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Core Glossary

Core Glossary: 2 Peter — English → Telugu

Risk Tier Definitions (reused from baseline, unchanged)

TierDefinitionReview Routing
CriticalMistranslation alters or destroys essential doctrineHuman theologian review required
HighMistranslation creates significant theological confusion, syncretism, or cross-denominational inconsistency riskHuman theologian review required
MediumMistranslation reduces clarity but preserves essential meaningNative speaker review recommended
LowMistranslation causes minor misunderstanding or imprecisionAutomated review sufficient

Table 1 — Terms Reused Exactly from the Romans Baseline Translation Memory

These terms recur in 2 Peter and MUST use the exact Telugu rendering already locked in translation_memory.json. No deviation permitted.

English TermTelugu (locked)Risk Tier (baseline)2 Peter Occurrences
GodదేవుడుCritical1:1, 1:2, 1:17, 1:21, 2:4, 3:5, 3:12, 3:18, etc.
Fatherతండ్రిCritical1:17
JesusయేసుCritical1:1, 1:2, 1:8, 1:11, 1:14, 1:16, 2:20, 3:18
Lordప్రభువుCritical1:2, 1:8, 1:11, 1:14, 1:16, 2:1, 2:9, 2:11, 2:20, 3:2, 3:8, 3:9, 3:10, 3:15, 3:18
Son of Godదేవుని కుమారుడుCritical1:17 (as “my beloved Son”)
Holy Spiritపరిశుద్ధాత్మCritical1:21
Holyపరిశుద్ధHigh1:18 (holy mountain), 1:21 (Holy Spirit), 2:21 (holy commandment), 3:2 (holy prophets), 3:11 (holy conduct)
GraceకృపHigh1:2, 3:18
Faithవిశ్వాసంMedium1:1, 1:5
RighteousnessనీతిHigh1:1, 2:5, 2:7, 2:8, 2:21, 3:13
Salvation (root)రక్షణCriticalconceptual background to σωτήρ, see Table 2
Apostleఅపొస్తలుడుMedium1:1, 3:2
GloryమహిమHigh1:3, 1:17 (×2), 3:18
Power of God (root: సామర్థ్యం, never శక్తి)సామర్థ్యంHigh1:3, 1:16
Prophetప్రవక్తLow3:2
Prophecyప్రవచనంLow1:19, 1:20, 1:21
CallingపిలుపుHigh1:10
Electionదేవుని ఏర్పాటుHigh1:10
Kingdom of God (root)దేవుని రాజ్యంMedium1:11 (as “eternal kingdom of our Lord and Savior”)
SinపాపంHigh2:4 (“angels who sinned”), 2:14
David / Israel / etc.(not occurring in 2 Peter)

Note: “Sanctification” (పరిశుద్ధపరచడం) and “Fellowship” (సహవాసం) do not recur as the same Greek terms in 2 Peter; related-but-distinct Greek terms (καθαρισμός, κοινωνοί) are treated as new entries below to avoid collapsing distinct concepts into baseline terms that do not actually match.


Table 2 — New Terms Introduced for 2 Peter

All terms below are new to this Language Package and must be added to translation_memory.json and bible_term_registry.json in Phase 1 Step 2, each carrying the risk tier and rationale recorded here.

English GlossGreek (Transliteration)Telugu Rendering (Transliteration)RiskDoctrine(s)Chapter RefsRationale
Coming / Parousiaπαρουσία (parousia)రాకడ (rākaḍa)CriticalCertainty of Christ’s Return1:16, 3:4, 3:12Must never be assimilated to the Kalki-avatāra “future divine descent” pattern live in regional Hindu eschatology (Tirupati/avatāra theology); names Christ’s unique, unrepeatable, bodily return, paralleling the same doctrinal caution given to శరీరధారణ (Incarnation) in the baseline
Eyewitnessἐπόπτης (epoptēs)ప్రత్యక్ష సాక్షులు (pratyakṣa sākṣulu)MediumReliability and Inspiration of Scripture1:16Must convey firsthand, physical, sensory witness — the evidential basis of apostolic testimony
Majestyμεγαλειότης (megaleiotēs)మహాత్మ్యం (mahātmyam)MediumCertainty of Christ’s Return1:16Keep distinguishable from మహిమ (glory/doxa) for internal lesson consistency
The Majestic Glory (divine title)μεγαλοπρεπὴς δόξα (megaloprepēs doxa)మహోన్నతమైన మహిమ (mahōnnatamaina mahima)HighReliability and Inspiration of Scripture; Sonship of Christ1:17A direct scriptural title/name-substitute for God the Father; must read unambiguously as naming the one true God, not a generic exalted-deity honorific
Well-pleased (divine delight)εὐδοκέω (eudokeō)ప్రీతిపొందు / దేవుని ప్రీతిMediumSonship of Christ1:17Must convey the Father’s active, settled delight in the Son, not weak “acceptance”
More sure / more certainβεβαιότερος (bebaioteros)మరి నిశ్చయమైన (mari niśchayamaina)HighReliability and Inspiration of Scripture1:19Core term for Scripture’s evidentially-grounded certainty; must not soften into subjective religious feeling
Morning Starφωσφόρος (phōsphoros)వేకువ చుక్క (vēkuva chukka)MediumCertainty of Christ’s Return1:19Must stay anchored to the Christ-as-dawning-light image; regional jyotiṣa (astrology) also names Venus (శుక్రుడు) as a deity-associated graha — avoid a bare, unanchored astronomical reference
One’s own interpretationἐπίλυσις ἰδίας (epilysis idias)స్వంత వివరణ (svanta vivaraṇa)HighReliability and Inspiration of Scripture1:20Addresses Scripture’s origin, not a ban on all later interpretation/teaching; must not be over- or under-extended
Carried along (by the Spirit)φέρω / φερόμενοι (pheromenoi)నడిపించబడి (naḍipin̄chabaḍi)CriticalReliability and Inspiration of Scripture1:21Must preserve both full divine causation and genuine human authorship simultaneously; avoid any term suggesting trance/possession (āvēśam-type displacement of human consciousness)
Servant / bondservantδοῦλος (doulos)దాసుడు (dāsuḍu)Medium(introductory self-designation; touches Salvation doctrine via σωτήρ)1:1Resonates with Vaishnava bhakti dāsya self-designation — a possible evangelistic bridge, but must retain the specific sense of purchased ownership by Christ
Saviorσωτήρ (sōtēr)రక్షకుడు (rakshakuḍu)CriticalThe Certainty of Christ’s Return; Salvation (baseline)1:1, 1:11, 2:20, 3:2, 3:18Built on baseline Critical-tier రక్షణ; never render with a moksha/mukti-adjacent liberation title
Equal-standing faithἰσότιμος πίστις (isotimos pistis)సమాన విలువగల విశ్వాసంMediumUniversal Scope of the Gospel (baseline-adjacent)1:1Positive caste-egalitarian resonance; must not be softened
Full/exact knowledgeἐπίγνωσις (epignōsis)పరిజ్ఞానం (parijñānam)HighGrowing in Christian Virtue; False Teachers1:2, 1:3, 1:8, 2:20Must be relational, revealed knowledge of God/Christ that grows over time — not an impersonal, self-dissolving mystical insight (cf. jñāna-mārga)
Virtue / moral excellenceἀρετή (aretē)సద్గుణం (sadguṇam)HighGrowing in Christian Virtue1:3, 1:5The guṇa root carries Samkhya-philosophy weight (sattva/rajas/tamas as impersonal binding/liberating qualities); must be anchored as Spirit-produced excellence flowing from relationship with Christ
Divine nature / partakersθεία φύσις, κοινωνοί (theia physis, koinōnoi)దైవ స్వభావంలో పాలిభాగస్థులుCriticalDivine Nature and Escaping Corruption1:4See extended note below — the single highest-caution new doctrine in this book
Corruption / decayφθορά (phthora)క్షయం (kṣayam)HighDivine Nature and Escaping Corruption1:4, 2:12, 2:19Moral/relational corruption/ruin, not mere biological decay or cyclical cosmic decline
Desire / lustἐπιθυμία (epithymia)దురాశ (durāśa)MediumDivine Nature and Escaping Corruption1:4, 2:10, 2:18Standard term; low ambiguity
Self-controlἐγκράτεια (egkrateia)ఆత్మనిగ్రహం (ātmanigraham)HighGrowing in Christian Virtue1:6Parallels merit-earning ascetic self-restraint (tapas/indriya-nigraha); must be framed as Spirit-empowered fruit, not independent ascetic achievement
Endurance / perseveranceὑπομονή (hypomonē)సహనం (sahanam)MediumGrowing in Christian Virtue1:6Keep distinct from దీర్ఘశాంతం (God’s patience, μακροθυμία)
Godliness / pietyεὐσέβεια (eusebeia)దైవభక్తి (daiva-bhakti)HighGrowing in Christian Virtue; Day of the Lord1:3, 1:6, 1:7, 3:11Established Telugu Christian rendering; must be clarified as devotion exclusively to the one true God through Christ, not one bhakti-mārga among several
Brotherly loveφιλαδελφία (philadelphia)సహోదర ప్రేమLowGrowing in Christian Virtue1:7Standard term
Loveἀγάπη (agapē)ప్రేమ (prēma)LowGrowing in Christian Virtue1:7Well-established; newly catalogued (absent from Romans baseline term list)
Cleansing (from past sin)καθαρισμός (katharismos)శుద్ధీకరణ (śuddhīkaraṇa)MediumGrowing in Christian Virtue1:9Distinguish from baseline పరిశుద్ధపరచడం (ongoing sanctification) — this is a completed past cleansing
Tent (body metaphor)σκήνωμα (skēnōma)శరీరం (గుడారం రూపకం)Medium(mortality/eschatological hope, supporting Certainty of Christ’s Return)1:13-14Preserve the tabernacle-echo poetic resonance; avoid flattening to a bare “body”
Departure / exodus (death)ἔξοδος (exodos)నిర్యాణం (niryāṇam)Medium(supporting Certainty of Christ’s Return)1:15Preserve positive Exodus-typology resonance
False teacher / false prophetψευδοδιδάσκαλος, ψευδοπροφήτηςఅబద్ధ బోధకులు / అబద్ధ ప్రవక్తలుHighFalse Teachers and Their Judgment2:1Must convey deliberate, destructive deception, not honest doctrinal disagreement
Destructive heresy / sectαἵρεσις ἀπωλείας (hairesis apōleias)వినాశకరమైన మతభేదాలుMediumFalse Teachers and Their Judgment2:1Standard term
Destruction / perditionἀπώλεια (apōleia)నాశనం (nāśanam)HighFalse Teachers and Their Judgment; Day of the Lord2:1, 2:3, 3:7, 3:16Must communicate final, personal, eternal ruin under judgment, not impersonal cessation/dissolution resembling nirvāṇa-type concepts
Master / Sovereign Ownerδεσπότης (despotēs)సర్వాధికారియైన ప్రభువుMediumFalse Teachers and Their Judgment2:1Distinct emphasis from κύριος: absolute purchased ownership
Judgmentκρίσις (krisis)తీర్పు (tīrpu)HighDay of the Lord and Final Judgment2:4, 2:9, 2:11, 3:7Personal, forensic divine verdict, not impersonal fate
Gloom / darkness (place of confinement)ζόφος (zophos)అంధకారం (andhakāram)HighDay of the Lord and Final Judgment2:4, 2:17See నరకం entry below for the broader collision this concept touches
Hell / place of final judgment(concept term)నరకం (naraka) — retained, with mandatory contextHighDay of the Lord and Final Judgment; False Teachers2:4 (conceptually)RETAIN established Telugu Bible usage per pipeline convention favoring settled vocabulary; requires explicit framing as a final, non-cyclical judgment tied to the one Day of the Lord, distinguished from Puranic multi-level, temporary, rebirth-preceding hell-realms
Blaspheme / revileβλασφημέω (blasphēmeō)దూషించు / నిందించుMediumFalse Teachers and Their Judgment2:10, 2:12Standard term
Freedom / libertyἐλευθερία (eleutheria)స్వాతంత్ర్యం (svātantryam)HighFalse Teachers and Their Judgment2:19Avoid విముక్తి-family vocabulary (rebirth-cycle liberation echo), paralleling baseline’s రక్షణ-vs-మోక్షం caution
Scoffer / mockerἐμπαίκτης (empaiktēs)ఎగతాళి చేసేవారుMediumCertainty of Christ’s Return; Day of the Lord3:3Deliberate mockery of the Parousia doctrine specifically, not generic skepticism
Day of the Lordἡμέρα κυρίου (hēmera kyriou)ప్రభువు దినము (prabhuvu dinamu)CriticalDay of the Lord and Final Judgment3:10Names the singular, climactic, unrepeatable eschatological event; must not be softened or absorbed into cyclical cosmology
Elements (physical)στοιχεῖα (stoicheia)మూలకములు (mūlakamulu)LowDay of the Lord and Final Judgment3:10, 3:12Standard term
Patience / longsuffering (God’s)μακροθυμία (makrothymia)దీర్ఘశాంతం (dīrghaśāntam)HighPatience of God’s Timing3:9, 3:15Must resist assimilation into yuga-cycle/kalpa cosmology (vast, cyclical cosmic ages); anchor to God’s personal patience aimed at a definite future repentance-deadline within linear history. Keep distinct from సహనం (ὑπομονή, human endurance)
Repentanceμετάνοια (metanoia)మారుమనస్సు (māru manassu)MediumPatience of God’s Timing3:9Established Telugu Christian term; preserve decisive life-reorientation sense
Ungodlyἀσεβής (asebēs)భక్తిహీనుడు (bhakti-hīnuḍu)MediumDay of the Lord and Final Judgment3:7Negation-pairing with దైవభక్తి (εὐσέβεια)
New heavens and new earthκαινοὺς οὐρανοὺς καὶ γῆν καινήνకొత్త ఆకాశములు మరియు కొత్త భూమిMediumDay of the Lord and Final Judgment3:13Genuine future renewed physical creation, not purely spiritual escape or “next cycle”
Steadfastness / firmnessστηριγμός (stērigmos)స్థిరత్వం (sthiratvam)LowFalse Teachers and Their Judgment3:17Standard term
Error / deceptionπλάνη (planē)మార్గభ్రష్టత / దోషంMediumFalse Teachers and Their Judgment3:17Standard term
Knowledge (general)γνῶσις (gnōsis)జ్ఞానం (jñānam)HighGrowing in Christian Virtue1:5, 1:6, 3:18Must always be anchored to a personal object (“knowledge of the Lord Jesus Christ”); avoid reading as an independent, self-sufficient mystical attainment (Advaitic jñāna-mārga)

Extended Note: θεία φύσις / κοινωνοί — “Partakers of the Divine Nature” (2 Peter 1:4)

This is flagged as the single highest-caution new doctrinal term introduced by 2 Peter, warranting more discussion than the table format allows.

The risk: 2 Peter 1:4 states believers “become partakers of the divine nature” (θείας φύσεως κοινωνοί). In a Telugu cultural context shaped by Advaita Vedanta’s teaching that the individual self (ātman) is not merely like the divine but is identical with ultimate reality (Brahman) — a teaching accessible far beyond formal philosophical circles, embedded in popular devotional and proverbial speech — this verse is acutely vulnerable to being read as biblical support for ontological merger with, or absorption into, God’s own essence.

The required doctrinal boundary: The verse teaches that believers come to share, by grace and through God’s own promises, in God’s moral and immortal qualities — holiness, incorruptibility, love, righteousness — worked in them by the Holy Spirit as they escape the world’s corruption (1:4b). It does NOT teach that the believer’s being merges with, becomes identical to, or dissolves into God’s essence. The Creator-creature distinction remains permanently intact; this is relational, Spirit-wrought transformation into Christ’s moral likeness, not metaphysical identity.

Rendering guidance: దైవ స్వభావంలో పాలిభాగస్థులు (“partakers/co-sharers in the divine nature”) is proposed because పాలిభాగస్థులు (co-sharers) conveys participation-with rather than identity-with, but this term absolutely requires accompanying doctrinal explanation in any learner-facing material — it cannot stand alone. This entry should be escalated to Critical tier in the doctrine risk registry (Phase 1 Step 2) with mandatory human theologian review on every occurrence, on the same footing as the baseline’s incarnation and resurrection entries.


Cross-Reference to Baseline Forbidden Substitutions (all still apply in 2 Peter)

  • Salvation-family terms (σωτήρ, ἀπώλεια as its opposite): NEVER మోక్షం, ముక్తి, or విముక్తి-family renderings.
  • Holy Spirit (1:21): NEVER పరమాత్మ; hold పరిశుద్ధాత్మ.
  • Power of God (1:3, 1:16): NEVER శక్తి; hold సామర్థ్యం.
  • Parousia / Incarnation-family Christological terms: NEVER అవతారం or any avatar-descent framing.
  • Holy / Church-family terms: hold పరిశుద్ధ (not పవిత్ర) for consistency; 2 Peter does not use ἐκκλησία, so సంఘము does not recur in this book.

Full-Book Coverage Confirmation

All three chapters of 2 Peter have contributed terms to this glossary: Chapter 1 (vv.1-15 and the core passage vv.16-21), Chapter 2 (vv.1-22), and Chapter 3 (vv.1-18). No chapter was silently omitted.


Critical Risk Terms

God

Approved rendering: దేవుడు
Transliteration: Dēvuḍu
Doctrine: Deity of Christ
Rejected alternatives: భగవంతుడు

Inherited from Romans package. CRITICAL: దేవుడు is the standard, near-universally accepted Telugu Christian term across every denomination. Avoid భగవంతుడు in doctrinally precise contexts. Occurs throughout 2 Peter (1:1, 1:2, 1:17, 1:21, 2:4, 3:5, 3:12, 3:18, etc.).


Father

Approved rendering: తండ్రి
Transliteration: Tandri
Doctrine: Adoption into God’s Family
Rejected alternatives: సృష్టికర్త

Inherited from Romans package. God as personal Father, using the everyday Telugu word rather than the abstract సృష్టికర్త. In 2 Peter, identifies the source of the heavenly voice at the Transfiguration (1:17).


Jesus

Approved rendering: యేసు
Transliteration: Yēsu
Doctrine: Lordship of Christ

Inherited from Romans package. Shared standard across Telugu Protestant and Catholic usage. Occurs at 1:1, 1:2, 1:8, 1:11, 1:14, 1:16, 2:20, 3:18.


Lord

Approved rendering: ప్రభువు
Transliteration: prabhuvu
Doctrine: Lordship of Christ
Rejected alternatives: స్వామి

Inherited from Romans package. Established, consistent term across denominational lines; must convey exclusive, supreme, presently-reigning Lordship. Occurs at 1:2, 1:8, 1:11, 1:14, 1:16, 2:1, 2:9, 2:11, 2:20, 3:2, 3:8, 3:9, 3:10, 3:15, 3:18, and forms the root of new compounds సర్వాధికారియైన ప్రభువు (despotēs) and ప్రభువు దినము (Day of the Lord).


Son Of God

Approved rendering: దేవుని కుమారుడు
Transliteration: Dēvuni Kumāruḍu
Doctrine: Sonship of Christ
Rejected alternatives: అవతారపురుషుడు

Inherited from Romans package. Full phrase required; conveys eternal, unique Sonship. In 2 Peter 1:17, the Father’s voice (‘my beloved Son’) is rendered నా ప్రియ కుమారుడు, built directly on this locked root.


Holy Spirit

Approved rendering: పరిశుద్ధాత్మ
Transliteration: pariśuddhātma
Doctrine: Sanctification
Rejected alternatives: పరమాత్మ, పవిత్రాత్మ

Inherited from Romans package. CRITICAL: never పరమాత్మ. This curriculum holds పరిశుద్ధాత్మ (not పవిత్రాత్మ) consistently. In 2 Peter, this is the divine Person who moved the human authors of Scripture (1:21) — the doctrinal center of Scripture’s inspiration.


Salvation

Approved rendering: రక్షణ
Transliteration: rakshana
Doctrine: Salvation
Rejected alternatives: మోక్షం, ముక్తి

Inherited from Romans package. CRITICAL: NEVER మోక్షం or ముక్తి. Serves as the conceptual root for 2 Peter’s frequent σωτήρ/Savior title (see rakshakuḍu below), which must never drift toward a moksha/mukti-adjacent liberation title.


Parousia

Approved rendering: రాకడ
Transliteration: rākaḍa
Doctrine: The Certainty of Christ’s Return
Rejected alternatives: అవతారం రావడం (avatar-descent framing)

The long-established Telugu Christian term for the Second Coming. Must never be assimilated to the Kalki-avatāra ‘future divine descent’ pattern live in Tirupati-area popular Hindu eschatology; names Christ’s unique, unrepeatable, bodily return. Occurs at 1:16, 3:4, 3:12. Pair with నిశ్చయమైన/ఒకేసారి (‘certain’/‘once-for-all’) qualifiers wherever rendered.


Carried Along

Approved rendering: నడిపించబడి
Transliteration: naḍipin̄chabaḍi
Doctrine: The Reliability and Inspiration of Scripture
Rejected alternatives: ఆవేశం చెందిన (possession/trance framing, erases genuine human authorship)

2 Peter 1:21, the doctrinal core of Scripture’s inspiration. Must preserve BOTH the Holy Spirit’s decisive causation AND genuine human authorship simultaneously. Never render with a term implying trance/possession (āvēśam-type spirit-displacement from regional oracular practice) — the image is a bearer carrying a person toward a destination, not a spirit displacing human consciousness. Mandatory theologian review every occurrence.


Savior

Approved rendering: రక్షకుడు
Transliteration: rakshakuḍu
Doctrine: Salvation through Christ the Savior
Rejected alternatives: గురువు, విముక్తి ప్రదాత (liberator-from-rebirth title)

Built directly on the baseline Critical-tier రక్షణ root. Recurs far more densely in 2 Peter than in Romans (1:1, 1:11, 2:20, 3:2, 3:18). Must never be rendered with a title suggesting a guru or avatar who grants మోక్షం/ముక్తి; రక్షకుడు (deliverer) preserves the same deliverance-frame as రక్షణ. Mandatory theologian review every occurrence.


Divine Nature

Approved rendering: దైవ స్వభావంలో పాలిభాగస్థులు
Transliteration: daiva swabhāvamlō pālibhāgasthulu
Doctrine: Divine Nature and Escaping Corruption
Rejected alternatives: దైవత్వం పొందడం (attaining divinity/identity), బ్రహ్మైక్యం-style ఐక్యం (union/merger language)

2 Peter 1:4 (θείας φύσεως κοινωνοί). The single highest-caution doctrinal term in this book. Telugu culture is shaped by Advaita Vedanta’s teaching that the self (ātman) IS identical with ultimate reality (Brahman), embedded in popular devotional speech far beyond formal philosophy. Must be taught, every time, as sharing God’s moral/immortal QUALITIES (holiness, incorruptibility, love) by grace, with the Creator-creature distinction permanently intact — never as ontological merger or absorption. Cannot stand alone without accompanying doctrinal explanation. Mandatory theologian review every occurrence, on the same footing as the baseline’s incarnation and resurrection entries.


Day Of The Lord

Approved rendering: ప్రభువు దినము
Transliteration: prabhuvu dinamu
Doctrine: The Day of the Lord and Final Judgment
Rejected alternatives: యుగాంతం (cyclical age-ending framing)

2 Peter 3:10 (ἡμέρα κυρίου), built on the locked root ప్రభువు. Names a SINGULAR, climactic, unrepeatable event — final judgment followed by genuine renewed physical creation, not a phase within an ongoing yuga/kalpa cosmic cycle. Mandatory theologian review every occurrence.


High Risk Terms

Holy

Approved rendering: పరిశుద్ధ
Transliteration: pariśuddha
Doctrine: Sanctification
Rejected alternatives: పవిత్ర, శుద్ధ

Inherited from Romans package. Locked to పరిశుద్ధ throughout for cross-lesson consistency. Used in 2 Peter of the holy mountain (1:18), the Holy Spirit (1:21), the holy commandment (2:21), the holy prophets (3:2), and required holy conduct (3:11).


Grace

Approved rendering: కృప
Transliteration: kṛpa
Doctrine: Grace
Rejected alternatives: పుణ్యం, కర్మఫలం

Inherited from Romans package. Unmerited favor apart from human merit. Occurs at 2 Peter 1:2 and in the letter’s closing exhortation 3:18 (‘grow in the grace and knowledge of our Lord and Savior’).


Righteousness

Approved rendering: నీతి
Transliteration: nīti
Doctrine: Salvation
Rejected alternatives: ధర్మం

Inherited from Romans package. Right standing before God, not cosmic duty (ధర్మం). Occurs at 1:1, 2:5, 2:7, 2:8, 2:21, 3:13.


Glory

Approved rendering: మహిమ
Transliteration: mahima
Doctrine: Deity of Christ
Rejected alternatives: తేజస్సు

Inherited from Romans package. God’s radiant honor. Occurs at 1:3, 1:17 (×2, received by Christ from the Father at the Transfiguration), 3:18. Kept terminologically distinct from the new term మహాత్మ్యం (majesty, 1:16), which names visible splendor rather than the broader theological concept.


Power Of God

Approved rendering: దేవుని సామర్థ్యం
Transliteration: Dēvuni Sāmarthyam
Doctrine: Power of God for Salvation
Rejected alternatives: శక్తి

Inherited from Romans package. NEVER శక్తి (Shakta-tradition divine-feminine power). Root సామర్థ్యం used in 2 Peter’s దైవ సామర్థ్యం (θεία δύναμις, 1:3) and of Christ’s power displayed at the Transfiguration (1:16).


Election

Approved rendering: దేవుని ఏర్పాటు
Transliteration: Dēvuni Ērpāṭu
Doctrine: Effectual Calling
Rejected alternatives: విధి, కర్మ

Inherited from Romans package. God’s sovereign, personal choice, not విధి (fate) or కర్మ (karma). Occurs at 2 Peter 1:10.


Sin

Approved rendering: పాపం
Transliteration: pāpam
Doctrine: Universal Human Accountability
Rejected alternatives: అధర్మం

Inherited from Romans package. Moral transgression before a personal God. Occurs at 2 Peter 2:4 (‘angels who sinned’) and 2:14.


Majestic Glory

Approved rendering: మహోన్నతమైన మహిమ
Transliteration: mahōnnatamaina mahima
Doctrine: Sonship and Deity of Christ (at the Transfiguration)
Rejected alternatives: గొప్ప దేవుడు (generic exalted-deity honorific)

2 Peter 1:17 — ‘the Majestic Glory,’ a reverent divine title/name-substitute for God the Father. Must read unmistakably as naming the one true God, not a generic honorific transferable to any exalted deity figure.


More Sure

Approved rendering: మరి నిశ్చయమైన
Transliteration: mari niśchayamaina
Doctrine: The Reliability and Inspiration of Scripture
Rejected alternatives: బలమైన అనుభూతి (subjective feeling, not evidential certainty)

2 Peter 1:19. Core term for Scripture’s evidentially-grounded certainty — apostolic eyewitness experience CONFIRMS the OT prophetic word’s reliability. Must not soften into subjective religious feeling.


Private Interpretation

Approved rendering: స్వంత వివరణ
Transliteration: svanta vivaraṇa
Doctrine: The Reliability and Inspiration of Scripture
Rejected alternatives: వ్యక్తిగత భావన (too broad; risks banning all later teaching/interpretation)

2 Peter 1:20. Addresses Scripture’s ORIGIN, not a ban on all later interpretation/teaching (a legitimate, necessary task). Must not be over- or under-extended.


Full Knowledge

Approved rendering: పరిజ్ఞానం
Transliteration: parijñānam
Doctrine: Growth in the Knowledge of Christ
Rejected alternatives: జ్ఞానం alone (too easily read as self-realizing mystical knowledge without a stated personal object)

2 Peter 1:2, 1:3, 1:8, 2:20 (ἐπίγνωσις). Must be relational, revealed knowledge of the personal God/Christ that grows through virtue and Scripture — never an impersonal, self-dissolving mystical insight resembling Advaitic jñāna-mārga.


Virtue

Approved rendering: సద్గుణం
Transliteration: sadguṇam
Doctrine: Growing in Christian Virtue
Rejected alternatives: గుణం alone (too close to Samkhya’s impersonal triguna)

2 Peter 1:3, 1:5 (ἀρετή), the first link in the virtue chain. The root గుణ carries heavy Samkhya-philosophy weight (sattva/rajas/tamas as impersonal binding/liberating qualities); must be anchored as Spirit-produced moral excellence flowing from relationship with Christ.


Corruption

Approved rendering: క్షయం
Transliteration: kṣayam
Doctrine: Divine Nature and Escaping Corruption
Rejected alternatives: నాశనం (too final/eschatological, reserved for ἀπώλεια)

2 Peter 1:4, 2:12, 2:19 (φθορά). Must be read as moral and relational corruption/ruin, not merely biological decay, and must not be confused with a cyclical or karmic notion of decline within an ongoing cosmic cycle.


Self Control

Approved rendering: ఆత్మనిగ్రహం
Transliteration: ātmanigraham
Doctrine: Growing in Christian Virtue
Rejected alternatives: తపస్సు (ascetic merit-earning discipline)

2 Peter 1:6 (ἐγκράτεια). Closely parallels Hindu/Jain ascetic self-restraint (indriya-nigraha, tapas) pursued as a merit-earning discipline toward liberation; must be anchored as fruit growing out of faith and virtue already given (1:5), not a separate merit-generating discipline.


Godliness

Approved rendering: దైవభక్తి
Transliteration: daiva-bhakti
Doctrine: Growing in Christian Virtue
Rejected alternatives: భక్తి alone (too generic/multi-mārga)

2 Peter 1:3, 1:6-7, 3:11 (εὐσέβεια). Unlike విశ్వాసం (faith), where భక్తి was rejected in the baseline, εὐσέβεια genuinely denotes reverent devotion/piety, and దైవభక్తి is the long-established Telugu Christian rendering. Must be clarified as devotion directed exclusively to the one true God through Christ, not one bhakti-mārga among several. Requires an explicit cross-document consistency note wherever both విశ్వాసం and దైవభక్తి appear so learners do not conclude భక్తి is ‘sometimes wrong, sometimes right’ without explanation.


False Teacher

Approved rendering: అబద్ధ బోధకులు / అబద్ధ ప్రవక్తలు
Transliteration: abaddha bōdhakulu / abaddha pravaktalu
Doctrine: False Teachers and Their Judgment
Rejected alternatives: భ్రష్టగురువు, మతభ్రష్టుడు (imports an intra-Hindu sectarian-polemic referent)

2 Peter 2:1 (ψευδοδιδάσκαλος / ψευδοπροφήτης). Must convey deliberate, destructive deception leading toward ruin, not merely honest theological disagreement. Require accompanying context that these are internal, professing-Christian figures, not merely rival external religious teachers.


Destruction

Approved rendering: నాశనం
Transliteration: nāśanam
Doctrine: False Teachers and Their Judgment
Rejected alternatives: నిర్వాణం-adjacent cessation language (resembles impersonal nirvāṇa-type extinguishing)

2 Peter 2:1, 2:3, 3:7, 3:16 (ἀπώλεια). Must communicate final, personal, eternal ruin under God’s judgment, not impersonal dissolution/extinguishing of the self.


Judgment

Approved rendering: తీర్పు
Transliteration: tīrpu
Doctrine: The Day of the Lord and Final Judgment
Rejected alternatives: విధి (impersonal fate), కర్మ (karma)

2 Peter 2:4, 2:9, 2:11, 3:7 (κρίσις). Must convey a personal, forensic verdict from God, not an impersonal fate.


Gloom Darkness

Approved rendering: అంధకారం
Transliteration: andhakāram
Doctrine: The Day of the Lord and Final Judgment

2 Peter 2:4, 2:17 (ζόφος). Requires the same contextual care as నరకం below, distinguishing final judgment from temporary Puranic punishment-realms.


Hell

Approved rendering: నరకం
Transliteration: narakam
Doctrine: The Day of the Lord and Final Judgment

RETAINED as established century-old Telugu Bible usage (2 Peter 2:4 context) per this pipeline’s preference for settled vocabulary over new coinage. నరకం is also the name of a specific realm within Hindu Puranic cosmology — one of several TEMPORARY, graded punishment-realms preceding eventual rebirth under Yama’s rule. Every occurrence requires accompanying context making clear this is a FINAL, NON-CYCLICAL judgment tied to the ONE Day of the Lord, not a temporary purgatorial realm within an ongoing rebirth cycle.


Freedom

Approved rendering: స్వాతంత్ర్యం
Transliteration: svātantryam
Doctrine: False Freedom and Slavery to Corruption
Rejected alternatives: విముక్తి, మోక్షం-family rebirth-cycle liberation vocabulary

2 Peter 2:19 (ἐλευθερία). Avoid విముక్తి-family vocabulary, which in the regional religious register evokes liberation from the rebirth cycle, paralleling the baseline’s రక్షణ-vs-మోక్షం caution. స్వాతంత్ర్యం (ordinary civic/personal freedom) preserves the bitter irony of the verse.


Patience Of God

Approved rendering: దీర్ఘశాంతం
Transliteration: dīrghaśāntam
Doctrine: Patience of God’s Timing
Rejected alternatives: సహనం (reserved for human ὑπομονή endurance, ch.1)

2 Peter 3:9, 3:15 (μακροθυμία). Telugu Hindu cosmology’s yuga/kalpa cycle offers a ready but false frame for reading 3:8’s ‘a day is as a thousand years’ as endorsing cyclical, near-endless cosmic time. Must be anchored to God’s personal patience aimed at a definite future repentance-deadline within LINEAR history.


Knowledge

Approved rendering: జ్ఞానం
Transliteration: jñānam
Doctrine: Growth in the Knowledge of Christ
Rejected alternatives: జ్ఞానం అనేది స్వతంత్రంగా (standalone abstract attainment without a personal object)

2 Peter 1:5-6, 3:18 (γνῶσις). Philosophically loaded in Telugu (jñāna-mārga in Advaita Vedanta: self-realizing knowledge that itself constitutes liberation). Must always be anchored to a personal object (‘knowledge OF the Lord Jesus Christ’), never left as an abstract, self-sufficient spiritual attainment.


Tartarus

Approved rendering: నరకంలో పడద్రోసి
Transliteration: narakamlō paḍadrōsi
Doctrine: The Day of the Lord and Final Judgment
Rejected alternatives: టార్టరస్ (transliteration importing an unrelated pagan underworld mythology)

2 Peter 2:4 (ταρταρώσας). A distinct Greek mythological underworld term; rendered functionally as ‘cast down into hell/confinement’ using the already-fenced నరకం term rather than transliterating the Greek myth-name, which would import zero-resonance pagan cosmology.


Medium Risk Terms

Faith

Approved rendering: విశ్వాసం
Transliteration: viswāsam
Doctrine: Faith
Rejected alternatives: భక్తి

Inherited from Romans package. Personal trust in Christ; భక్తి rejected as too generic/multi-object. Occurs at 1:1 (equal-standing faith) and as the foundation of the virtue chain at 1:5.


Apostle

Approved rendering: అపొస్తలుడు
Transliteration: apostaluḍu
Doctrine: Apostleship
Rejected alternatives: గురువు

Inherited from Romans package. Transliterated, established Telugu Christian term; avoid గురువు. Occurs at 2 Peter 1:1 and 3:2 (apostolic testimony recalled alongside the holy prophets).


Calling

Approved rendering: పిలుపు
Transliteration: pilupu
Doctrine: Divine Calling
Rejected alternatives: ఆహ్వానం

Inherited from Romans package. Noun form for the act/state of being called. Occurs at 2 Peter 1:10 (‘confirm your calling and election’).


Kingdom Of God

Approved rendering: దేవుని రాజ్యం
Transliteration: Dēvuni Rājyam
Doctrine: Kingdom Mission

Inherited from Romans package. Root for 2 Peter 1:11’s ‘eternal kingdom of our Lord and Savior Jesus Christ,’ rendered నిత్య రాజ్యం (see new term eternal_kingdom below).


Eternal Kingdom

Approved rendering: నిత్య రాజ్యం
Transliteration: nitya rājyam
Doctrine: Kingdom Mission

Builds on the locked root దేవుని రాజ్యం. 2 Peter 1:11: entrance into ‘the eternal kingdom of our Lord and Savior Jesus Christ’ is richly supplied to the one who grows in virtue. Not a territorial or political kingdom.


Eyewitness

Approved rendering: ప్రత్యక్ష సాక్షులు
Transliteration: pratyakṣa sākṣulu
Doctrine: Apostolic Eyewitness Testimony
Rejected alternatives: సాక్షులు (generic ‘witnesses,’ loses firsthand-physical sense)

2 Peter 1:16. Must convey firsthand, physical, sensory witness — the evidential basis of apostolic testimony — not merely ‘believers’ or secondhand hearers.


Majesty

Approved rendering: మహాత్మ్యం
Transliteration: mahātmyam
Doctrine: Sonship and Deity of Christ (at the Transfiguration)
Rejected alternatives: మహిమ (would collapse Majesty into the broader term Glory)

2 Peter 1:16. The visible splendor/greatness of Christ disclosed at the Transfiguration; keep distinguishable from మహిమ (doxa/glory) for internal lesson consistency.


Well Pleased

Approved rendering: ప్రీతిపొందు / దేవుని ప్రీతి
Transliteration: prītipondu / Dēvuni prīti
Doctrine: Sonship and Deity of Christ (at the Transfiguration)
Rejected alternatives: ఆమోదించు (weak ‘approve,’ implies mere adequacy)

2 Peter 1:17. Must convey the Father’s active, settled delight in the Son, not weak ‘acceptance.‘


Morning Star

Approved rendering: వేకువ చుక్క
Transliteration: vēkuva chukka
Doctrine: The Certainty of Christ’s Return
Rejected alternatives: శుక్రుడు (bare astrological/deity-associated planet name)

2 Peter 1:19. Telugu jyotiṣa (astrology) also names Venus as a deity-associated graha (శుక్రుడు); must stay anchored to the Christ-as-dawning-light image in context, never left as a bare astronomical/astrological reference.


Servant

Approved rendering: దాసుడు
Transliteration: dāsuḍu
Doctrine: Salvation through Christ the Savior
Rejected alternatives: సేవకుడు (generic hired servant, lacks ‘owned’ sense)

2 Peter 1:1, Peter’s self-designation preceding his apostolic title. Resonates with Telugu Vaishnava bhakti dāsya self-designation (e.g., Annamayya) — a possible evangelistic bridge — but must retain the specific NT sense of purchased ownership by Christ, not generic devotional self-abasement interchangeable across deities.


Equal Standing Faith

Approved rendering: సమాన విలువగల విశ్వాసం
Transliteration: samāna viluvagala viswāsam
Doctrine: Equal Standing of All Believers
Rejected alternatives: ఒకే విధమైన నమ్మకం (weaker, loses ‘equal value/standing’ emphasis)

2 Peter 1:1. Echoes the Romans baseline’s Universal Scope of the Gospel doctrine — no caste barrier to receiving the gospel; must not be softened, given direct resonance for Telugu Christian communities descended from 19th-century mass movements.


Desire

Approved rendering: దురాశ
Transliteration: durāśa
Doctrine: Divine Nature and Escaping Corruption

2 Peter 1:4, 2:10, 2:18 (ἐπιθυμία). Standard moral-appetite term; low ambiguity.


Endurance

Approved rendering: సహనం
Transliteration: sahanam
Doctrine: Growing in Christian Virtue
Rejected alternatives: దీర్ఘశాంతం (reserved exclusively for God’s own patience, μακροθυμία, ch.3)

2 Peter 1:6 (ὑπομονή). Keep terminologically distinct from దీర్ఘశాంతం so learners do not conflate a human virtue with a divine attribute.


Cleansing

Approved rendering: శుద్ధీకరణ
Transliteration: śuddhīkaraṇa
Doctrine: Sanctification and Cleansing from Sin
Rejected alternatives: పరిశుద్ధపరచడం (reserved for the Spirit’s ONGOING sanctifying work)

2 Peter 1:9 (καθαρισμός). A completed PAST cleansing from sin’s guilt; distinguish carefully from baseline పరిశుద్ధపరచడం (ongoing sanctification).


Tent Body

Approved rendering: శరీరం (గుడారం రూపకం)
Transliteration: śarīram (guḍāram rūpakam)
Doctrine: The Certainty of Christ’s Return
Rejected alternatives: శరీరం alone (flattens the tabernacle-echo poetic resonance)

2 Peter 1:13-14 (σκήνωμα). Peter’s body, imaged as a temporary tent soon laid aside in death; a brief explanatory gloss is advisable to preserve the OT tabernacle resonance.


Departure

Approved rendering: నిర్యాణం
Transliteration: niryāṇam
Doctrine: The Certainty of Christ’s Return
Rejected alternatives: మరణం (generic death, loses positive Exodus-typology resonance)

2 Peter 1:15 (ἔξοδος). Peter’s approaching death, framed as a purposeful, God-ordained ‘going out,’ echoing Israel’s Exodus and Christ’s own ‘departure’ at the Transfiguration (Luke 9:31).


Destructive Heresy

Approved rendering: వినాశకరమైన మతభేదాలు
Transliteration: vināśakaramaina matabhēdālu
Doctrine: False Teachers and Their Judgment

2 Peter 2:1 (αἱρέσεις ἀπωλείας). Standard rendering.


Master Sovereign Owner

Approved rendering: సర్వాధికారియైన ప్రభువు
Transliteration: sarvādhikāriyaina prabhuvu
Doctrine: False Teachers and Their Judgment

2 Peter 2:1 (δεσπότης), built on the locked root ప్రభువు. Stresses purchased OWNERSHIP specifically, distinct in emphasis from κύριος, reinforcing రక్షకుడు above.


Blaspheme

Approved rendering: దూషించు / నిందించు
Transliteration: dūshin̄chu / nindin̄chu
Doctrine: False Teachers and Their Judgment

2 Peter 2:10-12 (βλασφημέω). Standard rendering.


Scoffer

Approved rendering: ఎగతాళి చేసేవారు
Transliteration: egatāḷi chēsēvāru
Doctrine: The Certainty of Christ’s Return
Rejected alternatives: సందేహించేవారు (generic skeptic, loses specific mockery-of-doctrine sense)

2 Peter 3:3-4 (ἐμπαίκτης). Must convey deliberate mockery of the specific Parousia doctrine, not generic skepticism.


Repentance

Approved rendering: మారుమనస్సు
Transliteration: māru manassu
Doctrine: Patience of God’s Timing
Rejected alternatives: పశ్చాత్తాపం (emotional regret alone, loses decisive reorientation sense)

2 Peter 3:9 (μετάνοια). Established Telugu Christian term; must retain the sense of decisive life-reorientation, not mere emotional regret.


Ungodly

Approved rendering: భక్తిహీనుడు
Transliteration: bhakti-hīnuḍu
Doctrine: The Day of the Lord and Final Judgment

2 Peter 3:7 (ἀσεβής), built as the negation of దైవభక్తి (εὐσέβεια). Standard pairing.


New Heavens New Earth

Approved rendering: కొత్త ఆకాశములు మరియు కొత్త భూమి
Transliteration: kotta ākāśamulu mariyu kotta bhūmi
Doctrine: New Creation Hope
Rejected alternatives: ఆధ్యాత్మిక ప్రపంచం (spiritualized-escape framing)

2 Peter 3:13. Must be read as a genuine future renewed physical creation in which righteousness dwells, not a purely spiritual escape nor merely ‘the next cycle’ of the cosmos.


Error

Approved rendering: మార్గభ్రష్టత / దోషం
Transliteration: mārgabhraṣṭata / dōṣam
Doctrine: Perseverance against Apostasy

2 Peter 3:17 (πλάνη). Standard rendering.


Myth

Approved rendering: కల్పిత కథలు (నేర్పుగా కల్పించిన)
Transliteration: kalpita kathalu (nērpugā kalpin̄china)
Doctrine: Apostolic Eyewitness Testimony
Rejected alternatives: పురాణ కథలు (would too directly invoke the Puranic story genre)

2 Peter 1:16 (σεσοφισμένοις μύθοις). Must not read as merely ‘old stories’ but as deliberately fabricated religious tales, sharpening the contrast with verified historical eyewitness experience.


Dissolved

Approved rendering: కరిగిపోవు / నశించు
Transliteration: karigipōvu / naśin̄chu
Doctrine: The Day of the Lord and Final Judgment

2 Peter 3:10, 3:12 (λύω/λυθήσεται). Must preserve the sense of a decisive divine act, not a natural, gradual entropic process.


Slaves Of Corruption

Approved rendering: క్షయానికి దాసులు
Transliteration: kṣayāniki dāsulu
Doctrine: False Freedom and Slavery to Corruption

2 Peter 2:19 (δοῦλοι τῆς φθορᾶς), built on the locked roots దాసుడు and క్షయం. The false teachers’ actual condition, opposite the freedom they promise.


Low Risk Terms

Prophet

Approved rendering: ప్రవక్త
Transliteration: pravakta
Doctrine: Inspiration of Scripture
Rejected alternatives: జ్యోతిష్కుడు

Inherited from Romans package. God’s spokesperson, not a fortune-teller/astrologer. Occurs at 2 Peter 3:2 (‘the holy prophets’).


Prophecy

Approved rendering: ప్రవచనం
Transliteration: pravachanam
Doctrine: Fulfillment of Prophecy
Rejected alternatives: భవిష్యఫలం

Inherited from Romans package. Occurs at 1:19, 1:20, 1:21, forming the root of the compound ప్రవచన వచనం (‘the prophetic word’) and లేఖనముల ప్రవచనం (‘prophecy of Scripture’).


Brotherly Love

Approved rendering: సహోదర ప్రేమ
Transliteration: sahōdara prēma
Doctrine: Growing in Christian Virtue

2 Peter 1:7 (φιλαδελφία). Standard, low-risk rendering.


Love

Approved rendering: ప్రేమ
Transliteration: prēma
Doctrine: Growing in Christian Virtue

2 Peter 1:7 (ἀγάπη), the capstone virtue of the chain. Well-established, uncontested term; newly catalogued here as it is absent from the Romans baseline term list.


Elements

Approved rendering: మూలకములు
Transliteration: mūlakamulu
Doctrine: The Day of the Lord and Final Judgment

2 Peter 3:10, 3:12 (στοιχεῖα). Standard rendering; keep tied tightly to దహించి/కరిగిపోవు (burned up/dissolved) language so the cosmological register is unmistakable rather than reading as a modern chemistry-classroom term.


Steadfastness

Approved rendering: స్థిరత్వం
Transliteration: sthiratvam
Doctrine: Perseverance against Apostasy

2 Peter 3:17 (στηριγμός). Standard, low-risk rendering.


Flood

Approved rendering: జలప్రవాహం
Transliteration: jalapravāham
Doctrine: The Day of the Lord and Final Judgment

2 Peter 3:5-6 (κατακλυσμός). Historical precedent for God’s future judgment by fire; standard, low-risk term.


Proverb

Approved rendering: సామెత
Transliteration: sāmeta
Doctrine: Perseverance against Apostasy

2 Peter 2:22 (παροιμία, ‘a dog returns to its own vomit’). Retain the vivid image; its bluntness in formal register is the rhetorical point and should not be softened.


Peter

Approved rendering: పేతురు
Transliteration: Pēturu
Doctrine: Proper Names

Established Telugu Bible form of the author’s name, shared across Protestant and Catholic usage. Book title: 2 పేతురు.


Paul

Approved rendering: పౌలు
Transliteration: Paulu
Doctrine: Proper Names

2 Peter 3:15-16. Established Telugu Bible form, per baseline transliteration standards.


Noah

Approved rendering: నోవహు
Transliteration: Nōvahu
Doctrine: Proper Names

2 Peter 2:5. Established Telugu Bible form.


Lot

Approved rendering: లోతు
Transliteration: Lōtu
Doctrine: Proper Names

2 Peter 2:7. Established Telugu Bible form.


Sodom

Approved rendering: సొదొమ
Transliteration: Sodoma
Doctrine: Proper Names

2 Peter 2:6. Established Telugu Bible form.


Gomorrah

Approved rendering: గొమొఱ్ఱా
Transliteration: Gomorrā
Doctrine: Proper Names

2 Peter 2:6. Established Telugu Bible form.


Balaam

Approved rendering: బిలాము
Transliteration: Bilāmu
Doctrine: Proper Names

2 Peter 2:15. Established Telugu Bible form.


Bosor

Approved rendering: బెయోరు
Transliteration: Beyōru
Doctrine: Proper Names

2 Peter 2:15 (‘Balaam the son of Bosor’). Established Telugu Bible form.

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