G167 — ἀκαθαρσία (akatharsía)¶

Core Data¶

Strong's: G167
Original: ἀκαθαρσία
Transliteration: akatharsía
Pronunciation: ak-ath-ar-see'-ah
Part of Speech: Feminine noun
Root: α-privative + καθαρός (katharós, G2513) — "not clean"; cognate adjective ἀκάθαρτος (akáthartos, G169)
Occurrences: 10 in NT (10 unique verses, 7 books)
First Occurrence: Mat 23:27 — "ye are like unto whited sepulchres, which indeed appear beautiful outward, but are within full of dead men's bones, and of all uncleanness"
Hapax Legomenon: No

Lexicon Definition¶

From G169 (ἀκάθαρτος); impurity (the quality), physically or morally: — uncleanness.

Louw-Nida Semantic Domain¶

Domain 88.034: Impurity (within 88 — Moral and Ethical Qualities and Related Behavior)
Domain 79.010: Clean, Dirty (within 79 — Features of Objects)
Glosses: impurity, immorality, filthiness

Other words in 88.034 (Impurity): - μιαίνω (miaínō) G3392 — to defile, contaminate - μιασμός (miasmós) G3394 — impurity, tainted - μίασμα (míasma) G3393 — impurity, tainted - ῥυπαρία (rhyparía) G4507 — moral impurity, moral filth - ῥυπαρός (rhyparós) G4508 — dirty, filthy, morally impure - ῥυπαίνω (rhypaínō) G4510a — to live in moral filth

Translation Distribution (KJV)¶

Translation	Count	%
uncleanness	9	90.0%
to uncleanness	1	10.0%

Nearly monovalent — KJV renders this word as "uncleanness" in all 10 occurrences (the "to" is simply a prepositional context in Rom 6:19).

Distribution by Book¶

Book	Count	Per 100 Verses
1 Thessalonians	2	2.2
Ephesians	2	1.3
Colossians	1	1.1
Galatians	1	0.7
Romans	2	0.5
2 Corinthians	1	0.4
Matthew	1	0.1

Heavily Pauline — 9 of 10 occurrences are in Paul's letters. The single non-Pauline use (Mat 23:27) is Jesus' woe against the Pharisees. Absent from the rest of the Gospels, Acts, Hebrews, the General Epistles, and Revelation. Highest density in 1 Thessalonians and Ephesians.

Morphological Distribution¶

Case	Count	Typical Context
Nominative (NSF)	2	Subject of clause — "the works of the flesh are… uncleanness" (Gal 5:19; Eph 5:3)
Genitive (GSF)	3	Quality/source — "full of all uncleanness" (Mat 23:27); "to work all uncleanness" (Eph 4:19); "not of uncleanness" (1Th 2:3)
Dative (DSF)	3	Sphere/means — "yielded… to uncleanness" (Rom 6:19); "not repented of the uncleanness" (2Co 12:21); "unto uncleanness" (1Th 4:7)
Accusative (ASF)	2	Direct object — "gave them up to uncleanness" (Rom 1:24); "mortify… uncleanness" (Col 3:5)

Always singular — never pluralized, indicating a state or condition rather than discrete acts.

Semantic Categories¶

1. Vice-List Member — Moral Impurity in the Flesh¶

The dominant usage: akatharsia appears as a standard member of Pauline vice catalogues, consistently grouped with sexual sin and greed. - Gal 5:19 — "Now the works of the flesh are manifest, which are these; Adultery, fornication, uncleanness, lasciviousness" - Eph 5:3 — "But fornication, and all uncleanness, or covetousness, let it not be once named among you, as becometh saints" - Col 3:5 — "Mortify therefore your members which are upon the earth; fornication, uncleanness, inordinate affection, evil concupiscence, and covetousness"

2. Moral Condition Resulting from Rejection of God¶

Uncleanness as the state God gives people over to when they reject Him, or the sphere from which believers are called out. - Rom 1:24 — "Wherefore God also gave them up to uncleanness through the lusts of their own hearts, to dishonour their own bodies between themselves" - Rom 6:19 — "for as ye have yielded your members servants to uncleanness and to iniquity unto iniquity; even so now yield your members servants to righteousness unto holiness" - 1Th 4:7 — "For God hath not called us unto uncleanness, but unto holiness"

3. Holiness-Antithesis — The Opposite of Sanctification¶

In two passages akatharsia is explicitly contrasted with ἁγιασμός (hagiasmos, sanctification/holiness), framing the Christian life as a binary: uncleanness vs. holiness. - 1Th 4:7 — "God hath not called us unto uncleanness, but unto holiness" - Rom 6:19 — "yielded your members servants to uncleanness… even so now yield your members servants to righteousness unto holiness"

4. Inner Corruption — Hidden Moral Filth¶

The single non-Pauline use applies the word to hidden internal decay. - Mat 23:27 — "ye are like unto whited sepulchres, which indeed appear beautiful outward, but are within full of dead men's bones, and of all uncleanness"

5. Unrepented Habitual Sin¶

Linked to ongoing sinful practice that grieves the apostle. - 2Co 12:21 — "I shall bewail many which have sinned already, and have not repented of the uncleanness and fornication and lasciviousness which they have committed" - Eph 4:19 — "Who being past feeling have given themselves over unto lasciviousness, to work all uncleanness with greediness"

6. Apostolic Integrity — What Ministry Is Free From¶

Paul denies that his motivation comes from moral impurity. - 1Th 2:3 — "For our exhortation was not of deceit, nor of uncleanness, nor in guile"

Common Collocations¶

Word	Strong's	Co-occurrences	Typical Pattern
πορνεία (porneía)	G4202	4x (40%)	Vice-list pair: "fornication, uncleanness" (Gal 5:19; Eph 5:3; Col 3:5; 2Co 12:21)
ἀσέλγεια (asélgeia)	G766	3x (30%)	Vice-list triad: "uncleanness, lasciviousness" (Gal 5:19; Eph 4:19; 2Co 12:21)
πλεονεξία (pleonexía)	G4124	3x (30%)	Paired with greed: "uncleanness… covetousness" (Eph 4:19; 5:3; Col 3:5)
θεός (theós)	G2316	3x (30%)	God as agent: "God gave them up" (Rom 1:24); "God hath not called" (1Th 4:7)
ἁγιασμός (hagiasmós)	G38	2x (20%)	Antithesis pair: "not unto uncleanness, but unto holiness" (1Th 4:7; Rom 6:19)
σάρξ (sárx)	G4561	2x (20%)	"Works of the flesh" framework (Gal 5:19; Rom 6:19)
ἐπιθυμία (epithymía)	G1939	2x (20%)	"Through the lusts of their own hearts" (Rom 1:24; Col 3:5)
μέλος (mélos)	G3196	2x (20%)	"Yielded your members to uncleanness" (Rom 6:19; Col 3:5)

Word Family / Cognates¶

G169 ἀκάθαρτος (akáthartos) — adjective, "unclean"; 30 occurrences; primarily of unclean spirits in the Gospels/Acts, ritual uncleanness in Paul (2Co 6:17; Eph 5:5; 1Co 7:14)
G2513 καθαρός (katharós) — adjective, "clean, pure"; 28 occurrences; positive antonym
G2511 καθαρίζω (katharízō) — verb, "to cleanse, purify"; 30 occurrences; the action that removes akatharsia
G2512 καθαρισμός (katharismós) — noun, "cleansing, purification"; the process opposite to akatharsia

Synonyms¶

G946 βδέλυγμα (bdelygma) — abomination, detestable thing; impurity viewed as something abhorrent

Antonyms¶

No direct antonyms were identified by search_relationships.py.

UBS Semantic Domains¶

[088] Moral and Ethical Qualities and Related Behavior — includes ἀγαθοεργέω (G14), ἀγαθοποιέω (G15), ἀγαθοποιΐα (G16), ἀγαθοποιός (G17), ἀγαθός (G18), ἀγαθωσύνη (G19)
[079] Features of Objects — includes ἄδολος (G97), ἀκατακάλυπτος (G177), ἄκρατος (G194), ἄκρον (G206), ἀμαράντινος (G262), ἀμάραντος (G263)

Easily Confused Words¶

Word	Strong's	Shared Translation	Key Difference
μιαίνω (miaínō)	G3392	both refer to moral defilement	miaínō = active verb "to defile/contaminate"; akatharsia = the resulting state of impurity
μίασμα (míasma)	G3393	both in Louw-Nida 88.034 Impurity	míasma = the stain or contamination itself; akatharsia = the broader condition of uncleanness
ῥυπαρία (rhyparía)	G4507	both = moral filth	rhyparía = filthiness with connotation of dirtiness/sordidness (Jas 1:21 only); akatharsia = ritual/moral impurity spectrum
πορνεία (porneía)	G4202	frequently co-occur in vice lists	porneía = sexual immorality specifically; akatharsia = broader moral impurity (porneía is a subset)
ἀσέλγεια (asélgeia)	G766	frequently co-occur in vice lists	asélgeia = sensuality/debauchery (excess without restraint); akatharsia = impurity as a moral state

Domain Neighbors (Louw-Nida 88.034)¶

Word	Strong's	LN Gloss	Key Difference
μιαίνω (miaínō)	G3392	to defile, contaminate	Verbal: the act of defiling
μιασμός (miasmós)	G3394	impurity, tainted	Near-synonym; emphasizes contamination
μίασμα (míasma)	G3393	impurity, tainted	The stain itself rather than the condition
ῥυπαρία (rhyparía)	G4507	moral filth	Rare (1v); emphasizes sordidness
ῥυπαρός (rhyparós)	G4508	dirty, morally impure	Adjective form; Rev 22:11 "let him be filthy still"

Hebrew Source¶

Hebrew Source	Strong's	Co-occ	PMI	Score
טֻמְאָה (ṭumʾâh)	H2932	26	8.79	28.97
נִדָּה (niddâh)	H5079	11	7.92	19.67
טָמֵא (ṭâmêʾ, adj)	H2931	8	5.76	12.65
טָמֵא (ṭâmêʾ, verb)	H2930	10	5.23	12.53
זוֹב (zôwb)	H2101	4	7.72	12.43

Primary Hebrew source is H2932 ṭumʾâh ("religious impurity, filthiness, uncleanness") with a strong PMI score of 28.97, indicating a near-exclusive LXX translation correspondence. The LXX translators consistently chose ἀκαθαρσία to render the Levitical purity vocabulary.