G2664 — καταπαύω (katapauō)¶

Core Data¶

Strong's: G2664
Original: καταπαύω
Transliteration: katapauō
Pronunciation: kat-ap-ow'-o
Part of Speech: Verb
Root: From κατά (G2596, "down") + παύω (G3973, "to stop, cease, pause")
Occurrences: 4 verses / 5 tokens in NT
First Occurrence: Acts 14:18 — "scarce restrained they the people, that they had not done sacrifice"
Hapax Legomenon: No

Lexicon Definition¶

Strong's: "from κατά and παύω; to settle down, i.e. (literally) to colonize, or (figuratively) to (cause to) desist." The compound combines the perfective/intensive force of κατά with παύω ("to stop, cause to cease"). Two distinct senses emerge: - Transitive / causative — "to cause to cease, to restrain, to bring (someone) to rest" (Acts 14:18; Heb 4:8). - Intransitive — "to rest, to cease (from)" (Heb 4:4, 4:10).

The cognate noun κατάπαυσις (G2663) is the nominal form of this verb's intransitive sense ("a resting, a rest, place of rest").

Louw-Nida Semantic Domain¶

Domain 023006 — Tire, Rest (Physiological Processes and States)
Domain 068004 — Cease, Stop (Aspect)
Other words in domains: ἀνάπαυσις (G372), ἀναπαύω (G373), ἡσυχάζω (G2270), κατάπαυσις (G2663), συναναπαύομαι (G4875), κοπιάω (G2872), ἀκατάπαυστος (G180)

The verb sits at the intersection of two domains — physical/restorative rest and aspectual cessation — which matches its split between the "rest" and "restrain/cease" senses.

Domain Neighbors (023006 — Tire, Rest)¶

Strong's	Lemma	Total Verses	Primary KJV Translation
G372	ἀνάπαυσις	5	rest
G373	ἀναπαύω	6	rest, are refreshed
G1590	ἐκλύω	3	faint
G2270	ἡσυχάζω	4	held their peace, rested
G2663	κατάπαυσις	8	rest
G2776	κεφαλή	65	head
G2827	κλίνω	4	lay, bowed down
G2872	κοπιάω	14	labour
G4875	συναναπαύομαι	2	be refreshed

Translation Distribution (KJV)¶

Translation	Count	%
rest (causative/noun complement)	1	25%
did rest (intransitive)	1	25%
hath ceased (intransitive)	1	25%
restrained (causative)	1	25%

The four occurrences each receive a distinct KJV rendering, reflecting both the transitive ("restrain," "give rest") and intransitive ("rest," "cease") senses.

Distribution by Book¶

Book	Count	Per 100 Verses
Hebrews	3	1.0
Acts	1	0.1

The word is rare and heavily concentrated in Hebrews 4, where the writer builds an extended argument from Genesis 2:2 about God's "rest." The single occurrence in Acts is unrelated thematically — a causative use ("restrain the crowd"). Outside Hebrews 4 the verb carries no theological weight.

Morphological Note¶

All four NT occurrences are aorist active indicative third person:

Reference	Form	Parsing
Acts 14:18	κατέπαυσαν	Aor Act Ind 3rd Plural
Hebrews 4:4	κατέπαυσεν	Aor Act Ind 3rd Singular
Hebrews 4:8	κατέπαυσεν	Aor Act Ind 3rd Singular
Hebrews 4:10	κατέπαυσεν	Aor Act Ind 3rd Singular

The verb appears only in the active voice and only as a completed (aorist) action in the NT.

Semantic Categories¶

1. Causative — to restrain, hold back, prevent action¶

The transitive sense: causing others to cease an intended act. - Acts 14:18 — "with these sayings scarce restrained they the people, that they had not done sacrifice unto them"

2. Causative — to give rest, bring (someone) into rest¶

The transitive sense applied to bringing a group into a state of rest (the question being whether Joshua accomplished this). - Hebrews 4:8 — "For if Jesus [Joshua] had given them rest, then would he not afterward have spoken of another day"

3. Intransitive — to rest, to cease from work¶

The intransitive sense: the subject itself ceases activity. Drawn from the Genesis 2:2 quotation. - Hebrews 4:4 — "And God did rest the seventh day from all his works" - Hebrews 4:10 — "he that is entered into his rest, he also hath ceased from his own works, as God did from his"

Common Collocations¶

Word	Strong's	Co-occurrences	Typical Pattern
ἔργον (érgon)	G2041	2x (50%)	"rest/cease from his works" (Heb 4:4, 4:10)
θεός (theós)	G2316	2x (50%)	God as the one who rests / gives rest
ἡμέρα (hēméra)	G2250	2x (50%)	"the seventh day"; "another day"
ἕβδομος (hébdomos)	G1442	1x (25%)	"the seventh day" — Gen 2:2 echo
κατάπαυσις (katápausis)	G2663	1x (25%)	cognate noun "rest" in same context (Heb 4:8)
εἰσέρχομαι (eisérchomai)	G1525	1x (25%)	"entered into his rest" (Heb 4:10)

The collocational profile in Hebrews 4 is dominated by ἔργον ("works"), θεός ("God"), and ἡμέρα ("day") — the verb describes God ceasing from His works on the seventh day.

Word Family / Cognates¶

G3973 παύω (paúō) — the simple verb: "to stop, cease, pause" (the uncompounded root).
G2596 κατά (katá) — preposition/prefix "down, against," supplying the perfective force.
G2663 κατάπαυσις (katápausis) — cognate noun: "a rest, resting place" (the nominalized intransitive sense).
G180 ἀκατάπαυστος (akatápaustos) — adjective with alpha-privative: "unceasing, that cannot cease" (the negated form).

Easily Confused Words¶

Word	Strong's	Shared Translation	Key Difference
κατάπαυσις	G2663	"rest"	G2663 is the noun (the state/place of rest); G2664 is the verb (the act of resting or causing to rest)
ἀναπαύω	G373	"rest, refresh"	ἀναπαύω stresses refreshment/relief from toil (κατά vs. ἀνά); used of Christ giving rest (Mat 11:28)
παύω	G3973	"cease"	παύω is the bare verb "stop/cease" without the κατά intensifier; broader, non-rest contexts
ἡσυχάζω	G2270	"rest, held peace"	ἡσυχάζω = keep still, be quiet (refrain from speech/activity), not cessation from labor

Hebrew Source¶

Through the LXX, καταπαύω most often renders Hebrew rest/cessation verbs:

Hebrew Source	Strong's	Co-occ	PMI	Notes
נוּחַ (nûach)	H5117	18	6.79	"to rest, settle down" — primary equivalent
שָׁבַת (shâbath)	H7673	14	6.43	"to cease, desist, keep sabbath" — strong secondary
כָּלָה (kâlâh)	H3615	7	3.90	"to end, complete, finish"
שָׁקַט (shâqaṭ)	H8252	3	4.95	"to be quiet, repose"
רָפָה (râphâh)	H7503	3	4.81	"to slacken, let go"

The Genesis 2:2 quotation behind Hebrews 4:4 stands behind the LXX use of καταπαύω for שָׁבַת (shâbath, "and God rested/ceased"), the verb root of "Sabbath." The two leading Hebrew bridges — נוּחַ and שָׁבַת — are precisely the two OT rest-concepts the writer of Hebrews fuses in his argument.