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…