G2851 — κόλασις (kólasis)¶

Core Data¶

Strong's: G2851
Original: κόλασις
Transliteration: kólasis
Pronunciation: kol'-as-is
Part of Speech: Feminine noun (n-f)
Root: κολάζω (G2849) — to curtail, punish; from κόλος (dwarf; something cut/cropped short)
Occurrences: 2 unique verses in NT
First Occurrence: Matt 25:46 — "And these shall go away into everlasting punishment"
Hapax Legomenon: No (2 occurrences across 2 books)

Lexicon Definition¶

From G2849 (κολάζω); penal infliction: punishment, torment.

Outlined usage references: Ezekiel 14:3 (LXX); Matthew 25:46; 1 John 4:18

Semantic Domains¶

Louw-Nida: - Domain: 38 — Punish, Reward - Subdomain: 38.1 (038001) — Punish - Other words in subdomain: βασανίζω (G928), δίκη (G1349), διχοτομέω (G1371), ἐκδικέω (G1556), ἐκδίκησις (G1557), ἔκδικος (G1558), ἐπιτιμία (G2009), ζημιόω (G2210), κολάζω (G2849), κρίσις (G2920)

UBS Semantic Domains: - [038] Punish, Reward

Translation Distribution (KJV)¶

Translation	Count	%
punishment	1	50%
torment	1	50%

Distribution by Book¶

Book	Count	Per 100 Verses
1 John	1	1.0
Matthew	1	0.1

Both occurrences in NT only; found in eschatological discourse (Matthew) and in epistolary argument about love and fear (1 John).

Semantic Categories¶

1. Eschatological/Judicial Punishment¶

The final penal sentence imposed at the last judgment — the κόλασις αἰώνιον contrasted with eternal life.

Matt 25:46 — "And these shall go away into everlasting punishment (κόλασιν αἰώνιον): but the righteous into life eternal."

2. The Tormenting Quality of Fear¶

The painful, punishing character of fear that grips those not perfected in love; κόλασις here describes the anguish that fear itself inflicts on a person.

1 John 4:18 — "There is no fear in love; but perfect love casteth out fear: because fear hath torment (κόλασιν). He that feareth is not made perfect in love."

Common Collocations¶

Word	Strong's	Co-occurrences	Typical Pattern
αἰώνιος (aiōnios)	G166	1x	"everlasting punishment" (Matt 25:46)
φόβος (phobos)	G5401	1x	"fear hath torment" (1 John 4:18)
ἀγάπη (agapē)	G26	1x	perfect love casting out the κόλασις of fear (1 John 4:18)
ζωή (zōē)	G2222	1x	κόλασις contrasted with eternal life (Matt 25:46)

Word Family / Cognates¶

G2849 κολάζω (kolazō) — root verb: to curtail, chastise, punish. Acts 4:21 ("how they might punish them"); 2 Pet 2:9 ("to reserve the unjust unto the day of judgment to be punished"). Derived from κόλος (cut short, dwarfed) — original idea of pruning/curtailing.

Synonyms¶

G5098 τιμωρία (timōria) — punishment, retributive penalty; the closest lexical overlap returned by search_relationships.py

Antonyms¶

G1342 δίκαιος (dikaios) — righteous, just; the clearest moral opposite to the penal consequence encoded in κόλασις

Easily Confused Words¶

Word	Strong's	Shared Translation	Key Difference
τιμωρία (timōria)	G5098	both → "punishment" (KJV)	timōria = retributive/vindictive penalty focused on the offender's due (Heb 10:29); kolasis = penal infliction with judicial/deterrent sense
βάσανος (basanos)	G931	both → "torment" (KJV)	basanos = physical torture; originally a touchstone for testing metal (Matt 4:24; Luke 16:23, 28); kolasis = judicial/penal suffering
βασανισμός (basanismos)	G929	both → "torment" (KJV)	basanismos = ongoing process of torment (Rev 14:11; 18:7, 10, 15); kolasis = the penal infliction itself

Domain Neighbors (Louw-Nida 038001 — Punish)¶

Strong's	Lemma	Total Verses	Primary KJV	Key Difference
G928	βασανίζω (basanizō)	4	tormented	active process of physical/supernatural torture vs. kolasis as judicial infliction
G1349	δίκη (dikē)	3	judgment	execution of justice, a legal penalty; more procedural than kolasis
G2009	ἐπιτιμία (epitimia)	1	punishment	community rebuke/censure (2 Cor 2:6); lighter, social register
G2849	κολάζω (kolazō)	2	punish	verb cognate: the act of punishing
G2920	κρίσις (krisis)	38	judgment	the verdict process; kolasis is the resulting penal sentence
G5098	τιμωρία (timōria)	1	punishment	vindictive retribution focused on desert; kolasis = penal infliction

Hebrew Source¶

κόλασις appears in the LXX at Ezekiel 14:3 (for idols as a stumbling block for punishment/consequence). The NT usage (only 2 verses) produces weak PMI statistics. The most theologically aligned Hebrew source:

Hebrew Source	Strong's	PMI Score	Notes
עָוֺן (ʻāvôn)	H5771	6.27	iniquity; also translated "punishment of iniquity" — encodes both the sin and its penal consequence

Note: Hebrew source PMI data is sparse due to only 2 NT occurrences; use with caution.