Loss or forfeiture must be read through what is lost and the surrounding warning or account. Matthew and Mark ask about gaining the world while forfeiting one's soul, while Luke names losing or forfeiting one's very self.
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Reader summary
Full entry for ζημιόω (G2210) · Open the biblical lexicon
Loss or forfeiture must be read through what is lost and the surrounding warning or account. Matthew and Mark ask about gaining the world while forfeiting one's soul, while Luke names losing or forfeiting one's very self.
The BSB source-word alignment has 6 aligned rows for this entry. Common renderings include forfeit (2), forfeits (1), he will suffer loss (1), I have lost (1), were not harmed (1).
The source-word alignment first shows this entry at Matthew 16:26. Its strongest book concentrations include 1 Corinthians (1), 2 Corinthians (1), Luke (1), Mark (1).
Loss or forfeiture must be read through what is lost and the surrounding warning or account. Matthew and Mark ask about gaining the world while forfeiting one's soul, while Luke names losing or forfeiting one's very self. Their calls to follow Jesus retain the serious contrast rather than reducing it to an ordinary financial setback. Paul also describes loss of burned workmanship while expressly saying that the person is saved, a different stated outcome.
In another letter he rejoices that the Corinthians' sorrow led to repentance rather than harm from the speakers. Philippians names Paul's loss of former gains in comparison with knowing Christ and righteousness through faith. These witnesses are not interchangeable. Read object, speaker and outcome carefully. Teach the actual warning and costly allegiance without diagnosing every present loss as punishment, deciding another person's final state or using repentance language to excuse coercive harm.
Forfeited soul or self, lost workmanship with stated salvation, sorrow leading to repentance without harm and Paul's costly valuation distinguish all six contexts. Objects and explicit outcomes prevent one loss formula from deciding every person's condition.
What will it profit a man if he gains the whole world, yet forfeits his soul? Or what can a man give in exchange for his soul?
Jesus' question contrasts gaining the world with forfeiting one's soul within the call to deny self and follow Him, retaining the warning rather than reducing it to money alone.
If it is burned up, he will suffer loss. He himself will be saved, but only as if through the flames.
Burned workmanship brings loss, but the sentence explicitly says the person will be saved, making work and person distinct within the building argument.
More than that, I count all things as loss compared to the surpassing excellence of knowing Christ Jesus my Lord, for whom I have lost all things. I consider them rubbish, that I may gain Christ
Paul counts former gains as loss compared with knowing Christ and names lost things, with the following verse locating righteousness through faith rather than his own law record.
BSB source-word alignment connects this entry to exact verse rows, English rendering, source form, transliteration, and parsing.
How English Renders ItA compact distribution from source-word alignment before the full evidence tables.
Greek word. To suffer loss or forfeit, especially one's soul or self in spiritual exchange.
To suffer loss or forfeit, especially one's soul or self in spiritual exchange.
(ζημία), [in LXX chiefly for עָנַשׁ ;] to damage. Pass., to suffer loss, forfeit, lose: absol., 1Co.3:15; before ἐν, 2Co.7:9; with accusative of thing(s) (see B1., § 34, 6), τ. ψυχήν, Mat.16:26, Mrk.8:36; ἑαυτόν, Luk.9:25; τ. πάντα, Php.3:8.
Textus Receptus witness, full corpusGreek token appearances from Scrivener 1894 Textus Receptus in the full New Testament corpus.
6 Greek text appearances shown. Linked morphology labels have verse guides.
I inflict loss upon, punish
Read verseI inflict loss upon, punish
Read verseI inflict loss upon, punish
Read verseI inflict loss upon, punish
Read verseI inflict loss upon, punish
Read verseI inflict loss upon, punish
Read verseFull New Testament corpus: 260 chapters, 7,957 verses, 140,628 tokens. Data source: honza/textus-receptus (data only), with authority check against byztxt/greektext-textus-receptus.
How mood, tense, and voice shift the force of this verb in context.
This verb appears through different tense, voice, mood, or stem patterns. Those forms help readers see how the action is presented in context.
Verse guides are not available for this word yet, so verse references remain plain evidence markers.
How this verb appears across 5 occurrences in the NT discourse index (MACULA Greek SBLGNT).
Aspect reflects grammatical form — not authorial emphasis. Participles and infinitives are verbal adjectives and nouns respectively.
Clause data: MACULA Greek (Clear Bible, CC BY 4.0) · SBLGNT (Logos/SBL, CC BY 4.0)
Selected passage-level study witnesses for this word. This section is not the full occurrence list.
Showing 3 selected witnesses from 6 lexical occurrence verses.
ζημιόω is built from this root:
Compound and idiomatic phrases that include this word. Follow a link to study the phrase and how its parts work together.
The lost object and supplied outcome carry the argument. Jesus' world and soul contrast belongs to His call to follow and must retain its seriousness. Luke's wording names the very self and should remain visible beside Matthew and Mark rather than being silently harmonized. First Corinthians instead distinguishes burned work from the person who is explicitly saved; this cannot be erased by borrowing another loss context.
Second Corinthians reports sorrow leading to repentance and absence of harm from the speakers, while Philippians gives Paul's own valuation of former gains in relation to knowing Christ and faith righteousness. Teach these particular claims honestly. The licensed range does not give a teacher knowledge of another person's final state, nor does it make every injury spiritually beneficial.
Real warning, costly allegiance and supplied mercy can remain visible without inventing private verdicts or excusing coercion.
Matt.16.26
The licensed Greek range includes suffering loss, forfeiting and losing. The six listed contexts name different objects, including soul or self, work, possible harm and Paul's things. Read the actual object and explicit qualification; a shared verb cannot determine every person's final state or make material deprivation identical with the Gospel warning.
Psalm 103:8-12 praises the Lord's compassion and His not repaying according to sins. Read that Hebrew treatment account beside First Corinthians' explicit distinction between lost work and the saved person without equating lexical forms or building a complete final-state doctrine from the pair. Romans 8:35-37 also retains real trouble and danger alongside inseparable love; neither connection makes present hardship automatic condemnation or excuses causing harm.