G2671 — κατάρα (katara)¶

Core Data¶

Strong's: G2671
Original: κατάρα
Transliteration: katara
Pronunciation: kat-ar'-ah
Part of Speech: Feminine noun
Root: κατά (kata, G2596, intensive) + ἀρά (ara, G685, imprecation) — an intensified curse
Occurrences: 6 tokens in 5 unique verses across 4 NT books
First Occurrence: Gal 3:10 — "For as many as are of the works of the law are under the curse"
Hapax Legomenon: No

Lexicon Definition¶

Imprecation, execration; an intensified form from kata (down upon) + ara (prayer/imprecation). Denotes a pronounced curse — a formal declaration of doom or condemnation, not a casual insult or personal malediction.

Louw-Nida Semantic Domain¶

Domain: 33.055 — Bless, Curse
Parent Domain: 33 — Communication
Other words in subdomain: ἀνάθεμα (G331), ἀναθεματίζω (G332), ἀρά (G685), ἐπικατάρατος (G1944), εὐλογέω (G2127), εὐλογία (G2129), κατάθεμα (G2652a), καταράομαι (G2672)

Domain Neighbors (33.055 — Bless, Curse)¶

Strong's	Lemma	Total Verses	Primary KJV Translation
G331	ἀνάθεμα	6	accursed, Anathema
G332	ἀναθεματίζω	3	bound (under a curse)
G685	ἀρά	1	cursing
G1944	ἐπικατάρατος	3	Cursed, cursed
G2127	εὐλογέω	23	blessed
G2129	εὐλογία	9	blessing
G2672	καταράομαι	4	curse

Translation Distribution (KJV)¶

Translation	Verses	%
the curse	1	17%
curse	1	17%
a curse	1	17%
unto cursing	1	17%
cursed	1	17%
cursing	1	17%

Every occurrence is rendered with some form of "curse." No semantic diffusion into unrelated English words.

Distribution by Book¶

Book	Count	Per 100 Verses
2 Peter	1	1.6
Galatians	2	1.3
James	1	0.9
Hebrews	1	0.3

Exclusively epistolary. Galatians accounts for 40% of all tokens (2 of the 3 occurrences in Gal 3:10, 13 carry the heaviest theological freight). Absent from the Gospels, Acts, and Revelation.

Morphological Distribution¶

Form	Parsing	Verse
κατάραν	Acc Sg F	Gal 3:10
κατάρας	Gen Sg F	Gal 3:13a
κατάρα	Nom Sg F	Gal 3:13b
κατάρας	Gen Sg F	Heb 6:8
κατάρα	Nom Sg F	Jas 3:10
κατάρας	Gen Sg F	2 Pet 2:14

Genitive singular is the most common form (3 of 6 tokens). No plural forms occur in the NT.

Semantic Categories¶

1. Covenant Curse — Deuteronomic Penalty for Law-Breaking¶

Gal 3:10 — "as many as are of the works of the law are under the curse: for it is written, Cursed is every one that continueth not in all things which are written in the book of the law to do them" (quoting Deut 27:26)
Gal 3:13 — "Christ hath redeemed us from the curse of the law, being made a curse for us: for it is written, Cursed is every one that hangeth on a tree" (quoting Deut 21:23)

Both Galatians uses cite Deuteronomy, framing katara as the covenant penalty pronounced on Israel for disobedience — not a personal malediction but a corporate, juridical sentence.

2. Agricultural/Land Curse — Barren Ground Under Judgment¶

Heb 6:8 — "But that which beareth thorns and briers is rejected, and is nigh unto cursing; whose end is to be burned"

The curse on unfruitful land echoes Gen 3:17-18 (ground cursed, producing thorns). The agricultural metaphor applies to persons who receive spiritual rain but bear no fruit.

3. Speech-Act Curse — Human Imprecation¶

Jas 3:10 — "Out of the same mouth proceedeth blessing and cursing. My brethren, these things ought not so to be"

Here katara is the opposite of eulogia (blessing) as a speech act — words spoken against persons. James treats this as a moral contradiction when directed at those made in God's image.

4. Habitual Cursing — Character of False Teachers¶

2 Pet 2:14 — "Having eyes full of adultery, and that cannot cease from sin; beguiling unstable souls: an heart they have exercised with covetous practices; cursed children"

The genitive katara modifies "children" (tekna kataras = "children of a curse"), describing false teachers whose character is defined by the curse they live under and propagate.

Common Collocations¶

Word	Strong's	Co-occurrences	Typical Pattern
νόμος (nomos)	G3551	2x (40%)	"curse of the law" — katara as penalty for law-breaking
ἐπικατάρατος (epikataratos)	G1944	2x (40%)	Deuteronomic quotation formula: katara + "cursed is..."
γίνομαι (ginomai)	G1096	2x (40%)	"being made (genomenos) a curse" — substitutionary formula
γράφω (grapho)	G1125	2x (40%)	"it is written" — Scripture citation introducing the curse
πᾶς (pas)	G3956	2x (40%)	"every one" — universality of the curse

Word Family / Cognates¶

G2672 καταράομαι (kataraomai) — verb form: to execrate, to doom; 4 unique verses (Matt 25:41, Mark 11:21, Luke 6:28, Rom 12:14, Jas 3:9)
G685 ἀρά (ara) — root noun: imprecation, prayer-turned-curse; 1 verse (Rom 3:14)
G1944 ἐπικατάρατος (epikataratos) — adjective: accursed, under a curse; 3 verses (Gal 3:10, 13; John 7:49)

Synonyms¶

G3680 ὀνειδισμός (oneidismos) — reproach, reviling (shame-oriented; katara is doom-oriented)
G685 ἀρά (ara) — imprecation (simple curse; katara is the intensified compound form)

Antonyms¶

G2129 εὐλογία (eulogia) — blessing, benediction (direct opposite; paired explicitly in Jas 3:10)

Easily Confused Words¶

Word	Strong's	Shared Translation	Key Difference
ἀνάθεμα (anathema)	G331	"accursed"	Devotion to destruction, religious ban; katara is juridical sentence
καταράομαι (kataraomai)	G2672	"curse"	Verb (the act of cursing); katara is the noun (the curse itself)
κακολογέω (kakologeo)	G2551	"curseth"	To speak evil of, revile; katara is a formal pronouncement of doom
ἐπικατάρατος (epikataratos)	G1944	"cursed"	Adjective describing one under katara; the state vs. the sentence

Hebrew Source¶

Hebrew Source	Strong's	Co-occurrence	PMI Score
קְלָלָה (qelalah)	H7045	26x	29.93
בְּרָכָה (berakah)	H1293	11x	17.11
אָלָה (alah)	H423	3x	8.39
מִצְוָה (mitsvah)	H4687	3x	4.93

The primary Hebrew source is H7045 qelalah (vilification, curse), which maps to katara in 26 of 33 LXX occurrences — an extremely strong one-to-one bridge. The berakah co-occurrence reflects the Deuteronomic blessing-and-curse formulae (Deut 11:26, 28:2-15, 30:1, 19).