The Use of the Words Belial and Raca in the Bible
He leads me …
There are some words in the Bible that remain in their original form and have never been translated into an English equivalent.
Hallelujah is one example that means ‘praise Yah/Jehovah’. It is translated in the KJV version of the Bible as ‘praise (ye) the LORD’ because English Bibles substitute ‘the LORD’ for the name Jehovah/Yahweh. For example, Psalm 106:48 reads, ‘And let all the people say, Amen. Praise ye the LORD [hale˘lû-y≤h].’
The name Satan is from the Hebrew common noun (pronounced sah-TAHN), which means ‘adversary, slanderer.’ The related Hebrew verb means ‘to accuse, slander, be an adversary.’[1]
While these two words are familiar to most Christians, we are going to look at two less common words - Belial and Raca.
Belial
This word appears often in the Old Testament and means ‘worthlessness’. Belial is used in some bibles[2] as part of title such as ‘sons/children of Belial’ (Judges 19:22, 20:13; 1 Samuel 2:12, 10:27; 2 Samuel 23:6; 1 Kings 21:10; 2 Chronicles 13:7), and ‘men of Belial’ (1 Samuel 25:25, 30:22; 1 Kings 21:13). The title of ‘daughter of Belial’ appears once in the same bible versions in 1 Samuel 1:16 and means ‘wicked woman’.
There are some instances where Belial is used as a Satan’s name, or for Antichrist, like in the Book Jubilees[3] and by Paul in 2 Corinthians 6:15 which reads, ‘What harmony is there between Christ and Belial?’ (NIV). Some commentators consider that Paul's ‘man of sin’ in 2 Thessalonians 2:3, (sometimes read ‘man of lawlessness,’) is a translation of this term. Even if the original wording is not identical, it is practically the same meaning as Belial.[4]
To understand how Belial is used in context let us look at the story of Eli’s sons Hophni and Pinehas in 1 Samuel 2:12-17. The writing suggests that the books of 1 and 2 Samuel were compiled from within the prophetic school and used documents from Samuel, Nathan, and Gad, thereby giving godly authority to the criticism of the brothers.[5] The account of the two sons of Eli, shows that while the brothers were officially priests, they were being totally selfish instead of following God’s requirements set out for the priestly role.
So, why were El’s sons worthless/useless (depending on which Bible version is read)?
Initially the Bible describes Eli’s sons as sons of Belial because ‘they did not know the Lord’ (1 Samuel 2:12). They were aware of God, but they did not know Him like their father Eli did. If either of them expected to be the high priest or even a judge of Israel like their father, knowing the Lord was a necessary requirement. Eli’s sons were religious, but it was not enough. Believers know that even if someone is a church leader, or involved in church activities, their good works do not have the same impact if they do not have an active faith in God.
Next, Eli’s sons were called worthless/useless because they did not follow God’s law. The fat from the meat offering was the best part of the animal, so it was given to God first (Leviticus 7:31), but the sons of Eli ignored this law by demanding their portion of the offering before they burned the fat. Then they could cook the meat to their own liking instead. (1 Samuel 2:13-15)
Then, Hophni and Phinehas were called worthless/useless because of their greed. They used their priestly position completely for their own benefit and treated the people of Israel with disrespect in the process. Hophni and Phinehas also committed sexual immorality at the very entrance of the tabernacle. What they did for their personal gain was bad enough, but the greater sin of Hophni and Phinehas was that they used their position to hurt other people. This made them both worthless and lawless in God’s eyes.[6]
Raca
Having just looked at Eli’s sons being called worthless/useless, it is interesting that in Matthew 5:22, as part of the Sermon on the Mount, Jesus gives a serious warning to those who call other people raca (vain, worthless, empty - intellectually rather than morally, derived from a root meaning ‘to spit.’[7] Some Bibles[8] translate it as ‘empty headed.’ It was an offensive name signifying a certain looseness of life and manners, used to show utter contempt for another person. Jesus warned that the use of such a word deserves thorough judgment by ‘the council’ which was the highest or supreme court, the Sanhedrin, the great national council of 72 judges. This puts this action on the level of the highest crimes as treason.
· First, Jesus warns that the very act of murder finds its roots in an angry, murderous intent, ‘But I tell you that anyone who is angry with his brother [other Christians] will be subject to judgment’ (Matthew 5:22a). William Barclay[9] commenting on the specific ancient Greek word translated angry says, ‘So Jesus forbids for ever the anger which broods, the anger which will not forget, the anger which refuses to be pacified, the anger which seeks revenge.’
· Next, Jesus warns against name-calling, using raca as an example (verse 22b), showing that there is hatred lurking within. According to Barclay raca ‘is the word of one who despises another with an arrogant contempt.’
· Then Jesus issues a third warning against those who call someone a ‘fool’ - downright wicked (verse 22c). To call someone by this term shows utter contempt for God because all people are made in His image. To call a person a fool (moros in the Greek) was dishonour that persons moral character. It was to take their name and respectability from them, and to brand them as an immoral person. The offenders attitude makes them dishonourable before God. To the Lord, this offense required the thorough judgment which, to the Jews would be ‘hell fire’. This is how serious it was to the Lord when one believer called another believer a fool.
What is beyond dispute is that Christ condemns the use of humiliating and insulting names as an extreme offense against the law of humanity, which is treated the same as murder.[10] Jesus suffered from this kind of verbal abuse Himself during His ministry, and He experienced hopelessness (Matthew 26:38).
Continuous mocking and condemnation by others can cause the underdog to come to the place where they feel that if these comments are so frequent, the people saying them obviously believe them. This then makes the victim feel that they are a fool or worthless because what the others are saying must be right. Then a downward spiral occurs where the person ends up chronically depressed.
We can now see that two words that appear to be similar can be used in quite different settings The first was used against those who rejected God and the other was against those who rejected people.
Dear Reader – If you have found some value in this blog, please feel free to send a copy on to your family and friends. Kind regards, John
[1] Biblical Hebrew Words You Already Know and Why The now and Why They Are Important, Dana M. Pike, Religious
Educator: Perspectives on the Restored Gospel 7, no. 3 (2006). https://scholarsarchive.byu.edu/cgi/viewcontent.cgi?article=1232&context=re
[2] 21st Century King James Version (KJ21), BRG Bible (BRG), Darby Translation (DARBY), International Standard Version (ISV)(footnotes), Jubilee Bible 2000 (JUB), King James Version (KJV), Authorized (King James) Version (AKJV), Legacy Standard Bible (LSB)(footnotes), New American Standard Bible (NASB)(footnotes), New King James Version (NKJV), New Catholic Bible (NCB).
[3] The Book of Jubilees is an apocryphal retelling of events from the Books of Genesis and Exodus
[4] International Standard Bible Encyclopedia – Belial, James Orr, Bible Study Tools.com; https://www.biblestudytools.com/dictionary/belial/
[5] First Samuel, Chuck Swindoll, Insight for Living Ministries; https://insight.org/resources/bible/the-historical-books/first-samuel
[6] Samuel and the Sons of Belial (1 Samuel 2:11-36), Bob Deffinbaugh, Bible.org;
https://bible.org/seriespage/3-samuel-and-sons-belial-1-samuel-211-36
[7] Raca, Easton's Bible Dictionary, BlueLetterBible.org;
https://www.blueletterbible.org/search/Dictionary/viewTopic.cfm?topic=ET0003049
[8] Amplified Bible (AMP), Amplified Bible, Classic Edition (AMPC), New Life Version (NLV)
[9] William Barclay was a Scottish author, radio and television presenter, Church of Scotland minister, and Professor of Divinity and Biblical Criticism at the University of Glasgow.
[10] General Editor. "Entry for 'RACA' ".James Orr M.Z. D.D., General Editor, "International Standard Bible Encyclopedia". 1915.
