ζῷον

Hebrews 13:11 ζῴων of animals

Although the high priest brings the blood of animals into the Holy Place as a sacrifice for sin, the bodies are burned outside the camp.

Here: A general word for 'animals'. In the Day of Atonement rite these were a bull and a goat (Leviticus 16:27). The general word lets the writer cover the whole class of such sacrifices.

2 Peter 2:12 ζῷα animals

These men are like irrational animals, creatures of instinct, born to be captured and destroyed. They blaspheme in matters they do not understand, and like such creatures, they too will be destroyed.

Here: 'Animals'. Joined with 'aloga' it forms the set phrase 'irrational animals', common in Greek philosophy and in Hellenistic Jewish writers.

Jude 1:10 ζῷα animals

These men, however, slander what they do not understand, and like irrational animals, they will be destroyed by the things they do instinctively.

Here: "Animals". Together with ἄλογα it makes the standard phrase "brute beasts".

Revelation 4:6 ζῷα living creatures

And before the throne was something like a sea of glass, as clear as crystal. In the center, around the throne, were four living creatures, covered with eyes in front and back.

Here: "Living ones", the word the Greek Old Testament uses for Ezekiel's creatures, which Ezekiel 10 calls cherubim. It is not Revelation's word for the hostile "beast" (thērion).

Revelation 4:7 ζῷον ζῷον ζῷον ζῷον living creature

The first living creature was like a lion, the second like a calf, the third had a face like a man, and the fourth was like an eagle in flight.

Here: 'Living one'. This is the word the Greek translation of Ezekiel uses for the throne-creatures of Ezekiel 1. It stresses that the being is alive, and it is a different word from the hostile 'beast' (thērion) of Revelation 13.

Revelation 4:8 ζῷα, living creatures,

And each of the four living creatures had six wings and was covered with eyes all around and within. Day and night they never stop saying: “Holy, Holy, Holy, is the Lord God Almighty, who was and is and is to come!”

Here: "Living beings". This is the word the Greek Old Testament uses for Ezekiel's ḥayyot (Ezek 1:5). It is not θηρίον, the word for "the Beast" of Revelation 13.

Revelation 4:9 ζῷα living creatures

And whenever the living creatures give glory, honor, and thanks to the One seated on the throne, who lives forever and ever,

Here: "Living beings." These are the throne-guardians drawn from Ezekiel's living creatures and Isaiah's seraphim. This is a different word from the hostile "beast" (θηρίον) of Revelation 13.

Revelation 5:6 ζῴων living creatures

Then I saw a Lamb who appeared to have been slain, standing in the center of the throne, encircled by the four living creatures and the elders. The Lamb had seven horns and seven eyes, which represent the seven spirits of God sent out into all the earth.

Here: 'Living ones', angelic beings who guard the throne and lead its worship. They are not 'beasts' in the sense of wild or evil animals.

Revelation 5:8 ζῷα living creatures

When He had taken the scroll, the four living creatures and the twenty-four elders fell down before the Lamb. Each one had a harp, and they were holding golden bowls full of incense, which are the prayers of the saints.

Here: 'Living ones.' These are the throne-attendant beings who combine features of Ezekiel's cherubim and Isaiah's seraphim (Ezek 1; Isa 6). They are not 'beasts' in the modern sense.

Revelation 5:11 ζῴων living creatures

Then I looked, and I heard the voices of many angels encircling the throne, and the living creatures and the elders. And their number was myriads of myriads and thousands of thousands.

Here: The four "living beings" of 4:6–8 (lion, ox, human, eagle), modelled on Ezekiel's living creatures and Isaiah's seraphim. They are the beings closest to the throne, not wild "beasts".

Revelation 5:14 ζῷα living creatures

And the four living creatures said, “Amen,” and the elders fell down and worshiped.

Here: 'Living ones': the throne-beings of Ezekiel 1 and Isaiah 6 (lion, ox, human, eagle; six-winged and covered with eyes, 4:7–8). The word describes them as alive and gives no hint that they are wild or evil.

Revelation 6:1 ζῴων living creatures

Then I watched as the Lamb opened one of the seven seals, and I heard one of the four living creatures say in a voice like thunder, “Come!”

Here: The four winged beings around God's throne who never stop worshipping (4:6–8). They are drawn from Ezekiel's living creatures and Isaiah's seraphim. They are not the “beast” (thērion) of chapters 13 and 17.

Revelation 6:3 ζῴου living creature

And when the Lamb opened the second seal, I heard the second living creature say, “Come!”

Revelation 6:5 ζῴου living creature

And when the Lamb opened the third seal, I heard the third living creature say, “Come!” Then I looked and saw a black horse, and its rider held in his hand a pair of scales.

Here: “Living creature”: one of the throne-attendants drawn from Ezekiel 1 and Isaiah 6. It is not a “beast” in the sense of a monster (see study).

Revelation 6:6 ζῴων living creatures

And I heard what sounded like a voice from among the four living creatures, saying, “A quart of wheat for a denarius, and three quarts of barley for a denarius, and do not harm the oil and wine.”

Here: "Living beings": the throne attendants modelled on Ezekiel's cherubim and Isaiah's seraphim. These are not the "beast" (thērion) of chapter 13.

Revelation 6:7 ζῴου living creature

And when the Lamb opened the fourth seal, I heard the voice of the fourth living creature say, “Come!”

Revelation 7:11 ζῴων living creatures

And all the angels stood around the throne and around the elders and the four living creatures. And they fell facedown before the throne and worshiped God,

Here: 'Living ones', from the root for 'life'. These are the throne-guardians of Ezekiel 1 and the seraphim of Isaiah 6, joined into one image. They are not wild animals.

Revelation 14:3 ζῴων living creatures

And they sang a new song before the throne and before the four living creatures and the elders. And no one could learn the song except the 144,000 who had been redeemed from the earth.

Here: The throne-guardians modelled on Ezekiel's living creatures and Isaiah's seraphim. They are not the "beast" (thērion) of chapter 13.

Revelation 15:7 ζῴων living creatures

Then one of the four living creatures gave the seven angels seven golden bowls full of the wrath of God, who lives forever and ever.

Here: The heavenly beings closest to God's throne, who praise him without ceasing (4:8). The word is not the one used for 'the Beast' (thērion) of chapter 13.

Revelation 19:4 ζῷα, living creatures,

And the twenty-four elders and the four living creatures fell down and worshiped God who sits on the throne, saying: “Amen, Hallelujah!”

Here: "Living ones". These are the throne-bearing heavenly beings modeled on Ezekiel's creatures and Isaiah's seraphim. The word is not the one Revelation uses for the monstrous "beast".