Sin – Hebrew: Chatah

חטאה

Chatah means ‘offence against God or man.’ Sin is found 1445 times in the Bible. Sin is not defined by man, but by the Word of God.  In Hebrew thought, sin is falling short of God’s glory which is outlined in Torah; it is a failure to reach the goal, missing the mark, and ‘crouches like a beast’ waiting to attack.

“If you are doing what is good, shouldn’t you hold your head high? And if you don’t do what is good, sin is crouching at the door — it wants you, but you can rule over it” (Genesis 4:7).

“When I acknowledged my sin to you, when I stopped concealing my guilt, and said, “I will confess my offenses to Adonai;” then you, you forgave the guilt of my sin. (Selah)” (Psalm 32:5).

“For I know my crimes, my sin confronts me all the time” (Psalm 51:3).

“He who conceals his sins will not succeed; he who confesses and abandons them will gain mercy” (Proverbs 28:13).

Hebrew Word Pictures

ח Chet – A Fence means ‘protect.’

ט Tet – A Snake means ‘twist.’

א Alef – An Ox means ‘first strength.’

ה Hey – A Window means ‘reveal’ or ‘behold.’

The Hebrew Word Picture for chattah: protect the twisting first strength revealed.

The Greek word for ‘sin’ is hamartia and means ‘missing the mark’ resulting in immorality and disobedience to God’s divine law.

In Romans 8, sin is described as the hostility of carnal man to God’s Torah. Because the Torah is spiritual and sinful man has fleshly desires, it is impossible for man to submit to God’s Torah nor does he want to (Romans 7:14). 

“Everyone who keeps sinning is violating Torah, indeed sin is violation of Torah” (1 John 3:4, Complete Jewish Bible).

“Everyone who sins (perverts truth) breaks the law; in fact, sin is lawlessness” (1 John 3:4, New International Version).

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