Things are nice and tidy when English and Chinese march hand in hand, offering an equivalent word for everything the other throws out. But that can’t always be the case. In the not-so-rare times when there’s simply no translation or the entire paradigm is different, we actually get a peek into how the brains of English speakers and Chinese speakers wire slightly differently. Exhibit A, faith 信心 {xin4-xin1} and faithful 信實 {xin4-shi2}.
Let’s focus on English first and unpack how an unsuspecting student may look at them. At first glance, it’s easy to assume that these two words are heavily related. The very act of a suffix of “-ful” suggests that the latter is the adjective of the former. “Fruit” has “fruitful”. “Meaning” has “meaningful”. “Faith” has “faithful”, which is “full of faith”.
The tricky part is that “faith” can have an extended meaning as in “good faith”, which makes “faithful” sometimes mean “reliable” or “trustworthy”. “Well done, good and faithful servant“, Jesus said in a parable, and he certainly didn’t mean the servant was “full of faith”. Nevertheless, language makes the mind. The fact that “faithful” is rooted in “faith” means that we can’t look at one without seeing the other or think of one without the other. In a way, doesn’t it take some faith to be faithful, reliable, or trustworthy?
On the other hand, this kind of suggestion by sharing part of the word is far less frequent in Chinese. For example, 信件 (letter) and 信息 (message) are as far from 信心 (faith) as the east is from the west. Naturally, those who have never read the English Bible probably can’t comprehend how 信心 and 信實 are related.
Furthermore, though “faithful” can mean “full of faith” or “reliable/trustworthy”, “信實” does not mean “full of faith” at all. For that, we have “有信心” (“there is faith”). That clear separation can be handy in some cases.
The final question is of course, whether the Bible intends to associate “faith” with “faithful”, “信心” with “信實”. The answer is a clear yes. In fact, the Greek word for “faith” is πίστις (pistis), meaning both “full of faith” and “reliable/trustworthy”. The Greek word for “faithful” is πιστός (pistos), meaning both “fullness of faith” and “reliability/trustworthiness”. The only difference here is parts of speech (noun vs adjective), not meaning. In another word, same word! In Hebrew, we have אֱמוּנָה (emunah) which also means both.
Looking at it another way, the Bible is suggesting the strongest relationship between “faith” and “faithful”, “信心” and “信實”, by using the same word in Hebrew and Greek. English uses related words to separate the meanings somewhat, whereas Chinese makes the clearest distinction for practical purposes.
No judgment here, but isn’t it interesting to see how each language thinks and relates abstract concepts differently? More importantly, when we read “faith”, “faithful”, “faithfulness”, “信心”, and “信實”, perhaps we could stop and ask God whether He means one, the other, or you know, both.