Mashiach is the Hebrew word the Greek translates as Christos, which English translates as "Christ." By the time that double translation reaches the modern reader, "Christ" has become a surname. Jesus Christ. First name Jesus, last name Christ. The Hebrew word is not a name. It is a title. It is a job description. Mashiach means "anointed one," from the root mem-shin-chet, to smear or anoint with oil. In the Hebrew Bible, anointing was commissioning. Kings were anointed (1 Samuel 16:13). Priests were anointed (Exodus 28:41). Prophets were anointed (Isaiah 61:1). The oil was HaShem's signature on a calling.

When the Tanakh speaks of "the Mashiach," it is describing someone commissioned by HaShem for a specific, world-altering purpose. The title carries all three anointed offices: Melech (King), Kohen Gadol (High Priest), and Navi (Prophet). The Mashiach is not just one of these. He is the convergence of all three. That is why Yeshua's claim was so staggering and so threatening: He was claiming that every stream of anointed leadership in Israel's history converged in Him. There is no office left to fill by a human institution.

The KJV, ESV, NASB, and NIV all render Christos as "Christ" and treat it as a name. They write "Jesus Christ" the way you write "John Smith." The functional meaning is invisible. The English reader does not hear "Yeshua the Anointed King-Priest-Prophet commissioned by HaShem to fulfill every covenant promise." They hear a name. And because they hear a name, they miss the claim. The Greek Christos at least preserved the meaning ("anointed"). The English "Christ" preserved nothing but the sound. Mashiach is not who He is called. It is what He was sent to do.