Q: “SHOULDN’T THE TWO DIFFERENT ENGLISH WORDS
HAVE TWO DIFFERENT GREEK ROOTS?” 

A: NOT NECESSARILY

In the following case, passover and Easter have the same Greek root.

Dear Reader, this question has baffled every Bible scholar … except the 1611 Translators.

King James Bible critics mistakenly believe, that the two words of “passover” and “Easter” should have two different Greek roots.

However, they fail to see that the correct translation lies not only in the surrounding words and context of the passage … and that should be enough (Acts 12:3) … but in this case, whether the Greek word of “pascha” is a noun or a verb … and it can be both.

The explanation lies in the following:

The Greek root word of “pascha” (Strongs Greek 3957) is the equivalent of the Hebrew root word “pecach” (Strongs Hebrew 6453).

“Pecach” is based upon the primary root of “pacach” (Strongs Hebrew 6452) which means to skip over, to hop, to dance, to leap or to pass over … being verbs … action words.

Now the verbs “pecach” and “pascha” can also become nouns representing a specific time.

This action of “skipping over”, “leaping” or “passing over” can then apply to EITHER Israel’s “passover” or to the Roman “Easter” … which was their passing-over from Winter to Spring.  

In a nutshell, the Easter celebration was Rome’s passover time of passing over from one season to another, that is, from their Winter to their Spring.

There were “two passing overs” – Israel’s passover and the Roman passover being Easter.

Which one is correct?

This is determined by the context. The event of Acts 12:4 is set in “the days of unleavened bread” (Acts 12:4), to be followed by Easter, after which Peter would be brought out by Herod.
   

In 28 times out of 29 in the New Testament, the word “pascha” represents Israel’s passover, but in this instance, it has been correctly translated as Easter (Acts 12:4).

This was the time of the upcoming Roman celebrations, and does NOT refer to Israel’s passover that had already come and gone.   

Conclusion:

The two different words can have the same Greek root … Greek translation is not a simple matter of cut and paste.

“Oh! There’s the word “passover” … plain as the nose on your face … Tut! Tut! Tut! … those poor ol’ 1611 translators … missed by a mile!” says one Bible corrector to another.

With the reply being “Well of course they were doing this by candlelight … and they were getting a bit doddery … you know … old age and stuff!”

Harley Hitchcock
February 2025

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