Appendix B: Greek Word Study
This appendix provides a comprehensive analysis of the key Greek words in the New Testament passages that quote or allude to Isaiah 53 --- primarily Matthew 8:17 and 1 Peter 2:24, with supporting material from the Gospels, Acts, and Hebrews. For each word, the entry includes the Greek characters, transliteration, definition, New Testament usage, and relevance to the healing-in-the-atonement debate.
Where the Septuagint (LXX) rendering differs significantly from the New Testament quotation, those differences are noted, as they bear directly on the question of what the inspired authors understood Isaiah 53 to mean.
1. ἰάομαι (iaomai) --- “to heal”
Section titled “1. ἰάομαι (iaomai) --- “to heal””Definition: To heal, to cure, to restore to health, to make whole.
Form in 1 Peter 2:24: ἰάθητε (iathete) --- aorist passive indicative, second person plural: “ye were healed.”
New Testament Usage
Section titled “New Testament Usage”The verb iaomai appears twenty-eight times in the New Testament. Its usage is overwhelmingly physical:
Physical Healing (the dominant usage)
Section titled “Physical Healing (the dominant usage)”| Passage | Context |
|---|---|
| Matthew 8:8 | The centurion: “speak the word only, and my servant shall be healed [iathēsetai]“ |
| Matthew 8:13 | ”And his servant was healed [iathē] in the selfsame hour” |
| Matthew 15:28 | ”And her daughter was made whole [iathē] from that very hour” |
| Luke 5:17 | ”the power of the Lord was present to heal [iasthai] them” |
| Luke 6:19 | ”virtue went out of him, and healed [iato] them all” |
| Luke 9:2 | Jesus sends the twelve “to preach the kingdom of God, and to heal [iasthai] the sick” |
| Luke 9:42 | ”Jesus rebuked the unclean spirit, and healed [iasato] the child” |
| Luke 14:4 | ”he took him, and healed [iasato] him, and let him go” |
| Luke 17:15 | The Samaritan leper, “when he saw that he was healed [iathē]“ |
| Luke 22:51 | Jesus “touched his ear, and healed [iasato] him” (Malchus) |
| John 4:47 | The nobleman asks Jesus “that he would come down, and heal [iasētai] his son” |
| John 5:13 | The healed man “wist not who it was: for Jesus… had conveyed himself away” (iatheis, “having been healed”) |
| Acts 9:34 | Peter to Aeneas: “Jesus Christ maketh thee whole [iatai]“ |
| Acts 10:38 | ”healing [iōmenos] all that were oppressed of the devil” |
| Acts 28:8 | Paul “prayed, and laid his hands on him, and healed [iasato] him” |
Spiritual / Metaphorical Healing
Section titled “Spiritual / Metaphorical Healing”| Passage | Context |
|---|---|
| Matthew 13:15 | ”lest…they should be converted, and I should heal [iasomai] them” (quoting Isaiah 6:10) |
| Hebrews 12:13 | ”make straight paths for your feet, lest that which is lame be turned out of the way; but let it rather be healed [iathē]“ |
| 1 Peter 2:24 | ”by whose stripes ye were healed [iathēte]“ |
The Significance of 1 Peter 2:24
Section titled “The Significance of 1 Peter 2:24”Peter’s use of iaomai in 1 Peter 2:24 is one of the most debated data points in the entire discussion. The word is used almost exclusively for physical healing throughout the New Testament --- yet Peter uses it in a context that is unambiguously about sin and spiritual restoration. Two observations are important:
First, the fact that Peter chose iaomai rather than a purely spiritual word (such as sōzō, “to save”) is noteworthy. Peter could have written “by whose stripes ye were saved” and eliminated any ambiguity. Instead, he chose a word whose primary connotation is physical healing. Those who see physical healing in the atonement argue that this word choice is deliberate and carries physical overtones even within a spiritual context.
Second, Peter is quoting the LXX of Isaiah 53:5, which uses the same verb: ἰάθημεν (iathēmen), “we were healed.” Peter follows the LXX’s vocabulary. This may indicate that Peter is simply preserving the prophetic language of his source text rather than making a fresh theological choice about the word. Those who hold the spiritual-only view argue that Peter’s use of iaomai is driven by the LXX quotation, not by an intent to include physical healing.
The aorist tense (iathēte, “ye were healed”) points to a completed past event --- the cross. Whatever healing Peter has in view, he treats it as already accomplished.
2. θεραπεύω (therapeuō) --- “to heal / to serve”
Section titled “2. θεραπεύω (therapeuō) --- “to heal / to serve””Definition: To serve, to attend to, to heal, to cure, to restore to health. The word carries a broader semantic range than iaomai, encompassing both the act of medical treatment and the broader concept of caring service.
New Testament Usage
Section titled “New Testament Usage”Therapeuō is the most common word for Jesus’s healing ministry in the Gospels:
| Passage | Context |
|---|---|
| Matthew 4:23 | ”healing [therapeuōn] all manner of sickness and all manner of disease” |
| Matthew 4:24 | ”they brought unto him all sick people…and he healed [etherapeusen] them” |
| Matthew 8:16 | ”healed [etherapeusen] all that were sick” --- the verse immediately before Matthew’s Isaiah 53:4 quotation |
| Matthew 9:35 | ”healing [therapeuōn] every sickness and every disease” |
| Matthew 10:1 | Jesus gives the twelve “power…to heal [therapeuein] all manner of sickness” |
| Matthew 12:15 | ”great multitudes followed him, and he healed [etherapeusen] them all” |
| Luke 4:40 | ”he laid his hands on every one of them, and healed [etherapeusen] them” |
| Luke 9:1 | Jesus gives the twelve “power and authority…to cure [therapeuein] diseases” |
| Acts 5:16 | ”they were healed [etherapeuonto] every one” |
Significance for the Debate
Section titled “Significance for the Debate”Therapeuō is Matthew’s primary healing word. In Matthew 8:16, just before the Isaiah 53:4 quotation in verse 17, Matthew writes that Jesus “healed [etherapeusen] all that were sick.” The fulfillment citation that follows --- “Himself took our infirmities, and bare our sicknesses” --- is thus attached to a context saturated with therapeuō-type physical healing.
The distinction between therapeuō and iaomai is not absolute, but it is worth noting: therapeuō often carries the sense of ongoing care or medical treatment (its root gives us the English word “therapy”), while iaomai tends to emphasize the result --- the cure itself. Matthew uses therapeuō for the healings; the LXX and Peter use iaomai for the healing of Isaiah 53:5. Both are physical-healing words, but they emphasize different aspects of the healing process.
3. σῴζω (sōzō) --- “to save / to heal / to make whole”
Section titled “3. σῴζω (sōzō) --- “to save / to heal / to make whole””Definition: To save, to deliver, to preserve, to heal, to make whole. This is the great double-meaning word of the New Testament --- used for both spiritual salvation and physical healing, sometimes in contexts where both meanings operate simultaneously.
New Testament Usage
Section titled “New Testament Usage”Spiritual Salvation
Section titled “Spiritual Salvation”| Passage | Context |
|---|---|
| Luke 7:50 | ”Thy faith hath saved [sesōken] thee; go in peace” (sinful woman forgiven --- no physical illness) |
| Luke 19:10 | ”the Son of man is come to seek and to save [sōsai] that which was lost” |
| John 3:17 | ”that the world through him might be saved [sōthē]“ |
| Acts 2:21 | ”whosoever shall call on the name of the Lord shall be saved [sōthēsetai]“ |
| Romans 10:9 | ”thou shalt be saved [sōthēsē]“ |
| Ephesians 2:8 | ”by grace are ye saved [sesōsmenoi]“ |
Physical Healing / Deliverance
Section titled “Physical Healing / Deliverance”| Passage | Context |
|---|---|
| Matthew 9:21—22 | ”If I may but touch his garment, I shall be whole [sōthēsomai]…Thy faith hath made thee whole [sesōken]“ |
| Mark 5:28, 34 | ”If I may touch but his clothes, I shall be whole [sōthēsomai]…Thy faith hath made thee whole [sesōken]“ |
| Mark 10:52 | ”Thy faith hath made thee whole [sesōken]” (blind Bartimaeus receives sight) |
| Luke 8:48 | ”Thy faith hath made thee whole [sesōken]; go in peace” (woman with issue of blood) |
| Luke 17:19 | ”Thy faith hath made thee whole [sesōken]” (Samaritan leper) |
| Acts 4:9 | ”by what means he is made whole [sesōstai]” (healing of the lame man) |
Ambiguous / Both Dimensions
Section titled “Ambiguous / Both Dimensions”| Passage | Context |
|---|---|
| James 5:15 | ”the prayer of faith shall save [sōsei] the sick, and the Lord shall raise him up” |
| Luke 18:42 | ”Receive thy sight: thy faith hath saved [sesōken] thee” |
Significance for the Debate
Section titled “Significance for the Debate”Sōzō is the word that most clearly bridges the physical and spiritual dimensions of the healing discussion. When Jesus says “Thy faith hath made thee whole” (using sōzō), is He speaking of physical healing, spiritual salvation, or both? The answer may be: deliberately both. The word refuses to separate body and soul.
James 5:15 is especially significant: “the prayer of faith shall save [sōsei] the sick.” The word sōzō is used in a context that involves physical sickness (v. 14), prayer with anointing oil, and the forgiveness of sins (v. 15b). James appears to use sōzō precisely because it encompasses both dimensions.
Those who see healing in the atonement point to sōzō as evidence that the New Testament authors did not draw a sharp line between physical healing and spiritual salvation. Those who hold the spiritual-only view note that sōzō’s spiritual-salvation usage is more theologically developed and should control the interpretation. Those who hold the already/not yet view see sōzō as reflecting the comprehensive nature of Christ’s redemptive work --- salvation that addresses the whole person, body and soul.
4. βαστάζω (bastazō) and λαμβάνω (lambanō) --- “to bear” and “to take”
Section titled “4. βαστάζω (bastazō) and λαμβάνω (lambanō) --- “to bear” and “to take””βαστάζω (bastazō)
Section titled “βαστάζω (bastazō)”Definition: To bear, to carry, to take up, to remove. Used in Matthew 8:17: ἐβάστασεν (ebastasen), “he bore/carried.”
New Testament usage: Bastazō appears twenty-seven times in the NT. It is used for carrying a physical burden (Luke 14:27, carrying one’s cross; John 19:17, Jesus carrying His cross), for bearing burdens figuratively (Galatians 6:2, “Bear ye one another’s burdens”), and for bearing/removing disease (Matthew 8:17).
λαμβάνω (lambanō)
Section titled “λαμβάνω (lambanō)”Definition: To take, to receive, to take up, to grasp. Used in Matthew 8:17: ἔλαβεν (elaben), “he took.”
New Testament usage: Lambanō is one of the most common verbs in the NT (over 250 occurrences). Its basic meaning is “to take” or “to receive.” In Matthew 8:17, the sense is “he took upon himself” --- active appropriation of our infirmities.
How They Function in Matthew 8:17
Section titled “How They Function in Matthew 8:17”Matthew 8:17 reads: “Himself took [elaben] our infirmities, and bare [ebastasen] our sicknesses.” The two verbs form a pair:
- Lambanō (elaben): He took --- actively seized, received, appropriated our weaknesses
- Bastazō (ebastasen): He bore --- carried away, removed our diseases
Significance for the Debate
Section titled “Significance for the Debate”The pair of verbs in Matthew 8:17 is significant because of what bastazō can mean in the context of disease. When bastazō appears alongside words for sickness, it can carry the sense of removal rather than merely sympathetic identification. Jesus did not merely feel the infirmities of those He healed; He took them away. The sick were healed --- the diseases were gone.
Those who see healing in the atonement connect this removal-language to the atonement: just as Christ “takes away” sin (John 1:29, airōn), He “takes away” sickness. Those who hold the typological/pattern view argue that the removal happened in Jesus’s pre-cross ministry as a demonstration of His identity, not as evidence of a permanent atonement provision. The language of removal is about what Jesus did in Galilee, not necessarily about what the cross provides for all believers in every age.
5. πληρόω (plēroō) --- “to fulfill”
Section titled “5. πληρόω (plēroō) --- “to fulfill””Definition: To fill, to make full, to complete, to fulfill. Used in Matthew 8:17: “That it might be fulfilled [plērōthē] which was spoken by Esaias the prophet.”
Matthew’s Use of Plēroō
Section titled “Matthew’s Use of Plēroō”Matthew uses plēroō fifteen times in his Gospel, always in connection with Old Testament prophecy. His fulfillment formula --- “that it might be fulfilled which was spoken by the prophet” --- is a hallmark of his Gospel. But Matthew’s concept of “fulfillment” is more complex than simple prediction-and-completion:
| Passage | OT Source | Nature of “Fulfillment” |
|---|---|---|
| Matthew 1:22—23 | Isaiah 7:14 | Direct messianic prophecy |
| Matthew 2:15 | Hosea 11:1 | Typological --- Hosea described Israel’s exodus, not a future event |
| Matthew 2:17—18 | Jeremiah 31:15 | Typological --- Jeremiah described the Babylonian exile |
| Matthew 4:14—16 | Isaiah 9:1—2 | Messianic/geographical application |
| Matthew 8:17 | Isaiah 53:4 | Applied to physical healing --- what kind of fulfillment? |
| Matthew 12:17—21 | Isaiah 42:1—4 | Applied to Jesus’s gentle, non-confrontational ministry |
| Matthew 13:35 | Psalm 78:2 | Applied to Jesus’s use of parables |
Significance for the Debate
Section titled “Significance for the Debate”The key question is: what kind of fulfillment does plēroō denote in Matthew 8:17?
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Exhaustive fulfillment (healing-in-the-atonement view): Jesus’s healings fulfill Isaiah 53:4 in the sense that the atonement provides physical healing. The healings are a down payment on what the cross secures. Plēroō here means “to bring to full realization.”
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Typological fulfillment (pattern view): Jesus’s healings “fill up” a pattern described in Isaiah 53:4 --- the Servant enters into human suffering and bears it. The fulfillment is real but does not necessarily establish a permanent provision. Plēroō here means “to bring a pattern to its fullest expression,” as in Matthew 2:15 and 2:17—18.
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Authenticating fulfillment (sign view): Jesus’s healings demonstrate that He is the Servant of Isaiah 53. The fulfillment identifies the person, not the scope of atonement benefits. Plēroō here means “to confirm the identity of.”
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Inaugurated fulfillment (already/not yet view): Jesus’s healings are genuine initial fulfillment of Isaiah 53:4, with the complete fulfillment awaiting the resurrection. Plēroō here carries the sense of “to begin to realize fully, with completion still to come.”
Matthew’s use of plēroō elsewhere (especially in 2:15 and 2:17—18) demonstrates that fulfillment in his Gospel is not always direct prediction-and-completion. This creates space for the typological and inaugurated readings. But his use of the same formula for unambiguous messianic prophecy (1:22—23) shows that plēroō can also denote direct fulfillment. The reader must weigh which kind of fulfillment is in view in 8:17.
6. μώλωψ (mōlōps) --- “stripes / wound”
Section titled “6. μώλωψ (mōlōps) --- “stripes / wound””Definition: A wound, bruise, or welt caused by a blow; the mark left on the body by a beating.
Form in 1 Peter 2:24: τῷ μώλωπι (tō mōlōpi) --- dative singular: “by [his] stripe/wound.”
New Testament Usage
Section titled “New Testament Usage”Mōlōps appears only once in the New Testament: 1 Peter 2:24. It is the Greek rendering of the Hebrew chaburah (see Appendix A). The LXX uses the same word in Isaiah 53:5: τῷ μώλωπι αὐτοῦ ἡμεῖς ἰάθημεν, “by his wound we were healed.”
Significance for the Debate
Section titled “Significance for the Debate”The singular form (mōlōpi, “stripe/wound”) is noteworthy. Peter follows the LXX in using the singular, while the KJV translates as the plural “stripes” (following the Hebrew chaburah, which is also singular but is commonly rendered as a collective). The singular may emphasize the unity of Christ’s redemptive suffering --- one comprehensive wound, one comprehensive act of bearing sin. It draws the reader’s attention to the cross as a single, decisive event.
Like chaburah in the Hebrew, mōlōps is an inherently physical word --- it refers to a visible mark on the body. The healing that flows from this physical wound is the point of debate: is the healing itself physical, spiritual, or both?
7. βεβαιόω (bebaioō) --- “to confirm”
Section titled “7. βεβαιόω (bebaioō) --- “to confirm””Definition: To make firm, to establish, to confirm, to verify.
Key Passages
Section titled “Key Passages”| Passage | Text (KJV) | Significance |
|---|---|---|
| Mark 16:20 | ”the Lord working with them, and confirming [bebaiountos] the word with signs following” | Signs confirmed the apostolic message |
| Hebrews 2:3—4 | ”which at the first began to be spoken by the Lord, and was confirmed [ebebaiōthē] unto us by them that heard him; God also bearing them witness, both with signs and wonders” | The message was confirmed by signs and wonders |
The Tense Argument
Section titled “The Tense Argument”The cessationist argument from bebaioō focuses on the tense of the verb, particularly in Hebrews 2:3—4. The aorist passive ebebaiōthē (“was confirmed”) describes a completed past action. The argument runs: the message was confirmed by signs in the apostolic era; that confirmation is complete; therefore, the confirming signs (including healing) have fulfilled their purpose and are no longer necessary.
Significance for the Debate
Section titled “Significance for the Debate”Those who hold the cessationist/spiritual-only view argue that bebaioō in these passages establishes healing miracles as having a confirmatory function tied to the apostolic era. Once the word was confirmed and the canon was complete, the signs that accompanied the word served their purpose. Physical healing, in this framework, was an apostolic-era phenomenon, not a permanent atonement provision.
Those who hold continuationist views respond that the past tense of bebaioō in Hebrews 2:3—4 describes what happened historically (the original hearers received confirming signs), not what is possible for all time. The past tense describes the audience’s past experience, not a theological limit on God’s present activity. Additionally, the textual status of Mark 16:9—20 (the longer ending of Mark) is debated; some manuscripts lack this passage, which affects its weight as a proof text.
The already/not yet view notes that whether or not signs have a specifically confirmatory function, the kingdom of God is still present, the Holy Spirit still distributes gifts (1 Corinthians 12:9—11), and the New Testament nowhere explicitly states that healing gifts will cease before Christ’s return.
8. The LXX Translation Choices: Why Matthew Quoted the MT, Not the LXX
Section titled “8. The LXX Translation Choices: Why Matthew Quoted the MT, Not the LXX”One of the most significant textual observations in the entire study is that Matthew, when quoting Isaiah 53:4, did not use the Septuagint. This deserves its own analysis.
The LXX Rendering of Isaiah 53:4
Section titled “The LXX Rendering of Isaiah 53:4”The Septuagint translates Isaiah 53:4 as:
οὗτος τὰς ἁμαρτίας ἡμῶν φέρει καὶ περὶ ἡμῶν ὀδυνᾶται
Houtos tas hamartias hēmōn pherei kai peri hēmōn odynatai
“This one bears our sins and suffers pain for us.”
The LXX renders the Hebrew choli (“sickness/grief”) as hamartias (“sins”) --- replacing physical-sickness language with sin language. This is an interpretive translation: the LXX translators understood Isaiah 53:4 as referring to sin-bearing, not sickness-bearing.
Matthew’s Independent Translation
Section titled “Matthew’s Independent Translation”Matthew 8:17 reads:
Αὐτὸς τὰς ἀσθενείας ἡμῶν ἔλαβεν καὶ τὰς νόσους ἐβάστασεν
Autos tas astheneias hēmōn elaben kai tas nosous ebastasen
“He himself took our infirmities and bore our diseases.”
Side-by-Side Comparison
Section titled “Side-by-Side Comparison”| Element | Hebrew (MT) | LXX | Matthew |
|---|---|---|---|
| ”Our sicknesses/griefs” | חֳלָיֵנוּ (cholayenu) | ἁμαρτίας ἡμῶν --- “our sins” | ἀσθενείας ἡμῶν --- “our weaknesses" |
| "He bore” | נָשָׂא (nasa) | φέρει --- “he bears” | ἔλαβεν --- “he took" |
| "Our pains/sorrows” | מַכְאֹבֵינוּ (makhovenu) | περὶ ἡμῶν ὀδυνᾶται --- “he suffers for us” | τὰς νόσους --- “diseases" |
| "He carried” | סְבָלָם (sevalam) | (subsumed in ὀδυνᾶται) | ἐβάστασεν --- “he bore” |
Key Greek Terms in Matthew’s Translation
Section titled “Key Greek Terms in Matthew’s Translation”ἀσθένεια (astheneia): Weakness, sickness, infirmity. Used throughout the NT for physical ailments (Luke 5:15, 8:2; John 5:5, 11:4; Acts 28:9) and for general weakness (Romans 8:26; 2 Corinthians 12:9—10). In Matthew 8:17, the context anchors the meaning in physical infirmity.
νόσος (nosos): Disease, sickness. This word is used exclusively for physical disease in the New Testament (Matthew 4:23, 4:24, 9:35, 10:1; Mark 1:34; Luke 4:40, 6:17, 7:21, 9:1; Acts 19:12). There is no instance in the NT where nosos refers to a spiritual or moral condition. Matthew’s choice of this word is unambiguous: he is describing physical sickness.
Why Matthew Rejected the LXX
Section titled “Why Matthew Rejected the LXX”Matthew had the LXX available --- it was the Greek Old Testament used by the early church. He deliberately set it aside and produced his own translation of Isaiah 53:4 that preserves the physical-sickness dimension of the Hebrew. His reasons cannot be known with certainty, but the most natural explanation is that the LXX’s rendering (hamartias, “sins”) did not fit the context in which he was placing the quotation. Jesus was physically healing the sick. Matthew needed Greek words that matched the Hebrew’s physical-sickness vocabulary, and the LXX did not provide them.
Significance for the Debate
Section titled “Significance for the Debate”This observation is significant regardless of one’s theological position:
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It tells us that Matthew understood Isaiah 53:4 as including physical sickness. He chose astheneia and nosos --- physical-sickness words --- over hamartia (“sin”). This was a deliberate interpretive decision by an inspired author.
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It tells us that the LXX translators understood Isaiah 53:4 as being about sin. They chose hamartia over any sickness-related Greek word. This was also a deliberate interpretive decision, made by Jewish scholars several centuries before Christ.
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It tells us that the physical-versus-spiritual question is embedded in the passage’s earliest translation history. The debate is not a modern invention. It is as old as the Septuagint.
The reader must decide how to weigh these two witnesses: the LXX translators who read “sins” and the inspired evangelist who read “sicknesses.” The fact that both readings have ancient pedigree is itself the most important finding.
Summary: What the Greek Evidence Shows
Section titled “Summary: What the Greek Evidence Shows”The Greek vocabulary of the New Testament’s Isaiah 53 quotations contributes the following to the debate:
| Word | Primary NT Meaning | Spiritual Use? | Physical Use? | Key Observation |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| ἰάομαι (iaomai) | Physical healing | Rare (1 Pet 2:24; Matt 13:15) | Dominant | Peter uses a physical-healing word in a spiritual context |
| θεραπεύω (therapeuō) | Physical healing/care | Minimal | Dominant | Matthew’s healing word in 8:16, immediately before the Isaiah quotation |
| σῴζω (sōzō) | Save / heal / make whole | Yes (Luke 7:50) | Yes (Mark 5:34) | Bridges physical and spiritual; refuses to separate body and soul |
| βαστάζω (bastazō) | Bear / carry / remove | Some (Gal 6:2) | Yes (Matt 8:17) | In disease contexts, can mean removal |
| λαμβάνω (lambanō) | Take / receive | Broad | Matt 8:17 | Active appropriation of infirmities |
| πληρόω (plēroō) | Fulfill / complete | --- | --- | What kind of fulfillment? Exhaustive, typological, authenticating, or inaugurated? |
| μώλωψ (mōlōps) | Physical wound/stripe | --- | Only use: 1 Pet 2:24 | The Greek rendering of chaburah; inherently physical |
| βεβαιόω (bebaioō) | Confirm / establish | --- | --- | The tense argument: was confirmation a completed, past-tense phenomenon? |
The Greek evidence, like the Hebrew, does not resolve the debate. But it sharpens it. Matthew’s deliberate departure from the LXX and his choice of physical-sickness vocabulary is the strongest Greek-language evidence for a physical dimension in Isaiah 53:4. Peter’s use of a physical-healing word (iaomai) in a spiritual context is the strongest evidence for the spiritual reading --- or, alternatively, for the view that “healed” encompasses both dimensions even when the emphasis is spiritual. The reader must weigh these witnesses together.