δῠσ-βάστακτος G1419
hard to bear, burdensome, intolerable
This Greek adjective describes burdens that are grievous or intolerable to carry. Jesus uses it in Matthew 23:4 to criticize religious leaders who bind heavy loads on people's shoulders, and Luke 11:46 echoes this condemnation. The word emphasizes not just weight but the oppressive difficulty of bearing such loads, whether physical or spiritual.
Senses
1. sense 1 — Applied to the heavy burdens of religious legalism, this sense captures the oppressive nature of loads placed on others without help. The consistent translation pattern across languages (Spanish 'difíciles de llevar', French 'difficile à porter') highlights the 'difficult to carry' nuance rather than mere heaviness. Both occurrences appear in Jesus' denunciation of scribes and Pharisees, emphasizing moral rather than physical weight. 2×
AR["صَعْبَةَ-الْحَمْلِ", "عَسيرَةَ-الحَملِ"]·ben["দুর্বহ", "বহন-করতে-কঠিন"]·DE["δυσβάστακτα", "δυσβάστακτα]"]·EN["hard-to-bear"]·FR["difficile-à-porter"]·heb["קָשִׁים-לָשֵׂאת"]·HI["कठिन-उठाने-वाले", "दुर्वह"]·ID["sulit-dipikul", "yang-sulit-dipikul"]·IT["dusbastakta"]·jav["angel-dipunsanggèni", "awrat-sanget"]·KO["지기-어려운", "지기-힘든"]·RU["труднопереносимые", "тяжело-носимыми"]·ES["difíciles-de-llevar", "difíciles-de-llevar]"]·SW["migumu-kubeba", "na"]·TR["taşınması-güç"]·urd["اُٹھانے-مشکل", "مشکل-سے-اُٹھنے-والے"]
Related Senses
H0935 1. come, arrive (Qal) (2413×)G1473 1. first person singular pronoun (2084×)H3318 1. Qal: go out, depart, come forth (891×)H7725 1. to return, come/go back (Qal) (874×)H5927 1. go up, ascend (Qal) (779×)H7971 1. to send, dispatch (Qal) (701×)G2064 1. come / arrive (physical movement toward) (588×)H5307 1. Qal: fall down physically (339×)H5375 1. Qal: to lift up, raise (330×)H5975 1. to stand, stand up (310×)H5674a 1. Qal: pass by, pass through (256×)H3381 1. Qal: to go down, descend (physical movement) (242×)G1831 1. go/come out physically (193×)H5337 1. deliver, rescue, save (Hifil) (188×)H7901 1. lie down, rest, sleep (183×)G1525 1. enter a place physically (179×)H7812 1. prostrate oneself, bow down, worship (173×)H3318 2. Hifil: bring out, lead out, take out (persons) (172×)H7725 2. to bring back, restore (Hifil) (151×)H5674a 2. Qal: cross over (134×)
BDB / Lexicon Reference
δῠσ-βάστακτος, ον, intolerable, grievous to be borne, LXX+NT+1st c.AD+; of persons, Refs 4th c.BC+