Short answer: Shalom is the Hebrew word usually translated "peace," but it means much more than quiet or the end of a fight. It describes wholeness: being safe, sound, complete and in right relationship with God and with other people. The Bible uses it as an everyday greeting and as a picture of what God intends for His creation, and Jesus brought it to its fullest meaning through the cross.
In This Article
Most English readers hear the word "peace" and think of a calm afternoon or a ceasefire. That is a fine thing, but it is only a small corner of what a Hebrew speaker heard in shalom. If you have ever wondered why the Bible seems so fond of this one word, why it turns up in greetings, blessings, prophecies and the first words of the risen Christ, the answer is that it holds a great deal.
In this article we will look at what the word actually means, where it shows up in the Old Testament, why Jesus said "Peace be with you" after His resurrection, whether Christians should use the word themselves, and how to live it out. I will be careful to say where I am describing the word and where I am giving my own reading of a passage.
What Is The Exact Meaning Of Shalom?
Shalom comes from a Hebrew root that carries the idea of completeness or soundness. Something that is shalom lacks nothing it ought to have. When a person is in shalom, they are whole: body, mind, household, community and standing before God. That is why the word can be used for health, for safety on a journey, for a city that prospers, and for the end of a war. These are not five different meanings. They are five views of the same fullness.
This is why a simple translation falls short. The English word "peace" tends to describe an absence: no noise, no conflict, no trouble. Shalom describes a presence. It is not merely that the enemy has gone home; it is that things are as they should be.
Shalom As A Greeting
In everyday life shalom was also what people said when they met and when they parted, much as we say "hello" and "goodbye." Behind that habit sat a real wish: may you be well, may your household be well, may nothing be broken in your life. When a Jewish person today says shalom, that older meaning is still in the room, even though the word has become routine.
Shalom And The Greek Word Eirene
The New Testament was written in Greek, and the word it uses where we read "peace" is eirene. A Greek speaker on the street would mostly hear the absence of war in that word. The New Testament writers, steeped in the Hebrew Scriptures, poured the fuller shalom meaning into it. So when Paul begins his letters with "grace and peace," he is not offering a polite formula. He is wishing for his readers the whole well-being that God gives.
| Idea | What We Usually Mean By "Peace" | What Shalom Adds |
|---|---|---|
| Conflict | The fighting has stopped | Relationships are repaired and healthy |
| Inner life | I feel calm | I am settled and whole, whatever I feel today |
| Body and home | Not much is wrong | Health, safety and provision are present |
| God | We are not at odds | We are reconciled and walking together |
Where Does Shalom Appear In The Old Testament?
The word appears all through the Hebrew Scriptures, and watching how it is used is the best way to learn what it means. Here are a few of the places that I find most telling.
The Priestly Blessing
When God told Moses how Aaron and his sons were to bless Israel, the blessing ended on shalom:
“The Lord bless you and keep you; the Lord make his face shine on you and be gracious to you; the Lord turn his face toward you and give you peace.”
Numbers 6:24-26 (NIV)
Notice where peace sits. It is the crown of the blessing, and it comes from God turning His face toward His people. Shalom here is not a mood. It is the result of being under the favour and protection of the Lord.
A Name For The Lord
After the angel of the Lord appeared to Gideon, Gideon built an altar and gave it a name that tells us something about God's character:
So Gideon built an altar to the Lord there and called it The Lord Is Peace.
Judges 6:24 (NIV)
Gideon had just been terrified that he would die for having seen the angel. God answered that fear, and Gideon responded by calling the Lord "peace." Shalom is not only something God gives; in this passage it describes who He is.
Shalom For A City
One of the more surprising uses is in Jeremiah's letter to the exiles in Babylon. These were people carried away from home by a pagan empire, and God told them to seek the shalom of the very city that held them:
Also, seek the peace and prosperity of the city to which I have carried you into exile. Pray to the Lord for it, because if it prospers, you too will prosper.
Jeremiah 29:7 (NIV)
"Peace and prosperity" is the NIV's way of rendering shalom, and the two words together show how wide the term runs. To seek a city's shalom is to pray and work for its good: its safety, its justice, its flourishing. I find this a strong corrective for Christians who think faith is purely private.
The Promise Of The Suffering Servant
Isaiah looks ahead to the One who would bear what we deserved, and he says the result is shalom:
the punishment that brought us peace was on him, and by his wounds we are healed.
Isaiah 53:5 (NIV)
Here peace and healing sit side by side, which is exactly what the word shalom would lead us to expect. The cost of our wholeness was carried by someone else. That thread leads straight to the New Testament.
Why Did Jesus Say "Peace Be With You"?
On the evening of the resurrection the disciples were gathered behind locked doors, afraid of the authorities. John records what happened:
Jesus came and stood among them and said, “Peace be with you!”
John 20:19 (NIV)
On one level this was simply the normal Jewish greeting, and Jesus and His disciples would have spoken in Aramaic or Hebrew, where the word would have sounded like shalom. But it is hard to read it as only that. These were men who had abandoned or denied Him days before. They had every reason to expect rebuke. Instead the first word from the risen Lord is the word that means all is well between us. John then records Jesus saying it a second time in the same scene, and again a week later when Thomas was present.
The Peace He Promised Before The Cross
Jesus had already prepared them for this on the night before His death:
Peace I leave with you; my peace I give you. I do not give to you as the world gives. Do not let your hearts be troubled and do not be afraid.
John 14:27 (NIV)
"Not as the world gives" is the key phrase. The world offers peace as the absence of trouble, and that kind of peace collapses the moment trouble arrives. Jesus offers a peace that does not depend on circumstances, because it rests on a settled relationship with God.
Peace Made By The Cross
Paul explains how that peace was secured:
For God was pleased to have all his fullness dwell in him, and through him to reconcile to himself all things, whether things on earth or things in heaven, by making peace through his blood, shed on the cross.
Colossians 1:19-20 (NIV)
This is shalom at its widest: God reconciling all things to Himself. When Jesus stood among His disciples and said "Peace be with you," He was able to say it with full authority, because the work that makes peace had just been finished. If you want to think further about how that reconciliation holds when we stumble afterwards, I have written about it in what the Bible says about sin after salvation, and about how forgiveness works in what the Bible says about forgiveness of sin.
Can Christians Use The Word Shalom?
Yes, and many do. It is a word in God's own Scriptures, and nothing in the New Testament discourages believers from using it. Paul and Peter, writing in Greek, begin their letters with the same blessing in its Greek dress. Using shalom as a greeting or a farewell can be a good way to connect with the Hebrew roots of our faith.
I would add two cautions. The first is to avoid treating it as a magic word. Saying shalom does nothing by itself; the peace it names comes from God. The second is to be respectful. The word is part of the daily life and worship of Jewish people, and we are guests in it. Use it sincerely, and be ready to explain what you mean if someone asks.
I also want to answer a question I see often: is shalom a name of Jesus? Scripture calls Him the Prince of Peace, which is worth treasuring. But the passage doesn't hand us a new proper name for Him, so I would simply say that He is the source of our shalom and leave it there.
How Do You Live Shalom Today?
Because shalom is about wholeness in every direction, living it is a matter of tending every relationship. Here are the places I would start.
- With God. Peace with God is not earned; it is received through Christ. Paul describes what follows from that in Romans 5:1. If you are carrying guilt, start with how to repent and bring it to Him.
- With your own mind. Take anxious thoughts to God in prayer. Paul promises that the peace of God will guard hearts and minds in Christ Jesus. It does not promise that every problem disappears.
- With other people. Jesus said peacemakers are blessed (Matthew 5:9). If there is a rift in your family or church, take the first step toward repair.
- With rest. God built rest into the week. A body and mind that never stop are not in shalom. Our article on what the Bible says about sleeping touches on this.
- With your neighbourhood. Jeremiah 29:7 means we are meant to work for the good of the place where we live.
None of us does this perfectly. Shalom is a lifelong direction, not a finished achievement, and the final fullness of it waits for the day when everything is made right. In the meantime the Lord gives us enough of it to keep walking.
Key Bible Verses About Shalom
- Numbers 6:24-26: the priestly blessing that ends in peace from the Lord.
- Judges 6:24: Gideon names an altar "The Lord Is Peace."
- Isaiah 26:3: perfect peace for the mind that trusts in God.
- Isaiah 53:5: the punishment that brought us peace was laid on the Servant.
- Jeremiah 29:7: seek the peace and prosperity of your city.
- John 14:27: Jesus gives a peace the world cannot give.
- John 20:19: the risen Christ greets His frightened disciples.
- Philippians 4:7: God's peace guards hearts and minds.
Frequently Asked Questions
Why did Jesus say shalom?
Shalom was the ordinary Jewish greeting, so Jesus was speaking as any Jewish teacher would. But after the resurrection, when His frightened disciples were hiding behind locked doors, the word carried its full weight: the peace between God and people that His cross had just won.
Can Christians use the word shalom?
Yes. It is a Hebrew word found throughout the Old Testament, and the New Testament writers open their letters with the Greek form of the same blessing. Using it as a greeting is fine. Just keep its meaning in mind, so that it is a real wish for someone's wholeness and not a slogan.
What is the exact meaning of shalom?
The word comes from a root that points to completeness. It describes things being whole, sound, safe and in right relationship. Peace as the end of fighting is one use, but shalom also covers health, prosperity, security and good order between people.
Why did Jesus tell Mary not to hold on to Him?
In John 20:17 Jesus tells Mary Magdalene not to cling to Him because He has not yet ascended to the Father. Most readers take this to mean that their relationship was changing: she could not hold on to the earthly Jesus, but she would know Him in a new way after the ascension and the coming of the Spirit.
