Ἰσραήλ G2474
Israel -- the covenant people, nation, and land; also the patriarch Jacob renamed by God
The indeclinable proper noun Israel (from Hebrew Yisra'el) appears 68 times in the New Testament, functioning at several referential levels: the patriarch Jacob (rare in NT), the covenant people ('the children of Israel,' Acts 5:21), the national entity ('the house of Israel,' Acts 7:42), and the land ('the land of Israel,' Matt 2:20-21). Paul exploits the term's layered significance, distinguishing 'Israel according to the flesh' (1 Cor 10:18) from 'the Israel of God' (Gal 6:16). Spanish, French, German, and English all retain the name in virtually identical form, a cross-lingual constancy that mirrors the theological continuity between Old and New Testaments.
Senses
1. Israel (nation/people/patriarch) — The Semitic proper noun designating the covenant people of God in the New Testament, encompassing the nation (Matt 2:6; Luke 1:54), the land (Matt 2:20-21), the twelve tribes (Matt 19:28), and by theological extension the eschatological community ('the Israel of God,' Gal 6:16). Paul's distinction between Israel 'according to the flesh' (1 Cor 10:18) and spiritual Israel does not create a separate lexical sense but reflects theological argumentation. Every target language preserves the name unchanged -- Israel in Spanish, French, and German -- confirming a single proper-noun identity across all 68 occurrences. 68×
AR["إسرائيلَ", "إِسرائيلَ", "إِسْرَائِيلَ", "يا-إِسرائيلُ"]·ben["ইস্রায়েল", "ইস্রায়েল।", "ইস্রায়েলকে", "ইস্রায়েলে", "ইস্রায়েলের", "ইস্রায়েলের;", "ইস্রায়েলের।"]·DE["Israel"]·EN["Israel", "Israēl", "of-Israel", "of-Israēl"]·FR["Israël"]·heb["יִשְׂרָאֵל"]·HI["इस्रēल", "इस्रēल-के", "इस्राएल", "इस्राएल-का", "इस्राएल-की", "इस्राएल-के"]·ID["Israel", "Israel.", "Israel;", "itu"]·IT["Israele"]·jav["Israil", "Israèl", "Israèl,", "Israèl.", "Israèl;"]·KO["이스라엘", "이스라엘-에", "이스라엘-을", "이스라엘-의", "이스라엘아", "이스라엘의"]·PT["Israel", "Israel.", "de-Israel"]·RU["Израиле", "Израиле,", "Израилева", "Израиль", "Израилю", "Израиля", "Израиля."]·ES["Israel", "Israēl", "Israḗl", "a-Israēl", "de-Israēl", "de-Israḗl"]·SW["-wa-Israḗl", "-ya-Israḗl", "Israēl", "Israēl,", "na", "wa-Israēl", "ya-Israēl", "ya-Israēl."]·TR["İsrail", "İsrail'i", "İsrail'in", "İsrail’in"]·urd["اسرائیل", "اسرائیل-", "اسرائیل-میں", "اسرائیل-کا", "اسرائیل-کو", "اسرائیل-کی", "اسرائیل-کے"]
Matt 2:6, Matt 2:20, Matt 2:21, Matt 10:6, Matt 10:23, Matt 15:24, Matt 15:31, Matt 19:28, Matt 27:9, Matt 27:42, Mark 12:29, Mark 15:32 (+38 more)
Related Senses
G3588 1. definite article (18298×)H0853 1. definite direct object marker (10915×)G2532 1. (8312×)H3068 1. YHWH (the divine name) (6522×)H0834a 1. relative pronoun (who/which/that) (4839×)H3588a 1. causal: because, for (3498×)G1161 1. and (2806×)H3478 1. Israel (proper name and nation) (2507×)G4771 1. you (plural address) (1853×)H1931 1. personal pronoun he/she/it (1431×)G3739 1. relative pronoun who/which/that (1149×)H1732 1. David (proper name) (1075×)H2088 1. this, this one (demonstrative) (1059×)G1063 1. (1047×)G3778 1. this thing, these things (1003×)H???? 2. (1002×)G2424 1. (924×)G3754 1. that (content clause) (881×)H2009 1. presentative particle: behold, look (881×)H0589 1. I (first person singular pronoun) (874×)
BDB / Lexicon Reference
Ἰσραήλ (FlJ, Ἰσράηλος, -ου), ὁ indecl. (Heb. יִשְׂרָאֵל, Gen.32:28), Israel: ὁ οἶκος Ἰ., Act.7:42 (LXX), al.; λαός, Act.4:10; υὁοί, Act.5:21, al.; αἱ φυλαὶ τοῦ Ἰ., Mat.19:28, al. By meton., for the Israelites, Mat.2:6, Luk.1:54, Rom.11:2, al.; ὁ λαὸς Ἰ., Act.4:10; γῆ Ἰ., Mat.2:20-21; βασιλεὺς Ἰ., Mat.27:42, Jhn.1:50; ἡ ἐλπὶς τοῦ Ἰ., Act.28:20; ὁ Ἰ. τοῦ θεοῦ (of Christians), Gal.6:16; ὁ Ἰ. κατὰ σάρκα, 1Co.10:18 (From Abbott-Smith. LSJ has no entry)