κοπρία (kopria)
kopria
manure
Quick Reference
- Language
- Koine Greek
- Testament
- New Testament
- Occurrences
- 2 verses
- Root
- —
Word Overview
The noun kopria refers to dung or manure, specifically evoking the image of a dung hill or refuse heap. In the New Testament, it appears only twice, both within Luke’s Gospel, where Jesus uses this unglamorous material to illustrate spiritual worthlessness and uselessness.
In Luke 13:8, the word describes the fertilizer applied to a fig tree to encourage fruitfulness, highlighting a practical agricultural reality. Later, in Luke 14:35, it serves as the metaphor for a disciple who has lost their "saltiness," becoming fit only to be cast out and trampled underfoot like waste. The term carries no positive connotation; it represents what is discarded because it no longer serves its purpose.
This word likely derives from kopros, meaning ordure or refuse. Its rare usage underscores the starkness of Jesus’ warnings about spiritual failure. By comparing a fruitless believer to manure, the text emphasizes that value in the kingdom depends on bearing fruit, not merely existing as part of the landscape.
Based on public-domain lexicons (Strong's, Thayer, Gesenius, Brown-Driver-Briggs and others).
What This Word Means for Your Faith
In our daily lives we often measure worth by what produces results. This word reminds us that spiritual value is tied to fruitfulness. When a tree bears no fruit, it may seem useless, yet even its waste can serve a purpose in God's hands.
Jesus uses this stark image to warn against losing our flavor as disciples. It is not about earning salvation but living in a way that reflects His life. If we find ourselves stagnant, grace offers time to grow again, just as the gardener gives the tree another chance.
How it's translated
How this word is rendered word-by-word in the 2 verses where it appears, by frequency.
- manure;1×
- manure1×
Forms in the text
The inflected forms of this word as they appear in Scripture, by frequency.
- κόπρια·1×
- κοπρίαν1×
Key Verses
-
Luke 13:8
He answered, ‘Lord, leave it alone this year also, until I dig around it and fertilize it.
This verse shows God's patience, as the owner asks for one more year of care and fertilization before judging the tree.
-
Luke 14:35
It is fit neither for the soil nor for the manure pile. It is thrown out. He who has ears to hear, let him hear.”
Here the word highlights the final state of a disciple who has lost their distinctiveness, becoming fit only for the refuse heap.