Topical Encyclopedia
In biblical literature, the term "bottom" is often used metaphorically to describe depths, whether physical, emotional, or spiritual. It is not frequently used in the literal sense but rather to convey profound concepts such as the depths of the sea, the depths of Sheol, or the depths of human despair and sin.
Depths of the SeaThe "bottom" of the sea is a concept that appears in various passages, often symbolizing the vastness and the unfathomable nature of God's creation. In
Micah 7:19, the prophet speaks of God's forgiveness, saying, "You will cast all our sins into the depths of the sea." Here, the "bottom" of the sea represents a place of no return, illustrating the completeness of God's forgiveness.
Depths of SheolIn the Old Testament, Sheol is often depicted as a place of darkness and depth, akin to the "bottom" of the earth. In
Job 11:8, Zophar describes the mysteries of God as being "higher than the heavens—what can you do? Deeper than Sheol—what can you know?" This use of "bottom" underscores the inscrutability and the profound nature of divine wisdom and judgment.
Human Despair and SinThe "bottom" can also symbolize the lowest points of human experience, including despair and sin. In
Psalm 130:1, the psalmist cries out, "Out of the depths I cry to You, O LORD!" This plea from the "bottom" of despair highlights the human condition and the need for divine intervention and mercy.
Spiritual DepthsThe New Testament also uses the concept of depth to describe spiritual truths. In
Romans 11:33, Paul exclaims, "Oh, the depth of the riches of the wisdom and knowledge of God! How unsearchable His judgments, and untraceable His ways!" Here, the "bottom" or depth signifies the immeasurable and profound nature of God's wisdom and knowledge.
Symbol of JudgmentThe "bottomless pit" is a term used in Revelation to describe a place of judgment and confinement for evil.
Revelation 9:1-2 states, "Then the fifth angel sounded his trumpet, and I saw a star that had fallen from heaven to earth, and it was given the key to the pit of the abyss. The star opened the pit of the abyss, and smoke rose out of it like the smoke of a great furnace." The "bottomless pit" serves as a symbol of ultimate judgment and the containment of evil forces.
In summary, the concept of "bottom" in the Bible is rich with metaphorical meaning, often used to describe the depths of the sea, Sheol, human despair, spiritual truths, and divine judgment. It serves as a powerful image to convey the vastness, mystery, and profound nature of both human experience and divine attributes.
Webster's Revised Unabridged Dictionary
1. (
n.) The lowest part of anything; the foot; as, the bottom of a tree or well; the bottom of a hill, a lane, or a page.
2. (n.) The part of anything which is beneath the contents and supports them, as the part of a chair on which a person sits, the circular base or lower head of a cask or tub, or the plank floor of a ship's hold; the under surface.
3. (n.) That upon which anything rests or is founded, in a literal or a figurative sense; foundation; groundwork.
4. (n.) The bed of a body of water, as of a river, lake, sea.
5. (n.) The fundament; the buttocks.
6. (n.) An abyss.
7. (n.) Low land formed by alluvial deposits along a river; low-lying ground; a dale; a valley.
8. (n.) The part of a ship which is ordinarily under water; hence, the vessel itself; a ship.
9. (n.) Power of endurance; as, a horse of a good bottom.
10. (n.) Dregs or grounds; lees; sediment.
11. (a.) of or pertaining to the bottom; fundamental; lowest; under; as, bottom rock; the bottom board of a wagon box; bottom prices.
12. (v. t.) To found or build upon; to fix upon as a support; -- followed by on or upon.
13. (v. t.) To furnish with a bottom; as, to bottom a chair.
14. (v. t.) To reach or get to the bottom of.
15. (v. i.) To rest, as upon an ultimate support; to be based or grounded; -- usually with on or upon.
16. (v. i.) To reach or impinge against the bottom, so as to impede free action, as when the point of a cog strikes the bottom of a space between two other cogs, or a piston the end of a cylinder.
17. (n.) A ball or skein of thread; a cocoon.
18. (v. t.) To wind round something, as in making a ball of thread.
International Standard Bible Encyclopedia
BOTTOMbot'-um: Rendered by several Hebrew words:
(1) sheresh, "root"; Chaldaic, shoresh (Job 36:30, "the bottom of the sea").
(2) qarqa', "soil," "pavement of tesserae" (Amos 9:3).
(3) qetsebh, "cutting," "chop," "extremity" (Jonah 2:6, "the bottoms of the mountains").
(4) rephidhah, "railing," "couch" (Songs 3:10, "the bottom thereof of gold").
(5) cheq, "bosom," "lap" (Ezekiel 43:13, 14, 17, the Revised Version, margin "hollow").
(6) metsullah, "to be dark," "shadowy place," from primitive root tsalal, "to tumble down," i.e. "settle"; hence, the idea of a valley ("the myrtle-trees that were in the bottom,"Zechariah 1:8 the Revised Version, margin "shady place"). The prophet may have been wont to frequent the myrtle grove in the glen or bottoms, in the neighborhood of Jerusalem, for meditation and prayer (BTP, II, 283).
M. O. Evans
Greek
1475. edaphos -- a basis,bottom, ground... a basis,
bottom, ground. Part of Speech: Noun, Neuter Transliteration: edaphos Phonetic
Spelling: (ed'-af-os) Short Definition: the base, ground Definition: the
...1037. buthos -- thebottom, the depth
... thebottom, the depth. Part of Speech: Noun, Masculine Transliteration: buthos Phonetic
Spelling: (boo-thos') Short Definition: the deep sea Definition: the...
2736. kato -- down, below
... Word Origin adverb from kata Definition down, below NASB Word Usage below (3),
bottom (2), down (4), under (1). beneath,bottom, down, under....
3053. logismos -- a reasoning, a thought
... 3053 (from 3049 , "to reckon") -- properly, "bottom-line" reasoning that reflects
someone's values, ie how they assign in determining what ....
3049. logizomai -- to reckon, to consider
... suppose. 3049 (the root of the English terms "") -- properly, , "take into
account"; (come to a "bottom-line"), ie to a (decision)....
3539. noeo -- to perceive, think
... aor. possibly: realize. 3539 (from 3563 , "mind") -- properly, to apply effort
needed to reach "bottom-line" conclusions. 3539 () underlines...
2212. zeteo -- to seek
... demand. 2212 -- properly, to seek by ; to investigate to reach a () resolution;
to search, "getting to thebottom of a matter."....
931. basanos -- a touchstone (a dark stone used in testing metals)...
... torment. Perhaps remotely from the same as basis (through the notion of going to
thebottom); a touch-stone, ie (by analogy) torture -- torment....
1955. epilusis -- a release, an interpretation
... prophecy. [1956 () is used throughout antiquity of , ie "getting to thebottom
of things," "unraveling" the issue (see , 1, 156).]. Word...
Strong's Hebrew
773. ari -- thebottom... 772, 773. ari. 774 . the
bottom. Transliteration: ari Phonetic Spelling:
(arh-eeth') Short Definition:
bottom. Word Origin (Aramaic
...793. eshed -- a foundation,bottom, lower part
... 792, 793. eshed. 794 . a foundation,bottom, lower part. Transliteration:
eshed Phonetic Spelling: (eh'-shed) Short Definition: slope....
2436. cheq -- bosom
... Word Origin from an unused word Definition bosom NASB Word Usage arms (1), base
(3), bosom (26),bottom (1), care (1), cherish (1), cherishes (2), lap (2...
7095. qetseb -- a cut, shape, extremity
...bottom, size. From qatsab; shape (as if cut out); base (as if there cut off) --
bottom, size. see HEBREW qatsab. 7094, 7095. qetseb. 7096 . Strong's Numbers
7507. rephidah -- perhaps a support
... Word Origin from raphad Definition perhaps a support NASB Word Usage back (1).bottom.
From raphad; a railing (as spread along) --bottom. see HEBREW raphad....
8328. shoresh -- a root
...bottom, deep, heel, root. From sharash; a root (literally or figuratively) --bottom,
deep, heel, root. see HEBREW sharash. 8327, 8328. shoresh. 8329 ....
4699. metsullah -- a basin or hollow
... Word Origin from the same as tsulah Definition a basin or hollow NASB Word Usage
ravine (1).bottom. From tsalal; shade --bottom. see HEBREW tsalal....
4688. metsolah -- depth, deep
... depths. Word Origin from the same as tsulah Definition depth, deep NASB Word
Usage deep (4), depths (7).bottom, deep, depth. Or mtsolah...
7172. qarqa -- floor
...bottom, one side of the floor. From qara'; floor (as if a pavement of pieces or
tesseroe), of a building or the sea --bottom, (X one side of the) floor....
3247. yesod -- foundation, base
...bottom, foundation, repairing. From yacad; a foundation (literally or figuratively) --
bottom, foundation, repairing. see HEBREW yacad. 3246, 3247....
Library
Depravity Lies at theBottom of Demon-Worship.
... Chapter XIX."Depravity Lies at theBottom of Demon-Worship. But do you,
who have not the perception of these things, be instructed...
But when a Deep Consideration had from the SecretBottom of My...
... Book VIII Chapter XII But when a deep consideration had from the secretbottom
of my soul drawn together? But when a deep consideration...
This He Thought a Principle at theBottom of Nature
... THE FOURTH CENTURY 44 This he thought a principle at thebottom of Nature.
This he thought a principle at thebottom of Nature, That...
Narrow Escapes. Is Thrown from a Horse. Has Pneumonia. Nearly...
... The box was straight on thebottom, and as the break was just in the hollow between
the calf and the heel, anybody that had any sense should have known that...
Inward Mortification and Perfect Resignation are Necessary for...
... tis necessary for thee to get close into thy center, that thou may'st only look
at and contemplate God, who keeps his throne and his abode in thebottom of thy...
That He Descended into Hell is Also Evidently Foretold in the...
... is there in my blood, when I shall have descended into corruption?" And again,
"I descended into the deep mire, where there is nobottom." Moreover, John says...
The Czar and the Soldier.
... long column. The total completely disheartened him; and he just put at
thebottom of his figures, "Who is to pay this"? He laid...
Stillness in Storm
... And the word which He uses, meaning atbottom as it does, 'to be distracted or rent
asunder,' conveys a striking picture of the wretched state to which such...
From the Fond Caresses which the Soul Has Has with God Beneath the...
... of heart. Below Me stood My sorrowful Mother, who suffered in thebottom
of her motherly heart all that I suffered in My body. My...
Growing Faith.
... The crowds are in thebottom-lands.... You can always tell a man by where he is
standing,bottom-land, hillside, higher-hill-slope, hilltop....
Thesaurus
Bottom (33 Occurrences)... Noah Webster's Dictionary 1. (n.) The lowest part of anything; the foot; as, the
bottom of a tree or well; the
bottom of a hill, a lane, or a page.
...Sole (13 Occurrences)
... 3. (n.) Thebottom of the foot; hence, also, rarely, the foot itself. 4.
(n.) Thebottom of a shoe or boot, or the piece of leather...
Drag (19 Occurrences)
... 3. (vt) To break, as land, by drawing a drag or harrow over it; to harrow; to draw
a drag along thebottom of, as a stream or other water; hence, to search, as...
Lampstand (38 Occurrences)
... put out" (Job 21:17 Proverbs 13:9; and perhaps Job 18:6). The early Canaanite or
Amorite lamp was a shallow, saucer-like bowl with roundedbottom and vertical...
Foul (41 Occurrences)
... offensive, or obstructive; filthy; dirty; not clean; polluted; nasty; defiled; as,
a foul cloth; foul hands; a foul chimney; foul air; a ship'sbottom is foul...
Logia
... As it is broken at thebottom it is impossible, in the absence of another leaf,
to ascertain or even conjecture how much has been lost....
Lamp (45 Occurrences)
... put out" (Job 21:17 Proverbs 13:9; and perhaps Job 18:6). The early Canaanite or
Amorite lamp was a shallow, saucer-like bowl with roundedbottom and vertical...
Ground (538 Occurrences)
... 15. (n.) Sediment at thebottom of liquors or liquids; dregs; lees; feces;
as, coffee grounds. 16. (n.) The pit of a theater. 17....
Bottomless (9 Occurrences)
... Noah Webster's Dictionary (a.) Without abottom; hence, fathomless; baseless; as,
a bottomless abyss. Int. Standard Bible Encyclopedia. BOTTOMLESS, PIT....
Veil (67 Occurrences)
... temple is attested by the statement in each of the Synoptists that at the time of
Christ's death the veil of the temple was rent from top tobottom, or in the...
Resources
In what ways is sin a slippery slope? | GotQuestions.orgHow does the geologic timescale fit with the view of a young earth? | GotQuestions.orgIs Abraham Maslow's hierarchy of needs biblical? | GotQuestions.orgBottom: Dictionary and Thesaurus | Clyx.comBible Concordance •
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