G684 — ἀπώλεια (apōleia)¶

Core Data¶

Strong's: G684
Original: ἀπώλεια
Transliteration: apōleia
Pronunciation: ap-o'-li-a
Part of Speech: Feminine noun
Root: From a presumed derivative of G622 ἀπόλλυμι (apóllymi, "to destroy fully, ruin, lose") — itself from ἀπό (ap- intensive) + the base of ὄλλυμι (to destroy)
Occurrences: 20 tokens in 19 unique NT verses (BLB lists also Rev 19:20 in the outline, giving 20 verses in some textual bases); 11 NT books
First Occurrence (canonical NT): Matt 7:13 — "broad is the way, that leadeth to destruction"
Hapax Legomenon: No

Lexicon Definition¶

From Strong's: "Ruin or loss (physical, spiritual, or eternal)." Built on G622 ἀπόλλυμι, the verb of destruction/ruin/loss. The noun denotes (1) the act or state of ruin (destruction, wastage); (2) the condition of loss (perishing, being lost); and (3) the destiny or outcome of ruin (perdition, final destruction). In the NT it is overwhelmingly a negative-eschatological term, contrasted with σωτηρία (salvation) and ζωή (life).

Louw-Nida Semantic Domain¶

Domain 20.031 — Violence, Harm, Destroy, Kill → Destroy Glosses: destruction | waste | ruin
Domain 65 — Value / 65.001 Valuable, Lacking in Value (waste sense, when a thing of value is squandered, e.g. Matt 26:8, Mark 14:4)
Other words in subdomain 20.031 "Destroy": ἀπόλλυμι (G622), ἀφανίζω, διαφθείρω, ἐξολεθρεύω, καθαίρεσις (G2506), καταλύω (G2647), καταστροφή, ὄλεθρος (G3639), ὀλοθρεύω (G3645), πορθέω, φθορά (G5356)

Translation Distribution (KJV)¶

Translation	Verses	%
destruction	5	26.3%
perdition	5	26.3%
of perdition (genitive construction)	3	15.8%
waste	2	10.5%
damnable	1	5.3%
damnation	1	5.3%
die	1	5.3%
perish	1	5.3%
pernicious ways	1	5.3%

KJV uses two main English equivalents ("destruction" and "perdition") at equal rates. "Perdition" is KJV's preferred rendering in eschatologically loaded contexts (John 17:12; 2 Thess 2:3; Rev 17:8, 11; Heb 10:39); "destruction" is used for more general ruin (Matt 7:13; Rom 9:22; 2 Pet 2:1, 3:16).

Distribution by Book¶

Book	Count	Per 100 Verses
2 Peter	5	8.2
2 Thessalonians	1	2.1
1 Timothy	1	0.9
Revelation	2	0.5
Hebrews	1	0.3
Matthew	2	0.2
Romans	1	0.2
Acts	2	0.2
Mark	1	0.1
John	1	0.1
Philippians	2	—

Pattern: Sharply concentrated in 2 Peter (by density — 5 uses in 61 verses, a distinctly polemical book against false teachers). Secondary concentration in the eschatological cluster (2 Thess, Revelation, Hebrews). Absent from the Synoptic tradition outside two Matthean verses and one Markan parallel to Matt 26:8. Absent from Johannine epistles, Pauline major epistles except Romans/Philippians (one each). Petrine, apocalyptic, and Pauline-eschatological contexts dominate.

Semantic Categories¶

1. Final / Eschatological Ruin (the eternal destiny of the wicked)¶

Matt 7:13 — "broad is the way, that leadeth to destruction (apōleia)"
Rom 9:22 — "vessels of wrath fitted to destruction (apōleia)"
Phil 3:19 — "whose end is destruction (apōleia), whose God is their belly"
2 Pet 3:7 — "reserved unto fire against the day of judgment and perdition (apōleia) of ungodly men"

2. "Son of Perdition" — Destiny-Genitive Construction (ὁ υἱὸς τῆς ἀπωλείας)¶

Only two NT uses of this exact construction: - John 17:12 — "none of them is lost, but the son of perdition (ho huios tēs apōleias); that the scripture might be fulfilled" (of Judas) - 2 Thess 2:3 — "that man of sin be revealed, the son of perdition (ho huios tēs apōleias)" (of the eschatological opponent)

The genitive τῆς ἀπωλείας functions as a Semitic "son of" idiom of destiny/character (cf. Hebrew ben-māwet "son of death" 1 Sam 20:31; ben-bᵉliyyaʿal "son of Belial"): the person is characterized by and destined for apōleia. It does not say what caused the perdition — it labels the person as belonging to that end.

3. The Beast's End — "Goeth into Perdition"¶

Rev 17:8 — "shall ascend out of the bottomless pit, and go into perdition (apōleia)"
Rev 17:11 — "and goeth into perdition (apōleia)"
(BLB outline lists Rev 19:20 in the canon of occurrences, where the beast and false prophet are cast alive into the lake of fire, an apōleia scene if textually included.)

Here apōleia functions almost as a destination/terminus — a place or state the beast "goes into."

4. Waste / Squandering (G684 as loss of value)¶

Matt 26:8 — "To what purpose is this waste (apōleia)?" (of the ointment poured on Jesus)
Mark 14:4 — "Why was this waste (apōleia) of the ointment made?"

Here the word is not eschatological but economic — value destroyed uselessly. Louw-Nida Domain 65 ("Value, Lacking in Value") captures this sense.

5. Perishing / Immediate Ruin¶

Acts 8:20 — "Thy money perish (eis apōleian) with thee" — Peter to Simon Magus; literally "be unto destruction"
Acts 25:16 — "not the manner of the Romans to deliver any man to die (eis apōleian)" — of capital punishment/execution

6. False Teachers & Their Followers — Heresy-Induced Ruin¶

2 Pet 2:1 — "damnable heresies (haireseis apōleias) … swift destruction (apōleia)"
2 Pet 2:2 — "their pernicious ways (tais apōleiais autōn)"
2 Pet 2:3 — "their damnation (apōleia) slumbereth not"
2 Pet 3:16 — "wrest, as they do also the other scriptures, unto their own destruction (apōleia)"
1 Tim 6:9 — "drown men in destruction (olethros, G3639) and perdition (apōleia)" — paired with G3639 as a doublet

7. Apostasy — Drawing Back¶

Heb 10:39 — "we are not of them who draw back unto perdition (apōleia); but of them that believe to the saving (eis peripoiēsin) of the soul"

Contrast between apōleia (drawing back) and peripoiēsis/sōtēria (believing) frames it as the alternative destiny.

Destiny-Genitive Semantics (Grammar Note)¶

The construction υἱὸς τῆς ἀπωλείας ("son of apōleia") is a Semitic-influenced genitive of destiny/characterization, not origin. Compare: - τέκνα ὀργῆς — "children of wrath" (Eph 2:3) — destined for wrath - υἱοὶ τῆς ἀπειθείας — "sons of disobedience" (Eph 2:2, 5:6) - υἱοὶ φωτός — "sons of light" (1 Thess 5:5)

In these constructions the governing noun's genitive names the sphere, character, or destined outcome of the person. ὁ υἱὸς τῆς ἀπωλείας therefore means "the one whose character and destiny are apōleia" — not "the one produced by destruction" but "the one belonging to / destined for destruction." The definite article (ὁ … τῆς) in both John 17:12 and 2 Thess 2:3 makes the designation a quasi-title rather than a generic description.

The same grammatical pattern with εἰς + accusative (εἰς ἀπώλειαν — Acts 8:20; Rom 9:22 "fitted to [destruction]"; Heb 10:39 "unto perdition") also carries a destiny-directional sense: heading toward / bound for apōleia.

Common Collocations¶

Word	Strong's	Co-occurrences	Typical Pattern
ἄνθρωπος (ánthrōpos)	G444	4× (21%)	"men" who fall into / go to apōleia (1 Tim 6:9; 2 Pet 3:7)
θεός (theós)	G2316	4× (21%)	God as agent/contrast; "their God is belly" (Phil 3:19); God endures vessels of apōleia (Rom 9:22)
πολύς (polýs)	G4183	4× (21%)	"many" going broad-way (Matt 7:13); "many" following pernicious ways (2 Pet 2:2)
υἱός (huios)	G5207	2× (11%)	ὁ υἱὸς τῆς ἀπωλείας (John 17:12; 2 Thess 2:3)
ὑπάγω (hupagō)	G5217	2× (11%)	beast "goeth into (hupagei eis) perdition" (Rev 17:8, 11)
ὁδός (hodós)	G3598	2× (11%)	"way that leadeth to destruction" (Matt 7:13); "way of truth" contrasted (2 Pet 2:2)
θηρίον (thēríon)	G2342	2× (11%)	the beast that goes into perdition (Rev 17:8, 11)
λόγος / γραφή (lógos / graphē)	G3056 / G1124	2× / 2×	Scripture-fulfillment framing (John 17:12; 2 Pet 3:16)

Word Family / Cognates¶

G622 ἀπόλλυμι (apóllymi) — the verb "to destroy, ruin, lose, perish"; the action whose outcome/state is apōleia (92 NT uses)
G623 Ἀπολλύων (Apollyōn) — "Destroyer" (Rev 9:11), personal name built on the same root; Greek rendering of Hebrew Abaddon
G684 apōleia — the noun: the ruin itself, or the state/destiny of ruin

Synonyms¶

G4979 σχοινίον (schoinion) — ropes, small cords
G2873 κόπος (kopos) — labour, toil, weariness
G3709 ὀργή (orgē) — wrath, anger
G150 αἰσχρός (aischros) — shameful, filthy

Antonyms¶

No direct antonyms were identified by search_relationships.py.

UBS Semantic Domains¶

[020] Violence, Harm, Destroy, Kill — includes ἄγριος (G66), ἀδικέω (G91), αἷμα (G129), αἴρω (G142), ἀναίρεσις (G336), ἀναιρέω (G337)
[065] Value — includes ἀγαθός (G18), ἀδόκιμος (G96), ἄκαρπος (G175), ἀλυσιτελής (G255), ἀνάξιος (G370), ἀναξίως (G371)

Easily Confused Words (shared translation "destruction")¶

Word	Strong's	Uses	Key Difference
ὄλεθρος (ólethros)	G3639	4×	Emphasizes violent ruin, sudden breaking (1 Thess 5:3; 1 Tim 6:9; 2 Thess 1:9). Paired with apōleia in 1 Tim 6:9 as a doublet — not synonymous but overlapping.
καθαίρεσις (kathaíresis)	G2506	3×	"Tearing down," demolition (2 Cor 10:4, 8; 13:10). Constructive/corrective nuance possible.
φθορά (phthorá)	G5356	9×	"Corruption, decay" — gradual rot, not sudden ruin. Used of moral/physical corruption.
σύντριμμα (syntrimma)	G4938	1×	"Crushing, shattering" (Rom 3:16, citing LXX).
καταστροφή (katastrophē)	G2692	2×	"Overthrow, catastrophe."

apōleia's distinctive note: it names both the event of ruin and the destined state of ruin; it is the preferred eschatological-destiny word, where ὄλεθρος emphasizes the shattering blow and φθορά the process of decay.

Hebrew Source (LXX → NT)¶

Hebrew	Strong's	Co-occ	PMI	Score	Sense
אֵיד (ʼêd)	H343	10	7.18	17.22	calamity, disaster
אֲבַדּוֹן (ʼăbaddôn)	H11	4	8.00	12.87	Abaddon / place of destruction (Job 26:6; 28:22; 31:12; Ps 88:11; Prov 15:11; 27:20)
אֲבֵדָה (ʼăbêdâh)	H9	4	8.32	13.39	lost thing
אָבַד (ʼâbad)	H6	11	4.35	10.82	to perish, be lost (the verb root)
שְׁמָמָה (shᵉmâmâh)	H8077	6	5.15	10.02	desolation
בַּלָּהָה (ballāhâh)	H1091	3	6.58	9.12	terror, destruction
שָׁמֵם / שָׁמַד	H8074 / H8045	5 each	—	—	be desolate / destroy

The primary LXX bridges are the ʼābad word-group (H6/H9/H11) — "to perish / lost thing / Abaddon" — and ʼêd (calamity). This means the NT's apōleia inherits both the existential "lost-ness" of ʼābad and the place-terminus sense of Abaddon (the realm of destruction). The υἱὸς τῆς ἀπωλείας construction has a Semitic/OT shape compatible with "son of Abaddon" / "son of ʼêd" idiom.