Holiness

hō ́li-nes (קדושׁ, ḳādhōsh, “holy,” קדשׁ, ḳōdhesh, “holiness”; ἅγιος, hágios, “holy”):

There has been much discussion as to the original meaning of the Semitic root  ḲDSH, by which the notion of holiness is expressed in the Old Testament. Some would connect it with an Assyrian word denoting purity, clearness; most modern scholars incline to the view that the primary idea is that of cutting off or separation. Etymology gives no sure verdict on the point, but the idea of separation lends itself best to the various senses in which the word “holiness” is employed. In primitive Semitic usage “holiness” seems to have expressed nothing more than that ceremonial separation of an object from common use which the modern study of savage religions has rendered familiar under the name of taboo (W.R. Smith, Religion of the Semites, Lect iv). But within the Biblical sphere, with which alone we are immediately concerned, holiness attaches itself first of all, not to visible objects, but to the invisible Yahweh, and to places, seasons, things and human beings only in so far as they are associated with Him. And while the idea of ceremonial holiness runs through the Old Testament, the ethical significance which Christianity attributes to the term is never wholly absent, and gradually rises in the course of the revelation into more emphatic prominence.

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Author: International Std. Bible Encyclopedia

Keywords: Holiness

Source: James Orr (editor), The International Standard Bible Encyclopedia, 5 volume set.

Page indexed by: inWORD Bible Software.