The Greek word τεφρόω, tephroo only occurs once in 2 Peter 2:6. The context does not clarify whether the destruction spoken of it is in support of annihilationism or eternal conscious torment regarding people since it speaks about the destruction of the cities of Sodom and Gomorrah being reduced to ashes. It obviously means physical destruction, but the context does not reveal if this destruction means a person does not exist in the afterlife or on the Day of Judgment leading to nonexistence.
- Greek word: τεφρόω, tephroo
- Meaning: reduce to ashes
- Strong’s #: G5077
- Frequency: 1 occurrences in 1 verse.
Summary of the meaning of the Greek word tephroo, reduce to ashes, in all verses where it occurs in the New Testament.
- Physical and/or spiritual death, 1 occurrence
- Rom. 3:16
| TABLE OF ALL NEW TESTAMENT USEAGES OF TEPHROO, τεφρόω | ||
| Address | Verse | Meaning |
| 2 Pet. 2:6 | and if He condemned the cities of Sodom and Gomorrah to destruction by reducing them to ashes, having made them an example to those who would live ungodly lives thereafter; | Cities destroyed |
Dictionaries and Lexicons consulted
- “ashes. To reduce to ashes, consume, to destroy cities, with the acc. (2 Pet. 2:6).”
- Zodhiates, Spiros. The Complete Word Study Dictionary: New Testament. Chattanooga, TN: AMG Publishers, 2000.
- “to destroy by reducing something to ashes—‘to reduce to ashes.’ πόλεις Σοδόμων καὶ Γομόρρας τεφρώσας καταστροφῇ κατέκρινεν ‘(God) condemned the cities of Sodom and Gomorrah to destruction, reducing them to ashes’ 2 Pe 2:6. It is possible to render ‘to reduce to ashes’ as ‘to burn up completely’ or ‘to destroy by fire and leave only ashes.’
- Louw, Johannes P., and Eugene Albert Nida. Greek-English Lexicon of the New Testament: Based on Semantic Domains. New York: United Bible Societies, 1996.
- “AV translates as “turn into ashes” once. 1 reduce to ashes.”
- Strong, James. Enhanced Strong’s Lexicon. Woodside Bible Fellowship, 1995.
