Χριστός

Noun: Χριστός (Christos), GK G5986 (S G5547), 529x. Χριστός means “Messiah, anointed one, Christ.” Its root is the verb chriō, which in Greek meant “to smear, rub, spread.” In the LXX, because of the connection with “rubbing or smearing oil,” the term was associated with “one who had been anointed, or set apart, for a special task.” In the Hebrew Bible, the “anointed ones” were the king and the high priest, occasionally a prophet. In later Jewish writings, Χριστός came to mean “the Messiah.” NT preaching, especially among Jews, focuses on presenting Jesus as the Christos (Acts 8:5; 17:2–3; Rom. 9:1–5).