πένθος G3997
Mourning, grief, sorrow; deep lamentation especially over death or catastrophic loss.
A noun denoting deep grief, mourning, or sorrow — the heavy, public expression of lamentation over loss. In James 4:9, it summons frivolous believers to sobering repentance: 'Let your laughter be turned to mourning.' The three Revelation passages concentrate its force on the fall of Babylon, who boasted 'I shall never see mourning' (Rev 18:7) only to be struck with death and πένθος in a single day (18:8). Revelation 21:4 offers the ultimate reversal: God will wipe every tear away, and 'mourning shall be no more.' The Spanish 'luto' (mourning) and German 'Trauer' (grief) both emphasize the solemn, public weight of bereavement.
Senses
1. sense 1 — Mourning, grief, or deep sorrow — particularly the heavy lamentation associated with death, disaster, or irreversible loss. The word carries strong overtones of public mourning ritual. James 4:9 uses it as a call to repentance, demanding that self-satisfied laughter give way to mourning and weeping. In Revelation 18, πένθος becomes the ironic fate of Babylon, who declared herself queen beyond grief (18:7) yet received mourning, famine, and fire in one day (18:8). The theological climax comes in Rev 21:4, where πένθος is named among the old-order sorrows God will permanently abolish. The French 'deuil' (mourning for the dead) and Spanish 'luto' (formal mourning, often with black garments) both capture the ritualized, public dimension of this grief. 5×
AR["حُزْنًا", "حُزْنٌ", "نَوحٍ"]·ben["শোক", "শোকে"]·DE["Trauer"]·EN["mourning"]·FR["deuil"]·heb["אֵבֶל"]·HI["विलाप-में", "शोक"]·ID["perkabungan", "ratapan"]·IT["lutto"]·jav["prihatin", "sedhih"]·KO["슬픔", "슬픔-으로", "슬픔과", "슬픔을"]·PT["luto"]·RU["скорби", "скорбь"]·ES["llanto", "luto", "luto,"]·SW["huzuni", "huzuni,", "huzuni.", "kuwa-maombolezo"]·TR["yas", "yasa"]·urd["غم", "ماتم"]
Related Senses
H3548 1. priest, cultic officiant (750×)G5547 1. Christ, Messiah, Anointed One (540×)H5030 1. Prophet, divine spokesperson (317×)H5930a 1. burnt offering (sacrifice) (286×)H3881 1. Levites (priestly class) (283×)G4396 1. prophet, spokesperson of God (146×)H6944 1. sanctuary, holy place (129×)G0749 1. high priest, chief priest (123×)H6944 2. holiness, sacredness (abstract quality) (123×)G5330 1. Pharisee (99×)G4336 1. pray to God (86×)H6944 3. holy things, sacred offerings (plural) (86×)H3722a 1. make ritual atonement (Piel) (85×)H6912 1. bury (Qal active) (82×)H6419 1. pray (Hitpael) (80×)H6944 4. holiness (with possessive pronoun) (77×)H6942 1. sanctify, consecrate (Piel factitive) (76×)H2930a 1. Qal: be/become unclean (75×)H7819a 1. slaughter an animal (Qal active) (72×)H1486 1. lot (object cast for decisions) (71×)
BDB / Lexicon Reference
πένθος, εος, τό, grief, sorrow, Refs 8th c.BC+; τινος for one, Refs 8th c.BC+; Τρῶας λάβε π. Refs 8th c.BC+ __2 especially of grief for the dead, mourning, τοκεῦσι γόον καὶ π. ἔθηκας Refs 8th c.BC+; π. ποιήσασθαι make a public mourning, Refs 5th c.BC+; ἐν πένθει [εἶναι] Refs 5th c.BC+; π. λύεσθαι, ἀποθέσθαι, Refs 5th c.BC+ __II unhappy event, misfortune, π. τινός one's illfortune, Refs 5th c.BC+…