Word study
Majesty
5 Hebrew and 2 Greek words behind this English word
The original-language words that the Berean Standard Bible translates with “majesty”. 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 “majesty” 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)
- גָּאוֹן gâônexaltationtranslated this way 6 times of its 49 uses · Strong’s H1347Noun · Translated: pride 21, majesty 6, proud 4, thickets 4Full study and all 45 verses →
Exodus 15:7 You overthrew Your adversaries by Your great majesty. You unleashed Your burning wrath; it consumed them like stubble.
Job 40:10 Then adorn yourself with majesty and splendor, and clothe yourself with honor and glory.
- הָדָר hâdârornament, splendour, honourtranslated this way 6 times of its 30 uses · Strong’s H1926Noun · Translated: splendor 15, majesty 6, majestic 3, honor 3Full study and all 29 verses →
Deuteronomy 33:17 His majesty is like a firstborn bull, and his horns are like those of a wild ox. With them he will gore the nations, even to the ends of the earth. Such are the myriads of Ephraim, and such are the thousands of Manasseh.”
1 Chronicles 16:27 Splendor and majesty are before Him; strength and joy fill His dwelling.
- הוֹד hôdsplendour, majesty, vigourtranslated this way 4 times of its 24 uses · Strong’s H1935Noun · Translated: splendor 9, majesty 3, glory 2Full study and all 24 verses →
1 Chronicles 29:25 The LORD highly exalted Solomon in the sight of all Israel and bestowed on him royal majesty such as had not been bestowed on any king in Israel before him.
Job 37:22 Out of the north He comes in golden splendor; awesome majesty surrounds Him.
- גַּאֲוָה gaăvâhmajesty, pridetranslated this way 2 times of its 18 uses · Strong’s H1346Noun · Translated: pride 8, majesty 2, proud 2Full study and all 18 verses →
Deuteronomy 33:26 “There is none like the God of Jeshurun, who rides the heavens to your aid, and the clouds in His majesty.
Psalm 68:34 Ascribe the power to God, whose majesty is over Israel, whose strength is in the skies.
- גֵּאוּת gêûthmajestytranslated this way 2 times of its 8 uses · Strong’s H1348Noun · Translated: majesty 2, majestic 2, arrogance 1, raging 1Full study and all 8 verses →
Psalm 93:1 The LORD reigns! He is robed in majesty; the LORD has clothed and armed Himself with strength. The world indeed is firmly established; it cannot be moved.
Isaiah 26:10 Though grace is shown to the wicked man, he does not learn righteousness. In the land of righteousness he acts unjustly and fails to see the majesty of the LORD.
Greek words (New Testament)
- μεγαλωσύνη megalōsýnēmajestytranslated this way 3 times of its 3 uses · Strong’s G3172Noun · Translated: Majesty 3Full study and all 3 verses →
Hebrews 1:3 The Son is the radiance of God’s glory and the exact representation of His nature, upholding all things by His powerful word. After He had provided purification for sins, He sat down at the right hand of the Majesty on high.
Jude 1:25 to the only God our Savior be glory, majesty, dominion, and authority through Jesus Christ our Lord before all time, and now, and for all eternity. Amen.
- μεγαλειότης megaleiótēsmajestytranslated this way 2 times of its 3 uses · Strong’s G3168Noun · Translated: majesty 2, greatness 1Full study and all 3 verses →
Acts 19:27 There is danger not only that our business will fall into disrepute, but also that the temple of the great goddess Artemis will be discredited and her majesty deposed — she who is worshiped by all the province of Asia and the whole world.”
2 Peter 1:16 For we did not follow cleverly devised fables when we made known to you the power and coming of our Lord Jesus Christ, but we were eyewitnesses of His majesty.
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 majesty: 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.