κατάσχεσις (kataschesis)
kataschesis
possession
Quick Reference
- Language
- Koine Greek
- Testament
- New Testament
- Occurrences
- 2 verses
- Root
- —
Word Overview
The noun kataschesis refers to a state of possession or the act of holding something fast. It appears only twice in the New Testament, both within Stephen’s speech in Acts 7. In these instances, it translates the Hebrew concept of an inherited land or territory, emphasizing secure ownership rather than temporary use.
Its root verb suggests grasping or retaining control, which gives the word a sense of firmness and stability. When used in Acts 7:5 regarding Abraham and 7:45 concerning the tabernacle, it highlights God’s gift of the Promised Land as a lasting inheritance for His people. The term underscores that this possession was held with divine assurance.
Translators typically render kataschesis as "possession" or "inheritance," capturing the idea of a settled and enduring claim to land. This usage distinguishes it from general terms for property, focusing instead on the theological weight of God-given territory that remains under His sovereign care throughout generations.
Based on public-domain lexicons (Strong's, Thayer, Gesenius, Brown-Driver-Briggs and others).
What This Word Means for Your Faith
When we read about Abraham receiving the land as a possession, the text highlights a promise that outlasted his own life. He had no children yet, and he owned not even a foot of soil, yet God’s word stood firm. This tells us that divine promises do not depend on our current circumstances or visible progress. They rest on the character of the One who gives them.
That same stability is seen later when the tabernacle was brought into the land. The people held what God had given, trusting in His ongoing care through generations. For you, this offers comfort. Your spiritual inheritance is not a temporary loan but a secure holding from God. You can rest in the assurance that what He has promised to keep, He will faithfully preserve.
How it's translated
How this word is rendered word-by-word in the 2 verses where it appears, by frequency.
- taking possession1×
- a possession1×
Forms in the text
The inflected forms of this word as they appear in Scripture, by frequency.
- κατάσχεσιν1×
- κατασχέσει1×
Key Verses
-
Acts 7:5
He gave him no inheritance in it, no, not so much as to set his foot on. He promised that he would give it to him for a possession, and to his offspring after him, when he still had no child.
This verse shows the word applied to a future promise given to Abraham before he had any children or land, emphasizing that the possession is guaranteed by God's word alone.
-
Acts 7:45
which also our fathers, in their turn, brought in with Joshua when they entered into the possession of the nations whom God drove out before the face of our fathers to the days of David,
Here the term describes the tangible reality of the Israelites entering and holding the land under Joshua, showing the fulfillment of that earlier promise across generations.