📖 Biblical Definition
The sting of death is Paul's phrase in 1 Corinthians 15:55-56, citing Hosea 13:14: O death, where is thy sting? O grave, where is thy victory? The sting of death is sin; and the strength of sin is the law. The image is of a scorpion or wasp: death stings because of sin; remove sin, and the sting is gone. Christ's resurrection is therefore the de-fanging of death.
📜 Webster 1828 Definition
(1 Corinthians 15:55-56.) Paul's figure for the deathly power of sin and law, neutralized by Christ's resurrection.
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Hosea 13:14 (Paul's source) is itself a complex passage; in Hosea's context it may be a question or a threat; Paul reads it triumphantly through the resurrection.
The argument: death's power over the saint is sin; sin's leverage on the conscience is the law; Christ has removed sin (cross) and fulfilled the law (active obedience); therefore death's sting is removed for those in Him. Death still occurs but no longer has its venom.
📖 Key Scripture
1 Corinthians 15:55 — "O death, where is thy sting? O grave, where is thy victory?"
1 Corinthians 15:56 — "The sting of death is sin; and the strength of sin is the law."
1 Corinthians 15:57 — "But thanks be to God, which giveth us the victory through our Lord Jesus Christ."
Hosea 13:14 — "I will ransom them from the power of the grave; I will redeem them from death: O death, I will be thy plagues; O grave, I will be thy destruction."
⚠️ Modern Corruption
Modern Christianity often pretends death is fine; Scripture is more honest — death is a real enemy with a real sting, and Christ alone has removed it.
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Christian funerals should not deny death's reality. Death is the last enemy (1 Cor 15:26); it is bitter; the saint may grieve genuinely. The hope is not that death is unreal but that its sting is removed.
Christ at Lazarus's tomb wept (Jn 11:35) before raising him. The pattern stands: weep at death; weep with hope; thank God for the victory through our Lord Jesus Christ.
🔗 Greek & Hebrew Roots
Greek kentron — goad, sting; the venomous puncture.
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Greek kentron — sting, goad; same word in Acts 9:5 (kicking against the pricks).
Note: the same word in Revelation 9:10 (the locusts of the fifth trumpet have stings in their tails).
Usage
"Christ's resurrection is the de-fanging of death."
"Weep at death; weep with hope."
"The hope is not that death is unreal but that its sting is removed."