Bible Dictionary
Jot
A jot is the smallest letter, or the smallest written mark, used figuratively for something extremely small. Jesus said that not even the smallest part of the Law would pass away until all was fulfilled.
Definition
A jot is the smallest letter or written mark, used figuratively for something extremely small. The term represents Greek iota and may also correspond to Hebrew yod, the smallest Hebrew letter. In the written Law, it signifies even the least letter or part of a letter.
Biblical Usage
Jesus declared that not even a jot or the smallest part of a letter would pass from the Law until all was fulfilled. The saying emphasizes the enduring completeness of the written Law.
Historical Background
The reference concerns Hebrew synagogue rolls. The supplied material distinguishes the jot from the tittle, which is the smallest part of a letter.
Scripture References
Related Figures
Historical Bible Dictionaries
Easton's Bible Dictionary
Or Iota, the smallest letter of the Greek alphabet, used metaphorically or proverbially for the smallest thing (Matt. 5:18); or it may be = yod, which is the smallest of the Hebrew letters.
Smith's Bible Dictionary
the English form of the Greek iota, i.e., the smallest letter of the Greek alphabet. The Hebrew is yod, or y formed like a comma (’). It is used metaphorically to express the minutest thing.
International Standard Bible Encyclopedia (ISBE)
<p>jot: "Jot" (Revised Version, later editions of the King James Version) is a corruption of iote (early editions of the King James Version, Geneva, Rheims, Bishops'--pronounced i-o'te), an English transliteration of iota, the 9th letter of the Greek alphabet (Mt 5:18 parallel). "Iota," in turn, is the nearest Greek equivalent for the Hebrew yodh ("y"), the smallest letter of the Hebrew alphabet, in New Testament times being little larger than an English accent ('). The tittle (which see) is the smallest part of a letter (not part of a y, however). Consequently, thinking of the law as written out, the sense of Mt 5:17, is: "From this code, so written, not the smallest letter nor part of a letter--not an `i' nor the crossing of a `t'--shall be erased until all things come to pass." (For the meaning, see LAW.) The reference is to the synagogue rolls, which were written in Hebrew, so that the passage has no bearing on the language used by Christ. For the form of the "jot," compare the tables in HDB, article "Alphabet," more fully in Chwolson,. Corp. Inscr. Hebrew. (1882).</p><p>See TITTLE.</p><p>Burton Scott Easton</p>