Etymology of bible words jew, jewish, gentile, judaism

I asked chat GPT to give the etymology of these words only from the bible, and only before 70 AD.

Here is the etymology of “Jew,” “Jewish,” “Judaism,” and “Gentile” using ONLY evidence from the Bible written before 70 AD:

✔ Hebrew Bible (Tanakh / LXX)
✔ Septuagint Greek (before 70 AD)
✔ New Testament books written before 70 AD (Paul, Mark, early Matthew sections, etc.)

No later sources, no post-70 AD history, no archaeology, no rabbinic texts, nothing after 70 AD.

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⭐ 1. JEW​

Hebrew Bible evidence (before 70 AD)​

(A) Hebrew word: יְהוּדִי (Yehudi)​

Meaning: “Judean,” a person of the tribe/territory of Judah.

Earliest appearance:

2 Kings 16:6​

“The Syrians drove the Jews (Yehudim) from Elath.”

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This is the first time in the Bible the word “Jew” appears.

Other uses:

• Jeremiah 34:9 – “a free Jew” (Yehudi)
• Esther 2:5 – “a certain Jew named Mordecai”

In the Hebrew Bible, Yehudi always means:

• a person from Judah,
• or by extension, someone belonging to the southern kingdom (Judah).

(B) Greek Septuagint (before 70 AD)​

Hebrew Yehudi is translated as:

Ἰουδαῖος (Ioudaios)​

Meaning: “Judean”.

Examples:

• Esther 2:5 LXX — And there was a man, a Judean (Ioudaios)…
• 2 Kings 16:6 LXX — Ioudaioi (“Judeans”)

⭐ What “Jew” meant before 70 AD (biblically):​

• A person from Judah
• or a southern Israelite (after the split monarchy)
• By NT times it could also mean a follower of the Judean religion

BUT the word always comes from “Judah.”

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⭐ 2. JEWISH​

The Hebrew Bible does not use an adjectival form (like “Jewish”).
Instead:

• “the Judean people,”
• “the people of Judah,”
• “the customs of the Judeans.”

Examples (before 70 AD):​

2 Kings 18:26 (Hebrew)​

“Speak to your servants in Aramaic… do not speak to us in the Jewish language.”

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Here “Jewish language” = Yehudit = “the language of Judah.”

This is the only Hebrew Bible term resembling “Jewish.”

LXX term (before 70 AD)​

Greek uses:

Ἰουδαϊκός (Ioudaikos) – “Judean / pertaining to Judeans”​

Examples:

• 2 Maccabees 2:21 (pre-70 AD text)
  “The battles… for the Jewish (Ioudaikos) customs.”
• Mark 7:3 (NT written before 70 AD)
  “The Jewish (Ioudaioi) traditions.”

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⭐ 3. JUDAISM​

This is actually a biblical word and it appears before 70 AD.

Original biblical term: Ἰουδαϊσμός (Ioudaismos)​

Meaning:

• “The way of the Judeans”
• “The Judean religion / practices”

First appearance: 2 Maccabees 2:21​

“…the struggles on behalf of Judaism (Ioudaismos)…”

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Other appearance: 2 Maccabees 8:1

New Testament (before 70 AD):​

Galatians 1:13–14​

Paul uses the same Greek word:

“I advanced in Judaism (Ioudaismos) beyond many of my own age…”

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⭐ What “Judaism” meant before 70 AD:​

• The religion of the Judeans
• The customs of the post-exilic people of Judah
• Not yet a global or modern system, but the pre-70 AD Judean faith

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⭐ 4. GENTILE​

This word comes from the Bible but through translation, not Hebrew etymology.

Hebrew Bible words (before 70 AD)​

גּוֹי (goy) / גּוֹיִם (goyim)​

Meaning:

• “Nation”
• “Peoples”
• “Ethnic groups other than Israel”

Most famous examples:

• Genesis 12:2 — Israel will be a great nation
• Psalm 2:1 — “Why do the nations (goyim) rage?”

The Hebrew word does NOT mean “non-Jew.”
It simply means “nation.”

Greek Septuagint word (before 70 AD):​

ἔθνη (ethnē)​

Meaning:

• “Nations,” “peoples,”
• in Israel’s context: “the other nations”

NT Example:

• Matthew 28:19 — “Make disciples of all nations (ethnē).”

Where “Gentile” comes from in the Bible:​

When Jerome translated the LXX/NT into Latin (pre-70 AD usage preserved):

Latin Vulgate: gentes = nations​

From this Latin word, English Bibles later used Gentile.

⭐ Meaning before 70 AD:​

• Goyim / ethnē = nations
• Often meaning non-Israelite nations
  But not originally a derogatory term.

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⭐ SUMMARY (Only Using Pre-70 AD Bible Evidence)​

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⭐ If you want, I can also show:​

✔ Every OT verse containing Yehudi, Yehudit, goy, or goyim.
✔ Every LXX verse containing Ioudaios, Ioudaikos, ethnos.
✔ How “Ioudaios” changed meaning between 200 BC and 70 AD.
✔ The difference between Hebrew, Israelite, Judean, and Jew.

Just tell me!
it is amazing. You could then ask it how these words changed meaning after 70 AD. Christians are Judeans (Romans 2 28 29) meaning of the religion of Abraham.

Isaiah 65 starts off saying how God will reveal himself to the Greco Romans first century but also the Israelite remnant as they are no longer his people first century but he promised to save some of them. Well I think it is double meaning maybe it is just Greco Romans
It is written to the southern kingdom of Judah aka Judeans Jews.

then

15 You will leave your name
for my chosen ones to use in their curses;
the Sovereign Lord will put you to death,
but to his servants he will give another name.

Since 70 AD the word Jew means Christ killer, liar, deceiver, charlatan, dishonest, greedy, slimey etc. a curse word. And ofc God killed them all throughout the OT, and then 70 AD. Gods servants Christians have another name Christians. They were first called Christians at Antioch, and don't be ashamed of the name Christian because God has given you that name.
So does Romans 2 28 29 continue on after 70 AD or was it meant just to highlight the difference between the OT definition of Jew, and NT definition in the transition period from the old covenant to the new covenant 30-70 AD?