Greek word · G2679
κατασκάπτω
kataskaptō
to ruin
To dig down, raze to the ground, demolish completely (from kata 'down' + skaptō 'dig').
Appears 2 times in 2 verses of the Greek New Testament. ·
What it means
From G. Abbott-Smith, A Manual Greek Lexicon of the New Testament (1922), via STEPBible.org (CC BY 4.0).
In depth
- Range of meaning
To dig down, raze to the ground, demolish completely (from kata 'down' + skaptō 'dig').
- Against the English
'Ruins' (BSB, KJV, ESV) is accurate but static. The participle means 'things that have been razed': deliberate destruction down to the foundations.
- Used elsewhere in the period
Used of razing city walls and fortresses in Greek historians. In the Septuagint it appears in Amos 9:11 itself, and Romans 11:3 uses it for Elijah's complaint, 'they have demolished your altars'.
Where it appears
Acts · 1
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Acts 15:16 κατεσκαμμένα ruined
‘After this I will return and rebuild the fallen tent of David. Its ruins I will rebuild, and I will restore it,
Here: 'Things razed to the ground.' The verb is used for walls and cities torn down to their foundations, and for demolished altars (Romans 11:3). It shows the fall was a deliberate destruction, not gentle wear.
Romans · 1
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Romans 11:3 κατέσκαψαν, they have torn down,
“Lord, they have killed Your prophets and torn down Your altars. I am the only one left, and they are seeking my life as well”?
Word data: STEPBible.org (CC BY 4.0), main text only.