6461. pasas

Lexical Summary

pasas: To disappear, vanish, cease

Original Word: פָסַס
Part of Speech: Verb
Transliteration: pacac
Pronunciation: pah-sahs'
Phonetic Spelling: (paw-sas')
KJV: cease
NASB: disappear
Word Origin: [a primitive root]

1. probably to disperse, i.e. (intransitive) disappear

Strong's Exhaustive Concordance

cease

A primitive root; probably to disperse, i.e. (intransitive) disappear -- cease.

NAS Exhaustive Concordance

Word Origin
a prim. root
Definition
to disappear, vanish
NASB Translation
disappear (1).

Brown-Driver-Briggs

II. [פָסַס] verb disappear, vanish (si vera lectio, compare Assyrian pasâsu, do away, blot out (especially sins)); —

Qal Perfect3plural מַּסּוּ מִן Psalm 12:2 the faithful have vanished (Che Dr) from (among) . . . men; Lag^{Proph. Chald. xivi} Gr We Du read אָֽפְסוּ (Isaiah 16:4).

Topical Lexicon

Meaning and Nuance

פָסַס portrays a scattering that results in disappearance. The idea is not merely movement but the complete vanishing of what once was visible and present. It evokes imagery of dust blown off a threshing floor or mist lifted by the morning sun—something recognizable a moment earlier, now gone.

Canonical Occurrence: Psalm 12:1

“Help, LORD, for the godly are no more; the faithful have vanished from among men.” (Psalm 12:1)

Here פָסַס anchors David’s lament. The verb intensifies the claim that covenant-keepers have not simply dwindled but have been swept away so thoroughly that their absence threatens the moral fabric of the community.

Historical Context of Psalm 12

• Authorship: David, likely during a period when court intrigue and popular sentiment favored opportunists over truth-tellers.
• Setting: A royal environment in which flattering speech (Psalm 12:2-3) dominated public discourse, replacing integrity.
• Societal Picture: The king watches the faithful remnant dissolve, leaving him surrounded by self-serving voices. פָסַס captures the societal implosion of righteousness.

Theological Implications

1. Covenant Remnant: Scripture repeatedly affirms that God preserves a remnant (Isaiah 10:20-22; Romans 9:27). Psalm 12 shows the remnant can at times appear to vanish, yet God is still sovereign.
2. Human Depravity: The vanishing of the faithful underscores humanity’s propensity toward apostasy when divine restraint is ignored (Judges 2:10-13).
3. Divine Intervention: David’s immediate cry “Help, LORD” presumes God’s readiness to act when righteousness seems extinct (Psalm 12:5).

Patterns of Apostasy in Scripture

• Pre-Flood corruption (Genesis 6:5-7)
• Northern Kingdom’s fall (2 Kings 17:7-18)
• End-times departure forecasted by Paul (2 Thessalonians 2:3; 2 Timothy 3:1-5)

פָסַס fits within this larger biblical trajectory, illustrating how disappearance of godly influence precedes judgment and renewal.

Application for Ministry Today

1. Discernment: Leaders must recognize moments when righteousness appears to evaporate and respond with intercessory prayer, following David’s model.
2. Encouragement: Congregations should be reminded that apparent scarcity of faithfulness does not equal divine abandonment.
3. Vigilance Against Flattery: The cultural forces that caused the godly to vanish in David’s day (Psalm 12:2) still seduce modern believers through media, politics, and even pulpit rhetoric.

Christological and Eschatological Connections

Jesus’ forecast that “because of the multiplication of wickedness, the love of most will grow cold” (Matthew 24:12) mirrors the reality expressed by פָסַס. Yet He also assures that “the one who perseveres to the end will be saved” (Matthew 24:13). The apparent disappearance of the faithful foreshadows the church’s refining before the return of Christ.

Related Hebrew Concepts

• חָסִיד (hasid) – “godly one,” highlighting who has vanished.
• אָמֵן (amen/’emun) – “faithful,” the quality that is missing.
• שָׁמַד (shamad) – “destroy,” a stronger term for removal, used elsewhere to show divine judgment rather than societal drift.

Summary Points for Teaching and Preaching

• פָסַס encapsulates the total, disheartening disappearance of godliness from a community.
• It appears only once, yet it provides a theological lens to view seasons of moral decline throughout Scripture and history.
• The verb pressurizes the urgency of prayer and dependence on God when the faithful seem extinct.
• While the righteous may seem to vanish, God’s covenant faithfulness ensures a remnant and eventual restoration.

Forms and Transliterations

פַ֥סּוּ פסו Fassu p̄as·sū p̄assū

Englishman's Concordance

Psalm 12:1
HEB: חָסִ֑יד כִּי־ פַ֥סּוּ אֱ֝מוּנִ֗ים מִבְּנֵ֥י
NAS: to be, For the faithful disappear from among the sons
KJV: for the faithful fail from among the children
INT: the godly for disappear the faithful the sons

1 Occurrence

Strong's Hebrew 6461
1 Occurrence

p̄as·sū — 1 Occ.