H4878 H4878
Apostasy, backsliding, turning away from God; also used as a quasi-adjective: apostate, faithless (of persons).
Meshuvah comes from the root shuv ('to turn, return'), but with the prefix mem it names the wrong kind of turning — turning back from God rather than toward him. Jeremiah dominates its usage, wielding it like a diagnosis of Judah's spiritual sickness. The prophet speaks of meshuvah nitsachat, 'perpetual apostasy' (Jer 8:5), and pleads with the people to return so God can heal their 'backslidings' (Jer 3:22). Hosea promises that God will heal their meshuvah freely (Hos 14:5). What makes this word especially interesting is its double life: in four occurrences Jeremiah uses it as a virtual adjective — meshuvah Yisrael, 'apostate Israel' (Jer 3:6, 8, 11, 12) — personifying the nation's unfaithfulness as a defining characteristic. Spanish apostasia and German Abkehr both capture the abstract noun, but the adjectival epithet 'faithless one' requires different vocabulary in every target language.
Senses
1. apostasy, backsliding — Apostasy, backsliding, waywardness — the abstract noun denoting the act or condition of turning away from God, used of Israel's and Judah's persistent unfaithfulness. Jeremiah stacks the plural meshuvoteikhem ('your backslidings,' Jer 2:19; 3:22; 5:6) to emphasize the repeated and cumulative nature of the nation's defection. Hosea 14:5 promises God will 'heal their apostasy' and love them freely. Proverbs 1:32 warns that the meshuvat petayim — 'the backsliding of the simple' — will destroy them. Spanish apostasia, French apostasie, and German Abkehr all converge on vocabulary of defection and abandonment of faith, confirming the stable theological sense across traditions. 9×
AR["[ارْتِدَادَاتُهُمْ]", "ارتِدادَهُم", "ارْتِدَادَ", "ارْتِدَادَاتُهُمْ", "اِرْتِدَادًا", "اِرْتِدَادَاتِكُمْ", "بِارتِدادي", "رِدَّاتُنَا", "وَ-اِرْتِدَادَاتُكِ"]·ben["-এর-বিপথগামিতা", "আমার-বিমুখতার-জন্য", "এবং-তোমার-ফিরে-যাওয়া", "তাদের-বিপথগামিতা", "তাদের-বিশ্বাসত্যাগ", "তোমাদের-বিপথগামিতা", "বিপথগামিতা", "বিমুখতা-আমাদের"]·DE["Abkehr", "[למשובתי]", "[משובת]", "[משובתם]", "und-deine-Abkehr"]·EN["[ketiv]", "a-perpetual", "and-your-apostasies", "on-my-turning-away", "our-backslidings", "the-waywardness-of", "their-apostasy", "their-backslidings", "your-apostasies"]·FR["apostasie", "et-apostasie", "משובת"]·heb["[משובותיהם]", "ו-משובותיך", "ל-משובתי", "משובה", "משובותיהם", "משובותיכם", "משובותינו", "משובת", "משובתם"]·HI["उनके-फिरने-को", "और-धर्मत्याग-तेरी", "धर्मत्याग-तुम्हारे-को", "फिर-जाना", "फिर-जाना-उनका", "मुझ-से-फिरने-की-ओर", "विद्रोह", "हमारे-पलटने"]·ID["[kemurtadan-kemurtadan-mereka]", "dan-kemurtadanmu", "kemurtadan", "kemurtadan-kemurtadan-kami", "kemurtadan-kemurtadan-mereka", "kemurtadan-kemurtadanmu"]·IT["[למשובתי]", "[משובתם]", "apostasia", "e-apostasia", "il-waywardness-di"]·jav["kangge-murtad", "kemurtadan", "lan-murtad-panjenengan", "murtad-kawula", "murtad-panjenengan", "murtad-saking", "murtadipun", "wangsulipun-piyambakipun"]·KO["그들의-돌이킴을", "그들의-배도함이", "그리고-네-배신들-이", "나의-돌아서려-함에", "너희의-배도함을", "돌이킴-이", "배반", "우리의-배반들이"]·PT["[Q]", "apostasia", "apostasia-de", "apostasia-deles", "e-tuas-apostasias", "nossas-apostasias,", "para-apostasia-minha", "suas-apostasias", "vossas-apostasias"]·RU["(отступничества-их)", "[отступничества-их]", "и-отступничества-твои", "к-отступничеству-от-Меня", "отступления-наши", "отступничества-ваши", "отступничество", "отступничество-их", "отступничеством"]·ES["[sus-apostasías]", "apostasía", "apostasía-de", "de-mi-apostasía", "rebeldías-nuestras", "su-apostasía", "sus-apostasías", "vuestras-apostasías", "y-tus-apostasías"]·SW["kugeuka-kwa", "kurudi-nyuma-kwao", "kwa-kurudi-nyuma-kwangu", "na-uasi-wako", "uasi", "uasi-wao", "uasi-wenu", "uasi-wetu"]·TR["[ketiv]", "döneklikleri-onların", "dönekliklerimiz", "dönekliklerini", "dönekliklerinizi-sizin", "dönekliğime", "dönüş", "sapması", "ve-döneklikleerin-senin"]·urd["(برگشتگیاں-اُن-کی)", "[برگشتگیاں-اُن-کی]", "اور-برگشتگی-تیری", "اُن-کی-برگشتگی-کی", "برگشتگی", "برگشتگیوں-تمہاری", "میری-برگشتگی-پر", "ہمارے-برگشتگیاں"]
2. apostate (epithet for person) — Used as a quasi-adjectival epithet characterizing a person or community as 'apostate, faithless, backsliding,' functioning in apposition to a proper name. Concentrated in Jeremiah 3:6-12, where the prophet contrasts meshuvah Yisrael ('apostate Israel,' the Northern Kingdom) with bogedah Yehudah ('treacherous Judah'). The rhetorical force depends on the word being heard as a name-like characterization: 'Have you seen what apostate-Israel did?' (Jer 3:6). Spanish la apostata, French the noun apostasie used appositionally, and German Abkehr all struggle to replicate the Hebrew's seamless noun-to-epithet shift, often requiring periphrasis like 'faithless one' or 'the backslider.' 4×
AR["أَيَّتُهَا-الـ-مُرْتَدَّةُ", "الـ-مُرْتَدَّةُ"]·ben["বিশ্বাসঘাতিনী"]·DE["Abkehr"]·EN["O-apostate", "apostate"]·FR["apostasie"]·heb["משובה"]·HI["धर्मत्यागी"]·ID["hai-yang-murtad", "yang-murtad"]·IT["apostasia"]·jav["murtad"]·KO["배도한"]·PT["apóstata"]·RU["отступница"]·ES["apóstata", "la-apóstata"]·SW["mwenye-kuasi"]·TR["dönek"]·urd["برگشتہ"]
Related Senses
G4102 1. faith, trust, belief (239×)G4100 1. believe / have faith in (233×)H0982 1. trust in, rely on (105×)H3988a 1. reject, refuse (56×)G4103 1. faithful, trustworthy, reliable (54×)H0530 1. faithfulness, fidelity, reliability (47×)H0539 1. believe, accept as true (42×)H3985 1. refuse, be unwilling (41×)H0539 2. faithful, trustworthy, sure (39×)H8582 1. lead astray, cause to err (22×)H2623 1. faithful ones / saints (community) (21×)G0571 1. unbelieving, unbeliever (20×)G3982 1. be persuaded or convinced (19×)H8582 2. go astray, err morally (19×)G4105 1. to deceive, lead astray (18×)G3982 2. trust or have confidence in (17×)H2186a 1. reject, spurn (Qal) (16×)H3988a 2. despise, scorn (14×)G3982 3. persuade or convince someone (13×)G4103 2. believing, a believer (13×)
BDB / Lexicon Reference
† [מְשׁוּבָה], מְשֻׁבָה n.f. turning back, apostasy;—abs. מְשֻׁבָה Je 3:6 +; cstr. מְשׁוּבַת Pr 1:32; sf. מְשׁוּבָתָם Ho 14:5; pl. sf. מְשׁוּבֹתֵיכֶם Je 3:22, etc.;—backturning, apostasy, of Isr., Ho 14:5, מְשׁוּבָתִי 11:7 apostasy from me (si vera l.); of Judah Je 2:19; 3:22; 5:6; 8:5; 14:7 (all pl.) + Ez 37:23 (read מְשׁוּבֹתֵיהֶם for מוֹשְׁ׳, 𝔊 Comm.); מ׳ נִצַּחַת Je 8:5 enduring, perpetual…