What Is the Hebrew Word for Grace? Chen and Favor
What is the Hebrew word for grace? Chen is a principal word behind grace or favor in the selected Hebrew passages.
Last updated October 15, 2026
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What is the Hebrew word for grace? Chen is a principal word behind grace or favor in the selected Hebrew passages. The Greek charis appears in the New Testament discussion of grace. Those related English renderings do not make the Hebrew and Greek terms identical.
Chen means favor or graciousness in the retained historical entry. Genesis 6:8 says Noah finds grace or favor; Exodus 33 uses the language in Moses' appeal. Ephesians 2 uses Greek grace language in a different argument. Begin with those sentences before extending one English theological definition to every source word.
What Is the Hebrew Word for Grace? Chen and Favor: source entries
| Term | Entry ID | Historical entry wording | Source |
|---|---|---|---|
| chen | 2580 | […] graciousness, i.e. subjective (kindness, favor) or objective (beauty): […] | Strong original Hebrew |
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| Term | Entry ID | Historical entry wording | Source |
|---|---|---|---|
| charis | 5485 | […] graciousness (as gratifying), of manner or act (abstract or concrete; literal, figurative or spiritual; especially the divine influence upon the heart, and its reflection in the life; including gratitude): […] | Strong original Greek |
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Noah finds favor
Genesis 6:8 comes amid a description of human wickedness and before the account of Noah's household. The KJV says grace and the other selected editions say favor. The sentence describes Noah in relation to God. It is not a lesson about the power of a person's name or an independent force attached to a Hebrew spelling.
Read the chapter transition before turning the statement into a formula. The sentence singles Noah out within the narrative. Later theological uses may draw on that distinction, but they should identify themselves as interpretation.
Moses appeals to a known relation
Exodus 33 repeats favor language in Moses' appeal about presence and guidance. The repetition helps carry the dialogue. Ask who has found favor and what is requested on that basis. This is more useful than treating every occurrence as an isolated dictionary example.
The passage gives favor a relational setting. It does not require a reader to guess a private message from the spelling chen. The quoted dialogue supplies the subject and request. Any explanation should remain accountable to them.
Charis in Ephesians
Ephesians 2:8-10 joins salvation by grace through faith with a contrast about works, then speaks of good works. Omitting verse 10 can make the movement harder to see. An English word study should preserve the full sentence sequence.
Charis has its own Greek range, visible in the entry. Chen has its Hebrew range. Comparing them can clarify translation choices, but claiming that one is a mechanical substitute for the other would overstate the evidence. The faith entry takes up the other key term in the Ephesians sentence.
Wording and context in three editions
Genesis 6:8
King James Version (eng-kjv2006, standard 1769 text)
8 But Noah found grace in the eyes of the LORD.
World English Bible Classic (eng-web, US spelling)
8 But Noah found favor in Yahweh’s eyes.
American Standard Version (eng-asv)
8 But Noah found favor in the eyes of Jehovah.
Before (WEB Classic): 6 Yahweh was sorry that he had made man on the earth, and it grieved him in his heart. 7 Yahweh said, “I will destroy man whom I have created from the surface of the ground […]
After (WEB Classic): 9 This is the history of the generations of Noah: Noah was a righteous man, blameless among the people of his time. Noah walked with God. 10 Noah became the father of three sons: Shem, Ham, and Japheth.
Exodus 33:12-17
King James Version (eng-kjv2006, standard 1769 text)
12 ¶ And Moses said unto the LORD, See, thou sayest unto me, Bring up this people: and thou hast not let me know whom thou wilt send with me. Yet thou hast said, I know thee by name, and thou hast also found grace in my sight.
13 Now therefore, I pray thee, if I have found grace in thy sight, shew me now thy way, that I may know thee, that I may find grace in thy sight: and consider that this nation is thy people.
14 And he said, My presence shall go with thee, and I will give thee rest.
15 And he said unto him, If thy presence go not with me, carry us not up hence.
16 For wherein shall it be known here that I and thy people have found grace in thy sight? is it not in that thou goest with us? so shall we be separated, I and thy people, from all the people that are upon the face of the earth.
17 And the LORD said unto Moses, I will do this thing also that thou hast spoken: for thou hast found grace in my sight, and I know thee by name.
World English Bible Classic (eng-web, US spelling)
12 Moses said to Yahweh, “Behold, you tell me, ‘Bring up this people;’ and you haven’t let me know whom you will send with me. Yet you have said, ‘I know you by name, and you have also found favor in my sight.’
13 Now therefore, if I have found favor in your sight, please show me your way, now, that I may know you, so that I may find favor in your sight; and consider that this nation is your people.”
14 He said, “My presence will go with you, and I will give you rest.”
15 Moses said to him, “If your presence doesn’t go with me, don’t carry us up from here.
16 For how would people know that I have found favor in your sight, I and your people? Isn’t it that you go with us, so that we are separated, I and your people, from all the people who are on the surface of the earth?”
17 Yahweh said to Moses, “I will do this thing also that you have spoken; for you have found favor in my sight, and I know you by name.”
American Standard Version (eng-asv)
12 And Moses said unto Jehovah, See, thou sayest unto me, Bring up this people: and thou hast not let me know whom thou wilt send with me. Yet thou hast said, I know thee by name, and thou hast also found favor in my sight.
13 Now therefore, I pray thee, if I have found favor in thy sight, show me now thy ways, that I may know thee, to the end that I may find favor in thy sight: and consider that this nation is thy people.
14 And he said, My presence shall go with thee, and I will give thee rest.
15 And he said unto him, If thy presence go not with me, carry us not up hence.
16 For wherein now shall it be known that I have found favor in thy sight, I and thy people? is it not in that thou goest with us, so that we are separated, I and thy people, from all the people that are upon the face of the earth?
17 And Jehovah said unto Moses, I will do this thing also that thou hast spoken; for thou hast found favor in my sight, and I know thee by name.
Before (WEB Classic): 10 All the people saw the pillar of cloud stand at the door of the Tent, and all the people rose up and worshiped, everyone at their tent door. 11 Yahweh spoke to Moses face to face, as a man speaks to his friend. He turned again into the camp, but his servant Joshua, the son of Nun, a young man, didn’t depart from the Tent.
After (WEB Classic): 18 Moses said, “Please show me your glory.” 19 He said, “I will make all my goodness pass before you, and will proclaim Yahweh’s name before you. I will be gracious to whom I will be gracious, and will show mercy on whom I will show mercy.”
Ephesians 2:8-10
King James Version (eng-kjv2006, standard 1769 text)
8 For by grace are ye saved through faith; and that not of yourselves: it is the gift of God:
9 Not of works, lest any man should boast.
10 For we are his workmanship, created in Christ Jesus unto good works, which God hath before ordained that we should walk in them.
World English Bible Classic (eng-web, US spelling)
8 for by grace you have been saved through faith, and that not of yourselves; it is the gift of God,
9 not of works, that no one would boast.
10 For we are his workmanship, created in Christ Jesus for good works, which God prepared before that we would walk in them.
American Standard Version (eng-asv)
8 for by grace have ye been saved through faith; and that not of yourselves, it is the gift of God;
9 not of works, that no man should glory.
10 For we are his workmanship, created in Christ Jesus for good works, which God afore prepared that we should walk in them.
Before (WEB Classic): 6 and raised us up with him, and made us to sit with him in the heavenly places in Christ Jesus, 7 that in the ages to come he might show the exceeding riches of his grace in kindness toward us in Christ Jesus;
After (WEB Classic): 11 Therefore remember that once you, the Gentiles in the flesh, who are called “uncircumcision” by that which is called “circumcision” (in the flesh, made by hands), 12 that you were at that time separate from Christ, alienated from the commonwealth of Israel, and strangers from the covenants of the promise, having no hope and without God in the world.
FAQ
Is hesed the same word as chen?
No. They are separate Hebrew entries with overlapping English renderings in some contexts. Hesed can express kindness or mercy; chen can express favor. A shared English word does not erase that distinction.
Related meanings
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Verdict: What Is the Hebrew Word for Grace? Chen and Favor
For the Hebrew word for grace, chen is the key entry in these examples. Compare favor in Genesis and Exodus with the distinct Greek charis in Ephesians. English overlap does not erase source-language differences.