Bible Encyclopedia: Corpse

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International Standard Bible Encyclopedia

CORPSE

korps: This word in the King James Version is the translations of two Hebrew words, pegher, and gewiyah, while nebhelah, and guphah, which mean the same, are translated "body," with which the English word "corpse" (Latin, corpus) was originally synonymical. Therefore we find the now apparently unnecessary addition of the adjective "dead" in 2 Kings 19:35 and Isaiah 37:36. The Greek equivalent is ptoma, literally, "a fallen body," "a ruin" (from pipto, "to fall"), in Mark 6:29 Revelation 11:8, 9.

Corpses were considered as unclean and defiling in the Old Testament, so that priests were not to touch dead bodies except those of near kinsfolk (Leviticus 21:1-3), the high priest and a Nazirite not even such (Leviticus 21:11 Numbers 6:6-8). Numbers 19 presents to us the ceremonial of purification from such defilement by the sprinkling with the ashes of a red heifer, cedar wood, hyssop and scarlet.

It was considered a great calamity and disgrace to have one's body left unburied, a "food unto all birds of the heavens, and unto the beasts of the earth" (Deuteronomy 28:26 2 Samuel 21:10 Psalm 79:2 Isaiah 34:3 Jeremiah 7:33, etc.). Thence is explained the merit of Rizpah (2 Samuel 21:10), and of the inhabitants of Jabesh-gilead, who protected or recovered and buried the mutilated bodies of Saul and his sons (1 Samuel 31:11-13 2 Samuel 2:4-7; compare 1 Chronicles 10:11, 12).

See BURIAL.

Even the corpses of persons executed by hanging were not to remain on the tree "all night," "for he that is hanged is accursed of God; that thou defile not thy land which Yahweh thy God giveth thee for an inheritance" (Deuteronomy 21:23).

H. L. E. Luering

Greek

4430. ptoma -- a fall, hence a misfortune, ruin
... hence a misfortune, ruin. Part of Speech: Noun, Neuter Transliteration: ptoma Phonetic
Spelling: (pto'-mah) Short Definition: a carcass, corpse Definition: a ...
//strongsnumbers.com/greek2/4430.htm - 6k

3498. nekros -- dead
... dead. Part of Speech: Adjective Transliteration: nekros Phonetic Spelling:
(nek-ros') Short Definition: dead, a corpse Definition: (a) adj: dead, lifeless ...
//strongsnumbers.com/greek2/3498.htm - 7k

3499. nekroo -- to put to death
... Cognate: 3499 (from 3498 , corpse-like, lifeless") -- to view as a corpse, ie without
life; (but not "make") , ; to mortify, deprive of life or energizing power ...
//strongsnumbers.com/greek2/3499.htm - 7k

2966. kolon -- a limb (of the body)
... Noun, Neuter Transliteration: kolon Phonetic Spelling: (ko'-lon) Short Definition:
a limb, bodies Definition: a limb, member of a body; fig: a corpse, carcass. ...
//strongsnumbers.com/greek2/2966.htm - 6k

345. anakeimai -- to be laid up, to recline
... lean or recline at the table. From ana and keimai; to recline (as a corpse or at
a meal) -- guest, lean, lie, sit (down, at meat), at the table. see GREEK ana. ...
//strongsnumbers.com/greek2/345.htm - 7k

167. akatharsia -- uncleanness
... Cognate: 167 (from 1 "not" and 2513 , "clean because unmixed, pure") -- ritual ,
caused by leprosy, open infection, child birth, touching a corpse, etc. ...
//strongsnumbers.com/greek2/167.htm - 7k

4676. soudarion -- a handkerchief, a head cloth (for the dead)
... Of Latin origin; a sudarium (sweat-cloth), ie Towel (for wiping the perspiration
from the face, or binding the face of a corpse) -- handkerchief, napkin. ...
//strongsnumbers.com/greek2/4676.htm - 6k

4958. sustello -- to draw together, hence wrap up
... limit, shorten. From sun and stello; to send (draw) together, ie Enwrap (enshroud
a corpse for burial), contract (an interval) -- short, wind up. see GREEK sun. ...
//strongsnumbers.com/greek2/4958.htm - 6k

4792. sugkomizo -- to bring together, spec. to take up (a body for ...
... sugkomizo Phonetic Spelling: (soong-kom-id'-zo) Short Definition: I bear away together
with Definition: I bear away together with, as in carrying away a corpse ...
//strongsnumbers.com/greek2/4792.htm - 6k

Strong's Hebrew

6297. peger -- corpse, carcass
... 6296, 6297. peger. 6298 . corpse, carcass. Transliteration: peger Phonetic
Spelling: (peh'gher) Short Definition: corpses. ... carcass, corpse, dead body. ...
/hebrew/6297.htm - 6k

5038. nebelah -- a carcass, corpse
... 5037, 5038. nebelah. 5039 . a carcass, corpse. Transliteration: nebelah
Phonetic Spelling: (neb-ay-law') Short Definition: body. ...
/hebrew/5038.htm - 6k

1480. guphah -- a body, corpse
... guphah. 1481 . a body, corpse. Transliteration: guphah Phonetic Spelling:
(goo-faw') Short Definition: bodies. ... From guwph; a corpse (as closed to sense) -- ...
/hebrew/1480.htm - 6k

1472. gviyah -- a body, corpse
... 1471, 1472. gviyah. 1472a . a body, corpse. Transliteration: gviyah Phonetic
Spelling: (ghev-ee-yaw') Short Definition: body. dead body, carcass, corpse ...
/hebrew/1472.htm - 5k

1472a. geviyyah -- a body, corpse
... 1472, 1472a. geviyyah. 1472b . a body, corpse. Transliteration: geviyyah
Short Definition: body. Word Origin from the same as gav ...
/hebrew/1472a.htm - 5k

4463. mamoth -- death
... death. From muwth; a mortal disease; concretely, a corpse -- death. see HEBREW
muwth. 4462, 4463. mamoth. 4464 . Strong's Numbers.
/hebrew/4463.htm - 6k

5315. nephesh -- a soul, living being, life, self, person, desire ...
... passion, appetite, emotion NASB Word Usage any (1), anyone (2), anyone* (1), appetite
(7), being (1), beings (3), body (1), breath (1), corpse (2), creature (6 ...
/hebrew/5315.htm - 7k

4955. misraphah -- a burning
... burning. From saraph; combustion, ie Cremation (of a corpse), or calcination (of
lime) -- burning. see HEBREW saraph. 4954, 4955. misraphah. 4956 . ...
/hebrew/4955.htm - 6k

4191. muth -- to die
... 1), bring about my death (1), bring death (1), caused the death (1), certainly die
(1), certainly put (1), certainly put me to death (1), corpse (2), dead (104 ...
/hebrew/4191.htm - 7k

Library

Fragment xxxv. If the Corpse of Elisha Raised a Dead Man...
... Fragment XXXV. If the corpse of Elisha raised a dead man� If the corpse
of Elisha raised a dead man, [4857] how much more shall ...
/.../fragments from the lost writings of irenaeus/fragment xxxv if the corpse.htm

Death Entirely Separates the Soul from the Body.
... in this sense that Plato, although he despatches at once to heaven such souls as
he pleases, [1789] yet in his Republic [1790] exhibits to us the corpse of an ...
/.../tertullian/a treatise on the soul/chapter li death entirely separates the.htm

Our Death.
... A body without a soul is a corpse. ... Yea, the parallel goes still further. A corpse
may be embalmed, stuffed with herbs, and encased as a mummy. ...
//christianbookshelf.org/kuyper/the work of the holy spirit/xvi our death.htm

The Life of Mr. John Welwood.
... The night after his exit his corpse was removed from John Barclay's house into a
private room, belonging to one Janet Hutton (till his friends might consult ...
/.../howie/biographia scoticana scots worthies/the life of mr john 10.htm

Whether in the Blessed, after the Resurrection, all the Senses ...
... But this opinion cannot be true; which is evident from the fact that vultures hasten
to a corpse on perceiving the odor from a very great distance, whereas it ...
/.../aquinas/summa theologica/whether in the blessed after.htm

Ephesians v. 5, 6
... It is the being turned into a corpse, the being stripped of the energy
derived from the soul. ... It is its being made a corpse also. ...
/.../homily xviii ephesians v 5.htm

Death by Disuse
... There you have naked death, death unadorned, the corpse exhibited; here,
if there is a corpse, at least it is decently dressed. ...
/.../wilson-carmichael/things as they are/chapter xiii death by disuse.htm

Chrysostom -- Excessive Grief at the Death of Friends
... Look not, therefore, on the corpse, lying with closed eyes and speechless lips,
but on the man that is risen, that has received glory unspeakable and amazing ...
/.../various/the worlds great sermons volume i/chrysostom excessive grief at.htm

How one Even of those who are Without May be Brought to Believe ...
... how would her heart be consumed as it were with a flame; how bitterly would she
prolong her lament over him, embracing the corpse as it lay before her ...
/.../gregory/gregory of nyssa dogmatic treatises etc/xxv how one even of.htm

Jesus in the Tomb.
... expired. A Jewish law[2] forbade a corpse suspended on the cross to be
left beyond the evening of the day of the execution. It is ...
//christianbookshelf.org/renan/the life of jesus/chapter xxvi jesus in the.htm

Webster's Revised Unabridged Dictionary

1. (n.) The dead body of a human being.

Thesaurus

Corpse (18 Occurrences)
... 1. (n.) The dead body of a human being. Int. Standard Bible Encyclopedia. CORPSE. ...
HLE Luering. Multi-Version Concordance Corpse (18 Occurrences). ...
/c/corpse.htm - 14k

Carcass (30 Occurrences)
... Noah Webster's Dictionary 1. (n.) A dead body, whether of man or beast; a
corpse; now commonly the dead body of a beast. 2. (n.) The ...
/c/carcass.htm - 18k

Carcase (38 Occurrences)
... this Hebrew word is also translated "dead body" in Numbers 14:29 1 Samuel 17:46;
Isaiah 34:3; Isaiah 66:24 Ezekiel 6:5; Ezekiel 43:7:9, and "corpse" in Nahum 3 ...
/c/carcase.htm - 21k

Sprinkling (48 Occurrences)
... In the case of persons who had contracted uncleanness through contact with a corpse,
sprinkling with the "water of separation" was part of the process of ...
/s/sprinkling.htm - 29k

Sprinkle (37 Occurrences)
... In the case of persons who had contracted uncleanness through contact with a corpse,
sprinkling with the "water of separation" was part of the process of ...
/s/sprinkle.htm - 26k

Burial (25 Occurrences)
... The corpse, dressed in such clothes as were worn in life, is stretched on a bier
with a cloth thrown over it, until carried forth for burial" (Eastern Customs ...
/b/burial.htm - 42k

Corpses (16 Occurrences)

/c/corpses.htm - 11k

Body (562 Occurrences)
... body, whether alive or dead" (1 Samuel 31:10, 12 2 Kings 8:5 the King James Version;
Daniel 10:6); me`im, "body" (Songs 5:14); guphah = "corpse" (1 Chronicles ...
/b/body.htm - 59k

Jairus (6 Occurrences)
... the chamber of death, accompanied by Peter and James and John and the father and
mother of the maiden, he went forward to the bed whereon the corpse lay, and ...
/j/jairus.htm - 10k

Lightly (31 Occurrences)
... Deuteronomy 21:23 his corpse doth not remain on the tree, for thou dost certainly
bury him in that day -- for a thing lightly esteemed of God 'is' the hanged ...
/l/lightly.htm - 16k

Bible Concordance

Corpse (18 Occurrences)

Matthew 14:12 And his disciples came, and took up the corpse, and buried him; and they went and told Jesus.
(ASV)

Matthew 24:28 For wherever the carcass is, there is where the vultures gather together.
(See NAS)

Mark 6:29 When his disciples heard this, they came and took up his corpse, and laid it in a tomb.
(WEB KJV ASV WBS YLT)

Mark 9:26 Having cried out, and convulsed greatly, it came out of him. The boy became like one dead; so much that most of them said, "He is dead."
(See NAS RSV NIV)

Mark 15:45 And when he learned it of the centurion, he granted the corpse to Joseph.
(ASV)

Leviticus 22:4 "'Whoever of the seed of Aaron is a leper or has an issue; he shall not eat of the holy things, until he is clean. Whoever touches anything that is unclean by the dead, or a man whose seed goes from him;
(See NAS NIV)

Numbers 19:11 "He who touches the dead body of any man shall be unclean seven days:
(See NAS)

Numbers 19:13 Whoever touches a dead person, the body of a man who has died, and doesn't purify himself, defiles the tabernacle of Yahweh; and that soul shall be cut off from Israel: because the water for impurity was not sprinkled on him, he shall be unclean; his uncleanness is yet on him.
(See NAS)

Deuteronomy 21:23 his corpse doth not remain on the tree, for thou dost certainly bury him in that day -- for a thing lightly esteemed of God 'is' the hanged one -- and thou dost not defile thy ground which Jehovah thy God is giving to thee -- an inheritance.
(YLT NAS)

1 Kings 13:24 and he departed. And a lion met him by the way and slew him; and his corpse was cast in the way, and the ass stood by it; the lion also stood by the corpse.
(DBY)

1 Kings 13:25 And behold, men passed by, and saw the corpse cast in the way and the lion standing by the corpse; and they came and told it in the city where the old prophet dwelt.
(DBY)

1 Kings 13:28 And he went and found his corpse cast in the way, and the ass and the lion standing by the corpse: the lion had not eaten the corpse, nor torn the ass.
(DBY)

1 Kings 13:29 And the prophet took up the corpse of the man of God, and laid it upon the ass, and brought it back; and the old prophet came into the city, to mourn and to bury him.
(DBY)

1 Kings 13:30 And he laid his corpse in his own sepulchre; and they mourned over him saying, Alas, my brother!
(DBY)

2 Kings 9:37 and the body of Jezebel shall be as dung on the face of the field in the portion of Jezreel, so that they shall not say, "This is Jezebel."'"
(See NAS RSV)

Isaiah 14:19 But you, like a birth before its time, are stretched out with no resting-place in the earth; clothed with the bodies of the dead who have been put to the sword, who go down to the lowest parts of the underworld; a dead body, crushed under foot.
(See NAS NIV)

Jeremiah 26:23 And they bring out Urijah from Egypt, and bring him in unto the king Jehoiakim, and he smiteth him with a sword, and casteth his corpse unto the graves of the sons of the people.'
(YLT)

Haggai 2:13 Then Haggai said, "If one who is unclean by reason of a dead body touch any of these, will it be unclean?" The priests answered, "It will be unclean."
(See NAS)

Subtopics

Corpse

Related Terms

Carcass (30 Occurrences)

Carcase (38 Occurrences)

Sprinkling (48 Occurrences)

Sprinkle (37 Occurrences)

Burial (25 Occurrences)

Corpses (16 Occurrences)

Body (562 Occurrences)

Jairus (6 Occurrences)

Lightly (31 Occurrences)