HEBREW / ARAMAIC · H2427
חִיל
chil — agony
1) pain, agony, sorrow, a writhing, anguish 1a) writhing (of fear) 1b) anguish Also means: chi.lah (חִילָה "agony" H2427B)
7 tagged verse occurrences · see every occurrence →BIBLE DICTIONARY + WORD STUDY
Agony
Original Hebrew / Aramaic / Greek connected to this term
How to read this: there is rarely one magic “true meaning” hidden behind an English word. A lexicon records a word’s semantic range. The intended meaning is narrowed by grammar, sentence, author, historical usage and context.
HEBREW / ARAMAIC · H7661
שָׁבָץ
sha.vats — agony
1) cramp, agony, anguish 1a) meaning uncertain
1 tagged verse occurrence · see every occurrence →GREEK · G74
ἀγωνία
agōnia — a struggle
ἀγωνία, -ας, ἡ (ἀγών), [in LXX: 2Ma.3:14,16 15:19 * ;] 1. a contest, wrestling (Eur., Xen.). 2. Of the mind, great fear, agony, anguish (Dem., Arist.): Luk.22:44 (cf . Field, Notes, 77 f. ; Abbott, Essays, 101 f. ; MM, VGT, see word). † (AS)
1 tagged verse occurrence · see every occurrence →Historical dictionary entry
Contest; wrestling; severe struggling with pain and suffering. Anguish is the reflection on evil that is already past, while agony is a struggle with evil at the time present. It is only used in the New Testament by Luke (22:44) to describe our Lord’s fearful struggle in Gethsemane. The verb from which the noun “agony” is derived is used to denote an earnest endeavour or striving, as “Strive [agonize] to enter” (Luke 13:24); “Then would my servants fight” [agonize] (John 18:36). Comp. 1 Cor. 9:25; Col. 1:29; 4:12; 1 Tim. 6:12; 2 Tim. 4:7, where the words “striveth,” “labour,” “conflict,” “fight,” are the renderings of the same Greek verb.
Scripture references
Source: Easton’s Bible Dictionary (1897). Historical dictionary wording reflects the scholarship and language of its era.