The familiar adjective νεος (neos), means new and in that sense young (1 Timothy 5:11, Titus 2:4), fresh (1 Corinthians 5:7), or of wine, fresh and still fermenting (Matthew 9:17), or renewed or of a new kind (Colossians 3:10, Hebrews 12:24). But have a look at the following words:

• The noun ναος (naos), meaning temple, from the verb ναιω (naio) meaning to dwell or abide.
• The noun ναυς (naus), meaning ship, from the verb ναω (nao), meaning to flow. From this verb derives the verb ναιω (naio), meaning to overflow or be full, which is identical to the previous verb.
• The verb νευω (neoo), meaning to nod, incline or assent; to convey information by means of gestures rather than words. This verb also marks a developmental phase prior to that of speech.
• Our adjective νεος (neos), meaning new. This word may derive from the form νεω, which represents one noun meaning next [year], and three identical verbs, meaning (1a) to heap or pile up, or (1b) to be stuffed, (2) to swim or float, (3) to spin [what the Fates were known for; spinning out the fate(s) of mortals].

It takes no great poetic leap to see the distinct similarities between these words, which seem to beg for the hypothesis that they all derive from one and the same ancient Proto-Indo-European root. This root would have expressed both accumulation and fullness, and if this root stems from the earliest agricultural periods, it would possibly express the miracle of one seed that grows within in a plant, reaches fullness and separates from the plant, and then brings forth that same plant. People like to believe that the idea of divinity stemmed from fear of nature and artificial consolation, but here at Abarim Publications we don't think so.

We are guessing that ideas such as expressed in John 12:24 reflect the most basic sense of divinity (and humanity for that matter), and lay at the heart of the quest for social cohesion, which ultimately resulted in the development of language, and then trade and exploration. In fact, burying deceased people may have been derived from the act of planting (also because what isn't planted is eaten), and the idea of an afterlife may have explained why one's dead grandfather didn't germinate. It's been said that man is a species with amnesia, but the miracle of the seed is a heck of a thing to forget.

Our adjective νεος (neos) is employed 24 times in the New Testament, see full concordance, and from it come the following derivations, and note how easily this root takes on the hues of the other words mentioned above: