Lexical Summary splagchnon: Bowels, compassion, affection, heart Original Word: σπλάγχνον Strong's Exhaustive Concordance bowels, inward affection, tender mercy. Probably strengthened from splen (the "spleen"); an intestine (plural); figuratively, pity or sympathy -- bowels, inward affection, + tender mercy. HELPS Word-studies 4698 splágxnon – properly, the internal organs ("viscera"); (figuratively) "gut-level compassion" (visceral feelings); the capacity to feel deep emotions (sympathy, empathy, etc.). NAS Exhaustive Concordance Word Originof uncertain origin Definition the inward parts (heart, liver, lungs, etc.), fig. the emotions NASB Translation affection (3), affections (1), heart (4), hearts (1), intestines (1), tender (1). Thayer's Greek Lexicon STRONGS NT 4698: σπλάγχνονσπλάγχνον, σπλαγχνου, τό, and (only so in the N. T.) plural σπλάγχνα, σπλάγχνων, τά, Hebrew רַחֲמִים, bowels, intestines (the heart, lungs, liver, etc.); a. properly: Acts 1:18 (2 Macc. 9:5f; 4 Macc. 5:29, and in Greek writings from Homer down). b. in the Greek poets from Aeschylus down the bowels were regarded as the seat of the more violent passions, such as anger and love; but by the Hebrews as the seat of the tenderer affections, especially kindness, benevolence, compassion (cf. Lightfoot on Philippians 1:8; Winers Grammar, 18); hence, equivalent to our heart (tender mercies, affections, etc. (cf. B. D. American edition under the word The term translated “inward parts,” “compassion,” or “tender mercy” occurs eleven times in the Greek New Testament. While rooted in the ancient idea that the deepest emotions issue from the visceral center of a person, Scripture elevates the word to describe both the innermost saving affection of God and the Spirit-wrought love believers are to exhibit toward one another. Hebraic and Greco-Roman Background Hebrew thought located emotions in the kidneys or bowels (for example, Jeremiah 12:2). Greek medicine likewise viewed the viscera as the seat of profound feeling. The New Testament writers draw on this shared imagery but infuse it with redemptive meaning, linking the believer’s new affections to the incarnation, cross, and resurrection of Jesus Christ. Divine Compassion Revealed (Luke 1:78) Zechariah’s prophecy situates the coming of the Messiah within “the tender mercy of our God, by which the Dawn will visit us from on high” (Luke 1:78). The word captures the wellspring of covenant grace that moves God to act in history. The Dawn—Christ Himself—arises out of these depths of divine feeling, ensuring that salvation is not a sterile legal transaction but the outpouring of God’s very heart toward sinners. Literal Use: A Stark Contrast (Acts 1:18) Luke employs the same vocabulary to describe Judas Iscariot’s gruesome death: “and all his intestines spilled out” (Acts 1:18). The graphic scene underscores the antithesis between heaven-sent mercy and self-destruction wrought by treachery. Judas’s literal entrails on the ground stand opposite the figurative “inward parts” of mercy that characterize genuine disciples. Pauline Depth of Affection 1. Open-hearted Ministry (2 Corinthians 6:12). Paul protests, “We are not withholding our affection from you, but you are withholding yours from us”. Ministry that bears apostolic authenticity is marked by unrestrained, vulnerable affection. Philemon: A Case Study in Incarnated Mercy Paul’s short letter contains three occurrences: The epistle shows that the gospel moves believers to treat even a runaway slave as family, guided by affections patterned after God’s own. Johannine Test of Authentic Faith (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?”. The visceral response to need becomes a litmus test of genuine regeneration. Where mercy is absent, so is divine life. Practical and Pastoral Implications • A theology of compassion: God’s saving initiative flows from the deepest divine affection, compelling believers to mirror that tenderness. Eschatological Horizon The mercies celebrated at Christ’s first advent anticipate His return. The church that now embodies His affection will, on that Day, experience it in unveiled fullness, while those who spurn it face the fate prefigured in Judas’s tragedy. Summary Strong’s Greek 4698 traces a line from God’s visceral covenant mercy, through the incarnate ministry of Christ, into the fiber of apostolic mission and community life. Its usage challenges every generation of believers to move beyond sentiment, allowing the Spirit to turn inward affections into outward acts that display the heart of God to a watching world. Englishman's Concordance Luke 1:78 N-ANPGRK: διὰ σπλάγχνα ἐλέους θεοῦ NAS: Because of the tender mercy KJV: Through the tender mercy of our INT: through [the] affections of compassion of God Acts 1:18 N-NNP 2 Corinthians 6:12 N-DNP 2 Corinthians 7:15 N-NNP Philippians 1:8 N-DNP Philippians 2:1 N-NNP Colossians 3:12 N-ANP Philemon 1:7 N-NNP Philemon 1:12 N-NNP Philemon 1:20 N-ANP 1 John 3:17 N-ANP Strong's Greek 4698 |
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