{"id":3749,"date":"2025-07-10T07:46:00","date_gmt":"2025-07-10T11:46:00","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/www.biblegateway.com\/learn\/?p=3749"},"modified":"2025-07-30T11:56:37","modified_gmt":"2025-07-30T15:56:37","slug":"original-language-of-the-bible","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/www.biblegateway.com\/learn\/bible-101\/about-the-bible\/original-language-of-the-bible\/","title":{"rendered":"What Language Was the Bible Written In?\u00a0"},"content":{"rendered":"\n

The Bible was originally written in the ancient languages of Hebrew, Aramaic, and Greek over a period of many centuries<\/a>. Although sometimes referred to as \u201cdead\u201d languages (because they are not commonly spoken in the modern world), all three of these languages are very much alive.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

Though they’ve changed a lot since biblical times, descendants of these languages are still actively used today in the same parts of the world the events of the Bible<\/a> happened in. And of course, even the ancient words are alive with the Holy Spirit<\/a> flowing through them.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

This article will give a basic explanation of the Bible’s original languages \u2014 and why they matter for understanding the Bible today.<\/strong><\/p>\n\n\n\n

Of course, a single blog post won\u2019t be enough to actually learn Greek or Hebrew \u2014 that would take years of careful study! But learning a little about them can provide invaluable background to the cultures and civilizations God chose to receive his unique revelation.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

And it can help clarify some of the challenges translators face<\/a> to make the words of Scripture readable in modern English, without changing \u2014 or losing \u2014 the depth and nuance of their meaning.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

Note: This post has been updated and expanded to add clarity, provide additional examples, and other improvements throughout.<\/em><\/p>\n\n\n\n

What Was the Language of the Old Testament?<\/h2>\n\n\n\n

The Old Testament was written almost entirely in Hebrew, the ancient Middle Eastern language spoken by the Jewish people. A few parts of the Old Testament \u2014 namely, Daniel 2:4b\u20137:28<\/a> and Ezra 4:8\u20136:18<\/a> and 7:12\u201326<\/a> \u2014 were written in Aramaic.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

Hebrew: The Language of the Israelites<\/h3>\n\n\n\n

Hebrew was the language spoken by the ancient Israelites, and what most of the Bible (and almost all of the Old Testament) are written in. It\u2019s part of the Semitic family of languages, which also includes Aramaic (see below) and Arabic.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

These languages are read right-to-left (unlike English, which is left-to-right). They are also unique in that most of their words are based on a triliteral root<\/em>: three letters (typically consonants) which stay \u201crooted\u201d while the letters around <\/em>them shift to change tense, add possessives or plurals, and otherwise modify the word.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

\"Banner<\/a><\/figure>\n\n\n\n

While this triliteral root makes it easier to quickly recognize related words, it is closely related to another feature of Hebrew (and other Semitic languages) that is not<\/em> easy: they are not traditionally written with any vowels at all<\/em>. Because ancient languages also didn\u2019t typically use spaces in writing, this makes reading the Old Testament in its most ancient, original form extremely challenging.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

MGNRDNGVRTHNGLKTHS (imagine reading everything like this) \u2014 backwards \u2014 for hundreds of pages (or scrolls)!<\/p>\n\n\n\n

Aramaic: The Language of Jesus<\/h3>\n\n\n\n

Aramaic is a descendant of Hebrew that was widely spoken in the Middle East in the centuries leading up to the birth of Jesus. In fact, Aramaic was Jesus\u2019s native language \u2014 the one he used to deliver his teachings to his disciples. It is still spoken by a few scattered communities in the Middle East today.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

Are Hebrew and Aramaic Still Spoken Today?<\/h3>\n\n\n\n

Biblical Hebrew stopped being used long before New Testament times as it gradually evolved into Aramaic. Later, as Jews increasingly assimilated into local communities in Europe, the Middle East, and elsewhere, both languages faded from common use in favor of local dialects.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

But Hebrew remained in use liturgically in Jewish communities (most of whom continued to read the Scriptures in their original languages) until it was intentionally revived by European Jews in the late 19th to early 20th centuries. Today it is the national language of Israel and is spoken by over 9 million people worldwide.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

Case Study: The Lord, the Name, the Tetragrammaton<\/h3>\n\n\n\n

Ever wonder why Bibles often write \u201cLORD\u201d in small capitals instead of normal uppercase\/lowercase?<\/p>\n\n\n\n

One place where Hebrew’s lack of written vowels plays a truly critical role is in God\u2019s name, which in the Hebrew Bible is written \u05d9\u05d4\u05d5\u05d4 or YHWH. This name (often called the Tetragrammaton<\/em>, which just means \u201cfour letters\u201d) occurs over 6,000 times in the Old Testament and in every book except Esther, Ecclesiastes, and Song of Songs.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

But here\u2019s the thing: no one knows how it\u2019s pronounced.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

In Rabbinic Judaism, after the first Temple was destroyed in 586 BC (2 Kings 25:8-17<\/a>), it became forbidden to pronounce God\u2019s holy name. When any of those passages were read aloud, the name was replaced with the word Adonai<\/em>, meaning \u201cthe Lord.\u201d<\/p>\n\n\n\n

After centuries of this practice, when vowels were finally added to Hebrew scrolls in the early Medieval era, the vowels that should be used had long since been forgotten. So in some cases the transcribers simply took the vowels from Adonai <\/em>and inserted them into YHWH. The result was something like \u201cYehovah.\u201d<\/p>\n\n\n\n

Today some Christians use a version of this pronunciation \u2014 most commonly Yahweh <\/em>or Jehovah <\/em>\u2014 to refer to God by name. But it\u2019s still considered forbidden by most Jews. And, because it\u2019s likely that those aren\u2019t actually the correct vowels, many Christians, too, are concerned with the possibility of blaspheming God by addressing him with a name that isn\u2019t his.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

And that is why nearly all English Bible translations<\/a>, even today, simply replace YHWH with \u201cthe LORD.\u201d<\/p>\n\n\n\n

What Was the Language of the New Testament?<\/h2>\n\n\n\n

The New Testament was written in Greek \u2014 specifically, in a dialect called Koine (or common) Greek, to distinguish it from the more complex, sophisticated Greek of ancient Athens and Sparta.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

Why \u201ccommon\u201d? And why wasn\u2019t it written in Jesus\u2019s (and his disciples\u2019) own language of Aramaic?<\/p>\n\n\n\n

Greek: The Language of the Mediterranean<\/h3>\n\n\n\n

After Alexander the Great conquered Judaea around the 330s BC, the region became increasingly influenced by Greek culture and language. By the time of Jesus \u2014 when the area was under Roman rule \u2014 the entire eastern Mediterranean spoke some form of Greek (in addition to their native tongues).<\/p>\n\n\n\n

Its widespread use made Greek a convenient choice for anyone trying to communicate or do business across cultures. However, since many of these people spoke it as a second language, it became mixed with many different regional dialects to create a simplified, standardized version of the Greek compared to what was spoken in Greece itself. (This is actually very similar to how American English evolved in the early colonies.)<\/p>\n\n\n\n

Greek: The Language of the Disciples (Sort Of)<\/h3>\n\n\n\n

So, when Jesus\u2019 disciples began traveling to spread the Good News of his resurrection, they mostly used Koine Greek to reach the widest population they could \u2014 even if it wasn\u2019t the language they used with each other.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

In some cases, like the Gospel of Mark, the unique writing style shows how the story was originally told in Aramaic, and then written down in Greek as it spread beyond the region of Galilee where Jesus lived and performed his miracles and ministries. One of the telltale signs of this in Mark is the habit of starting nearly every sentence with \u201cand\u201d \u2014 a common storytelling technique in Aramaic, but not in Greek.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

Is Greek Still Spoken Today?<\/h3>\n\n\n\n

Of course! Greek remained widely spoken in the eastern Roman empire, then the Byzantine empire, for hundreds of years after the New Testament was written. After the fall of Constantinople to the Ottomans in 1453, its use was considerably diminished. But it remains the national language of Greece and is spoken by over 13 million people worldwide.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

The language has changed considerably since New Testament times, but most Greek speakers are still able to read Koine, much as we might still read Shakespeare or the King James Bible.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

Were Any Parts of the Bible Written in Latin?<\/h2>\n\n\n\n

It may surprise you to learn that none of the Bible was written in Latin \u2014 despite Judaea being under Roman rule. Though parts of the Bible started being translated into Latin soon after they appeared in Greek, a complete Latin Bible didn\u2019t exist until the early 400s AD, when Jerome completed his Vulgate.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

The Vulgate caught on quickly and became the exclusive way the Bible was read and transmitted in western Europe for centuries.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

When Was the Bible First Translated into English?<\/h2>\n\n\n\n

The first complete translation of the entire Bible into English<\/a> was Wycliffe\u2019s Bible<\/strong>, released in the late 1300s. (And available to read on Bible Gateway<\/a>!) John Wycliffe and his followers based their translation on the Vulgate, since the original Hebrew and Greek texts were still unavailable in the West. Because it had to be hand-copied and distributed, it didn\u2019t reach a wide audience, but it was still enough to earn Wycliffe a condemnation for heresy 30 years after his death.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

After that, it was over 100 years before another comprehensive attempt was made to translate the Bible into English. William Tyndale<\/strong> published his English New Testament in 1526 using the brand-new printing press… and was martyred 10 years later for the effort.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

The first English Bible to really catch on with the masses was the Geneva Bible <\/strong>of 1560, which was used by the first pilgrims to America. Why \u201cGeneva\u201d? Because the translators were hiding out in Switzerland so they wouldn\u2019t meet Tyndale\u2019s fate back in England.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

Their Bible proved so popular, however, that King James felt compelled to finally make an \u201cauthorized\u201d English version<\/a>. Released in 1611, it became the King James Version<\/strong> we all know and love today.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

Why Study the Bible in Its Original Languages?<\/h2>\n\n\n\n

The world has changed a lot in the thousands of years since the Bible was written. Making its ancient words comprehensible to a modern English reader is an enormous challenge, filled with countless choices about exactly the best way to render any given word or phrase.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

In addition to the example of the Tetragrammaton above, here\u2019s one more example (among thousands) that translators of the Bible have to contend with: \u201cour daily bread.\u201d<\/p>\n\n\n\n

This phrase, part of the Lord\u2019s Prayer in Matthew 6:9-13<\/a>, is one of the best-known in the entire Bible, memorized by millions of Christians around the world by the time they can read and write. What could possibly be ambiguous about daily bread?<\/p>\n\n\n\n

Case Study: Our Daily, Necessary, Supersubstantial Bread for the Future<\/h3>\n\n\n\n

In the original Greek of the Lord\u2019s Prayer in Matthew 6:11<\/a>, the phrase is \u201c\u03a4\u1f78\u03bd \u1f04\u03c1\u03c4\u03bf\u03bd \u1f21\u03bc\u1ff6\u03bd \u03c4\u1f78\u03bd \u1f10\u03c0\u03b9\u03bf\u03cd\u03c3\u03b9\u03bf\u03bd\u201d (ton arton h\u0113m\u014dn ton epiousion<\/em>). Here\u2019s how it breaks down:<\/p>\n\n\n\n