December 4, 2023

The story of God's name pt. 2 - Kyrios in the New Testament

The story of God's name pt. 2 - Kyrios in the New Testament

In the previous newsletter, we explored the sacred name of God, Yahweh, and its transformation into Kyrios (Lord) in the earliest Greek translations of Hebrew Scriptures. Today, we dive deeper into this captivating narrative, shedding light on the significance of Kyrios in the New Testament, starting from its origins in the Roman Empire.

Kyrios in the Roman Empire

In the era shortly prior to Christ, Roman leaders adopted the title “kyrios,“ asserting their lineage from “the gods” and claiming godhood themselves (Silva 2014, Volume 3, 510; Rowe 2005). They mandated Roman citizens to worship them through public ceremonies, similar to how they worshipped other deities. Noncompliance was deemed treasonous; many Romans feared it would bring down the wrath of the gods. Contemporary scholars refer to this practice as the “Roman imperial cult.“

The Roman administration viewed the imperial cult as crucial to the empire's stability. The act of worshipping Caesar symbolized that the newly subjugated provinces accepted Rome's rule as divinely endorsed (cf. Denova 2018). It’s not a perfect analogy, but for a modern American parallel, consider people’s relationship with the flag. Acknowledging Caesar as “kyrios” during Roman ceremonies could be equated with the expectation that Americans pledge allegiance to the flag at public, national events. Conversely, refusing to worship Caesar would be akin to people burning American flags and openly declaring themselves followers of Satan, treasonous and spiritually deviant actions that would make many fellow citizens fearful about the repercussions.

The Importance of Kyrios in the New Testament

Given that the title "Kyrios" was already designated for Yahweh within Judaism, it naturally became a pivotal—and dangerous—element in Christian theology. The title "Kyrios" emerged as a principal method for Christians to equate Jesus with the God of the Hebrew Scriptures, but this meant placing him in a higher position than Caesar. The early Christian community both entered spiritual life and suffered physical death through the profession, “Christ is Kyrios” (Phil 2:10-11, Romans 10:9). Additionally, by applying the title to each member of the Trinity, they demonstrated that the Father, the Son, and the Spirit held equivalent status (Vitrano-Wilson 2020).

Interestingly, Christian writers often called the Father/Son/Spirit “Lord” (Kyrios) without an article, using the same convention as the Greek translations of the Hebrew Scriptures (for more, read the second section of the previous newsletter). This is especially common in passages with clear Old Testament allusions. Take, as an illustration, “confess Christ as Kyrios” in Philippians 2:10-11, and Romans 10:9, both of which draw language from a prophecy in Isaiah 45:23 that every mouth would “confess allegiance” to Yahweh. Likewise, Paul states in 2 Corinthians 3:18 that “the Spirit is Kyrios.” These passages indicate that the Christian community may have been calling Jesus the Greek equivalent of “Yahweh.”

Despite appearing over 700 times, making it one of the most frequent nouns in the New Testament, the term "kyrios" never lost its special significance. From the first century onwards, possibly even starting with the Apostles themselves, early Christians regarded the term "kyrios" as sacred when referring to God. It was so revered that they only wrote the first and last letters of the word when referencing God, while writing out the full word elsewhere (Comfort 2005). Scholars today refer to this practice as the nomina sacra (i.e., 'sacred name').

Exploring the Semantic Versatility of “Kyrios” in the New Testament

Early Christian documents reveal a delight in the semantic versatility of “Kyrios,“ employing it in contexts where multiple interpretations could be equally valid. Consider the following examples:

1. Mary, while mourning at Jesus' tomb, addresses the man she presumes to be a gardener as "kyrios" (John 20:15). Upon recognizing the man as her resurrected Lord, she exclaims to the disciples, "I have seen the Lord" (John 20:18). - This sequence is rich with narrative irony and theological significance. Mary unwittingly addresses Jesus as "Lord," and upon doing so, she comprehends His true identity. This progression aligns seamlessly with Paul's theology in Romans 10:9.
2. Those whom Jesus publicly praises for their faith, such as the Canaanite woman (Mark 7:24-30) and the Centurion (Matthew 8:5-13), refer to Him as "Kyrios" in their profound declarations of faith. - Were they merely using a polite title, or was their proclamation that He was Kyrios integral to their remarkable faith? The Gospel writers leave this question open for contemplation. However, the example set is unequivocal: those whom Jesus applauds for their faith address Him as Kyrios.
3. After hauling in an immense catch of fish, Peter transitions from referring to Jesus as a simple "leader" to "Kyrios" (Luke 5:1-11). - Scholars propose that Peter, in this passage, recognizes Jesus as one possessing "divine powers" (Nolland 1989, 222; Garland 2012, 228-229). The use of the title "Kyrios" contributes to this recognition and significantly parallels Isaiah's reaction when called upon by God to serve as a prophet (Isaiah 6).

Yahweh and Kyrios: A complex relationship

As the previous newsletter and this newsletter indicate, the terms Yahweh and Kyrios had a complex relationship in Jewish and Christian communities:

1. There were Greek translations of the Hebrew Scriptures that retained the term Yahweh, but others that translated Yahweh as Kyrios. Those that used Kyrios used a special convention, relying on the presence or absence of the definite article, to indicate the difference between when it meant “lord” and when it meant Yahweh (Brown and Samuel 2003).
2. Jewish people regularly used a term for “Lord” (Adonai) to refer to God instead of the name Yahweh, because they considered God’s name too holy to speak (Payne 1999). In Greek, this would translate into using the term Kyrios for the God of Israel.
3. The New Testament writings frequently use the term Kyrios to refer to each member of the Trinity (Vitrano-Wilson 2020). Some of these references seem to follow the same convention for designating Yahweh, omitting the definite article, found in the Septuagint (the Greek translation of the Bible often used by Christians).
4. The Roman emperors began to call themselves Kyrios and demanded worship from people in their empire, but the term kyrios could still be used of a property owner or simply as a term of respect like “sir.”
5. Christians held that Jesus the Messiah was Kyrios just as the Father and the Spirit, and in a higher position than Caesar.

These five factors lead us to two questions:

1. Did Kyrios still mean Yahweh to the first Christians?
2. How should translators today handle the term Kyrios in the New Testament?

In the next newsletter, I’ll discuss how “Yahweh” and “Kyrios” have traditionally been translated in the West, and the results for our understanding of the distinction in Scripture.

TL;DR

If the email was too long to read, here are the main points:

• Around the time of the New Testament, Roman rulers began calling themselves Kyrios and demanding that other people worship them.
• Early Christians called each member of the Trinity Lord (Kyrios) and had a very high respect for the title. Applying this term to Jesus Christ was a religious and political statement: if Jesus is Lord of the universe, Caesar is not.
• The authors of the New Testament loved playing with the semantic ambiguity of the term kyrios.
• God’s name, Yahweh, and the title Kyrios had a complex relationship by the time of the New Testament.

Challenge for You

• Think of how you would translate Kyrios.
• If you think your pastor or a Christian minister would be interested in this information, share it with them!

References

1. Bainbridge, John T. 2020. “Translating Κύριος after 600 Years of ‘the Lord’s’ Faithful Service.” The Bible Translator 71 (3): 331–56. https://doi.org/10.1177/2051677020965686.
2. Brown, Richard, and Christopher J Samuel. 2003. “The Meanings of Κυριος in the New Testament.”
3. Comfort, Philip Wesley. 2005. Encountering the Manuscripts : An Introduction to New Testament Paleography & Textual Criticism. Nashville, Tenn. : Broadman & Holman. http://archive.org/details/encounteringmanu0000comf.
4. Denova, Rebecca. 2018. “Religion and the State.” In Greek and Roman Religions, 253–76. John Wiley & Sons, Ltd. https://doi.org/10.1002/9781119392552.ch12.
5. Garland, David E. 2012. Luke. Zondervan Exegetical Commentary on the New Testament. Grand Rapids, MI: Zondervan.
6. Nolland, John. 1989. Luke 1:1–9:20. Vol. 35A. Word Biblical Commentary. Dallas: Word, Incorporated.
7. Payne, J. Barton. 1999. “484 הָוָה.” In Theological Wordbook of the Old Testament, edited by R. Laird Harris, Gleason L. Archer Jr., and Bruce K. Waltke. Chicago: Moody Press.
8. Silva, Moisés, ed. 2014. New International Dictionary of New Testament Theology and Exegesis. Vol. 1–5. Grand Rapids, MI: Zondervan.
9. Vitrano-Wilson, Seth. 2020. “Κύριος in the New Testament: Christology, Trinity, and Translation.” https://biblicalmissiology.org/wp-content/uploads/2020/10/Kurios-in-the-NT-Vitrano-Wilson-2020-04-29.pdf.