κατακλυσμός

a deluge, flood

Definition

The Greek word κατακλυσμός specifically refers to a cataclysmic, overwhelming flood of water. In the New Testament, it is used exclusively to denote the great, world-covering deluge of Noah's time (Genesis 6-9). This is not a minor flood but a definitive, divine judgment that purges the earth. All four occurrences (Matthew 24:38-39; Luke 17:27; 2 Peter 2:5) point back to this single, monumental event, making it a proper noun for 'the Flood' in biblical Greek.

Biblical Usage

This word is used four times in the New Testament, always referring to the Genesis Flood. In the Gospels of Matthew and Luke, Jesus uses it as a historical analogy for the sudden, unexpected nature of his future return and final judgment (Matthew 24:38-39; Luke 17:27). In 2 Peter 2:5, the apostle uses it as the prime example of God's judgment on ungodliness while preserving the righteous. Its usage is consistent and points to a singular, well-known event.

Etymology

Derived from the preposition κατά (kata), meaning 'down' or 'against,' and the root κλύζω (klyzō), meaning 'to wash over' or 'to dash over (as waves).' It literally means a 'down-washing' or an overwhelming inundation. The related verb κατακλύζω (kataklyzō, G2626) appears in the Greek Old Testament (Septuagint) in the Genesis flood narrative.

Semantic Range

This word is theologically significant as it anchors the reality of the Genesis Flood in New Testament teaching. Jesus and the apostles treat it as a literal, historical event that serves as a clear type or foreshadowing of God's future final judgment. Understanding this Greek term reinforces that the Flood was a unique, global act of divine justice and salvation (for Noah), establishing a key biblical pattern of God judging sin while delivering His faithful people.

For first-century Jewish and Greco-Roman readers familiar with the Greek Old Testament (Septuagint), this word would immediately evoke the specific story of Noah. While Greek literature had its own flood myths (e.g., Deucalion), the biblical use of κατακλυσμός directly connects to the Genesis account, framing it not as myth but as sacred history and a definitive act of God.

πλημμύρα (plēmmura, G4132) — a more general term for a flood or inundation, often of a river, without the cataclysmic, judgmental connotation of κατακλυσμός.

Word Details

Scripture References