The Greek word oude (οὐδέ) is a strong compound negative meaning 'neither,' 'nor,' or 'not even.' It intensifies negation beyond the simple ou (not). It appears about 143 times in the NT.
Oude drives some of Scripture's most emphatic theological statements. Paul's declaration in Romans 8:38–39 uses oude repeatedly: 'neither death nor life, neither angels nor demons... nor anything else in all creation will be able to separate us from the love of God.' The cascading negatives build to an unbreakable certainty. In Acts 4:12, oude marks the exclusivity of salvation: 'Salvation is found in no one else, for there is no other name under heaven given to mankind by which we must be saved.' Jesus uses oude to highlight divine provision: 'Yet I tell you that not even Solomon in all his splendor was dressed like one of these' (Matthew 6:29). Negation in Scripture often proclaims absolute truth.