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Gehenna

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.

GREEK · G1067

γέεννα

geenna — hell: Gehenna

γέεννα (γέενα, Mrk.9:45, Rec.), -ης, ἡ (perh. through Aram. גֵּיהִנָּם, from Heb. גֵּי הִנֹּם, Neh.11:30; גֵּי בֶּן־הִנֹּם, Jhn.18:16; גֵּי בּנֵי־הִנֹּם, 4Ki.23:10; valley of (the son, sons of) lamentation); [in LXX the nearest approach to γ. is γαίεννα, Jos.18:16 (Γαὶ Ὀννόμ, A), elsewhere φάραγξ Ὀνόμ (Jos.15:8, al.), V. Swete on Mrk.9:43 ;] Gehenna, a valley W. and S. of Jerusalem, which as the site of fire-worship from the time of Ahaz, was desecrated by Josiah and became a dumping-place for the offal of the city. Later, the name was used as a symbol of the place of future punishment, as in NT: Mat.5:29, ; 10:28, Mrk.9:43, 45 47, Luk.12:5, Jas.3:6; γ. τ. πυρός, Mat.5:22 18:19, prob. with ref. to fires of Moloch (DB, ii, 119b); υἱὸς γεέννης, Mat.23:15; κρίσις γεέννης, 23:33.† (AS)

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Historical dictionary entry

(originally Ge bene Hinnom; i.e., “the valley of the sons of Hinnom”), a deep, narrow glen to the south of Jerusalem, where the idolatrous Jews offered their children in sacrifice to Molech (2 Chr. 28:3; 33:6; Jer. 7:31; 19:2-6). This valley afterwards became the common receptacle for all the refuse of the city. Here the dead bodies of animals and of criminals, and all kinds of filth, were cast and consumed by fire kept always burning. It thus in process of time became the image of the place of everlasting destruction. In this sense it is used by our Lord in Matt. 5:22, 29, 30; 10:28; 18:9; 23:15, 33; Mark 9:43, 45, 47; Luke 12:5. In these passages, and also in James 3:6, the word is uniformly rendered “hell,” the Revised Version placing “Gehenna” in the margin. (See HELL; HINNOM.)

Scripture references

Source: Easton’s Bible Dictionary (1897). Historical dictionary wording reflects the scholarship and language of its era.

Compare other reference traditions

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