TR: gowral → kleros (Lot / Allotted Portion)¶

The Chain¶

Hebrew OT              LXX (Greek OT)           Greek NT
───────────            ───────────────           ────────
גּוֹרָל (gowral)    →  κλῆρος (kleros)       →  κλῆρος (kleros)
H1486, 67x             56x as translation        11x in NT
"lot, allotted          of gowral                 "lot, inheritance,
 portion"                PMI: 7.36                  heritage, part"

OT Usage (Hebrew)¶

Strong's	Word	Occurrences	Primary Meaning
H1486	גּוֹרָל (gowral)	67	lot (pebble for casting), allotted portion, destiny

Key OT passages: - Lev 16:8 — "And Aaron shall cast lots upon the two goats; one lot for the LORD, and the other lot for the scapegoat." (foundational: divine-will determination) - Jos 18:10 — "And Joshua cast lots for them in Shiloh before the LORD: and there Joshua divided the land." (land allotment) - Dan 12:13 — "But go thou thy way till the end be: for thou shalt rest, and stand in thy lot at the end of the days." (figurative: eschatological destiny)

See: H1486-gowral.md

LXX Bridge¶

H1486 gowral → Greek (what Greek words translate gowral in LXX):

Hebrew	Greek Translation	Count	Notes
gowral (H1486)	κλῆρος (G2819)	56x	Primary equivalent — near one-to-one bridge
gowral (H1486)	βάλλω (G906)	13x	Verb "cast" in "cast lots" formula
gowral (H1486)	κληρονομία (G2817)	7x	"Inheritance" — figurative-portion contexts
gowral (H1486)	μερίς (G3310)	5x	"Portion" — destiny/share contexts

G2819 kleros ← Hebrew (what Hebrew words kleros translates):

Greek	Hebrew Source	Count	Notes
kleros (G2819)	גּוֹרָל gowral (H1486)	56x	Primary — lot and allotted portion
kleros (G2819)	נַחֲלָה nachalah (H5159)	51x	"Inheritance" — land inheritance
kleros (G2819)	מַטֶּה matteh (H4294)	18x	"Tribe" — tribal unit (metonymic: tribe = its allotment)
kleros (G2819)	חֵלֶק cheleq (H2506)	9x	"Portion/share" — allotted portion
kleros (G2819)	נָחַל nachal (H5157)	10x	Verb "inherit, take possession"

Semantic widening in LXX: In Hebrew, gowral focuses on the lot itself (the pebble/stone used for casting) and secondarily the outcome (what was allotted). The LXX equivalent kleros absorbed both gowral ("lot-casting") and nachalah ("inherited land"), making kleros the comprehensive Greek term for anything received by divine allotment — lots, inheritance, and portion.

NT Usage (Greek)¶

Strong's	Word	Occurrences	Primary Meaning
G2819	κλῆρος (kleros)	11	lot, portion, inheritance, heritage
G2817	κληρονομία (kleronomia)	14	inheritance, heritage
G2816	κληρονομέω (kleronomeo)	18	inherit, obtain by inheritance
G2818	κληρονόμος (kleronomos)	15	heir
G2820	κληρόω (kleroo)	1	obtain an inheritance (Eph 1:11)

Key NT passages: - Mat 27:35 — "And they crucified him, and parted his garments, casting lots" (literal lot-casting, fulfilling Psa 22:18) - Act 1:17 — "For he was numbered with us, and had obtained part of this ministry." (kleros = share/part in ministry) - Col 1:12 — "Giving thanks unto the Father, which hath made us meet to be partakers of the inheritance of the saints in light." (kleros-family: spiritual inheritance) - 1Pe 5:3 — "Neither as being lords over God's heritage, but being ensamples to the flock." (kleros = God's allotted people)

TODO(need G2819 study)

Direct OT → NT Quotations¶

NT Verse	Quotes OT	Shared Word	Significance
Mat 27:35	Psa 22:18	gowral → kleros	"They part my garments among them, and cast lots upon my vesture" — Gospels cite this as fulfilled at the crucifixion
Jhn 19:24	Psa 22:18	gowral → kleros	Explicit quotation: "that the scripture might be fulfilled" — same Psalm reference

Continuity and Shifts¶

What stays the same across testaments: - The literal sense of casting lots persists unchanged — the Gospel crucifixion accounts use kleros exactly as the OT uses gowral (physical lot-casting to divide property) - The concept that God stands behind the outcome of the lot (Pro 16:33) carries into Acts 1:26 (apostolic lot for Matthias)

What shifts: - In the NT, the kleros word-family shifts overwhelmingly toward the figurative "inheritance/heritage" sense: spiritual inheritance in Christ (Col 1:12, Eph 1:11, 1Pe 5:3), not physical land allotment - The concrete act of lot-casting nearly disappears after Acts 1 — the NT church replaces lot-casting with Spirit-led decision (Acts 13:2, 15:28), while retaining the vocabulary of "allotted portion" for spiritual realities