Jesus is the Healer

[WhiteWings]

What is the most important thing in the Scriptures for the sinner? Many will answer, Salvation. Yet this important term only came into use in the English language about the twelfth century, say eight hundred years ago. It is a purely Latin word. At that time it bore the meanings both of safety or salvation, and of health. The believer's salvation was his "health." Salvation occurs not once in the Anglo-Saxon Scriptures (680-900 A.D.), or in Wiclif's version (1380 A.D.). Wiclif always uses the word "health," although he uses the terms "make safe" and "safe." The old word used for the Saviour was Haelend, or "Healer." Not only does He make one safe, but He heals. Tyndale, in the year 1526 A.D., was the first one to use the word salvation in the Scriptures, and he used it once only, in John 4:22 ("for salvation commeth of the Jewes." Wiclif had, "for heelthe is of Jewis"). Thereafter the fine old English word "health" dropped out, and was completely displaced by the imported but now most important Latin word "salvation."

Is Healer a stronger or weaker term than Saviour?
I think Healer is because it removes the reason why saved. That is if you look at sin as an illness.
If we a cured there is nothing to be saved from anymore. It also sorta fits in with refining and purification
Plus many of His miracles where healings.


The bulk of the article is about age/eternal. Good stuff IMO.

Eternal is one of the many hundreds of words which gained entrance into English during the Renaissance. Previous to that time, it was completely unknown. No such word appears in any old English scriptures. Instead of it, there is found a simple little word with the meaning of eonian, or something like that, spelt ece, of which more will be said later. In fact, it may be laid down as a rule that no language had, for some time after the first century A.D., any term to denote eternity.

http://thetencommandmentsministry.us/ministry/free_bible/whence_eternity.html

[sven]

older German bibles have "Heiland", maybe you're familiar with this term, but this word got a strong a theological sense which is stronger then the common German word for savior in my opinion, but it might have meant something like healer.

[WhiteWings]

Sven, surely I know the word heiland. But I have to admit I have to guess the meaning of the word.
Never really thought about it. Always thought is was God. I know no other use than religious use of the word.
In the modern Dutch dictionary: Heiland=the Christ of God.

However knowing a little about the Dutch language I can recontruct the meaning.
"Heil" = (mental) wellbeing, properity.
Heiland probably means: Someone bringing (mental) wellbeing.

Edges toward healer I would say.
Gonna try to find a full Dutch dictionary. The one I'm using now is the size of a Bible. The full version are three such books. I reply again if I found something.

[WhiteWings]

From Merriam-webster Unabridged

Main Entry:heal.er
Pronunciation:*h*l*(r)
Function:noun
Inflected Form:-s
Etymology:Middle English helere, from helen to heal + -ere -er * more at HEAL

1 : one that heals *time is a great healer*;  specifically   : a person who engages in healing through means not requiring medical training or licensing
2 : a Christian Science practitioner

[WhiteWings]

Complete modern dictionary.
1] Saviour
2] Miracle worker -> sarcastic expression/meaning

1864 version.
Meanings I'm unable to translate.
Perhaps blessed is one of the translations. (but likely to bad to be of use in this case)
One Sven will understand: Eeuwig

Attempt of explaining eeuwig.
Eeuw = century.
Eeuwig strickly speaking would be like eonian.
But both seclur an religious use the meaning is eternal.
Only on old(er) Dutch it also had a meaning of eonian.

But this leads us far from "Healer"
Even 100 translations agreeing doesn't mean a thing if they where for example all controlled by the Vatican...