Question 1

What does "Sin" mean in the King James Bible?

Accepted Answer

In the KJV, "Sin" means "wrongdoing." The archery metaphor. Chata and hamartia both came from the act of aiming at a target and missing. Sin was not primarily about rule-breaking but about falling short of God's design for human life -- not hitting what you were aimed at. 'All have sinned and fall short of the glory' meant all humans miss the target of reflecting God's character.

Question 2

Why did the word "Sin" disappear from modern English?

Accepted Answer

Hebrew chata ('miss the mark/fall short of the target') and Greek hamartia (archery term for missing the target) were moralized into 'breaking rules.' Sin became about violations rather than failure to reach the intended design. The word was at peak usage around 1611 and declined by still used but moralized (~1800).

Question 3

What modern word replaced "Sin"?

Accepted Answer

"Sin" was replaced by: "wrongdoing" (though this behavioral and rule-based; sin was ontological -- a failure to be what you were designed to be); "crime" (though this legal and external; sin was first relational -- falling short of god's design for human flourishing); "mistake" (though this accidental and trivial; sin was a serious structural failure of the human condition).

What Does “Sin” Mean in the Bible?

What Was Lost

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