TR: sha'ar → pyle (Gate)¶
The Chain¶
Hebrew OT LXX (Greek OT) Greek NT
─────────── ─────────────── ────────
שַׁעַר (sha'ar) → πύλη (pyle) → πύλη (pyle)
H8179, 302v 220x as translation 9v in NT
"gate, opening" of sha'ar "gate"
OT Usage (Hebrew)¶
| Strong's | Word | Occurrences | Primary Meaning |
|---|---|---|---|
| H8179 | שַׁעַר (sha'ar) | 302v | gate, opening, door — city gate, temple gate, camp gate |
Key OT passages: - Gen 19:1 — "Lot sat in the gate of Sodom" — civic/judicial seat - Gen 22:17 — "thy seed shall possess the gate of his enemies" — military dominion - Psalm 118:19-20 — "Open to me the gates of righteousness... This gate of the LORD, into which the righteous shall enter" — entrance to divine presence - Isa 38:10 — "I shall go to the gates of the grave" — gates of death/Sheol
Library: TODO(need H8179 study)
LXX Bridge¶
| Hebrew | Greek Translation | Co-occ | Score | Notes |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| sha'ar (H8179) | πύλη (G4439) | 220 | 32.71 | Primary equivalent — overwhelming dominance |
| sha'ar (H8179) | αὐλή (G833) | 31 | 14.32 | Court/courtyard — when gate refers to enclosed area |
| sha'ar (H8179) | θύρα (G2374) | 25 | 11.48 | Door — when gate is closer to a household door |
Reverse direction — what Hebrew words πύλη translates:
| Hebrew | Co-occ | Score | Notes |
|---|---|---|---|
| sha'ar (H8179) | 220 | 32.71 | Dominant source |
| deleth (H1817) | 20 | 13.84 | Door-leaf (physical valve) |
| pethach (H6607) | 27 | 13.42 | Opening, doorway, entrance |
| chowmah (H2346) | 22 | 12.87 | Wall (gate in wall context) |
Semantic continuity: The LXX bridge is tight. πύλη translates sha'ar with near-exclusive consistency (220 of the ~302 OT occurrences). The semantic range is preserved: civic gate, temple gate, metaphorical gate of death. No significant meaning shift in translation.
NT Usage (Greek)¶
| Strong's | Word | Occurrences | Primary Meaning |
|---|---|---|---|
| G4439 | πύλη (pyle) | 9v / 10 tokens | gate — physical city/temple gate and metaphorical gate of life/death |
| G4440 | πυλών (pylon) | 18v | gateway, porch, vestibule — the larger gateway structure |
Key NT passages: - Mat 7:13-14 — "Enter ye in at the strait gate... strait is the gate, and narrow is the way, which leadeth unto life" — echoes Psa 118:19-20 "gates of righteousness... gate of the LORD" - Mat 16:18 — "the gates of hell shall not prevail against it" — echoes Isa 38:10 "gates of the grave" - Heb 13:12 — "suffered without the gate" — echoes Lev 16:27, where sin-offering carcasses are burned "without the camp"
Thematic Continuity¶
Gate as Boundary of Sacred/Profane Space¶
- OT: The tabernacle/temple gate separates holy from common ground (Num 4:26; Ezek 44:1-3)
- NT: Heb 13:11-12 shifts from "camp" (παρεμβολή) to "gate" (πύλη), connecting the Levitical camp boundary with the physical Jerusalem gate — Jesus suffered "outside" both
Gate as Authority / Power¶
- OT: "Possess the gate of his enemies" (Gen 22:17) = military/judicial dominion; elders judge "in the gate" (Ruth 4:1; Deut 22:15)
- NT: "Gates of Hades shall not prevail" (Mat 16:18) = the power of death cannot overcome the church
Gate as Entry to Life or Death¶
- OT: "Gates of righteousness" and "gate of the LORD" (Psa 118:19-20); "gates of the grave" (Isa 38:10)
- NT: "Strait gate" leading to life vs. "wide gate" leading to destruction (Mat 7:13-14); "gates of Hades" (Mat 16:18)
What Stays the Same¶
- The dual literal/metaphorical range: physical entry point and metaphor for authority, access, or boundary
- Gate as threshold between domains (inside/outside, life/death, sacred/profane)
- "Gates of death/Hades/grave" as an idiom spanning both testaments
What Shifts¶
- OT sha'ar is predominantly literal (city gate, temple gate) with the judicial/civic dimension dominant (302 occurrences, mostly concrete); NT pyle is predominantly metaphorical (6 of 9 verses use figurative or theologically loaded senses)
- The judicial "sitting in the gate" function (central to OT) has no NT counterpart
- NT adds the eschatological "narrow gate" metaphor (Mat 7:13-14; Luk 13:24) with no direct OT precedent in sha'ar, though Psa 118:19-20 provides the closest conceptual ancestor
Generated from: gather_trace_data.py, search_strongs.py (--lxx-map, --hebrew-source, --lookup) Last updated: 2026-05-03