Anathema

Hastings' Dictionary of the New Testament

The transliteration of a Gr. word which is used in the Septuagintto represent the Heb. ḥçrem , ‘a person or thing devoted or set apart, under religious sanctions, for destruction’ ( Leviticus 27:28-29,  Joshua 6:17). It is capable of use in the good sense of an offering to God, but was gradually confined to the sense of ‘accursed,’ which is the rendering adopted in Authorized Versionin all NT passages except  1 Corinthians 16:22. Around the Heb. term there gathered in course of time an elaborate system of excommunication, with penalties varying both in amount and in duration, the purpose being sometimes remedial of the offender and sometimes protective of the community; but these developments are mainly later than our period. They may have suggested lines on which a system of official discipline in the Christian Church was afterwards constructed, but it would be an anachronism to read them into the simpler thoughts of the apostolic literature. In patristic times the word denoted some ecclesiastical censure or form of punishment, for which a precedent may have been sought in the teaching or practice of St. Paul. To the Apostle, the OT allusion would be predominant, and his chief, if not his only, thought would be that of a hopeless spiritual condition, from which emergence could be effected, if at all, only with extreme difficulty and by special forbearance on the part of God.

In the Pauline Epistles the word ‘anathema’ occurs four times, once in reference to the Apostle himself, and on the other occasions in reference to the maltreatment of his Lord.

1. The personal passage is  Romans 9:3, where there is no serious difficulty to those who do not look for strict reasoning in the language of the heart. St. Paul has just expressed ( Romans 8:39) his belief that nothing conceivable could separate him from the love of God; and now, in his yearning over his fellow-countrymen, he announces that for their sakes he would be willing, if it were possible, to be even hopelessly separated from Christ. Clearly ‘anathema’ need not, and does not here, carry any sense of formal excommunication; it denotes a spiritual condition of which the two features are exclusion from the redemption in Christ and permanent hopelessness.

2. Greater difficulty attaches to  Galatians 1:8, where the Apostle, again under strong emotion, imprecates anathema upon others. The case he imagines is one that would warrant extreme indignation, though the language is that of justifiable passion and not to be interpreted literally. St. Paul would be the last of Christian teachers to withdraw all hope from a man, and it is possible that in this case he thought of anathema as being remedial and temporary. He was the bondservant of Christ, and as such he resented entirely any conduct or teaching that dishonoured his Lord. That such teaching reflected also on himself would be a matter of little consequence; but Christ was sacred to him, and the preacher of another gospel, whether one of his own colleagues or even ‘an angel from heaven,’ was not to be tolerated. His teaching made and proved him a person set apart for destruction; but whether that destruction was final or only corrective would depend upon the man’s impenitence or reform. Free association with him would be no longer possible, and to that extent the beginnings of a system of discipline may be traced in the phrase, as in  1 Timothy 1:20 and  1 Corinthians 5:5, where the ultimate restoration of the man is distinctly in view. But the reference to ‘an angel from heaven’ is sufficient to prove that ecclesiastical censure, carrying finality with it, was not the main thought.

3. and 4. Twice in 1 Cor. the word ‘anathema’ occurs in the course of the sharp conflict excited by the extreme party among converted proselytes to Judaism; and the great idea is that everything in the religion of a professed Christian is determined by his real relationship to Christ. Over against the party of which the watchword was ‘Jesus is Lord,’ was a party whose irreligion was manifested by their cry ‘Jesus is anathema’ ( 1 Corinthians 12:3). They were in a sense within the Christian community, and conscious therefore of certain obligations to Christ; but they were so provoked by the attempt to set Jesus on the same level with the supreme God, and by the apparently absolute incompatibility of that belief with their fundamental conviction of the unity of God, that they were prepared to renounce Jesus and even to denounce Him rather than to confess His Godhead and submit to His claims. Or, introduced into the Church from some form of paganism, they had been so familiar with the evil inspiration that swept them along to the worship of ‘dumb idols’ ( 1 Corinthians 12:2) as to be disposed to plead inspiration for any tongues or doctrines of their own, to whatever extent Jesus was degraded therein. In response St. Paul sets up the great antithesis between real inspiration and counterfeit. The Spirit of God is the author of any confession that Jesus is Lord; ecstasy or even demoniac possession may be pleaded for the assertion that Jesus for His teaching is destined to Divine destruction, but never the breath of the Holy Spirit. Between those two extremes there are many halting-places, and the insecurity of each of them is in proportion to its remoteness from the confession of Jesus Christ as Lord. So much is the Apostle affected by this dishonour done to his Lord, that it recurs to his memory as the Epistle is being closed, and suggests the footnote of  1 Corinthians 16:22. He adopts the word need by the men of whom he was thinking, and condenses his indignation into a curt dismissal, ‘If any one loveth not the Lord, let him be anathema. Maran atha.’ In such a place again the word cannot denote official ecclesiastical censure. It is really an antithesis to the prayer for grace in  Ephesians 6:24, the handing over of the unloving man to Satan, the refusal to have anything more to do with him until at least some signs of a newborn love for Christ are given.

As to the addition of Maran atha , both the meaning of the words and their relation to the context have been subjects of controversy. For a discussion of the Aramaic phrase, with related questions, see Hasting's Dictionary of the Bible (5 vols) iii. 241ff. It is either an assertion, ‘Our Lord cometh’ (so Revised Version margin), or, more probably, an ejaculatory prayer, ‘O Lord, come,’ with parallels in  Philippians 4:5,  1 Peter 4:7,  Revelation 22:20, devotional rather than minatory in its character and intention. If it be taken as an assertion, it may mean, ‘Let those who do not love the Lord fear and be quick to amend, for He is at hand in triumph,’ though the expected Parousia is not a recurring feature of the Epistle. Or the idea may be, ‘The Lord is coming soon, and there is no need to trouble further with these men, for with greater wisdom thought may be given to Him.’ But the term is better detached entirely from the reference to anathema, and considered simply as a little prayer, in which the normal yearning of the Apostle expresses itself, before he closes a letter or group of letters, in the writing of which his pastoral heart must have been pained again and again. The sudden way in which the expression is introduced suggests that it had already become a popular form of something like greeting in common use among the disciples, and had supplanted the earlier ‘The Lord is risen,’ unless both were used, the one on meeting and the other on parting. That would explain the absence of any attempt to translate it from the vernacular, and is confirmed by the usage of the next generation; cf. Didache , x. 6, where also the word follows a warning; and Apost. Constitutions , vii. 26, where any thought of enforcing a penalty is rendered impossible by the jubilant tone of the section.

In course of time ‘anathema’ came to mean excommunication, for which sanction was found in the Pauline use of the word, which again was carried back to our Saviour’s teaching ( Matthew 18:17). Such men as are referred to in  1 Corinthians 16:22 would of necessity find themselves excluded from association with disciples, and rules for their treatment were prescribed ( 1 Corinthians 5:9,  Titus 3:10,  2 John 1:10-11), and eventually expanded in great detail. But, while this kind of ostracism was a natural accompaniment of anathema from the beginning, the word itself implied a certain relation to God, a spiritual condition with which God alone could deal, and with which He would deal finally or remedially. Execration and not official discipline is the dominant idea, with the censure of the Church as a corollary. See also articles Discipline, Excommunication.

Literature.-See articles ‘Curse,’ ‘Excommunication,’ ‘Maranatha,’ in Hasting's Dictionary of the Bible (5 vols)  ; Thayer Grimm’s Gr.-Eng. Lexicon of the NT, tr. Thayerand Cramer, s.v. ἀνάθεμα; and the NT Comm. on the passages cited.

R. W. Moss.

Fausset's Bible Dictionary

Hebrew Cheerem ; "a thing or person devoted;" so, accursed to the Lord, and incapable of being redeemed, and, if a person, doomed to death ( Leviticus 27:28-29;  1 Corinthians 12:3;  1 Corinthians 16:22;  Galatians 1:9;  Romans 9:3, compare  Exodus 32:32). "I could wish that myself were accursed from Christ for my brethren," lit. "I was wishing," i.e., the wish was rising within me, so intense is my love for Israel, that I myself were sacrificed in soul as well as body for their sake, were such wish lawful, which it is not; the wish remained incomplete, checked by calmer and more sober thoughts, which vehement zeal for the moment forgot. It never passed beyond the region of deepfeeling, wherein he was transported momentarily out of all other considerations into the all absorbing one, "an ecstasy of charity" (Bacon). "ANATHEMA-MARANATHA" (i.e., "the Lord cometh")  1 Corinthians 16:22.

An Aramaic watchword of the first age, suitable for believers in all ages: If He come not to bless, He shall come to smite with a curse) alludes to  Malachi 4:5-6; "To those who fear In The New Testament 'Love' the Lord's name, He comes as the Sun of Righteousness with healing on His wings;" but to those who fear and love Him not, lie will come smiting the earth with a "curse" ( Cheerem or anathema). Paul pronounces the anathema on those loving Him not, while as yet He is not come, that by fleeing to Him now they may escape the curse and gain the blessing. Paul is God's inspired mouthpiece proclaiming the doom to which those not loving Jesus are set apart, and his inspired prayer of anathema is but praying that (God's will be done. In the Old Testament forcible setting apart to His glory of what ought to have been, but was not willingly, consecrated to Him, is implied.

So in the case of Jericho the city was so devoted to destruction, and all in it, except Rahab; and the silver, gold, brass, and iron, were consecrated to Jehovah ( Joshua 6:17-26). Similarly Israel's vow ( Numbers 21:1-3): "if Thou wilt deliver this people into my hand, I will utterly destroy (Hebrew Make A Cheerem Or Anathema Of) their cities." Therefore they called that place Hormah ( Chormah ), i.e., the place made a ( Cheerem ) or anathema of; put under a ban; devoted to God for destruction as accursed). This gives the true view of the dooming of the Canaanites; the sinners themselves were to be made an awful example of God's punitive justice to which they were set apart; their possessions were properly the Lord's, but were given by Him to Israel as a gift henceforth to be used to His glory.

The degree of the work of destruction varied: men alone ( Deuteronomy 20:18); men, women, and children, the cattle and spoil kept for the army ( Deuteronomy 2:34-35); every living creature ( Deuteronomy 20:16;  1 Samuel 15:3); virgins excepted ( Numbers 31:17). Had the Canaanites humbled themselves before God's judgment and submitted, they would have been spared; but they were given up to judicial hardening to their own ruin ( Joshua 11:19-20).

Easton's Bible Dictionary

Anath(ee)ma   Luke 21:5 Anathema Herem   Numbers 18:14 Leviticus 27:28,29 Anathema_ or _herem   Leviticus 27:21,28 Numbers 21:2,3 Joshua 6:17 Deuteronomy 7:26 Herem Anathema

In the New Testament this word always implies execration. In some cases an individual denounces an anathema on himself unless certain conditions are fulfilled (  Acts 23:12,14,21 ). "To call Jesus accursed" [anathema] ( 1 Corinthians 12:3 ) is to pronounce him execrated or accursed. If any one preached another gospel, the apostle says, "let him be accursed" ( Galatians 1:8,9 ); i.e., let his conduct in so doing be accounted accursed.

In  Romans 9:3 , the expression "accursed" (anathema) from Christ, i.e., excluded from fellowship or alliance with Christ, has occasioned much difficulty. The apostle here does not speak of his wish as a possible thing. It is simply a vehement expression of feeling, showing how strong was his desire for the salvation of his people.

The anathema in  1 Corinthians 16:22 denotes simply that they who love not the Lord are rightly objects of loathing and execration to all holy beings; they are guilty of a crime that merits the severest condemnation; they are exposed to the just sentence of "everlasting destruction from the presence of the Lord."

American Tract Society Bible Dictionary

That is, a curse, a ban, signifies properly something set apart, separated, devoted. It is understood principally to denote the absolute, irrevocable, and entire separation of a person from the communion of the faithful, or from the number of the living, or from the privileges of society; or the devoting of any man, animal, city or thing, to be extirpated, destroyed, consumed, and, as it were, annihilated,  Leviticus 27:1-34 . Thus Jericho,  Joshua 6:17-21 , and Achan were accursed,  Joshua 7:1-25 .

Another kind of anathema, very peculiarly expressed, occurs  1 Corinthians 16:22 : "If any man love not the Lord Jesus Christ let him be Anathema, Maranatha." This last word is made up of two Syriac words, signifying, "The Lord cometh," that is, the Lord will surely come, and will execute this curse, by condemning those who love him not. At the same time, the opposite is also implied, that is, the Lord cometh also to reward those who love him. See Excommunication .

Smith's Bible Dictionary

Anathema. Anathema, which literally means A Thing Suspended , is the equivalent of the Hebrew word signifying A Thing Or Person Voted . Any object so devoted to Jehovah was irredeemable. If an inanimate object, it was to be given to the priests,  Numbers 18:14, if a living creature or even a man, it was to be slain.  Leviticus 27:28-29.

The word Anathema frequently occurs in St. Paul's writings, and is generally translated Accused . An examination of the passages in which it occurs shows that it had acquired a more general sense as expressive either of strong feeling,  Romans 9:3, or of dislike and condemnation.  1 Corinthians 12:3;  1 Corinthians 16:22;  Galatians 1:9.

People's Dictionary of the Bible

Anathema ( A-Năth' Ĕ-Mah ), Set Apart, Separated, Devoted. This Greek word represents a Hebrew phrase which generally denoted among the Jews the absolute, irrevocable and entire separation of a person from the communion of the faithful, or from the privileges of society, or from the number of the living; or the devoting of any man, animal, city or thing, to be extirpated, destroyed, consumed, and, as it were, annihilated.  Joshua 6:17-21;  Joshua 7:1-26. Another kind of anathema, very peculiarly expressed, occurs in  1 Corinthians 16:22 : "If any man love not the Lord Jesus Christ, let him Be Anathema. Maranatha." This last word is made up of two Syro-Chaldaic words, signifying "The Lord cometh;" that is, the Lord will surely come, and will execute this curse by condemning those who love him not.

King James Dictionary

ANATH'EMA, n. Gr. to place behind, backward or at a distance, to separate.

1. Excommunication with curses. Hence, a curse or denunciation by ecclesiastical authority, accompanying excommunication. This species of excommunication was practiced in the ancient churches, against notorious offenders all churches were warned not to receive them all magistrates and private persons were admonished not to harbor or maintain them, and priests were enjoined not to converse with them, or attend their funeral.

There are two kinds of anathemas, judiciary and abjuratory. The former is pronounced by a council, pope or bishop the latter is the act of a convert who anathematizes the heresy which he abjures.

2. In heathen mythology, an offering, or present made to some deity and hung up in a temple. Whenever a person quitted his employment, he set apart, or dedicated his tools to his patron-deity. Persons who had escaped danger remarkably, or been otherwise very fortunate, testified their gratitude by some offering to their deity.

Morrish Bible Dictionary

This is a Greek word untranslated in  1 Corinthians 16:22; it occurs also in  Romans 9:3;  1 Corinthians 12:3;  Galatians 1:8,9 and is uniformly translated 'accursed.' The solemn passage in   1 Corinthians 16 is "If any man love not the Lord Jesus Christ, let him be accursed, Maranatha (the Lord cometh)." In Galatians it is said that if any person or even an angel from heaven preached any other gospel than that which they had received, let him be accursed. Two solemn denunciations relating to the person of the Lord Jesus and the gospel of God.

The word ἀνάθεμα was used for any votive offering in a heathen temple, which could not be redeemed; hence anything devoted. In the N.T. it is devoted to God's curse, destruction.

Charles Buck Theological Dictionary

Imports whatever is set apart, separated, or divided; but is most usually meant to express the cutting off of a person from the communion of the faithful. It was practiced in the primitive church against notorious offenders. Several councils also have pronounced anathemas against such as they thought corrupted the purity of the faith. Anathema Maranatha, mentioned by Paul, (1 Cor 4:22, ) imports that he who loves not the Lord Jesus will be accursed at his coming. Anathema signifies a thing devoted to destruction, and Maranatha is a Syriac word, signifying the Lord comes. It is probable in this passage there is an allusion to the form of the Jews, who when unable to inflict so great a punishment as the crime deserved, devoted the culprit to the immediate vindictive retribution of divine vengeance, both in this life and in a future state.

Watson's Biblical & Theological Dictionary

from ανατιθημι , signifies something set apart, separated, or devoted,  Micah 4:13 , or the formula by which this is effected. To anathematize is generally understood to denote the cutting off or separating any one from the communion of the faithful, the number of the living, or the privileges of society; or the devoting of an animal, city, or other thing, to destruction. See Accursed .

Webster's Dictionary

(1): (n.) A ban or curse pronounced with religious solemnity by ecclesiastical authority, and accompanied by excommunication. Hence: Denunciation of anything as accursed.

(2): (n.) An imprecation; a curse; a malediction.

(3): (n.) Any person or thing anathematized, or cursed by ecclesiastical authority.

Holman Bible Dictionary

 Leviticus 27:28 Deuteronomy 20:10-18 1 Corinthians 16:22 Romans 9:3 1 Corinthians 12:3 Galatians 1:8-9

Baker's Evangelical Dictionary of Biblical Theology

See Accursed Curse

Hastings' Dictionary of the Bible

ANATHEMA . See Ban.

Bridgeway Bible Dictionary

See Curse .

Cyclopedia of Biblical, Theological and Ecclesiastical Literature

( Ἀνάθεμα ) , literally any thing Laid Up or suspended (from Ἀνατίθημι , To Lay Up ) , and hence any thing laid up in a temple set apart as sacred ( 2 Maccabees 9:16). In this general sense the form employed is Ἀνάθημα , a word of not unfrequent occurrence in Greek classic authors, and found once in the N.T.,  Luke 21:5. The form Ἀνάθεμα , as well as its meaning, appears to be peculiar to the Hellenistic dialect (Valekenaer, Schol. 1, 593). The distinction has probably arisen from the special use made of the word by the Greek Jews. In the Sept. Ἀνάθεμα is the ordinary rendering of the Hebrew word חֵרֶם , Che'Rem (although in some instances it varies between the two forms, as in  Leviticus 27:28-29), and in order to ascertain its meaning it will be necessary to inquire into the signification of this word. The Alexandrine writers preferred the short penultimate in this and other kindred words (e.g. Ἐπίθεμα , Σύνθεμα ) ; but occasionally both forms occur in the MSS., as in  Judges 16:19;  2 Maccabees 13:15;  Luke 21:5 : no distinction therefore existed originally in the meaninzs of the words, as had been supposed by many early writers. The Hebrew חֵרֶם , Cherem, is derived from a verb signifying primarily to Shut Up, and hence to (1) Consecrate or Devote, and (2) Exterminate. Any object so devoted to the Lord was irredeemable: if an inanimate object, it was to be given to the priests ( Numbers 18:14); if a living creature, or even a man, it was to be slain ( Leviticus 27:28-29); hence the idea of Extermination as connected with devoting. Generally speaking, a vow of this description was taken only with respect to the idolatrous nations who were marked out for destruction by the special decree of Jehovah, as in  Numbers 21:2;  Joshua 6:17; but occasionally the vow was made indefinitely, and involved the death of the innocent, as is illustrated in the case of Jephthah's daughter ( Judges 11:31), according to many, and certainly in that of Jonathan ( 1 Samuel 14:24), who was only saved by the interposition of the people. The breach of such a vow on the part of any one directly or indirectly participating in it was punished with death ( Joshua 7:25). In addition to these cases of spontaneous devotion on the part of individuals, the verb חָרִם , Charam', is frequently applied to the extermination of idolatrous nations: in such cases the, idea of a Vow appears to be dropped, and the word assumes a purely secondary sense (Sept. Ἐξολοθρεύω ) ; or, if the original meaning is still to be retained, it may be in the sense of Jehovah ( Isaiah 34:2) Shutting Up, i.e. Placing Under A Ban, and so necessitating. the Destruction of them, in order to prevent all contact. The extermination being the result of a positive command ( Exodus 22:20), the idea of a vow is excluded, although doubtless the instances already referred to ( Numbers 21:2.;  Joshua 6:17) show. how a vow was occasionally superadded to the command. — It may be further noticed that the degree to which the work of destruction was carried out varied. Thus it applied to the destruction of

(1) men alone ( Deuteronomy 20:13);

(2) men, women, and children ( Deuteronomy 2:34);

(3) virgins excepted ( Numbers 31:17;  Judges 21:11);

(4). all living creatures ( Deuteronomy 20:16;  1 Samuel 15:3);

the spoil in the former cases were reserved for the use of the army ( Deuteronomy 2:35;  Deuteronomy 20:14;  Joshua 22:8), instead of being given over to the priesthood, as was the case in the recorded vow of Joshua ( Joshua 6:19). (See Vow).

I. We thus find that the Cherem was a person or thing consecrated or devoted irrevocably to God, and that it differed from any thing merely vowed or sanctified to the Lord in this respect, that the latter could be re'deemed ( Leviticus 27:1-27), while the former was irreclaimable ( Leviticus 27:21;  Leviticus 27:28); hence, in reference to living creatures, the devoted thing, whether man or beast, must be put to death ( Leviticus 27:29). The prominent idea, therefore, which the word conveyed was that of a person or thing devoted to destruction, or accursed. Thus the cities of the Canaanites were anathematized ( Numbers 21:2-3), and, after their complete destruction, the name of the place was called Hormah ( חָרְמָה ; Sept. Ἀνάθεμα ) . Thus, again, the city of Jericho was made an Anathema to the Lord ( Joshua 6:17); that is, every living thing in it (except Rahab and her family) was devoted to death; that which could be destroyed by fire was burnt, and all that could not be thus consumed (as gold and silver):was forever alienated from man and devoted to the use of the sanctuary ( Joshua 6:24). The prominence thus given to the idea of A Thing Accursed led naturally to the use of the word in cases where there was no reference whatever to consecration to the service of God, as in  Deuteronomy 7:26, where an idol is called חֵרֶם , or Ἀνάθεμα , and the Israelites are warned against idolatry lest they should be anathema like it. In these instances the term denotes the object of the curse, but it is sometimes used to designate the curse itself (e.g.  Deuteronomy 20:17, Sept.; comp.  Acts 23:14), and it is in this latter sense that the English word is generally employed.

In this sense, also, the Jews of later times use the Hebrew term, though with a somewhat different meaning as to the curse intended. The חֵרֶם , Cherem, of the rabbins signifies excommunication or exclusion from the Jewish Church. The more recent rabbinical writers reckon three kinds or degrees of excommunication, all of which are occasionally designated by this generic term (Elias Levita, in Sepher Tisbi ) .

1. The first of these, נִדּוּי , Nidau'I, Separation, is merely in temporary separation or suspension from ecclesiastical privileges, involving, however, various civil inconveniences, particularly seclusion from society to the distance of four cubits. The person thus excommunicated was not debarred entering the temple, but instead of going in on the right hand, as was customary, he was obliged to enter on the left, the usual way of departure: if he died while in this condition there was no mourning for him, but a stone was thrown on his coffin to indicate that he was separated from the people and had deserved stoning. Buxtorf (Lex. Talm. col. 1304) enumerates twenty-four causes of this kind of excommunication: it lasted thirty days, and was pronounced without a curse. If the individual did not repent at the expiration of the term (which, however, according to Buxtorf, was extended in such cases to sixty or ninety days), the second kind of excommunication was resorted to.

2 This was called simply and more properly חֵרֶם , Cherem, Curse. It could only be pronounced by an assembly of at least ten persons, and was always accompanied with curses. The formula employed is given at length by Buxtorf ( Lex. col. 828). A person thus excommunicated was cut off from all religious and social privileges: it was unlawful either to eat or drink with him (comp.  1 Corinthians 5:11). The curse could be dissolved, however, by three common persons, or by one person of dignity.

3. If the excommunicated person still continued impenitent, a yet more severe sentence was, according to the rabbins, pronounced against him, which was termed שִׁמִּתָּא , Sham'-Mata',' Imprecation (Elias Levita,'in Tisbi ) . It is described: as a complete excision from the Church and the giving up of the individual to the judgment of God and to final perdition. There is, however, reason to believe that these three grades are of recent origin. The Talmudists frequently use the term by which the first and last are designated interchangeably, and some rabbinical writers (whom Lightfoot has followed in his force Hebr. et Talmi ad  1 Corinthians 5:5) consider,the last to be a lower grade than the second; yet it is probable that the classification rests on the fact that the sentence was more or less severe according to the circumstances of the case; and though we cannot expect to find the three grades distinctly marked in the writings in the N.T., we may not improbably consider the phrase "put out of the synagogue," Ἀποσυνάγαγον Ποιεῖν ,  John 16:2 (comp. joh 9:22; 12:42), as referring to a lighter censure than is intended by one or more of the three terms used in  Luke 6:22, where perhaps different grades are intimated. The phrase "deliver over to Satan" ( 1 Corinthians 5:5;  1 Timothy 1:20) has been by many commentators understood to refer to the most severe kind of excommunication. Even admitting the allusion, however, there is a very important difference between the Jewish censure and the formula employed by the apostle. In the Jewish sense it would signify the delivering over of the transgressor to final perdition, while the apostle expressly limits his sentence to the "destruction of the flesh" (i.e. the depraved nature), and resorts to it in order "that the spirit may be saved in the day of the Lord Jesus," (See Accursed).

II. But, whatever diversity of opinion there may be as to the degrees of excommunication, it is on all hands admitted that the term חֵרֶם , with which we are more particularly concerned as the equivalent of the Greek Ἀνάθεμα , properly denotes, in its rabbinical use, an excommunication accompanied with the most severe curses and denunciations of evil. We are therefore prepared to find that the anathema of the N.T. always implies execration; but it yet remains to be ascertained whether it is ever used to designate a judicial act of excommunication. That there is frequently no such reference is very clear: in some instances the individual denounces the anathema on himself, unless certain conditions are fulfilled. The Inoun and its corresponding verb are thus used in  Acts 23:12;  Acts 23:14;  Acts 23:21, and the verb occurs with a similar meaning in  Matthew 26:74;  Mark 14:71. The phrase "to call Jesus anathema" ( 1 Corinthians 12:3) refers not to a judicial sentence pronounced by the Jewish authorities, but to the act of any private individual who execrated him and pronounced him accursed. That this was a common practice among the Jews appears from the rabbinical writings. The term, as it is used in reference to any who should preach another gospel, "Let him be anathema" ( Galatians 1:8-9), has the same meaning as let him be accounted execrable and accursed. In none of these instances do we find any reason to think that the word was employed to designate specifically and technically excommunication either from the Jewish or the Christian Church. There remain only two passages in which the word occurs in the N.T., both presenting considerable difficulty to the translator.

(a.) With regard to the first of these ( Romans 9:3), Grotius and others understand the phrase "accursed from Christ," Ἀνἀθεμα Εϊ v Ναι Ἀπὸ Τοῦ Χριστοῦ , to signify excommunication from the Christian Church, while most of the fathers, together with Tholuck, Ruckert, and a great number of modern interpreters, explain the term as referring to the Jewish practice of excommunication. On the other hand, Deyling, Olshausen, De Wette, and many more, adopt the more general meaning of accursed. The great difficulty is to ascertain the extent of the evil which Paul expresses his willingness to undergo; Chrysostom, Calvin, and many others understand it to include final separation, not, indeed, from the love, but from the presence of Christ; others limit it to a violent death; and others, again, explain it as meaning the same kind of curse as that under which they might be delivered by repentance and the reception of the Gospel (Deylingii Observatt. Sacrae, pt. 2, p. 495 and sq.). It would occupy too much space to refer to other interpretations of the passage, or to pursue the investigation of it further. There seems, however, little reason to suppose that a judicial act of the Christian Church is intended, and we may remark that much of the difficulty which commentators have felt seems to have arisen from their not keeping in mind that the apostle does not speak of his wish as, a possible thing, and their consequently pursuing to all its results what should be regarded simply as an expression of the most intense desire ( Ηὐχόμην῟Ηὐχόμην Ἄν , I could wish, i.e. were such a thing proper or available, see Winer, Idioms, p. 222). Some have even thought (taking the verb as a Historical Imperfect) that the apostle was simply referring to his former detestation of Christ, when yet unconverted (see Bloomfield, Recensao Synopt. in loc.), and Tregelles proposes ( Account Of Gr. Text Of N.T. p. 219) to remove the difficulty altogether in this way, by enclosing the clause in question in a parenthesis. See Woltii Curae, in loc.; Poll synopsis, in loc.; Trautermann, Illustratio (Jen. 1758); Meth. Quart. Rev. 1863, p. 420 sq. (See Ban).

(b.) The phrase Anathema Maran-Atha (See Anathema Maran-Atha) , Ἀνάθεμα Μαρὰν Ἀθά ( 1 Corinthians 16:22), has been considered by many to be equivalent to the שִׁמִּתָּא , Shammata, of the rabbins, the third and most severe form of excommunication. This opinion is derived from the supposed etymological identity of the Syriac phrase itself, maran-atha (q.v.), מָרָן אֲתָא , "the Lord cometh," with the Hebrew word which is considered by these commentators to be derived from אֲתָה שֵׁם , Shem Atha, "the Name (i.e. Jehovah) cometh." This explanation, however, can rank no higher than a plausible conjecture, since it is supported by no historical evidence. The Hebrew term is never found thus divided, nor is it ever thus explained by Jewish writers, who, on the contrary, give etymologies different from this (Buxtorf, Lex. col. 2466). It is, moreover, very uncertain whether this third kind of excommunication was in use in the time of Paul; and the phrase which he employs is not found in any rabbinical writer (Lightfoot, Horae Hebr. et Talm. on  1 Corinthians 16:22). The literal meaning of the words is clear, but it is not easy to understand why the Syriac phrase is here employed, or what is its meaning in connection with anathema. Lightfoot supposes that the apostle uses it to signify that he pronounced this anathema against the Jews. However this may be, the supposition that the anathema, whatever be its precise object, is intended to designate excommunication from the Christian Church, as Grotius and Augusti understand it, appears to rest on very slight grounds: it seems preferable to regard it, with Lightfoot, Olshausen, and most other commentators, as simply an expression of detestation. Though, however, we find little or no evidence of the use of the word anathema in the N, T. as the technical term for excommunication, it is certain that'it obtained this meaning in the early ages of the Church; for it is thus employed in the apostolic canons, in the canons of various councils, by Chrysostom, Theodoret, and other Greek fathers (Suiceri Thesaurus Eccl. s. vv. Ἀνάθεμα and Ἀφορισμός ) . (See Excommunication).

III. Anathema, in ecclesiastical usage, is the cutting off any person from the communion or privileges of a society. The anathema differed from simple ex communication in being attended with curses and execrations. It signifies not only to cut off the living from the Church, but the dead from salvation. It was practiced in the early Church against notorious offenders. The form has been preserved: the following was pronounced by Synesius against one Andronicus: "Let no Church of God be open to Andronicus and his accomplices, but let every sacred temple and church be shut against them. I admonish both private men and magistrates to receive them neither under their roof nor to their table; and priests, more especially, that they neither converse with them living nor attend their funerals when dead." When any one was thus anathematized, notice was given to the neighboring churches, and occasionally to the churches over the world, that all might confirm and ratify this act of discipline by refusing to admit such a one into their communion. The form of denouncing anathemas against heresies and heretics is very ancient. But as zeal about opinions increased, and Christians began to set a higher value on trifles than on the weightier matters of the law, it became acommon practice to add anathemas to every point in which men differed from each other. At the Council of Trent a whole body of divinity was put into canons, and an anathema affixed to each. How fearful an instrument of power the anathema was in the hands of popes in the Middle Ages is attested by history. Popes still continue to hurl anathemas against heretics, which are little regarded. — Bingham, Orig. Eccles, bk. 16, ch. 2, § 16. (See Interdict).

Treatises on this subject are the following: Dirr, )De anathemate (Alta. 1662); Baldwin, De anathematismis (Viteb. 1620); Bose, in Winckler's Tenpe sacr. p. 231 sq.; Fecht, De precibus contra alios (Rost. 1708); Pipping, De imprecationibus (Lips. 1721); Pisanski, Vindiciae Psalmorum ob execrationes (Regiom. 1779); Poncarius, De imprecationibus in impios, in the Bibl.'Lubec. p. 565 sq. (See Imprecation).

Kitto's Popular Cyclopedia of Biblial Literature

Anath´ema, literally anything laid up or suspended, and hence anything laid up in a temple, set apart as sacred.

The corresponding Hebrew word means a person or thing consecrated or devoted irrevocably to God ( Leviticus 27:21;  Leviticus 27:28): hence, in reference to living creatures, the devoted thing, whether man or beast, must be put to death ( Leviticus 27:29). The prominent idea, therefore, which the word conveyed was that of a person or thing devoted to destruction, or accursed. Thus the cities of the Canaanites were anathematized ( Numbers 21:2-3). Thus, again, the city of Jericho was made an anathema to the Lord ( Joshua 6:17), that is, every living thing in it (except Rahab and her family) was devoted to death; that which could be destroyed by fire was burned and all that could not be thus consumed (as gold and silver) was for ever alienated from man and devoted to the use of the sanctuary ( Joshua 6:24). The prominence thus given to the idea of a thingsaccursed led naturally to the use of the word in cases where there was no reference whatever to consecration to the service of God, as in  Deuteronomy 7:26; it is sometimes used to designate the curse itself (e.g.  Deuteronomy 20:17).

In this sense, also, the Jews of later times use the Hebrew term, though with a somewhat different meaning as to the curse intended, employing it to signify excommunication or exclusion from the Jewish church. The more recent Rabbinical writers reckon three kinds or degrees of excommunication. The first of these is merely a temporary separation or suspension from ecclesiastical privileges, involving, however, various civil inconveniences, particularly seclusion from society to the distance of four cubits. The person thus excommunicated was not debarred entering the temple, but instead of going in on the right hand, as was customary, he was obliged to enter on the left, the usual way of departure; if he died while in this condition there was no mourning for him, but a stone was thrown on his coffin to indicate that he was separated from the people and had deserved stoning. This kind of excommunication lasted thirty days, and was pronounced without a curse. If the individual did not repent at the expiration of the term, the second kind of excommunication was resorted to. This could only be pronounced by an assembly of at least ten persons, and was always accompanied with curses. A person thus excommunicated was cut off from all religious and social privileges: and it was unlawful either to eat or drink with him (compare  1 Corinthians 5:11). If the excommunicated person still continued impenitent, a yet more severe sentence was pronounced against him, which, is described as a complete excision from the church and the giving up of the individual to the judgment of God and to final perdition. There is, however, reason to believe that these three grades are of comparatively recent origin.

As it is on all hands admitted that the Hebrew term which is the equivalent of anathema properly denotes, in its Rabbinical use, an excommunication accompanied with the most severe curses and denunciations of evil, we are prepared to find that the anathema of the New Testament always implies execration; but it is very doubtful whether it is ever used to designate a judicial act of excommunication. The phrase 'to call Jesus anathema' ( 1 Corinthians 12:3) refers not to a judicial sentence pronounced by the Jewish authorities, but to the act of any private individual who execrated him and pronounced him accursed. The term, as it is used in reference to any who should preach another gospel, 'Let him be anathema' ( Galatians 1:8-9), has the same meaning as, let him be accounted execrable and accursed. There is very great diversity of opinion respecting the meaning of the word in  Romans 9:3; some understand it to signify excommunication from the Christian church, whilst most of the fathers, together with a great number of modern interpreters, explain the term as referring to the Jewish practice of excommunication. On the other hand, many adopt the more general meaning of accursed. The great difficulty is to ascertain the extent of the evil which Paul expresses his willingness to undergo; Chrysostom, Calvin, and many others understand it to include final separation, not indeed from the love, but from the presence of Christ; others limit it to a violent death; and others, again, explain it as meaning the same kind of curse as that under which the Jews then were, from which they might be delivered by repentance and the reception of the Gospel. There seems, however, little reason to suppose that a judicial act of the Christian Church is intended, and we may remark that much of the difficulty which commentators have felt seems to have arisen from their not keeping in mind that the Apostle does not speak of his wish as a possible thing, and their consequently pursuing to all its results what should be regarded simply as an expression of the most intense desire. The phrase 'let him be anathema maran-atha,' seems to be intended as simply an expression of detestation. Though, however, we find little or no evidence of the use of the word anathema in the New Testament as the technical term for excommunication, it is certain that it obtained this meaning in the early ages of the church.

International Standard Bible Encyclopedia

a - nath´ē̇ - ma ( ἀνάθεμα , anáthema ): This word occurs only once in the King James Version, namely, in the phrase "Let him be anathema. Maranatha" ( 1 Corinthians 16:22 ); elsewhere the King James Version renders anathema by "accursed" ( Romans 9:3;  1 Corinthians 12:3;  Galatians 1:8 ,  Galatians 1:9 ), once by "curse" ( Acts 23:12 ). Both words - anathēma and anathema ̌ - were originally dialectical variations and had the same connotation, namely, offering to the gods. The non-Attic form - anathema ̌ - was adopted in the Septuagint as a rendering of the Hebrew ḥērem (see Accursed ), and gradually came to have the significance of the Hebrew word - "anything devoted to destruction." Whereas in the Greek Fathers anathema ̌ - as ḥērem in rabbinic Hebrew - came to denote excommunication from society, in the New Testament the word has its full force. In common speech it evidently became a strong expression of execration, and the term connoted more than physical destruction; it invariably implied moral worthlessness . In  Romans 9:3 Paul does not simply mean that, for the sake of his fellow-countrymen, he is prepared to face death, but to endure the moral degradation of an outcast from the kingdom of Christ. In   1 Corinthians 12:3 the expression, "Jesus is anathema" - with its suggestion of moral unfitness - reaches the lowest depths of depreciation, as the expression, "Jesus is Lord," reaches the summit of appreciation.