χάσμα (chasma)
chasma
chasm
Quick Reference
- Language
- Koine Greek
- Testament
- New Testament
- Occurrences
- 1 verses
- Root
- —
Word Overview
The noun chasma describes a wide, gaping opening or deep divide. Derived from a root meaning to yawn or gape, it conveys the image of a vast, fixed separation that cannot be crossed. In the New Testament, this word appears only once, in Luke 16:26, where Jesus uses it to illustrate the unbridgeable distance between the place of comfort and the place of torment after death.
This single usage gives the word significant theological weight. It is not merely a physical pit but a permanent boundary established by divine judgment. The text emphasizes that no one can cross this chasm in either direction, highlighting the finality of the state one enters after life ends. Translators typically render it as "great gulf" or "chasm," preserving the sense of an insurmountable barrier.
Based on public-domain lexicons (Strong's, Thayer, Gesenius, Brown-Driver-Briggs and others).
What This Word Means for Your Faith
The word chasma describes a vast, unbridgeable divide. In Luke 16:26, it marks the final separation between two distinct states of being after death. This image reminds us that our choices in this life carry eternal weight. The boundary is fixed by divine judgment, not human effort.
For your faith, this brings sobering clarity. It encourages you to take your relationship with God seriously now. There is no second chance to cross over once the chasm is set. Let this truth motivate you to live with purpose and hope in Christ today.
How it's translated
How this word is rendered word-by-word in the 1 verses where it appears, by frequency.
- a chasm1×
Forms in the text
The inflected forms of this word as they appear in Scripture, by frequency.
- χάσμα1×
Key Verses
-
Luke 16:26
Besides all this, between us and you there is a great gulf fixed, that those who want to pass from here to you are not able, and that no one may cross over from there to us.’
This verse uses chasma to define the permanent, unbridgeable separation between the place of comfort and the place of torment after death.