In Scripture, the word hope has a variety of meanings. One meaning for hope is confident expectation. But it can also mean to trust, to wish for or desire something or to wait. One key feature of hope is that it is directed towards the future.
In this post we will take a more detailed look at the spiritual definition of hope as it is used in both the Old and New Testament.
What is the biblical definition of hope?
When we talk about hope in the Bible, we are almost always referring to having a confident expectation that what God has promised will come to pass.
We also think about God being our option to be saved from our sin. He is literally our hope.
But as I said before, hope can be used in a variety of ways.
Hope in Hebrew
There are about four Hebrew words that are used for the English word hope.
Let’s take a look.
Hebrew word for hope – yachal
There are multiple Hebrew words in the Old Testament that have been translated into the English word hope. I will only look at three of them.
The first Hebrew word for hope is yachal. It means to wait or to tarry. It carries the idea of confident expectation.
The picture of yachal is of someone staying in one spot and waiting for the arrival of someone who said they would be there.
This is the word that is used to describe Noah’s actions as tried to decide when it was safe to leave the ark:
Then he waited [yachal] another seven days and sent forth the dove, and she did not return to him anymore. (Genesis 18:12 ESV)
When Job was having his life turned upside down, he remained resolute in his faith.
Why? Because he had hope. Job said:
Though he slay me, I will hope [yachal] in him… (Job 13:15 ESV)
If a man dies, shall he live again? All the days of my service I would wait [yachal], till my renewal should come. (Job 14:14 ESV)
Both Noah and Job decided to stay where they were until God provided the opportunity for change.
They were both confident that the change they were looking for would absolutely come.
This is what hope looks like.
Hebrew word for hope – tikvah
Another Hebrew word that means hope is tikvah. It means to trust or to wait expectantly.
This word can be used in many different ways to capture a variety of situations.
It can describe that feeling of expectation and anticipation that something will happen.
For example, after Naomi lost both her sons, she says to Ruth and Orpah:
Turn back, my daughters; go your way, for I am too old to have a husband. If I should say I have hope [tikvah], even if I should have a husband this night and should bear sons… (Ruth 1:12 ESV)
The word tikvah can also be used to refer to the object of our trust and expectation, who for us Christians is God all the way.
For you, O Lord, are my hope [tikvah], my trust, O Lord, from my youth. (Psalm 71:5 ESV)
It can refer to a desire or a future plan:
For I know the plans I have for you, declares the Lord, plans for welfare and not for evil, to give you a future and a hope [tikvah]. (Jeremiah 29:11 ESV)
Tikvah can also describe that deep rooted assurance that we receive from another to keep us trusting, waiting, and expecting:
For God alone, O my soul, wait in silence, for my hope [tikvah] is from him. Psalm 62:5 ESV
Hebrew word for hope – quavah
The final Hebrew word that means hope is qavah. Like the other Hebrew words, qavah means to wait to expect, to look forward to something with eagerness.
However, qavah carries the element of trust more heavily than the other words. So, while waiting, you do not get frustrated and run out of patience.
Instead, your trust allows you to wait and hope patiently and confidently and at rest.
This was the case with Jeremiah when there appeared to be a drought:
Are there any among at the false gods of the nations that can bring rain? Or can the heavens give showers? Are you not he, O Lord our God? We set our hope [qavah] on you, for you do all these things. Jeremiah 14:22 ESV
Jeremiah was confident that only the God of heaven could solve this problem. Not pagan gods.
This kind of hope comes with some powerful promises:
“…Then you will know that I am the Lord; those who wait [qavah] for me shall not be put to shame.” Isaiah 49:22
Hope in Greek
In the New Testament, the greek word for hope is elpizo. There are few ideas that this word is used to convey.
Elpizo can refer to a desire or wish. It is used to express an everyday desire like “I hope I can find what I need for my vegan recipe.
Here’s an example from Scripture.
When neither sun nor stars appeared for many days, and no small tempest lay on us, all hope [elpis] of our being saved was at last abandoned. (Acts 27:20 ESV)
But as it relates to matters of our relationship with God, elpizo carries the idea of trusting God similar to the Old Testament meaning:
May the God of hope [elpis] fill you with all joy and peace in believing, so that by the power of the Holy Spirit you may abound in hope [elpis]. Romans 15:13 ESV
Elpizo also means to look to the future with confident assurance and complete expectation that the good which lies ahead will become reality.
It paints the picture of desiring something good and fully expecting that you will receive it.
Now faith is the assurance of things hoped [elpizo] for, the conviction of things not seen. Hebrews 11:1 ESV
Elpizo is constantly used in the New Testament to talk about looking towards the future with complete confidence:
For in this hope we were saved. Now hope [elpizo] that is seen is not hope [elpizo]. For who hopes [elpizo] for what he sees? But if we hope [elpizo] for what we do not see, we wait for it with patience. Romans 8:24-25 ESV
So once we have received whatever we were hoping for, we no longer need to wait, hope, or be patient.
When we talk about the blessed hope, it is elpizo that is used to describe it
…waiting for our blessed hope [elpizo], the appearing of the glory of our great aeGod and Savior Jesus Christ… (Titus 2:13 ESV)
What is hope in Christ?
Hope in Christ is the confident expectation that for those who accept Christ as their Savior, God’s promise of complete redemption from sin will be fulfilled in the future when Christ returns.
The Christian faith is built on hope in Christ.
How does Jesus give us hope?
Because of sin, we were hopeless. I mean we did not have a positive future to look forward to.
Really, what we could anticipate for our future was sadness and eventual eternal death.
But, hope says something good is coming. That “something good” is possible only because of Jesus.
When Jesus gave himself up to be sacrificed in our place, he gave our existence brand new possibilities.
Blessed be the God and Father of our Lord Jesus Christ! According to his great mercy, he has caused us to be born again to a living hope through the resurrection of Jesus Christ from the dead, (1 Peter 1:3 ESV)
When Jesus did this for us, we also had for purpose. We now had the option of living an abundant, purpose-filled life based on what God has prepared for us
For by grace you have been saved through faith. And this is not your own doing; wit is the gift of God, not a result of works, so that no one may boast. For we are his workmanship, created in Christ Jesus for good works, which God prepared beforehand, that we should walk in them. Ephesian 2:8-10 ESV
And as we live this life, we know there is even more to look forward to because of Jesus: the blessed hope.
…in the hope of eternal life, which God, who does not lie, promised before the beginning of time, (Titus 1:2 ESV)
…while we wait for the blessed hope—the appearing of the glory of our great God and Savior, Jesus Christ… (Titus 2:14 ESV)
Importance of hope in the Bible
When people take their own lives, it is often because they cannot see anything good about the future.
In the Bible there is one constant: look towards the future. This theme is stands out in the Bible because the writers were either having times of trouble themselves or were writing to people who were experiencing hard times.
You need hope to give you a reason to keep going in such times. Here are some Bible verses about how useful hope is in our walk with Christ.
Benefits of hope in God
Hope protects you from disappointment.
and hope does not put us to shame, because God’s love has been poured into our hearts through the Holy Spirit who has been given to us. (Romans 5:5 ESV)
Hope helps us to live quality lives of godliness because we know we have a heaven to gain.
For the grace of God has appeared, bringing salvation for all people, training us to renounce ungodliness and worldly passions, and to live self-controlled, upright, and godly lives in the present age, waiting for our blessed hope, the appearing of the glory of our great God and Savior Jesus Christ, (Titus 2:11-13 ESV)
There is so much stress that we avoid when we know that we will have to give an account for the lives we live here.
And that is actually a good thing because it helps us be laser focused on the purpose for our lives.
Hope gives joy and peace
May the God of hope fill you with all joy and peace in believing, so that by the power of the Holy Spirit you may abound in hope. (Romans 15:13 ESV)
God is the author of hope. When he gives us the purpose for our existence and when he assures us of our secure salvation in him, we cannot but have joy and peace.
Final words on what is hope in the Bible
Hope makes us to look to the future when the present is far from pleasant. As the years pass, boy do we need more hope than ever!
Hope is currency invested in time that is yet to be spent. What does hope mean to you?
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