στενοχωρ-ία G4730
Distress, anguish, dire straits — a narrowing of circumstances that crushes from every side
Literally 'narrowness of space' (from stenos, 'narrow,' and chora, 'space'), this noun vividly pictures being hemmed in with no room to move. Paul regularly pairs it with thlipsis ('tribulation') to form a hendiadys of total pressure: external affliction and internal anguish together. In Romans 2:9 it awaits every soul that does evil; in Romans 8:35 it appears in the catalog of forces that cannot separate believers from Christ's love. The Corinthian catalogs (2 Cor 6:4; 12:10) list it among the apostle's sufferings. Spanish 'angustia' and German 'Bedraengnis' both preserve the sense of crushing constriction.
Senses
1. sense 1 — Distress, anguish, dire straits; literally a constriction of space leaving no room for escape. Derived from stenos ('narrow') and chora ('space'), it describes being squeezed from all sides. Often paired with thlipsis ('tribulation') for emphasis: Rom 2:9 warns of 'tribulation and distress' for evildoers, while Rom 8:35 asks whether such forces can separate from Christ's love. In Paul's hardship catalogs (2 Cor 6:4; 12:10), it names the crushing inner dimension of apostolic suffering. French 'angoisse' captures the psychological constriction. 4×
AR["ضيقاتٍ", "ضَيْقٌ", "كَربٌ", "مَضايِقَ"]·ben["কষ্টে,", "সংকীর্ণতা,", "সঙ্কট", "সঙ্কটে"]·DE["Bedraengnis"]·EN["distress", "distresses"]·FR["angoisse"]·heb["דְּחָקוֹת", "מְצוּקָה", "מְצוּקוֹת", "מֵצַר"]·HI["कष्टों", "संकट", "संकटों"]·ID["kesesakan", "kesesakan,", "kesesakan-kesesakan"]·IT["angoscia"]·jav["karemekan,", "karepotan-karepotan", "karumitan", "karupegan,"]·KO["고난", "곤고냐", "곤란들에"]·PT["angústia", "angústia,", "angústias"]·RU["гонение", "стеснениях", "теснота"]·ES["angustia", "angustias"]·SW["msongo", "taabu", "taabu,"]·TR["darlik,", "darlık-mı", "darlıklarda"]·urd["تنگی", "تنگیوں"]
Related Senses
H7965 1. peace, absence of conflict (198×)H3467 1. save, deliver, rescue (Hifil active) (156×)H5127 1. flee, run away (Qal) (144×)G1515 1. peace, well-being, harmony (93×)H8002 1. peace offering(s) (87×)G4982 1. save spiritually, grant salvation (79×)H3444 1. salvation, deliverance (67×)H4422 1. Nifal: escape, flee (63×)H1272 1. flee, run away (Qal) (58×)H6869b 1. distress, trouble (57×)G4991 1. of salvation (46×)G2347 1. tribulation, affliction, distress (45×)H0983 1. security, safety, confidence (42×)H6031b 1. Piel: afflict, oppress (42×)H6040 1. affliction, misery, suffering (36×)H3468 1. salvation, deliverance (33×)G5343 1. flee, run away (28×)H3467 2. savior, deliverer (Hifil participle substantive) (28×)H8668 1. salvation, deliverance (27×)H8252 1. be quiet, be at rest (26×)
BDB / Lexicon Reference
στενοχωρ-ία, Ionic dialect -ίη, ἡ, narrowness of space, a confined space, Refs 5th c.BC+; want of room, by sea or land, Refs 5th c.BC+; opposed to εὐρυχωρία and ἄνεσις, Refs 1st c.AD+, compare 182b; σ. βίου the short space of life remaining, Refs 2nd c.AD+ __II metaphorically, straits, difficulty, ἡ σ. τοῦ ποταμοῦ difficulty of passing the river, LXX+5th c.BC+; distress, Refs 2nd c.BC+; ἡ τῆς πόλεως NT+2nd c.BC+; also, narrow limits, probably in Refs 5th c.BC+