G4442 — πῦρ (pŷr)¶

Core Data¶

Strong's: G4442
Original: πῦρ
Transliteration: pŷr
Pronunciation: poor
Part of Speech: Neuter noun
Root: Primary word (no Greek ancestor; cognate with Latin purus, English "fire")
Occurrences: 73 unique verses (74 tokens) across 14 NT books
First Occurrence: Mat 3:10 — "every tree which bringeth not forth good fruit is hewn down, and cast into the fire"
Hapax Legomenon: No

Lexicon Definition¶

A primary word; "fire" (literally or figuratively, especially lightning):—fiery, fire.

Louw-Nida Semantic Domain¶

Domain 002.003: Natural Substances — Fire
Other words in subdomain: ἀνθρακιά (G0439) coal fire, πυρά (G4443) bonfire/pyre, φλόξ (G5395) flame, φῶς (G5457) light
Also classified in 039.002: Division/Hostility — for figurative uses (e.g., Luk 12:49 "fire on the earth"; Jas 3:6 "tongue is a fire")

UBS Semantic Domains¶

Code	Domain Label	Notes
002	Natural Substances	`search_relationships.py` places pyr in the literal material/fire field, matching its primary sense as fire itself.
039	Hostility, Strife	The tool also classifies figurative and judgment uses where fire functions as an image of hostility, division, or punitive force.

Translation Distribution (KJV)¶

Translation	Verses	%
fire	38	52%
of fire	16	22%
with fire	8	11%
the fire	6	8%
a fire	2	3%
fiery	1	1%
in the fire	1	1%
unto fire	1	1%

All translations are variants of "fire"; no semantic range ambiguity. The variety reflects KJV prepositional rendering of Greek genitive/dative constructions.

Distribution by Book¶

Book	Count	Per 100 Verses
Revelation	25	6.2
James	3	2.8
2 Thessalonians	1	2.1
Hebrews	5	1.7
2 Peter	1	1.6
Mark	8	1.2
Matthew	12	1.1
1 Peter	1	1.0
Luke	7	0.6
1 Corinthians	2	0.5
Acts	4	0.4
Romans	1	0.2
John	1	0.1
Jude	2	—

Pattern: Revelation dominates at over a third of all occurrences (25/73). Mark and Matthew reflect Jesus' heavy use of fire in eschatological warnings. The Gospels + Revelation account for 53 of 73 verses — fire language is driven by eschatological and apocalyptic discourse.

Semantic Categories¶

1. Eschatological Punishment (Lake of Fire / Gehenna)¶

Eternal fire as the final destiny of the wicked — the unquenchable fire, the lake burning with fire.

Mat 25:41 — "Depart from me, ye cursed, into everlasting fire, prepared for the devil and his angels"
Mar 9:44 — "Where their worm dieth not, and the fire is not quenched" (also vv. 46, 48)
Rev 20:14-15 — "And death and hell were cast into the lake of fire… whosoever was not found written in the book of life was cast into the lake of fire"
Jude 1:7 — "suffering the vengeance of eternal fire" (Sodom as type)

2. Judgment Parables / Destruction of the Unfruitful¶

Fire as the instrument of divine sentence — cut down and cast into the fire; tares gathered and burned.

Mat 3:10, 12 — "every tree which bringeth not forth good fruit is hewn down, and cast into the fire… the chaff he will burn with fire unquenchable"
Mat 7:19 — "Every tree that bringeth not forth good fruit is hewn down, and cast into the fire"
Mat 13:40, 42, 50 — "gathered and burned in the fire… cast them into a furnace of fire"
2Th 1:8 — "In flaming fire taking vengeance on them that know not God"

3. Divine Theophany / God's Presence¶

Fire as visible manifestation of God or the exalted Christ — consuming, radiant, holy.

Heb 12:29 — "our God is a consuming fire"
Acts 2:3 — "there appeared unto them cloven tongues like as of fire" (Pentecost)
Rev 1:14; 2:18 — "his eyes were as a flame of fire" (the risen Christ)
Acts 7:30 — "an angel of the Lord in a flame of fire in a bush" (burning bush, Stephen's speech)
Rev 4:5 — "seven lamps of fire burning before the throne"

4. Cosmic / Apocalyptic Plagues¶

Fire as a force in Revelation's cosmic judgment scenes — cast upon the earth, mingled with blood.

Rev 8:5, 7-8 — fire from the altar cast to the earth; hail and fire mingled with blood
Rev 9:17-18 — "breastplates of fire… fire and smoke and brimstone… the third part of men killed, by the fire"
Rev 13:13 — the false prophet "maketh fire come down from heaven"
2Pe 3:7 — "the earth… reserved unto fire against the day of judgment"
Luk 17:29 — "rained fire and brimstone from heaven… destroyed them all" (Sodom as anti-type)

5. Testing / Refining / Purifying¶

Fire as a metaphor for trial, purification, or proving — the testing of faith like gold; works revealed.

1Pe 1:7 — "the trial of your faith… though it be tried with fire, [is] more precious than gold"
1Co 3:13, 15 — "it shall be revealed by fire… but he himself shall be saved; yet so as by fire"
Rev 3:18 — "I counsel thee to buy of me gold tried in the fire, that thou mayest be rich"
Heb 11:34 — "quenched the violence of fire" (heroes of faith)

6. Figurative / Metaphorical¶

Fire as an image of the tongue's destructive power, of hostile division, or of moral obligation.

Jas 3:5-6 — "how great a matter a little fire kindleth… the tongue is a fire, a world of iniquity"
Luk 12:49 — "I am come to send fire on the earth; and what will I, if it be already kindled?"
Rom 12:20 — "in so doing thou shalt heap coals of fire on his head"
Jude 1:23 — "others save with fear, pulling them out of the fire"

Common Collocations¶

Word	Strong's	Co-occurrences	Typical Pattern
βάλλω (cast)	G906	19x (26%)	"cast into the fire" — judgment formula
ἄγγελος (angel)	G32	11x (15%)	angelic fire-bearers in Revelation
θεός (God)	G2316	9x (12%)	"God is a consuming fire"; divine wrath
ποιέω (make/do)	G4160	9x (12%)	"maketh fire come down" — miraculous acts
γῆ (earth)	G1093	8x (11%)	fire cast upon the earth — cosmic judgment
θεῖον (brimstone)	G2303	7x (10%)	"fire and brimstone" — Sodom archetype
κατακαίω (burn up)	G2618	7x (10%)	complete consumption; "utterly burned"
οὐρανός (heaven)	G3772	7x (10%)	fire from heaven — divine origin of judgment
γέεννα (Gehenna)	G1067	6x (8%)	"Gehenna of fire" — eternal punishment site
φλόξ (flame)	G5395	6x (8%)	"flame of fire" — theophanic appearance
καίω (burn)	G2545	6x (8%)	"burning with fire" — continuous combustion
ὀφθαλμός (eye)	G3788	6x (8%)	"eyes as a flame of fire" — Christ's gaze

Word Family (πῦρ root)¶

G4443 πυρά (pyrá) — a concrete fire/pyre; bonfire built for warmth or disposal
G4445 πυρέσσω (pyressō) — to have a fever (burning in the body)
G4446 πυρετός (pyretos) — fever
G4447 πύρινος (pyrinos) — fiery-colored (Rev 9:17 "breastplates of fire")
G4448 πυρόω (pyroō) — to set on fire, burn; figuratively to be inflamed with desire
G4449 πυρράζω (pyrrazō) — to be fiery-red (sky color, Mat 16:2-3)
G4450 πυρρός (pyrrhos) — fire-red (Rev 6:4 "red horse"; 12:3 "red dragon")
G4451 πύρωσις (pyrōsis) — burning, fiery trial; the process of fire (1Pe 4:12; Rev 18:9,18)

Synonyms¶

G5462 φωτισμός (phōtismós) — illumination, light; a neighboring radiance term surfaced by search_relationships.py within the wider fire/light field.
G5464 χάλαζα (chálaza) — hail; paired with fire in Revelation's judgment imagery, so the relationship tool surfaces it as a close study-neighbor rather than a strict lexical equivalent.
G5395 φλόξ (phlóx) — flame; the visible blaze or flaming expression of fire.

Antonyms¶

No antonyms were returned by search_relationships.py for G4442.

Easily Confused Words¶

Word	Strong's	Shared Translation	Key Difference
πυρά (pyrá)	G4443	"fire" / "a fire"	πυρά = a specific built fire (pile of wood); πῦρ = fire as substance or phenomenon
φλόξ (phlox)	G5395	"flame of fire"	φλόξ emphasizes the visible, leaping flame; πῦρ is the fire itself
ἀνθρακιά (anthrakia)	G0439	"fire" (coal fire)	ἀνθρακιά = glowing charcoal-fire specifically; πῦρ = fire generically
φῶς (phōs)	G5457	"fire" (2x)	φῶς = light; KJV rarely translates it "fire" — distinct concept

Hebrew Source (via LXX)¶

Hebrew Source	Strong's	Co-occurrences	PMI Score	Notes
אֵשׁ (ʼêsh)	H784	316	5.77	Primary OT equivalent; generic fire
שָׂרַף (sâraph)	H8313	68	5.26	Verb "to burn/consume" — shares fire context
בָּעַר (bâʻar)	H1197	40	4.76	Kindle, burn; also figurative consumption
לֶהָבָה (lehâbâh)	H3852	16	5.71	Flame — close synonym of φλόξ
נוּר (nûwr)	H5135	12	5.77	Aramaic "fire" (Dan 3) — Dan's furnace narrative
גֶּחֶל (gechel)	H1513	13	5.41	Coal/ember — burning coals

The dominant LXX bridge is H784 אֵשׁ (316 co-occurrences), the primary Hebrew word for fire. πῦρ serves as the standard LXX translation of אֵשׁ throughout the Septuagint, carrying OT fire theology — Sinai, the sacrificial altar, divine judgment — directly into NT usage.