Cháris and ḥen: The Biblical Vocabulary of Grace, Pauline Theology, and Lk 1:28

The biblical vocabulary of grace runs through two linguistic layers: the Hebrew ḥen and ḥesed in the Old Testament, and the Greek cháris and kecharitōménē in the New Testament. The semantic analysis of these terms is the gateway to Pauline theology and to the exegesis of Lk 1:28, the greeting of the angel to Mary, which contains the most intense verbal form of grace in all of Scripture.

Cháris (χάρις): semantics, uses, and variations in New Testament Greek

The Greek word for “grace” is χάρις (cháris). It is the central term of Pauline and Johannine theology, translated into English as “grace”, and it covers a vast semantic field: free gift of God, divine favor, beauty that attracts, gratitude for the good received. Etymologically, cháris denotes that which causes joy (chará), that which is attractive, beautiful, pleasing. But in biblical usage, above all in Paul and in John, the term acquires a theological weight that goes far beyond etymology: it designates the absolutely free and gratuitous initiative of God to communicate Himself to man in Christ.

Cháris in the New Testament: the supernatural gift in Jn 1:14-16 and 2 Cor 12:9 and the branching meanings in the New Testament corpus

The most common and technically precise form of cháris in the New Testament is the sense of a supernatural gift of God to man. John writes: “The Word became flesh and dwelt among us, full of grace and truth. […] Of His fullness we have all received, grace upon grace” (Jn 1:14, 16). Paul, for his part, confesses: “My grace is enough for you, for it is in weakness that power is fully realized” (2 Cor 12:9).

From this nucleus, cháris branches out into various complementary senses in the New Testament corpus:

• Favor of the new Christian economy: “You are not under the Law, but under grace” (Rom 6:14). “If justice comes through the Law, then Christ died for nothing” (Gal 2:21).
• External favor of providence: “Grace consists in this: to suffer unjustly, bearing afflictions, with the awareness of the presence of God” (1 Pet 2:19).
• Divine help in mission: “Paul […] departed, commended by the brethren to the grace of the Lord” (Acts 15:40).
• Divine favor in itself, source of all grace: “Do not be afraid, Mary! You have found grace with God” (Lk 1:30). “The child grew, becoming strong and full of wisdom. The grace of God was with Him” (Lk 2:40).
• Beauty and attractiveness: “All bore witness in His favor, marveling at the words full of grace that came from His mouth” (Lk 4:22). “Let your conversation always be pleasant, with a pinch of salt” (Col 4:6).
• Gratitude for the favor received (chárin échein, “to give thanks”, “to be grateful”): the recognition of the gift received as a response to divine favor.

As can be seen, two points run through all these meanings: the absolute gratuitousness of God, who gives owing nothing, and the necessary response of man, who welcomes the gift or refuses it.

The Hebrew ḥen in the LXX: “found grace in the eyes of” (Gen, Ruth, Sam) and its semantic transition to the Greek cháris

In the Old Testament, cháris does not exist in its technical New Testament sense. However, in the Greek version of the LXX, cháris serves to translate the Hebrew word ḥen, which means charm, attractiveness, favor. The typical expression is “found grace in the eyes of [someone]” (māṣāʾ ḥen be-ʿênê):

• “Noah found grace in the eyes of the Lord” (Gen 6:8).
• “Do not fear, Moses, for you have found grace in my eyes” (Ex 33:17).

The noun ḥen is linked to the verb ḥānan (to be pleasing, kind, compassionate), which normally has God as its subject: “To whom I show my favor, I show it” (Ex 33:19). In this sense, Old Testament grace points to the sovereign and gratuitous initiative of God, who chooses to communicate with man not by the merit of man but out of free benevolence.

In the LXX translation, cháris also translates raḥămîm (tenderness, compassion), rāṣôn (benevolent love) and, at times, ḥesed (Covenant loyalty). The latter, however, was translated above all by éleos (mercy), which expresses the faithfulness of God even when Israel is unfaithful: precisely because God entered into the Covenant out of pure mercy, and owes nothing to men, éleos and cháris belong to the same semantic horizon of divine gratuitousness.

“Kecharitōménē” (Lk 1:28): the supreme expression of grace in Scripture and its Mariological foundation

The grace of God finds in Mary its most perfect and most singular expression. The greeting of the angel, “Hail, full of grace (kecharitōménē)” (Lk 1:28), uses a perfect passive verbal form: Mary is not merely “favored” at one moment, but finds herself in a permanent state of having been graced by God. The Greek perfect expresses a present state resulting from a past action: Mary is, from all time and in a full manner, the graced one par excellence. It is in this context that the theological tradition understood the dogma of the Immaculate Conception: the grace that fills Mary is not merely momentary but constitutive of her person from the first instant of her existence.

To deepen the relationship between grace and Mary in the economy of salvation, the reading of the encyclical Redemptoris Mater by Saint John Paul II is recommended.

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Frequently asked questions about grace

What is grace?

The free favor and help that God gives us – a participation in His own divine life, which sanctifies us and makes us children of God.

What does “full of grace” mean?

It translates the Greek kecharitōménē (Lk 1:28), a participle that indicates a full and permanent grace – the foundation of the singular holiness of Mary.

What is the difference between grace and nature?

Grace is supernatural: it is not owed to human nature, but given freely by God, raising it to communion with Him.

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