Greek word · G2348

θνῄσκω

thnēskō

to die/be dead

θνῄσκω means 'to die'. In the perfect tense it means 'to be dead', the lasting state that follows death. With the article, ho tethnēkōs is a standard Greek way of saying 'the dead man, the deceased'.

Appears 9 times in 9 verses of the Greek New Testament. ·

What it means

θνήσκω

[in LXX chiefly for מוּת ;]

to die; pf. (M, Pr., 114), to be dead: Matthew 2:20, Mark 15:44, Luke 7:12 8:49, John 11:44 19:33, Acts 14:19 25:19; metaphorically, of spiritual death, 1 Timothy 5:6 (cf. ἀπο-, συν-απο-θνήσκω).†

(AS)

From G. Abbott-Smith, A Manual Greek Lexicon of the New Testament (1922), via STEPBible.org (CC BY 4.0).

In depth

From the study of John 11:44

Range of meaning

θνῄσκω means 'to die'. In the perfect tense it means 'to be dead', the lasting state that follows death. With the article, ho tethnēkōs is a standard Greek way of saying 'the dead man, the deceased'.

Against the English

BSB 'the man who had been dead' and KJV 'he that was dead' both quietly put the death in the past, as if it were over before he walked out. The Greek simply says 'the dead man came out', a jarring phrase that John leaves as it stands.

Used elsewhere in the period

The same perfect participle is used of the dead in Luke 7:12 (the widow's son, ho tethnēkōs, also raised by Jesus) and in many Greek writers for 'the deceased'.

From the study of 1 Timothy 5:6

Range of meaning

To die; in the perfect tense, to have died and so be dead. It is used of physical death, and here it is a metaphor for being cut off from true life.

Against the English

KJV, BSB, WEB 'is dead,' YLT 'hath died.' NLT spells it out as 'spiritually dead.' That is a fair reading, but it is an addition to the wording.

Used elsewhere in the period

The perfect tense of this verb regularly means 'is dead' (e.g., Matthew 2:20, 'those who sought the child's life are dead'). For death as a moral and spiritual condition, see Ephesians 2:1, 5 and Colossians 2:13 ('dead in trespasses').

From the study of Acts 25:19

Range of meaning

From thnēskō, to die. In this perfect form it points to the state that results from dying: having died and so being dead.

Against the English

BSB's 'who had died' looks back to the event. KJV's 'which was dead' and WEB's 'who was dead' are closer to the Greek's stress on the state. Versions with 'a dead man' catch Festus's flat tone, though they restructure the phrase.

Used elsewhere in the period

The same form of expression describes plain physical death: the widow's son at Nain (Luke 7:12), and Pilate's surprise that Jesus was already dead (Mark 15:44). At Acts 14:19 the crowd at Lystra drags Paul out, supposing he is dead.

Where it appears

Matthew · 1

  1. Matthew 2:20 τεθνήκασιν they have died

    “Get up!” he said. “Take the Child and His mother and go to the land of Israel, for those seeking the Child’s life are now dead.”

    Here: A perfect tense: a completed past event whose result still holds. 'They have died and are now dead', so the danger is over. The plural 'they' is notable because v.19 names only Herod (see debates).

Mark · 1

  1. Mark 15:44 τέθνηκεν, He has died,

    Pilate was surprised to hear that Jesus was already dead, so he summoned the centurion to ask if this was so.

Luke · 2

  1. Luke 7:12 τεθνηκὼς [one] having died

    As He approached the town gate, He saw a dead man being carried out, the only son of his mother, and she was a widow. And a large crowd from the town was with her.

    Here: A perfect participle, 'one who has died and remains dead'. It stresses the finished state. He is not dying or unconscious. He is dead, and that is the setup for verses 14–15.

  2. Luke 8:49 τέθνηκεν Has died

    While He was still speaking, someone arrived from the house of the synagogue leader. “Your daughter is dead,” he told Jairus. “Do not bother the Teacher anymore.”

John · 2

  1. John 11:44 τεθνηκὼς having died

    The man who had been dead came out with his hands and feet bound in strips of linen, and his face wrapped in a cloth. “Unwrap him and let him go,” Jesus told them.

    Here: The Greek perfect describes a settled state that came from a past act: 'the one who had died and was dead.' John still calls the man walking out 'the dead man', which puts the shock into the grammar itself.

  2. John 19:33 τεθνηκότα, having been dead,

    But when they came to Jesus and saw that He was already dead, they did not break His legs.

    Here: A perfect participle. It describes a death already finished, with its result still in place. He was not 'dying' but 'dead and staying dead.'

Acts · 2

  1. Acts 14:19 τεθνηκέναι. to have died.

    Then some Jews arrived from Antioch and Iconium and won over the crowds. They stoned Paul and dragged him outside the city, presuming he was dead.

    Here: A perfect infinitive: 'to have died', that is, to be lying there dead. It describes the state the mob thought he was in, not something Luke states as fact.

  2. Acts 25:19 τεθνηκότος, having died

    They only had some contentions with him regarding their own religion and a certain Jesus who had died, but whom Paul affirmed to be alive.

    Here: 'Having died', with the stress on the resulting state: a dead man. To Festus this is the settled fact in the case.

1 Timothy · 1

  1. 1 Timothy 5:6 τέθνηκεν. has died.

    But she who lives for pleasure is dead even while she is still alive.

    Here: A Greek perfect: 'has died' with the result still in force, so 'she is dead.' Her death is a settled condition, not an event still to come. She is cut off from the life that matters, life toward God.

Word data: STEPBible.org (CC BY 4.0), main text only.