Are you aware that there are numerous words that we use in our churches and read in the Scriptures that have their origin in pagan religions, especially in sun worship? This series of essays is an etymological study of a few of these words and a comparative study to show which versions have included them.

The etymology of several words comes from Come Out of Her My People, researched and written by C. J. Koster and published by the Institute for Scriptural Research in Northriding, Republic of South Africa. (The edition which I am using was published in 1998.) I thank the Board of ISR for granting me permission to quote extensively from this book. I have quoted only a little from each of the words listed below. There are several other words which are not included here.

Following is a list of the versions compared and a table indicating which ones made changes with respect to words in question. Each word is presented separately with a detailed etymological history and its use in the various versions. References to other books within each section of this series are documented in the book Come Out of Her My People. A general conclusion follows this.

This table shows which versions have used words different from the list of words along the top, the ones having heathen origins. That is, an 'X' signifies any deviation from the pagan word heading the column. Click on each word for more details.

If the research of C. J. Koster in his book Come Out of Her My People can be used as a standard, the use of words having a pagan origin, and Sun-worship in particular, is very prevalent in the various versions. Whether or not the reader agrees with his findings, some decisions have to be made.

If these findings are valid, it will be necessary to decide whether to accept them or not. If they are accepted, the True Believer (commonly known as 'Christian') has to decide what he will do. He/She can try to eliminate the words from his/her vocabulary. This will take time to accomplish. Since no version is perfect, he/she should choose which is the best version for him/her in this regard. If they are not accepted, he/she will see no need for change. Such a person must be aware of the statement of Yahshua that not everyone who calls, "Lord, Lord," will enter the kingdom of heaven (Matthew 8: 21).

Another problem comes for those who claim that the "Bible" is inerrant or that "God" dictated the contents to the writers. If the "Bible" was inspired by "God" and has no errors, which one version is it? If "God" dictated to the writers the exact words, why would He have inserted words whose origins can be traced back to pagan religions, and especially to the Sun-deity? Yahweh told the children of Israel not to make mention the name of other gods or let it be heard out of their mouths (Exodus 23: 13).

It is now up to the reader. If you are a True Believer of Yahshua, you will not give honor, consciously or unconsciously, to a pagan idol. If you cannot, or will not, avoid giving such honour, are you any better than the Emperor Constantine who claimed to have had a vision and became a "Christian" while still honouring the pagan Sun-deity?

If you would like to know more about heathenism, read the articles on Mithra and Crishna and their contributions to Christianity.