Originally Posted by
The Wrong Path
the meaning of the word
Regarding the notion of "sin" in the Bible. In Hebrew, KHATAUAU, in Greek hAMARTIA. The Greek term has the sense of a missing of the goal, or a straying away from the right path.
"Hamartia" brings to mind the image of an archery target "bullseye." The
mark is the exact center of the target. To hit an outer ring is "hamartanein," to miss the mark. Applied to the category of sin, anything less than absolute perfection in performance would be "missing the mark."
The Hebrew word "cHata", on the other hand, is related much more closely to a lifestyle perspective. "Walking the wrong path" is less concerned about individual actions than overall ways of living. I understand that the OT is also
concerned with actions of the individual, but the emphasis seems to be
centered around how a person lives life, not on the specific things that he
or she does. "cHata" reflects this. We see this emphasis also in the Hebrew word for repentance, "shub." "Shub" means "to turn around," which is what one does when correcting for walking the wrong path. The New Testament word, "metanoein" (to repent) also carries the connotation of change,
lit. "changing one's mind," but Hebrew is a more visual language.