Greek word · G2380

θύω

thyō

to sacrifice

To sacrifice, and also to slaughter an animal for food or a feast. In the NT: the fatted calf killed for the feast (Luke 15:23, 27), 'kill and eat' (Acts 10:13), sacrificing the Passover lamb (Mark 14:12; 1 Cor 5:7), pagan sacrifice (Acts 14:13).

Appears 14 times in 13 verses of the Greek New Testament. ·

What it means

θύω

[in LXX chiefly for זָבַח, also for שָׁחַט, etc. ;]

as in c1.;

1. to offer first fruits to a god.

2. to sacrifice by slaying a victim, offer sacrifice: Acts 14:13; with dative of person(s), Acts 14:18; id. with accusative of thing(s), 1 Corinthians 10:20.

3. to slay, kill: John 10:10, Acts 10:13 11:7; with accusative of thing(s), Luke 15:23, 27 15:30; pass., Matthew 22:4; τὸ πάσχα (Exodus 12:21), Mark 14:12; pass., Luke 22:7, 1 Corinthians 5:7.†

(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 10:10

Range of meaning

To sacrifice, and also to slaughter an animal for food or a feast. In the NT: the fatted calf killed for the feast (Luke 15:23, 27), 'kill and eat' (Acts 10:13), sacrificing the Passover lamb (Mark 14:12; 1 Cor 5:7), pagan sacrifice (Acts 14:13).

Against the English

'Kill' (KJV, BSB, WEB, and most modern versions) is correct but general. It loses the picture of butchering an animal, which is the natural meaning when the object is a sheep.

Used elsewhere in the period

The standard Greek word for offering a sacrificial victim from Homer on. In everyday Hellenistic Greek it also means slaughtering livestock for meat. The Septuagint uses it for sacrifices (e.g. 1 Sam 1:4). Ezekiel 34:3 condemns shepherds who 'slaughter the fat ones' (Septuagint uses sphazō, a close synonym).

From the study of 1 Corinthians 10:20

Range of meaning

To offer a sacrifice. It could also mean to slaughter an animal, often for a meal, because in the Greco-Roman world most meat came from animals killed as offerings. Sacrifice and the feast that followed were one event.

Against the English

'Sacrifice' can sound to modern ears like burning something up entirely. In Corinth most of the animal was eaten: by worshippers in temple dining rooms, or later sold in the market (10:25).

Used elsewhere in the period

Common in classical Greek and the Septuagint for cultic slaughter. Deut 32:17 LXX uses the same verb with 'to demons'. Papyrus invitations such as P.Oxy. 110 ('Chaeremon invites you to dine at the couch of the lord Sarapis in the Sarapeion') show that people ate as guests of the god.

From the study of Matthew 22:4

Range of meaning

Thyō first meant to offer sacrifice. In Koine Greek it is also ordinary for slaughtering an animal for food (Luke 15:23, 27, 30; Acts 10:13 'kill and eat'). In the Greco-Roman world, much meat sold or served came from animals killed with some religious ritual, so the two senses overlapped.

Against the English

Versions say 'killed', 'slaughtered', or 'butchered'. None says 'sacrificed', which is right, because the setting is a feast and not a temple rite.

Used elsewhere in the period

Used in the LXX both for sacrifice and for slaughter for meals (e.g. 1 Sam 28:24 the medium kills a calf for Saul). Luke uses it for the fattened calf in the prodigal son story.

Where it appears

Matthew · 1

  1. Matthew 22:4 τεθυμένα, killed,

    Again, he sent other servants and said, ‘Tell those who have been invited that I have prepared my dinner. My oxen and fattened cattle have been killed, and everything is ready. Come to the wedding banquet.’

    Here: 'Have been slaughtered.' The animals are already killed, and fresh meat in a hot climate will not keep, so the guests need to come now.

Mark · 1

  1. Mark 14:12 ἔθυον, they were to sacrifice,

    On the first day of the Feast of Unleavened Bread, when the Passover lamb was to be sacrificed, Jesus’ disciples asked Him, “Where do You want us to prepare for You to eat the Passover?”

Luke · 4

  1. Luke 15:23 θύσατε, do kill [it],

    Bring the fattened calf and kill it. Let us feast and celebrate.

    Here: 'Slaughter it.' The word's first sense is sacrifice, but by this period it was also the normal word for killing an animal to eat. Here it is plainly butchering for a banquet, not an altar offering. The object 'it' is understood from the sentence.

  2. Luke 15:27 ἔθυσεν has killed

    ‘Your brother has returned,’ he said, ‘and your father has killed the fattened calf, because he has him back safe and sound.’

  3. Luke 15:30 ἔθυσας you have killed

    But when this son of yours returns from squandering your wealth with prostitutes, you kill the fattened calf for him!’

    Here: 'You slaughtered'. It is the ordinary word for killing an animal for a meal, though meat feasts carried a festive, sometimes sacred, feel. It repeats the servant's report in v27 and the father's command in v23.

  4. Luke 22:7 θύεσθαι to be sacrificed

    Then came the day of Unleavened Bread on which the Passover lamb was to be sacrificed.

John · 1

  1. John 10:10 θύσῃ shall kill

    The thief comes only to steal and kill and destroy. I have come that they may have life, and have it in all its fullness.

    Here: Not the ordinary word for 'kill' (apokteinō). Thyō means to slaughter an animal, for sacrifice or for a meal. The picture is a rustler butchering the stolen sheep for his own table.

Acts · 4

  1. Acts 10:13 θῦσον do kill

    Then a voice said to him: “Get up, Peter, kill and eat!”

  2. Acts 11:7 θῦσον do kill

    Then I heard a voice saying to me, ‘Get up, Peter, kill and eat.’

  3. Acts 14:13 θύειν.¶ to sacrifice.

    The priest of Zeus, whose temple was just outside the city, brought bulls and wreaths to the city gates, hoping to offer a sacrifice along with the crowds.

  4. Acts 14:18 θύειν sacrificing

    Even with these words, Paul and Barnabas could hardly stop the crowds from sacrificing to them.

1 Corinthians · 3

  1. 1 Corinthians 5:7 ἐτύθη has been sacrificed

    Get rid of the old leaven, that you may be a new unleavened batch, as you really are. For Christ, our Passover lamb, has been sacrificed.

    Here: Aorist passive, a completed event: 'was slaughtered.' This is the standard verb for killing the Passover lamb (LXX Exod 12:21; Mark 14:12). The death has already happened, so the festival is under way.

  2. 1 Corinthians 10:20 θύουσιν θύουσιν· they sacrifice, they sacrifice;

    No, but the sacrifices of pagans are offered to demons, not to God. And I do not want you to be participants with demons.

    Here: Present tense: what they habitually sacrifice, the ongoing temple practice of Corinth. The subject 'they' is not stated in the best early manuscripts but plainly means pagan worshippers.

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