λῑμός G3042
famine, hunger — severe scarcity of food, whether regional catastrophe or personal deprivation
Limos covers the full spectrum of food deprivation, from large-scale famine devastating whole regions to the gnawing hunger of an individual. Its 12 NT occurrences appear in apocalyptic catalogs of tribulation (Matt 24:7; Mark 13:8; Rev 6:8; 18:8), historical narratives of specific famines (Luke 4:25, the drought in Elijah's day; Acts 11:28, the famine under Claudius), and the deeply personal hunger of the prodigal son (Luke 15:14, 17). Paul lists limos among the hardships he has endured for Christ (2 Cor 11:27). The multilingual evidence — Spanish 'hambre,' French 'famine,' German 'Hungersnot' — shows some languages favoring the personal sense (hunger) and others the collective (famine), though the Greek word covers both without distinction.
Senses
1. famine / hunger — Severe deprivation of food, ranging from widespread famine affecting entire regions to personal hunger and starvation. Appears in eschatological warnings as one of the birth-pangs signaling the end (Matt 24:7, 'there will be famines'; Rev 6:8, famine as one of the four horsemen's weapons), in historical accounts (Luke 4:25, the three-and-a-half-year famine; Acts 11:28, the Claudian famine), and in personal narratives of deprivation (Luke 15:14, the prodigal's desperate hunger; 2 Cor 11:27, Paul's apostolic suffering). German 'Hungersnot' emphasizes the communal crisis, while Spanish 'hambre' leans personal — both senses are present in the Greek. All 12 occurrences share this unified semantic range. 12×
AR["المَجاعَةِ", "بِالجُوعِ", "جوعٌ", "جوعٍ", "جُوعٌ", "مَجاعاتٌ", "مَجاعَةٌ", "مَجَاعَاتٌ", "مَجَاعَةً", "مَجَاعَةٌ"]·ben["ক্ষুধায়", "খিদেতে", "দুর্ভিক্ষ", "দুর্ভিক্ষে,"]·DE["Hungersnot"]·EN["a-famine", "famine", "famines", "hunger", "with-famine"]·FR["famine"]·heb["בְּרָעָב", "רְעָבִים", "רְעָבוֹן", "רְעָבוֹת", "רָעָב"]·HI["अकाल", "अकाल,", "भूख", "भूख-से"]·ID["kelaparan", "kelaparan,"]·IT["carestia", "limos", "limō"]·jav["kaluwen", "keluwen", "luwe", "paceklik", "pailan"]·KO["굶주림으로", "기귈-으로", "기귰들이", "기근-이", "기근들과", "기근이", "기근이냐", "배고픔에"]·PT["de-fome", "fome", "fome,", "fomes"]·RU["голод", "голоде", "голодом,", "голоды", "нагота", "от-голода"]·ES["de-hambre", "hambre", "hambres", "hambruna"]·SW["kwa-njaa", "na", "njaa", "njaa,", "njaa-kuu"]·TR["açlıkta", "açlıktan", "kıtlık", "kıtlık-mı", "kıtlıklar", "ve-"]·urd["بھوک", "بھوک-سے", "قحط", "کال", "کال-سے"]
Related Senses
H7200 1. Qal: to see, perceive (1257×)G4771 2. you (singular address) (1077×)H8085 1. Qal: hear, perceive aurally (921×)H0859a 1. you (2nd person masculine singular pronoun) (743×)H0398 1. eat (consume food) (697×)H4191 1. die (Qal: natural/general death) (645×)G3708 1. see, perceive visually (419×)G0191 1. hear, perceive sound (360×)H???? 3. (352×)G3708 2. behold, look (exclamatory) (256×)H7272 1. foot (body part) (236×)H8354 1. drink, consume liquid (209×)H3205 1. Qal active: bear/give birth (female subject) (204×)H3205 2. Qal active: beget/father (male subject) (198×)H2421 1. Qal: live, be alive (177×)H8085 2. Qal: listen, heed, pay attention (172×)H2416a 1. alive, living (state/attribute) (146×)H2416e 1. life, lifespan, lifetime (145×)G2198 1. be alive, have life (133×)H8193 1. lip, lips (body part) (123×)
BDB / Lexicon Reference
λῑμός, οῦ, ὁ (Doric dialect ἡ, accusative to Refs 5th c.BC+; Λ. ἔχων γυναικὸς μορφήν Callisth. cited in NT+2nd c.BC+:—hunger, famine, δίψα τε καὶ λ. Refs 8th c.BC+, referring to the siege of Melos, Refs 5th c.BC+ __II a hungry wretch, Refs 4th c.BC+