In the Old Testament the most common Hebrew word used for “word” is DABAR. It means “a word spoken or written.” The first time it is used is in Genesis 15:1: “After these things the WORD of the LORD came to Abram in a vision, saying, Fear not, Abram: I am thy shield, and thy exceeding great reward.” There are a few other Hebrew words used, such as PEH (which literally means “the mouth” and carries with it the thought of “speech, talk”) and IMRAH (which means “commandment, speech, word). We see in these cases that it can be either a word spoken or written, as with the word DABAR.

When we come to the New Testament there are two main words used: LOGOS and RHEMA. Before we define them and give examples from Scripture, there are two other words used. They are as follows:

*APANGELLO: “To announce, declare, report.” It is used first in Matthew 2:8: “And he sent them to Bethelehem, and said, Go and search diligently for the young child; and when ye have found him, bring me WORD again.”

*EPO: “to speak or say (by word or writing).” We see this word used first in Matthew 2:13: “An angel of the Lord appeared to Joseph…saying, ‘Arise, take the young Child…to Egypt…and stay there until I bring you WORD” (NKJV).

The word RHEMA means “a saying, word.” Matthew 4:4: “But He answered and said, It is written, ‘Man shall not live by bread alone, but by every WORD that proceeds from the mouth of God.” This word is synonymous with the Hebrew word DABAR, for it also has the thought of “a word spoken or written.”

Now we come to the word LOGOS. Mr. W.E. Vine, in his Expository Dictionary of New Testament Words, gives this as the primary definition: “the expression of thought, not the mere name of an object.” Strong’s Concordance defines it as: “something said, including the thought.” So, this word differs from all the other words we’ve looked at in that it goes beyond “a word spoken or written” and includes “anything that would express someone’s thoughts.”

Every believer in Jesus Christ knows that one of His “names” or “titles” is “the WORD [LOGOS]”. John 1:1 declares: “In the beginning was the Word, and the Word was with God, and the Word was God.” Why is Jesus, the Son of God, called the Word? Ah, because He alone (among the Trinity) is the One who “revealed God’s Mind and Thoughts to men.” In order to do this He had to become a true Man and walk among men and thus we read in John 1:14, “And the Word became flesh and dwelt among us, and we beheld His glory, the glory as of the only begotten of the Father, full of grace and truth.” As He walked this earth He was constantly “revealing God to men.” Everything He said and everything He did was a manifestation of God and His thoughts to mankind. How sad that the world didn’t get the message! John 1:4-5 tell us: “In Him was life, and the life was the light of men. And the light shines in darkness, and THE DARKNESS DID NOT COMPREHEND IT.” Because man was “spiritually blind,” they could not see Who Jesus really was and thus His revelation of God’s Mind and Thoughts was lost on them. Only the believer could say, “We beheld His glory, the glory as of the only begotten of the Father.” The apostle John loved to think on this blessed truth, that the Lord Jesus, as “the Word,” manifested God and His thoughts in everything He did and said. 1st John 1:1-2: “That which was from the beginning, which we have heard, which we have seen with our eyes, which we have looked upon, and our hands have handled, concerning the WORD of life—the life was manifested, and we have seen, and bear witness, and declare to you that eternal life which was with the Father and was manifested to us.”  (218.9)  (DO)