G2222 — ζωή (zōḗ)¶

Core Data¶

Strong's: G2222
Original: ζωή
Transliteration: zōḗ
Pronunciation: dzo-ay
Part of Speech: Feminine noun
Root: ζάω (záō, G2198) — to live
Occurrences: 126 unique verses (134 tokens), 22 books
First Occurrence: Matt 7:14 — "narrow is the way, which leadeth unto life"
Hapax Legomenon: No

Lexicon Definition¶

From ζάω (G2198); life (literally or figuratively): — life(-time). Compare ψυχή (G5590).

Louw-Nida Semantic Domain¶

Domain: 023 — Physiological Processes and States
Subdomain: 023.007 — Live, Die
Other words in subdomain: ᾅδης (G86), ἀθανασία (G110), ἀνάστασις (G386), ἀποθνῄσκω (G599), ἀπόλλυμι (G622)

UBS Semantic Domains¶

[023] Physiological Processes and States

Translation Distribution (KJV)¶

Translation	Verses	%
life	93	73.8%
of life	32	25.4%
lifetime	1	0.8%
of the life	1	0.8%

Distribution by Book¶

Book	Count	Per 100 Verses
1 John	10	9.5
Titus	2	4.3
Revelation	15	3.7
John	32	3.6
1 Timothy	4	3.5
Romans	14	3.2
2 Timothy	2	2.4
Colossians	2	2.1
2 Corinthians	5	1.9
1 Peter	2	1.9
James	2	1.9
2 Peter	1	1.6
Acts	8	0.8
Matthew	7	0.7
Galatians	1	0.7
Hebrews	2	0.7
Mark	4	0.6
Ephesians	1	0.6
Luke	6	0.5
1 Corinthians	2	0.5

Heavily concentrated in Johannine literature (John + 1 John = 42 of 126 verses, combined density ~4.5/100). Revelation adds another 15. The Synoptics use ζωή sparingly, almost always in the phrase "eternal life" in discipleship dialogue (Matt 19:16–17, Mark 10:17, Luke 18:18).

Semantic Categories¶

1. Eternal / Eschatological Life¶

The dominant usage — life as the eschatological gift of God, typically qualified by αἰώνιος (eternal, 45 shared verses). Life given at the resurrection, contrasted with perishing.

Matt 19:16 — "what good thing shall I do, that I may have eternal life?"
John 3:16 — "whosoever believeth in him should not perish, but have eternal life"
Rom 6:23 — "the gift of God is eternal life through Jesus Christ our Lord"
Rev 2:7 — "To him that overcometh will I give to eat of the tree of life"

2. Life as a Present Possession in the Son¶

ζωή is not only future; John especially presents it as already possessed (ἔχω, 28 shared verses) by those united with Christ. The Son himself is the source and location of this life.

John 5:26 — "the Father hath life in himself; so hath he given to the Son to have life in himself"
John 1:4 — "In him was life; and the life was the light of men"
1 John 5:12 — "He that hath the Son hath life; he that hath not the Son of God hath not life"
Col 3:4 — "When Christ, who is our life, shall appear"

3. Life Contrasted with Death¶

ζωή frequently stands in antithesis to θάνατος (19 shared verses) and to perishing (G622 ἀπόλλυμι). The contrast structures salvation language from Romans through Revelation.

John 5:24 — "hath everlasting life, and shall not come into condemnation; but is passed from death unto life"
Rom 8:2 — "the law of the Spirit of life in Christ Jesus hath made me free from the law of sin and death"
1 John 3:14 — "We know that we have passed from death unto life, because we love the brethren"
2 Cor 2:16 — "To the one the savour of death unto death; and to the other the savour of life unto life"

4. Symbolic Objects of Life¶

Life becomes a noun-modifier in key theological images: "bread of life" (John 6), "book of life" (Revelation), "tree of life" (Rev 22), "water of life" (Rev 22), "crown of life" (James 1:12).

John 6:35 — "I am the bread of life: he that cometh to me shall never hunger"
Rev 22:1 — "a pure river of water of life, clear as crystal"
Rev 22:2 — "the tree of life, which bare twelve manner of fruits"
Rev 20:12 — "another book was opened, which is the book of life"

5. Earthly / Biographical Life¶

A minor usage — present existence, lifespan, the quality of daily life. Never carries the eschatological weight of categories 1–2.

Luke 12:15 — "a man's life consisteth not in the abundance of the things which he possesseth"
Luke 16:25 — "in thy lifetime receivedst thy good things"
James 4:14 — "what is your life? It is even a vapour, that appeareth for a little time"
1 Cor 15:19 — "If in this life only we have hope in Christ, we are of all men most miserable"

6. Life as Divine Attribute / the Life of God¶

God and Christ are described as possessing or being the source of life — life as an essential quality of deity.

Acts 3:15 — "killed the Prince of life, whom God hath raised from the dead"
Eph 4:18 — "alienated from the life of God through the ignorance that is in them"
2 Pet 1:3 — "his divine power hath given unto us all things that pertain unto life and godliness"
John 17:3 — "this is life eternal, that they might know thee the only true God"

Common Collocations¶

Word	Strong's	Co-occurrences	Typical Pattern
αἰώνιος (aiṓnios)	G166	45x (36%)	"eternal life" — the most characteristic NT compound
ἔχω (echō)	G2192	28x (22%)	"hath/have eternal life" — present possession by faith
θεός (theós)	G2316	28x (22%)	"life of God", "gift of God is eternal life"
θάνατος (thánatos)	G2288	19x (15%)	antithesis: "death...but life"; "passed from death to life"
Ἰησοῦς (Iēsoûs)	G2424	18x (14%)	"eternal life through Jesus Christ"
Χριστός (Christós)	G5547	18x (14%)	"life which is in Christ", "Christ who is our life"
δίδωμι (dídōmi)	G1325	16x (13%)	"God gave eternal life", "I give eternal life"
υἱός (huiŏs)	G5207	13x (10%)	"he that hath the Son hath life"
πιστεύω (pisteúō)	G4100	12x (10%)	"whosoever believeth in him...hath eternal life"
πνεῦμα (pneûma)	G4151	8x (6%)	"Spirit of life in Christ Jesus"

Word Family / Cognates¶

G2198 ζάω (záō) — root verb: to live, be alive (127 verses)

Synonyms¶

G979 βίος (bíos) — life in the present state of existence; the closest lexical neighbor returned by search_relationships.py, but narrower and more biographical/material than ζωή.

Antonyms¶

G2288 θάνατος (thánatos) — death; the primary opposite of ζωή in NT salvation language.

Easily Confused Words¶

Word	Strong's	Shared Translation	Key Difference
ψυχή (psychē)	G5590	both "life" in KJV	ψυχή = individual personal soul/life (can be lost, saved, forfeited); ζωή = divine life-principle, especially its imperishable quality. John 12:25 uses both in one verse
βίος (bíos)	G979	both "life" in KJV	βίος = biographical life, material existence, livelihood; ζωή = vitality as divine gift, never merely material

Hebrew Source¶

Hebrew Source	Strong's	Co-occurrences	PMI Score	Notes
חַי (chay)	H2416	136	5.37	Primary — alive, living; LXX renders חַי regularly as ζωή
חָיָה (châyâh)	H2421	16	3.16	Verb: to live, be alive
נֶפֶשׁ (nephesh)	H5315	22	2.16	When nephesh means biological life rather than soul/person
מָוֶת (mâveth)	H4194	12	3.43	Antithetic pairing in LXX Proverbs and Psalms