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κτίσμα

ktísma

G2938 noun

SILEX Entry

Definition

A thing created; a created being or entity. Refers primarily to something brought into existence by an act of creation, often with emphasis on the product of a creator's action rather than the process. In broader contexts, designates any created object, living being, or formation resulting from creative activity.

Semantic Range

created thing, product of creation, creature (living being), created entity, formation, any created object

Root / Etymology

From the verb κτίζω (ktízō) meaning 'to create, to found, to establish.' κτίσμα is the result noun formed with the -μα (-ma) suffix, indicating the product or result of an action.

Historical & Contextual Notes

In classical and Hellenistic Greek, κτίσμα denotes something that has been created or a product of creative activity, whether animate or inanimate. Its usage is rare outside Koine Greek and largely absent from classical literature, becoming more common in Hellenistic and Jewish Greek. In the Septuagint and New Testament, it can refer to any part of creation, whether animals, humans, or the whole world, emphasizing the created status rather than specific characteristics. English Bible translations often render κτίσμα as 'creature' or 'created thing,' but the term itself is broader than simply 'animal' or 'living being,' as it extends to all that is made. Unlike the related term κτίσις (ktísis), which can refer more abstractly to the act of creation or the created order as a whole, κτίσμα tends to focus on individual products or beings. Use in the New Testament (e.g., 1 Timothy 4:4; James 1:18) underscores all created entities as good or recipients of benefit, not restricted to any particular species or type.

Original Strong's Gloss (1890)

from κτίζω; an original formation (concretely), i.e. product (created thing):--creature.

Root Family

κτίσμα (ktisma) — created thing, product of creation, creature, created entity

Root κτίζ- to create, to found, to produce

Word Forms

2 distinct forms

SIDANCE Surface Transliteration Morphology Common SIBI-P1 SIBI-P2 Occurrences
G2938-01 κτίσμα ktisma N NOM N SG creature created thing created thing 2
G2938-02 κτισμάτων ktismaton N GEN N PL creatures of created things created things 2

Occurrences in Scripture

4 occurrences

SIDANCE Reference Word Transliteration Morphology Common SIBI-P1 SIBI-P2
G2938-01 1 Timothy 4:4 κτίσμα ktisma N NOM N SG creature created thing created thing
G2938-02 James 1:18 κτισμάτων ktismaton N GEN N PL creatures of created things created things
G2938-01 Revelation 5:13 κτίσμα ktisma N ACC N SG creature created thing created thing
G2938-02 Revelation 8:9 κτισμάτων ktismaton N GEN N PL creatures of created things created things
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