Word study
Earthly
1 Hebrew and 7 Greek words behind this English word
The original-language words that the Berean Standard Bible translates with “earthly”. English often uses one word where Hebrew or Greek has several, each with its own shade of meaning. Under each word are verses where it is translated this way; choose the word itself for its full study: every verse, how else it is translated, the forms it takes and what the dictionaries say.
At a glance
How often each original word is translated “earthly” or one of its forms.
Compare the Greek words side by side
Hebrew and Aramaic words (Old Testament)
- אֶרֶץ eretsearth, landtranslated this way 1 time of its 2,375 uses · Strong’s H776Noun · Translated: land 1,483, earth 564, ground 119, lands 41Full study and all 2,120 verses →
Greek words (New Testament)
- ἐπίγειος epígeiosearthlytranslated this way 6 times of its 7 uses · Strong’s G1919Adjective · Translated: earthly 6, earth 1Full study and all 6 verses →
John 3:12 If I have told you about earthly things and you do not believe, how will you believe if I tell you about heavenly things?
1 Corinthians 15:40 There are also heavenly bodies and earthly bodies. But the splendor of the heavenly bodies is of one degree, and the splendor of the earthly bodies is of another.
- χοϊκός choïkósearthy, made of earthtranslated this way 2 times of its 4 uses · Strong’s G5517Adjective · Translated: earthly 2, dust 1, earth 1Full study and all 3 verses →
1 Corinthians 15:48 As was the earthly man, so also are those who are of the earth; and as is the heavenly man, so also are those who are of heaven.
1 Corinthians 15:49 And just as we have borne the likeness of the earthly man, so also shall we bear the likeness of the heavenly man.
- κατά katádown from, against, according to, throughout, duringtranslated this way 2 times of its 381 uses · Strong’s G2596Preposition · Translated: according 65, against 46, in 41, by 38Full study and all 349 verses →
Ephesians 6:5 Slaves, obey your earthly masters with respect and fear and sincerity of heart, just as you would obey Christ.
Colossians 3:22 Slaves, obey your earthly masters in everything, not only to please them while they are watching, but with sincerity of heart and fear of the Lord.
- γῆ gēthe earth, soil, landtranslated this way 2 times of its 238 uses · Strong’s G1093Noun · Translated: earth 156, land 37, ground 19, soil 13Full study and all 217 verses →
Colossians 3:2 Set your minds on things above, not on earthly things.
Colossians 3:5 Put to death, therefore, the components of your earthly nature: sexual immorality, impurity, lust, evil desires, and greed, which is idolatry.
- σάρξ sárxflesh, bodytranslated this way 2 times of its 124 uses · Strong’s G4561Noun · Translated: flesh 81, body 15, people 4, in 4Full study and all 113 verses →
Hebrews 5:7 During the days of Jesus’ earthly life, He offered up prayers and petitions with loud cries and tears to the One who could save Him from death, and He was heard because of His reverence.
Hebrews 12:9 Furthermore, we have all had earthly fathers who disciplined us, and we respected them. Should we not much more submit to the Father of our spirits and live?
- κοσμικός kosmikósearthly, worldlytranslated this way 1 time of its 2 uses · Strong’s G2886Adjective · Translated: worldly 1, earthly 1Full study and all 2 verses →
Hebrews 9:1 Now the first covenant had regulations for worship and also an earthly sanctuary.
- κόσμος kósmosthe world, universetranslated this way 1 time of its 183 uses · Strong’s G2889Noun · Translated: world 163, of 12, whole world 2Full study and all 151 verses →
1 John 3:17 If anyone with earthly possessions sees his brother in need, but withholds his compassion from him, how can the love of God abide in him?
How to study a word well
- Start from the verse, not the dictionary. Find which Hebrew or Greek word stands in the verse you are studying. One English word often translates several different original words.
- Read every place the word is used. A word means what its writers used it to mean. The list of verses and the count by book show its range, and who uses it most.
- Look at how it is translated. A word rendered five different ways has a wider meaning than any one English word can carry.
- Notice the form. A command is not a statement, and a passive verb is something done to the subject. The form in your verse is part of the meaning.
- See what it keeps company with. The words that appear beside it again and again show how the Bible itself connects ideas.
- Then read the dictionaries. They give the considered view of scholars, with their evidence.
- Come back to the verse. Context decides. A word does not carry every one of its meanings into every verse, and where a word came from does not settle what it means in a sentence written centuries later.
Scripture text and translation counts: Berean Standard Bible. Full entry: Brown, Driver and Briggs, A Hebrew and English Lexicon of the Old Testament (1906, public domain), in the digital edition Brown-Driver-Briggs Enhanced by unfoldingWord (Joel Ruark, J. de Joode), based on data by Eliran Wong and Stephen Ku; its additions are used under CC BY 4.0. Strong’s Hebrew Dictionary: Open Scriptures Hebrew Bible Project, CC BY 4.0. Hebrew-to-English verse numbering: original work of the Open Scriptures Hebrew Bible available at https://github.com/openscriptures/morphhb, CC BY 4.0. We reformatted the data, linked the references to this site’s Bible text and left out words in other scripts that the source holds only as images. These are historical reference works; an entry gives its authors’ view, and a word’s meaning in any verse depends on how it is used there.