Beyond the Cross: The Language of the Gospel for All Nations

In recent years, the custom has grown among some believers of systematically using Hebrew words to refer to God and Christ: Yahweh instead of “Lord,” Yeshua instead of “Jesus,” Mashiach instead of “Messiah” or “Christ.” The intention, in most cases, is to honor the biblical roots of our faith. However, when we examine Scripture in light of the New Covenant, we find that this practice—whether it is imposed or presented as “more correct”—is not aligned with apostolic teaching after the cross.

Let's see why.

1. The change of covenant and the universality of the gospel

With Christ's death and resurrection, we enter into a New Covenant (Hebrews 8:6–13). This covenant is not a linguistic or cultural continuation of the old, but a new administration in which "the old has passed away" (2 Corinthians 5:17).

It is revealing that God inspired the apostolic writings to be recorded not in Hebrew, but in Koine Greek , the common language of the entire Roman Empire. This was no coincidence: the gospel was born with a universal vocation. The message was to travel beyond Israel and resonate in every nation, tribe, and tongue.

The name Jesus in Greek ( Iēsous Christos ) is the form the Holy Spirit preserved in the New Testament. This shows that the authority and power are not in the original Hebrew phonetics, but in the Person Himself, proclaimed in a language the audience can understand.

2. The apostolic teaching: Christ above cultural codes

The apostle Paul puts it forcefully: “In Christ Jesus neither circumcision nor uncircumcision has any value, but the new creation is created” (Galatians 6:15). In other words, the believer's identity does not depend on preserving external elements of the previous covenant.

At the Council of Jerusalem (Acts 15), the apostles decided that Gentiles should not be burdened with Jewish cultural customs in order to know Christ. This included language: no one required Gentile believers to pray or proclaim in Hebrew to be more “authentic” or “pure.”

To reimpose—or insinuate—that there is a more correct way to pronounce the name of Jesus in Hebrew is, however subtly, to regress to a form of Judaization that the gospel came to overcome.

3. Pastoral risk: barriers and spiritual elitism

The persistent use of Hebrew words in contexts where they are not understood can lead to two problems:

• Confusion: New believers may feel that to approach God they must learn a “special code” or master vocabulary foreign to their native language, which distracts from the core of the gospel.

• Spiritual elitism: This can unintentionally convey the idea that those who use Hebrew terms are on a “deeper” spiritual level than those who don’t, fueling unnecessary divisions.

The Gospel tears down walls, it doesn't raise them. The Church's mission is not to Hebraize nations, but to translate Christ into the language and culture of each people , without adulterating the message but ensuring that it is understood and received.

4. The principle of the new wineskin

Jesus himself warned: “Nor do they put new wine into old wineskins” (Matthew 9:17). The old wineskin is the Old Covenant system with its forms, rituals, and cultural codes linked to Israel as a nation. The new wineskin is the people of God born from above, living under the grace of the New Covenant and bringing the wine of the gospel to all nations in a vessel appropriate for each.

To continue insisting on preserving Hebrew phonetics as if it were indispensable for faith is not to put new wine in new wineskins, but rather to try to pour it into wineskins that have already fulfilled their function in another stage of the divine plan .

5. Biblical support for this principle

The Gospel in the language of each people

• “Each one heard them speaking in his own language” (Acts 2:6–11).

At Pentecost, the Holy Spirit did not make everyone speak Hebrew, but translated the message into the language of the listener .

The New Covenant writings in common Greek

• The entire New Testament was written in Koine Greek , not Hebrew, showing God's intention to communicate the gospel in the lingua franca of the known world.

Do not impose cultural or ethnic codes

• “Do not be troubled… with words, saying that it is necessary to be circumcised and to keep the law” (Acts 15:24).

Although this text speaks of the law and circumcision, the principle is the same: do not impose elements of the old covenant as a spiritual requirement .

The value is in the new creation, not in the external form

• “Neither circumcision nor uncircumcision has any value, but the new creation has value” (Galatians 6:15).

Just as identity does not depend on a rite, neither does it depend on preserving an original phonetic for divine names.

Every tongue will proclaim Christ

• “That at the name of Jesus every knee should bow… and every tongue confess that Jesus Christ is Lord” (Philippians 2:9–11).

It does not say “every tongue utters Hebrew,” but rather every tongue confesses , that is, declares with understanding and faith.

The new wineskin for the new wine

• “Nor do they put new wine into old wineskins…” (Matthew 9:17).

The New Covenant requires forms that serve the present purpose, not cultural molds from a past administration.

Conclusion: The essential thing is not how you pronounce it, but Who you proclaim

The power of the name Jesus is not in saying Yeshua or Iēsous , but in knowing and proclaiming the Person that name represents: the Son of God, Lord and Savior of all.

After the cross, every language —not just Hebrew—is called to confess that “Jesus Christ is Lord” (Philippians 2:9–11). This is what glorifies the Father and fulfills the mission.

Christ did not come to be the monopoly of one culture, but to be the Life of every nation. And that life must be proclaimed in a language the heart can understand.