The Greek verb apothnesko (G599) is the standard New Testament word for dying — both physical death and spiritual death. It is a compound of apo (intensive/away) and thnesko (to die), emphasizing the completeness of death. The word appears over 100 times in the New Testament, making it the primary vocabulary for mortality, martyrdom, and the theological reality of death under sin.
Apothnesko is at the center of Paul's theology of the cross and resurrection. In Romans 6:2, Paul declares that believers have 'died (apethanomen) to sin' — they participate in Christ's death through baptism and are therefore no longer under sin's dominion. In Romans 14:8, Paul uses the word in both directions: 'Whether we live or die (apothneskomen), we belong to the Lord.' The Christian relationship to apothnesko is transformed by Christ's death and resurrection: death is no longer the end but the passage to fullness of life. As Paul writes in Philippians 1:21: 'For to me, to live is Christ and to die (apothane) is gain.'