Repentance

In the King James version the well-known chapter, 1 Corinthians 13, starts with the words: "Though I speak with the tongues of men and angels, and have not charity ... ". The newer English translations use "love" instead of "charity". Charity has changed its meaning in the English language.

Similarly, many evangelists use the word "repent" to mean something different from what Jesus meant when he said: "Repent and believe the good news" (Mark 1:15). Some preachers are not satisfied with a person's repentance if it is not accompanied by tears and deep sorrow. The majority of dictionaries have the same interpretation (https://www.google.com/search?q=repent+meaning). Of course, there are occasions in the Bible when repentance was preceded by people being "cut to the heart". This was the case when Peter told the Jews who had gathered on the day of Pentecost that they had just killed their Messiah (Acts 2:37).

The Greek word in Matthew 4:17 and Mark 1:15 is "metanoio". It literally means to change one's mind. The fact that Jesus combines repentance with the phrase "the kingdom of heaven has come near" indicates that he was referring to himself as the king. The same deduction can be made from Luke 17:20-22 where Jesus identified the kingdom with "the days of the Son of man". The messianic kingdom they were expecting was near, right in their midst. The Jews needed a "paradigm shift" in their thinking. Although Jesus did not say so, he implied that the Roman Empire would be dealt with later. First the prospective citizens of the kingdom of heaven had to get their hearts in the right place. They needed to accept its king and swear allegiance to him.

For a more complete explanation of "repentance" see https://cmmorrison.wordpress.com/2010/07/23/repentance/