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Study 6: Destruction Vocabulary -- Advanced Study

Hebrew and Greek Word Studies on the Fate of the Wicked

Evidence Tiers

This series uses a three-tier evidence classification to distinguish what Scripture says from what people claim it teaches:

  1. Explicit (E) -- The text directly says this. You can point to a verse and quote it.
  2. Necessary Implication (N) -- No single verse says this word-for-word, but it unavoidably follows from what the text does say. No interpretation is needed -- every reader, regardless of theological position, must agree.
  3. Inference (I) -- Someone claims the Bible teaches this, but no verse says it and no combination of verses forces it. Something must be added beyond what the text contains: a concept, a framework, or a choice between possible readings.

The hierarchy matters: Explicit > Necessary Implication > Inference. An inference cannot override what the text explicitly states.

Section A: Hebrew Destruction Words -- Abad (H6) and Shamad (H8045)

  1. Abad (H6) occurs approximately 184 times in the OT and means "to perish, to destroy." Read Psalm 37:20, Psalm 68:2, Psalm 73:27, Psalm 92:9, and Job 20:7. In each verse, what is the subject of abad, and what do these verses collectively say about the fate of the wicked?

  2. Shamad (H8045) occurs approximately 90 times and means "to destroy utterly, to exterminate." Read Psalm 145:20, Psalm 37:38, Psalm 92:7, and Isaiah 13:9. What action does shamad describe? In Psalm 145:20, what is the antithetical parallel to shamad?

  3. The Septuagint (LXX) translates abad as apollymi (G622) 141 times -- a dominant mapping with a PMI score of 30.45. What does this translation pattern tell us about how pre-Christian Jewish scholars understood abad? What does it mean for NT passages that use apollymi for the fate of the wicked?

  4. Read Isaiah 26:14. This verse uses both shamad (destroyed) and abad (perish). What does it say about the dead who have been destroyed? Can they rise? What has happened to their memory?

Section B: Hebrew Destruction Words -- Kalah (H3615) and Shachath (H7843)

  1. Kalah (H3615) occurs approximately 206 times and means "to consume, to finish, to complete." Read Psalm 59:13, Psalm 104:35, and Psalm 73:19. In Psalm 59:13, what is the stated result of consumption -- what does the psalmist say they should become?

  2. Shachath (H7843) occurs approximately 147 times and means "to corrupt, to decay, to ruin." The LXX translates shachath as diaphtheiro (to rot thoroughly, to destroy) 48 times. How does the "decay/corruption" semantic field differ from the "torment" semantic field?

  3. Read Psalm 37:20. This verse uses both abad (perish) and kalah (consume) together, with the added imagery of smoke. How do the two destruction verbs plus the smoke simile reinforce each other?

  4. Compare Psalm 59:13 ("consume them, that they may not be") with Psalm 104:35 ("let the wicked be no more") and Obadiah 1:16 ("as though they had not been"). All three use non-existence language. What Hebrew word appears in all of these, and what does it mean?

Section C: Greek Destruction Words -- Apollymi (G622), Apoleia (G684), Olethros (G3639)

  1. Apollymi (G622) is derived from apo + the base of olethros. Strong's defines it as "to destroy fully." It occurs approximately 92 times in the NT. Read Matthew 10:28, John 3:16, Luke 13:3, Romans 2:12, 1 Corinthians 15:18, and 2 Peter 3:9. In each passage, what is the subject, and how is apollymi used? Does any of these contexts suggest "ongoing torment" rather than "destruction"?

  2. In Matthew 9:17, apollymi is used for wineskins that burst -- they "perish." What happens to burst wineskins? Are they tormented, or do they cease to function? What does this non-theological usage reveal about the word's meaning?

  3. Apoleia (G684) is the noun form of apollymi. Strong's defines it as "ruin or loss." Read Matthew 7:13, Philippians 3:19, 2 Peter 3:7, and Romans 9:22. In each passage, what is apoleia the destination or outcome of? Does any passage define apoleia as "torment"?

  4. Olethros (G3639) occurs only 4 times in the NT and is etymologically related to ollymi, the root of apollymi. Strong's defines it as "ruin, i.e. death, punishment." Read 2 Thessalonians 1:9, 1 Thessalonians 5:3, and 1 Timothy 6:9. What does it mean that the word defined as "ruin/death" is paired with "everlasting" (aionios) in 2 Thessalonians 1:9?

  5. In 1 Timothy 6:9, Paul uses olethros (destruction) and apoleia (perdition) together in the same sentence. What does the pairing of two destruction words tell you about the semantic field Paul is working in?

Section D: The "Perish vs. Life" Contrast Pattern

  1. Examine the following passages and fill in the contrast:

    Passage Author Outcome A (wicked) Outcome B (righteous)
    John 3:16 John ___ ___
    Matthew 7:13-14 Jesus/Matthew ___ ___
    Romans 6:23 Paul ___ ___
    Philippians 3:19 vs. 3:21 Paul ___ ___
    Psalm 145:20 David ___ ___
    Galatians 6:8 Paul ___ ___

    Is the pattern consistent across authors? Are the two outcomes presented as antithetical (opposites) or as two forms of continued existence?

  2. Read 1 Corinthians 15:18. Paul argues that if Christ is not raised, "they also which are fallen asleep in Christ are perished (apollymi)." Paul's reductio ad absurdum depends on apollymi meaning what? If "perished" meant "still existing but in a ruined state," would Paul's argument make sense?

Section E: Destruction Similes

  1. Catalog the destruction similes from the following passages. For each, identify what the substance does when the described process occurs:

    Passage Simile What happens to the substance?
    Psalm 68:2 Wax before fire ___
    Psalm 37:20 Fat of lambs / smoke ___
    Malachi 4:1 Stubble in an oven ___
    Malachi 4:3 Ashes ___
    Hosea 13:3 Morning cloud, dew, chaff, smoke ___
    Nahum 1:10 Stubble fully dry ___
    Isaiah 1:31 Tow (flax fiber) ___

    Do any of these similes depict a substance that endures indefinitely?

  2. Read Isaiah 34:10 alongside Revelation 14:10-11. Isaiah 34:10 says of Edom: "the smoke thereof shall go up for ever; from generation to generation it shall lie waste." Is Edom still burning today? What does this tell you about how "smoke ascending forever" functions as biblical imagery?

  3. Read Jude 1:7. Sodom and Gomorrah are said to suffer "the vengeance of eternal fire." Are those cities still burning? What does "eternal fire" describe -- an ongoing process or a completed result?

Section F: Destruction vs. Torment Vocabulary

  1. The Bible uses two distinct word families when discussing the fate of the wicked:

    • Destruction family: apollymi (G622), apoleia (G684), olethros (G3639)
    • Torment family: basanizo (G928), basanismos (G929), kolasis (G2851)

    These are different Greek words with different definitions. Approximately how many passages use destruction vocabulary for the fate of the wicked, and how many use torment vocabulary? What is the ratio?

  2. Read Revelation 14:10-11 (torment vocabulary, apocalyptic genre) and Matthew 10:28 (destruction vocabulary, didactic genre). Which passage uses the more common vocabulary? Which passage is in the clearer genre (didactic vs. apocalyptic)?

Evidence Classification Exercise

Classify each claim below as Explicit (E), Necessary Implication (N), or Inference (I). For each inference, identify what must be added beyond what the text says.

  1. "The wicked shall perish" (Psa 37:20; Psa 68:2)
  2. Classification: ___

  3. If inference, what is added: ___

  4. "The LXX translates abad as apollymi 141 times; the same destruction vocabulary spans both testaments."

  5. Classification: ___

  6. If inference, what is added: ___

  7. "No lexicon defines abad, shamad, kalah, apollymi, apoleia, or olethros as 'torment' or 'ongoing conscious suffering.'"

  8. Classification: ___

  9. If inference, what is added: ___

  10. "The Bible's destruction vocabulary for the wicked means cessation of existence -- they perish, are destroyed, consumed, and cease to be."

  11. Classification: ___

  12. If inference, what is added: ___

  13. "The destruction words are metaphorical: 'perish' means spiritual ruin (continued existence in a ruined state), and the similes depict severity rather than cessation."

  14. Classification: ___

  15. If inference, what is added: ___

  16. "'Everlasting destruction' (olethros aionios, 2 Thess 1:9) means an ongoing process of being destroyed that never ends."

  17. Classification: ___

  18. If inference, what is added: ___

  19. "'Wailing and gnashing of teeth' in a furnace of fire (Matt 13:42) describes eternal conscious torment, not the anguish of those being destroyed."

  20. Classification: ___
  21. If inference, what is added: ___

What CAN Be Said / What CANNOT Be Said

Based on your study, fill in each column:

What CAN be said (the Bible explicitly states or necessarily implies):

What CANNOT be said (not stated or necessarily implied -- requires adding something):