What is the meaning of the term 'Messiah' in Hebrew and its Greek equivalent?

• A. Messiah means 'king'; Greek equivalent is Basileus.
• B. Messiah means 'anointed one'; its Greek equivalent is Christ.
• C. Messiah means 'prophet'; Greek is Prophetes.
• D. Messiah means 'savior'; Greek is Soter.

Answer: (B)

The main idea here is the word’s meaning across languages. In Hebrew, "Messiah" comes from a root that means being anointed with oil, a ritual that seals someone for a special role chosen by God. So the word points to a person set apart for a mission, not a description of a single office. That makes the best answer the one that translates to “anointed one,” because that captures the action and status the term communicates.

In Greek, the natural rendering of that same idea is Christos, from a verb meaning to anoint. When English speakers say Jesus Christ, they’re using the Greek form of the same title, indicating that Jesus is the anointed one.

Other options shift the focus to roles associated with anointing (like king, prophet, or savior) rather than the act of being anointed itself. While a king or priest could be anointed, and Jesus is often described in terms like Savior, those words aren’t the literal meaning of the term. The key takeaway is that Messiah is about being the anointed one, and the Greek equivalent is Christos, giving us Christ in English.