Greek word · G5480

χάραγμα

charagma

image/mark

Something engraved, stamped, or impressed: a mark, brand, seal-impression, or the stamp on a coin. It is also used of engraved or sculpted work (Acts 17:29, 'an image formed by human art').

Appears 8 times in 8 verses of the Greek New Testament. ·

What it means

χάραγμα, -τος, τό

(χαράσσω, to engrave),

(a) a stamp, impress, mark: Revelation 13:16-17 14:9, 11 16:2 19:20 20:4 (see Deiss., BS, 240 ff.);

(b) a thing graven: Acts 17:29.†

(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 Revelation 16:2

Range of meaning

Something engraved, stamped, or impressed: a mark, brand, seal-impression, or the stamp on a coin. It is also used of engraved or sculpted work (Acts 17:29, 'an image formed by human art').

Against the English

'Mark' is accurate but vague. Modern readers often picture a hidden technological or bodily code. The Greek picture is a stamp or brand of ownership and loyalty.

How it drifted

Modern speculation has tied the 'mark' to new technologies such as barcodes or chips. The word itself names a stamp or engraved sign of ownership or authority.

Used elsewhere in the period

Adolf Deissmann (Light from the Ancient East) cited papyri where charagma refers to the imperial stamp, giving the emperor's name and regnal year, on official documents such as bills of sale. The word was also used for brands on animals and the impress on coins, which carried the emperor's image and titles. In Revelation it always belongs to the beast (13:16–17; 14:9, 11; 16:2; 19:20; 20:4), on the right hand or forehead. It stands opposite God's 'seal' and the name of the Lamb and the Father on the foreheads of his servants (7:3; 9:4; 14:1; 22:4). That contrast echoes Ezek 9:4, where a mark is placed on the foreheads of the faithful in Jerusalem.

From the study of Revelation 14:11

Range of meaning

Something engraved, stamped or branded: the impression of a seal, a stamp on a coin, a brand on an animal or slave, or a carved image.

Against the English

'Mark' is accurate but vague. 'Stamp' or 'brand' better shows that it is a sign of who owns you and whom you are loyal to.

How it drifted

Modern end-times writing has tied 'the mark of the beast' to particular technologies (barcodes, microchips, ID systems). The text says nothing about this.

Used elsewhere in the period

Deissmann's Light from the Ancient East cites papyri where charagma is the imperial seal stamped on sale documents. Acts 17:29 uses it for idols 'shaped' (charagma) by human skill. In Revelation (13:16–17; 14:9, 11; 16:2; 19:20; 20:4) it is the beast's counterpart to the 'seal' (sphragis) of God on the foreheads of his servants (7:3; 9:4; 14:1).

From the study of Revelation 19:20

Range of meaning

Something engraved, stamped or branded. An impressed mark or seal, the stamp on a coin, a brand on an animal or slave, an engraved image (Acts 17:29 uses it for idols 'shaped by human art').

Against the English

'Mark' is accurate but vague. 'Stamp' or 'brand' better captures an official mark that shows ownership or allegiance.

How it drifted

No drift in the word itself. The drift is in modern guesses about what the mark physically is (barcodes, microchips, ID cards, vaccines). These rest on the English 'mark', not on how the Greek word and Revelation's own symbolism work.

Used elsewhere in the period

Papyri from the first and second centuries use χάραγμα for the official stamp on bills of sale and documents, sometimes carrying the emperor's name and regnal year (Deissmann, Light from the Ancient East). Coins carried the emperor's image and titles. 3 Maccabees 2:29 records Ptolemy IV branding Jews with the ivy leaf of Dionysus as a mark of forced religious enrolment, a close parallel. Slaves and soldiers might be branded or tattooed with an owner's or commander's sign.

Where it appears

Acts · 1

  1. Acts 17:29 χαράγματι a graven thing

    Therefore, being offspring of God, we should not think that the Divine Being is like gold or silver or stone, an image formed by man’s skill and imagination.

    Here: Sums up the three materials: worked into a carved object. It sits alongside them grammatically, so the meaning is 'gold, silver, stone: a thing carved out by human craft'. The stress falls on its being shaped by human hands.

Revelation · 7

  1. Revelation 13:16 χάραγμα a mark

    And the second beast required all people, small and great, rich and poor, free and slave, to receive a mark on their right hand or on their forehead,

    Here: An official impression or stamp: the kind of mark found on coins, on sealed documents, or branded on property. It shows whose something is. Verse 17 says what the mark consists of: the beast's name or the number of its name.

  2. Revelation 13:17 χάραγμα mark —

    so that no one could buy or sell unless he had the mark—the name of the beast or the number of its name.

  3. Revelation 14:9 χάραγμα a mark

    And a third angel followed them, calling out in a loud voice, “If anyone worships the beast and its image and receives its mark on his forehead or on his hand,

    Here: An impressed or engraved mark, like a stamp on a coin or document or a brand on a slave or animal. It shows who someone belongs to. Here there is no article ('a mark'). It is the dark counterpart of God's seal and the Lamb's name on the foreheads of the faithful (7:3; 14:1).

  4. Revelation 14:11 χάραγμα mark

    And the smoke of their torment rises forever and ever. Day and night there is no rest for those who worship the beast and its image, or for anyone who receives the mark of its name.”

    Here: An engraved or stamped mark, like a seal pressed into a document, a stamp on a coin, or a brand. It shows who you belong to and is the beast's mirror image of God's seal on the foreheads of his servants (7:3; 14:1).

  5. Revelation 16:2 χάραγμα mark

    So the first angel went and poured out his bowl on the earth, and loathsome, malignant sores broke out on those who had the mark of the beast and worshiped its image.

    Here: An engraved or stamped mark, used for an official seal, a brand or an impression on coins. It shows whom the bearer belongs to. It is the opposite of the 'seal' of God on his servants' foreheads (7:3; 14:1).

  6. Revelation 19:20 χάραγμα mark

    But the beast was captured along with the false prophet, who on its behalf had performed signs deceiving those who had the mark of the beast and worshiped its image. Both the beast and the false prophet were thrown alive into the fiery lake of burning sulfur.

    Here: An impressed or engraved mark of ownership and allegiance, like a seal on a document, the stamp on a coin, or a brand on a slave. It is the mirror image of God's seal on his servants' foreheads (7:3; 14:1).

  7. Revelation 20:4 χάραγμα mark

    Then I saw the thrones, and those seated on them had been given authority to judge. And I saw the souls of those who had been beheaded for their testimony of Jesus and for the word of God, and those who had not worshiped the beast or its image and had not received its mark on their foreheads or hands. And they came to life and reigned with Christ for a thousand years.

    Here: The beast's stamp of ownership and allegiance. It is the counterpart to God's seal and name on the foreheads of his servants (7:3; 14:1).

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