I’ve been watching The Chosen series, season five. I appreciate how it’s given sight and sound to scripture. And of course, I love how Hebrew words are woven into the dialogue. Let’s take a closer look at one of those words.
Hosanna
The song of Hosanna as Jesus enters Jerusalem keeps ringing through my mind. Hosanna appears in the Greek New Testament in Matthew 21:9 but is derived from a Hebrew word:
הוֹשִׁיעָה
ho – shee – ah
We encounter this word in Hebrew in Psalm 118:25. This verse, along with verse 26, is echoed in Matthew 21:9.
In the context of Psalm 118:25, the biblical Hebrew lexicon gives the meaning of the word הוֹשִׁיעָה as “deliver, save … liberate,” specifically “of God, who saves his people from external evils.”
Hosanna is a cry for deliverance: “Save us, Lord, we pray.” It’s an earnest, seeking cry with a lot of faith woven in. When we cry, “Hosanna,” the word is filled with expectation and hope in Jesus, our deliverer and savior.
This biblical Hebrew word is a hiphil verb, a type of verb that implies strong causation and intense action. When we say, “Hosanna,” we are intensely beseeching God to save and deliver us, and expecting that His power is the only power that can deliver us.
In Psalm 118:25, the Hebrew word נָּה (na) follows, meaning “now”—Lord, we beseech You to save us now.
Learning the meaning of hosanna in the biblical Hebrew helps us understand better the depths of the people’s cries upon Jesus’ entry into Jerusalem.
It also puts into context our continued pursuit of Jesus as our savior, deliverer, and Lord, trusting and seeking Him to liberate us from whatever holds us back from complete surrender to Him.
I would encourage you to look up Matthew 21:9 and Psalm 118:25-26 in your preferred translation. Read them in the context of the surrounding verses and then compare them to each other. This will give you a deeper appreciation for the echoes and connections between the Old and New Testaments.
You might also enjoy looking up the word הוֹשִׁיעָה (ho-shee-ah) in the Hebrew lexicon. A simple way is to do an online search for “Psalm 118:25 Hebrew text analysis.” This search will bring up the page on Bible Hub that shows you the verse in Hebrew. Click on the Strong’s number of that word (you’ll recognize it because the English meaning of “save” will be written next to it), and it’ll take you to an online lexicon.
As you look through the lexicon entry, be sure to find the meaning within the specific context of the Bible verse. Meanings of the same Hebrew word can be different depending on how it’s used in a particular verse. The lexicon will include the Bible verses that correspond to each meaning.
You can also look up the word and meaning for hosanna in biblical Greek, by searching online for “Matthew 21:9 Greek text analysis.”
Lord, thank You for teaching us the biblical Hebrew root for our prayer of “Hosanna.” We are grateful for a deeper understanding of You as our savior, deliverer, and Lord.
Help us to grow in our relationship with You as we look more deeply into scripture. Help us experience what You would teach us as we explore these scriptures, and prompt our response.
Thank You for saving us and for being our Lord. Help us to fully surrender our heart to You. We pray this in Jesus’ name. Amen
Adventures with God 