Topical Encyclopedia
In biblical terminology, the term "carcase" refers to the dead body of an animal or, in some contexts, a human. The concept of a carcase is significant in various passages of the Bible, often associated with themes of death, impurity, and divine judgment.
Old Testament ReferencesThe Hebrew word often translated as "carcase" is "פֶּגֶר" (peger), which appears in several Old Testament passages. In the Mosaic Law, the handling of a carcase is associated with ritual impurity.
Leviticus 11:24-25 states, "By these animals you will become unclean. Whoever touches their carcasses will be unclean until evening, and whoever picks up one of their carcasses must wash his clothes, and he will be unclean until evening." This regulation underscores the importance of ceremonial cleanliness and the separation from death, which is seen as a consequence of sin.
In
Deuteronomy 28:26, the carcase is used metaphorically to describe the consequences of disobedience to God's commandments: "Your carcasses will be food for all the birds of the air and the beasts of the earth, with no one to scare them away." This imagery serves as a stark warning of the desolation and disgrace that accompany divine judgment.
Prophetic ImageryThe prophets frequently use the imagery of carcases to convey messages of judgment and desolation. In
Isaiah 66:24, the fate of the wicked is vividly depicted: "As they go forth, they will see the corpses of the men who have rebelled against Me; for their worm will never die, their fire will never be quenched, and they will be a horror to all mankind." This passage highlights the eternal consequences of rebellion against God and serves as a sobering reminder of divine justice.
New Testament ContextIn the New Testament, the Greek word "πτῶμα" (ptōma) is used to refer to a carcase. Jesus employs this term in a prophetic context in
Matthew 24:28: "Wherever there is a carcass, there the vultures will gather." This statement, found within the Olivet Discourse, is often interpreted as a reference to the visible signs of the end times and the inevitability of divine judgment.
Symbolism and Theological ImplicationsThe concept of a carcase in the Bible is rich with symbolic meaning. It often represents the physical manifestation of death, a consequence of the Fall and human sinfulness. The handling of carcases in the Old Testament law underscores the separation between life and death, purity and impurity. This separation is ultimately bridged by the redemptive work of Jesus Christ, who conquers death and offers eternal life to believers.
The imagery of carcases also serves as a powerful reminder of the reality of divine judgment. Throughout Scripture, the fate of the wicked is often depicted in terms of their bodies being left unburied, a sign of disgrace and abandonment by God. This serves as a warning to remain faithful and obedient to God's commandments.
In summary, the biblical concept of a carcase is multifaceted, encompassing themes of death, impurity, judgment, and redemption. It serves as a poignant reminder of the consequences of sin and the hope of restoration through Christ.
Easton's Bible Dictionary
Contact with a, made an Israelite ceremonially unclean, and made whatever he touched also unclean, according to the Mosaic law (
Haggai 2:13; Comp.
Numbers 19:16, 22;
Leviticus 11:39).
Webster's Revised Unabridged Dictionary
(
n.) See Carcass.
International Standard Bible Encyclopedia
CARCASS; CARCASEkar'-kas: The dead body of a beast; used sometimes in a contemptuous way of the dead body of a human being. The use of the word as applied to a living body is not found in either Old Testament or New Testament.
(1) It occurs as a translation of the Hebrew pegher, inGenesis 15:11; this Hebrew word is also translated "dead body" inNumbers 14:291 Samuel 17:46;Isaiah 34:3;Isaiah 66:24Ezekiel 6:5;Ezekiel 43:7:9, and "corpse" inNahum 3:3.
(2) The Hebrew nebhelah, is also translated "carcass" inLeviticus 5:2;Leviticus 11:8, 11Jeremiah 16:18, but as "dead body" inDeuteronomy 28:26 ("body,"Joshua 8:291 Kings 13:22, 292 Kings 9:37);Isaiah 5:25Jeremiah 7:33;Jeremiah 16:4;Jeremiah 19:7.
(3) InJudges 14:8 the word mappelah, from naphal, "to incline" or "fall," is also translated "carcass."
(4) InMatthew 24:28 the word "carcase" (not "carcass") is used to render the Greek ptoma, the reference probably being here to the dead body of an animal For the body of a human being the Greek is translated "corpse" (Matthew 14:12Mark 6:29;Mark 15:45), and "dead bodies" (Revelation 11:8, 9).
W. N. Stearns
Greek
4430. ptoma -- a fall, hence a misfortune, ruin... dead body, carcass, corpse. From the alternate of pipto; a ruin, ie (specially),
lifeless body (corpse, carrion) -- dead body,
carcase, corpse. see GREEK pipto.
...2966. kolon -- a limb (of the body)
... a dead body, corpse. From the base of kolazo; a limb of the body (as if lopped) --
carcase. see GREEK kolazo. (kola) -- 1 Occurrence. 2965, 2966. kolon. 2967...
Strong's Hebrew
6297. peger -- corpse, carcass... carcass, corpse, dead body. From pagar; a
carcase (as limp), whether of man or beast;
figuratively, an idolatrous image --
carcase, corpse, dead body.
...5038. nebelah -- a carcass, corpse
... From nabel; a flabby thing, ie Acarcase or carrion (human or bestial, often
collectively); figuratively, an idol -- (dead) body, (dead)carcase, dead of itself...
4658. mappeleth -- carcass, ruin, an overthrow
... carcass, fall, ruin. From naphal; fall, ie Decadence; concretely, a ruin; specifically
acarcase --carcase, fall, ruin. see HEBREW naphal. 4657, 4658....
1472. gviyah -- a body, corpse
... dead body, carcass, corpse Prolonged for gevah; a body, whether alive or dead --
(dead) body,carcase, corpse. see HEBREW gevah. 1471, 1472. gviyah. 1472a...
Library
As Eagles are Drawn by the Scent of aCarcase
... THE FIRST CENTURY 57 As eagles are drawn by the scent of acarcase. As eagles
are drawn by the scent of acarcase, as children are...
As My Body Without My Soul is aCarcase
... THE FIRST CENTURY 93 As my body without my Soul is aCarcase. As my body
without my Soul is aCarcase, so is any soul without Thy...
The Carrion and the Vultures
... D.; ST. MATTHEW Chaps. XVIII to XXVIII THE CARRION AND THE VULTURES. 'Wheresoever
thecarcase is, there will the eagles be gathered together.'"Matthew 24:28....
And Yet, by Reason of that Affection of the Human Heart...
... their bodies: so that we find in the Books of Kings, God by one prophet threatening
another prophet who had transgressed His word, that hiscarcase should not...
Epistle Lxxvii. The Reply of Nemesianus, Dativus, Felix, and...
... on the one hand and on the other, with your words, so that snares were on all sides
laid for the enemy, and the severed sinews of the verycarcase of the...
It is Wonderfully Astonishing, that You Men of Learning Seldom...
... Whereas, in truth, all this is no better than the reading a lecture upon the use
of the heart, liver, and lungs, to a deadcarcase: for the life of goodness...
The Burnt Offering a Picture and a Prophecy
... The offerer then flays the reekingcarcase, tossing the gory hide to the priest
as his perquisite, and cuts up the sacrifice according to a fixed method....
Meditations of the Misery of a Man not Reconciled to God in Christ...
... But, O corruptcarcase and loathsome carrion! how has the devil deluded us!... And
must I needs be gone, thou filthycarcase? O filthycarcase!...
Matt. xxiv. 16-18.
... Son of Man be. For wheresoever thecarcase is, there shall the eagles be
gathered together." [2783]. Having finished what concerned...
Centuries of Meditations
... 57 As eagles are drawn by the scent of acarcase. 58 The Cross is the abyss
of wonders.... 93 As my body without my Soul is aCarcase....
Thesaurus
Carcase (38 Occurrences)... CARCASS;
CARCASE. kar'-kas: The dead body of a beast; used sometimes in a contemptuous
way of the dead body of a human being.
...Carcase (38 Occurrences).
...Carrieth (10 Occurrences)
... (KJV ASV WBS). Leviticus 11:25 And whoever carrieth ought of theircarcase shall
wash his garments, and be unclean until the even. (DBY)....
Findeth (66 Occurrences)
... 1 Kings 13:24 and he goeth, and a lion findeth him in the way, and putteth him to
death, and hiscarcase is cast in the way, and the ass is standing near it...
Teeming (18 Occurrences)
... Leviticus 5:2 Or when a person cometh against any thing unclean, or against acarcase
of an unclean beast, or against acarcase of unclean cattle, or against a...
Crawling (20 Occurrences)
... Leviticus 5:2 Or if any one touch any unclean thing, whether it be thecarcase of
an unclean beast, or thecarcase of unclean cattle, or thecarcase of an...
Lifting (157 Occurrences)
... (See NAS). Leviticus 11:25 and anyone who is lifting up 'aught' of theircarcase
doth wash his garments, and hath been unclean till the evening: -- (YLT)....
Placeth (28 Occurrences)
... 1 Kings 13:29 And the prophet taketh up thecarcase of the man of God, and placeth
it on the ass, and bringeth it back, and the old prophet cometh in unto the...
Carcass (30 Occurrences)
... Int. Standard Bible Encyclopedia. CARCASS;CARCASE. kar'-kas: The dead body of a
beast; used sometimes in a contemptuous way of the dead body of a human being....
Garments (232 Occurrences)
... YLT). Leviticus 11:25 And whoever carrieth ought of theircarcase shall wash
his garments, and be unclean until the even. (DBY YLT)....
Creature (73 Occurrences)
... Leviticus 5:2 Or when a person cometh against any thing unclean, or against acarcase
of an unclean beast, or against acarcase of unclean cattle, or against a...
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