καταβολ-ή G2602
A laying down or founding; used of the world's foundation from creation, and once of the depositing of seed (conception).
Katabolē carries the root idea of 'casting down' or 'laying down,' and in the New Testament it appears overwhelmingly in the phrase apo katabolēs kosmou — 'from the foundation of the world' — a majestic temporal marker reaching back to the very beginning of creation (Matt 13:35, John 17:24, Eph 1:4, Rev 13:8). This phrase frames God's sovereign purposes as established before anything existed. One striking exception occurs in Heb 11:11, where the same word describes Sarah receiving power eis katabolēn spermatos — 'for the depositing of seed,' i.e., conception. The multilingual evidence reflects this split: most languages use 'foundation' (Spanish fundación, German Grundlegung, French fondation), while Heb 11:11 draws 'conception' in English.
2. sense 2 — The depositing or sowing of seed, i.e., biological conception. Found only in Heb 11:11 where Sarah 'received power for the depositing of seed' (eis katabolēn spermatos), enabling her to conceive despite her age. The underlying metaphor shifts from laying a building's foundation to sowing seed in the ground — both acts of katabolē ('casting down'). English translations uniquely render this 'conception,' while Spanish and French retain fundación/fondation, perhaps not fully capturing the biological specificity the Greek carries here. 1×
AR["إِلْقَاء"]·ben["স্থাপনে"]·DE["Grundlegung"]·EN["conception"]·FR["fondation"]·heb["הַנָּחַת"]·HI["गर्भ-धारण"]·ID["mengandung"]·IT["fondazione"]·jav["nyandang"]·KO["창조를"]·PT["concepção"]·RU["зачатия"]·ES["fundación"]·SW["kupata"]·TR["kurmak"]·urd["قائم-کرنے"]
▼ 1 more sense below
Senses
1. sense 1 — Foundation or founding, used exclusively in the phrase 'foundation of the world' (katabolē kosmou) to mark the moment of creation as the starting point of God's eternal purposes. Ten of eleven NT occurrences carry this sense. Jesus speaks of things 'hidden from the foundation of the world' (Matt 13:35), and Paul declares that God chose believers 'before the foundation of the world' (Eph 1:4). Translations converge remarkably across languages — Spanish fundación, French fondation, German Grundlegung — all pointing to an architectural metaphor: God laying the groundwork of the cosmos. 10×
AR["تَأسيسِ","تَأسِيسِ","تَأْسيسِ","تَأْسِيسِ"]·ben["পত্তন","ভিত্তিস্থাপন","স্থাপনা","স্থাপনা-র","স্থাপনের"]·DE["Grundlegung","καταβολῆς"]·EN["foundation"]·FR["fondation"]·heb["יְסוֹד"]·HI["नींव","नींव-से","नेएनव-से","स्थपन","स्थापना"]·ID["dasar","penciptaan","pendirian","permulaan"]·IT["fondazione","kataboles"]·jav["adegipun","dhasaring","dhasaripun","ngedègaken-dhasar","pondasi","wiwitan","yasa"]·KO["창립","창세로부터","창조","창조의"]·PT["a-fundação","fundação"]·RU["основания"]·ES["fundación","la-fundación"]·SW["kuumbwa","kuwekwa-msingi","msingi","mwanzo","ya-msingi"]·TR["kurulus'un","kurulusundan","kuruluşu","kuruluşundan","kuruluşunun"]·urd["بنیاد","بنیاد-رکھنے-سے","بنیاد-سے"]
BDB / Lexicon Reference
καταβολ-ή, ἡ, throwing down: hence, sowing, Refs; especially of begetting, κ. σπέρματος, σπερμάτων, NT+5th c.BC+; ἡ Ῥωμύλου σπορὰ καὶ κ. Refs 1st c.AD+ __b congenital defect, ἀπὸ ξυγγενικῆς αἰτίας καὶ κ. Refs 1st c.AD+ __c Astrology texts, nativity, ἡ ἐξ ἀρχῆς κ. Refs 2nd c.AD+ __2 paying down, especially by instalments, καταβάλλειν τὰς κ. Refs 4th c.BC+; τὸ ἀργύριον ἔφερε καταβολὴν τῇ πόλει paid…