3238

Lexical Summary

(Not Used): (Not Used)

(Not Used)
Part of Speech:
Transliteration: (Not Used)
(Not Used)

Topical Lexicon

Concept Overview

Strong’s Greek 3238, though absent from the canonical Greek New Testament, belongs to the family of words that speak of ceremonial or moral pollution—an inner corruption that makes a person, object, or community unfit for holy use. The root idea is the staining or soiling of something originally intended to be pure. Scripture continually contrasts such defilement with God’s call to holiness: “For I am the LORD your God; consecrate yourselves, therefore, and be holy, because I am holy” (Leviticus 11:44).

Septuagint Usage

In the Greek Old Testament the verb and its cognates help translate several Hebrew terms for uncleanness (ḥaṭṭā’, ṭāmē’, niddāh). Key settings include:
• Defilement of the sanctuary (Leviticus 15:31; Ezekiel 5:11).
• Moral pollution through idolatry and bloodshed (Psalm 106:38; Ezekiel 20:43).
• Violation of covenant through sexual sin (Leviticus 18:24–28).

These passages consistently tie pollution to broken fellowship with God and the need for atonement.

Intertestamental and Greco-Roman Context

Outside Scripture the word family described the staining of garments, the contamination of sacrifices, and even the profaning of temples. Jewish writers of the Second Temple period adopted the term to warn against assimilation to pagan practices. In the Hellenistic world it also carried legal weight: a polluted person was barred from sacred precincts until purification. Thus, by the first century the idea of inner and outer uncleanness was well established in the religious vocabulary of both Jews and Gentiles.

Biblical Theology

1. Holiness versus Defilement

 • God’s holiness is relational and ethical, demanding separation from impurity (Isaiah 6:3–5).

 • Defilement spreads (Haggai 2:13) but holiness, in Christ, overcomes corruption (Hebrews 10:10).

2. Substitutionary Cleansing

 • Old-Covenant sacrifices pointed to the ultimate cleansing in Christ (Hebrews 9:13-14).

 • Jesus “offered one sacrifice for sins for all time” (Hebrews 10:12), releasing believers from every stain.

3. Sanctification of the Church

 • Believers are now “a temple of the Holy Spirit” (1 Corinthians 6:19), called to avoid anything that would soil Christ’s bride (Ephesians 5:26-27).

 • Practical holiness is pursued by putting away fleshly defilements (2 Corinthians 7:1) and by the ongoing washing of the Word (John 15:3).

Pastoral and Ecclesial Application

• Personal Life: Christians guard heart and body, knowing that hidden sin pollutes worship and witness (James 1:27).
• Corporate Worship: Congregations maintain purity through biblical discipline (1 Corinthians 5:6-7) and a Christ-centered liturgy that magnifies the cross.
• Mission: The gospel proclaims both forgiveness and cleansing (1 John 1:9), offering hope to cultures enslaved by impurity.

Related Terms and Themes

miainō (3392) – to stain or pollute

katharizō (2511) – to cleanse, purify

hagios, hagiazō (40, 37) – holy, to sanctify

alazoneia (212) – arrogance that often accompanies moral pollution

Summary

Although Strong’s 3238 never surfaces in the New Testament text, its theological freight pervades Scripture: nothing defiled can abide before a holy God, yet the blood of Jesus Christ cleanses from all sin. Believers, therefore, pursue holiness in every sphere of life, confident that the One who calls is faithful to sanctify completely (1 Thessalonians 5:23-24).

Englishman's Concordance

μελῶν — 2 Occ.
μέλος — 5 Occ.
Μελχὶ — 2 Occ.
Μελχισεδέκ — 8 Occ.
ἔμελεν — 2 Occ.
μέλει — 7 Occ.
μελέτω — 1 Occ.
μεμβράνας — 1 Occ.
μέμφεται — 1 Occ.
μεμφόμενος — 1 Occ.
μὲν — 182 Occ.
Μενοῦν — 1 Occ.
μενοῦνγε — 2 Occ.
μέντοι — 8 Occ.
ἐμείναμεν — 2 Occ.
ἔμειναν — 2 Occ.
ἔμεινεν — 10 Occ.
ἔμενεν — 3 Occ.
ἔμενον — 1 Occ.
μεῖναι — 6 Occ.