G861 — ἀφθαρσία (aphtharsia)¶

Core Data¶

Strong's: G861
Original: ἀφθαρσία
Transliteration: aphtharsía
Pronunciation: af-thar-see'-ah
Part of Speech: Feminine noun (n-f)
Root: Alpha-privative (ἀ-) + φθαρτός (phthartos, "corruptible," from φθείρω G5351 "to corrupt/decay"); literally "un-corruptibility"
Occurrences: 8 unique verses (8 tokens) across 5 books
First Occurrence: Rom 2:7 — "To them who by patient continuance in well doing seek for glory and honour and immortality, eternal life:"
Hapax Legomenon: No

Lexicon Definition¶

From G862 (áphthartos); incorruptibility; by extension (genitive), unending existence.

Louw-Nida Semantic Domain¶

Domain 23.007: Live, Die (Physiological Processes and States)
Other words: ἀθανασία (G110), ᾅδης (G86), ἀνάστασις (G386), ἀποθνῄσκω (G599), ἀναζάω (G326), ζωή (G2222)
Domain 68.004: Cease, Stop (Aspect)
Sense: "unceasing" — that which does not cease or decay
Other words: ἀδιάλειπτος (G88), ἀκατάπαυστος (G180)

Translation Distribution (KJV)¶

Translation	Count	%
incorruption	4	50%
immortality	2	25%
sincerity	2	25%

Note: The same Greek word carries both the physical sense (incorruption/immortality) and the ethical sense (sincerity/purity). The KJV renders it contextually.

Distribution by Book¶

Book	Count	Per 100 Verses
Titus	1	2.2
2 Timothy	1	1.2
1 Corinthians	4	0.9
Ephesians	1	0.6
Romans	1	0.2

Exclusively Pauline. 1 Corinthians accounts for half of all occurrences, concentrated in the resurrection chapter (15:42, 50, 53, 54). The Pastoral Epistles use it in the ethical/characterological sense.

Semantic Categories¶

1. Resurrection Transformation: The Body Raised Incorruptible¶

1 Cor 15:42 — "It is sown in corruption; it is raised in incorruption"
1 Cor 15:50 — "neither doth corruption inherit incorruption"
1 Cor 15:53 — "this corruptible must put on incorruption"
1 Cor 15:54 — "when this corruptible shall have put on incorruption... Death is swallowed up in victory"

The dominant category (4 of 8 occurrences). Aphtharsia describes the condition of the resurrected body — a state contrasted with phthora (corruption/decay). Something "put on" at resurrection, not presently possessed.

2. Object of Aspiration: Immortality Sought or Revealed¶

Rom 2:7 — "To them who by patient continuance in well doing seek for glory and honour and immortality, eternal life"
2 Tim 1:10 — "who hath abolished death, and hath brought life and immortality to light through the gospel"

Here aphtharsia is something humans seek (Rom 2:7) and something Christ brought to light (2 Tim 1:10). Both verses frame it as external to the seeker — obtained through pursuit or revealed through the gospel.

3. Ethical Purity / Uncorruptedness¶

Eph 6:24 — "Grace be with all them that love our Lord Jesus Christ in sincerity"
Tit 2:7 — "in doctrine shewing uncorruptness, gravity, sincerity"

Extended metaphorical sense: love or doctrine that is "un-decayed," i.e., pure and genuine. The underlying image of incorruptibility applies to character rather than body.

Morphological Forms¶

Form	Parsing	Occurrences
ἀφθαρσίαν	Accusative Sg	Rom 2:7; 1 Cor 15:50, 53, 54; 2 Tim 1:10 (5×)
ἀφθαρσίᾳ	Dative Sg	1 Cor 15:42; Eph 6:24 (2×)

No plural forms attested. Accusative dominates (object of "seek," "put on," "bring to light"). Dative used instrumentally ("raised in incorruption") or adverbially ("love in sincerity").

Common Collocations¶

Word	Strong's	Co-occurrences	Typical Pattern
ἀθανασία (athanasia)	G110	2×	Paired as near-synonyms: "put on incorruption... put on immortality" (1 Cor 15:53–54)
ἐνδύω (endyo)	G1746	2×	"Put on" incorruption — clothing metaphor for transformation
θάνατος (thanatos)	G2288	2×	Aphtharsia as the antithesis of death
φθορά (phthora)	G5356	2×	Direct antonym pair: "corruption... incorruption"
φθαρτός (phthartos)	G5349	2×	"This corruptible must put on incorruption"
θνητός (thnetos)	G2349	2×	Parallel: "corruptible/incorruption"
ζωή (zoe)	G2222	2×	"life and immortality" (2 Tim 1:10); "seek... immortality, eternal life" (Rom 2:7)
ἔργον (ergon)	G2041	2×	"well doing" context of seeking immortality
Χριστός (Christos)	G5547	2×	Christ as agent who brings aphtharsia to light

Word Family / Cognates¶

G862 ἄφθαρτος (aphthartos) — adjective: "incorruptible, undecaying" (7 occ.) — Rom 1:23; 1 Cor 9:25; 15:52; 1 Tim 1:17; 1 Pet 1:4, 23; 3:4
G5351 φθείρω (phtheiro) — root verb: "to corrupt, destroy, decay" (8 occ.)
G5356 φθορά (phthora) — noun: "corruption, decay, ruin" (9 occ.) — direct antonym
G5349 φθαρτός (phthartos) — adjective: "corruptible, perishable" — direct antonym

Easily Confused Words¶

Word	Strong's	Shared Translation	Key Difference
ἀθανασία (athanasia)	G110	"immortality"	Athanasia = deathlessness (ἀ- + θάνατος); aphtharsia = incorruptibility (ἀ- + φθείρω). Paired in 1 Cor 15:53–54: corruptible↔incorruption, mortal↔immortality. Athanasia focuses on not-dying; aphtharsia on not-decaying. 1 Tim 6:16 says God alone has athanasia.
εἰλικρίνεια (eilikrineia)	G1505	"sincerity"	Eilikrineia = tested-in-sunlight purity (2 occ.); aphtharsia in its ethical sense = undecayed genuineness. Different metaphor: light-testing vs. decay-resistance.
ἀδιαφθορία (adiaphthoria)	G90	"uncorruptness" (Tit 2:7)	Hapax in Tit 2:7; compound of ἀ- + διαφθείρω (thoroughly corrupt). Some MSS read aphtharsia here instead of adiaphthoria.

Semantic Domain Neighbors (Louw-Nida 23.007)¶

G110 ἀθανασία — immortality (3v)
G386 ἀνάστασις — resurrection (41v)
G2222 ζωή — life (133v)
G2288 θάνατος — death (119v)
G599 ἀποθνῄσκω — to die (108v)

Hebrew Source¶

No Hebrew sources found via LXX mapping. This word is exclusively NT and has no established LXX bridge to the Hebrew Bible. The concept of incorruptibility as a noun is a Greek theological construction without a direct Hebrew equivalent.