G2512 — καθαρισμός (katharismos)¶

Core Data¶

Strong's: G2512
Original: καθαρισμός
Transliteration: katharismós
Pronunciation: kath-ar-is-mos
Part of Speech: Masculine noun
Root: καθαρίζω (katharizō, G2511) — to cleanse, make clean
Occurrences: 7 in NT (7 unique verses, 5 books)
First Occurrence: Mark 1:44 — "offer for thy cleansing those things which Moses commanded"
Hapax Legomenon: No

Lexicon Definition¶

From G2511 (katharizō); a washing off, i.e. (ceremonially) ablution, (morally) expiation.

Louw-Nida Semantic Domain¶

Domain: 53 — Religious Activities
Subdomain: 53.003 — Purify, Cleanse
Other words in subdomain: ἁγνίζω (G48), ἁγνισμός (G49), βαπτίζω (G907), βαπτισμός (G909), καθαρίζω (G2511), καθαρός (G2513), καθαρότης (G2514), ῥαντίζω (G4472)

UBS Semantic Domains¶

[053] Religious Activities — ritual purification, cleansing rites, and expiatory language.

search_relationships.py keeps καθαρισμός in the ritual-purity field, matching its NT use for prescribed purification and accomplished purging.

Translation Distribution (KJV)¶

Translation	Verses	%
cleansing	2	28.6%
purged (he was purged from)	1	14.3%
manner of the purifying	1	14.3%
purged	1	14.3%
purification	1	14.3%
purifying	1	14.3%

No single dominant translation — KJV uses six different renderings across seven verses, reflecting the word's breadth: ritual process ("purification," "purifying"), result of ritual ("cleansing"), and accomplished moral act ("purged").

Distribution by Book¶

Book	Count	Per 100 Verses
2 Peter	1	1.6
Hebrews	1	0.3
Luke	2	0.2
John	2	0.2
Mark	1	0.1

Exclusively Gospels + General Epistles. Absent from Paul's letters, Acts, and Revelation. Gospel occurrences are all tied to Mosaic ritual context; epistolary uses shift to Christ's accomplished work.

Morphological Distribution¶

Form	Case	Verses
καθαρισμοῦ	Genitive Sg	5 (Mark 1:44; Luke 2:22; Luke 5:14; John 3:25; 2 Peter 1:9)
καθαρισμόν	Accusative Sg	2 (John 2:6; Hebrews 1:3)

The genitive dominates (71%), typically in "of purification" constructions describing the type or purpose of an action. The accusative appears in direct-object position: "the manner of the purifying" (John 2:6) and "having made purification" (Hebrews 1:3).

Semantic Categories¶

1. Levitical Cleansing after Healing (Mosaic compliance)¶

Mark 1:44 — "offer for thy cleansing (katharismos) those things which Moses commanded, for a testimony unto them"
Luke 5:14 — "offer for thy cleansing (katharismos), according as Moses commanded, for a testimony unto them"

Both describe the post-healing leper presenting himself to the priest per Leviticus 14. Jesus heals, then directs compliance with the purification ritual — the katharismos is the prescribed ceremonial process.

2. Post-partum Purification (Mosaic Law)¶

Luke 2:22 — "when the days of her purification (katharismos) according to the law of Moses were accomplished, they brought him to Jerusalem"

Refers to Mary's purification period per Leviticus 12. A time-bounded ritual process ("the days of") culminating in temple presentation.

3. Jewish Ritual Purification Practice (Custom)¶

John 2:6 — "six waterpots of stone, after the manner of the purifying (katharismos) of the Jews, containing two or three firkins apiece"
John 3:25 — "there arose a question between some of John's disciples and the Jews about purifying (katharismos)"

In John's Gospel the word describes Jewish purification practice as a cultural institution. John 2:6 specifies stone vessels designated for ritual washing; John 3:25 introduces a dispute about purification that leads directly into the Baptist's testimony about Christ.

4. Christological Purging of Sin (Accomplished atonement)¶

Hebrews 1:3 — "when he had by himself purged (katharismos) our sins, sat down on the right hand of the Majesty on high"
2 Peter 1:9 — "hath forgotten that he was purged (katharismos) from his old sins"

The epistolary uses apply the purification concept to Christ's atoning work. Hebrews 1:3 treats it as a completed priestly act; 2 Peter 1:9 treats it as a past event the believer must remember.

Common Collocations¶

Word	Strong's	Co-occurrences	Typical Pattern
Μωσεύς (Moses)	G3475	3x (43%)	"according to / as Moses commanded" — links katharismos to Mosaic Law
ἁμαρτία (sin)	G266	2x (29%)	"purged our sins / from his old sins" — epistolary atonement usage
ἱερεύς (priest)	G2409	2x (29%)	"shew thyself to the priest" — leper-cleansing narratives
προσφέρω (offer)	G4374	2x (29%)	"offer for thy cleansing" — sacrifice accompanies purification
μαρτύριον (testimony)	G3142	2x (29%)	"for a testimony unto them" — cleansing serves as witness
προστάσσω (command)	G4367	2x (29%)	"things which Moses commanded" — purification as commanded rite
Ἰουδαῖος (Jews)	G2453	2x (29%)	"purifying of the Jews" / "the Jews about purifying" — Johannine usage

Word Family / Cognates¶

G2511 καθαρίζω (katharizō) — verb: to cleanse, make clean (29v) — G2511-katharizo.md
G2513 καθαρός (katharos) — adjective: clean, pure (27v)
G2514 καθαρότης (katharotēs) — noun: cleanness, purifying (1v, Heb 9:13 — hapax)
G169 ἀκάθαρτος (akathartos) — adjective: unclean (alpha-privative antonym; 30v)

Synonyms¶

search_relationships.py did not return a dedicated non-cognate synonym set for G2512 beyond the καθαρ- family and adjacent ritual-purity terms already listed in this study.

Antonyms¶

search_relationships.py did not return a dedicated antonym pair for G2512.

Easily Confused Words¶

Word	Strong's	Shared Translation	Key Difference
ἁγνισμός (hagnismos)	G49	"purification" (Acts 21:26)	hagnismos = Nazirite/temple purification rite; katharismos = broader cleansing from impurity or sin
βαπτισμός (baptismos)	G909	"washing" (Mark 7:4; Heb 9:10)	baptismos = the washing/immersion act itself; katharismos = the resulting state of purification
καθαρότης (katharotēs)	G2514	"purifying" (Heb 9:13)	katharotēs = abstract quality of cleanness; katharismos = the process or act of purification
καθαρίζω (katharizō)	G2511	"cleansing" / "purging"	katharizō = the verb (to cleanse); katharismos = the noun (the cleansing event/process)

Domain Neighbors (Louw-Nida 53.003)¶

Word	Strong's	Verses	Primary KJV	Key Difference
ἁγνίζω (hagnizō)	G48	4	purify	Focuses on cultic/votive purification (Nazirite vow); katharismos is broader
ἁγνισμός (hagnismos)	G49	1	purification	Noun of hagnizō; exclusively cultic; katharismos spans ritual → moral
βαπτίζω (baptizō)	G907	25	baptized	The immersion act; katharismos is the purification achieved by such rites
βαπτισμός (baptismos)	G909	4	washing, baptisms	Washing ceremonies broadly; katharismos specifies purification purpose
καθαρίζω (katharizō)	G2511	29	clean, cleanse	Parent verb; katharismos is its nominalization
καθαρός (katharos)	G2513	27	clean, pure	Adjectival state of being clean; katharismos is the process to get there
καθαρότης (katharotēs)	G2514	1	purifying	Abstract quality; katharismos = concrete event
ῥαντίζω (rhantizō)	G4472	3	sprinkled	Sprinkling action (blood/water); one specific mechanism of katharismos

Hebrew Source¶

Hebrew Source	Strong's	Co-occurrences	PMI	Notes
טׇהֳרָה (tohorah)	H2893	4	9.34	Primary — ceremonial purification; exact semantic match
עַל (al)	H5921	4	1.09	Preposition; structural co-occurrence, not semantic
בֵּן (ben)	H1121	3	0.91	"sons of" constructions in purification laws

The dominant Hebrew source is H2893 tohorah (PMI 9.34), the feminine noun from the taher root meaning "ceremonial purification, moral purity." This is a tight noun-to-noun alignment: both are process nouns derived from their respective "cleanse" verbs (taher/katharizō).