G2840 — κοινόω (koinóō)¶

Core Data¶

Strong's: G2840
Original: κοινόω
Transliteration: koinóō
Pronunciation: koy-no'-o
Part of Speech: Verb
Root: From G2839 κοινός (koinós) — common, shared, profane
Occurrences: 12 unique verses (17 tokens) in NT
First Occurrence: Matt 15:11 — "Not that which goeth into the mouth defileth (koinoí) a man; but that which cometh out of the mouth, this defileth a man."
Hapax Legomenon: No

Lexicon Definition¶

From κοινός (G2839); to make (or consider) profane (ceremonially): — call common, defile, pollute, make unclean.

The verb form of κοινός: to render something common, i.e. to remove it from the sphere of the holy or clean into the sphere of the ordinary or defiled. In the NT, used both of ritual/ceremonial defilement and of moral contamination proceeding from the heart.

Louw-Nida Semantic Domain¶

Domain: 53 — Religious Activities
Subdomain: 53.004 — Defile, Unclean, Common
Other words in subdomain: ἀκάθαρτος (G169), ἀλίσγημα (G234), ἀμίαντος (G283), βδέλυγμα (G946), βεβηλόω (G953), ἐρήμωσις (G2050), κοινός (G2839), μιαίνω (G3392), μολύνω (G3435), μολυσμός (G3436)

UBS Semantic Domains¶

[053] Religious Activities — to make common/profane or mark as defiled within ritual-purity discourse.

Greek Morphological Distribution¶

Form	Parsing	Count	Verses
κοινοῖ	Pres Act Ind 3S	6	Matt 15:11 (×2), 15:18, 15:20, Mark 7:20, 7:23
κοινοῦντα	Pres Act Ptcp NPN	2	Matt 15:20, Mark 7:15
κοινῶσαι	Aor Act Inf	2	Mark 7:15, 7:18
κοίνου	Pres Act Impv 2S	2	Acts 10:15, 11:9
κεκοίνωκεν	Perf Act Ind 3S	1	Acts 21:28
κεκοινωμένους	Perf Pass Ptcp APM	1	Heb 9:13

Pattern: Present tense dominates (12 of 14 occurrences), reflecting the gnomic/universal character of Jesus' teaching on defilement ("what defiles a man" as timeless principle). The two perfect forms mark completed states: one an accusation of accomplished desecration (Acts 21:28), the other a condition of being defiled (Heb 9:13). The sole passive occurrence (Heb 9:13) views defilement from the recipient's perspective. The imperative forms (Acts 10:15, 11:9) appear in the divine prohibition: "do not call common."

Translation Distribution (KJV)¶

Translation	Verses	%
defile	5	41.7%
defileth	3	25.0%
call common	2	16.7%
hath polluted	1	8.3%
that defileth	1	8.3%
unclean	1	8.3%

Note: Totals exceed 12 because some verses contain multiple tokens (Matt 15:11 has two, Matt 15:20 has two). The "defile/defileth" cluster accounts for 75% of usage; the "call common" rendering (Acts 10:15, 11:9) preserves the etymological link to κοινός.

Distribution by Book¶

Book	Count	Per 100 Verses
Mark	4	0.6
Matthew	3	0.3
Acts	3	0.3
Hebrews	1	0.3
Revelation	1	0.2

Pattern: Heavily concentrated in the Synoptic defilement discourse (Matt 15 + Mark 7 = 7 of 12 verses, 58%). Acts picks it up in the Cornelius clean/unclean narrative. Entirely absent from the Pauline epistles, the Johannine writings (except Rev 21:27), and the General Epistles (except Heb 9:13). The word is tied to specific controversies about purity boundaries, not to general moral vocabulary.

Semantic Categories¶

1. Moral Defilement from the Heart (Jesus' teaching on inner vs. outer purity)¶

The dominant use. Jesus redefines defilement as originating internally — from the heart — rather than from external food or unwashed hands. The things that "come out" of a person are what truly defile.

Matt 15:11 — "Not that which goeth into the mouth defileth a man; but that which cometh out of the mouth, this defileth a man."
Matt 15:18 — "But those things which proceed out of the mouth come forth from the heart; and they defile the man."
Matt 15:20 — "These are the things which defile a man: but to eat with unwashen hands defileth not a man."
Mark 7:15 — "There is nothing from without a man, that entering into him can defile him: but the things which come out of him, those are they that defile the man."
Mark 7:20 — "That which cometh out of the man, that defileth the man."
Mark 7:23 — "All these evil things come from within, and defile the man."

2. Recategorization of Clean/Unclean (Cornelius narrative)¶

God's voice commands Peter not to "make common" (i.e. consider profane) what God has cleansed. Here κοινόω is used in the prohibitive imperative — a human judgment of defilement being overruled by divine declaration.

Acts 10:15 — "What God hath cleansed, that call not thou common."
Acts 11:9 — "What God hath cleansed, that call not thou common."

3. Desecration of Sacred Space¶

Applied to the physical pollution of the Jerusalem temple — bringing Gentiles into forbidden precincts. The perfect tense (κεκοίνωκεν) marks a completed act of profanation.

Acts 21:28 — "This is the man, that teacheth all men every where against the people, and the law, and this place: and further brought Greeks also into the temple, and hath polluted this holy place."

4. Ritual Defilement Requiring Purification (Levitical frame)¶

The perfect passive participle describes persons in a state of having been defiled — the condition that the Levitical system of animal blood and ashes of a heifer was designed to address.

Heb 9:13 — "For if the blood of bulls and of goats, and the ashes of an heifer sprinkling the unclean, sanctifieth to the purifying of the flesh:"

5. Eschatological Exclusion¶

The present active participle used substantivally: "anything that defiles" is permanently excluded from the New Jerusalem, paired with abomination and falsehood.

Rev 21:27 — "And there shall in no wise enter into it any thing that defileth, neither whatsoever worketh abomination, or maketh a lie: but they which are written in the Lamb's book of life."

Common Collocations¶

Word	Strong's	Co-occurrences	Typical Pattern
ἐκπορεύομαι (ekporeuomai)	G1607	5x (42%)	"that which comes out of" a person defiles — the source of moral defilement
πᾶς (pas)	G3956	4x (33%)	Universalizing: "all these evil things," "nothing from without"
καθαρίζω (katharizo)	G2511	2x (17%)	Direct antonym: "what God hath cleansed, call not common"
εἰσπορεύομαι (eisporeuomai)	G1531	2x (17%)	"entering into" a man — the path that does NOT defile
στόμα (stoma)	G4750	2x (17%)	"out of the mouth" — organ of defilement in Matthew's account
φωνή (phone)	G5456	2x (17%)	"the voice" — God's voice overruling Peter's purity judgment

Word Family / Cognates¶

G2839 κοινός (koinós) — adjective: common, shared; ceremonially profane/unclean (12v). The base word from which κοινόω derives.
G2841 κοινωνέω (koinōnéō) — verb: to share, participate in, have fellowship (8v). Same root but positive valence — sharing in common.
G2842 κοινωνία (koinōnía) — noun: fellowship, communion, sharing (20v). The positive communal sense of the κοιν- root.
G2844 κοινωνός (koinōnós) — noun: sharer, partner, associate (10v). One who holds things in common.

Synonyms¶

βεβηλόω (G953) — to profane, desecrate; the closest tool-surfaced parallel in the sacred/profane register.

Antonyms¶

No antonyms were returned by search_relationships.py for G2840.

Easily Confused Words¶

Word	Strong's	Shared Translation	Key Difference
τάμα (tame) / טָמֵא	H2930	both "defile"	H2930 is the OT Levitical system's primary defilement verb (86v); κοινόω is NT-only and carries the semantic shift from ritual to moral defilement
μιαίνω (miaínō)	G3392	both "defile"	μιαίνω = stain, sully, taint (3v) — emphasizes the staining quality; κοινόω = make common/profane — emphasizes loss of sacred status
φθείρω (phtheírō)	G5351	both "defile" (1 Cor 3:17)	φθείρω = corrupt, destroy, ruin — broader destruction; κοινόω is specifically about purity boundaries
βεβηλόω (bebēlóō)	G953	both relate to profaning sacred things	βεβηλόω = to desecrate a sacred space/time (2v: Matt 12:5 temple, Acts 24:6 temple); κοινόω = to render common/defiled, broader range including persons and food

Domain Neighbors (Louw-Nida 53.004)¶

Word	Strong's	Total Verses	Primary KJV	Key Difference
ἀκάθαρτος (akáthartos)	G169	26	unclean	Adjective describing the state of being impure; often of spirits ("unclean spirit"); κοινόω is the verb of making something reach that state
ἀμίαντος (amíantos)	G283	4	undefiled	Negative adjective: un-defiled, unpolluted (Heb 7:26, 13:4, Jas 1:27, 1 Pet 1:4); antonym of κοινόω's result
βδέλυγμα (bdélygma)	G946	6	abomination	The detestable object/practice that provokes divine revulsion; κοινόω is the process of making something profane
βεβηλόω (bebēlóō)	G953	2	profane	Narrower: specifically desecrating sacred precincts; κοινόω is wider
κοινός (koinós)	G2839	7	common	The resulting state/adjective; κοινόω is the verbal action producing that state
μιαίνω (miaínō)	G3392	3	defile	Staining/sullying emphasis; κοινόω emphasizes the category shift from holy to common
μολύνω (molýnō)	G3435	4	defile	Soiling/besmirching, often of garments (Rev 3:4); κοινόω is about purity-status change

Hebrew Source¶

No strong LXX bridge. κοινόω is a distinctly Hellenistic-Jewish term that arose in the Second Temple period to describe the rendering of something ceremonially common/profane. The closest OT Hebrew equivalent by semantic correspondence (not LXX mapping) is H2490 חָלַל (chalal) in its Piel sense "to profane, make common" and H2930 טָמֵא (tame) "to be/make unclean."