Word Studies¶

CORE WORDS -- The Four "Hell" Words¶

1. H7585 -- sheol (sheh-ole)¶

Part of Speech: Feminine noun Definition: Hades or the world of the dead (as if a subterranean retreat), including its accessories and inmates -- grave, hell, pit Total Occurrences: 67 (65 per BLB) Transliteration: she'owl

KJV Translation Distribution: | Translation | Count | % | |---|---|---| | (to/in/of/the) grave | 31 | 46.3% | | (of/into/in/to) hell | 27 | 40.3% | | (into/of) pit | 3 | 4.5% | | Other (depth, etc.) | 6 | 9.0% |

Key Observation: The same Hebrew word is translated "grave" 31 times and "hell" 27 times in KJV. The word itself does not inherently mean a place of punishment -- it is the general abode of the dead, entered by both righteous (Jacob, Gen 37:35; David, Ps 16:10) and wicked (Ps 9:17; Num 16:33).

LXX Translation (Septuagint): H7585 (sheol) is translated by these Greek words in the LXX: | Greek | Count | PMI Score | Meaning | |---|---|---|---| | G86 hades | 58 | 33.87 | Unseen world, underworld | | G2609 katago | 10 | 14.59 | To lead down | | G2597 katabaino | 17 | 13.15 | To descend | | G2288 thanatos | 14 | 11.98 | Death | | G684 apoleia | 3 | 5.44 | Ruin, loss, destruction | | G5590 psyche | 9 | 5.29 | Soul, breath, life |

Critical Finding: In 58 of 65+ occurrences, the LXX translators rendered H7585 (sheol) as G86 (hades). This confirms sheol-hades equivalence and demonstrates that both words refer to the same concept: the realm/state of the dead.

2. G86 -- hades (hah-dace)¶

Part of Speech: Proper locative noun Definition: From a- (negative particle) and eido (to see); properly "unseen," i.e. Hades -- the unseen world Total Occurrences: 11 (BLB: 11) Transliteration: haides

KJV Translation Distribution: | Translation | Count | % | |---|---|---| | hell / Hell | 8 | 72.7% | | of hell | 2 | 18.2% | | O grave | 1 | 9.1% |

NT Distribution: - Matthew: 2 (11:23; 16:18) - Luke: 2 (10:15; 16:23) - Acts: 2 (2:27; 2:31) -- both quoting Psalm 16:10 - 1 Corinthians: 1 (15:55) - Revelation: 4 (1:18; 6:8; 20:13; 20:14)

Key Observation: Hades in the NT functions as the Greek equivalent of sheol. Acts 2:27,31 directly quotes Psalm 16:10, substituting hades for sheol, confirming the words are interchangeable. Hades is temporary -- Rev 20:13-14 states it delivers up the dead and is then cast into the lake of fire. It is personified alongside Death (Rev 6:8; 20:13-14).

Etymology: From a- (not) + eido (to see) = "the unseen place." The word itself carries no inherent meaning of punishment or torment.

3. G1067 -- geenna (gheh-en-nah)¶

Part of Speech: Feminine noun Definition: Of Hebrew origin (H1516 gay + H2011 Hinnom); valley of (the son of) Hinnom Total Occurrences: 12 (BLB); 11 in KJV apparatus Transliteration: geenna

KJV Translation Distribution: | Translation | Count | % | |---|---|---| | hell | 9 | 81.8% | | of hell | 2 | 18.2% |

NT Distribution (by speaker): - Jesus: 11 of 12 occurrences (Matt 5:22,29,30; 10:28; 18:9; 23:15,33; Mark 9:43,45,47; Luke 12:5) - James: 1 occurrence (Jas 3:6)

Key Observation: Gehenna is used exclusively by Jesus (11x) and James (1x). It derives from the Valley of Hinnom (ge-Hinnom), a real geographic location southwest of Jerusalem where children were burned in sacrifice to Molech (2 Ki 23:10; Jer 7:31; 32:35). The OT prophets declared it would become the "valley of slaughter" (Jer 7:32; 19:6). Unlike sheol/hades, gehenna is consistently associated with fire and judgment. Matt 10:28 says God is able to "destroy" (apollumi) both soul and body in gehenna. The verb apollumi means to destroy utterly, ruin, lose.

4. G5020 -- tartaroo (tar-tar-o-oh)¶

Part of Speech: Verb (not a noun) Definition: From Tartaros (the deepest abyss of Hades); to incarcerate in eternal torment Total Occurrences: 1 Transliteration: tartaroo

The Single Occurrence: 2 Peter 2:4 -- "For if God spared not the angels that sinned, but cast them down to hell [tartaroo], and delivered them into chains of darkness, to be reserved unto judgment."

Key Observation: Tartaroo is a verb (to cast into Tartarus), not a noun designating a place. It is used only once and applied only to fallen angels, never to human beings. Tartarus was a Greek mythological term for the deepest part of the underworld. Peter appropriates the term to describe the confinement of angels awaiting judgment -- it is a holding place, not a final destination. Jude 1:6 provides a parallel: "reserved in everlasting chains under darkness unto the judgment of the great day."

BACKGROUND WORDS -- Gehenna Origin¶

5. H1516 -- gay (gah-ee)¶

Part of Speech: Feminine noun (also masculine) Definition: Probably by transmutation from the same root as ge'a (abbreviated); a gorge (from its lofty sides; hence narrow, but not a gully or winter-torrent) -- valley Total Occurrences: 67 (60 per BLB) Transliteration: gay'

Used in combination with H2011 (Hinnom) to form the geographic name "Valley of Hinnom" -- the source for the Greek word gehenna. Occurs in Joshua 15:8; 18:16 (boundary marker), 2 Kings 23:10, 2 Chronicles 28:3; 33:6, Jeremiah 7:31,32; 19:2,6; 32:35, Nehemiah 11:30.

6. H2011 -- Hinnom (hin-nome)¶

Part of Speech: Proper locative noun Definition: Probably of foreign origin; Hinnom, apparently a Jebusite Total Occurrences: 13 Transliteration: Hinnom

All 13 occurrences refer to the Valley of Hinnom: - Joshua 15:8 (3x); 18:16 (4x) -- Geographic boundary descriptions - 2 Kings 23:10 (2x) -- Josiah defiles Topheth - 2 Chronicles 28:3 (2x) -- Ahaz burns children there - 2 Chronicles 33:6 (2x) -- Manasseh burns children there - Nehemiah 11:30 -- Settlement boundary - Isaiah 66:24, Jeremiah 7:31,32; 19:2,6; 32:35 -- per BLB/lexicon

Key Observation: Every OT occurrence of Hinnom is geographic or cultic. The valley was (1) a real place, (2) associated with child sacrifice to Molech, and (3) prophetically declared a place of destruction/slaughter by Jeremiah. This geographic-historical reality is the foundation for Jesus' use of "gehenna" as an image of final judgment.

SUPPORTING WORDS -- Torment/Punishment Vocabulary¶

7. G929 -- basanismos (bas-an-is-mos)¶

Part of Speech: Masculine noun Definition: From G928 (basanizo); torture -- torment Total Occurrences: 6 Transliteration: basanismos

All occurrences: - Revelation 9:5 (2x) -- torment of locusts - Revelation 14:11 -- smoke of their torment ascends - Revelation 18:7 -- torment and sorrow of Babylon - Revelation 18:10 -- the hour of Babylon's judgment/torment - Revelation 18:15 -- merchants stand afar for fear of her torment

Key Observation: 5 of 6 occurrences are in Revelation. Of these, 3 refer to the destruction of Babylon (a symbolic entity), and 1 to the plague of locusts. Only Rev 14:11 directly concerns final judgment of idolaters, and notably the smoke (not the torment itself) is what "ascends forever."

8. G928 -- basanizo (bas-an-id-zo)¶

Part of Speech: Verb Definition: From G931 (basanos = a touchstone); to torture -- pain, toil, torment, toss, vex Total Occurrences: 12 Transliteration: basanizo

Notable occurrences: - Matt 8:6 -- servant "grievously tormented" (sick) - Matt 8:29 -- demons ask "art thou come to torment us before the time?" - Matt 14:24 -- ship "tossed" with waves (same word) - Mark 5:7; Luke 8:28 -- demons plead not to be tormented - 2 Pet 2:8 -- Lot "vexed" his righteous soul - Rev 9:5 -- tormented as a scorpion stings - Rev 11:10 -- two prophets "tormented" those on earth - Rev 12:2 -- woman "pained" in childbirth - Rev 14:10 -- "tormented with fire and brimstone" - Rev 20:10 -- devil, beast, false prophet "tormented day and night for ever and ever"

Key Observation: The word basanizo has a wide semantic range: it is used for sickness (Matt 8:6), waves tossing a boat (Matt 14:24), moral distress (2 Pet 2:8), and childbirth pain (Rev 12:2), in addition to punishment contexts. Rev 20:10 applies it to the devil, beast, and false prophet -- these are symbolic entities, not individual humans.

9. G2851 -- kolasis (kol-as-is)¶

Part of Speech: Feminine noun Definition: From G2849 (kolazo); penal infliction -- punishment, torment Total Occurrences: 2 (BLB; 1 in KJV text) Transliteration: kolasis

Occurrences: - Matthew 25:46 -- "And these shall go away into everlasting punishment" (kolasis aionios) - 1 John 4:18 -- "Fear hath torment" (kolasis)

Key Observation: Kolasis occurs only twice in the NT. In classical Greek, kolasis originally meant "pruning" or "corrective punishment" (distinct from timoria, retributive punishment). In Matt 25:46, it is paired with aionios. The meaning depends on whether aionios means "eternal" in the sense of duration or "age-long" / "pertaining to the age to come."

10. G4663 -- skolex (sko-lakes)¶

Part of Speech: Masculine noun Definition: Of uncertain derivation; a grub, maggot or earth-worm -- worm Total Occurrences: 3 Transliteration: skolex

All occurrences: - Mark 9:44 -- "Where their worm dieth not" - Mark 9:46 -- "Where their worm dieth not" - Mark 9:48 -- "Where their worm dieth not"

Key Observation: All three occurrences are in Jesus' gehenna warning, quoting Isaiah 66:24. In the Isaiah source, the worm feeds on "carcases" (dead bodies, Hebrew peger), not living beings. The worm and fire in Isaiah 66:24 are instruments of consumption/decomposition of the dead, not agents of ongoing torment of the living. The skolex is a physical maggot, not a spiritual entity.

11. H7496 -- rapha (raw-faw)¶

Part of Speech: Masculine plural noun Definition: From rapha in the sense of rapha; properly lax, i.e. (figuratively) a ghost (as dead; in plural only) -- dead, deceased Total Occurrences: 8 Transliteration: rapha (rephaim)

KJV Translation Distribution: | Translation | Count | |---|---| | the dead | 5 | | Dead | 1 | | of the dead | 1 | | deceased | 1 |

Key occurrences with sheol: - Job 26:5 -- "Dead things [rephaim] are formed from under the waters" - Psalm 88:10 (per lexicon) -- referenced among sheol passages - Proverbs 2:18; 9:18; 21:16 -- "the dead" / depths of sheol - Isaiah 14:9 -- "Hell from beneath is moved for thee... it stirreth up the dead [rephaim]" - Isaiah 26:14 -- "The dead [rephaim] shall not live; the deceased shall not rise" - Isaiah 26:19 -- "Thy dead men shall live... awake and sing"

Key Observation: Rephaim are the "shades" or inhabitants of sheol. In Isaiah 14:9, the rephaim are "stirred up" at the arrival of the king of Babylon -- but this is highly poetic/taunt language (see Isa 14:4 "thou shalt take up this proverb"). In Isaiah 26:14, the rephaim "shall not live" and "shall not rise" -- contradicting any idea of conscious activity. The term describes the dead as powerless, inactive shades.

12. G3041 -- limne (lim-nay)¶

Part of Speech: Feminine noun Definition: Probably from G3040 (limen, a harbor); a pond (large or small) -- lake Total Occurrences: 10 Transliteration: limne

All 10 occurrences are in the NT: - Luke 5:1,2; 8:22,23,33 -- Lake of Gennesaret / lake (geographic) - Revelation 19:20; 20:10,14,15; 21:8 -- "lake of fire"

Key Observation: In its 5 Revelation occurrences, limne (lake) is combined with pur (fire) to form "the lake of fire" -- a term that appears only in Revelation. The lake of fire is explicitly identified as "the second death" (Rev 20:14; 21:8). It is distinct from hades -- hades itself is cast into the lake of fire (Rev 20:14). The lake of fire receives: (1) the beast and false prophet (Rev 19:20), (2) the devil (Rev 20:10), (3) death and hades (Rev 20:14), (4) those not in the book of life (Rev 20:15), (5) the wicked categories of Rev 21:8.

G166 -- aionios (ahee-o-nee-os)¶

Note: This word was studied in detail in etc-03. It is the adjective used in "everlasting punishment" (Matt 25:46), "everlasting fire" (Matt 18:8; 25:41), "eternal damnation" (Mark 3:29), and "everlasting destruction" (2 Thess 1:9). Its meaning ("eternal," "age-long," "pertaining to the age") is a critical interpretive question for this study.

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