Bible Encyclopedias
Foundation

International Standard Bible Encyclopedia

foun -dā´shun : In Hebrew the words for "foundation" are mostly derivatives from יסד , yāṣadh , "to found," and in Greek two words are used: one, καταβολή , katabolḗ , of "foundation of the world" (Mark 13:35; 25:34; Luke 11:50; John 17:24 , etc.); the other, θεμέλιος , themélios , of the foundation of a building (Luke 6:48 , Luke 6:49; Luke 14:29; Acts 16:26 , etc.), in which sense it is also used metaphorically in various connections (Christ the foundation of the church, 1 Corinthians 3:11; or the apostles and prophets the foundation, with Christ as corner-stone, Ephesians 2:20; the foundation of repentance, Hebrews 6:1 , etc.). In Psalm 11:3 , "if the foundations be destroyed," the Hebrew word is shath ̌ . In Jeremiah 50:15 , the Revised Version (British and American) reads "bulwarks" for "foundations"; conversely in Psalm 89:14; Psalm 97:2 , for the King James Version "habitation," the Revised Version (British and American) reads "foundation," and in Isaiah 6:4 for the King James Version "posts," reads "foundations."