TR: ʼârar → epikataratos (Curse)

The Chain

Hebrew OT              LXX (Greek OT)            Greek NT
───────────           ───────────────            ────────
אָרַר (ʼârar)     →   ἐπικατάρατος (epikataratos) →  ἐπικατάρατος (epikataratos)
H779, 52x in OT       LXX co-occ: 35x              3x in NT
"to execrate"          "accursed"                    "accursed"

OT Usage (Hebrew)

Strong's	Word	Occurrences	Primary Meaning
H779	אָרַר (ʼârar)	52	to execrate, formally curse
H3994	מְאֵרָה (meʼerah)	5	a curse (derived noun from ʼârar)

Key OT passages: - Gen 3:14 — "thou [art] cursed (arur) above all cattle" — the first curse in Scripture - Deut 27:15-26 — Twelve covenant curses, each opening with arur, ratified by communal "Amen" - Gen 12:3 — "curse (aor) him that curseth thee" — Abrahamic covenant formula

Library: H779-arar.md

LXX Bridge

Hebrew	Greek Translation	Co-occ	PMI Score	Notes
ʼârar (H779)	ἐπικατάρατος (G1944)	35x	31.14	Primary equivalent — adjective preserving participial arur
ʼârar (H779)	καταράομαι (G2672)	10x	15.67	When arur appears as finite verb

Reverse mapping — G1944 ← Hebrew:

Hebrew Source	Co-occ	PMI Score
ʼârar (H779)	35x	31.14
ʼamen (H543)	12x	21.19
ʻam (H5971)	16x	7.35

The epikataratos ← arur mapping is nearly one-to-one. H779 is the dominant Hebrew source by a wide margin (score 31.14 vs next at 21.19 which is contextual "Amen" from the Deut 27 formulary, not a semantic equivalent).

Semantic shift in translation: Minimal shift. Hebrew arur is a Qal passive participle ("cursed one"), and Greek epikataratos is an adjective meaning "under a curse." Both express a declared state rather than an ongoing action. The LXX preserves the stative, formulaic character of the Hebrew.

NT Usage (Greek)

Strong's	Word	Occurrences	Primary Meaning
G1944	ἐπικατάρατος (epikataratos)	3	accursed, under a curse
G2671	κατάρα (katara)	6	a curse, imprecation
G2672	καταράομαι (kataraomai)	6	to curse

Key NT passages: - Gal 3:10 — "Cursed (epikataratos) [is] every one that continueth not in all things which are written in the book of the law to do them" — direct quotation of Deut 27:26 - Gal 3:13 — "Cursed (epikataratos) [is] every one that hangeth on a tree" — quotation of Deut 21:23 - John 7:49 — "this people who knoweth not the law are cursed (epikataratos)" — Pharisaic dismissal echoing covenant-curse language

Library: G1944-epikataratos.md

Direct OT→NT Quotations

NT Verse	Quotes OT	Shared Word	Significance
Gal 3:10	Deut 27:26	arur → epikataratos	Paul applies the comprehensive covenant curse to law-keepers who fail any point
Gal 3:13	Deut 21:23	arur → epikataratos	Paul applies the execution-curse to Christ's crucifixion
John 7:49	Deut 27-28 (allusion)	arur → epikataratos	Pharisees invoke covenant-curse language against the uneducated crowd

Continuity and Shifts

What stays the same across testaments: - The epikataratos/arur formula retains its covenant-legal character — both OT and NT uses declare a state resulting from covenant violation - The Deuteronomic framework (failure to keep the whole law = cursed) carries directly into Gal 3:10 without semantic reinterpretation

What shifts: - In the OT, arur is always a declaration by God, a prophet, or a covenant community; in NT usage, Paul applies it reflexively to show that the curse applies universally to all under law (Gal 3:10) and then announces its resolution (Gal 3:13) - The NT epikataratos passages are exclusively Christological/soteriological in application, whereas OT arur covers creation-curses, covenant sanctions, ordeal formulae, and prophetic denunciations

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Generated from: gather_trace_data.py, search_strongs.py (--lxx-map, --hebrew-source, --lookup, --lexicon) Last updated: 2026-05-03