Exploring the Meaning of Chasma in Greek

χάσμα means “chasm” and appears in the saying about the “great gulf fixed” in Luke 16:26. In that scene the term names the decisive separation that governs whether anyone can move from one side to the other.

Occurrences

“Besides all this, between us and you there is a great gulf fixed, that those who want to pass from here to you are not able, and that no one may cross over from there to us.’” (Luke 16:26)

Here χάσμα is the central image in the sentence: it is “between us and you,” and it is described as “great” and “fixed.” The word functions as the noun that gives shape to the relationship between two groups—“us” and “you”—by defining the space that lies between them. The statement is not merely that there is distance, but that a gulf has been set in place with lasting effect: the clause “fixed” marks it as established rather than temporary. In the logic of the saying, the chasm explains why intention cannot produce movement: “those who want to pass from here to you are not able.” The inability is grounded not in lack of desire (“want to pass”) but in the presence of the χάσμα. The sentence then reinforces the point by reversing the direction: “no one may cross over from there to us.” With both directions named, the chasm serves as a one image summary of a two-way barrier, making the separation mutual and final within the world of the saying.

The surrounding phrasing also shows what χάσμα does rhetorically. It is introduced with “Besides all this,” as an additional reason that stands alongside whatever else has already been said. The χάσμα therefore carries explanatory weight: it is not decorative description but a reason given for why an appeal or request cannot be met by crossing from one side to the other. The “great” quality heightens the impossibility; the “fixed” quality makes it durable; and the two clauses about not being able to pass and not being able to cross interpret the image so that the reader understands it as an enforced separation, not merely an observed feature of the setting.

Sense and Usage

In Luke 16:26, “chasm” is used as spatial language that communicates a relational reality: it stands between persons (“between us and you”) and determines what kinds of contact are possible. The verse ties the noun directly to movement verbs—“pass” and “cross over”—so that the sense of a chasm is experienced as a restriction on passage. The focus is not on the shape, depth, or composition of the gulf, but on its practical consequence: attempted movement across it fails. In this way, the term functions less as a scenic detail and more as the governing condition of the encounter described in the speech.

The verse also frames the χάσμα as something established: it is “fixed.” This description shapes the way the chasm is understood within the narrative world. A gulf might be imagined as simply existing, but Luke 16:26 speaks of it as set in place—stable, not shifting, and not open to negotiation. That stability is what makes the subsequent statements about inability sound categorical rather than provisional. The speaker does not say crossing is difficult, dangerous, or unlikely; the speaker says crossing is not possible. The χάσμα, by being “fixed,” turns what might otherwise be a matter of effort into a matter of impossibility.

Another feature of the usage is symmetry. The sentence is carefully balanced: those who would go “from here to you” cannot, and likewise “no one” can go “from there to us.” The chasm is thus presented as impartially effective. The noun names a barrier that applies to both sides, regardless of who is attempting the crossing. Because both directions are explicitly stated, the χάσμα is not simply a barrier that keeps one party out; it is a barrier that prevents any transfer of persons between the two locations. The word therefore carries, in this verse, the full weight of mutual separation.

The verse’s structure also shows that the χάσμα is not the only element in view (“Besides all this”), yet it is singled out as decisive. Within the single sentence, the chasm moves from being identified (“there is a great gulf fixed”) to being interpreted through consequences (“are not able,” “may [not] cross over”). This progression from image to explanation gives χάσμα a clarifying role: it helps the audience understand why a desire to go from one side to the other does not result in action.

Imagery

Luke 16:26 presents χάσμα as an unseen line made visible by the metaphor of a gulf—an expanse that lies “between” and makes crossing impossible. The imagery is stark: two sides exist within speaking distance, yet a “great” divide governs their relation. By portraying the separation as a chasm that is “fixed,” the verse evokes an immovable boundary that defines the limits of passage in both directions.

Sources: Lexical data from Strong’s Exhaustive Concordance and the Translators Brief Lexicon of Extended Strongs for Greek (STEPBible, CC BY). Occurrence data from the Translators Amalgamated Greek New Testament (STEPBible, CC BY). Scripture quotations from the World English Bible (public domain).