This pastor translated Biden’s name to Hebrew. He won’t like his own Hebrew name.

Pastor Perry Stone translated Joe Biden’s name to Hebrew, claiming it meant “Alas, Judgment.” He won’t like what his Hebrew name means. By Twitter

By PJ Grisar February 9, 2021

Every so often, fringe Christian figures look to Hebrew to impute Satanic inspiration. Sometimes, it backfires tremendously.

One-upping this woman who slammed Monster energy drinks with the sign of the beast, right-wing pastor Perry Stone has translated President Joe Biden’s name into Hebrew. When you break it down — eliding some vowels and looking into roots and the biblical story of Jacob’s son Dan — Stone said, it means “Alas, Judgment.”

It seems like in Stone’s mind this reflects Biden’s executive orders and “contentious” passage of laws, more than the Final Judgment many Christians anticipate.

Now, translating English to an unrelated language group and trying to divine meaning from it is something of a fool’s errand. But let’s play at Stone’s game. After all, he said that he consulted with an “actual Hebrew scholar.”

What that unnamed scholar didn’t tell Stone is what his own name means when it’s transliterated. Thankfully, there’s Twitter for that.

Perry’s first name is easy. In Hebrew it means “fruit,” which is a nice enough name. Good work, Mr. and Mrs. Stone. Though, if we move to the surname we have something a bit less felicitous.

In Hebrew you’d spell that Sin-Tet-Nun. It’s the same spelling as “Satan.”

So actually, the name could mean “Fruit of Satan.”

But don’t get too hung up on that, Pastor. The good news is that none of this translating back and forth really means much. If you are still stuck on this unwelcome fact, though, remember that Biden’s actual given name is “Joseph” (the aforementioned Dan’s brother) which, more or less, means “to add” or “increase.”

So maybe Biden will add, or increase, judgment — not of the doomsday variety — to his office. Judgment can mean “the ability to make considered decisions or come to sensible conclusions.”

Languages are fun!

PJ Grisar is the Forward’s culture reporter. Ha can be reached at Grisar@Forward.com.

I hope you appreciated this article. Before you go, I’d like to ask you to please support the Forward’s award-winning, nonprofit journalism during this critical time.

Now more than ever, American Jews need independent news they can trust, with reporting driven by truth, not ideology. We serve you, not any ideological agenda.

At a time when other newsrooms are closing or cutting back, the Forward has removed its paywall and invested additional resources to report on the ground from Israel and around the U.S. on the impact of the war, rising antisemitism and the protests on college campuses.

Readers like you make it all possible. Support our work by becoming a Forward Member and connect with our journalism and your community.

Make a gift of any size and become a Forward member today. You’ll support our mission to tell the American Jewish story fully and fairly. 

— Rachel Fishman Feddersen, Publisher and CEO

Join our mission to tell the Jewish story fully and fairly.

$36 $500

$120 $180 Other amount