καθαρίζω
katharízō · G2511 · Greek · 31 occurrences
Meanings
-
to make clean, to cleanse, to clean
To cause something to become clean
ExamplesMatthew 23:25 “Woe to you, scribes and Pharisees, hypocrites! For you clean the outside of the cup and of the dish, but inside they are full of robbery and self-indulgence.
Matthew 23:26 “You blind Pharisee, first clean the inside of the cup and of the dish, so that the outside of it may also become clean.
Mark 7:19 because it does not go into his heart, but into his stomach, and is eliminated?” (Thereby He declared all foods clean.)
-
to cleanse, to purify
To cleanse from ritual contamination or impurity
ExamplesMatthew 23:26 “You blind Pharisee, first clean the inside of the cup and of the dish, so that the outside of it may also become clean.
Matthew 8:3 Jesus reached out with His hand and touched him, saying, “I am willing; be cleansed.” And immediately his leprosy was cleansed.
Acts 10:15 Again a voice came to him a second time, “What God has cleansed, no longer consider unholy.”
-
to heal and make ritually pure, to heal and to make ritually acceptable
To heal a person of a disease which has caused ceremonial uncleanness
ExamplesMatthew 8:2 And a man with leprosy came to Him and bowed down before Him, and said, “Lord, if You are willing, You can make me clean.”
Matthew 8:3 Jesus reached out with His hand and touched him, saying, “I am willing; be cleansed.” And immediately his leprosy was cleansed.
Matthew 10:8 “Heal the sick, raise the dead, cleanse those with leprosy, cast out demons. Freely you received, freely give.
How it’s used In 7 roles
Every occurrence, grouped by the words it is grammatically related to.
the word studied the word it goes with
Who or what does itSubject
31 occurrences in 16 groups
- Not stated: you (one person) 4
- Not stated (participle) 4
- Not stated: you (more than one) 3
- Not stated: he, she or it 3
- Not stated (infinitive) 3
- Other words · 11 groups that occur once or twice (14) 14
What it acts on, or what is saidObject
17 occurrences in 11 groups
- ἐγώI, we 5
- Other words · 10 groups that occur once or twice (12) 12
To or for whomIndirect object
1 occurrences in 1 groups
- ἑαυτοῦhimself, herself, itself 1
With prepositionsPrepositional phrases
6 occurrences in 8 groups
- εἰςto+ λατρεύωto serve, to worship 1
- ἐνin+ αἷμαblood 1
- ἐνin+ ῥῆμαword, saying 1
- κατάaccording to, against, down+ νόμοςlaw, the Law 1
- ἀπόfrom+ ἔργονwork, deed 1
- ἀπόfrom+ ἁμαρτίαsin 1
With adverbsAdverbs
5 occurrences in 5 groups
- εὐθέωςimmediately, right away, then 1
- μήnot 1
- νῦνnow 1
- σχεδόνalmost 1
- ἅπαξonce 1
What is done to itIt is the object
7 occurrences in 4 groups
- δύναμαιcan 3
- ἔπωto say 2
- κοινόωto make unclean 2
- ἀποκρίνομαιto answer 1
What it is said to bePredicate
1 occurrences in 1 groups
- ἀνάγκηnecessity, distress 1
When two words share a role, as in “Paul and Barnabas said”, the verse appears under each, so a section’s counts can add up to more than the number of occurrences.
MACULA Greek Linguistic Datasets, available at https://github.com/Clear-Bible/macula-greek/, licensed CC BY 4.0; MACULA Hebrew Linguistic Datasets © 2022-2024 by Biblica, Inc., CC BY 4.0. Westminster Leningrad Codex (tanach.us). OpenScriptures Hebrew Bible morphology (hb.openscriptures.org), CC BY 4.0.
In the other Testament 3 words
- טָהֵר ṭâhêr · H2891 · to become clean, to purify, to cleanse
- Hebrew טָהֵר serves as the direct semantic equivalent of Greek καθαρίζω in Septuagint translation, both denoting the act of cleansing or purifying in a literal sense (physical washing) and a figurative sense (ritual or moral purification).
- טׇהֳרָה ṭohŏrâh · H2893 · cleansing, purification
- Greek καθαρίζω (verb: to cleanse) translates Hebrew טׇהֳרָה (noun: cleansing, purification) as the verbal action corresponding to the Hebrew nominal concept, both denoting ritual or literal purification.
- נָקָה nâqâh · H5352 · to be emptied, to be cleaned out, to be removed
- Greek καθαρίζω (katharízō, G2511) emphasizes the active process of cleansing or purifying (literal or ceremonial), while Hebrew נָקָה (nâqâh, H5352) centers on juridical acquittal or being declared free from guilt/obligation, though both overlap in contexts of ritual/moral purity.
Semantic domains 3 entries
- To heal and make ritually pure, to heal and to make ritually acceptable23.137
- In Matthew 8:3, of the leper it is written, “Jesus reached out with His hand and touched him, saying, ‘I am willing; be cleansed.’ And immediately his leprosy was cleansed,” using this word for the healing that restores ritual purity.
- To cleanse, to purify53.28
- In Matthew 10:8, Jesus commissions the twelve, “Heal the sick, raise the dead, cleanse those with leprosy, cast out demons,” using this word for the act of making someone ritually pure.
- To make clean, to cleanse, to clean79.49
- In Matthew 23:25, Jesus rebukes the Pharisees, “For you clean the outside of the cup and of the dish, but inside they are full of robbery and self-indulgence,” using this word for the ordinary physical act of making something clean.
Word family 11 words
Words formed from the same root. They share a form, not always a meaning.
Thayer's Greek-English Lexicon (Hellenistic for καθαίρω, which classic writings use); Attic future (cf. Buttmann, 37…
1. to make clean, to cleanse;
a. from physical stains and dirt: e. g. utensils, Mt 23:25 (figuratively, Mt 23:26); Lk 11:39; food, Mk 7:19; τινα, a leper, to cleanse by curing, Mt 8:2; Mt 10:8; Mt 11:5; Mk 1:40-42; Lk 4:27; Lk 5:12; Lk 7:22; Lk 17:14, Lk 17:17 (Lev 14:8); to remove by cleansing: ἡ λέπρα ἐκαθαρίσθη, Mt 8:3 (καθαριεῖς τό αἷμα τό ἀναίτιον ἐξ Ἰσραήλ, Deut 19:13; ἐκαθαριζε τήν περί ταῦτα συνήθειαν, the custom of marrying heathen women, Josephus, Antiquities 11, 5, 4; καθαιρεῖν αἷμα, Homer, Iliad 16, 667; cf. ἐκκαθαίρω).
b. in a moral sense; α. to free from the defilement of sin and from faults; to purify from wickedness: ἑαυτόν ἀπό μολυσμοῦ σαρκός, 2 Cor 7:1; τῇ πίστει τάς καρδίας, Acts 15:9 (καρδίαν ἀπό ἁμαρτίας, Sir. 38:10); τάς χεῖρας, to abstain in future from wrong-doing, Jas 4:8. β. to free from the guilt of sin, to purify: τινα ἀπό πάσης ἁμαρτίας, 1 Jn 1:7; (τινα ἀπό πάσης ἀδικίας, 1 Jn 1:9); τήν συνείδησιν ἀπό νεκρῶν ἔργων, Heb 9:14; τήν ἐκκλησίαν τῷ λουτρῷ τοῦ ὕδατος (instrumental dative), Eph 5:26; λαόν ἑαυτῷ, Tit 2:14. γ. to consecrate by cleansing or purifying: τί ἐν τίνι, dative of instrumentality (Winer's Grammar, 388 (363)), Heb 9:22; equivalent to to consecrate, dedicate, τί τίνι (dative of instrumentality), ibid. 23.
2. to pronounce clean in a levitical sense: Acts 10:15; Acts 11:9 (Lev 13:13, Lev 13:17, Lev 13:23, Lev 13:28). (Compare: διακαθαρίζω.)
Thayer's Greek-English Lexicon of the New Testament (1889), public domain
Topical studies with this word 3 entries
Meanings adapted from the UBS Dictionary of the Greek New Testament, © United Bible Societies, CC BY-SA 4.0 and the UBS Dictionary of Biblical Hebrew (from the Semantic Dictionary of Biblical Hebrew), © United Bible Societies, CC BY-SA 4.0; MACULA Greek Linguistic Datasets, available at https://github.com/Clear-Bible/macula-greek/, licensed CC BY 4.0; MACULA Hebrew Linguistic Datasets © 2022-2024 by Biblica, Inc., CC BY 4.0. Westminster Leningrad Codex (tanach.us). OpenScriptures Hebrew Bible morphology (hb.openscriptures.org), CC BY 4.0.
Sources
eRhema lexical overview, based on the UBS Dictionary of Biblical Hebrew and the UBS Dictionary of the Greek New Testament (© United Bible Societies, CC BY-SA 4.0) and Macula Hebrew and Greek (Clear Bible, CC BY 4.0); released under CC BY-SA 4.0
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