Jot or Tittle

“Jot or tittle” is an older expression for the smallest details of written letters. It comes from the words of Jesus about the law in Matthew 5:18 (the Berean Standard Bible refers to these as “a single jot” and “the stroke of a pen”). “Jot” refers to yod, the smallest letter in the Hebrew alphabet. “Tittle” is an old English word for a small mark. In Matthew 5:18, it refers to a small stroke that can distinguish one Hebrew letter from another. Jesus used these terms to emphasize that even the smallest details of the law would not disappear until everything was fulfilled.