If you study the Bible, you’ll eventually come across words that are difficult to pronounce. The Bible is really big and it has a lot of crazy words in it. It can be easy to look at a long word in the Bible and not even try to pronounce it. Instead of skipping over these words, you should learn how to correctly pronounce them.
In this article, we are going to share with you the Unique biblical words and meaning, Spiritual Meaning of Words in the Bible. By knowing these difficult verses, you will learn the unique language of Hebrew and Greek. Both the Roman Catholic Church and most Protestant churches use the Bible as a source of spiritual counsel, advice and guidance; it’s important to know what you’re reading. Knowing how to pronounce these verses is also a great way to impress friends and family when they’re asking you about your faith.
List of The Hardest Words To Pronounce in The Bible
1. Mahershalalhashbaz
This word can be found in Isaiah 8:1 and is often cited as one of the most difficult words to pronounce in the Bible. It refers to the name of the prophet Isaiah’s son.
2. Nebuchadnezzar
Nebuchadnezzar was a powerful king of Babylon and is mentioned numerous times in the Bible, particularly in the books of Daniel and Jeremiah.
3. Zaphnath-Paaneah
This name is given to Joseph by Pharaoh in Genesis 41:45. It is of Egyptian origin and is often challenging to pronounce for those not familiar with ancient languages.
4. Melchizedek
Melchizedek is a mysterious figure in the Bible who is described as both a king and a priest. He appears in the book of Genesis and in the letter to the Hebrews.
5. Mephibosheth
Mephibosheth was the son of Jonathan and grandson of King Saul. His story is recounted in the books of Samuel.
6. Bildad
Bildad is one of Job’s friends who offers him advice and counsel in the book of Job. His name can be challenging to pronounce for some readers.
7. Nephilim
The Nephilim are referenced in Genesis 6:4 as a group of beings who were the offspring of the “sons of God” and the “daughters of men.” The pronunciation of this word can vary among scholars.
8. Jehoiachin
Jehoiachin was a king of Judah who is mentioned in the book of 2 Kings. His name can be difficult to pronounce due to its unique combination of sounds.
9. Zerubbabel
Zerubbabel was a political leader in the time of the Babylonian captivity who played a key role in the rebuilding of the temple in Jerusalem. His name can be a tongue-twister for some readers.
10. Beelzebub
Beelzebub is often used as another name for Satan in the Bible. The pronunciation of this word can vary depending on the speaker’s familiarity with ancient languages.
In conclusion, the Bible contains a number of challenging words to pronounce, ranging from ancient names to mysterious titles. Despite the difficulty of these words, they serve as a reminder of the rich history and diverse languages that are present in the text of the Bible.
Biblical words with meaning
We can determine whether the Scripture refers to a singular or plural you by consulting the King James Version. Ye or you refer to multiple people, whereas thou or thee refer to a single individual. This feature frequently aids in our understanding of a paragraph.
The King James Version is the most useful English translation of the Bible because of these properties. Certain terms found in the Bible are not frequently employed in modern English. For your convenience, below is a list of a few of them along with their definitions:
Afore means before.
Before then = in earlier times
Craftsman = artificer
hearing = audience
Betrayal = bewrayal
Slaves are bondmen.
toss, put = cast
caul = fat
altruism = love
chastise = argue
cut, clave = cleave, cling
boundary = coast
dialogue = way of life
The Ten: Bible’s longest (and hardest) names
Isaiah 8:1, 3 Mahershalalhashbaz
The longest name in the Bible, with eighteen letters and six syllables, was given to Isaiah’s son by God. Why? Only heaven knows! His mother, meanwhile, is an enigmatic figure known only as “the prophetess.”
2) Genesis 41:45 mentions Zaphnathpaaneah.
Joseph was given this moniker after he was appointed Egypt’s prime minister. It’s rather puzzling that we don’t bestow big titles like these on our prime ministers nowadays.
3) According to 1 Chronicles 5:6, 20, Tilgathpilneser
For short, we’ll call him Tilga. Tilga, one of the old Assyrian kings, was determined to make the Assyrian Empire grow. By destroying and taking over neighboring areas, he amassed enormous wealth and made the local authorities give him 10,000 talents of silver as a token of appreciation. How considerate.
4) Judges 3:8–10: Chushanrishathaim
This man was the first to persecute the Israelites following their arrival in Caanan. He was the king of Aram-Naharaim, which is northwest Mesopotamia. Because they worshipped other gods, God permitted the Israelites to be carried captive by this monarch for eight years. However, when the Israelites “cried out to the Lord,” God intervened to save them (Judges 3:8, 9).
5) Nebuchadnezzar (verse 28 in Daniel)
He is credited with building the Hanging Gardens of Babylon and is regarded as the best king to have ever ruled the Babylonian Empire. In this whirlwind account, he destroys Jerusalem and subjugates Judah, experiences some bizarre dreams, carves out a gold statue of himself, casts some “troublesome” Jews into a furnace, transforms into an animal, eating grass like an oxen and growing feathers and nails like birds’ claws (Daniel 4:33), and ultimately gives himself up to God.
6) Berodachbaladan (verse 39).
Once known as Berodach, this man ruled Babylon and was a very sentimental person. He added his father’s name to the end of his own when he passed away as a way to honor and remember him. Berodachbaladan as a result.
7) In Samuel 4:4 Mephibosheth
Mephibosheth was the grandson of Israel’s king Saul and the son of Jonathan. When his father and grandparents were killed in combat with the Philistines at Mount Gilboa, he was just five years old. He was crippled and lived in a barren area known as “Lo Debar,” which translates to “land of nothing,” after losing his ancestry. David swore to Jonathan in 1 Samuel 20:15–16, 42, and 2 Samuel 9 that he would discover and tend to Mephibosheth.
8) In Genesis 10 and 1 Chronicles 1, Hazarmaveth
He appeared in the Old Testament lineage of the sons of Noah because he was the third of Joktan’s thirteen sons, the son of Eber, the son of Shem. “Dwelling of death” is the meaning of his name. What a sweet name for your child…
9) Numbers 1:12, 2:25; Ammishaddai
In the book of Numbers, our companion here is identified as the father of Ahiezer, the chief of the Dan tribe under Moses’ leadership during the Exodus. It is one of the rare names that also include the word “Shaddai,” the name of God.
10) In Genesis 14, Chedorlaomer
This man, who was also spelled “Kedorlaomer,” was an Elam royal. According to Genesis, he fought against five other Caananite nations while forming an alliance with three other local monarchs. Naturally, Chedorlaomer triumphed, took all of the Caananites’ belongings, including food, and took Lot, Abram’s nephew, and his belongings with him. Now for Abram’s heroic rescue effort!
Hardest Words to Pronounce in the Bible
The Old Testament is bursting with P’s and Q’s, but the word pishtaḥ actually has no vowels at all.
This word refers to a musical instrument described in the Book of Ezekiel that made a “dulcet” noise.
The name of a Canaanite city mentioned several times in the Bible.
A combination of two Hebrew words that refer to an expert in magical arts or bound spirits.
The name behor was first given to the animal because its hair resembled that of a goat.
Technically defined as “a hornet,” this biblical word is sometimes translated as something more akin to wasps or other stinging insects.
Surprisingly enough, this four-letter word means “desert,” which, we’re assuming, would be more commonly known as ***haradah*** in ancient Hebrew.
The ancient languages used in the Bible are still around today, but they’ve changed significantly over time.
- Nebuchadnezzar II
- Tyre
- Jezebel
- Sheol
- Mammon
- Covet
- Azazel
- Hallelujah (Alleluia)
- Onan and Onanism
- Shittim
Shittim is mentioned in Numbers 25:1 as the name of a place where the Israelites camped. The name is being used as an adjective to describe acacia wood, which was used to make many things in the tabernacle including furnishings and instruments.
Pishon
Pishon is mentioned in Genesis 2:11 and describes one of the rivers that flowed through the garden where Adam and Eve were living. The location of Pishon is unknown because it was said to flow around Havilah (another unknown location). Some experts say it could have been referring to a tributary of the Nile River.
Shihor
Although it’s not spelled differently than “shower,” this Hebrew word can be difficult for many English speakers because it sounds completely different. It’s defined in Joshua 19:26 as meaning “a black stream” which scholars believe was an ancient canal that connected Egypt with the Mediterranean Sea.
Several words in the Bible may have unfamiliar pronunciations, but they all have interesting meanings.
- Jephthah
- Hitherto
- Uzziah
- Zerubbabel
- Rephaim
- Nebuchadnezzar
- Enosh
- Daniel
- Apollyon
- Belshazzar
- Cushan
- Denyedoo
- Tohu-bohu
- Behemoth
Spiritual Meaning of Words in the Bible
Spiritual meaning of words in the Bible are words that have more than one meaning. The spiritual meaning of words in the Bible is not always obvious to people who are not familiar with this concept. Some words have more than one spiritual meaning because they have a literal meaning and a figurative meaning. Other words have more than one spiritual meaning because they have more than one literal meaning.
The following is a list of some common spiritual meanings for words in the Bible:
- Word = Spiritual Meaning
- Abba = Father (Father God)
- Adonai = Lord (Lord Jesus Christ)
- Amen = I believe or I trust (towards God)
- Baruch = Blessed (blessed by God)
- Cephas = Rock (Rock of Ages)
- Christos/Christus = Messiah/Christ (Messiah Jesus Christ)
Spiritual meaning of words in the bible, unique biblical words and their meanings.
Words like:
- Agape – love
- Amen – so be it
- Apocalypse – end-time prophecies revealed by God to His prophets
- Apostle – first generation of Christian teachers commissioned by Jesus Christ to teach others about Him
- Articles of Faith – a summary of our beliefs as Mormons (also called Articles of Faith)
- Baptism for the Dead – an ordinance performed in temples whereby living people can be baptized on behalf of deceased ancestors so they can receive the blessings of salvation and exaltation in the celestial kingdom
Next time you’re studying the Bible, keep an eye out for these hard words.
- Chalcedony
- Shalom
- Gerizim
- Hallelujah
- Alleluia
- Aphiachar – to challenge or reproach someone (1 Sam. 25:14)
- Iscariot – belonging to the city of Kerioth (in Judaea), belonging to the region of Judaea (Matt. 10:4; John 6:71)
- Sopherim – Those who write or recite Bible commentaries (1 Chron 9:22)
- Tachanunim – The name of a tune used in Psalm 89 while the people prostrate themselves before God in prayer, literally meaning “supplications”
- Apocryphal – secret, hidden, mysterious and having special knowledge that others don’t have, chiefly applied to sacred books which are not included in the Hebrew or Protestant canon of Scripture, but which have been received by some as Holy Writings, as the books of Tobit and Ecclesiasticus.
- Baal – husband or master, properly speaking, a man with many wives; also a title given to various gods as the sun-god, the god of fire, etc.
- Tekel – a word used in Daniel 5 for weighing Belshazzar’s worthiness.
Unique Biblical Words And Meaning
The Bible is a collection of 66 books. These books are divided into two main sections: the Old Testament and the New Testament. The Old Testament contains 39 books that were written in Hebrew (with some Aramaic) and others written in Greek. The New Testament contains 27 books, all written in Greek.
The Bible was written over a period of about 1,600 years (about 3,000 years ago to about 100 AD). The first five books of the Old Testament were written by Moses (about 1400 BC). The New Testament was written by many different authors at different times during this period, although most of it was written between 50 and 100 AD. Today, there are many versions of the Bible available, but they all contain the same 66 books.
The Bible contains many unique words that don’t appear anywhere else in literature or history. Some of these words are used only once in Scripture, while others are used dozens or even hundreds of times throughout Scripture. Here is a list of 100 unique words found in Scripture:
Doublet
A word or a term in the bible that has two words with the same meaning. The doublet is a figure of speech that occurs when two words similar in meaning are placed together for emphasis. For example, “Then killed I all the wise men” (Joshua 10:24). The phrase “wise men” was used to mean magicians.
Chiasm
Chiasm is the arrangement of words or phrases in an inverted order. An example of the chiasm is the arrangement of the four gospels: Matthew, Mark, Luke, and John (Matthew 1:1; Mark 1:1; Luke 1:1-4; John 1:1-18). Therefore, Matthew comes first and John lasts because John gives more explicit information about Christ than other gospels. Similarly, Luke describes Christ more as a perfect human being than other gospels.
Redundancy
Redundancy occurs when a phrase contains two words that have the same meaning. For example, redemption and deliverance (Philippians 3:20). These terms describe how Christians will be redeemed on Resurrection Day and at which they will be delivered from sin.
Hard To Pronounce Bible Names
1) Mahershalalhashbaz (Isaiah 8:1, 3)
God told Isaiah to name his son this whopping 18-letter, six syllable name—the longest name in the Bible. Why? Heaven only knows! Meanwhile, his mother is a mysterious woman simply called “the prophetess”.
2) Zaphnathpaaneah (Genesis 41:45)
This name was given to Joseph when he became the prime minister of Egypt. Why we don’t give our modern-day prime ministers grand names like this is a mystery, really.
3) Tilgathpilneser (1 Chronicles 5:6, 20)
We’ll call him Tilga for short. As one of the ancient kings of Assyria, Tilga had keen intentions to expand the Assyrian Empire. He became very wealthy by ravaging and conquering neighbouring lands and forcing local leaders to pay him 10,000 talents of silver as a thank-you gift. How kind.
4) Chushanrishathaim (Judges 3:8-10)
This guy was the king of Aram-Naharaim, or northwest Mesopotamia, and the first oppressor of the Israelites after their settlement in Caanan. God allowed the Israelites to be taken by this king for eight years as punishment for worshipping other gods, but when the Israelites “cried out to the Lord”, He saved them (Judges 3:8, 9).
5) Nebuchadnezzar (Daniel 4:28)
He’s considered the greatest king to ever lead the Babylonian Empire and credited with constructing the Hanging Gardens of Babylon. His whirlwind story involves him conquering Judah and destroying Jerusalem, having some crazy dreams, creating a gold statue of himself, throwing some “troublesome” Jews into a furnace, being turned into an animal-like guy who “ate grass like an oxen . . . [and] grew hair as long as eagles feathers and nails like birds’ claws” (Daniel 4:33), and then finally surrendering to God.
6) Berodachbaladan (Isaiah 39:1)
Originally named Berodach, this guy was the king of Babylon, and quite a sentimental dude. When his father died, he wanted to do something to remember him, so chucked his father’s name onto the end of his own. Hence, Berodachbaladan.
7) Mephibosheth (2 Samuel 4:4)
Mephibosheth was the son of Jonathan and the grandson of Saul, king of Israel. He was only five years old when his father and grandfather died in battle with the Philistines at Mount Gilboa. Having lost his heritage, he lived as a cripple in a desolate place called “Lo Debar” meaning “land of nothing”. David made an oath to Jonathan to find and care for Mephibosheth (1 Samuel 20:15-16, 42; 2 Samuel 9).
8) Hazarmaveth (Genesis 10, 1 Chronicles 1)
He was the third of 13 sons of Joktan, the son of Eber, son of Shem—thus, he made it into the genealogy of the sons of Noah in the Old Testament. His name means “dwelling of death”. What a lovely name to call your
baby . . .
9) Ammishaddai (Numbers 1:12, 2:25)
Our mate here is listed in the book of Numbers as the father of Ahiezer, who was chief of the Tribe of Dan when Moses led the people during the Exodus. It is one of the few names compounded with the name of God, or “Shaddai”.
10) Chedorlaomer (Genesis 14)
Also spelled “Kedorlaomer”, this guy was one of the kings of Elam. Genesis explains that he was allied with three other kings from the region and fought against five other Caananite nations. Chedorlaomer won of course, seized all the Caananites’ goods and food, and carried off Abram’s nephew Lot and his possessions with them. Cue Abram’s valiant rescue mission!