Rethinking Faith: A Biblical and Linguistic Journey

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In this article, we're rethinking the idea of "faith" as it appears in the Bible especially through the lens of ancient Hebrew thought and the nuances of Greek grammar. The goal is to uncover how modern definitions may fall short of the Bible's own expression of what it means to believe, trust, and have faith.

We'll begin by examining Old Testament concepts and vocabulary for belief and faith. Then we'll explore how those ideas are translated and transformed in the New Testament, especially through key Greek words and grammatical structures. Finally, we'll reflect on how these insights might reshape the way we understand and live out faith today.

1. The Modern Conception of Faith

In contemporary Western culture, the word faith often implies an intellectual leap: believing something is true even when we lack evidence. It becomes a synonym for "hopeful uncertainty"—used in phrases like "articles of faith" to describe beliefs we're encouraged to affirm even when we don't fully understand them.

This modern framing has shaped how many view Christian belief. Faith becomes primarily an intellectual assent to a list of doctrinal propositions. You believe (possess faith that) Jesus rose from the dead. You believe in the Virgin Birth. You affirm the creed and by doing so, you are said to "have faith". But this is far removed from the biblical concept of faith.

Biblically, faith is not primarily an intellectual exercise. It is a movement of the soul—a dynamic response to God's living reality. Understanding comes later. Faith begins with a deep, often unexplainable certainty that draws us toward God and opens us to His presence.

Human institutions, however, can't perceive this inner movement of the soul (1 Samuel 16:7). So, they substitute visible signs—statements of belief, recited creeds, or prayed formulas—to verify that faith is present. This leads to pressure to accept church dogmas without any room for authentic growth and understanding. Dogmatic doctrines become rigid and immovable, whereas faith is a dynamic process of discovery.

Many in the modern West are not, in fact, rejecting God, but rejecting the insistence that one must blindly accept difficult teachings—teachings that often lack consensus even within the Church itself. In this environment, dogmas become authoritative in and of themselves, with no space for questioning, wrestling, or the unfolding of deeper understanding. This stifles the very process by which true, lived faith is formed.

Over time, this has led to the widespread (and unbiblical) view that faith and intellectual understanding are somehow in tension. Many hold the view that to attend church or have faith is to "check your brain at the door"—to relinquish the free expression of thought. In truth, biblical faith is neither blind nor anti-intellectual—it is simply deeper than intellect. It is rooted in relational trust and lived action toward the ultimate living reality of God.

2. Faith in the Old Testament: The Root Aman

The Hebrew root for "faith" is אָמַן (aman), which means to confirm, support, uphold, and be certain. This root gives rise to words like faithfulness, truth, and amen—all of which carry a sense of stability and trustworthiness.

Biblical faith, in the Hebrew sense, is not a vague hope that something might be true. It is certainty expressed in action. To believe God is to trust Him and to obey even if you don't yet understand why. In fact, based on Exodus 24:7, the sages teach that it is through the act of obedience that we gain insight into God's commands. When we practice forgiveness (Matt. 6:14), we recognize the profound impact of this simple but difficult action in bringing about shalom. In this way, faith is not generated by intellectual conviction, but by the soul's response to God's character.

An illustration of the relationship between faith and stability (to be established) is the wordplay employed in Isaiah 7:9, which reads: "If you (plural) are not firm in faith (ta'aminu), You (plural) will not be established (te'amenu)". The point to Ahaz, of course, is that if you do not have "faith," you cannot find "stability".

For the ancient Israelites, the act of faith wasn't about "believing in a god". It was about choosing to trust the God of Israel—the living God who acts in history above all others—and living in accordance with that trust.

3. Faith in the New Testament: πιστεύω (pisteuō)

In the New Testament, the Greek word for faith is pisteuō (verb: to believe or trust) and its noun form pistis (faith, trust, reliability). These words carry forward the Old Testament idea of relational trust and add layers of depth through Greek grammar. To 'believe' in the New Testament sense is not merely to accept doctrines—it is to trust a living reality. Faith in Jesus is not mental agreement with abstract claims; it is a transformational trust that reshapes how we live. Early Christians emphasized this kind of faith as the core of salvation—not because it replaced works, but because it reoriented one's whole being toward God.

4. Two Key Grammatical Insights: Eis and the Genitive

A. The Preposition Eis (εἰς)

A common phrase in the New Testament is to "believe in God" or "believe in Jesus". Here, the Greek preposition Eis (εἰς) is translated as "in". Take John 2:11: "His disciples (plural) believed in Him." The Greek reads episteusan eis auton.

But eis doesn't mean in—it means into or toward. It implies motion and direction. The Greek preposition "εἰς" is primarily used to denote motion or direction toward a place, person, or thing. It often implies movement into a space or a change of condition.

This means the disciples didn't merely form an opinion about Jesus—they moved toward Him in trust as they witnessed the actions that revealed, ever so slightly, his glory. Their faith was dynamic, relational, and responsive. This aligns more closely with the Hebrew idea of turning toward God than with the modern notion of believing that something is true. Faith, then, is not static belief—it is the soul's trajectory toward God.

B. The Genitive Case: "the Faith of God"

Now consider Mark 11:22, often translated: "Have faith in God"—properly "possess faith in God". But in Greek, the construction is echō pistin theou—literally, "have faith of God". The word God is in what is called the genitive case. In Greek, the genitive case indicates possession and is usually translated using the English "of". For instance, the "kingdom (n) of God (n)(genitive)". Whose kingdom? God's kingdom.

Whose faith is it?. In this case, the noun 'faith' is followed by the noun 'God' in the genitive case. This means—if we take the inspiration of the scripture seriously—that the faith spoken of belongs to God. This reframes our role entirely. We are not the origin of faith; rather, faith is something initiated by God and shared with us as we move toward Him, opening our souls to receive. As we move toward God in trust, God supplies us with the very faith needed to walk with Him.

Quoting the Handbook to the Grammar of the Greek New Testament, John Sanford writes, "Thus exete pistin theou (have faith in/toward God) really means, 'have such faith as his character excites'". It reminds us that faith is not a self-generated virtue—it is a shared life between us and God. Sanford again writes, "...faith is a vital living quality, that it has nothing to do with blindly believing in something, but is a quality of the soul that springs from the soul and is nourished in the soul by the object of faith".

Faith in God through Jesus Christ is a saving faith in that Christ is the ideal receptacle in which to place your trust, reciprocating the precise life-giving force to the soul that can come from no other object of worship.

5. Faith as a Living, Soul-Led Journey

All of these points point to a much more dynamic and relational understanding of biblical faith. Faith is not about mastering doctrines or convincing ourselves that improbable things are true. Faith is a soul-led movement toward God. As we take steps toward Him, He reveals more of Himself, and our trust deepens.

This helps explain why the church has often defaulted to creeds and formulas. Human beings can't see the soul's movement, so we need something external to verify belief. But this often leads people to affirm things they don't fully understand just to "belong". Instead of demanding immediate intellectual assent, we should encourage movement toward God, toward Jesus, toward truth. Understanding will come. And God will supply the faith we need as we walk with Him.

Conclusion

Faith, in its biblical sense, is certainty born of relationship—not abstract belief. It is trust that moves us, action that reveals our soul's direction, and a shared experience of God's life moving in us. It's time we rethink faith—not as something we possess or perform, but as a soul-deep journey toward the living God who meets us along the way.