ἅλων
halōn
threshing-floor
Lexicon Entry
Lexicon data from STEPBible TIPNR, Tyndale House, Cambridge. Licensed under CC BY 4.0.
What Original Readers Understood
ExploredThe Greek word ἅλων (halōn) refers to a threshing-floor, a specific area used in ancient agriculture for separating grain from its chaff. This location was typically outdoors, where farmers would beat the grain with sticks or threshing sleds to loosen the grain from its husks. The word ἅλων appears only twice in the Bible, indicating its relatively limited range of usage. Despite this, its significance lies in its connection to the agricultural practices of the ancient world. The threshing-floor was a crucial part of the grain production process, and its mention in biblical texts may serve to highlight the importance of hard work and the cyclical nature of agricultural labor. In its limited biblical context, the word ἅλων may also be used metaphorically to convey a sense of judgment or separation, as seen in the process of threshing where grain is separated from its chaff. However, this interpretation is not directly supported by the provided data and should be viewed with caution.
Source data & methodology
Occurrences in Scripture
2 total occurrences across the text
His winnowing fork is in his hand, and he will thoroughly cleanse his threshing floor. He will gather his wheat into the barn, but the chaff he will burn up with unquenchable fire.”
Luke 3:17whose fan is in his hand, and he will thoroughly cleanse his threshing floor, and will gather the wheat into his barn; but he will burn up the chaff with unquenchable fire.”