Word study
Justice
6 Hebrew and 4 Greek words behind this English word
The original-language words that the Berean Standard Bible translates with “justice”. English often uses one word where Hebrew or Greek has several, each with its own shade of meaning. Under each word are verses where it is translated this way; choose the word itself for its full study: every verse, how else it is translated, the forms it takes and what the dictionaries say.
At a glance
How often each original word is translated “justice” or one of its forms.
Compare the Hebrew words side by side Compare the Greek words side by side
Hebrew and Aramaic words (Old Testament)
- מִשְׁפָּט mishpâṭjudgmenttranslated this way 116 times of its 406 uses · Strong’s H4941Noun · Translated: justice 111, ordinances 73, judgments 40, judgment 40Full study and all 394 verses →
Exodus 23:6 You shall not deny justice to the poor in their lawsuits.
Leviticus 19:15 You must not pervert justice; you must not show partiality to the poor or favoritism to the rich; you are to judge your neighbor fairly.
- צֶדֶק tsedeqrightness, righteousnesstranslated this way 6 times of its 116 uses · Strong’s H6664Noun · Translated: righteousness 57, righteous 19, honest 6, justice 5Full study and all 111 verses →
Deuteronomy 16:20 Pursue justice, and justice alone, so that you may live, and you may possess the land that the LORD your God is giving you.
Job 36:3 I get my knowledge from afar, and I will ascribe justice to my Maker.
- נָטָה nâṭâhstretch out, spread out, extend, incline, bendtranslated this way 4 times of its 215 uses · Strong’s H5186Verb · Translated: incline 24, stretch 23, stretched 21, outstretched 19Full study and all 207 verses →
Exodus 23:2 You shall not follow the crowd in wrongdoing. When you testify in a lawsuit, do not pervert justice by siding with the crowd.
Isaiah 29:21 those who indict a man with a word, who ensnare the mediator at the gate, and who with false charges deprive the innocent of justice.
- צְדָקָה tsedâqâhrighteousnesstranslated this way 4 times of its 158 uses · Strong’s H6666Noun · Translated: righteousness 114, right 13, righteous acts 7, vindication 5Full study and all 150 verses →
Deuteronomy 33:21 He chose the best land for himself, because a ruler’s portion was reserved for him there. He came with the leaders of the people; he administered the LORD’s justice and His ordinances for Israel.”
Psalm 11:7 For the LORD is righteous; He loves justice. The upright will see His face.
- דִּין dînjudgmenttranslated this way 3 times of its 18 uses · Strong’s H1779Noun · Translated: judgment 4, cause 4, justice 3Full study and all 17 verses →
Esther 1:13 Then the king consulted the wise men who knew the times, for it was customary for him to confer with the experts in law and justice.
Psalm 140:12 I know that the LORD upholds justice for the poor and defends the cause of the needy.
- מַעֲשֶׂה maăsehdeed, worktranslated this way 3 times of its 223 uses · Strong’s H4639Noun · Translated: work 71, works 38, deeds 8, made 7Full study and all 211 verses →
Job 40:8 Would you really annul My justice? Would you condemn Me to justify yourself?
Proverbs 13:23 Abundant food is in the fallow ground of the poor, but without justice it is swept away.
Greek words (New Testament)
- κρίσις krísisjudging, divine judgmenttranslated this way 5 times of its 46 uses · Strong’s G2920Noun · Translated: judgment 35, justice 5, judgments 2Full study and all 45 verses →
Matthew 12:18 “Here is My Servant, whom I have chosen, My beloved, in whom My soul delights. I will put My Spirit on Him, and He will proclaim justice to the nations.
Luke 11:42 Woe to you Pharisees! For you pay tithes of mint, rue, and every herb, but you disregard justice and the love of God. You should have practiced the latter without neglecting the former.
- ἐκδικέω ekdikéōI give justice over, defend, avenge, vindicatetranslated this way 2 times of its 6 uses · Strong’s G1556Verb · Translated: avenge 2, Give me justice 1, give her justice 1, punish 1Full study and all 6 verses →
Luke 18:3 And there was a widow in that town who kept appealing to him, ‘Give me justice against my adversary.’
Luke 18:5 yet because this widow keeps pestering me, I will give her justice. Otherwise, she will wear me out with her perpetual requests.’”
- ἐκδίκησις ekdíkēsisa defense, vengeance, full punishmenttranslated this way 2 times of its 9 uses · Strong’s G1557Noun · Translated: vengeance 4, justice 2, avenged 1, vindication 1Full study and all 9 verses →
Luke 18:7 Will not God bring about justice for His elect who cry out to Him day and night? Will He delay in helping them?
Luke 18:8 I tell you, He will promptly carry out justice on their behalf. Nevertheless, when the Son of Man comes, will He find faith on earth?”
- δικαιοσύνη dikaiosýnējustice, justness, righteousnesstranslated this way 2 times of its 90 uses · Strong’s G1343Noun · Translated: righteousness 83, right 2, justice 2, righteous acts 1Full study and all 86 verses →
Acts 17:31 For He has set a day when He will judge the world with justice by the Man He has appointed. He has given proof of this to everyone by raising Him from the dead.”
Hebrews 11:33 who through faith conquered kingdoms, administered justice, and gained what was promised; who shut the mouths of lions,
How to study a word well
- Start from the verse, not the dictionary. Find which Hebrew or Greek word stands in the verse you are studying. One English word often translates several different original words.
- Read every place the word is used. A word means what its writers used it to mean. The list of verses and the count by book show its range, and who uses it most.
- Look at how it is translated. A word rendered five different ways has a wider meaning than any one English word can carry.
- Notice the form. A command is not a statement, and a passive verb is something done to the subject. The form in your verse is part of the meaning.
- See what it keeps company with. The words that appear beside it again and again show how the Bible itself connects ideas.
- Then read the dictionaries. They give the considered view of scholars, with their evidence.
- Come back to the verse. Context decides. A word does not carry every one of its meanings into every verse, and where a word came from does not settle what it means in a sentence written centuries later.
What the Bible says about justice: passages by topic →
Scripture text and translation counts: Berean Standard Bible. Full entry: Brown, Driver and Briggs, A Hebrew and English Lexicon of the Old Testament (1906, public domain), in the digital edition Brown-Driver-Briggs Enhanced by unfoldingWord (Joel Ruark, J. de Joode), based on data by Eliran Wong and Stephen Ku; its additions are used under CC BY 4.0. Strong’s Hebrew Dictionary: Open Scriptures Hebrew Bible Project, CC BY 4.0. Hebrew-to-English verse numbering: original work of the Open Scriptures Hebrew Bible available at https://github.com/openscriptures/morphhb, CC BY 4.0. We reformatted the data, linked the references to this site’s Bible text and left out words in other scripts that the source holds only as images. These are historical reference works; an entry gives its authors’ view, and a word’s meaning in any verse depends on how it is used there.