Core Glossary
08 Core Glossary — Galatians (English → Vietnamese)
This glossary consolidates every load-bearing term identified in 07_semantic_analysis.md, drawn from every chapter of Galatians (1–6). Terms already recorded in the baseline Romans translation_memory.json / bible_term_registry.json are marked Reused and MUST use the exact recorded Vietnamese rendering — no deviation permitted. Terms new to the Galatians curriculum are marked New and carry the risk tier and rationale proposed here for translation_memory.json v2 ingestion in Phase 2.
Risk tiers follow the baseline doctrine_risk_registry.json definitions exactly:
- Critical — mistranslation destroys essential doctrine; human theologian review required for every occurrence.
- High — mistranslation creates significant theological confusion or syncretism risk; human theologian review required.
- Medium — mistranslation reduces clarity but preserves essential meaning; native speaker review recommended.
- Low — mistranslation causes minor misunderstanding; automated review sufficient.
Section 1 — Reused Baseline Terms (Romans Translation Memory)
These terms occur in Galatians and MUST reuse the Romans-established rendering exactly, with no substitution.
| Term | Greek | Vietnamese (reused exactly) | Risk | Doctrine | Galatians Occurrences |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Gospel | εὐαγγέλιον | Tin Lành | Medium | Gospel / True Gospel vs False Gospels | 1:6-11; 2:2,5,7,14; 3:8; 4:13 |
| Grace | χάρις | ân điển | High | Grace / Law and Grace | 1:3,6,15; 2:9,21; 5:4; 6:18 |
| Faith | πίστις | đức tin | Medium | Faith / Justification by Faith | throughout chs. 2-3, 5-6 |
| Righteousness | δικαιοσύνη | sự công bình | Critical | Justification by Faith | 2:21; 3:6,21; 5:5 |
| Justification | δικαιόω / δικαίωσις | sự xưng công bình | Critical | Justification by Faith | 2:16-17,21; 3:8,11,24; 5:4 |
| Apostle | ἀπόστολος | sứ đồ | Medium | Paul’s Apostleship | 1:1,17,19 |
| Called / Calling | καλέω / κλῆσις | được kêu gọi / sự kêu gọi | High | Divine Calling / Paul’s Apostleship | 1:6,15; 5:8,13 |
| Adoption | υἱοθεσία | sự làm con nuôi | High | Adoption and Sonship | 4:5 |
| Resurrection | ἐγείρω ἐκ νεκρῶν | sự sống lại | Critical | Resurrection of Christ | 1:1 |
| Lord | κύριος | Chúa | Critical | Lordship of Christ | 1:3; 6:14,18 |
| Son of God | υἱὸς θεοῦ | Con Đức Chúa Trời | Critical | Sonship of Christ / Adoption | 2:20; 4:4,6 |
| Incarnation (concept) | γενόμενον ἐκ γυναικός | (see “born of a woman,” taught alongside Ngôi Lời trở nên xác thịt) | Critical | Incarnation | 4:4 |
| Peace | εἰρήνη | sự bình an | Medium | Peace with God | 1:3; 5:22; 6:16 |
| Fellowship | κοινωνία | sự thông công | Low | Christian Fellowship | 2:9 |
| Church | ἐκκλησία | Hội Thánh | Medium | Church as God’s People | 1:2,13,22 |
| Kingdom of God | βασιλεία τοῦ θεοῦ | Nước Đức Chúa Trời | Medium | Kingdom Mission | 5:21 |
| Law | νόμος | luật pháp | High | Law and Grace / The Law’s Purpose | throughout chs. 2-5 |
| Sin | ἁμαρτία | tội lỗi | High | Universal Human Accountability | 1:4; 2:17; 3:22 |
| Gentiles | ἔθνη | dân ngoại | Medium | Unity of Jews and Gentiles | 1:16; 2:12,14,15; 3:8,14 |
| Glory | δόξα | sự vinh hiển | High | Deity of Christ | 1:5,24 |
| Covenant | διαθήκη | giao ước | High | Abrahamic Covenant and Promise | 3:15,17; 4:24 |
| Israel | Ἰσραήλ | Y-sơ-ra-ên | Medium | Church as God’s People | 6:16 |
| Jesus | Ἰησοῦς | Đức Chúa Giê-xu | Critical | Lordship of Christ | throughout |
| Christ | Χριστός | Đấng Christ | Critical | Messianic Promise / Lordship | throughout (established transliteration standard per baseline AI instructions) |
| God | θεός | Đức Chúa Trời | Critical | Deity of Christ | throughout |
| Holy Spirit / Spirit | πνεῦμα (ἅγιον) | Đức Thánh Linh / Thánh Linh | Critical | Sanctification / Flesh vs Spirit | 3:2-5,14; 4:6,29; 5:5,16-25; 6:1,8 |
| Father | πατήρ | Cha | High | Adoption and Sonship | 1:1,3,4; 4:6 |
| Abba | Ἀββά | Áp-ba | Medium | Adoption and Sonship | 4:6 |
| Abraham | Ἀβραάμ | Áp-ra-ham | Low | Abrahamic Covenant | 3:6-9,14,16,18,29; 4:22 |
| Imputed Righteousness | ἐλογίσθη αὐτῷ εἰς δικαιοσύνην | sự công bình được kể cho | Critical | Justification by Faith | 3:6 |
Section 2 — New Terms by Doctrine
Justification by Faith
| Term | Greek | Transliteration | Vietnamese Rendering | Risk | Notes / Rejected Alternatives |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Works of the law | ἔργα νόμου | erga nomou | các việc làm của luật pháp | Critical | Never drift toward công đức/phước đức (accumulated Buddhist merit); this is the exact negative pole against which ân điển and sự xưng công bình are defined. |
| Boast (in the cross alone) | καυχάομαι | kauchaomai | khoe mình | Medium | Must retain exclusivity: boasting located only in the cross, not in law-keeping or lineage. |
| Transgressor | παραβάτης | parabatēs | kẻ phạm luật | Medium | Distinguish from ἁμαρτωλός (kẻ có tội) — different nuance, boundary-violation vs. general sinfulness. |
The True Gospel versus False Gospels
| Term | Greek | Transliteration | Vietnamese Rendering | Risk | Notes / Rejected Alternatives |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| A different/another gospel | ἕτερον εὐαγγέλιον | heteron euangelion | Tin Lành khác | Critical | Must not be softened into “a different denomination”; means a message that is, in truth, no gospel at all. |
| Anathema / accursed | ἀνάθεμα | anathema | đáng bị a-na-them (transliterated) / đáng bị Đức Chúa Trời rủa sả và dứt bỏ | Critical | Rejected: any rendering that reduces this to ordinary disapproval or disagreement. Human theologian review required every occurrence. |
| Truth of the gospel | ἀλήθεια τοῦ εὐαγγελίου | alētheia tou euangeliou | lẽ thật của Tin Lành | High | Singular, non-negotiable content, not “gospel truths” (plural/generic). |
| False brothers | ψευδάδελφος | pseudadelphos | anh em giả dối | Medium | |
| Hypocrisy | ὑπόκρισις | hypokrisis | sự giả hình | Medium |
Paul’s Apostleship
| Term | Greek | Transliteration | Vietnamese Rendering | Risk | Notes / Rejected Alternatives |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Not from men nor through man | οὐκ ἀπ’ ἀνθρώπων οὐδὲ διὰ ἀνθρώπου | ouk ap’ anthrōpōn oude dia anthrōpou | không phải từ loài người, cũng không phải bởi loài người | Medium | |
| Revelation | ἀποκάλυψις | apokalypsis | sự tỏ ra / sự mặc khải | Medium | |
| Set apart from the womb | ἀφορίζω…ἐκ κοιλίας μητρός | aphorizō | biệt riêng ra từ trong lòng mẹ | High | Parallel to baseline “separation_unto_gods_service” High tier. |
| Marks of Jesus | στίγματα τοῦ Ἰησοῦ | stigmata tou Iēsou | những dấu của Đức Chúa Giê-xu | Low | Authenticating evidence of genuine apostolic suffering. |
Law and Grace
| Term | Greek | Transliteration | Vietnamese Rendering | Risk | Notes / Rejected Alternatives |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Nullify grace | ἀθετέω τὴν χάριν | athetō tēn charin | làm cho ân điển ra vô ích / gạt bỏ ân điển | High | Must carry weight of nullification, not casual disregard. |
| Fall from grace | ἐκπίπτω τῆς χάριτος | ekpiptō tēs charitos | lìa khỏi ân điển / rơi khỏi ân điển | High | Specific to reverting to law-righteousness; must not contradict Romans’ assurance_of_salvation doctrine when taught. |
| Under the law | ὑπὸ νόμον | hypo nomon | ở dưới luật pháp | High | Technical recurring phrase (3:23; 4:4-5,21; 5:18); keep verbatim-consistent. |
| Died to the law | νόμῳ ἀπέθανον | nomō apethanon | đã chết đối với luật pháp | High | Preserve Paul’s paradox (διὰ νόμου νόμῳ ἀπέθανον); do not smooth away the double use of νόμος. |
| In vain (Christ died for nothing) | δωρεάν | dōrean | vô ích | High | Negative sense here; distinguish from the positive “freely given” sense of the same word elsewhere. |
| Curse (of the law) | κατάρα | katara | sự rủa sả | High | Distinguish from folk “vận rủi” (impersonal bad luck); this is the covenant God’s judicial curse. |
| Redeem | ἐξαγοράζω | exagorazō | chuộc / cứu chuộc | Critical | Must convey a price paid by another, substitutionary; never collapse into generic rescue or self-attained liberation. |
| Became a curse for us | γενόμενος ὑπὲρ ἡμῶν κατάρα | genomenos hyper hēmōn katara | đã trở nên sự rủa sả thế cho chúng ta | Critical | Substitutionary “instead of us” sense is essential. |
Crucified with Christ
| Term | Greek | Transliteration | Vietnamese Rendering | Risk | Notes / Rejected Alternatives |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Crucified with Christ | Χριστῷ συνεσταύρωμαι | Christō synestaurōmai | tôi đã cùng bị đóng đinh vào thập tự giá với Đấng Christ | Critical | Never modeled on ascetic self-mortification or gradual detachment; a completed, Christ-accomplished union event appropriated by faith. Human theologian review required every occurrence. |
| Christ lives in me | ζῇ ἐν ἐμοὶ Χριστός | zē en emoi Christos | Đấng Christ sống trong tôi | High | Must not suggest dissolving of personal identity into an impersonal divine essence; personal indwelling by a personal Christ. |
| Gave himself for me | παραδόντος ἑαυτὸν ὑπὲρ ἐμοῦ | paradontos heauton hyper emou | đã phó chính mình Ngài vì tôi | High | Retain substitutionary “on my behalf” sense; not generic self-sacrifice. |
| World crucified to me | κόσμος ἐμοὶ ἐσταύρωται κἀγὼ κόσμῳ | kosmos emoi estaurōtai kagō kosmō | thế gian đối với tôi đã bị đóng đinh, và tôi đối với thế gian cũng vậy | High | Same doctrinal care as above. |
| Crucified the flesh | τὴν σάρκα ἐσταύρωσαν | tēn sarka estaurōsan | đã đóng đinh xác thịt | High | Accomplished status in Christ, not a self-effort ascetic technique. |
The Abrahamic Covenant and Promise
| Term | Greek | Transliteration | Vietnamese Rendering | Risk | Notes / Rejected Alternatives |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Promise | ἐπαγγελία | epangelia | lời hứa | Medium | God’s covenantal pledge, not an ordinary human promise. |
| Sons of Abraham | υἱοὶ Ἀβραάμ | huioi Abraam | con cháu của Áp-ra-ham | High | Spiritual, faith-based descent, not mere bloodline. |
| Seed (singular, Christological) | σπέρμα | sperma | dòng dõi | High | Must preserve Paul’s argument that this is grammatically singular and Christ-focused (3:16); translator note required. |
| Ordained through angels | διατάσσω δι’ ἀγγέλων | diatassō di’ angelōn | được ban qua các thiên sứ | Medium | |
| Mediator | μεσίτης | mesitēs | người trung gian | Medium | |
| Heir | κληρονόμος | klēronomos | người thừa kế | Medium | Also traditionally “kẻ kế tự.” |
The Law’s Purpose
| Term | Greek | Transliteration | Vietnamese Rendering | Risk | Notes / Rejected Alternatives |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Guardian/tutor (custodial) | παιδαγωγός | paidagōgos | thầy giáo (traditional) / người giữ và dạy dỗ trẻ (fuller descriptive alternative) | High | Traditional term undersells the custodial-slave, disciplinary, temporary-until-maturity sense; mandatory translator note or fuller phrase recommended. Human theologian review required. |
| Confined / guarded | συγκλείω / φρουρέω | synkleiō / phroureō | bị canh giữ / bị nhốt lại | Medium | |
| No law against such things | κατὰ τῶν τοιούτων οὐκ ἔστιν νόμος | kata tōn toioutōn ouk estin nomos | không có luật pháp nào cấm những điều đó | Medium | |
| Elemental things of the world | στοιχεῖα τοῦ κόσμου | stoicheia tou kosmou | những lề thói/nguyên tắc sơ đẳng của thế gian | High | NEVER render as bare “thần linh” (folk-spirit category collision). |
Adoption and Sonship
| Term | Greek | Transliteration | Vietnamese Rendering | Risk | Notes / Rejected Alternatives |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Infant / minor | νήπιος | nēpios | con trẻ | Low | |
| Guardian / steward | ἐπίτροπος / οἰκονόμος | epitropos / oikonomos | người giám hộ / người quản gia | Low | |
| Fullness of time | πλήρωμα τοῦ χρόνου | plērōma tou chronou | khi kỳ hạn đã được trọn | Medium | |
| Sent forth his Son, born of a woman, born under the law | ἐξαπέστειλεν…γενόμενον ἐκ γυναικός, γενόμενον ὑπὸ νόμον | exapesteilen…genomenon ek gynaikos, genomenon hypo nomon | Đức Chúa Trời đã sai Con Ngài đến, sanh bởi một người nữ, sanh ra dưới luật pháp | Critical | Full incarnation statement; Con Đức Chúa Trời reused exactly. |
| Known by God | γνωσθέντες ὑπὸ θεοῦ | gnōsthentes hypo theou | được Đức Chúa Trời biết đến | Medium | Emphasizes divine initiative over human achievement. |
Freedom in Christ
| Term | Greek | Transliteration | Vietnamese Rendering | Risk | Notes / Rejected Alternatives |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Freedom / liberty | ἐλευθερία | eleutheria | sự tự do | High | Freedom FOR righteous, Spirit-led, loving service — not license (5:13); not merely social freedom from Confucian hierarchical duty. |
| Yoke of slavery | ζυγὸς δουλείας | zygos douleias | ách tôi mọi / ách nô lệ | Medium | |
| Slave woman / free woman | παιδίσκη / ἐλευθέρα | paidiskē / eleuthera | người nữ tôi mọi / người nữ tự do | Medium | Allegorical figures for the two covenants. |
Circumcision and the New Creation
| Term | Greek | Transliteration | Vietnamese Rendering | Risk | Notes / Rejected Alternatives |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Circumcision | περιτομή | peritomē | phép cắt bì / sự cắt bì | High | Central recurring symbol of the whole controversy (chs. 2, 5, 6); keep fully consistent. |
| Uncircumcision | ἀκροβυστία | akrobystia | sự không chịu cắt bì / người không cắt bì | Medium | |
| Baptized into Christ / put on Christ | βαπτίζω εἰς Χριστόν / ἐνδύω Χριστόν | baptizō eis Christon / endyō Christon | chịu báp-têm vào trong Đấng Christ / mặc lấy Đấng Christ | High | |
| New creation | καινὴ κτίσις | kainē ktisis | sự dựng nên mới | Critical | A decisive, singular, God-accomplished transformation — never framed as a repeatable renewal cycle (risk of luân hồi-adjacent misreading). Human theologian review required every occurrence. |
| Neither Jew nor Greek…one in Christ | οὐκ ἔνι Ἰουδαῖος οὐδὲ Ἕλλην…εἷς ἐν Χριστῷ | ouk eni Ioudaios oude Hellēn…heis en Christō | (full universal-unity statement) | High | Must retain unqualified universality per baseline validation rules. |
Flesh versus Spirit
| Term | Greek | Transliteration | Vietnamese Rendering | Risk | Notes / Rejected Alternatives |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Flesh (ethical sense) | σάρξ | sarx | xác thịt | High | Morally culpable, sin-oriented human disposition opposed to the Spirit — not the Buddhist framework of body-as-impermanence to be transcended by detachment. |
| Walk by the Spirit | περιπατέω πνεύματι | peripateō pneumati | bước đi theo Thánh Linh | Medium | |
| Works of the flesh | ἔργα τῆς σαρκός | erga tēs sarkos | các việc làm của xác thịt | High | Vice list (15 items); handle εἰδωλολατρία with pastoral care re: ancestor veneration without altering the translation itself. |
| According to the flesh / according to promise | κατὰ σάρκα / κατ’ ἐπαγγελίαν | kata sarka / kat’ epangelian | theo xác thịt / theo lời hứa | High | Ishmael/Isaac typology. |
| Sow / reap | σπείρω / θερίζω | speirō / therizō | gieo / gặt | Low | Personal-God moral order, not impersonal nghiệp/karma; brief teaching note advisable. |
| Corruption / eternal life | φθορά / ζωὴν αἰώνιον | phthora / zōēn aiōnion | sự hư nát / sự sống đời đời | Medium |
Fruit of the Spirit
| Term | Greek | Transliteration | Vietnamese Rendering | Risk | Notes / Rejected Alternatives |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Fruit of the Spirit | καρπὸς τοῦ πνεύματος | karpos tou pneumatos | trái của Thánh Linh | Medium | Preserve singular “trái” (organic unity), not a checklist. |
| Love (fruit) | ἀγάπη | agapē | tình yêu thương | Low | |
| Joy | χαρά | chara | sự vui mừng | Low | |
| Peace (fruit) | εἰρήνη | eirēnē | sự bình an | Medium | Reused from baseline peace entry. |
| Patience / longsuffering | μακροθυμία | makrothymia | nhịn nhục | Low | |
| Kindness | χρηστότης | chrēstotēs | nhân từ | Low | |
| Goodness | ἀγαθωσύνη | agathōsynē | hiền lành / tốt lành | Low | |
| Faithfulness (fruit sense) | πίστις | pistis | trung tín | Medium | Distinct sense from πίστις as saving “faith” (đức tin); do not conflate — flag for native speaker review. |
| Gentleness | πραΰτης | prautēs | mềm mại / nhu mì | Low | |
| Self-control | ἐγκράτεια | egkrateia | tiết độ | Low |
Faith Working through Love
| Term | Greek | Transliteration | Vietnamese Rendering | Risk | Notes / Rejected Alternatives |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Faith working through love | πίστις δι’ ἀγάπης ἐνεργουμένη | pistis di’ agapēs energoumenē | đức tin hay làm ra bởi sự yêu thương | High | Love is faith’s active expression/fruit, not an added requirement for justification alongside faith. |
Bearing One Another’s Burdens
| Term | Greek | Transliteration | Vietnamese Rendering | Risk | Notes / Rejected Alternatives |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Bear one another’s burdens | ἀλλήλων τὰ βάρη βαστάζετε | allēlōn ta barē bastazete | hãy mang gánh nặng cho nhau | Low–Medium | Distinguish from personal accountability (τὸ ἴδιον φορτίον). |
| Trespass / fault | παράπτωμα | paraptōma | lỗi / sự phạm lỗi | Low | |
| Restore in gentleness | καταρτίζετε…ἐν πνεύματι πραΰτητος | katartizete…en pneumati prautētos | sửa lại…với tâm thần nhu mì | Low | |
| His own load | τὸ ἴδιον φορτίον | to idion phortion | phần riêng của mình | Low | |
| Household of faith | οἰκεῖοι τῆς πίστεως | oikeioi tēs pisteōs | những người trong nhà đức tin | Low–Medium |
Section 3 — Proper Names and Places (New to Galatians)
| Term | Greek | Transliteration | Vietnamese Rendering | Risk | Notes |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Jew | Ἰουδαῖος | Ioudaios | người Do Thái (also traditionally “người Giu-đa”) | Medium | Ethnic-religious identity term; keep theologically neutral. |
| Judaism | Ἰουδαϊσμός | Ioudaismos | Do Thái giáo | Low | Historical-biographical reference (Paul’s former life). |
| Hagar | Ἁγάρ | Hagar | A-ga | Low | Allegorical figure, slave-covenant. |
| Sarah | Σάρρα | Sarra | Sa-ra | Low | Allegorical figure, promise-covenant. |
| Ishmael (implied) | Ἰσμαήλ | Ismaēl | Ích-ma-ên | Low | Not named directly in text but implied; supply if referenced in teaching materials. |
| Isaac (implied) | Ἰσαάκ | Isaak | Y-sác | Low | Not named directly in text but implied; supply if referenced in teaching materials. |
| Jerusalem above | Ἱερουσαλήμ ἡ ἄνω | Hierousalēm hē anō | thành Giê-ru-sa-lem ở trên | Medium | Eschatological, not the earthly city. |
| Cephas / Peter | Κηφᶶς / Πέτρος | Kēphas / Petros | Sê-pha / Phi-e-rơ | Low | Established Vietnamese Bible proper-name forms. |
| Barnabas | Βαρνάβας | Barnabas | Ba-na-ba | Low | Established Vietnamese Bible proper-name form. |
| Titus | Τίτος | Titos | Tít | Low | Established Vietnamese Bible proper-name form. |
| James | Ἰάκωβος | Iakōbos | Gia-cơ | Low | Established Vietnamese Bible proper-name form. |
| Antioch | Ἀντιόχεια | Antiocheia | An-ti-ốt | Low | Established Vietnamese Bible proper-name form. |
Section 4 — Coverage Confirmation
All six chapters of Galatians have been reviewed for load-bearing theological vocabulary:
- Chapter 1: Reviewed — introduces Paul’s Apostleship and True Gospel vs False Gospels vocabulary (ἀνάθεμα, ἕτερον εὐαγγέλιον, ἀποκάλυψις).
- Chapter 2: Reviewed — vv. 1-14 introduce circumcision/fellowship/hypocrisy vocabulary; vv. 15-21 (core passage) receive full verse-by-verse treatment in
07_semantic_analysis.md. - Chapter 3: Reviewed — introduces Abrahamic Covenant, curse/redemption, and Law’s Purpose vocabulary (κατάρα, ἐξαγοράζω, παιδαγωγός, ὑπὸ νόμον, σπέρμα).
- Chapter 4: Reviewed — introduces Adoption and Sonship vocabulary (υἱοθεσία, στοιχεῖα, πλήρωμα τοῦ χρόνου) and the Hagar/Sarah allegory.
- Chapter 5: Reviewed — introduces Freedom in Christ, Flesh versus Spirit, and Fruit of the Spirit vocabulary (ἐλευθερία, σάρξ, ἔργα τῆς σαρκός, καρπὸς τοῦ πνεύματος, πίστις δι’ ἀγάπης ἐνεργουμένη).
- Chapter 6: Reviewed — introduces Bearing One Another’s Burdens and Circumcision/New Creation vocabulary (βάρη βαστάζετε, καινὴ κτίσις, στίγματα).
No chapter of Galatians was found to introduce zero new theological vocabulary; the letter’s argumentative density means every chapter contributes load-bearing terms requiring risk analysis.
Critical Risk Terms
Righteousness
Approved rendering: sự công bình
Transliteration: su cong binh
Doctrine: Justification by Faith
Rejected alternatives: đức hạnh
Original: δικαιοσύνη
Category: Salvation
Inherited from Romans package (rendering unchanged). Never đức hạnh (Confucian cultivated moral virtue). Galatians 2:21 and 3:21 make explicit that if righteousness came through the law, Christ’s death would be pointless — the sharpest possible statement of this term’s forensic, not achieved, character.
Justification
Approved rendering: sự xưng công bình
Transliteration: su xung cong binh
Doctrine: Justification by Faith
Original: δικαίωσις / δικαιόω
Category: Salvation
Inherited from Romans package (rendering unchanged). Galatians 2:16 states this doctrine three times in one verse as the letter’s thesis — verbatim consistency across all three clauses is mandatory. Also 2:17,21; 3:8,11,24; 5:4.
Resurrection
Approved rendering: sự sống lại
Transliteration: su song lai
Doctrine: Resurrection of Christ
Rejected alternatives: sự đầu thai, luân hồi
Original: ἐγείρω ἐκ νεκρῶν
Category: Eschatology
Inherited from Romans package (rendering unchanged). CRITICAL: NEVER sự đầu thai/luân hồi. Galatians 1:1 grounds Paul’s entire apostolic authority in God ‘who raised him from the dead’ — the letter’s opening verse.
Lord
Approved rendering: Chúa
Transliteration: Chua
Doctrine: Lordship of Christ
Original: κύριος
Category: Christology
Inherited from Romans package (rendering unchanged). Frames Galatians’ opening (1:3) and closing (6:14,18) benedictions — Critical-tier care required at both ends of the letter.
Son Of God
Approved rendering: Con Đức Chúa Trời
Transliteration: Con Duc Chua Troi
Doctrine: Sonship of Christ / Deity of Christ
Original: υἱὸς θεοῦ
Category: Christology
Inherited from Romans package (rendering unchanged). Galatians 2:20 and 4:4,6 apply this title in the letter’s two most doctrinally weighted passages. Full phrase required every occurrence; never a title readable as a deified ancestor or folk-hero spirit. Must not be flattened into the same category as believers’ own adoptive sonship, which the same chapter also teaches.
Incarnation
Approved rendering: Ngôi Lời trở nên xác thịt
Transliteration: Ngoi Loi tro nen xac thit
Doctrine: Incarnation
Rejected alternatives: hóa thân
Inherited from Romans package (rendering unchanged); taught alongside the Galatians 4:4 incarnation statement (see ‘sent_forth_his_son’ below), which uniquely adds ‘born under the law.’ Never bare hóa thân.
Jesus
Approved rendering: Đức Chúa Giê-xu
Transliteration: Duc Chua Gie-xu
Doctrine: Lordship of Christ
Original: Ἰησοῦς
Category: Christology
Inherited from Romans package (rendering unchanged). Standard Vietnamese Protestant form (Bản Dịch Truyền Thống, 1926) throughout Galatians.
Christ
Approved rendering: Đấng Christ
Transliteration: Dang Christ
Doctrine: Deity of Christ / Sonship of Christ
Original: Χριστός
Category: Christology
NEW to this package (distinct entry from baseline’s ‘messiah’). Χριστός is used throughout Galatians overwhelmingly as Paul’s proper name/title for Jesus rather than as an explicit messianic argument. Per established Vietnamese Protestant Bible proper-name standard, render ‘Đấng Christ’ throughout, distinct from ‘Đấng Mê-si-a’ (reserved for explicit OT-promise-fulfillment contexts). Must never be softened toward a generic honorific or a title compatible with multiple enlightened teachers/avatars.
God
Approved rendering: Đức Chúa Trời
Transliteration: Duc Chua Troi
Doctrine: Deity of Christ
Rejected alternatives: Ông Trời
Original: θεός
Category: God
Inherited from Romans package (rendering unchanged). Every Critical/High occurrence must carry enough context to distinguish the personal, covenant-making God from Ông Trời folk usage.
Holy Spirit
Approved rendering: Đức Thánh Linh
Transliteration: Duc Thanh Linh
Doctrine: Flesh versus Spirit
Rejected alternatives: thần linh
Original: πνεῦμα ἅγιον
Category: God
Inherited from Romans package (rendering unchanged). Galatians 5’s Flesh-versus-Spirit section (5:16-25) names the Spirit repeatedly as the personal divine agent opposing the flesh; also 3:2-5,14; 4:6,29; 6:1,8. Never bare thần linh. May be shortened to ‘Thánh Linh’ in flowing text per established usage (e.g. ‘trái của Thánh Linh’).
Imputed Righteousness
Approved rendering: sự công bình được kể cho
Transliteration: su cong binh duoc ke cho
Doctrine: The Abrahamic Covenant and Promise / Justification by Faith
Rejected alternatives: công đức tích lũy
Original: ἐλογίσθη αὐτῷ εἰς δικαιοσύνην
Category: Salvation
Inherited from Romans package (rendering unchanged). Galatians 3:6 quotes Genesis 15:6 identically to Romans 4:3, applying it directly to the Abrahamic Covenant doctrine.
Works Of The Law
Approved rendering: các việc làm của luật pháp
Transliteration: cac viec lam cua luat phap
Doctrine: Justification by Faith
Rejected alternatives: công đức tích lũy, phước đức
Original: ἔργα νόμου
Category: Salvation
NEW. Galatians 2:16 (x3), 2:21; 3:2,5,10. This is the letter’s negative pole against ân điển and sự xưng công bình. Grounded risk: Vietnamese hearers from Buddhist backgrounds may unconsciously map ‘deeds that earn standing’ onto công đức/phước đức; keep sharply distinguished from grace with no room for a merit-based reading.
Different Gospel
Approved rendering: Tin Lành khác
Transliteration: Tin Lanh khac
Doctrine: The True Gospel versus False Gospels
Rejected alternatives: một Tin Lành khác nhưng vẫn đúng, một cách hiểu khác về Tin Lành
Original: ἕτερον εὐαγγέλιον
Category: Gospel
NEW. Galatians 1:6-9. Grounded risk: because ‘Tin Lành’ also names Protestantism generally in Vietnamese, this phrase risks being read as ‘a different Protestant denomination/teaching’ rather than Paul’s claim that the rival message forfeits the name ‘gospel’ entirely. Every occurrence needs disambiguating surrounding context.
Anathema
Approved rendering: đáng bị a-na-them / đáng bị Đức Chúa Trời rủa sả và dứt bỏ
Transliteration: dang bi a-na-them / dang bi Duc Chua Troi rua sa va dut bo
Doctrine: The True Gospel versus False Gospels
Rejected alternatives: sai, không đồng ý, bị lên án nhẹ
Original: ἀνάθεμα
Category: Gospel
NEW. Galatians 1:8-9 (twice-repeated). Vietnamese has no native equivalent for a formal, apostolic curse-pronouncement; ordinary disapproval terms are far too weak. Prefer the fuller phrase for first-generation readers; the transliteration ‘a-na-them’ (established at 1 Cor 16:22 in Vietnamese Bible tradition) is acceptable for congregations already familiar with it. Human theologian review required every occurrence.
Redeem
Approved rendering: chuộc / cứu chuộc
Transliteration: chuoc / cuu chuoc
Doctrine: Law and Grace
Rejected alternatives: giải thoát
Original: ἐξαγοράζω
Category: Salvation
NEW. Galatians 3:13; 4:5. Must convey an actual price paid by Christ on the sufferer’s behalf, parallel to the baseline’s insistence that ‘salvation’ is never self-attained liberation (sự giải thoát) — must not collapse into generic rescue language.
Became A Curse For Us
Approved rendering: đã trở nên sự rủa sả thế cho chúng ta
Transliteration: da tro nen su rua sa the cho chung ta
Doctrine: Law and Grace
Original: γενόμενος ὑπὲρ ἡμῶν κατάρα
Category: Salvation
NEW. Galatians 3:13. The substitutionary ‘instead of/on behalf of us’ sense (thế cho/vì chúng ta) is doctrinally essential and must not be lost to a generic statement that Christ merely ‘suffered.‘
Crucified With Christ
Approved rendering: tôi đã cùng bị đóng đinh vào thập tự giá với Đấng Christ
Transliteration: toi da cung bi dong dinh vao thap tu gia voi Dang Christ
Doctrine: Crucified with Christ
Rejected alternatives: diệt dục, tu khổ hạnh
Original: Χριστῷ συνεσταύρωμαι
Category: Christology
NEW. Galatians 2:20. Grounded risk: must never be modeled on ascetic self-mortification (diệt dục) or the gradual extinguishing of desire pursued in Vietnamese Buddhist practice toward liberation. A completed event accomplished in Christ’s historical crucifixion, appropriated by faith — not a self-performed technique. Human theologian review required every occurrence.
Sent Forth His Son
Approved rendering: Đức Chúa Trời đã sai Con Ngài đến, sanh bởi một người nữ, sanh ra dưới luật pháp
Transliteration: Duc Chua Troi da sai Con Ngai den, sanh boi mot nguoi nu, sanh ra duoi luat phap
Doctrine: Incarnation
Rejected alternatives: hóa thân
Original: ἐξαπέστειλεν ὁ θεὸς τὸν υἱὸν αὐτοῦ, γενόμενον ἐκ γυναικός, γενόμενον ὑπὸ νόμον
Category: Christology
NEW. Galatians 4:4. Full statement of the incarnation. ‘Con Đức Chúa Trời’ must be reused exactly; the clause ‘born under the law’ is unique to this incarnation statement in the NT and must be preserved, not smoothed into a generic birth notice — it grounds Christ’s qualification to redeem those under the law (4:5). Human theologian review required.
New Creation
Approved rendering: sự dựng nên mới
Transliteration: su dung nen moi
Doctrine: Circumcision and the New Creation
Rejected alternatives: luân hồi
Original: καινὴ κτίσις
Category: Salvation
NEW. Galatians 6:15. Must be taught as a decisive, singular, once-for-all, God-accomplished transformation — parallel in weight to the baseline’s Critical caution around resurrection and salvation — and must NEVER be framed as a repeatable renewal cycle, risking collapse into luân hồi-adjacent thinking central to Vietnamese Mahayana Buddhist cosmology. Human theologian review required every occurrence.
High Risk Terms
Gospel
Approved rendering: Tin Lành
Transliteration: tin lanh
Doctrine: The True Gospel versus False Gospels
Rejected alternatives: tin tức tốt lành
Original: εὐαγγέλιον
Category: Salvation
Inherited from Romans package (rendering unchanged). Risk elevated to High for Galatians because the letter’s entire argument defends this one specific proclamation against a rival message; ‘Tin Lành’ also names Protestantism generally in Vietnamese, so surrounding context must block a ‘different denomination’ misreading. Galatians 1:6-11; 2:2,5,7,14; 3:8; 4:13.
Grace
Approved rendering: ân điển
Transliteration: an dien
Doctrine: Law and Grace
Rejected alternatives: phước đức, công đức, ơn nghĩa
Original: χάρις
Category: Salvation
Inherited from Romans package (rendering unchanged). Never phước đức/công đức (accumulated Buddhist merit) or ơn nghĩa (Confucian reciprocal-debt favor). Galatians intensifies this concern by directly opposing grace to ‘works of the law’ as the letter’s central antithesis (1:3,6,15; 2:9,21; 5:4; 6:18).
Faith
Approved rendering: đức tin
Transliteration: duc tin
Doctrine: Justification by Faith
Original: πίστις
Category: Faith
Inherited from Romans package (rendering unchanged); risk elevated from Medium (Romans) to High for Galatians given the πίστις Χριστοῦ genitive ambiguity (2:16; 2:20; 3:22). Default to the objective-genitive sense (‘faith directed toward Christ’) per established Vietnamese Protestant tradition; record the subjective-genitive alternative (‘bởi sự trung tín của Đấng Christ’) in the segment cache per Ambiguity Handling protocol. Object of faith must always be Christ.
Called
Approved rendering: được kêu gọi
Transliteration: duoc keu goi
Doctrine: Paul’s Apostleship / Freedom in Christ
Inherited from Romans package (rendering unchanged); risk elevated to High for Galatians. In 1:6,15 the calling is to salvation/apostleship; in 5:8,13 it is to freedom. Never số phận (fixed fate/destiny).
Calling
Approved rendering: sự kêu gọi
Transliteration: su keu goi
Doctrine: Paul’s Apostleship
Rejected alternatives: số phận
Inherited from Romans package (rendering unchanged); risk elevated to High for Galatians. Never conflate with số phận (fixed fate/destiny).
Adoption
Approved rendering: sự làm con nuôi
Transliteration: su lam con nuoi
Doctrine: Adoption and Sonship
Original: υἱοθεσία
Category: Salvation
Inherited from Romans package (rendering unchanged). Galatians 4:5 is this doctrine’s fullest NT statement, developed through the heir/minor/slave contrast of ch.4 — guard against Confucian filial-duty (hiếu) framing more forcefully than in Romans 8, since ch.4’s whole argument turns on grace-based, not obligation-based, sonship.
Law
Approved rendering: luật pháp
Transliteration: luat phap
Doctrine: Law and Grace / The Law’s Purpose
Original: νόμος
Category: Covenant
Inherited from Romans package (rendering unchanged); risk elevated to High for Galatians, which treats law far more extensively and antithetically than Romans. Never a term suggesting general cosmic duty or dharma-like moral order. Recurs throughout chs. 2-5.
Sin
Approved rendering: tội lỗi
Transliteration: toi loi
Doctrine: Universal Human Accountability
Rejected alternatives: nghiệp xấu
Original: ἁμαρτία
Category: Sin
Inherited from Romans package (rendering unchanged); risk elevated to High for Galatians. Never nghiệp xấu (impersonal bad karma). Galatians 2:17 raises and rejects the idea that grace could make Christ ‘a servant of sin.‘
Glory
Approved rendering: sự vinh hiển
Transliteration: su vinh hien
Doctrine: Deity of Christ
Original: δόξα
Category: God
Inherited from Romans package (rendering unchanged); risk elevated to High for Galatians. Galatians 1:5,24 — the doxology and the churches’ glorifying God over Paul’s transformation.
Covenant
Approved rendering: giao ước
Transliteration: giao uoc
Doctrine: The Abrahamic Covenant and Promise
Original: διαθήκη
Category: Covenant
Inherited from Romans package (rendering unchanged); risk elevated to High for Galatians. Galatians 3:15,17 argues the Abrahamic covenant cannot be annulled by the later-given law; 4:24 allegorizes two covenants (slavery/freedom).
Messiah
Approved rendering: Đấng Mê-si-a
Transliteration: Dang Me-si-a
Doctrine: Messianic Promise
Inherited from Romans package (rendering unchanged). Reserved for explicit OT-promise-fulfillment contexts, distinguished from the everyday proper-name use ‘Đấng Christ’ throughout this letter.
Father
Approved rendering: Cha
Transliteration: Cha
Doctrine: Adoption and Sonship
Original: πατήρ
Category: God
Inherited from Romans package (rendering unchanged). Galatians 4:6’s Abba-cry restates the Romans 8:15 formula; guard against Confucian filial-duty (đạo hiếu) framing.
Truth Of The Gospel
Approved rendering: lẽ thật của Tin Lành
Transliteration: le that cua Tin Lanh
Doctrine: The True Gospel versus False Gospels
Rejected alternatives: những lẽ thật của Tin Lành (plural)
Original: ἀλήθεια τοῦ εὐαγγελίου
Category: Gospel
NEW. Galatians 2:5,14. Must stay singular and specific, not diluted into a generic plural ‘gospel truths’ suggesting several negotiable teachings rather than the one content at stake at Antioch.
Set Apart From The Womb
Approved rendering: biệt riêng ra từ trong lòng mẹ
Transliteration: biet rieng ra tu trong long me
Doctrine: Paul’s Apostleship
Rejected alternatives: xuất gia
Original: ἀφορίζω…ἐκ κοιλίας μητρός μου
Category: Apostleship
NEW. Galatians 1:15. Parallels the Romans baseline ‘separation_unto_gods_service’ High-risk doctrine. Never modeled on entering monastic Buddhist life (xuất gia) as the paradigm of devoted service.
Nullify Grace
Approved rendering: làm cho ân điển ra vô ích / gạt bỏ ân điển
Transliteration: lam cho an dien ra vo ich / gat bo an dien
Doctrine: Law and Grace
Rejected alternatives: bỏ qua ân điển
Original: ἀθετέω τὴν χάριν
Category: Salvation
NEW. Galatians 2:21. Must carry the weight of nullifying/voiding a gift already given, not a casual ‘ignore’ — legal/relational seriousness must be retained.
Fall From Grace
Approved rendering: lìa khỏi ân điển / rơi khỏi ân điển
Transliteration: lia khoi an dien / roi khoi an dien
Doctrine: Law and Grace / Freedom in Christ
Original: ἐκπίπτω τῆς χάριτος
Category: Salvation
NEW. Galatians 5:4. Grounded risk: must be scoped precisely to seeking justification via circumcision/law, not read as implying salvation can be lost through ordinary moral failure — which would contradict the baseline’s ‘assurance_of_salvation’ doctrine when the two books are taught together.
Under The Law
Approved rendering: ở dưới luật pháp
Transliteration: o duoi luat phap
Doctrine: Law and Grace / The Law’s Purpose
Original: ὑπὸ νόμον
Category: Covenant
NEW. Recurs as a technical phrase (3:23; 4:4-5,21; 5:18) — must be rendered identically every occurrence so readers can track the argument.
Died To The Law
Approved rendering: bởi luật pháp, tôi đã chết đối với luật pháp
Transliteration: boi luat phap, toi da chet doi voi luat phap
Doctrine: Law and Grace / Crucified with Christ
Original: διὰ νόμου νόμῳ ἀπέθανον
Category: Covenant
NEW. Galatians 2:19. Paradoxical double use of ‘law’ (διὰ νόμου νόμῳ ἀπέθανον) must not be smoothed away — losing the double-use tension flattens Paul’s argument.
In Vain Purposeless
Approved rendering: vô ích
Transliteration: vo ich
Doctrine: Law and Grace
Original: δωρεάν
Category: Salvation
NEW. Galatians 2:21: ‘Christ died for nothing/in vain’ — negative sense of δωρεάν. Grounded risk: the same Greek word elsewhere describes grace given freely (positive gift-sense, cf. Romans 3:24); a translator note is required at this verse to prevent confusion between the two senses.
Curse Of The Law
Approved rendering: sự rủa sả
Transliteration: su rua sa
Doctrine: The Law’s Purpose / Law and Grace
Rejected alternatives: vận rủi, bị trù ẻo
Original: κατάρα
Category: Covenant
NEW. Galatians 3:10,13. Grounded risk: must be distinguished from Vietnamese folk notions of impersonal or spirit/ancestor-inflicted bad luck (vận rủi, bị trù ẻo) — this is the covenant God’s own judicial pronouncement.
Christ Lives In Me
Approved rendering: Đấng Christ sống trong tôi
Transliteration: Dang Christ song trong toi
Doctrine: Crucified with Christ / Deity of Christ
Original: ζῇ ἐν ἐμοὶ Χριστός
Category: Christology
NEW. Galatians 2:20. Grounded risk: must not suggest the believer’s personal identity is dissolved or absorbed into an impersonal divine essence (a possible misreading given non-dual concepts of self in Vietnamese Buddhist thought) — personal indwelling by a personal Christ, with the believer’s distinct personhood intact.
Gave Himself For Me
Approved rendering: đã phó chính mình Ngài vì tôi
Transliteration: da pho chinh minh Ngai vi toi
Doctrine: Crucified with Christ
Original: παραδόντος ἑαυτὸν ὑπὲρ ἐμοῦ
Category: Christology
NEW. Galatians 2:20. The substitutionary ‘on my behalf’ sense (vì tôi/thay tôi) must not be flattened into generic self-sacrifice detached from its atoning character.
World Crucified To Me
Approved rendering: thế gian đối với tôi đã bị đóng đinh, và tôi đối với thế gian cũng vậy
Transliteration: the gian doi voi toi da bi dong dinh, va toi doi voi the gian cung vay
Doctrine: Crucified with Christ
Original: κόσμος ἐμοὶ ἐσταύρωται κἀγὼ κόσμῳ
Category: Christology
NEW. Galatians 6:14. Same theological care as 2:20 — an accomplished status in Christ, not a self-achieved detachment technique.
Crucified The Flesh
Approved rendering: đã đóng đinh xác thịt với các đam mê và tình dục của nó
Transliteration: da dong dinh xac thit voi cac dam me va tinh duc cua no
Doctrine: Crucified with Christ / Flesh versus Spirit
Original: τὴν σάρκα ἐσταύρωσαν σὺν τοῖς παθήμασιν καὶ ταῖς ἐπιθυμίαις
Category: Christology
NEW. Galatians 5:24. A status already accomplished in union with Christ, appropriated by faith and outworked by the Spirit — not an ascetic self-mortification technique performed by willpower.
Sons Of Abraham
Approved rendering: con cháu của Áp-ra-ham
Transliteration: con chau cua Ap-ra-ham
Doctrine: The Abrahamic Covenant and Promise
Original: υἱοὶ Ἀβραάμ
Category: Covenant
NEW. Galatians 3:7,29. Grounded risk: Vietnamese identity is strongly shaped by lineage and ancestral descent (dòng họ, gia phả); Paul’s redefinition around faith rather than bloodline requires deliberate teaching so it is not read as devaluing family lineage generally, but as redefining covenant membership specifically.
Seed Christological
Approved rendering: dòng dõi
Transliteration: dong doi
Doctrine: The Abrahamic Covenant and Promise
Original: σπέρμα
Category: Covenant
NEW. Galatians 3:16. Distinct from the baseline’s ‘seed_of_david.’ Must preserve Paul’s argument that this is grammatically singular and Christologically focused, not merely a collective ‘descendants’ term — ‘dòng dõi’ reads naturally as a plural collective in Vietnamese. Mandatory translator note required at 3:16.
Guardian Tutor
Approved rendering: thầy giáo (với chú giải bắt buộc) / người giữ và dạy dỗ trẻ
Transliteration: thay giao (voi chu giai bat buoc) / nguoi giu va day do tre
Doctrine: The Law’s Purpose
Original: παιδαγωγός
Category: Covenant
NEW. Galatians 3:24-25 (παιδαγωγός). Grounded risk: the traditional Vietnamese rendering ‘thầy giáo’ (teacher) foregrounds instruction and undersells the custodial-guardian-slave, disciplinary, strictly-temporary-until-maturity sense that is the entire point of Paul’s argument. Retain ‘thầy giáo’ only with a mandatory footnote explaining the guardian-slave background, or use the fuller descriptive phrase. Human theologian review required.
Elemental Things Of The World
Approved rendering: những lề thói/nguyên tắc sơ đẳng của thế gian
Transliteration: nhung le thoi/nguyen tac so dang cua the gian
Doctrine: The Law’s Purpose
Rejected alternatives: thần linh
Original: στοιχεῖα τοῦ κόσμου
Category: Covenant
NEW. Galatians 4:3,9 (στοιχεῖα τοῦ κόσμου). NEVER render as bare ‘thần linh’ — direct collision with the baseline’s forbidden Holy Spirit substitution. Keep register at ‘elementary systems/principles’; address interpretive options in a theologian’s note rather than resolving toward a spirit-being term.
Freedom
Approved rendering: sự tự do
Transliteration: su tu do
Doctrine: Freedom in Christ
Rejected alternatives: sự giải thoát
Original: ἐλευθερία
Category: Freedom
NEW. Galatians 5:1,13. Grounded risk: could be misread as general social liberation from Confucian hierarchical/filial (hiếu) obligation, a socially loaded claim, rather than the specific freedom from the law’s condemnation and sin’s dominion. Must be taught as freedom FOR righteous, Spirit-led, loving service (5:13), never as license. Must not be confused with sự giải thoát (Buddhist liberation), an already-forbidden baseline substitution.
Circumcision
Approved rendering: phép cắt bì / sự cắt bì
Transliteration: phep cat bi / su cat bi
Doctrine: Circumcision and the New Creation
Original: περιτομή
Category: Covenant
NEW. Central recurring symbol of the whole controversy (chs. 2,5,6). While Vietnamese has no direct ritual analogue creating syncretism risk, consistent rendering is essential so readers track the letter’s single running argument.
Baptized Into Christ
Approved rendering: chịu báp-têm vào trong Đấng Christ / mặc lấy Đấng Christ
Transliteration: chiu bap-tem vao trong Dang Christ / mac lay Dang Christ
Doctrine: Circumcision and the New Creation
Original: βαπτίζω εἰς Χριστόν / ἐνδύω Χριστόν
Category: Sanctification
NEW. Galatians 3:27. Grounds the claim that old identity-markers (including circumcision) are superseded by a new identity ‘in Christ.‘
Neither Jew Nor Greek
Approved rendering: chẳng còn phân biệt người Do Thái hay người Hy Lạp…hết thảy đều là một trong Đấng Christ
Transliteration: chang con phan biet nguoi Do Thai hay nguoi Hy Lap…het thay deu la mot trong Dang Christ
Doctrine: Unity of Jews and Gentiles / Circumcision and the New Creation
Original: οὐκ ἔνι Ἰουδαῖος οὐδὲ Ἕλλην…εἷς ἐν Χριστῷ
Category: Church
NEW. Galatians 3:28. Must retain full, unqualified universality per baseline validation rules — no softening or graded qualification permitted, including its extension to social and gender categories.
Flesh Ethical
Approved rendering: xác thịt
Transliteration: xac thit
Doctrine: Flesh versus Spirit
Original: σάρξ
Category: Sanctification
NEW. Galatians 5:16-24; 6:8. Must be distinguished from the neutral/descriptive uses of the same Vietnamese word elsewhere (‘theo xác thịt’ = physical descent, 4:23) and from the Buddhist framework of the body as a source of impermanent suffering to be transcended through detachment. This is a morally culpable, sin-oriented disposition requiring the Spirit’s decisive victory, not a detachment technique.
Works Of The Flesh
Approved rendering: các việc làm của xác thịt
Transliteration: cac viec lam cua xac thit
Doctrine: Flesh versus Spirit
Original: ἔργα τῆς σαρκός
Category: Sanctification
NEW. Galatians 5:19-21 (vice list of 15 items). εἰδωλολατρία within the list should be rendered ‘thờ hình tượng/thờ tà thần’ without collapsing into a term misapplied broadly to ancestor-veneration practices; a separate pastoral teaching note (not a translation change) is recommended.
According To Flesh According To Promise
Approved rendering: theo xác thịt / theo lời hứa
Transliteration: theo xac thit / theo loi hua
Doctrine: The Abrahamic Covenant and Promise / Flesh versus Spirit
Original: κατὰ σάρκα / κατ’ ἐπαγγελίαν
Category: Covenant
NEW. Galatians 4:23,28-29. Ishmael (natural effort/descent) vs. Isaac (promise-fulfillment) as types of law-reliance vs. faith-reliance.
Faith Working Through Love
Approved rendering: đức tin hay làm ra bởi sự yêu thương
Transliteration: duc tin hay lam ra boi su yeu thuong
Doctrine: Faith Working through Love
Original: πίστις δι’ ἀγάπης ἐνεργουμένη
Category: Faith
NEW. Galatians 5:6. Must preserve that love is faith’s active expression/fruit, not a separate additional requirement alongside faith for justification — collapsing this distinction risks reintroducing a merit-like (công đức-style) requirement into the doctrine of justification stated in 2:16.
Medium Risk Terms
Apostle
Approved rendering: sứ đồ
Transliteration: su do
Doctrine: Paul’s Apostleship
Original: ἀπόστολος
Category: Church
Inherited from Romans package (rendering unchanged). Galatians 1:1 stresses this commission is ‘not from men nor through man’ — the term itself carries low syncretism risk in Vietnamese. Also 1:17,19; 2:8.
Peace
Approved rendering: sự bình an
Transliteration: su binh an
Doctrine: Peace with God
Original: εἰρήνη
Category: Salvation
Inherited from Romans package (rendering unchanged). Appears in the opening greeting (1:3), as a fruit of the Spirit (5:22), and in the closing benediction (6:16).
Church
Approved rendering: Hội Thánh
Transliteration: Hoi Thanh
Doctrine: Church as God’s People
Rejected alternatives: đền, chùa
Original: ἐκκλησία
Category: Church
Inherited from Romans package (rendering unchanged). Never đền or chùa. Galatians 1:2,13,22.
Kingdom Of God
Approved rendering: Nước Đức Chúa Trời
Transliteration: Nuoc Duc Chua Troi
Doctrine: Kingdom Mission
Original: βασιλεία τοῦ θεοῦ
Category: Kingdom
Inherited from Romans package (rendering unchanged). Galatians 5:21 names it as what those practicing the works of the flesh ‘will not inherit.‘
Gentiles
Approved rendering: dân ngoại
Transliteration: dan ngoai
Doctrine: Unity of Jews and Gentiles
Original: ἔθνη
Category: Church
Inherited from Romans package (rendering unchanged). Central to the Antioch controversy (2:12,14,15) and the Abrahamic promise (3:8,14).
Israel
Approved rendering: Y-sơ-ra-ên
Transliteration: Y-so-ra-en
Doctrine: Church as God’s People
Original: Ἰσραήλ
Category: Covenant
Inherited from Romans package (rendering unchanged). Galatians 6:16’s ‘Israel of God’ extends this to the true covenant community in Christ.
Abba
Approved rendering: Áp-ba
Transliteration: Ap-ba
Doctrine: Adoption and Sonship
Original: Ἀββά
Category: God
Inherited from Romans package (rendering unchanged). Galatians 4:6. Retain alongside Cha to convey filial intimacy the formal title alone may not carry.
Transgressor
Approved rendering: kẻ phạm luật
Transliteration: ke pham luat
Doctrine: Justification by Faith
Original: παραβάτης
Category: Sin
NEW. Galatians 2:18. Distinguish from ἁμαρτωλός (‘kẻ có tội’) — this term names a specific boundary-crossing act, not a general moral state.
Boast
Approved rendering: khoe mình
Transliteration: khoe minh
Doctrine: Justification by Faith
Original: καυχάομαι
Category: Salvation
NEW. Galatians 6:14: boasting is located exclusively in Christ’s cross, excluding circumcision, lineage, or law-keeping as grounds — must retain this exclusivity.
False Brothers
Approved rendering: anh em giả dối
Transliteration: anh em gia doi
Doctrine: The True Gospel versus False Gospels
Original: ψευδάδελφος
Category: Gospel
NEW. Galatians 2:4. Names an internal threat, not an outside opponent.
Hypocrisy
Approved rendering: sự giả hình
Transliteration: su gia hinh
Doctrine: The True Gospel versus False Gospels
Original: ὑπόκρισις
Category: Gospel
NEW. Galatians 2:13. Describes Peter’s withdrawal from Gentile table-fellowship at Antioch.
Not From Men
Approved rendering: không phải từ loài người, cũng không phải bởi loài người
Transliteration: khong phai tu loai nguoi, cung khong phai boi loai nguoi
Doctrine: Paul’s Apostleship
Original: οὐκ ἀπ’ ἀνθρώπων οὐδὲ διὰ ἀνθρώπου
Category: Apostleship
NEW. Galatians 1:1; grounds the whole letter’s authority claim.
Revelation
Approved rendering: sự tỏ ra / sự mặc khải
Transliteration: su to ra / su mac khai
Doctrine: Paul’s Apostleship
Rejected alternatives: đồng bóng, thầy bói
Original: ἀποκάλυψις
Category: Apostleship
NEW. Galatians 1:12,16; 2:2. Grounded risk: must not be rendered with vocabulary suggestive of Vietnamese folk spirit-mediums (đồng bóng) or fortune-tellers (thầy bói); always anchor to Đức Chúa Trời or Đức Chúa Giê-xu as grammatical subject in the same clause — never leave the revelation unattributed.
Promise
Approved rendering: lời hứa
Transliteration: loi hua
Doctrine: The Abrahamic Covenant and Promise
Original: ἐπαγγελία
Category: Covenant
NEW. Distinguish from an ordinary human promise or verbal assurance — God’s certain, sovereign, covenantal pledge (chs. 3-4).
Ordained Through Angels
Approved rendering: được ban qua các thiên sứ
Transliteration: duoc ban qua cac thien su
Doctrine: The Abrahamic Covenant and Promise
Original: διατάσσω δι’ ἀγγέλων
Category: Covenant
NEW. Galatians 3:19. Subordinates the law’s mediated origin relative to the promise given directly to Abraham.
Mediator
Approved rendering: người trung gian
Transliteration: nguoi trung gian
Doctrine: The Abrahamic Covenant and Promise
Original: μεσίτης
Category: Covenant
NEW. Galatians 3:19-20. Moses mediating the law, contrasted with the promise’s direct giving to Abraham.
Heir
Approved rendering: người thừa kế
Transliteration: nguoi thua ke
Doctrine: The Abrahamic Covenant and Promise / Adoption and Sonship
Original: κληρονόμος
Category: Covenant
NEW. Galatians 3:29; 4:1,7. Ties the Abrahamic Covenant to the Adoption doctrine of ch.4. Also traditionally ‘kẻ kế tự.‘
Confined Guarded
Approved rendering: bị canh giữ / bị nhốt lại
Transliteration: bi canh giu / bi nhot lai
Doctrine: The Law’s Purpose
Original: συγκλείω / φρουρέω
Category: Covenant
NEW. Galatians 3:23. Describes the law’s restrictive, protective function prior to the arrival of faith.
No Law Against Such Things
Approved rendering: không có luật pháp nào cấm những điều đó
Transliteration: khong co luat phap nao cam nhung dieu do
Doctrine: The Law’s Purpose
Original: κατὰ τῶν τοιούτων οὐκ ἔστιν νόμος
Category: Ethics
NEW. Galatians 5:23; resolves the tension of The Law’s Purpose doctrine — Spirit-produced fruit fulfills what the law truly desired.
Fullness Of Time
Approved rendering: khi kỳ hạn đã được trọn
Transliteration: khi ky han da duoc tron
Doctrine: Incarnation
Original: πλήρωμα τοῦ χρόνου
Category: Adoption
NEW. Galatians 4:4. Marks the incarnation’s timing as divinely ordained, not accidental.
Known By God
Approved rendering: được Đức Chúa Trời biết đến
Transliteration: duoc Duc Chua Troi biet den
Doctrine: Adoption and Sonship
Original: γνωσθέντες ὑπὸ θεοῦ
Category: Adoption
NEW. Galatians 4:9. Reframes the believer’s relationship to God as divine initiative rather than human achievement.
Yoke Of Slavery
Approved rendering: ách tôi mọi / ách nô lệ
Transliteration: ach toi moi / ach no le
Doctrine: Freedom in Christ
Original: ζυγὸς δουλείας
Category: Freedom
NEW. Galatians 5:1. Names what the Galatians risk returning to if they accept circumcision as necessary.
Slave Woman Free Woman
Approved rendering: người nữ tôi mọi / người nữ tự do
Transliteration: nguoi nu toi moi / nguoi nu tu do
Doctrine: Freedom in Christ / The Abrahamic Covenant and Promise
Original: παιδίσκη / ἐλευθέρα
Category: Freedom
NEW. Galatians 4:22-31. Hagar (slave) and Sarah (free) as allegorical figures for the two covenants.
Uncircumcision
Approved rendering: sự không chịu cắt bì / người không cắt bì
Transliteration: su khong chiu cat bi / nguoi khong cat bi
Doctrine: Circumcision and the New Creation
Original: ἀκροβυστία
Category: Covenant
NEW. Galatians 2:7; 5:6; 6:15.
Walk By The Spirit
Approved rendering: bước đi theo Thánh Linh
Transliteration: buoc di theo Thanh Linh
Doctrine: Flesh versus Spirit
Original: περιπατέω πνεύματι
Category: Sanctification
NEW. Galatians 5:16,25. Ongoing, Spirit-directed conduct.
Corruption Eternal Life
Approved rendering: sự hư nát / sự sống đời đời
Transliteration: su hu nat / su song doi doi
Doctrine: Flesh versus Spirit
Original: φθορά / ζωὴν αἰώνιον
Category: Eschatology
NEW. Galatians 6:8. Contrasted final outcomes of sowing to flesh vs. Spirit.
Fruit Of The Spirit
Approved rendering: trái của Thánh Linh
Transliteration: trai cua Thanh Linh
Doctrine: Fruit of the Spirit
Rejected alternatives: các trái của Thánh Linh
Original: καρπὸς τοῦ πνεύματος
Category: Sanctification
NEW. Galatians 5:22-23. Preserve the singular ‘trái’ (fruit, not ‘các trái’/fruits) to convey organic unity, not a checklist of separately achieved virtues.
Faithfulness Fruit Sense
Approved rendering: trung tín
Transliteration: trung tin
Doctrine: Fruit of the Spirit
Rejected alternatives: đức tin
Original: πίστις (in the fruit list)
Category: Sanctification
NEW. Galatians 5:22 (πίστις in the fruit list = faithfulness/reliability as a character trait, a distinct sense from saving faith directed at Christ). Rendering this occurrence as ‘đức tin’ would conflate it with saving faith; use ‘trung tín’ exclusively here. Flag for native speaker review.
Bear One Anothers Burdens
Approved rendering: hãy mang gánh nặng cho nhau
Transliteration: hay mang ganh nang cho nhau
Doctrine: Bearing One Another’s Burdens
Original: ἀλλήλων τὰ βάρη βαστάζετε
Category: Ethics
NEW. Galatians 6:2. Distinguish contextually from τὸ ἴδιον φορτίον (6:5, personal accountability) so the two commands are not read as contradictory.
Household Of Faith
Approved rendering: những người trong nhà đức tin
Transliteration: nhung nguoi trong nha duc tin
Doctrine: Bearing One Another’s Burdens
Original: οἰκεῖοι τῆς πίστεως
Category: Church
NEW. Galatians 6:10. Frames the church as a family bound by shared faith.
Jew
Approved rendering: người Do Thái
Transliteration: nguoi Do Thai
Doctrine: Universal Human Accountability / Unity of Jews and Gentiles
Rejected alternatives: người Giu-đa
Original: Ἰουδαῖος
Category: Covenant
NEW. Galatians 2:15. Must be kept ethnically/theologically neutral, not colored by later interfaith polemics.
Sinner
Approved rendering: kẻ có tội
Transliteration: ke co toi
Doctrine: Universal Human Accountability
Original: ἁμαρτωλός
Category: Sin
NEW. Galatians 2:15,17. Must not be softened into a generic moral-failing term that loses the ‘before a personal God’ force.
Judaize
Approved rendering: buộc phải sống theo cách của người Do Thái
Transliteration: buoc phai song theo cach cua nguoi Do Thai
Doctrine: The True Gospel versus False Gospels
Original: ἰουδαΐζω
Category: Covenant
NEW. Galatians 2:14. No single-word Vietnamese equivalent; render descriptively.
Jerusalem Above
Approved rendering: thành Giê-ru-sa-lem ở trên
Transliteration: thanh Gie-ru-sa-lem o tren
Doctrine: Freedom in Christ
NEW. Galatians 4:26. Eschatological, heavenly, free mother-city of believers, contrasted with earthly Jerusalem in bondage.
Low Risk Terms
Fellowship
Approved rendering: sự thông công
Transliteration: su thong cong
Doctrine: Christian Fellowship
Original: κοινωνία
Category: Church
Inherited from Romans package (rendering unchanged). Galatians 2:9’s ‘right hand of fellowship’ confirms Paul’s apostleship is recognized by, not derived from, the Jerusalem apostles.
Abraham
Approved rendering: Áp-ra-ham
Transliteration: Ap-ra-ham
Doctrine: The Abrahamic Covenant and Promise
Original: Ἀβραάμ
Category: Covenant
Inherited from Romans package (rendering unchanged, established proper-name form). Galatians 3:6-9,14,16,18,29; 4:22.
Marks Of Jesus
Approved rendering: những dấu của Đức Chúa Giê-xu
Transliteration: nhung dau cua Duc Chua Gie-xu
Doctrine: Paul’s Apostleship
Original: στίγματα τοῦ Ἰησοῦ
Category: Apostleship
NEW. Galatians 6:17; Paul’s closing appeal to authenticate his apostleship and gospel-fidelity through suffering.
Infant Minor
Approved rendering: con trẻ
Transliteration: con tre
Doctrine: Adoption and Sonship
Original: νήπιος
Category: Adoption
NEW. Galatians 4:1,3. Legal-minority status, not yet exercising inheritance rights.
Guardian Steward
Approved rendering: người giám hộ / người quản gia
Transliteration: nguoi giam ho / nguoi quan gia
Doctrine: Adoption and Sonship
Original: ἐπίτροπος / οἰκονόμος
Category: Adoption
NEW. Galatians 4:2.
Sow Reap
Approved rendering: gieo / gặt
Transliteration: gieo / gat
Doctrine: Flesh versus Spirit
Original: σπείρω / θερίζω
Category: Sanctification
NEW. Galatians 6:7-8. Distinguish in teaching from impersonal, self-generating nghiệp/karma — the harvest here is determined by a personal God’s moral order.
Love Fruit
Approved rendering: tình yêu thương
Transliteration: tinh yeu thuong
Doctrine: Fruit of the Spirit
NEW. Galatians 5:22, first item of the fruit list.
Joy Fruit
Approved rendering: sự vui mừng
Transliteration: su vui mung
Doctrine: Fruit of the Spirit
NEW. Galatians 5:22.
Patience Fruit
Approved rendering: nhịn nhục
Transliteration: nhin nhuc
Doctrine: Fruit of the Spirit
NEW. Galatians 5:22 (μακροθυμία, longsuffering/patience).
Kindness Fruit
Approved rendering: nhân từ
Transliteration: nhan tu
Doctrine: Fruit of the Spirit
NEW. Galatians 5:22.
Goodness Fruit
Approved rendering: hiền lành / tốt lành
Transliteration: hien lanh / tot lanh
Doctrine: Fruit of the Spirit
NEW. Galatians 5:22.
Gentleness Fruit
Approved rendering: mềm mại / nhu mì
Transliteration: mem mai / nhu mi
Doctrine: Fruit of the Spirit
NEW. Galatians 5:23 (πραΰτης).
Self Control Fruit
Approved rendering: tiết độ
Transliteration: tiet do
Doctrine: Fruit of the Spirit
NEW. Galatians 5:23 (ἐγκράτεια), final item of the fruit list.
Trespass Fault
Approved rendering: lỗi / sự phạm lỗi
Transliteration: loi / su pham loi
Doctrine: Bearing One Another’s Burdens
Original: παράπτωμα
Category: Sin
NEW. Galatians 6:1. The occasion prompting burden-bearing.
Restore In Gentleness
Approved rendering: sửa lại…với tâm thần nhu mì
Transliteration: sua lai…voi tam than nhu mi
Doctrine: Bearing One Another’s Burdens
Original: καταρτίζετε…ἐν πνεύματι πραΰτητος
Category: Ethics
NEW. Galatians 6:1. Gentle, restorative correction, not harsh judgment.
His Own Load
Approved rendering: sẽ tự gánh lấy phần riêng của mình
Transliteration: se tu ganh lay phan rieng cua minh
Doctrine: Bearing One Another’s Burdens
Original: τὸ ἴδιον φορτίον βαστάσει
Category: Ethics
NEW. Galatians 6:5. Balances the communal burden-bearing command with continued personal responsibility.
Judaism
Approved rendering: Do Thái giáo
Transliteration: Do Thai giao
Doctrine: Paul’s Apostleship
Original: Ἰουδαϊσμός
Category: Covenant
NEW. Galatians 1:13-14. Biographical reference to Paul’s former life; not itself doctrinally contested.
Hagar
Approved rendering: A-ga
Transliteration: A-ga
Doctrine: The Abrahamic Covenant and Promise / Freedom in Christ
NEW proper name. Galatians 4:22-31. Allegorical figure representing the slave-covenant.
Sarah
Approved rendering: Sa-ra
Transliteration: Sa-ra
Doctrine: The Abrahamic Covenant and Promise / Freedom in Christ
NEW proper name. Galatians 4:22-31. Allegorical figure representing the promise-covenant.
Ishmael
Approved rendering: Ích-ma-ên
Transliteration: Ich-ma-en
Doctrine: The Abrahamic Covenant and Promise
NEW proper name. Implied, not directly named in Galatians 4:21-31 text; supply per established form if referenced in supplementary teaching material.
Isaac
Approved rendering: Y-sác
Transliteration: Y-sac
Doctrine: The Abrahamic Covenant and Promise
NEW proper name. Implied, not directly named in Galatians 4:21-31 text; supply per established form if referenced in supplementary teaching material.
Cephas Peter
Approved rendering: Sê-pha / Phi-e-rơ
Transliteration: Se-pha / Phi-e-ro
Doctrine: The True Gospel versus False Gospels
NEW proper name. Established Vietnamese Bible proper-name forms. Galatians 1:18; 2:7-14.
Barnabas
Approved rendering: Ba-na-ba
Transliteration: Ba-na-ba
Doctrine: Paul’s Apostleship
NEW proper name. Established Vietnamese Bible proper-name form. Galatians 2:1,9,13.
Titus
Approved rendering: Tít
Transliteration: Tit
Doctrine: Circumcision and the New Creation
NEW proper name. Established Vietnamese Bible proper-name form. Galatians 2:1,3.
James
Approved rendering: Gia-cơ
Transliteration: Gia-co
Doctrine: Paul’s Apostleship
NEW proper name. Established Vietnamese Bible proper-name form. Galatians 1:19; 2:9,12.
Antioch
Approved rendering: An-ti-ốt
Transliteration: An-ti-ot
Doctrine: The True Gospel versus False Gospels
NEW proper name. Established Vietnamese Bible proper-name form. Galatians 2:11.
Referenced passages