Glossary entry (derived from question below)
Greek term or phrase:
cephas (Aramaic word)
English translation:
rock
Added to glossary by
Rowan Morrell
Nov 30, 2003 04:23
20 yrs ago
Greek term
AIM: Accuracy and pure, clear language
Native in: Spanish 
Works in: English to Spanish, Spanish to English
cephas
Greek to English
Art/Literary
Please, give your answer in English and be very precise in the meaning/definition, and explain it, and contrast it with petra, according to their degree in hardness, weight, and size, etc.
I do not provide context because it is not needed, and if I do, the answer could be prejudiced according to the unquestioned traditional concepts.
Proposed translations
(English)
| 3 +7 | Aramaic |
Rowan Morrell
|
| 5 +1 | petra (stone) in Aramaic |
Costas Zannis
|
Proposed translations
+7
45 mins
Rowan Morrell
New Zealand
New Zealand
Native in English
New Zealand
Committed to the Customer
Native in: English (Variant: New Zealand)
Works in: French to English, German to English, Spanish to English
Related KudoZ points
:
12
Selected
Aramaic
From research I have done, it seems that Cephas is actually an Aramaic word rather than Greek, and it corresponds more or less to "petra".
4 KudoZ points awarded for this answer.
Comment: "Graded automatically based on peer agreement."
+1
15 hrs
Costas Zannis
Native in Greek
Advertising copywriter Transcreator*
Native in: Greek 
Works in: English to Greek, French to Greek, Greek to English
Related KudoZ points
:
296
petra (stone) in Aramaic
petros (stone) in aramaic
Tons of ink has been spent on this word during the centuries. The whole structure of the Roman Catholic Church is based on this word.
Cephas:
(quoted from the RSV) Matt 16:13-18
"Now when Jesus had come into the district of Ceasarea Philippi, he asked his disciples, ‘Who do men say that the Son of Man is?’ And they said, ‘Some say John the Baptist, others say Elijah, and others Jeremiah or one of the prophets.’ He said to them, ‘But who do you say that I am?’ Simon Peter replied, ‘You are the Christ, the Son of the living God.’ And Jesus answered him, ‘Blessed are you, Simon Bar-Jona! For flesh and blood has not revealed this to you, but my Father who is in heaven. And I tell you, you are Peter, and on this rock I will build my church, and the powers of death shall not prevail against it."
The passage: … you are Peter, and on this rock I will build my church in Greek is: “sy Petros kai epi tafti ti petra, oikodomiso tin ekklisia mou” [(I will call) you “Stone” and on this stone I will build my church…].
It’s interesting that the word “cephas” was translated from Aramaic into Greek, as “Petros” [(stone) > “petra”] in the Gospels. While Paul who wrote his letters directly in Greek, leaved “Cefas” untranslatable:
1 Corinthians 1:12
What I mean is that each one of you says, "I belong to Paul," or "I belong to Apol'los," or "I belong to Cephas," or "I belong to Christ."
1 Corinthians 3:22
whether Paul or Apol'los or Cephas or the world or life or death or the present or the future, all are yours;
Another maybe interesting input for you, is that one of the most important (and maybe the most beautiful) monasteries in Mount Athos is named “Simonos Petra” (Simon’s Stone).
Ref: Hundreds under the term "cefas" in the net.
Tons of ink has been spent on this word during the centuries. The whole structure of the Roman Catholic Church is based on this word.
Cephas:
(quoted from the RSV) Matt 16:13-18
"Now when Jesus had come into the district of Ceasarea Philippi, he asked his disciples, ‘Who do men say that the Son of Man is?’ And they said, ‘Some say John the Baptist, others say Elijah, and others Jeremiah or one of the prophets.’ He said to them, ‘But who do you say that I am?’ Simon Peter replied, ‘You are the Christ, the Son of the living God.’ And Jesus answered him, ‘Blessed are you, Simon Bar-Jona! For flesh and blood has not revealed this to you, but my Father who is in heaven. And I tell you, you are Peter, and on this rock I will build my church, and the powers of death shall not prevail against it."
The passage: … you are Peter, and on this rock I will build my church in Greek is: “sy Petros kai epi tafti ti petra, oikodomiso tin ekklisia mou” [(I will call) you “Stone” and on this stone I will build my church…].
It’s interesting that the word “cephas” was translated from Aramaic into Greek, as “Petros” [(stone) > “petra”] in the Gospels. While Paul who wrote his letters directly in Greek, leaved “Cefas” untranslatable:
1 Corinthians 1:12
What I mean is that each one of you says, "I belong to Paul," or "I belong to Apol'los," or "I belong to Cephas," or "I belong to Christ."
1 Corinthians 3:22
whether Paul or Apol'los or Cephas or the world or life or death or the present or the future, all are yours;
Another maybe interesting input for you, is that one of the most important (and maybe the most beautiful) monasteries in Mount Athos is named “Simonos Petra” (Simon’s Stone).
Ref: Hundreds under the term "cefas" in the net.
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