Many people know the Old Testament was written in Hebrew and the New Testament in Greek (small sections of each were written in Aramaic). The Greek used to pen the New Testament, however, was not Classical Greek, but was instead, Koine Greek.
What is Koine Greek, and Why Was it Important?
Koine Greek was the language of the common man (the Greek word Koine means common) during Greece’s Hellenistic period. It was widely used as the language of the eastern Mediterranean during the New Testament era. The population was scattered all over the country, and many people were in remote locations. Because of this, many dialects developed; Koine Greek replaced them with one common language. Koine Greek also emerged as a unifying language following Alexander the Great’s conquests. Previous to his conquest, Attic Greek had been the language of Athens. It, too, evolved into Koine with the rise of Hellenism.
The Roman Empire brought great changes to the world. Dr. R. Fowler White explains, “The Roman Empire had brought the pax Romana (“peace of Rome”) to the then known world and so the world was united as never before (cf. Luke 2:1…The Romans had constructed a fine transportation system, focused in five main highways leading from Rome to destinations in the ancient world (cf. Colossians 1:23).”
Dr. Fowler continues, “The Greek language had become the medium of commerce, culture, and philosophy (i.e., the lingua franca), and so it was possible for the gospel and the gospel literature to reach a universal audience.”
Because of the great reach of the Roman Empire, Koine Greek became the “global” language of the time, which allowed the gospel to spread widely. Koine Greek was widely used in commerce, politics, and culture, therefore both Gentiles and Jews were wise to conform to the lingua franca of the day. That allowed the message of the Bible to spread and be understood by many more people than if they had stuck to Hebrew and/or Aramaic.
And so too, with the writing of the New Testament. In order for the most people to understand the Scriptures, the writers used the common language.
How Did Koine Greek Shape the Writings of the New Testament?
In a real sense, the Apostles and other writers of the New Testament were missionaries sent by the Lord to share the gospel with everyone they could reach (Matthew 28:19-20). Our modern missionaries do the same thing when they learn the language of the region they will be serving before they go there.
Therefore, in order for the teachings of the New Testament to be understood by the masses, the writers employed the languages of its day.
God used the military exploits of Alexander the Great to unite the Middle Eastern world with the classical world of Greece and Rome. When he did that, the Jews and Greeks entered the same cultural sphere. While it’s easy to think his goal was power from military might, what he aspired to was authority over culture. God saw to it that Alexander the Great created the Hellenistic world through which the gospel spread 300 years after his death.
Heritage Bible Church’s Director for Discipleship and Training, Jim Knauss tells us, “A powerful testament to this is the fact that even though Rome was the dominant power at the time of our Lord, the New Testament was written in the common language of the day—Greek, and not the Latin preferred by Roman elites. Greek was king, and with it all its theological and intellectual doctrine.”
Therefore, once Alexander the Great established Koine Greek as the language used in trade and communication, it aided the population to learn and use it.
Utilizing Koine Greek presented these benefits:
- It was the language of trade and culture of the day and therefore, was accessible to people of all walks of life.
- Koine Greek is an example of God’s perfect timing. The language itself had undergone a progression from Classical and Golden toward Koine. It’s not like there was a particular virtue regarding its precision; it was sufficient for communicating God’s words through the writers. God could have used any language; He chose Koine with its accessibility to make the gospel available. Koine is not the most precise language, but it afforded the best outlet for spreading Scripture.
Was Hebrew or Aramaic Ever Considered for the New Testament?
We have seen that with Alexander the Great’s dominance over the vast region and culture, Koine Greek was instituted as the lingua franca of “his” world. Judea and Galilee were not idle standers-by; these regions factored into the use of Koine Greek as common language that tied them to the rest of the world.
Even though the Old Testament had a mixture of Hebrew and Aramaic, and scholars agree Jesus spoke in the Aramaic language, God chose to have the writers use a language of greater influence in the first century and beyond.
By the third century BC, the Jews who had been dispersed to Egypt had, for the most part, failed to maintain their speaking knowledge of Hebrew and/or Aramaic. They, therefore, translated the Hebrew Bible into Koine Greek, which had become their native language. Their translations are called the “Septuagint,” which developed into the central Scriptures used by the Diaspora of Jews (all those living outside the land of Israel). They extended their Greek translations to works other than the Hebrew Scriptures, too.
When we ponder God’s goodness and His use of humanity to spread the good news, we can say with surety that God wastes nothing. In the midst of the pagan worldview of the Greek culture (with mythical stories and philosophers who pointed toward man instead of to God), God turned their influence into His own. He used their language and made His word known throughout the world.
Through God’s providence, He used the men, culture, and language of the day to assure we’d have what he intends us to have—the Bible.
Does the New Testament’s Greek Language Affect Modern Translations?
An exasperated student of the Bible can sometimes be heard to exclaim, “It’s all Greek to me!” We can answer, “Thank God for that!”
Any time you have translations made from an original language, issues arise, even from the Koine Greek. The writers would use words and phrases common to their audience, and it’s important for modern readers to study as many facets of the text as possible. Context is key as a means to understand the translations. Within context are the historical and grammatical nuances of the passages (and others).
When striving to gain the best understanding of a passage, the best thing to do is to read it in a few different versions. This practice will help balance the meaning.
A simple example of the Koine Greek used in the Bible vs. the Classical Greek is to look at John 3:16, “For God so loved the world, that He gave His only begotten Son, that whoever believes in Him should not perish but have eternal life."
Vocabulary:
- The Koine Greek uses common words such as “world” and “believing.” The more nuanced Classical Greek would instead use “human race” for world and “believing in Him” for believes.
Sentence Structure:
- Koine tends toward straightforward language, while Classical Greek would add more difficult sentence construction and extra clauses.
We don’t lose the greater meaning if either is used, but the wording and style make translation a bit more challenging. Understanding this about the Greek language will help us as we study the Bible. Word studies are good, but we must look at the sentence construction and always consider the context.
How Does Koine Greek Reflect God’s Desire for the Gospel to Spread?
Koine Greek was the language of the masses, and its use in the New Testament provided a much wider range of influence throughout the world. Biblical text and language specialist Drew Longacre, says, “Thus, the language used for any spoken or written interaction depended on who was involved and the purpose of the conversation, and Greek allowed for the widest possible dissemination of written works throughout the Mediterranean world.”
Those who would have been separated from the good news by language barriers no longer had that issue. This is especially significant after the death and resurrection of Jesus Christ, because Christianity spread rapidly throughout the world, both via geography and language. All of this helps us appreciate how our sovereign God works through history and language to make His truth known to all people.
No human language is perfectly precise. Even with Koine Greek, scholars still debate the exact meaning of many passages in the Bible. But God has given us all we need to understand His meaning through His Word as penned by the human authors He used. As the Apostle Peter wrote, “Know this first of all, that no prophecy of Scripture comes by one’s own interpretation. For no prophecy was ever made by the will of man, but men being moved by the Holy Spirit spoke from God” (2 Peter 1:20-21).
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