gospel

Meaning

Noun

1. The first section of the Christian New Testament scripture, comprising the books of Matthew, Mark, Luke and John, concerned with the birth, ministry, passion, and resurrection of Jesus.
2. An account of those aspects of Jesus' life, generally written during the first several centuries of the Common Era.
3. The teaching of Divine grace as distinguished from the Law or Divine commandments.
4. A message expected to have positive reception or effect, one promoted as offering important (or even infallible) guiding principles.
5. That which is absolutely authoritative (definitive).
6. Gospel music.

Verb

To instruct in, declare, or communicate the gospel; to evangelise.

Synonyms

evangel

good news

creed

Gospel

gospel truth

religious doctrine

church doctrine

gospel singing

New Testament

sermon

advice

opinion

preaching

psalm

spiritual

teaching

view

word

religious discourse

news

📰

conviction

counsel

doctrine

evangelic

eye

👁️

gospel music

homily

learning

message

Hyphenated as

gos‧pel

Pronounced as (IPA)

/ˈɡɒspəl/

Etymology

From Middle English gospel, gospell, godspel, godspell, goddspell, from Old English godspell (“gospel”), corresponding to God + spell (“talk, tale, story”), literally “the message of God”, believed to be an alteration of earlier *gōdspell (literally “good news”), used to translate ecclesiastical Latin bona annūntiātiō, itself a translation of Ecclesiastical Latin ēvangelium / Ancient Greek εὐαγγέλιον (euangélion, “evangel”, literally “good news”) (English evangel). Compare Old Saxon gōdspel and godspell (“gospel”), Old High German and Middle High German gotspel (“gospel”), Icelandic guðspjall (“gospel”), and the modern calque Malayalam സുവിശേഷം (suviśēṣaṁ).