Greek word · G2704

καταφθείρω

kataphtheirō

to deprave

Kataphtheirō: to destroy, ruin, spoil, corrupt, let decay. The prefix kata- intensifies, giving "thoroughly spoiled". Nous: the mind as the faculty of perception, reasoning and moral judgment.

Appears once in the Greek New Testament. ·

What it means

κατα-φθείρω

[in LXX chiefly for שָׁחַת hi., Genesis 6:12, al. ;]

1 1 to destroy entirely.

2. In moral sense (as LXX), to deprave, corrupt: pass. pf. ptcp., before τ. νο ν, 2 Timothy 3:8.†

(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 2 Timothy 3:8

Range of meaning

Kataphtheirō: to destroy, ruin, spoil, corrupt, let decay. The prefix kata- intensifies, giving "thoroughly spoiled". Nous: the mind as the faculty of perception, reasoning and moral judgment.

Against the English

KJV "of corrupt minds" and WEB/YLT "corrupted in mind" are close. BSB "depraved in mind" (also NIV, NASB) is accurate in older English, but to modern ears "depraved" suggests sexual perversity or monstrous wickedness, which is narrower than the Greek.

How it drifted

"Depraved" once meant simply "made crooked or worse" (Latin depravare, "to distort"). It has since narrowed toward moral grotesqueness, and in theology it is tied to the Reformed doctrine of "total depravity".

Used elsewhere in the period

A close parallel is 1 Tim 6:5: "people corrupted (diephtharmenōn) in mind and deprived of the truth". Kataphtheirō is used in the LXX for ruin and destruction (e.g. Gen 6:12–13 uses the related phtheirō for the earth "corrupted" before the Flood).

Where it appears

2 Timothy · 1

  1. 2 Timothy 3:8 κατεφθαρμένοι depraved

    Just as Jannes and Jambres opposed Moses, so also these men oppose the truth. They are depraved in mind and disqualified from the faith.

    Here: Perfect passive participle: "having been ruined", describing a settled condition that resulted from a process. The word speaks of spoiling and decay, a mind that no longer works as it should. It does not specifically mean moral perversion.

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