,28 | — | God’s self-sworn oath to Abraham and concerning Christ’s priesthood. |
| guarantor / surety | ἔγγυος / engyos | garant / chezaș | Superiority over the Levitical Priesthood | High | 7:22 | — | Christ personally guarantees the better covenant. |
| assurance / substantial reality | ὑπόστασις / hypostasis (Heb 11:1 sense) | încredințare / adeverire | Faith of the Old Testament Saints | Critical | 11:1 | ”ipostas/ipostază” (transliteration — MUST NOT be used) | Identical root to the Orthodox Trinitarian/Christological technical term for a divine Person; Hebrews 11:1 uses the word in an entirely unrelated sense. Explicit “do not transliterate” instruction required in Phase 2. |
| conviction / evidence | ἔλεγχος / elenchos | dovadă / dovedire | Faith of the Old Testament Saints | Medium | 11:1 | — | Paired with ὑπόστασις above in the chapter’s programmatic definition of faith. |
| endurance | ὑπομονή / hypomonē | răbdare / stăruință | Perseverance and Assurance | High | 10:36; 12:1 | — | Active, faithful persistence, not passive resignation. |
| to shrink back | ὑποστέλλω / hypostellō | a da înapoi / a se retrage | Danger of Apostasy | High | 10:38-39 | — | Negative counterpart to endurance; warning-passage vocabulary. |
| destruction / perdition | ἀπώλεια / apōleia | pieire | Danger of Apostasy | High | 10:39 | — | Names the warning-passages’ negative outcome. |
| discipline | παιδεία / paideia | disciplină / certare părintească | Perseverance and Assurance | High | 12:5-11 | ”pedeapsă” (rejected as primary rendering — too strongly connotes punitive retribution rather than the passage’s explicit framing of formative, loving, fatherly training) | Must be taught as an expression of God’s fatherly love, not punitive retribution. |
| firstborn (corporate) | πρωτότοκοι / prōtotokoi | cei întâi-născuți | Church as God’s assembled people (conceptual link to Romans baseline “church”) | Medium | 12:23 | — | Distinguish from any unique title of Christ; here it denotes believers’ privileged heavenly enrollment. |
| shedding of blood | αἱματεκχυσία / haimatekchysia | vărsare de sânge | The Once-for-All Atoning Sacrifice | Medium | 9:22 | — | Rare NT compound; underscores that a life must be violently given, not merely present. |
| annulment / putting away | ἀθέτησις / athetēsis | înlăturare / nimicire | The Once-for-All Atoning Sacrifice | High | 9:26 | — | Sin’s claim/power is decisively nullified, not merely deferred or ritually managed. |
| judgment | κρίσις / krisis | judecată | Perseverance and Assurance / eschatology | Medium | 9:27; 10:27 | — | The universal human pattern (death, then judgment) against which Christ’s unique pattern is contrasted. |
| to bear away (sin) | ἀναφέρω / anapherō | a ridica / a lua asupra Sa | The Once-for-All Atoning Sacrifice | Critical | 9:28 | — | Direct echo of the Suffering Servant (Isaiah 53 LXX); Christ bears away the sins of many. |
| to eagerly await | προσδέχομαι / prosdechomai | a aștepta (cu nădejde) | Perseverance and Assurance | Medium | 9:28 | — | The proper posture of confident expectation of Christ’s return. |
| Melchizedek (proper name) | Μελχισέδεκ | Melchisedec | Superiority over the Levitical Priesthood | Low | 5:6,10; 6:20; 7:1-17 | — | Established Romanian Bible proper-name form. |
| without genealogy | ἀγενεαλόγητος / agenealogētos | fără genealogie / fără neam | Superiority over the Levitical Priesthood | Medium | 7:3 | — | Supports Melchizedek’s typological timelessness. |
| permanent (priesthood) | ἀπαράβατος / aparabatos | netrecătoare / neschimbătoare | Christ as the Great High Priest | High | 7:24 | — | Christ’s priesthood has no successor and cannot lapse. |
| great shepherd | ὁ ποιμὴν ὁ μέγας / ho poimēn ho megas | Păstorul cel mare | Perseverance and Assurance | Medium | 13:20 | — | Pastoral title for Christ closing the epistle. |
| hospitality | φιλοξενία / philoxenia | ospitalitate / iubire de oaspeți | (General ethical exhortation, ch. 13) | Low | 13:2 | — | Standard term; minimal risk. |
| bearing his reproach | ὄνειδος αὐτοῦ φέρειν / oneidos autou pherein | a purta ocara Lui | Perseverance and Assurance | Medium | 13:13 | — | Identifying with Christ’s rejection, outside the “camp.” |
C. Note on Structural Consistency Requirements for Phase 2
The following terms require cross-document lexical consistency checks beyond ordinary translation-memory enforcement, because their doctrinal force depends on the reader recognizing the same Romanian word recurring across widely separated chapters:
- κρείσσων → mai bun/mai bună (1:4; 6:9; 7:7,19,22; 8:6; 9:23; 10:34; 11:16,35,40; 12:24)
- ἅπαξ/ἐφάπαξ → o dată (pentru totdeauna) (7:27; 9:12,25-28; 10:10)
- καταπέτασμα → catapeteasmă (6:19; 9:3; 10:20) — with escalating teaching notes at each occurrence, culminating at 10:20’s “torn open” resolution
- αἷμα τῆς διαθήκης → sângele legământului (9:20; 13:20, “celui veșnic”)
- ἀρχιερεύς → arhiereu, applied to Christ (2:17 through 10:21) — standing distinguishing note at first occurrence per curriculum unit
- τελειόω → a desăvârși, tracking the distinction between Christ’s completed perfecting and believers’ still-future perfecting (2:10; 5:9; 7:19,28; 9:9; 10:1,14; 11:40; 12:2,23)
This glossary extends the Romans baseline translation_memory.json and bible_term_registry.json. All Section A terms carry forward their baseline Romanian rendering unmodified. All Section B terms must be added to translation_memory.json and bible_term_registry.json in Phase 2 Step 9-10 with the risk tiers recorded above.
Critical Risk Terms
Grace
Approved rendering: har
Transliteration: charis
Doctrine: Grace
Rejected alternatives: favoare doar în sens legal, fără nicio participare reală a credinciosului
Original: χάρις
Category: Salvation
Inherited from Romans package unchanged. Hebrews 4:16’s ‘throne of grace’ (tronul harului) is a key pastoral phrase for confident access; occurs also 2:9; 10:29; 12:15,28; 13:9,25. Preserve the Orthodox participatory (uncreated-energies) dimension without collapsing it into merit or a created substance.
Salvation
Approved rendering: mântuire
Transliteration: sōtēria
Doctrine: Salvation
Original: σωτηρία
Category: Salvation
Inherited from Romans package unchanged. Hebrews 9:28 closes the core passage on this term, framing final salvation as something eagerly awaited at Christ’s return (1:14; 2:3,10; 5:9; 6:9; 9:28; 11:7); preserve decisiveness without flatly contradicting the Orthodox theosis framework readers will supply.
Saints
Approved rendering: sfinți
Transliteration: hagioi
Doctrine: Sainthood
Rejected alternatives: sfinți canonizați, venerați prin icoane și moaște, invocați ca mijlocitori
Original: ἅγιοι
Category: Church
Inherited from Romans package unchanged. Occurs at Hebrews 6:10 and 13:24 in the same corporate sense as Romans 1:7; requires the standing clarifying note at every occurrence distinguishing corporate sainthood from canonized-saint veneration.
Resurrection
Approved rendering: înviere
Transliteration: anastasis
Doctrine: Resurrection of Christ
Original: ἀνάστασις
Category: Eschatology
Inherited from Romans package unchanged. Hebrews 11:35’s ‘better resurrection’ (înviere mai bună) ties directly to the epistle’s κρείσσων (‘better’) motif; occurs also 6:2; 13:20. Never dilute into vague spiritual renewal.
Lord
Approved rendering: Domnul
Transliteration: kyrios
Doctrine: Lordship of Christ
Original: κύριος
Category: Christology
Inherited from Romans package unchanged. Applied to Christ at Hebrews 1:10; 2:3; 7:14; 13:20; preserve exclusive, supreme lordship.
Son Of God
Approved rendering: Fiul lui Dumnezeu
Transliteration: huios theou
Doctrine: Sonship of Christ
Rejected alternatives: fiu al lui Dumnezeu în sensul generic aplicat oricărui credincios
Original: υἱὸς θεοῦ
Category: Christology
Inherited from Romans package unchanged. Central Christological thread of Hebrews 1, 5, and 7 (1:2,5,8; 4:14; 5:5,8; 6:6; 7:3,28); must remain distinct from the adoptive sonship language applied to believers (2:10-13, 12:5-8).
Messiah
Approved rendering: Mesia
Transliteration: Christos / Mashiach
Doctrine: Messianic Promise
Original: Χριστός / מָשִׁיחַ
Category: Christology
Inherited from Romans package unchanged as a title. Throughout Hebrews, ‘Χριστός’ most often functions as a fused name-title (‘Hristos’) rather than a stand-alone titular claim; see the separate new entry ‘christ_name_title’ for that usage.
Jesus
Approved rendering: Iisus
Transliteration: Iēsous / Yeshua
Doctrine: Lordship of Christ
Rejected alternatives: Isus (Protestant/Cornilescu spelling)
Original: Ἰησοῦς / יֵשׁוּעַ
Category: Christology
Inherited from Romans package unchanged. Standardized as ‘Iisus’ (Orthodox Synodal spelling); ‘Isus’ noted only as the expected Evangelical/Cornilescu-tradition variant, never mixed within one document. Occurs throughout Hebrews (2:9; 3:1; 4:14; 6:20; 7:22; 10:19; 12:2,24; 13:12,20).
God
Approved rendering: Dumnezeu
Transliteration: theos / Elohim / YHWH
Doctrine: Deity of Christ
Original: θεός / אֱלֹהִים / יהוה
Category: God
Inherited from Romans package unchanged.
Holy Spirit
Approved rendering: Duhul Sfânt
Transliteration: pneuma hagion
Doctrine: Sanctification
Original: πνεῦμα ἅγιον
Category: God
Inherited from Romans package unchanged. Occurs at Hebrews 2:4; 3:7; 6:4; 9:8; 10:15. Distinct from Hebrews 9:14’s disputed ‘eternal Spirit’ — see the separate new entry ‘eternal_spirit.‘
Father
Approved rendering: Tată
Transliteration: patēr
Doctrine: Adoption into God’s Family
Original: πατήρ
Category: God
Inherited from Romans package unchanged. Occurs at Hebrews 1:5 and 12:7,9 (fatherly discipline).
Christ Name Title
Approved rendering: Hristos
Transliteration: Christos
Doctrine: Deity and Sonship of Christ
Rejected alternatives: Isus (Cornilescu-tradition spelling; must not be mixed with Iisus within one document)
Original: Χριστός
Category: Christology
New registry entry, distinct from ‘messiah,’ for Hebrews’ frequent fused name-title usage of Χριστός paired with Ἰησοῦς (e.g., 9:11). Use the established Romanian Orthodox Synodal form ‘Hristos,’ paired consistently with ‘Iisus.‘
High Priest
Approved rendering: arhiereu
Transliteration: archiereus
Doctrine: Christ as the Great High Priest
Rejected alternatives: mare preot (Cornilescu-tradition variant, acceptable in Evangelical-facing material only)
Original: ἀρχιερεύς
Category: Priesthood
New term. Direct collision with the contemporary Orthodox ecclesiastical title for a bishop (‘Sfântul Sinod al Arhiereilor’). Every occurrence applied to Christ (2:17; 3:1; 4:14-15; 5:1,5,10; 6:20; 7:26-28; 8:1,3; 9:7,11,25) requires a standing translator note distinguishing his unique, non-transferable heavenly priesthood from the ongoing episcopal office bearing the identical title. Never let ‘arhiereu’ stand alone without a qualifier such as ‘ceresc’ or ‘al nostru’ nearby.
Mediator
Approved rendering: mijlocitor
Transliteration: mesitēs
Doctrine: The New Covenant versus the Old
Original: μεσίτης
Category: Covenant
New term sharing a root with ‘mijlocire’ (intercession). Occurs at 8:6; 9:15; 12:24, naming Christ’s unique covenant-ratifying office directly. Sharper collision risk than ‘mijlocire’ alone since this names an exclusive office; must be paired with the 7:25 teaching that Christ himself, personally, mediates and intercedes.
Veil
Approved rendering: catapeteasmă
Transliteration: katapetasma
Doctrine: Access to God through Christ’s Blood
Original: καταπέτασμα
Category: Access
New term and the single highest cultural-collision risk term in the entire curriculum: the identical Romanian word denotes the iconostasis present in every Orthodox parish church today. Occurs at 6:19; 9:3; and climactically 10:20, where Hebrews identifies the veil with Christ’s own torn-open flesh — the opposite of an enduring architectural separation. Requires sustained, coordinated, escalating teaching notes at all three occurrences.
Blood
Approved rendering: sânge
Transliteration: haima
Doctrine: The Once-for-All Atoning Sacrifice
Original: αἷμα
Category: Salvation
New term but the central material term of the entire atonement argument; occurs at 9:7,12-14,18-22,25; 10:4,19,29; 11:28; 12:24; 13:11-12,20. Consistency across all occurrences, especially the fixed phrase ‘sângele legământului’ (9:20; 13:20), is essential.
Sacrifice
Approved rendering: jertfă
Transliteration: thysia
Doctrine: The Once-for-All Atoning Sacrifice
Original: θυσία
Category: Salvation
New term. Occurs at 5:1; 7:27; 8:3; 9:9,23,26; 10:1,5,8,11-12,26; 11:4; 13:15-16. The metaphorical extension at 13:15 (‘sacrifice of praise’) must be clearly distinguished from the atoning sacrifices of chapters 9-10.
Propitiation
Approved rendering: a ispăși
Transliteration: hilaskomai
Doctrine: Propitiation and the Cleansing of Conscience
Rejected alternatives: a împăca (to reconcile — acceptable complementary gloss but insufficient alone; loses the specifically sin-bearing, wrath-averting dimension)
Original: ἱλάσκομαι
Category: Salvation
New term foundational to the doctrine of the Once-for-All Atoning Sacrifice. Occurs at 2:17: Christ ‘to make propitiation for the sins of the people.’ Must convey costly, God-ward dealing with sin’s guilt, not merely subjective reconciliation of feelings.
Mercy Seat
Approved rendering: capacul ispășirii
Transliteration: hilastērion
Doctrine: The Once-for-All Atoning Sacrifice
Rejected alternatives: altarul îndurării (acceptable secondary variant)
Original: ἱλαστήριον
Category: Salvation
New term. Occurs at 9:5. Identical Greek word describes Christ himself as ‘the propitiation’ in Romans 3:25 (flagged there for escalation but not resolved in the Romans TM); the cross-reference between the physical object here and Christ’s own person there should be made explicit in teaching material.
Redemption
Approved rendering: răscumpărare
Transliteration: lytrōsis / apolytrōsis
Doctrine: The Once-for-All Atoning Sacrifice
Rejected alternatives: eliberare (release only — rejected for losing the costly-ransom dimension)
Original: λύτρωσις / ἀπολύτρωσις
Category: Salvation
New term carrying kinsman-redeemer background. Occurs at 9:12,15. Must not be flattened into a purely legal release without cost; attach OT kinsman-redeemer background material (Ruth’s Boaz; Leviticus 25) in the doctrine unit.
Conscience
Approved rendering: conștiință
Transliteration: syneidēsis
Doctrine: Propitiation and the Cleansing of Conscience
Original: συνείδησις
Category: Salvation
New term, the core-passage’s key theological claim (9:14): Christ’s blood cleanses conscience, not merely ritual status. Occurs also at 9:9; 10:2,22; 13:18. Must be distinguished from, but not set against, the ongoing pastoral/sacramental practice of Confession (Taina Spovedaniei).
Forgiveness
Approved rendering: iertare
Transliteration: aphesis
Doctrine: The Once-for-All Atoning Sacrifice
Original: ἄφεσις
Category: Salvation
New term stating the chapter’s governing axiom: no forgiveness without bloodshed. Occurs at 9:22; 10:18.
Bear Away Sin
Approved rendering: a ridica / a lua asupra Sa (păcatele)
Transliteration: anapherō
Doctrine: The Once-for-All Atoning Sacrifice
Original: ἀναφέρω
Category: Salvation
New term at 9:28, a direct echo of the Suffering Servant (Isaiah 53:12 LXX). Christ’s sacrifice bears away the sins of many.
Service Ministry
Approved rendering: slujire
Transliteration: leitourgia
Doctrine: Christ as the Great High Priest
Rejected alternatives: liturghie (rejected — the fixed proper term for the contemporary Divine Liturgy; using it here would import the entire apparatus of contemporary Eucharistic sacramental worship into first-century descriptions of the Mosaic tabernacle’s service and Christ’s heavenly priestly ministry)
Original: λειτουργία
Category: Priesthood
New term. Must render ‘slujire/slujitor,’ never ‘liturghie/liturgh,’ throughout Hebrews. Occurs at 8:2,6; 9:1,6,21; 10:11.
Assurance Hypostasis
Approved rendering: încredințare / adeverire
Transliteration: hypostasis
Doctrine: Faith of the Old Testament Saints
Rejected alternatives: ipostas/ipostază (transliteration — MUST NOT be used; collides with the fixed Orthodox Trinitarian/Christological technical term for a divine Person)
Original: ὑπόστασις
Category: Faith
New term at 11:1’s programmatic definition of faith. Severe collision risk: shares its exact root with ‘ipostas/ipostază.’ Hebrews 11:1 uses the word in an entirely unrelated sense (confident assurance, underlying reality of things hoped for). Explicit ‘do not transliterate’ instruction required in every Phase 2 segment touching this verse.
Fall Away
Approved rendering: a se abate / a se lepăda
Transliteration: parapiptō / aphistēmi
Doctrine: The Danger of Apostasy and Warning Passages
Rejected alternatives: a păcătui (too generic — loses the sense of decisive defection from the faith)
Original: παραπίπτω / ἀφίστημι
Category: Apostasy/Perseverance
New term, core vocabulary of the epistle’s warning passages (3:12; 6:6). Use ‘a se lepăda de credință’ as the primary phrase for the sharper 6:6 sense; reserve ‘a se abate’ for milder drift-language at 3:12. Must convey decisive defection, not a minor lapse.
High Risk Terms
Gospel
Approved rendering: evanghelie
Transliteration: euangelion
Doctrine: Gospel
Original: εὐαγγέλιον
Category: Salvation
Inherited from Romans package unchanged. Hebrews assumes this proclamation as background (4:2, 4:6 ‘good news’) without using the noun as often as Romans; render identically wherever it occurs.
Faith
Approved rendering: credință
Transliteration: pistis
Doctrine: Faith
Rejected alternatives: evlavie religioasă generală
Original: πίστις
Category: Faith
Inherited from Romans package unchanged. Hebrews 11’s repeated ‘by faith’ (πίστει) formula makes this the structural backbone of the doctrine ‘Faith of the Old Testament Saints’ (3:12,19; 4:2; 6:1,12; 10:22,38-39; ch. 11 throughout; 12:2; 13:7); must not be diluted into general piety or inherited religious identity.
Sanctification
Approved rendering: sfințire
Transliteration: hagiasmos
Doctrine: Sanctification
Original: ἁγιασμός
Category: Sanctification
Inherited from Romans package unchanged. Hebrews 10:10,14 ties sanctification directly to Christ’s single sacrifice (‘by that one offering he has perfected… those who are being sanctified’); occurs also 2:11; 12:14; 13:12. Teach alongside, not against, the Orthodox theosis-integration framework.
Incarnation
Approved rendering: întrupare
Transliteration: ho logos sarx egeneto
Doctrine: Incarnation
Original: ὁ λόγος σὰρξ ἐγένετο (theological category; cf. Heb. 2:14,17)
Category: Christology
Inherited from Romans package unchanged. Hebrews 2:14,17 (‘he himself likewise partook of flesh and blood’) grounds Christ’s qualification as merciful, faithful high priest; Orthodox readers will naturally supply the theosis-basis emphasis (Athanasius), but Hebrews’ own emphasis — solidarity qualifying him as priest and kinsman-redeemer — must remain primary.
Covenant
Approved rendering: legământ
Transliteration: diathēkē
Doctrine: Davidic Covenant
Rejected alternatives: contract legal
Original: διαθήκη
Category: Covenant
Inherited from Romans package unchanged. Hebrews exploits a Greek double-sense (covenant/last will and testament) at 9:16-17 that Romanian ‘legământ’ cannot reproduce; a standing explanatory note is required there. Combined with ‘nou’ for the ‘new covenant’ doctrine (8:8,13; 9:15; 12:24).
Calling
Approved rendering: chemare
Transliteration: klēsis
Doctrine: Divine Calling
Rejected alternatives: chemare monahală (specifically a call to monastic life)
Original: κλῆσις
Category: Salvation
Inherited from Romans package unchanged. Hebrews 3:1’s ‘holy brethren, partakers of a heavenly calling’ must not default to the culturally strong Orthodox category of ‘chemare monahală.‘
Intercession
Approved rendering: mijlocire
Transliteration: entynchanō
Doctrine: Prayer and Intercession
Rejected alternatives: mijlocirea exclusivă a sfinților și a Maicii Domnului
Original: ἐντυγχάνω (Heb 7:25) / ὑπερεντυγχάνει (cf. Rom 8:26)
Category: Faith
Inherited from Romans package but sharpened for Hebrews: 7:25 (‘he always lives to make intercession for them’) is the epistle’s clearest single statement that Christ himself, personally and continuously, is believers’ intercessor. Foreground this verse before any teaching on requesting others’ prayers, given the liturgically constant Orthodox practice of petitioning saints and the Theotokos.
Law
Approved rendering: lege
Transliteration: nomos
Doctrine: Fulfillment of Prophecy
Original: νόμος
Category: Covenant
Inherited from Romans package unchanged. Hebrews treats the law and its cultic regulations (7:5-28; 9:19-22; 10:1-28) as a ‘shadow’ of the reality fulfilled in Christ.
Order Of Melchizedek
Approved rendering: rânduiala lui Melchisedec
Transliteration: taxis Melchisedek
Doctrine: The Order of Melchizedek and Superiority over the Levitical Priesthood
Original: τάξις Μελχισέδεκ
Category: Priesthood
New term. No native Romanian analogue exists; introduces the epistle’s central priestly-typology argument, fully developed in chapter 7 (5:6,10; 6:20; 7:11,17). Always introduce with a one-sentence gloss at first occurrence per teaching unit.
Permanent Priesthood
Approved rendering: netrecătoare
Transliteration: aparabatos
Doctrine: Christ as the Great High Priest
Original: ἀπαράβατος
Category: Priesthood
New term at 7:24. Render as the fuller phrase ‘preoție netrecătoare, care nu poate trece la altul’ rather than the bare adjective alone, to preserve the specific ‘no successor’ nuance central to the chapter’s argument, distinct from the generic ‘eternal’ (veșnică).
Guarantor
Approved rendering: garant
Transliteration: engyos
Doctrine: The New Covenant versus the Old
Original: ἔγγυος
Category: Covenant
New term at 7:22: Christ personally guarantees the better covenant.
To Perfect
Approved rendering: a desăvârși
Transliteration: teleioō
Doctrine: Christ as the Great High Priest
Original: τελειόω
Category: Priesthood
New term recurring at 2:10; 5:9; 7:19,28; 9:9; 10:1,14; 11:40; 12:2,23. Must distinguish Christ’s completed, unique qualification as High Priest (a finished historical event) from believers’ still-future, communal perfecting, avoiding collapse into open-ended Orthodox theosis-language (‘desăvârșire’).
Tabernacle
Approved rendering: cort
Transliteration: skēnē
Doctrine: The Heavenly Sanctuary and Tabernacle Typology
Rejected alternatives: tabernacol (loanword, less natural in running Romanian prose)
Original: σκηνή
Category: Access
New term. The ‘greater and more perfect tabernacle’ (9:11) is the heavenly original; must be clearly distinguished from the earthly copy at every occurrence (8:2,5; 9:2-3,6,8,11,21; 13:10).
Holy Place
Approved rendering: Locul Sfânt / Sfânta Sfintelor
Transliteration: hagia / hagia hagiōn
Doctrine: Access to God through Christ’s Blood
Original: ἅγια / ἅγια ἁγίων
Category: Access
New term. 9:12’s bare τὰ ἅγια is contextually ambiguous between the general sanctuary and specifically the Most Holy Place; teaching notes should flag rather than silently resolve the ambiguity. Occurs at 9:2-3,8,12,24-25; 10:19.
Boldness
Approved rendering: încredere / îndrăzneală
Transliteration: parrēsia
Doctrine: Access to God through Christ’s Blood
Original: παρρησία
Category: Access
New term central to the doctrine of Access to God through Christ’s Blood. Occurs at 3:6; 4:16; 10:19,35. Must convey confident, granted access — neither timid hesitancy nor presumption.
Draw Near
Approved rendering: a se apropia
Transliteration: proserchomai
Doctrine: Access to God through Christ’s Blood
Original: προσέρχομαι
Category: Access
New term, key access-verb recurring at 4:16; 7:25; 10:1,22; 11:6; 12:18,22. Must render consistently as bold, direct, confident approach to God himself, not tentative petitioning routed through an intermediary figure.
Annulment
Approved rendering: înlăturare
Transliteration: athetēsis
Doctrine: The Once-for-All Atoning Sacrifice
Original: ἀθέτησις
Category: Salvation
New term at 9:26: sin’s claim/power is decisively nullified by Christ’s sacrifice, not merely deferred or ritually managed.
Once For All
Approved rendering: o dată (pentru totdeauna)
Transliteration: hapax / ephapax
Doctrine: The Once-for-All Atoning Sacrifice
Original: ἅπαξ / ἐφάπαξ
Category: Salvation
New term recurring at 7:27; 9:12,25-28; 10:10. Must always be rendered with unambiguous finality, never softened toward ‘an occasion’ or ‘a time.’ Requires cross-document lexical consistency.
Better
Approved rendering: mai bun / mai bună
Transliteration: kreissōn / kreitton
Doctrine: Superiority of Christ over Angels, Moses, and the Levitical Priesthood
Original: κρείσσων / κρεῖττον
Category: Priesthood
New term, the epistle’s organizing structural comparative (1:4; 6:9; 7:7,19,22; 8:6; 9:23; 10:34; 11:16,35,40; 12:24). Fix as the sole rendering; never vary with ‘superior,’ ‘mai valoros,’ etc., or the argument becomes invisible to the Romanian reader.
Copy Antitype
Approved rendering: închipuire / chip corespunzător
Transliteration: antitypos
Doctrine: The Heavenly Sanctuary and Tabernacle Typology
Rejected alternatives: antitip (transliteration — rejected; collides with the distinct technical Orthodox liturgical use of ‘antitip’ for the Eucharistic elements, which runs in the opposite typological direction)
Original: ἀντίτυπος
Category: Priesthood
New term at 9:24. Do not transliterate; always attach an explicit ‘copie pe pământ a realității cerești’ gloss at first occurrence.
Angel
Approved rendering: înger
Transliteration: angelos
Doctrine: Angelic Ministry and the Limits of Angel Veneration
Original: ἄγγελος
Category: Angelology
New term. Contemporary Romanian Orthodox popular piety venerates archangels Michael and Gabriel with dedicated feast days and akathists; Hebrews 1:6 argues angels are worshipers, not objects of ultimate worship — a distinction Orthodox theology itself maintains (dulia/latria) but which requires explicit reinforcement here. Occurs at 1:4-13; 2:2,5,7,9,16; 12:22; 13:2.
Pioneer
Approved rendering: Începător
Transliteration: archēgos
Doctrine: Christ as the Great High Priest
Rejected alternatives: Căpetenie (acceptable secondary variant)
Original: ἀρχηγός
Category: Christology
New term, a unique soteriological title for Christ, not to be confused with ‘apostol.’ The established Romanian Orthodox Synodal rendering is ‘Începătorul mântuirii noastre.’ Occurs at 2:10; 12:2 (combined there with τελειωτής, ‘perfecter’).
Exact Imprint
Approved rendering: chip
Transliteration: charaktēr
Doctrine: Deity and Sonship of Christ
Original: χαρακτήρ
Category: Christology
New term at 1:3. Connects naturally to Orthodox icon theology (Christ as the perfect, visible image of the invisible God); an asset if anchored firmly to Christ’s unique ontological identity with the Father, not diffused into a general theory of images.
Unbelief
Approved rendering: necredință
Transliteration: apistia
Doctrine: The Danger of Apostasy and Warning Passages
Original: ἀπιστία
Category: Faith
New term reusing the ‘credință’ root by negation. Occurs at 3:12,19; the chapter’s warning hinges on unbelief, not merely disobedience, as the root danger.
Rest
Approved rendering: odihnă
Transliteration: katapausis
Doctrine: God’s Promised Rest
Original: κατάπαυσις
Category: Eschatology
New term foundational to chapter 4’s argument (3:11,18; 4:1,3,5,10-11). Must not be flattened into mere relaxation.
Endurance
Approved rendering: răbdare / stăruință
Transliteration: hypomonē
Doctrine: Perseverance and Assurance
Original: ὑπομονή
Category: Apostasy/Perseverance
New term grounding the doctrine of Perseverance and Assurance (10:36; 12:1). Must convey active, faithful persistence, not passive resignation.
Shrink Back
Approved rendering: a da înapoi
Transliteration: hypostellō
Doctrine: The Danger of Apostasy and Warning Passages
Original: ὑποστέλλω
Category: Apostasy/Perseverance
New term, the negative counterpart to endurance; warning-passage vocabulary at 10:38-39.
Destruction
Approved rendering: pieire
Transliteration: apōleia
Doctrine: The Danger of Apostasy and Warning Passages
Original: ἀπώλεια
Category: Apostasy/Perseverance
New term at 10:39, contrasted with ‘the preserving of the soul.‘
Repentance
Approved rendering: pocăință
Transliteration: metanoia
Doctrine: The Danger of Apostasy and Warning Passages
Original: μετάνοια
Category: Apostasy/Perseverance
New term. Orthodox sacramental practice centers ‘pocăință’ as one of the Holy Mysteries (Confession); Hebrews 6:1,6’s ‘repentance from dead works’ names the foundational, initial turning to God, not primarily the recurring sacramental rite. Also occurs at 12:17.
Discipline
Approved rendering: disciplină / certare părintească
Transliteration: paideia
Doctrine: Divine Discipline as an Expression of Fatherly Love
Rejected alternatives: pedeapsă (rejected as primary rendering — too strongly connotes punitive retribution rather than the passage’s explicit framing of formative, loving, fatherly training)
Original: παιδεία
Category: Apostasy/Perseverance
New term at 12:5-11. ‘Certare părintească’ should lead; ‘disciplină’ retained only as a secondary clarifying gloss, never the lead term.
Eternal Spirit
Approved rendering: Duhul cel veșnic
Transliteration: Pneuma aiōnion
Doctrine: Propitiation and the Cleansing of Conscience
Original: Πνεῦμα αἰώνιον
Category: God
New term, distinct from the plain ‘Holy Spirit’ entry. Debated referent in Hebrews 9:14: either the Holy Spirit or Christ’s own eternal (divine) spirit/nature. Preserve the source text’s own ambiguity rather than resolving it in translation.
Medium Risk Terms
Holy
Approved rendering: sfânt
Transliteration: hagios
Doctrine: Sanctification
Original: ἅγιος
Category: Sanctification
Inherited from Romans package unchanged. Hebrews 3:1 addresses believers as ‘holy brethren’ (frați sfinți); occurs also 6:10; 12:10,14. Keep the corporate, all-believers sense visible.
Adoption
Approved rendering: înfiere
Transliteration: huiothesia
Doctrine: Adoption into God’s Family
Original: υἱοθεσία (conceptual field: υἱοί, ἀδελφοί)
Category: Salvation
Inherited from Romans package conceptual field unchanged. Hebrews 2:10-13 (Christ not ashamed to call believers ‘brethren’) and 12:5-8 (sons receiving fatherly discipline) develop this sonship theme without the exact noun υἱοθεσία; keep rendering consistent with the Romans conceptual field.
Called
Approved rendering: chemat
Transliteration: klētos / keklēmenoi
Doctrine: Divine Calling
Original: κλητός / κεκλημένοι
Category: Salvation
Inherited from Romans package unchanged. Hebrews 9:15 (‘those who are called,’ cei chemați) applies this to recipients of the eternal inheritance secured by Christ’s death as mediator.
Sin
Approved rendering: păcat
Transliteration: hamartia
Doctrine: Universal Human Accountability
Original: ἁμαρτία
Category: Sin
Inherited from Romans package unchanged. Ubiquitous across Hebrews; the core passage’s 9:26,28 are its climactic occurrences.
Glory
Approved rendering: slavă
Transliteration: doxa
Doctrine: Deity of Christ
Original: δόξα
Category: God
Inherited from Romans package unchanged. Hebrews 1:3 applies it to Christ as ‘the radiance (ἀπαύγασμα) of God’s glory’; remains a cultural-liturgical asset in Orthodox usage.
Power Of God
Approved rendering: puterea lui Dumnezeu
Transliteration: dynamis theou
Doctrine: Power of God for Salvation
Original: δύναμις θεοῦ
Category: God
Inherited from Romans package unchanged. Hebrews 1:3 applies this to the Son upholding the universe by his word; also 6:5; 7:16.
Kingdom Of God
Approved rendering: împărăția lui Dumnezeu
Transliteration: basileia tou theou / basileia asaleutos
Doctrine: Kingdom Mission
Original: βασιλεία τοῦ θεοῦ / βασιλεία ἀσάλευτος
Category: Kingdom
Inherited from Romans package unchanged, combined at Hebrews 12:28 with the new adjective ‘ἀσάλευτος’ (neclătinată, unshakeable).
Priest Levitical
Approved rendering: preot
Transliteration: hiereus
Doctrine: Superiority of Christ over Angels, Moses, and the Levitical Priesthood
Original: ἱερεύς
Category: Priesthood
New term. Standard rendering, but contemporary parish clergy are also called ‘preoți’; the Old Testament sacrificial-system context (5:6; 7:1-3,11,14-15,20-23; 8:4; 9:6; 10:11) must remain explicit.
Without Genealogy
Approved rendering: fără genealogie
Transliteration: agenealogētos
Doctrine: The Order of Melchizedek and Superiority over the Levitical Priesthood
Original: ἀγενεαλόγητος
Category: Priesthood
New term, rare NT compound. Occurs at 7:3, supporting Melchizedek’s typological timelessness. Works as a transparent calque since genealogical vocabulary is already familiar from OT narrative.
Oath
Approved rendering: jurământ
Transliteration: horkos
Doctrine: God’s Oath and Unchangeable Promise
Original: ὅρκος
Category: Covenant
New term. God’s self-sworn oath to Abraham (6:13-17) and concerning Christ’s priesthood (7:20-21,28). Retain the covenantal, not merely legal-contractual, sense.
Sacrifice Of Praise
Approved rendering: jertfă de laudă
Transliteration: thysia aineseōs
Doctrine: Christian Ethics, Hospitality, and the Sacrifice of Praise
Original: θυσία αἰνέσεως
Category: Faith
New term, distinguished from the atoning sacrifices of chapters 9-10. Occurs at 13:15. Must be taught explicitly as responsive worship, not an atoning act.
To Offer
Approved rendering: a aduce / a se aduce (ca jertfă)
Transliteration: prospherō
Doctrine: The Once-for-All Atoning Sacrifice
Original: προσφέρω
Category: Salvation
New term, priestly cultic offering-verb applied both to Levitical priests and, uniquely, to Christ offering himself. Occurs at 5:1,3,7; 8:3-4; 9:7,14,25,28; 10:1-2,8,11-12; 11:4,17.
Shedding Of Blood
Approved rendering: vărsare de sânge
Transliteration: haimatekchysia
Doctrine: The Once-for-All Atoning Sacrifice
Original: αἱματεκχυσία
Category: Salvation
New term, a rare NT compound occurring only at 9:22. Underscores that a life must be violently given, not merely present, for atonement.
Promise
Approved rendering: făgăduință
Transliteration: epangelia
Doctrine: The New Covenant versus the Old
Original: ἐπαγγελία
Category: Covenant
New term tying chapters 6, 8, 9, and 11 together (4:1; 6:12-17; 7:6; 8:6; 9:15; 10:23,36; 11:9,11,13,17,33,39). ‘Promisiune’ is an acceptable secondary variant.
Inheritance
Approved rendering: moștenire
Transliteration: klēronomia
Doctrine: The New Covenant versus the Old
Original: κληρονομία
Category: Covenant
New term related to, but distinct from, ‘înfiere’ (adoption) — inheritance is the content received; adoption is the status granting it. Occurs at 1:4 (heir); 6:12,17; 9:15; 11:7-8.
Heir
Approved rendering: moștenitor
Transliteration: klēronomos
Doctrine: The New Covenant versus the Old
Original: κληρονόμος
Category: Covenant
New term naming the person rather than the possession. Occurs at 1:2 (Christ as heir of all things); 6:17; 11:7.
Copy Pattern
Approved rendering: chip / pildă
Transliteration: hypodeigma
Doctrine: The Heavenly Sanctuary and Tabernacle Typology
Original: ὑπόδειγμα
Category: Priesthood
New term. Occurs at 4:11 (different sense, ‘example’); 8:5; 9:23. The earthly sanctuary and its furnishings are mere sketches of heavenly realities.
True Genuine
Approved rendering: adevărat
Transliteration: alēthinos
Doctrine: The Heavenly Sanctuary and Tabernacle Typology
Original: ἀληθινός
Category: Priesthood
New term contrasting the heavenly reality with its earthly shadow. Occurs at 8:2; 9:24; 10:22.
Great Shepherd
Approved rendering: Păstorul cel mare
Transliteration: ho poimēn ho megas
Doctrine: Perseverance and Assurance
Original: ὁ ποιμὴν ὁ μέγας
Category: Christology
New term, a pastoral title for Christ closing the epistle at 13:20.
Radiance
Approved rendering: strălucire
Transliteration: apaugasma
Doctrine: Deity and Sonship of Christ
Original: ἀπαύγασμα
Category: Christology
New term at 1:3, conceptually reusing baseline ‘slavă.’ An asset — resonates with Orthodox theology of divine light (Palamite uncreated light) — provided it is anchored to Christ’s unique deity, not diffused into generalized mystical luminosity.
Confession
Approved rendering: mărturisire
Transliteration: homologia
Doctrine: Christ as the Great High Priest
Original: ὁμολογία
Category: Faith
New term at 3:1 (‘the apostle and high priest of our confession’), 4:14, 10:23.
Hardened Heart
Approved rendering: a împietri
Transliteration: sklērynō
Doctrine: The Danger of Apostasy and Warning Passages
Original: σκληρύνω
Category: Faith
New term at 3:8,13,15, from Psalm 95’s quotation.
Sabbath Rest
Approved rendering: odihnă de Sabat
Transliteration: sabbatismos
Doctrine: God’s Promised Rest
Original: σαββατισμός
Category: Eschatology
New term at 4:9, distinct from but related to κατάπαυσις above.
Conviction Evidence
Approved rendering: dovadă / dovedire
Transliteration: elenchos
Doctrine: Faith of the Old Testament Saints
Original: ἔλεγχος
Category: Faith
New term paired with ὑπόστασις in Hebrews 11:1’s programmatic definition of faith.
Hope
Approved rendering: nădejde
Transliteration: elpis
Doctrine: Perseverance and Assurance
Original: ἐλπίς
Category: Faith
New term for the Hebrews curriculum. Orthodox Synodal-tradition rendering favors ‘nădejde’ over ‘speranță’ for theological hope; adopt ‘nădejde’ as the standing rendering, noting ‘speranță’ as an acceptable Cornilescu-tradition variant. Occurs at 6:11,18,19; 7:19; 10:23.
Judgment
Approved rendering: judecată
Transliteration: krisis
Doctrine: Perseverance and Assurance
Original: κρίσις
Category: Apostasy/Perseverance
New term at 9:27; 10:27. Names the universal human pattern (death, then judgment) against which Christ’s unique pattern of death-then-return is contrasted.
Eagerly Await
Approved rendering: a aștepta (cu nădejde)
Transliteration: prosdechomai
Doctrine: Perseverance and Assurance
Original: προσδέχομαι
Category: Apostasy/Perseverance
New term at 9:28, naming the proper posture of believers awaiting Christ’s return; grounds Perseverance and Assurance as confident expectation, not anxious uncertainty.
Firstborn Corporate
Approved rendering: cei întâi-născuți
Transliteration: prōtotokoi
Doctrine: Church as God’s People (conceptual link to Romans baseline ‘church’)
Original: πρωτότοκοι
Category: Church
New term at 12:23, applied corporately to believers’ privileged heavenly status. Must be distinguished from any unique Christological title ‘firstborn’ (a Colossians-type usage not present in Hebrews itself) — here it denotes believers’ status, not deity.
Consuming Fire
Approved rendering: foc mistuitor
Transliteration: pyr katanaliskon
Doctrine: Divine Discipline as an Expression of Fatherly Love
Original: πῦρ καταναλίσκον
Category: God
New term at 12:29, a description of God’s holiness quoting Deuteronomy.
Bearing Reproach
Approved rendering: a purta ocara Lui
Transliteration: oneidos autou pherein
Doctrine: Christian Ethics, Hospitality, and the Sacrifice of Praise
Original: ὄνειδος αὐτοῦ φέρειν
Category: Apostasy/Perseverance
New term at 13:13, referring to going ‘outside the camp’ in solidarity with Christ’s suffering.
Low Risk Terms
Prophet
Approved rendering: proroc
Transliteration: prophētēs
Doctrine: Inspiration of Scripture
Original: προφήτης
Category: Covenant
Inherited from Romans package unchanged. Hebrews 1:1: ‘God spoke through the prophets.‘
David
Approved rendering: David
Transliteration: Dawid
Doctrine: Davidic Covenant
Original: דָּוִד
Category: Covenant
Inherited from Romans package unchanged. Cited at Hebrews 4:7 (Psalm quotation) and 11:32.
Israel
Approved rendering: Israel
Transliteration: Yisra’el
Doctrine: Unity of Jews and Gentiles
Original: יִשְׂרָאֵל
Category: Covenant
Inherited from Romans package unchanged. Cited at Hebrews 8:8,10 (Jeremiah 31 quotation) and 11:22.
Exhort
Approved rendering: îndemna
Transliteration: parakaleō
Doctrine: Mutual Edification
Original: παρακαλέω
Category: Faith
Inherited from Romans package unchanged. Occurs at Hebrews 3:13; 10:25; 13:19,22.
Moses
Approved rendering: Moise
Transliteration: Mōusēs
Doctrine: Superiority of Christ over Angels, Moses, and the Levitical Priesthood
Original: Μωϋσῆς
Category: Covenant
New proper-name entry not required by the Romans baseline. Mediator of the old covenant at Sinai and typological forerunner to Christ; occurs at Hebrews 3:2-16; 7:14; 8:5; 9:19; 11:23-24; 12:21.
Aaron
Approved rendering: Aaron
Transliteration: Aarōn
Doctrine: Superiority of Christ over Angels, Moses, and the Levitical Priesthood
Original: Ἀαρών
Category: Priesthood
New proper-name entry. The first Levitical high priest, whose order Christ’s priesthood surpasses. Occurs at Hebrews 5:4; 7:11; 9:4.
Melchizedek
Approved rendering: Melchisedec
Transliteration: Melchisedek
Doctrine: The Order of Melchizedek and Superiority over the Levitical Priesthood
Original: Μελχισέδεκ
Category: Priesthood
New proper-name entry. Established Romanian Bible form. Occurs at 5:6,10; 6:20; 7:1-17.
Hospitality
Approved rendering: ospitalitate
Transliteration: philoxenia
Doctrine: Christian Ethics, Hospitality, and the Sacrifice of Praise
Original: φιλοξενία
Category: Faith
New term at 13:2. Standard, low-risk term.
Referenced passages